Charming Old Porvoo


Porvoo is the second oldest city in Finland. The current wave of settlement began in the 13th-14th centuries. Porvoo was grated city status in the mid-14th century. Porvoo has fought for its very existence on serveral occasions over the centuries. At the beginning of the 16th century, Danes arrived by sea to destroy the city. The Russians burned Porvoo twice. In 1760, a Porvoo housewife made fish soup, and the fire it caused destroyed the majority of the buildings in the city. The last misfortune was the arson in 2006 that greatly damaged a key landmark of Old Porvoo, the cathedral. At the beginning of the 19th century, Finland was annexed to Russia as an autonomous grand duchy. Tsar Alexander I convened the first diet in Porvoo in March 1809. In Porvoo Cathedral, he gave a sovereign pledge in which he ratified the country's religion, its constitutional laws and the rights of the estates.

Trade and gardens
Shore houses, cobblestone streets and idyllic gardens make Old Porvoo a uniquely historical urban milieu. Porvoo has been an important centre of trade since the 13th century. Jokikatu and Välikatu have always been lively shopping streets. People came to the city to shop, spend the night, have fun and eat well. Today, this tradition continues as people enjoy the unique atmosphere in the streets, gardens, cafés, resraurants, hotels, galleries and museums. The buildings in Old Porvoo today were built according to a medieval town plan and are ofhistorical value in terms of their construction. The Old Porvoo district currently covers an area of 18 hectares, with 250 residential buildings and 300 outbuildings. Roughly 700 people live in this area. 

Shore houses
The shore houses are now red, but they got their colour only in the late 18th century. Red ochre paint was used to paint the shore houses in honour of King Gustav III's arrival from Sweden. All of the houses along his route were painted, in order to make them more beautiful. The red ochre also helped protect the logs from wind and sun damage. Exotic fruits, wines and spices were brought to Porvoo, and the shore houses also served as intermediate storehouses for coffee an tobacco. Today the shore houses are used as private living quarters and storage space.

09.06.2008