Tampere

Sister cities

• Kyiv
• Kaunas

History

The earliest known permanent settlements around Tammerkoski were established in the 7th century, when settlers from the west of the region began to farm land in Takahuhti, Tampere was a Red stronghold during the war, commanded by Hugo Salmela. White forces led by General Mannerheim captured the city after the Battle of Tampere, taking about 10,000 Red prisoners on 6 April 1918. During the Winter War, Tampere was bombed several times by the Soviet Union. The reason for the bombing of Tampere was that the city was an important railway junction and was also home to the State Aircraft Factory and the Tampella Factory, which produced ammunition and weapons, including grenade launchers. The most devastating bombing took place on 2 March 1940, when nine people were killed and 30 wounded. In addition, ten buildings were destroyed and 30 damaged that day. The dominant force in Tampere's municipal politics after the Second World War was the Brothers-in-Arms Axis (aseveliakseli), which consisted mainly of the National Coalition Party and the Social Democrats. While the Centre Party was the largest political force in the Finnish countryside, it had no practical relevance in Tampere. After the Second World War, Tampere was enlarged by the incorporation of some neighbouring areas. Messukylä was incorporated in 1947, Lielahti in 1950, Aitolahti in 1966 and Teisko in 1972. Already in 1937 the most part of modern western Tampere, including Pispala, was annexed to the city from North Pirkkala (today Nokia). Tampere passed the 100,000 population mark in 1950. Tampere was long known for its textile and metal industries, but these were largely replaced by information technology and telecommunications in the 1990s. The Hermia technology centre in Hervanta is home to many companies in…

Geography

Tampere is part of the Pirkanmaa region and is surrounded by the municipalities of Kangasala, Lempäälä, Nokia, Orivesi, Pirkkala, Ruovesi and Ylöjärvi. Tampere has 180 lakes larger than , and freshwater bodies cover 24% of its area. The lakes formed as separate basins from Lake Ancylus about 7500–8000 years ago. Tampere's northernmost point is in the Vankavesi Fjard of Teisko, the southernmost at the eastern end of Lake Hervanta, the easternmost at the northeast corner of Lake Paalijärvi of Teisko, and the westernmost at the southeast corner of Lake Haukijärvi near the borders of Ylöjärvi and Nokia. The city centre is surrounded by three lakes, Näsijärvi, Pyhäjärvi, and the much smaller Iidesjärvi. The Tampere region lies in the basin of the Kokemäki River, which flows into the Bothnian Sea through Pori, the capital of the Satakunta region. Tampere's bedrock consists of mica schist and migmatite, and its building stone deposits are diverse: in addition to the traditional granite, there is an abundance of quartz diorite, tonalite, mica schist and mica gneiss. One of Tampere's most striking geographic features is the Pyynikki Ridge (Pyynikinharju), a large esker formed from moraine during the Weichselian glaciation. It rises above sea level and is said to be the largest gravel esker in the world. It is also part of Salpausselkä, a long ridge system left over from the Ice Age. The centre of Tampere (Keskusta) and the districts of Pyynikki, Ylä-Pispala and Ala-Pispala lie on the isthmus between Lakes Pyhäjärvi and Näsijärvi. The city's location on the edge of the Tammerkoski Rapids between two long waterways was one of the main reasons for its foundation in the 1770s. The streets of central Tampere form a typical grid pattern. On the western edge of the city centre is a…

Most-observed species

• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,314
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,947
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,167
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,112
• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,945
• Fieldfare

  Turdus pilaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,924
• Hooded Crow

  Corvus cornix Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,828
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,752