ELIZABETH : PEACE OF ABO BETWEEN RUSSIA AND SWEDEN ? : RUSSIA, 1743, Bronze, 61 mm Åbo (Turku), is the capital of Western Finland, at the
mouth of the Aurajoki River on the Baltic Sea. Known as the
""cradle of Finnish culture,"" Turku is among Finland's
oldest cities. Swedish Crusaders landed on the site in 1157. It was the seat
(1220) of the first bishop of Finland, and the capital of Finland until
1812. The national university was in Turku from 1640 to 1827, when a fire
destroyed almost the entire city and the university was moved (1828) to
Helsinki. The great cathedral was begun in the early 13th century. The
13th-century castle, burned in 1614 and restored in 1961, is now a historic
museum. Turku has a Finnish university (founded 1917) and a Swedish
university (founded 1918). LINK to Collection of Medals from Imperial Russia (Yale University) |
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