Finland declared its independence on 6 December 1917. The formal Declaration of Independence was only part of the long process leading to the independence of Finland. History Proclamation of Empress Elizabeth (1742) The subject of an independent Finland was first mentioned in the 18th century, when present-day Finland was still ruled by Sweden. On 18 March 1742, during the Russian occupation in the Russo-Swedish War (1741–1743), Empress Elizabeth of Russia issued a proclamation in the Finnish language to the Finnish people asking them to create a Finland which would be independent from both Sweden and Russia. This led to preparations to create a Kingdom of Finland in 1742. Elizabeth's nephew Duke Peter of Holstein-Gottorp (who later became heir to the throne of Russia and Tsar as Peter III) was proclaimed King of Finland. However, the political situation outgrew the idea of a Finnish kingdom and the concept quickly evaporated. Anjala conspiracy (1788) The Anjala conspiracy was a scheme in 1788–1790 as a response to end Gustav III's Russian War, and it included the independence of Finland to some degree. Several people involved were linked to Walhalla-orden. Russian occupations and plundering of 1713–21 (the "Greater Wrath") (Finnish: Isoviha) and 1741–43 (the "Lesser Wrath") (Finnish: Pikkuviha) were still in vivid memory when Finns waged partisan warfare against the Russians. Georg Magnus Sprengtporten, who took no direct part in the conspiracy, had written a proposal for a Finnish constitution in 1786. Sprengtporten later had a role in forming the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland within the Russian Empire, as he became the first Governor-General of Finland after Sweden ceded the rest of Finland to Russia in 1809 at the conclusion of the Finnish War. Rise of national identity According to professor Martti Häikiö, before a nation declares independence, it must develop a national identity and certain institutions. Governing bodies for Finland were developed after 1809, when it was "elevated as a nation among nations" (as declared by Tsar Alexander I) by becoming an autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland under the Russian tsar. The Diet of Finland met regularly from 1863. National identity grew simultaneously with Pan-European nationalism. Johan Ludvig Runeberg and Elias Lönnrot created an idealized image of Finnish people and Finnish nature in the 1830s and 1840s. Also J. V. Snellman was a central person in national romanticism and the modern nationality debate. He encouraged the use of the Finnish language (instead