House of the Estates

The Bank of Finland (Finnish: Suomen Pankki, Swedish: Finlands Bank) is the central bank of Finland. It is the fourth oldest central bank in the world.

The National Archives of Finland (Finnish: Kansallisarkisto, Swedish: Riksarkivet) is a Finnish government agency under the Ministry of Education and Culture. It is responsible for archiving official documents of the Finnish state and municipalities. It consists of three locations in the capital Helsinki and seven former regional archives, which were incorporated into the National Archives in 2017 and have since been its branches. The task of the National Archives is to ensure official documents forming a part of national heritage are preserved. It is the official Finnish authority in archiving, and promotes the preservation of documents located in private archives. In addition, the National Archives provides their stored documents for research use and participates in research and development activities. The National Archives is also the authority in heraldry. It ratifies all heraldic emblems used by the government, municipalities and church, and flags used by yacht clubs and military units. Its library has special collections on archiving, heraldry and sigillography. The archives was created in 1816 as part of the Senate of Finland. The present main building in Helsinki was built in 1890. The present Swedish name was adopted in 1939 and the present Finnish name in 1994. It was in 1939 it also became a central government agency of its own.

Helsinki Cathedral (Finnish: Helsingin tuomiokirkko, Suurkirkko; Swedish: Helsingfors domkyrka, Storkyrkan) is the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran cathedral of the Diocese of Helsinki, located in the neighborhood of Kruununhaka in the centre of Helsinki, Finland at the Senate Square. The church was originally built from 1830–1852 as a tribute to the Grand Duke of Finland, Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. It was also known as St Nicholas's Church (Finnish: Nikolainkirkko, Swedish: Nikolajkyrkan) until the independence of Finland in 1917. It is a major landmark of the city, and possibly the most famous structure in Finland as a whole when viewed globally.

The Government Palace (Finnish: Valtioneuvoston linna, Swedish: Statsrådsborgen) is the executive office building of the Council of State of Finland. It overlooks the Senate Square in central Helsinki, Finland. The Government Palace houses the Prime Minister's Office, the Office of the Chancellor of Justice and most departments of the Ministry of Finance. Its former name is the Senate House (Senaatintalo). The building is usually not open to the public but on occasions there are open days.

The Senate Square (Finnish: Senaatintori, Swedish: Senatstorget) presents Carl Ludvig Engel's architecture as a unique allegory of political, religious, scientific and commercial powers in the centre of Helsinki, Finland. Senate Square and its surroundings make up the oldest part of central Helsinki. Landmarks and famous buildings surrounding the square are the Helsinki Cathedral, the Government Palace, main building of the University of Helsinki and the Sederholm House, the oldest building of central Helsinki dating from 1757.

Alexander II is a monumental statue located at the Senate Square in central Helsinki, Finland. The main figure in the statue depicts the Grand Duke of Finland Alexander II giving a speech at the 1863 Diet of Finland that he had assembled, wearing the uniform of an officer of the Finnish Guards' Rifle Battalion. The statue also includes four allegorical sculptures, representing four different virtues - Law (Latin: Lex), Work (Labor), Peace (Pax) and Light (Lux). Ordered by the Estates and designed by Johannes Takanen and Walter Runeberg, the monument was revealed in April 1894. The revelation was a great patriotic demonstration to the memory of emperor Alexander II, who the Finns saw as a noble ruler who had sought to limit the autocracy of the emperor.During the Russification of Finland started in 1899 by Nicholas II of Russia - the grandson of Alexander II - the statue became established as the site of anti-Russian demonstrations, remembering Alexander II who had become popularised as the "liberator emperor". There are currently only two monuments to Alexander II outside Russia on public spaces. The other one is the Monument to the Tsar Liberator in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. The sculpture by Mark Antokolsky is on the courtyard of the Russian art museum in Kyiv, Ukraine. There is a monumental column designed by N.I. Barinov and A.K. Brun in the Alexander Park in Odessa.

Helsinki Christmas Market (Finnish: Tuomaan Markkinat; Swedish: Tomasmarknaden; lit. 'St. Thomas Market') is a Christmas market held every year in Helsinki, Finland. It is visited by more than 300,000 people every year. The event has been organized since 1994. Originally it was held in Esplanadi Park for a long time, until they moved to their current venue, the Senate Square.The opening of the Helsinki Christmas Market is always on 1 December and lasts until 22 December. The event brings almost 100 artisans and small producers from all over Finland, as well as more than 20 delicacy sellers, and cafe and restaurant operators to the Senate Square. There is also a vintage-styled carousel, which is free for market visitors.In November 2023, a multinational news channel CNN listed the Helsinki Christmas Market as one of the best Christmas markets in the world.

Helsinki City Museum (Finnish: Helsingin kaupunginmuseo, Swedish: Helsingfors stadsmuseum) is a museum in Helsinki that documents and displays the history of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Its mission is to record and uphold Helsinki's spiritual, material and architectural heritage. The museum features personal memories and everyday life of the city's residents. It also acts as the regional museum for central Uusimaa with a mission to promote and steer museum activities in the region. Helsinki City Museum is located next to the Senate Square in the oldest blocks of the city. It also operates four other museums around Helsinki: Villa Hakasalmi, Burgher's House, Worker Housing Museum and Tram Museum. Entrance to all museums is free of charge.The museum's collections contain about one million photos, for instance popular photos of early 20th century Helsinki by Signe Brander, and 450,000 items.

The Holy Trinity Church (Finnish: Pyhän Kolminaisuuden kirkko, Swedish: Heliga Treenighetskyrkan, Russian: Свято-Троицкая церковь) is a Finnish Orthodox Church located in the Kruununhaka district of Helsinki, on the corner of Unioninkatu and Rauhankatu. The church was built in the neo-classical style in 1826 under the direction of the architect Carl Ludvig Engel, and was dedicated and opened in the following year. The Holy Trinity services the city's orthodox community with Divine Liturgy held in both Church Slavic and Finnish.The church is Helsinki's oldest Orthodox church. When Finland became 1808 autonomic Grand Duchy of Finland, a number of Russian civil servants, merchants and soldiers moved to Helsinki. They needed a place for worship, and the czar supported their efforts to get a church. In the 21st century, many of the churchgoers still speak Russian, but majority of them are immigrants born in the Soviet Union.

Kruununhaka (Finnish: [ˈkruːnunˌhɑkɑ]; Swedish: Kronohagen) is a neighbourhood of Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Kruununhaka became the area next to the harbour and the center, when Helsinki was moved from the earlier location in the mid-1660s. From the very beginning, the residents included city and state officials. Many buildings of the University of Helsinki are also situated in Kruununhaka. The area has become known for its vintage shops.

The Aleksanteri Institute (Finnish: Aleksanteri-instituutti) Finnish Centre for Russian and Eastern European Studies is an independent institute of the University of Helsinki. It functions as a national centre of research, study and expertise pertaining to Russia and Eastern Europe, particularly in the social sciences and humanities. The Institute actively promotes cooperation and interaction between the academic world, public administration, business life and civil society, both in Finland and abroad. The Aleksanteri Institute was founded in 1996 and currently employs more than 50 scholars and administrative staff. The director of the institute is Professor Markku Kangaspuro.

The House of Nobility either refers to the institution of the Finnish nobility or the palace of the noble estate. The Finnish nobility was until 1906 the first of the four estates of the realm.