Mikkeli

Mikkeli
S:t Michel
Town
Mikkelin kaupunki
S:t Michel stad

Mikkeli

Coat of arms

Location of Mikkeli in Finland
Coordinates: 61°41′N 027°16′E / 61.683°N 27.267°E / 61.683; 27.267Coordinates: 61°41′N 027°16′E / 61.683°N 27.267°E / 61.683; 27.267
Country Finland
Region Southern Savonia
Sub-region Mikkeli sub-region
Charter 1838
Government
 • Mayor Kimmo Mikander
Area (2011-01-01)[1]
 • Total 2,124.60 km2 (820.31 sq mi)
 • Land 1,699.90 km2 (656.34 sq mi)
 • Water 424.7 km2 (164.0 sq mi)
Area rank 39th largest in Finland
Population (2015-06-30)[2]
 • Total 54,486
 • Rank 20th largest in Finland
 • Density 32.05/km2 (83.0/sq mi)
Population by native language[3]
 • Finnish 97.7% (official)
 • Swedish 0.1%
 • Others 2.2%
Population by age[4]
 • 0 to 14 15.6%
 • 15 to 64 65.7%
 • 65 or older 18.7%
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Municipal tax rate[5] 19.5%
Website Official website

Mikkeli (Swedish: S:t Michel official writing, short for Sankt Michel) is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located in what used to be the province of Eastern Finland and is part of the Southern Savonia region. The municipality has a population of 54,486 (30 June 2015)[2] (around 34,000 in the town itself) and covers an area of 2,124.60 square kilometres (820.31 sq mi) of which 424.7 km2 (164.0 sq mi) is water. The population density is 32.05 inhabitants per square kilometre (83.0/sq mi) .

Mikkeli was the site for the headquarters of the Finnish armed forces during World War II. In recognition of this, the town's coat of arms incorporates a pair of crossed Marshal's batons, and the town was awarded the Cross of Liberty, 4th class, to be displayed with the coat of arms.

History

The peace treaty of Nöteborg in 1323, with which the Pogosta (church parish) of Savilahti was transferred from the control of Novgorod to Sweden, is the oldest written record of the settlement in the present region of Mikkeli. The locality received its present name Mikkeli after Archangel Michael by the early 16th century at the latest.[6]

On January 23, 1597, more than 200 peasant rebels were killed in the parsonage of Kenkävero in part of the larger Cudgel War. In the war waged by King Gustav III of Sweden against Russia 1788–1790, a battle took place at Porrassalmi Strait, a few miles south of Mikkeli. On June 13, 1789. In the battle the Swedes (the Finns) victoriously defended their positions against superior numbers of Russians.

Mikkeli was granted town rights in 1838.[7] The provincial government of the province of Mikkeli that had been established in 1831, moved from Heinola to Mikkeli in 1843.

In 1918 during the Civil War, the headquarters of the White Army were established in Mikkeli.[8] Mikkeli was located in a conservative farming area and it was a White stronghold. But elements of the Russian army garrison in the area supported the Reds. A major engagement was fought around the railway station at Mantyharju, about 20 km (12 mi) to the south of Mikkeli, when the Whites blocked a Red thrust coming north out of Kouvola. During the Winter War and Continuation War, the headquarters of the Finnish Army was located in Mikkeli.[9] The Army staff made their base in a local secondary school. At the site of that school is the small Headquarters Museum (Päämajamuseo) containing photographs and memorabilia of the era. Because the headquarters of the army was based there, Mikkeli was bombed heavily. But since there was almost no "high-rise" development at that time, the damage was quickly repaired. Architecturally most of prewar Mikkeli doesn't exist anymore.

Map of urban Mikkeli
Mannerheim's carriage

Wartime Mikkeli is identified with Marshal Mannerheim, the commander of the Finnish army and later President of Finland. His personal railway carriage, which he used as a command post during the war, is parked in a siding at Mikkeli station. It is possible to look inside the carriage through its windows at any time. But public entry to the carriage is only permitted once a year, on Mannerheim's birthday (June 4). The carriage was the venue of Mannerheim's famous 1942 meeting (near Immola) with Hitler, on which occasion a private conversation between the two men was secretly recorded. Photographs of this meeting are on display in the carriage. Mannerheim was a regular diner at the Mikkelin Klubi, where his favourite drink was schnapps. One of the main museums in the town is the Infantry Museum (Jalkaväkimuseo) located in one of the former army barracks, close to the University of Applied Sciences.[10] It contains exhibits from the four wars in Finland's modern history – the Civil, Winter, Continuation and Lapland Wars. The museum also contains an exhibit dedicated to Finnish war hero Lauri Törni.[11]

In 1997 there was a province reform, which made Mikkeli the capital of the new province of Eastern Finland. In a separate reform, the rural municipality of Mikkeli which had surrounded the town and the municipality of Anttola were consolidated to Mikkeli in the beginning of the year 2001. The municipality of Haukivuori was consolidated with Mikkeli on January 1, 2007.

Geography

The centre of Mikkeli is located on a low rise, near the shore of a bay of Lake Saimaa.[12] There are several small lakes in and around the town. The lakes of the eastern parts of the town belong to the water system of River Vuoksi. In the west the town reaches Lake Puula that belongs to the water system of River Kymijoki.

Demographics

The municipality has a population of 54,486 (30 June 2015)[2] (around 34,000 in the town itself) and covers an area of 2,124.60 square kilometres (820.31 sq mi) of which 424.7 km2 (164.0 sq mi) is water. The population density is 32.05 inhabitants per square kilometre (83.0/sq mi) .

The municipality is unilingually Finnish (only 0.15% of Mikkelians speak Swedish as their first language).[3]

Education

In 1965, the town was selected as the site for a new higher education college specialising in professional, engineering and vocational studies. Polytechnic received its first intake of students in 1969. It was originally housed in an old Russian army barracks on the outskirts of town. Purpose built accommodation has since been added, but the old buildings are still in use. For example, the student union is located in the "Officers' Club" building. The Polytechnic changed its name to University of Applied Sciences in 2006 and currently receives around 4,500 students each year from around the world. (Hence, the name has not been approved by the Finnish Ministry of Education.) Its International Studies Centre runs business, engineering and IT courses delivered in English.[13] It offers some degree programmes which are wholly delivered in English.[13] but the University of Applied Sciences's main language of delivery is Finnish.

Several other universities also have operations in Mikkeli. The Mikkeli University Consortium includes units from University of Helsinki, Aalto University (formerly Helsinki School of Economics), University of Eastern Finland and Lappeenranta University of Technology.[14] Aalto offers a highly ranked Bachelor of Science degree in international business, taught in English, which draws students and faculty from around the world.[15]

Culture

Mikkeli town centre, the market square in August 2013

Mikkeli has its own airport (domestic flights only), railway station (five trains to and from Helsinki, daily) and a concert hall. The latter is a genuinely world class facility, built in 1988 to commemorate Mikkeli's 150th anniversary as a town.[16] The concert hall is the home of St. Michel Strings chamber orchestra, and also provides the main venue for the annual Mikkeli International Music Festival, which attracts musicians and audiences from across Europe. For example, Mariinsky Opera led by Valery Gergiev performs there regularly.[17] The University of Applied Sciences is now the largest single employer in the town. It employs around 400 full-time teaching staff plus around 900 support and services staff. Other local employers operate in the forestry, paper, printing, farming and light manufacturing sectors.[18] The Mikpoli complex houses many local companies. Mikkeli is also a major holiday resort within the Finnish lakeland area.

Sport

Jukurit is an ice hockey team in Mikkeli. The team has won six Mestis's championships (2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2013 and 2015).[19]

Mikkelin Kampparit, or just Kampparit, plays in the highest bandy division.[20] In 2012, they became Finnish champions for the first time.[21]

The local football team is the First Division Mikkelin Palloilijat (MP). Olli Rehn used to play there for 13 years (youth teams 1968–78, first team 1979–82).[22]

Notable people

International relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

Mikkeli is twinned with:

Picture gallery

References

  1. ↑ "Area by municipality as of 1 January 2011" (PDF) (in Finnish and Swedish). Land Survey of Finland. Retrieved 9 March 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 "VÄESTÖTIETOJÄRJESTELMÄ REKISTERITILANNE 30.06.2015" (in Finnish and Swedish). Population Register Center of Finland. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Population according to language and the number of foreigners and land area km2 by area as of 31 December 2008". Statistics Finland's PX-Web databases. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 29 March 2009.
  4. ↑ "Population according to age and gender by area as of 31 December 2008". Statistics Finland's PX-Web databases. Statistics Finland. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
  5. ↑ "List of municipal and parish tax rates in 2011". Tax Administration of Finland. 29 November 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
  6. ↑ Korpela, Jukka (2008). The World of Ladoga. LIT Verlag Münster. p. 85. ISBN 9783825816339.
  7. ↑ Hall, Thomas (December 16, 2003). Planning and Urban Growth in Nordic Countries. Routledge. p. 71. ISBN 9781135829872.
  8. ↑ Upton, Anthony F. (1980). The Finnish Revolution: 1917-1918. U of Minnesota Press. p. 486. ISBN 9781452912394.
  9. ↑ Carruthers, Bob. "10". Hitler'S Forgotten Armies: Combat in Norway and Finland. Coda Books Ltd. ISBN 9781781580974.
  10. ↑ Jalkaväkimuseo
  11. ↑ Nargele, Dominik George (2005). Terror Survivors and Freedom Fighters. Bloomington, IL: AuthorHouse. p. 35. ISBN 9781467837439.
  12. ↑ Finland. Lonely Planet. 2009. p. 145. ISBN 9781741047714.
  13. 1 2 "Studies in Mamk". Mikkeli University of Applied Sciences. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  14. ↑ "Tutkimus". muc.fi. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  15. ↑ "Bachelor's Degree Programme in International Business (Mikkeli)". Aalto University. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  16. ↑ Music in Mikkeli :the Mikkeli International Music Festival
  17. ↑ "Valeri Gergiyev". Archived from Music Festival director the original Check |url= value (help) on September 26, 2006.
  18. ↑ "Mikkeli, Finland". tendra.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  19. ↑ "Jukurit HC Oy". Mestis. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  20. ↑ "Suomen jääpalloliitto". Finland's Bandy Association. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  21. ↑ Kampparit new Finnish Champions in bandy
  22. ↑ "Olli Rehn - Personal Profile". European Commission. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  23. ↑ "Jalo Autonen". Sports Reference. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  24. ↑ "BANK OF FINLAND - Erkki Liikanen". Bank of Finland. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  25. ↑ "Olli Rehn CV". EC webpage.
  26. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Ystävyyskaupungit ja -kunnat". mikkeli.fi. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  27. ↑ "Vennskapsbyer". kommune.no. Retrieved 26 April 2014.

External links

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