Vaasa

Vaasa, port in western Finland, 370 km (230 mi) northwest of the city of Helsinki. Vaasa was founded as a timber port in 1606 at the base of a small peninsula jutting into the Gulf of Bothnia. Vaasa was the point of departure of the Russian army when it crossed the frozen gulf in the winter of 1809 to force the cession of Finland from Sweden. In 1852 the town was destroyed by fire, resulting in its reconstruction 5 km (3 mi) west on the peninsula. Vaasa was the seat of the revolutionary government led by the White Guards (forces allied with the nationalists against the Bolsheviks) during the war for Finnish independence in 1918. Population (2005) 57,030.