Independence Day of Finland

Winning independence

The push for independence grew out of Russia's own crisis. Hardship from the First World War and the revolutions that followed loosened the empire's grip, and Finland saw a chance to step away. At home, non-socialists and social democrats argued over who should hold power, yet on 4 December 1917 the Senate under Pehr Evind Svinhufvud put a declaration before the country, and parliament accepted it two days later, on the date now celebrated. Early festivities were modest and divided. The political left preferred 15 November, when elected representatives took charge, while in some districts 16 May, the winning side's Civil War holiday, loomed larger. Academics led the way in honouring 6 December, gathering on its first anniversary in 1918.

Candles at dusk

Patriotic speeches and church services filled the early decades, but from the 1970s the tone brightened. Shops trimmed their displays in the flag's blue and white, and bakeries turned out cakes iced to match. The most intimate custom belongs to home. Once darkness falls, families set two burning candles at every window, a habit reaching back to the 1920s. It has an older forerunner: candles once stood in Finnish windows on the birthday of poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg, in quiet protest against Russian rule. A well-loved story adds that a pair of flames guided young men travelling to Sweden and Germany to train as jägers, a sign that the household would take them in and hide them from the Russians.

How the day runs

Helsinki hosts the official programme. The flag goes up on Tähtitorninmäki, the hill by the observatory, a church service follows at Helsinki Cathedral, and delegations visit memorials to those killed in the Second World War. The Defence Forces stage a parade, broadcast nationwide. Television shapes the afternoon and evening: the public broadcaster YLE screens The Unknown Soldier, the 1955 film drawn from Väinö Linna's novel, which has appeared every year since 2000. In towns with a university, students carry a torch cavalcade through the streets, a custom dating to 1951, and lay wreaths on soldiers' graves.

Night at the palace

Evening belongs to the Presidential Palace, where roughly 2,000 invited guests attend the reception Finns call Linnanjuhlat, the Castle Ball. First staged in 1919 and held in most years since, it draws a huge television audience, and the arrivals are the draw: knights of the Mannerheim Cross walk in first, followed by ministers, members of parliament, archbishops, judges, senior officers and diplomats, then the president's own picks, entertainers, campaigners and athletes among them, with former presidents always last. Not everyone celebrates in evening dress. Demonstrators hold shadow gatherings outside, and Heikki Hursti has carried on his late father Veikko's custom of serving free meals to people in need.

Anniversaries and light

Milestones get their own marks. For the 90th anniversary in 2007, Finland minted a five-euro commemorative coin showing a nine-oared boat with rowers, meant to stand for working together, with hints of kantele strings worked into the design. Ten years later the centenary ran under the theme "Together", and buildings around the world were lit in blue and white for the night: Telstra Tower in Canberra, the Museum of Ethnography in Saint Petersburg, the Lion of Judah monument in Addis Ababa and the Finnish Embassy in Moscow, one evening when the colours reached far beyond Finland's borders.

How Independence Day of Finland is kept

The day unfolds from morning to night. The flag is raised on Tähtitorninmäki in Helsinki, a church service follows at the cathedral, and officials pay their respects at Second World War memorials. The Defence Forces parade, shown on national television. YLE then screens The Unknown Soldier, and students in university towns run torch processions, pausing at war graves. After dark, candles stand at family windows, two apiece. The president welcomes about 2,000 guests to a televised ball, while demonstrators and charity volunteers hold humbler gatherings of their own.

When and where

The date never moves: 6 December, the day in 1917 when parliament adopted the independence declaration. It is a public holiday across Finland and one of the country's official flag days, so the blue cross flies from every flagpole.

Kept throughout Finland and centred on Helsinki, where the flag-raising, cathedral service and palace reception all take place. Torch cavalcades pass through towns with universities, and during the 2017 centenary landmarks abroad, from Canberra to Saint Petersburg, were lit in Finnish colours.

What Independence Day of Finland means

For Finns the candles carry the day's quiet heart. One story ties them to a poet's birthday, kept as a wordless protest under Russian rule; another says a pair of flames told jäger recruits on the move that a house would hide them. Now the glow at dusk reads as thanks for an independent home. Wreaths on soldiers' graves remember the wars that tested the young state, and the palace guest list, mixing knights, ministers and entertainers, pictures the nation as one company.

On the table

• cakes iced in blue and white

Questions people ask about Independence Day of Finland

See also

HalloweenAn annual observance on 31 October marking the eve of All Saints' Day, rooted in Christian tradition and Celtic heritageHanamiA Japanese spring custom of gathering under blooming cherry trees to eat, drink, and celebrate the fleeting beauty of thAdvent calendarA daily countdown to Christmas using doors, images, or small gifts.Saint Lucy's DayA December festival of light and song held across Scandinavia and Italy to honour a Christian martyr.

Good reading and sources

• Independence Day (Finland) on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-04.