Knife Fighters

During the years from 1790 to 1825 one particular province of Finland, Southern Ostrobothnia, was torn by a wawe of massive violence. Over large areas of the province there were 50–60 cases of manslaughter a year to every 100 000 inhabitants. This book makes an in-depth analysis of the source material and puts a number of different theories to the test in order to find the most viable explanation for this unique phenomenon, which in its time was the focus of great attention.