Old Finland

In the Treaty of Åbo (1743) Sweden had to cede the areas in southern Karelia east of the Kymi river and around Savonlinna to Russia.

The territories enjoyed a sort of autonomy and much particularism, since the Russian rulers applied similar principles here as in the Baltic Provinces.

Two of these are Maximilian von Alopeus and his brother David Alopaeus, born into a Finnish family in Viipuri and both later serving many posts in Imperial administration, including ambassador in some Central European countries.

[3] The population in these provinces came to receive the same legal system as the rest of the Grand Duchy, including its Constitution and General Law, although some privileges took time to implement.

The so-called donated estates (owned by Russian noblemen) in Karelia were a headache resolved slowly by monetary compensation from the Grand Duchy's Treasury.