Suomenlinna prison camp (, ) was a 1918 Civil War of Finland

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

in the Suomenlinna Fortress,

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

. It was established by the

White Army The White Army, also known as the White Guard, the White Guardsmen, or simply the Whites, was a common collective name for the armed formations of the White movement and Anti-Sovietism, anti-Bolshevik governments during the Russian Civil War. T ...

for the

Red Guard The Red Guards () were a mass, student-led, paramilitary social movement mobilized by Chairman Mao Zedong in 1966 until their abolition in 1968, during the first phase of the Cultural Revolution, which he had instituted.Teiwes According to a ...

fighters taken prisoner after the

Battle of Helsinki The Battle of Helsinki was a 1918 Finnish Civil War battle, fought on 12–13 April by the German Empire, German troops and White Guard (Finland), Finnish Whites against the Red Guards (Finland), Finnish Reds in Helsinki, Finland. Together wit ...

. The camp operated from April 1918 to March 1919. It was a subcamp for the Helsinki prison camp, which included the camps of Suomenlinna,

Santahamina Santahamina () is an island and neighbourhood of Eastern Helsinki, Finland. At present it is a military base housing the Guard Jaeger Regiment, making access restricted. The Finnish National Defence University (NDU) is also located on the islan ...

Katajanokka Katajanokka (; ) is a neighbourhood of Helsinki, Finland, with around 4000 inhabitants in 2005. The district is located adjacent to the immediate downtown area, though in the first major town plan for Helsinki from the mid-18th century, the area ...

and

Isosaari Isosaari () is an island in Helsinki, part of the Ulkosaaret district of the city, more specifically of Itäsaaret, i.e. ‘eastern islands’. It was one of the fortified islands of the Gulf of Finland. Isosaari is one of the outermost islands ...

History

The camp was established in April 1918 after the Battle of Helsinki as the German troops captured thousands of Red Guard fighters and suspected Reds. Suomenlinna camp was at its largest in June 1918, when the number of prisoners was 8,000. Total number of inmates was approximately 10,000. Suomenlinna camp was divided into six districts located at the islands of Pikku-Musta (I), Länsi-Musta (II),

Iso Mustasaari The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ; ; ) is an independent, non-governmental, international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Mem ...

(III, V) and Susisaari (IV, VI). In August, a seventh district was formed of the female Reds who were transported from the Santahamina camp. On 15 September 1918 most of the prisoners were released due to a general pardon and the camp's status was changed into a forced labor camp ran by the

Criminal Sanctions Agency Criminal Sanctions Agency (abbreviated to Rise, , ) is a Finnish government agency that enforces prison sentences, community service sentences and maintains rehabilitation services. Rise operates under the direction of the Ministry of Justice. Ri ...

. Number of inmates was about 1,000 until the camp was closed on 14 March 1919 and the remaining prisoners were released or taken to the

Tammisaari labor camp The Tammisaari camp was a concentration camp and prison in Dragsvik, Ekenäs in Finland. It was set for the Reds captured by the Whites in the 1918 Finnish Civil War. The concentration camp operated from May 1918 to 15 September 1918 when the ma ...

. Notable prisoners include

Toivo Aronen Kaarlo Toivo Aronen (4 June 1886 – 1 November 1973) was a Finnish construction worker and politician, born in Pori. He was in prison from 1918 to 1919 for having sided with the Reds during the Finnish Civil War. He was a member of the Parliame ...

Ivar Lassy Ivar Fredrik Lassy (18 November 1889 – 4 June 1938) was a Finnish writer and anthropologist who was active in the Socialist and Communist parties. Lassy moved to the Soviet Union in 1923 and was killed during the Great Purge. Lassy was first a ...

Fiina Pietikäinen Adolfina (Fiina) Sofia Pietikäinen (8 February 1870, Helsingin maalaiskunta – 12 February 1956, née ''Lindqvist'') was a Finnish trade union activist and politician. She served as a Member of the Parliament of Finland from 1908 to 1909, repre ...

Taavi Tainio David (Taavi) Tainio (25 June 1874, Keuruu - 17 March 1929) was a Finnish journalist and politician. He was a member of the Parliament of Finland from 1907 to 1909, from 1911 to 1913 and from 1922 until his death in 1929, representing the Social ...

and

Sulo Wuolijoki Sulo may refer to: People * Sulo (singer) (born 1969), Swedish vocalist and songwriter * Sulo Aittoniemi (1936–2016), Finnish politician * Sulo Bärlund (1910–1986), Finnish shot putter * Sulo Cederström (1903–1944), Finnish sports shoo ...

. The writer

Algot Untola Algot Untola (28 November 1868 – 21 May 1918) was a Finnish writer and journalist. Untola was born in Tohmajärvi, to the ''Tietäväinen'' family, and his real name was ''Algoth'', but he changed the name to ''Algot Untola''. Untola had many ...

was killed while transported to Suomenlinna.

Casualties

Approximately 1,100 prisoners died of disease, hunger and executions. They were buried to a mass grave on the nearby Santahamina island. Death toll was the fifth largest among the

Finnish Civil War prison camps Finnish Civil War prison camps were operated by the White Finns to hold prisoners of war during and after the Finnish Civil War in 1918. Around 80,000 captured Red Guards and their families, including 4,700 women and 1,500 children, were hel ...

Memory

In 2004, a memorial by the environmental artist Marja Kanervo was unveiled in the Iso-Mustasaari island. A memorial erected in 1949 by the sculptor Uuno F. Inkinen stands on the Santahamina mass grave.

References

{{Commons category, Helsinki Prison Camp, Suomenlinna prison camp Finnish Civil War prison camps Suomenlinna 1918 establishments in Finland 1919 disestablishments in Finland