Description of the attraction
The Russian fortress Bomarsund is one of the most important historical monuments of the Aland Islands. Its ruins are located 25 km from Porta Maria in the town of Marienhamn in the municipality of Sund. The Russian Empire began to build a fortress on the Aland Islands that belonged to it at that time in 1832. However, the construction was not destined to be completed: in 1846, construction work was suspended due to the transfer of the fortress to martial law, and during the Crimean War, the fortress was completely destroyed as a result of the Anglo-French attack in 1854. The main fort of the fortress was erected on the island of Aland for 12 years … In addition to it, it was planned to build 14 more defensive towers, of which only 3 were completed by the beginning of the Crimean War. It is interesting that not only ordinary soldiers, but also convicts worked on the construction of Bomarsund. Due to the fact that the prisoners quite often made attempts to escape, the local population received a substantial income from the "hunt" for the fugitives.
An Orthodox church was erected on the territory of the fort, a garrison town was located nearby, and a hospital and some storage facilities were built on the island of Presto. However, before the attack, all the buildings were burned by the population in order to prevent the enemy from hiding in them during the battle.
Unfortunately, today only ruins remain of the mighty bastion. Despite this, the fortress still attracts tourists from all corners of the world as one of the most interesting sights of the Aland Islands.
The red bricks from the blown-up walls of Bomarsund later formed the basis of many structures. This is how the Bomarsund red bricks were used for the construction of the Orthodoxy Cathedral of the Assumption in Helsinki. A few cannons and fragments of the fortress walls remind of the scale of the battle on the island. The most beautiful views of Alanda are from the ruins of the Nutwick tower. And not far from the fortress, on the other side of the rocky passage between the islands, there is the Bomarsund Museum.
