The Swedish feudal state from the mid-12th century until the 1320s conducted crusades to the East, the official goal of which was the spread of Christianity in the lands of pagan peoples. During the first crusade (the second half of the 12th century), the Swedes captured southwestern Finland, the land of the Finnish tribe Sumy (Suomi). The second crusade (1249–1250) led to the conquest of the central part of Finland. Armed clashes in 1292 on the Karelian Isthmus and in the Izhora land, as well as the Russian campaign to central Finland in the same year, created an extremely tense situation in these areas and along the entire route through the Gulf of Finland, the Neva, and Lake Ladoga to Novgorod. Therefore, in the summer of 1293, the main Swedish naval expedition to Karelia was undertaken—the third crusade. The internal intensification of princely feuds and the Tatar invasion in Rus at that time created a favorable environment for the Swedish attack. The third crusade is reflected in several Russian and Scandinavian sources. The Swedish invasion of western Karelia and the founding of Vyborg by them is briefly mentioned in all Russian chronicles in a single phrase: “The Swedes came and built a town on Karelian land.” The reports of all chronicles about this event trace back to the Novgorod Chronicle, clearly recorded by a contemporary.

The record of the Swedish campaign of 1293 is contained in six Swedish annals, for example, the CHRONOLOGY FROM 266 TO 1430. In 1293, Vyborg Castle was built, and the Swedes occupied Karelia.

Thus, in 1293, a huge army led by Torkel Knutsson invaded Karelia, and to control the territory, the Swedes quickly erected a stone castle-fortress on the island of Linnan-saari. This year is considered the founding date of Vyborg, and the Riksmarsk (Marshal of the Realm) Knutsson is regarded as its founder.

The Swedish settlement was named Wiiborg. There are many versions interpreting this name differently. The Finns, who call the city Viipuri after the legendary ferryman Vipponen, claim that the hero of ancient tales ferried the Swedes to the island in the 13th century. The Slavic version of the city's name is connected with the inhabitants of ancient Novgorod, whose imagination was struck by the abundance of wildlife in the local forests and fish in the waters. They were convinced that the townspeople had not chosen this unique place in vain and named it Vyborg, from the Russian word “выбор” (choice). The Swedes, as the city's founders, called it Wiiborg. The ending of the name indicates that the settlement was a fortress, and the first part of the name can be translated from Old German as “Holy.” You may choose whichever version of the origin of the name Vyborg you like best.

At the time of Vyborg’s founding, the Karelians were pagans, and the Swedes planned to convert them to Christianity to further strengthen their eastern borders on the Karelian Isthmus. The settlement grew rapidly, and within four decades, the inhabitants were forced to move to the mainland. It received the same name as the fortress and was already mentioned in historical documents as a city in 1336.

Vyborg officially received city status in 1403 by decision of King Eric XIII of Sweden, and from 1527 it was allowed to receive foreign ships in its harbors. The Middle Ages in Vyborg were marked by the activity of local feudal lords who resolved many political issues and declared war or peace to neighbors. Quote: Chronicles testify that Terra Viburgenis—that is, the Land of Vyborg—was not inferior in importance to the Kingdom of Sweden. The city’s peak prosperity came during the wise and very generous reign of Karl Knutsson. Vyborg was alive with a luxurious court life; the “golden” youth from Sweden were sent there to learn good manners and etiquette.

The city was thoroughly fortified. Towers were added to the fortress, walls five meters thick, bastions, earthen ramparts, and water-filled moats supplemented the defensive line. The strengthening of the city was very timely, as in 1495 Vyborg was besieged by the Russo-Tatar horde led by Daniil Shchenya. The stronghold held out, and a medieval poet about Vyborg said that it was the grave of the Muscovites—Moskorum Busta Viborgin. The beginning of the 16th century was marked by a very progressive idea of Eric Turesson Bjerke—the commandant of Vyborg fortress—regarding the construction of a navigable canal that would connect Lake Saimaa and the Gulf of Finland. The attempt, it must be said, failed, although a trench more than 5 meters wide and 118 meters long was dug. It is now hidden by the modern canal bed.

The Reformation period led to a significant decrease in the Finnish population and the rise of Swedish merchants to leading positions in governance and business. In the mid-17th and early 18th centuries (in 1706, during the Great Northern War), the city was besieged and successfully defended. Ultimately, however, Vyborg fell and was reduced to ruins after the invasion of Peter the Great’s troops. From this event began the period of Russian rule. It was marked by despotism, instability, and the decline of local trade. During this time, the population of Vyborg catastrophically decreased. If in the mid-17th century a census recorded 3,500 people, during Russian rule only 1,400 inhabitants remained in the settlement.

Vyborg was an important fortification point, and its strengthening led to ruthless confiscation of land from townspeople, who were forced to leave the city and seek new refuge. Thus, new suburbs (vorstädte) formed around the entire perimeter of Vyborg.

1808 marks the date of the last Russian war with Sweden. As a result, Finland, which had always been a province of Sweden, joined Russia as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland. From 1811, the duchy was included in the Vyborg Governorate, and Vyborg entered a period of prosperity. The city became an important administrative unit of the empire, and it was at this time that its development surged. Trade and science became active. Intensive construction of city blocks, business offices, and railways took place. The population increased—by 1888, 17,101 people lived in Vyborg.

The global reshuffling of the world and the wars of the 20th century did not bypass ancient Vyborg. Since Vyborg was part of the Grand Duchy of Finland, it became part of Finland, which gained independence in 1917. Then, as a result of the Winter War of 1939, Finland’s borders shifted, and Vyborg was ceded to the USSR. In 1941, the Finnish army recaptured the city and reached the old border, but in 1944 it was again taken by Soviet troops and annexed along with the Karelian Isthmus to the USSR.

I. P. Shaskolsky. The Third Crusade of Swedish Knights to the Eastern Shores of the Baltic (1293)

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