Hanko

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hangon kaupunki
Hangö stad
coat of arms map
Coat of arms of Hanko Location of Hanko in Finland
Basic data
State : FinlandFinland Finland
Landscape : Uusimaa
Administrative community : Raseborg
Geographical location 59 ° 49 ′  N , 22 ° 56 ′  E Coordinates: 59 ° 49 ′  N , 22 ° 56 ′  E
Surface: 800.22 km²
of which land area: 116.90 km²
of which inland waterways: 2.04 km²
of which sea area: 681.28 km²
Residents : 8,379 (Dec 31, 2018)
Population density : 71.7 inhabitants / km²
Municipality number : 078
Language (s) : Finnish , Swedish
Website : hanko.fi

Hanko [ ˈhɑŋkɔ ] ( Swedish Hangö ) is the southernmost city in Finland . It has around 9700 inhabitants and is situated at the southern tip of Hankoniemi peninsula in the landscape Uusimaa , 127 km from Helsinki and 141 km from Turku center. 44% of the population are Finland-Swedes , officially the city is bilingual with Finnish as the majority and Swedish as the minority language.

history

There is evidence of a port with the name Hangethe as early as the end of the 13th century . Because of its strategic location on the peninsula tip at the northwestern end of the Gulf of Finland , a Swedish fortress was built in the 18th century . In 1714 the Swedes were defeated by the fleet of Peter the Great in the naval battle of Hanko . Because the Hankoniemi peninsula extends far into the Baltic Sea, Hanko could also be used as a winter port while the other ports were icy. During the period of Russian rule , the port in Hanko, known in Russian as Gangut (Гангут), was built from 1871 to 1873 and connected to the railway line to Hyvinkää .

The city of Hanko was founded in 1874. The port quickly developed into one of the most important emigration ports to North America (approx. 240,000 emigrants via Hanko at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries). Thanks to its beautiful location and easy accessibility, Hanko became a much-visited seaside resort for the Russian upper class at the end of the 19th century , whose noble villas by the sea are still a tourist attraction today.

After the defeat in the Winter War , the Hanko peninsula had to be leased to the Soviet Union for 30 years in the Peace of Moscow (March 1940) and was used as a naval base by the Baltic Fleet . After the beginning of the Continuation War in June 1941, the Soviet troops withdrew without fighting. After the end of the war, Porkkala near Kirkkonummi was leased to the Soviet Union instead of Hanko from 1944 to 1956 .

present

Today Hanko is an important port city and a popular summer vacation spot.

The shipping company Superfast Ferries operated a daily car ferry between Rostock and Hanko with a journey time of 21 to 23½ hours until 2006 . In October 2007 the line was reactivated, this time by the German-Danish shipping company Scandlines , which handed it over to the Swedish Orient Line (SOL) in 2012. This connection was designed as a RoRo line and was operated four times a week with a crossing duration of 36 hours. As of December 31, 2016, this connection was discontinued by SOL.

Panorama view of Hanko

Around 7,000 boats moor in the Hanko marina, Finland's largest marina , during the summer season. The city's sights include the church built in 1892, the Orthodox church from 1895, the modern town house from 1951, the fortress museum in the east port and, as a landmark, the water tower, which is also shown in the city's coat of arms.

The missile speedboat FNS Hanko (Hamina class) of the Finnish Navy is named after the city.

Hanko is the end of a railway line from Karjaa .

Culture

In July, visitors can look forward to a music festival. Great virtuosos and young talents of classical music can be enjoyed in the concerts of the Hanko Music Festival. The "HMF Fringe" series brings music from concert halls to restaurants and galleries.

photos

  • Villas in Hanko

  • Hanko water tower and church

  • Hanko Orthodox Church

Town twinning

Sister cities and municipalities of Hanko are

Personalities

Web links

Commons : Hanko  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Maanmittauslaitos (Finnish land surveying office): Suomen pinta-alat kunnittain January 1, 2010 . (PDF; 199 kB)
  2. ↑ Statistical Office Finland: Table 11ra - Key figures on population by region, 1990-2018
  3. ↑ Eckhard-Herbert Arndt, Frank Binder: SOL cancels ferry service Rostock – Hanko . In: Daily port report from December 16, 2016, p. 1
  4. ^ Hanko website