Finland Guide
The Lake Region
Mikkeli
In 1986, a Helsinki bank robber chose the market square in MIKKELI as the place in which to blow up himself, his car and his hostage. This, the most violent event seen in Finland for decades, was perhaps an echo of Mikkeli's blood-spattered past. In prehistoric times the surrounding plains were battlegrounds for feuding tribes from east and west, while the Finnish infantry has a long association with the town, and it was from Mikkeli that General Mannerheim conducted the campaign against the Soviet Union in the Winter War.
Military matters are a strong local feature, but you don't need to be a bloodthirsty warmonger to find interest in the town's military collections – the insights they provide into Finland's recent history can be fascinating. More generally, Mikkeli lacks the heavy industry you'll find in some Lake Region communities, functioning instead as a district market town (the daily crowds and activity within its market hall – kauppahalli – seem out of all proportion to its size), while sporting a handsome cathedral and a noteworthy art collection.
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