Ã…land Islands Dispute
The Åland Islands dispute () was a political conflict between Sweden and Finland over the Åland Islands after World War I. Most Ålanders wanted to reunite with Sweden, but in 1921 the League of Nations decided that the islands would stay under Finnish rule. Finland had to protect the islands’ Swedish language, Swedish language, culture, and autonomy. Background Until 1809, Åland belonged to Sweden. After Sweden lost the Finnish War, the Treaty of Fredrikshamn transferred Finland and Åland to Imperial Russia. Åland became part of the Grand Duchy of Finland, which had some autonomy within the Russian Empire. In 1856, the Treaty of Paris (1856) ended the Crimean War and banned Russia from building forts on Åland. Russia followed this agreement until 1908, when it tried to change the islands’ status, but faced resistance. During World War I, Russia built a submarine base on Åland for use by Russian and British forces. Conflict and foreign intervention (1917–1918) ...
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