Hämeenlinna (Swedish: Tavastehus) is a city and municipality of about 66,000 inhabitants in the heart of the historical province of Häme in the south of Finland and is the birthplace of composer Jean Sibelius. Today, it belongs to the region of Tavastia Proper, and is the residence city for the Governor of the province of Southern Finland. Nearby cities include the capital Helsinki (105 km), Tampere (73 km) and Lahti (72 km).
The medieval Häme Ca...
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Hämeenlinna (Swedish: Tavastehus) is a city and municipality of about 66,000 inhabitants in the heart of the historical province of Häme in the south of Finland and is the birthplace of composer Jean Sibelius. Today, it belongs to the region of Tavastia Proper, and is the residence city for the Governor of the province of Southern Finland. Nearby cities include the capital Helsinki (105 km), Tampere (73 km) and Lahti (72 km).
The medieval Häme Castle (Hämeen linna) is located in the city.
The municipalities of Hauho, Kalvola, Lammi, Renko and Tuulos were consolidated with Hämeenlinna on 2009-01-01.
There has been a settlement called Vanaja in where the city now stands since the Viking Age. The castle was built in the late 13th century to secure the Swedish power in central Finland. A village was born near to the Häme Castle to provide services and goods to inhabitants.
The village was granted city rights in 1639 and soon after that the King of Sweden moved it one kilometre south on...
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