Finland Guide
Helsinki and the south
Mannerheim Museum
Opening time: Fri– Sun 11am–4pm, other times by appointment
Telephone: 09/635 443
Price: €8 including guided tour
Website: www.mannerheim-museo.fi
Address: Kallionlinnantie
The house where Gustaf Mannerheim spent the later years of his life is maintained as the Mannerheim Museum. A Finnish-born, Russian-trained military commander, Mannerheim was pro-Finnish but had a middle-class suspicion of the working classes: he led the right-wing Whites during the Civil War of 1918 and two decades later the Finnish campaigns in the Winter and Continuation wars. His influence in the political sphere was also considerable, and included a brief spell as president. While acknowledging his importance, the regard that Finns have for him these days, naturally enough, depends on their own political viewpoint.
Ideology aside, the house is intriguing. The interior is left much as it was when the man died in 1951, and the clutter is astounding. During his travels Mannerheim raided flea markets at every opportunity, collecting a remarkable array of plunder – assorted furniture, antiques, ornaments and books from all over the globe. Upstairs is the camp-bed which Mannerheim found too comfortable ever to change, and in the wall is the vent inserted to keep the bedroom as airy as a field-tent.