Finland Military District

Finland

Military Districts
The sotilaspiiri is the military district to which a place is assigned. Military districts were established in 1932, when the defense forces switched to a regional movement deployment system. Before this, the districts were based on geographic regions. Before the Second World War, the territories of the military districts corresponded to the borders of the Suojeluskunta (Civil guard, Swedish: Skyddakår). Prior to this time the recruitment system established in the 1680s when Finland was part of Sweden was used. This lasted until 1809 when Finland was annexed to the Russian Empire and the military was disbanded. The 1870s saw the return of conscription and the first conscription law was passed in 1878.