| The �land
Islands are a group of more than 6000 islands in the eastern part of
the Baltic Sea between Sweden and Finland, east of Stockholm.� The
total area is about 1500 km2 and there are living approximately 25,000
inhabitants.� Their main language is Swedish.� Although the islands
have a certain form of autonomy, they still form a province in Finland.�
For centuries the �land Islands belonged to the crown of Sweden,
as was the case with Finland as a whole.� Finland - and the �land
islands - came in the possession of Russia in 1809. During the Chrimean
War (1853 - 1856) the islands of �land were of great strategically
importance for Russia, but after this the islands were demilitarised.�
To quiet a strong movement on the islands for Sweden the islands got a
form of autonomy, but the Finnish sovereignty over the islands was confirmed
in 1921 by a decision of the League of Nations. In 1951 the autonomy of
the islands was renounced by the Finnish parliament, but the inhabitants
got special rights, including their own flag. |
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| Facts |
| �lands
hemsida - Description: Official home page of the
province. Facts about the islands, history of the autonomy, as well as
links. |
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| �land
Official Tourist Gateway |
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| Escapeartist.com |
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| Living
Overseas |
| - Resources for Relocating
to Europe - moving to Europe - living in Europe - Real Estate in Europe. |
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