Sweden proper, or Egentliga Sverige, is a term used to distinguish those territories that were fully integrated into the Kingdom of Sweden, as opposed to the dominions and possessions of, or states in union with, the Sweden. Specifically this means that from 1353 up to the Treaty of Fredrikshamn in 1809, Sweden proper did also include Finland (referred to also as Österland—for less than a century—in official Swedish government language[1]). After 1809 however the use of the term has been to distinguish the western part from former eastern half of the realm, or Sweden from Finland. Terra Scania, a former Danish land, came under the Swedish Crown by the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658, but it was not until 1719 that it was fully integrated and became part of Sweden proper. Sweden proper is, as opposed to Finland Proper, a geographical reference that has changed over time, where the latter is a province in southwestern Finland that gave name to all of Finland.
References
- ^ Jouko Vahtola, History of Finland, 2003
