A small farming and fishing country in the lakes of southern Savonia round Savilahti (Mikkeli), Juva, Sulkava and Ristiina, settled from the Karelian and Tavastian lands.
Its people are counted with the Karelians here because Novgorod treated Savilahti as one of its pogosts until it ceded it to Sweden in the Treaty of Nöteborg (12 August 1323), and because the area's late Iron Age culture is generally described as Karelian in character (that last point is not checked here). Swedish rule over Savo dates from the late 13th century (en.wikipedia Savonia). North of the settled lakes stretch the forests where Sami still hunted.
Who holds it
- Name
- none named
- Title
- the Savonian communities (no leader named)
- Confidence
- high
No leader is named.
Overlord
None in fact; within the Karelian and Novgorodian world (Novgorod ceded Savilahti to Sweden only in 1323).
What it holds
- Savilahti (Mikkeli)
- Juva and Sulkava
- Ristiina and the southern Saimaa shore
How things stand that morning
A small lordless Savonian settlement within the Karelian world; no officer of Novgorod or anyone else is attested.
Wealth
Slash-and-burn farming, lake fishing, furs.
Military
None recorded.
Threats
- Tavastian and Western raiders (none recorded)
Law and courts
Unknown.
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
- late 13th century, 1323 (after this year)Swedish rule reaches Savo; Novgorod cedes Savilahti (1323).
Places of note
- Savilahti: the Savonian centre, ceded by Novgorod in 1323
- Sulkava: southern Saimaa
- Juva: Savonian lake district
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The 1323 treaty and general accounts of the archaeology; nothing for 1200.
On the map: Drawn on southern Savo only; northern Savo is drawn as Sami forest. Whether the Savonians of 1200 saw themselves as Karelians is not known.
Sources and studies
- en.wikipedia: Treaty of Noteborg (1323)
- en.wikipedia: Savonia (historical province)
- en.wikipedia: Karelians
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.