Pehr Evind Svinhufvud

Pehr Evind Svinhufvud af Qvalstad (December 15, 1861 – February 29, 1944) was the President of Finland from 1931 to 1937. Serving as a judge in the Russian Grand Duchy of Finland, he played a major part in the movement for Finnish independence. He was the first pre-presidential Head of State in independent Finland, first as Chairman of the Senate, and then subsequently as Protector of State or Regent. He also served as Prime Minister 1930-1931.

Family background and early life

Svinhufvud was born in Sääksmäki, the son of Pehr Gustaf Svinhufvud, a sea captain, and Olga von Becker. His father drowned at sea off Greece in 1863, when Pehr Evind was only two years old. He spent his early childhood at the home of his paternal grandfather, Pehr Gustaf Svinhufvud (a provincal treasurer of Häme), at Rapola, where the family had lived for five generations. The Svinhufvud's were a Swedophone family tracing their history back to Dalecarlia, Sweden. Pehr Gustaf Svinhufvud af Qvalstad, an army lieutenant in the reign of Charles XII, had moved from there to Rapola after the Great Northern War. The family had been ennobled in 1574. Rapola was sold when his grandfather shot himself in 1866, and Svinhufvud moved to Helsinki with his mother and his sister.

Related Topics:
Sääksmäki - Greece - 1863 - Häme - Swedophone - Dalecarlia - Sweden - Charles XII - Great Northern War - 1574 - 1866 - Helsinki

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Although his mother tongue was Finnish, he attended the Swedish-language high school in Helsinki. In 1878, at the age of 16, he enrolled at the Imperial Alexander University of Helsinki. There he first completed a Master of Arts degree; his main subjects being Finnish, Russian and Scandinavian History. After this, he took a Master of Laws degree.

Related Topics:
Finnish - Swedish-language - 1878 - Imperial Alexander University of Helsinki

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~