Bombs over Turku; the castle burns

In the Second World War Soviet bombers came to Turku again and again because of its port. In 1941 an incendiary bomb set the medieval castle on fire, and it took twenty years to bring it back.

Wartime · Republic

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Turku on a night in 1941: the blackout, an air raid and the castle on fire, in 28 seconds.Drawn with code for this site. A schematic view, not to scale. We have not found the date or the time of day of the raid that hit the castle: the night, the searchlights, the aircraft and the places where the bombs fall are invented to show what the text describes.

The big story

Bombs over Turku; the castle burns

Between 1939 and 1944 Finland fought two wars against the Soviet Union. Turku was far from the front lines, but its port and railway made it a target. Bombs fell on homes, streets and the old castle by the river mouth. This page tells what we know about Turku under the bombs, and how the castle was saved.

Two wars

The Winter War. The Soviet Union attacked Finland on 30 November 1939. The Winter War ended with a peace treaty in March 1940, in which Finland lost a large part of Karelia Well documented.
The Continuation War. In June 1941 fighting began again, with Finland now on the side of Germany. The Continuation War lasted until September 1944 Well documented.
Bombing across Finland. In the Winter War alone, Soviet aircraft made 2,075 bombing attacks on 516 places in Finland and killed 957 civilians Well documented.

Turku under the bombs

Second only to Viipuri. In the Winter War Turku was the second most bombed city in Finland after Viipuri, because of its port. The raids killed 52 people in Turku and wounded 151. We have found these figures in only one source Likely.
Martti. In the Continuation War the Martti district suffered heavy destruction Likely.
Life in the shadow of the sirens. As in other Finnish towns, people blacked out their windows at night and ran to air-raid shelters when the sirens sounded Likely.
What we do not know. We have not found how many air raids hit Turku in each war, how many people died in Turku during the Continuation War, or whether the Cathedral was damaged Well documented.

The castle burns

Bad timing. A full restoration of Turku Castle had officially begun in 1939, but the Winter War stopped it almost at once Well documented.
1941. In the Continuation War Soviet bombs badly damaged the castle. An incendiary bomb hit the middle of the castle, just after a thorough restoration had been agreed. We have not found the exact date Well documented.

Built from ruins

Fifteen years. Restoration began again in 1946 and lasted about 15 years, until 1961. It was then the largest project of its kind in the Nordic countries Well documented.
The Bryggmans. The chief architect was Erik Bryggman, the Turku architect who had brought functionalism to the town (stop 38). After his death in 1955 the interior architect Carin Bryggman continued the work. One source dates Erik Bryggman’s castle work from 1939 to 1955 Well documented.
Honest repairs. Every surviving old structure was kept, and only parts with reliable evidence were rebuilt. Bryggman added modern stairs, exhibition rooms in the attics and hidden technical systems Well documented.
Arguments. The rebuilt castle church and the medieval King’s Hall were the most debated parts. How much can you rebuild before it becomes guesswork Well documented?

How do we know?

The castle museum tells the story of the restoration in its own exhibition. For the bombing of Turku we found much less: the numbers of dead and wounded in the Winter War come from a single overview, and Turku’s own wartime records would be needed for the Continuation War. Blackouts and shelters are general knowledge about Finnish towns in wartime.

How was it rebuilt? Tap the numbers.

Turku Castle from 1939 to 1961. Choose a year, then tap the numbers to see how the castle was rebuilt.A simplified silhouette, not an accurate drawing of the castle.

Why it matters

Turku Castle had stood for more than 650 years before the bombs fell. The restoration after the war saved it, and the careful method used there, keep what is old and make the new clearly new, influenced how old buildings were repaired later. Today the castle is one of Turku’s best-known museums.

On the lighter side

War children sent to Sweden

During the wars, tens of thousands of Finnish children were put on trains and ships and sent to live with strangers in Sweden. Their parents hoped to keep them safe from bombs and hunger. Many came back speaking only Swedish, and some never came back at all.

80,000 children

How many? Some 80,000 Finnish children were evacuated to other Nordic countries during the wars. About 72,000 went to Sweden, over 4,000 to Denmark and about 100 to Norway Well documented.
Winter War. In 1939–40 about 9,000 children went to Sweden, together with about 3,000 mothers and elderly people. Children under three travelled with their mothers Well documented.
Without mothers. In the official evacuations of the Continuation War mothers were not allowed to go along. About 22,000 children went in 1941–43 and about 26,000 in 1944–46. About 15,000 more went through private arrangements Well documented.
Who organised it? In Finland the Children’s Transfer Committee (Lastensiirtokomitea) and in Sweden the Relief Committee for Finland’s Children (Hjälpkommittén för Finlands barn) Well documented.

Coming home, or not

Delayed returns. After the war Finland was poor, and many children’s returns were delayed by years Well documented.
Those who stayed. About 7,100 children stayed in Sweden for good, often adopted by their foster families. Another source says around 20 percent stayed Debated.
Strangers at home. Children who had spent years in Sweden often came back having forgotten Finnish, to parents they hardly remembered Likely.
Back to Sweden. Many war children moved back to Sweden as adults in the 1950s and 1960s, as part of the great migration (stop 42) Well documented.

A hidden wound

Looking back. Today the evacuation is seen as psychologically flawed. Being separated from their families did far more damage to many children than staying in Finland would have done Well documented.
Not heard. Many war children feel that their suffering was ignored for decades. There are about as many war children as there were war invalids Well documented.

Each figure is 1,000 children. Total so far:

War children sent to Sweden, phase by phase. Then see how many never came back.Finland-wide figures. We have not found numbers for children from Turku.

How do we know?

The organisations kept lists of the children they sent, and historians have studied them. Many war children have also told their own stories in books and interviews. The numbers on this page are for the whole of Finland; we did not find how many children went from Turku, or how they travelled.

Why it matters

The war children are a reminder that war hurts people far from the front. Sweden’s help saved many lives, but it also split families. Many Finnish and Swedish families still have relatives on the other side of the Gulf of Bothnia because of these years. Perhaps someone in your family was a war child.

Sources and further reading

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