The Treaty of Åbo or the Treaty of Turku was a peace

treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal per ...

signed between the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...

and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

Åbo Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

( fi, Turku) on in the end of the Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743.

History

By the end of the war, the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

had occupied most of

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...

, prompting Field-Marshal Trubetskoy and Chancellor Aleksey Bestuzhev to demand the application of uti possidetis principle in this case. By acquiring Finland, Russian politicians aspired to move the Swedish border considerably to the north, thus reducing the danger of Swedish attack on the Russian capital,

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

. In the hope of gaining independence, the Finnish estates offered the ephemeral throne of their country to Duke Peter of Holsten-Gottorp, the heir apparent to the Russian Crown. Another party at the Russian court, represented by pro-Swedish Count Jean Armand de Lestocq and Peter's Holsteinian relatives, proposed to return Finland to the Swedes in recompense for having his uncle, Adolf Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp, elected as heir to the throne of Sweden. Empress

Elizabeth of Russia Elizabeth Petrovna (russian: Елизаве́та (Елисаве́та) Петро́вна) (), also known as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular Russian ...

lent her support to the latter faction, partly because she fondly remembered Adolf Frederick's brother, her projected spouse who had died several months before the wedding could take place (in June 1727). According to the resultant treaty,

ceded to

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

the areas east of the Kymi River with the fortress of

Olavinlinna Olavinlinna (also known as St. Olaf's Castle; sv, Olofsborg; german: Olafsburg; literally ''Olof's Castle'') is a 15th-century three-tower castle located in Savonlinna, Finland. It is built on an island in the Kyrönsalmi strait that connects the ...

and the towns of

Lappeenranta Lappeenranta (; sv, Villmanstrand) is a city and municipality in the region of South Karelia, about from the Russian border and from the town of Vyborg (''Viipuri''). It is situated on the shore of the Lake Saimaa in southeastern Finland, and ...

and

Hamina Hamina (; sv, Fredrikshamn, , Sweden ) is a town and a municipality of Finland. It is located approximately east of the country's capital Helsinki, in the Kymenlaakso region, and formerly the province of Southern Finland. The municipality's pop ...

. Hence, the Swedish border was moved to the north in accordance with the wishes of Bestuzhev's faction. On the other hand, the Swedes agreed to elect Adolf Frederick as the crown prince. This move exposed the country to the risk of war against

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

, hence the

Baltic Fleet , image = Great emblem of the Baltic fleet.svg , image_size = 150 , caption = Baltic Fleet Great ensign , dates = 18 May 1703 – present , country = , allegiance = (1703–1721) (1721–1917) (1917–1922) (1922–1991)(1991–present) ...

sailed to

Stockholm Stockholm () is the capital and largest city of Sweden as well as the largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropo ...

to protect the Swedish capital in case of Danish attack. The territories were incorporated into the Governorate of Vyborg. After the treaty, Russia came to control the southern part of

Karelia Karelia ( Karelian and fi, Karjala, ; rus, Каре́лия, links=y, r=Karélija, p=kɐˈrʲelʲɪjə, historically ''Korjela''; sv, Karelen), the land of the Karelian people, is an area in Northern Europe of historical significance fo ...

. However, Elizabeth guaranteed religion, properties, laws and privileges of the inhabitants of ceded territories. For example, these territories had just a few years earlier adopted (together with the rest of then-Sweden) the 1734 General Law of Sweden.

References

Other sources

Shirokorad A.B. ''Northern Wars of Russia''. Moscow, 2001
{{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty of Abo 1743 in the Russian Empire 1743 in Sweden 1743 treaties 18th century in Turku History of Karelia Abo Abo Russo-Swedish War (1741–1743) Treaties of the Russian Empire