| Turku and Pori Province | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County ofSweden 1634–1809 Province ofGrand Duchy of Finland 1809–1917 Province of independentFinland 1917–1997 | |||||||||
| 1634–1997 | |||||||||
 Coat of arms | |||||||||
 Map of Turku and Pori Province (1996) | |||||||||
| Capital | Turku | ||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
• 1 January 1993 | 20,721 km2 (8,000 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 1 January 1993 | 731,786 | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established | 1634 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 1997 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Turku and Pori Province, orÅbo and Björnborg County,[a] was anadministrative province (Finnish:lääni,Swedish:län) in Finland. It existed as part of theKingdom of Sweden from 1634 to 1809, theGrand Duchy of Finland under theRussian Empire from 1809 to 1917, and theRepublic of Finland from 1917 until the province was abolished in 1997.
The province was first established in the1634 Instrument of Government as theProvince of North and South Finland, with its seat inTurku (Åbo).[2] It was formed by uniting theslottsläns corresponding toFinland Proper,Satakunta and theÅland Islands.[3] In 1641, Satakunta was briefly separated to form Pori Province with the seat inPori (Björneborg), but the division proved short-lived, and in 1646 the areas were reunited as Turku and Pori Province.[2]
During the 18th century, administrative adjustments reduced the size of the province. InGustav III's great provincial reform of 1775, most of Upper Satakunta was transferred to the newly establishedVaasa Province.[4][3]
When Finland was annexed by the Russian Empire in 1809 and reorganized as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland, the provincial administration remained largely unchanged, and Turku and Pori Province continued under Russian rule. Under Swedish rule, the governor's title had beenlandshövding, but in 1837 it was changed toguvernör.[5]
In 1918, after Finland’s independence,Åland was separated from the province and made into a distinct autonomous territory, while some municipalities of Satakunta were transferred toHäme Province.[3] Proposals to divide Turku and Pori Province into separate provinces of Finland Proper and Satakunta were considered in the early 1980s but never realized.[3]
In 1997, Turku and Pori Province was merged with thenorthern part of theHäme Province and with the provinces ofVaasa andCentral Finland to form the newWestern Finland Province. All Finnish provinces were abolished on 1 January 2010.[6]
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Formerprovinces of Finland | ||
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In parentheses are years when provinces were established and disestablished. | ||
| 1634–1775 |
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| 1775–1831 |
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| 1831–1918 | ||
| 1918–1997 |
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| 1997–2009 |
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| Related | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
60°27′06″N22°16′12″E / 60.4517°N 22.2700°E /60.4517; 22.2700
