Kultaranta (; ) is the summer residence of the

president of Finland The president of the Republic of Finland (; ) is the head of state of Finland. The incumbent president is Alexander Stubb, since 1 March 2024. He was elected president for the first time in 2024 Finnish presidential election, 2024. The presi ...

. It is in the district of Kultaranta on the island of

Luonnonmaa Luonnonmaa is an island in Southwest Finland. The island is in the Finnish Archipelago Sea ( Finnish: ''Saaristomeri'') region of the Baltic Sea, and located in the southernmost part of Finnish territorial waters. With an area of 44.0 square kilo ...

, in the municipality of

Naantali Naantali (; ) is a municipalities of Finland, town in Southwest Finland, and, as a resort town during the summer, an important centre of tourism in the country. The municipality has a population of (), and is located west of Turku. The town h ...

Southwest Finland Southwest Finland (, ; ) is a Regions of Finland, region ('','' ) of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, Pirkanmaa, Tavastia Proper, Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme), Uusimaa, and Åland. The regional capital and most populous city is Tu ...

. The

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

manor house is surrounded by of park belonging to the property. The complex also includes numerous outbuildings and greenhouses, and a park. The ground floor contains the reception rooms and private apartments. Upstairs are the bedrooms and guestrooms. Marble steps lead from the ground floor to the tower, from which there are views of Naantali and the inshore islands. The parks around the manor, containing approximately a thousand square metres of

greenhouse A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

and a garden with 3,500

rose A rose is either a woody perennial plant, perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred Rose species, species and Garden roses, tens of thousands of cultivar ...

s called ''Medaljonki'' ('medallion'), are open to the public. The scent and colour of these roses are at their peak in the middle of the summer, when the President and family and their guests come to Naantali for the holidays. Tours in the garden are organised by the City of Naantali's tourist service. Kultaranta's Park has been described as a "mini-

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

". The parkland to the north of Kultaranta is in practically a natural state, though a few sandy pathways have been built there, and the woodland is kept in good condition. Kultaranta has about of greenhouses. The garden supplies the President's household with both flowers and vegetables all year round. Kultaranta's original owner was the businessman

Alfred Kordelin Alfred Kordelin (6 November 1868, Rauma, Finland, Rauma – 7 November 1917, Mommila, Hausjärvi) was a Finland, Finnish industrialist, businesspeople, businessman, entrepreneur, and a major philanthropist. Kordelin was one of the richest Finni ...

, who had a manor house built for himself in 1914. It was designed by the architect

Lars Sonck Lars Eliel Sonck (10 August 1870 – 14 March 1956) was a Finnish architect. He was a prominent figure in early 20th-century Finnish architecture, known for his role in developing the National Romantic and later Nordic Classicism movements in ...

. When Kordelin died in 1917 the manor's ownership shifted to the

University of Turku The University of Turku (, shortened ''UTU'') is a multidisciplinary public university with eight faculties located in the city of Turku in southwestern Finland. The university also has campuses in Rauma and Pori and research stations in Kevo ...

and, in 1922, the

Finnish Parliament The Parliament of Finland ( ; ) is the unicameral and supreme legislature of Finland, founded on 9 May 1906. In accordance with the Constitution of Finland, sovereignty belongs to the people, and that power is vested in the Parliament. The P ...

voted to acquire it for use as the president's summer residence.

Gallery

References

External links

*Kultarant

with pictures (in English) Presidential residences Official residences in Finland Manor houses in Finland Palaces in Finland Gardens in Finland Naantali Buildings and structures in Southwest Finland Lars Sonck buildings National Romantic architecture in Finland Art Nouveau houses Art Nouveau government buildings Houses completed in 1914

Gallery

See also

References

Further reading

External links