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The Continuation War (Finnish: Jatkosota, Swedish: Fortsättningskriget, Russian: Советско-финская война; (1941—1944)) was the second of two wars fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II. Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including It lasted from 25 June 1941 until 19 September 1944. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 335 - Dalmatius is raised to the rank of Caesar by his uncle Constantine I. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
At the time it started, it was named by the Finns to make clear its relationship to the preceding Winter War of 30 November 1939 to 13 March 1940. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the Events 1700 - Battle of Narva — A Swedish army of 8500 men under Charles XII defeats Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1138 - Cardinal Gregorio Conti is elected Antipope as Victor IV, succeeding Anacletus II. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Soviet Union, however, perceived the war merely as one of the fronts of the Great Patriotic War against Nazi Germany and its allies. The term Great Patriotic War (Великая Отечественная война Velikaya Otechestvennaya Vojna) is used in Russia and some other Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers [5] Similarly, Germany saw its own operations in the region as a part of its overall war efforts of World War II.
The United Kingdom declared war on Finland on 6 December 1941, followed by its Dominions shortly afterwards. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A dominion, often Dominion, refers to one of a group of autonomous polities under sovereign authority within the British Empire and The Continuation War is a rare case of democracies declaring war on other democracies but the British Empire forces were not major participants in the war. The democratic peace theory (or liberal peace theory or simply the democratic peace) holds that democracies &mdash usually liberal democracies The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. Germany took part by providing critical material support and military cooperation to Finland. The United States did not fight or declare war against either party, but sent substantial matériel to the Soviet Union for use in the war effort against Germany and its allies. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Materiel (from the French "matériel" for equipment or hardware related to the word Material) is a term used in English to refer to the
Hostilities ended in 1944, and the formal conclusion of the Continuation War was ratified by the Paris peace treaty of 1947. The Paris Peace Conference ( July 29 to October 15, 1946) resulted in the Paris Peace Treaties signed on February 10, 1947
Contents |
Introduction
Although the Continuation War was fought on the periphery of World War II and the troops engaged were relatively few, its history represents the only case of a genuinely democratic state participating in World War II on the side of the Axis powers, albeit without being a signatory of the Tripartite Pact. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Axis powers also known as the Axis alliance Axis nations Axis countries or sometimes just the Axis were those Countries The Tripartite Treaty (1906 also refers to a 1906 treaty concerning the Nile river (see Hydropolitics in the Nile Basin. The United Kingdom declared war on Finland on 6 December 1941, Finnish Independence Day, with Canada and New Zealand declaring war on Finland on December 7, and Australia and South Africa declaring war on December 8. Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Events 43 BC - Marcus Tullius Cicero assassinated 1696 - Connecticut Route 108, one of the oldest highways For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Events 1609 - Biblioteca Ambrosiana opens its reading room the second public library of Europe. The United States Secretary of State Cordell Hull did congratulate the Finnish envoy on the 3rd of October 1941 for the liberation of Karelia but warned Finland not to go in to Russian territory; furthermore the US did not declare war on Finland when they went to war with the Axis countries and, together with UK, approached Stalin in the Tehran Conference to acknowledge Finnish independence. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Cordell Hull ( October 2, 1871 &ndash July 23, 1955) was an American politician from the U The Tehran Conference ( Codenamed EUREKA) was the meeting of Joseph Stalin, Franklin D However, the US government seized Finnish merchant ships in American ports and in the summer of 1944 shut down Finnish diplomatic and commercial offices in the US as a result of President Rytis' treaty with Germany. A merchant vessel is a Ship that transports Cargo and Passengers during peace time The US government later warned Finland about the consequences of continued adherence to the Axis. [6]
The best known British action on Finnish soil was a Swordfish attack on German ships in the Finnish harbour of Petsamo on 31 July 1941. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Events 30 BC - Battle of Alexandria: Mark Antony achieves a minor victory over Octavian 's forces but most of his army subsequently Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. [4] This attack achieved little except the loss of 3 British aircraft, but it was intended as a demonstration of British support for its Russian ally. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Later in 1941, Hurricanes of RAF 151 Wing based at Murmansk provided local air cover for Russian troops and fighter escorts for Russian bombers. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout No 151 Wing Royal Air Force was a British unit which fought alongside the Soviets on the Kola Peninsula during the first months of Operation Barbarossa [7] The British contribution to the war was occasional but significant.
Finnish radio intelligence is said to have participated effectively in German actions against British convoys to Murmansk. Operation Stella Polaris was the cover name for activity in which Finnish Signals intelligence records equipment and personnel were transported into Sweden Murmansk (Му́рманск Murmanska Muurman is a city and Seaport in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, 12 km [8] Throughout the war, German aircraft operating from airfields in northern Finland made attacks on British air and naval units based in Murmansk and Archangelsk. Arkhangelsk (Арха́нгельск formerly called Archangel in English, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast
Finland adopted the concept of a "parallel war" whereby it sought to pursue its own objectives in concert with, but separate from, Nazi Germany.
Major events of World War II, and the tides of war in general, had significant impact on the course of the Continuation War:
- Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa) is closely connected to the Continuation War's beginning. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II
- The Allied invasion of France (Battle of Normandy) was coordinated with the Soviet major offensive against Finland (9 June–15 July 1944). The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Events 53 - Roman Emperor Nero marries Claudia Octavia 62 - Claudia Octavia commits Events 1099 - First Crusade: Christian soldiers take the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem after the final Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
- The subsequent US/Soviet race to Berlin brought about the end of the Continuation War by rendering Northern Europe irrelevant. The Race to Berlin refers mainly to the competition between two Soviet Marshals to be the first to enter Berlin during the final months of World War II Northern Europe is a term for the northern part of Europe. The United Nations defines Northern Europe as (Finland
Background
Before World War II
Although East Karelia has never been part of a modern Finnish state, a significant part of its inhabitants were Finnic-speaking Orthodox Karelians. East Karelia, in Finnish Itä-Karjala also Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. After the Finnish declaration of independence, voices arose advocating the annexation of East Karelia to "rescue it from oppression". East Karelia, in Finnish Itä-Karjala also Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty This led to a few incursions to the area (Viena expedition and Aunus expedition), but these were unsuccessful. The Viena expedition (Vienan retkikunta was a military expedition in March 1918 by Finnish volunteer forces to capture White Karelia ( Vienan Karjala The Aunus expedition was an attempt by Finnish volunteers to occupy parts of East Karelia in 1919 during the Russian Civil War. Finland unsuccessfully raised the question of East Karelia several times in the League of Nations. The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920
In non-leftist circles, Imperial Germany's role in the "White" government's victory over rebellious Socialists during the Finnish Civil War was celebrated, although most preferred British or Scandinavian support over that of Germany. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The White Guards is one translation of the Finnish term Suojeluskunta ( Plural: Suojeluskunnat, Finland-Swedish: Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution The Finnish Civil War was a part of the national and social turmoil caused by World War I (1914&ndash1918 in Europe The security policy of an independent Finland turned first towards a cordon sanitaire, whereby the newly independent nations of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland would form a defensive alliance against the USSR, but after negotiations collapsed, Finland turned to the League of Nations for security. Cordon sanitaire is a French phrase that literally translated means Quarantine line Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the Latvia ( Latvija officially the Republic of Latvia (Latvijas Republika is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region. Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920 Contacts with the Scandinavian countries also met with little success. In 1932, Finland and the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact, but even contemporary analysts considered it worthless. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 See also Non-aggression Pact (band A non-aggression pact is an international Treaty between two or more states agreeing to avoid war
The 1920 peace agreement was broken by the Soviet Union in 1937 when it stopped Finnish ships traveling between Lake Ladoga and the Gulf of Finland via the Neva River. Lake Ladoga (Лáдожское Óзеро Ladozhskoye Ozero; Laatokka is a Freshwater Lake located in Republic of Karelia and Leningrad The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish: Suomenlahti, Russian: Финский залив, Finskiy zaliv, Swedish: Finska viken The free use of this route for merchant vessels had been one of the articles in the agreement.
The consequences of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939 enabled the Soviet Union to pressure Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the Events 475 - Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The three Baltic countries soon gave in to Soviet demands, but Finland continued to refuse. The occupation of the Baltic states refers to the occupation of the Baltic states ( Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) first by the As a result, on 30 November 1939, the Winter War began. Events 1700 - Battle of Narva — A Swedish army of 8500 men under Charles XII defeats Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the Condemnation by the League of Nations and by countries all over the world had no effect on Soviet policy. The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920 International help to Finland was planned, but very little actual help materialized.
The Moscow Peace Treaty, which was signed on 12 March 1940, ended the Winter War. The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21 Events 538 - Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the The Treaty was severe for Finland. A fifth of the country's industry and 11% of agricultural land were lost, as was Viipuri, the country's second largest city. Vyborg (Вы́борг Viipuri Viborg Wiborg is a town in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, situated on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of Some 12% of Finland's population had to be moved to the Finnish side of the border. Hanko was rented to the Soviet Union as a military base. Hanko (ˈhɑŋko in Finnish Hangö in Swedish, and Гангут in Russian) is a Bilingual port town on the south coast However, Finland had avoided having the Soviet Union annex the whole country. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991
The Moscow Peace Treaty, in 1940, was a shock to the Finns. The Interim Peace was a short period in the History of Finland during the Second World War. The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21 It was perceived as the ultimate failure of Finland's foreign policy, which had been based on multilateral guarantees for support. Multilateralism is a term in International relations that refers to multiple countries working in concert on a given issue Binding bilateral treaties were now sought and formerly frosty relations, such as with the Soviet Union and the Third Reich, had to be eased. This article is about the political term for the term as used in Biology, see symmetry (biology. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Public opinion in Finland longed for the re-acquisition of Finnish Karelia, and put their hope in the peace conference that was assumed would follow the World War. Historical province of Karelia in Finlandpng|right|150px|thumb|Historical province of Karelia in modern Finland(the borders of modern provinces with pink colour and the modern border of Finland The term Välirauha ("Interim Peace") became popular after the harsh peace was announced.
Although the peace treaty was signed, the state of war and censorship was not revoked because of the widening world war, the difficult food supply situation, and the poor shape of the Finnish military. This made it possible for president Kyösti Kallio to ask Field Marshal Mannerheim to remain commander-in-chief and supervise rearmament and fortification work. Kyösti Kallio kyøsti kallio ( April 10, 1873 &ndash December 19, 1940) was the fourth President of Finland (1937-1940 In Finnish Defence Forces Field Marshal (Finnish sotamarsalkka, Swedish fältmarskalk) is officially not an active Military rank but an honorary Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim ( IPA: ˡkɑːrl ˡɡɵstɑf ˡeːmil ˡmɑnːərhe͡im ( June 4, 1867 &ndash January 27, 1951 A commander-in-chief is the Commander of a nation's Military forces or significant element of those forces During 1940, Finland received material purchased and donated during and immediately after the Winter War. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the Military expenditures rose in 1940 to 45% of Finland's state budget. A war trade treaty with Britain had little effect due to German occupation of Norway and Denmark. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe [9]
Nazi Germany attacked Scandinavia on 9 April 1940 (Operation Weserübung). Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Terminology and usage As a cultural term "Scandinavia" has no official definition and is subject to usage by those who identify with the culture in question as well Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Operation Weserübung was the codename for Nazi Germany 's assault on Denmark and Norway during World War II and the opening operation Finland, like Sweden, was spared occupation but was encircled by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. From May 1940, Finland pursued a campaign to re-establish good relations with Germany. The Finnish media not only refrained from criticism of Nazi Germany, but also took an active part in this campaign. Dissent was censored. Censorship is the suppression of speech or deletion of communicative material which may be considered objectionable harmful or sensitive as determined by a censor After the fall of France, the campaign was stepped up. In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries
The implementation of the Moscow Peace Treaty created problems. The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21 The forced return of evacuated machinery, locomotives, and rail cars, inflexibility on questions which could have eased hardships created by the new border, such as fishing rights and the usage of Saimaa Canal, heightened distrust about the objectives of the Soviet Union. The Saimaa Canal (Saimaan kanava Saima kanal Сайменский канал is a transportation Canal that connects lake Saimaa with the Gulf
Unbeknownst to Finland, Adolf Hitler had started to plan an invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa). Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II He had not been interested in Finland before the Winter War, but now he saw the value of Finland as a base of operations, and perhaps also the military value of the Finnish army. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the The Finnish Army ( Finnish: Maavoimat, Swedish: Armén) is the land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces In the first weeks of August, German fears of a likely immediate Soviet attack on Finland caused Hitler to lift the arms embargo. Negotiations were initiated concerning German troop transfer rights in Finland in exchange for arms and other material. For the Third Reich, this was a breach of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, as well as being for Finland a breach of the Moscow Peace Treaty. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21 Soviet negotiators had insisted that the troop transfer agreement (to Hanko) should not be published making it easy for the Finns to keep a troop transfer agreement with the Germans secret until the first German troops arrived. Hanko (ˈhɑŋko in Finnish Hangö in Swedish, and Гангут in Russian) is a Bilingual port town on the south coast The matter of German troop transfer through Sweden and Finland during World War II was one of the more controversial aspects of modern Scandinavian history beside
Despite the Soviet leadership having promised the Finns during the signing of the Moscow Peace treaty that the Soviets would not intervene in Finnish domestic policy, the reality of the interim peace period showed the opposite. After the ceasefire the Soviets demanded the Finnish industrial town of Enso, which clearly was on the Finnish side of the peace treaty border; the Finns accepted and handed over the town. The Soviet involvement in Finnish domestic politics continued with open Soviet support for the extreme left wing organization SNS Friendship Union Soviet-Finland, who openly campaigned for Finland to join the Soviet Union. The Soviets also successfully demanded that the Finnish minister Väinö Tanner resign and that, during the Finnish presidential election of 1940, neither Mannerheim, Kivimäki, Tanner nor Svinhuvud were to be candidates. Väinö Tanner ( March 12, 1881 &ndash April 19, 1966) was a pioneer and leader in the Cooperative movement in Finland, The most significant event during the interim peace was Soviet foreigner minister Molotov's visit in Berlin where Molotov asked Hitler for a free hand to 'solve the Finnish question'. [10]
The negotiations about Petsamo nickel mining rights had dragged on for six months when the Soviet Foreign Ministry announced in January 1941 that the negotiations had to be concluded quickly. Nickel (ˈnɪkəl is a metallic Chemical element with the symbol Ni and Atomic number 28 On the same day, the Soviet Union interrupted grain deliveries to Finland. Soviet ambassador Zotov was recalled home 18 January and Soviet radio broadcasts started attacking Finland. Events 350 - Generallus Magnentius deposes Roman Emperor Constans and proclaims himself Emperor Germans in Northern Norway reported in 1 February that the Soviet Union had collected 500 fishing ships in Murmansk, capable of transporting a division. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Events 1327 - Teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Murmansk (Му́рманск Murmanska Muurman is a city and Seaport in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, 12 km Hitler ordered troops in Norway to occupy Petsamo (Operation Renntier) immediately if the Soviet Union started attacking Finland. Operation Renntier ( Reindeer) was a German operation during World War II.
Finns offered half of the mine to Soviets and demanded a guarantee that no anti-government agitation would be done in the mines. These were not enough for Soviets and when Mannerheim declared that any additional concessions would endanger the defence of the country and threatened to resign if those were done, the Finnish side decided to let the negotiations lapse when there was no movement from the Soviet positions.
After the failure of the nickel negotiations, diplomatic activities were halted for a few months. The period did, however, see an increased German interest in Finland.
One sign of the interest was the recruitment of one battalion of Finnish volunteers to the German Waffen-SS, with approval of the Finnish government. The Waffen-SS ( German for "Armed SS" literally "Weapons SS" was the Combat arm of the Schutzstaffel ("Protective Squadron" It has been concluded that the battalion served as a token of Finnish commitment to cooperation with Nazi Germany. The agreement was that the Finnish volunteers would not be sent to fight against British or Greek forces (the only European nations at war with Germany at the moment of signing) and had the duration of two years. This battalion, named the Finnisches Freiwilligen Bataillon fought as part of SS Division Wiking in the Ukraine and Caucasus. The Finnisches Freiwilligen-Bataillon der Waffen-SS was a Finnish Volunteer combat Battalion of the German Waffen-SS. SS Division (motorised Wiking was a German Waffen SS division recruited from foreign volunteers Ukraine (Україна Ukrayina, /ukrɑˈjinɑ/ is a country in Eastern Europe. The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East When the time of service was up, the battalion was pulled back from the front in May 1943 and was transported to Tallinn and further to Hanko where it was disbanded on 11 July. Tallinn (historically known by the German, Swedish and Danish name Reval or the Polish name Rewal, among other names Events 911 - Signing of the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte between Charles the Simple and Rollo of Normandy. The soldiers were then transferred into different units of the Finnish army.
The German Foreign Ministry sent Ludwig Weissauer to Finland 5 May, this time to clarify that war between Germany and the Soviet Union would not be launched before spring 1942. Events 553 - The Second Council of Constantinople begins 1215 - Rebel Barons renounce their allegiance to King John Finnish leadership believed that, at least officially, and forwarded the message to the Swedes and the British. When the war broke out only a couple of months later, it was understandable that both Swedish and British governments felt that the Finns had lied to them.
In the spring of 1941, joint battle plans were discussed with Germany, as well as communications and securing sea lanes. Finland made significant requests for material aid. Finland was willing to join Germany against Soviet Union with some prerequisites: a guarantee of Finnish independence, the pre-Winter War borders (or better), continuing grain deliveries, and that Finnish troops would not cross the border before a Soviet incursion. The arrival of German troops participating in Operation Barbarossa began on 7 June in Petsamo. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Events 1099 - The First Crusade: The Siege of Jerusalem begins Prior to the continuation war, the Germans offered Mannerheim command over the German troops in Finland, around 80,000 men. Mannerheim declined, because if he accepted, he and Finland would be tied to the German war aims. [11]
The Finnish parliament was informed for the first time on 9 June, when the first mobilization orders were issued for troops needed to safeguard the forthcoming general mobilization phases. The Eduskunta (in Finnish) or the Riksdag (in Swedish) is the Parliament of Finland. Events 53 - Roman Emperor Nero marries Claudia Octavia 62 - Claudia Octavia commits On June 20, Finland's government ordered 45,000 people at the Soviet border to be evacuated. Events 451 - Battle of Chalons: Flavius Aetius ' defeats Attila the Hun. On 21 June, Finland's chief of the General Staff, Erik Heinrichs, was finally informed by his German counterpart that the attack was to begin. Events 524 - Godomar, King of the Burgundians defeats the Franks at the Battle of Vézeronce. Axel Erik Heinrichs (1890-1965 was a Finnish military General.
Course of the war
Finnish Offensive of 1941
Operation Barbarossa had already commenced in the northern Baltic by the late hours of June 21, when German minelayers, which had been hiding in the Finnish archipelago, laid two large minefields across the Gulf of Finland. The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21 Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Events 524 - Godomar, King of the Burgundians defeats the Franks at the Battle of Vézeronce. The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish: Suomenlahti, Russian: Финский залив, Finskiy zaliv, Swedish: Finska viken [12][13] These minefields ultimately proved sufficient to confine the Soviets' Baltic Fleet to the easternmost part of the Gulf of Finland. The Twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet - (Дважды Краснознамённый Балтийский флот was the Imperial later Soviet and is now the Russian Navy's Later the same night, German bombers flew along the Gulf of Finland to Leningrad and mined the harbour and the river Neva. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River On the return trip, these bombers refuelled in Utti airfield. Utti is a small town in Southern Finland, Finland. It is located at. Finland feared that the Soviet Union would occupy Åland so Operation Kilpapurjehdus ("Regatta") was launched in the early hours of June 22 to occupy Åland. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Operation Kilpapurjehdus ("Regatta" was the covername for the militarization of the Åland islands Events 217 BC - Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom. Soviet bombers launched attacks against Finnish ships during the operation but no damage was inflicted. Finnish submarines also laid six small minefields at 8:00-10:00 between Suursaari and Estonian coast according to pre-war defensive plans of Finland and Estonia. Hogland ( Russian: Гогланд; Finnish: Suursaari; Swedish: Hogland, Estonian: Suursaar,
On the morning of June 22, the German Gebirgskorps Norwegen started Operation Renntier and began its move from Northern Norway to Petsamo. Events 217 BC - Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom. Gebirgskorps Norwegen ( Mountain Corps "Norway") was a German army unit during World War II. Operation Renntier ( Reindeer) was a German operation during World War II. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Finland did not allow direct German attacks from its soil to the Soviet Union, so German forces in Petsamo and Salla had to hold their fire. Salla (former name Kuolajärvi until 1936 is a municipality of Finland and is located in Lapland. There were occasional individual and group level small arms shooting between Soviet and Finnish border guards, but otherwise the front was quiet.
After three days, early on the morning of June 25, the Soviet Union unleashed a major air offensive against 18 Finnish cities with 460 planes, mainly striking civilian targets[14] and airfields. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians The Soviet Union justified the attack as being directed against German targets in Finland, but even the British embassy had to admit that this was not so. German targets were not hit. A small number of Soviet infantry launched attacks over the Finnish side of the border in Parikkala. A meeting of parliament was scheduled for June 25 when Prime Minister Rangell had been due to present a notice about Finland's neutrality in the Soviet-German war, but the Soviet bombings led him to instead observe that Finland was once again at war with the Soviet Union. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Johan Wilhelm Rangell (born in Hauho on October 25, 1894; died March 12, 1982 in Helsinki) was a Finnish Prime Minister The Continuation War had begun.
Mobilized Finnish units had started moving towards the border on June 21, and they were arranged into defensive formations as soon as they arrived at the border. Events 524 - Godomar, King of the Burgundians defeats the Franks at the Battle of Vézeronce. Finland mobilized 16 infantry divisions, one cavalry brigade, and two "Jäger" brigades, which were practically normal infantry brigades, except for one battalion in the 1st Jäger Brigade (1. For other uses see Jäger. Jäger (plural also Jäger, ˈjɛːgɐ (егерь yeger was adopted in the Enlightenment era JPr), which was armoured using captured Soviet equipment. There were also a handful of separate battalions, mostly formed from Border Guard units and used mainly for reconnaissance. Soviet military plans estimated that the Finns would be able to mobilize only 10 infantry divisions, as they had done in the Winter War, but they failed to take into account the material the Finns had purchased between the wars and the training of all available men. In northern Finland, there were also two German Mountain Divisions at Petsamo and two German Infantry divisions at Salla. Another German infantry division was en route through Sweden to Ladoga Karelia, although one reinforced regiment was later redirected from it to Salla. Karelia ( Karelian and Finnish Karjala, Карелия ( Kareliya) Karelen the land of the Karelian peoples, is an area in
When the war started, the Soviet Union had the 23rd Army in the Karelian Isthmus consisting of the 50th, the 19th Corps and the 10th Mechanized Corps, together with 5 Infantry, 1 Motorized and 2 Armored divisions. The 23rd Army was a Field army of the Soviet Union 's Red Army. See Karelia (disambiguation for other meanings of the name Karelia. At Ladoga Karelia, there was the 7th Army consisting of 4 Infantry divisions. In Murmansk-Salla region the Soviet Union had the 14th Army with 42nd Corps, consisting of 5 Infantry divisions (1 as reserve in Archangelsk) and 1 Armored division. Arkhangelsk (Арха́нгельск formerly called Archangel in English, is a city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast Also the Soviets had around 40 battalions, separate regiments and fortification units which were not part of their divisional structure. In Leningrad, there were 3 Infantry divisions and one Mechanized Corps. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River
The initial German strike against the Soviet Air Force had not touched air units located near Finland, so the Soviets could field nearly 750 Air Force planes and part of the 700 planes of the Soviet Navy against 300 Finnish planes. The Soviet Navy ( Russian: Военно-морской флот СССР Voyenno-morskoy flot SSSR, literally "Naval military forces of the USSR" was
The Soviet war against Germany did not go as well as pre-war Soviet war games had envisioned, and soon the Soviet High Command had to take units from wherever they could, so although Soviets had started the war against Finland, they could not follow the initial air offensive with a supporting land offensive. Stavka (Ставка was the term used to refer to command element of Armed forces from the time of the Kievan Rus′, more formally during the history They also had to withdraw the 10th Mechanized Corps with two armoured divisions and 237th Infantry division from Ladoga Karelia thus stripping reserves from defending units.
Reconquest of Ladoga Karelia
Reconquest of the Karelian Isthmus
Conquest of East Karelia
Advance from Northern Finland
See also: Operation Silver Fox
The operational border between Finnish and German forces was located southeast from Lake Oulujärvi to the border, and then straight to the east. The Finnish 14. D controlled the southern part of the border, while the northern part was in the responsibility of AOK Norwegen (Col. Gen. von Falkenhorst). The Finnish III Corps (Maj. Gen. Siilasvuo) was southernmost, German XXXVI Corps (Gen. Feige) next and German Mountain Corps (Gen. Dietl) northernmost at Petsamo. Together, they had three infantry, two mountain and one SS ("Nord") divisions and two armoured battalions. Additionally, one IR and one artillery from the German 163th division were diverted there. Against them were the Soviet 14. Army (Lt. Gen Frolov) at Murmansk and part of the 7. Army, together with 6 infantry and one armoured divisions and one division strengthening the fortified area.
As Finns had not allowed German attacks across the border before 25 June, the Soviets had ample warning and used the available days to fortify the border region. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Also, the concentration of the German forces to the border took longer than anticipated, so the start of the offensive was delayed until June 29, a week later than the beginning of the Operation Barbarossa, thus giving Soviets even more time to prepare their fortifications.
The Mountain Corps broke through the Soviet forces in the early hours of 29 June, and managed to advance almost 30 km to Litsa river, where the offensive had to be stopped due to supply problems on 2 July. Events 512 - A Solar eclipse is recorded by a monastic chronicler in Ireland. Events 310 - Pope Miltiades is elected 626 - In fear of assassination Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival When the attack was continued a week later, the Soviets had managed to bring in reinforcements and prepare defensive positions so the attack failed to gain ground.
The XXXVI Corps attacked along the Rovaniemi-Kandalaksha railroad at July 1, but after only a day the SS division "Nord" had lost its fighting capability and it took a week before German 169. History There has probably been continuous settlement in the Rovaniemi area since the Stone Age. Kandalaksha (Кандала́кша Kantalahti also Kandalax or Candalax in the old maps Norwegian: Kandalaksja, Karelian: and Finnish 6. division managed to capture Salla, and only two days later the whole offensive was stopped by a new Soviet fortified line. Salla (former name Kuolajärvi until 1936 is a municipality of Finland and is located in Lapland.
Germans had used all their forces in the offensive and didn't have any available reserves left, so these had to be transported from Germany and Norway. This caused a delay in operations which Soviets used effectively to reinforce their positions and improve their fortifications. OKW was only able to field two infantry regiments to von Falkenhorst, and their willingness to micromanage their usage lead to disagreements between OKW and von Falkenhorst, which further prevented their effective usage. For other uses of OKW see OKW (disambiguation. The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ( OKW) ( English: "High Command Because of this, the renewed offensive failed to gain any ground at September 8 at River Litsa after which OKW ordered forces to defend.
At Salla, XXXVI Corps fared better from 19 August, as the Finnish 6. Events 43 BC - Octavian, later known as Augustus compels the Roman Senate to elect him Consul. D had cut Soviet supply routes, forcing the Soviet 104. D and 122. D to abandon their fortified positions and heavy equipment at August 27. This was followed by advancing the operation along the railroad until after almost 50 km the attack was stopped due to exhaustion at the next Soviet defence line at the Verma river on 19 September, von Falkenhorst asked for reinforces from Germany twice to continue his offensive immediately when Soviets were still unorganized, but he was refused. Events 335 - Dalmatius is raised to the rank of Caesar by his uncle Constantine I.
The Finnish III Corps operated under German AOK Norwegen and was located in Kuusamo-Suomussalmi region. Famous people from Kuusamo Hannu Hautala, photographer Tuomo Hänninen, politician Anssi Koivuranta, Nordic It was a very weak formation with only one infantry division (3. D) and two separate battalions. It was commanded by MJ. Gen. Hjalmar Siilasvuo. Hjalmar Fridolf Siilasvuo (1892 - 1947 was a Finnish General who led troops in the Winter War, Continuation War and Lapland War. Defending against them were Soviet 54. infantry division, which was commanded by MJ. Gen. I. V. Panin, and was reinforced at August with 88. infantry division (MJ. Gen. A. I. Zelentsov) and IR1087 and at November with 186. infantry division and one border guard regiment.
The Corps was ordered to attack towards Uhtua (now Kalevala) and Kiestinki (now Kestenga). Kalevala (Калевала Uhtua is an Urban-type settlement in the Republic of Karelia, Russia. When the offensive started on 1 July, the attack was slowed by a Soviet delaying defence and it took until 9 July before the Soviet defences at the river Vuonnisenjoki in the south, and 20 July before the river Sohjananjoki in the north were reached. "July 1st" redirects here For the Ayumi Hamasaki song see H (song. Events 455 - Roman military commander Avitus is proclaimed Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. Events 1304 - Wars of Scottish Independence: Fall of Stirling Castle - King Edward I of England takes the last rebel stronghold In the south, the attack continued on 11 July by a flanking attack across the Lake Ylä-Kuittijärvi, but the Soviet defence was so efficient, that the attack had to be stopped in early September without reaching Uhtua, still 10 km away, as the attacking forces had to relocate two battalions to the northern group. Events 911 - Signing of the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte between Charles the Simple and Rollo of Normandy.
The northern group was reinforced with one infantry regiment from the SS Division "Nord", and the attack continued on July 30. A week later Kiestinki was captured, and the attack continued along the road and railroad eastward. Finnish 53IR advanced much faster along the railroad than other forces, which advanced along the road. The commander of the newly arrived Soviet 88. ID recognized an opportunity, and the Soviet IR758 attacked across the forest behind the Finnish IR, managing to encircle it on 20 August, making IR53 the largest Finnish unit the Soviets managed to encircle during the war. Events 636 - Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control of Syria and Palestine
Finns managed to open a path through the forest next day, but the supply route via the railroad remained closed, so the IR53 retreated through the forest on September 2 after destroying abandoned material. Finnish forces were reinforced with the second IR from SS-Div "Nord", and the Soviet counter attack was stopped 10-15 km east of Kiestinki.
During October the forces were supplied, rested and reinforced with the rest of the SS Division "Nord", but von Falkenhorst and Siilasvuo planned to start a new attack in November. OKW gave order to AOK Norwegen not to attack, but prepare for defence. However, von Falkenhorst and Siilasvuo still started their offensive on November 1. The Finns managed to break through the Soviet defences and one Soviet IR was encircled between Finns and Germans. The situation was threatening to Soviets and they started to transfer the new 186 infantry division from Murmansk to Kiestinki. Mannerheim contacted Siilasvuo and ordered him to stop the attack, as it endangered Finland's relations with the United States. Also OKW repeated its order to von Falkenhorst to stop the offensive, release the SS Division "Nord" and transfer it to Germany. When the order to move to defensive operations was given on 17 November, the last attempt to reach Murmansk railroad failed. Events 284 - Diocletian is proclaimed emperor by his soldiers
Naval warfare at Gulf of Finland
After the Winter War and the Soviet occupation of the Baltic states the Soviet Navy entered the war from a strong position; the Red banner Baltic fleet (KBF) was the largest navy on the Baltic sea (2 battleships, 2 light cruisers, 19 destroyers, 68 submarines 709 aircraft of the navy aviation). The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the The occupation of the Baltic states refers to the occupation of the Baltic states ( Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) first by the The Twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet - (Дважды Краснознамённый Балтийский флот was the Imperial later Soviet and is now the Russian Navy's The Baltic Sea is a Brackish inland sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N Latitude and from 20°E to 26°E Longitude. With a Soviet naval base at Hanko in southern Finland and Soviet control of the Baltic states the Finnish concern was that it would be easy for the Soviet Union to blockade Finland, and the long Finnish coast would be vulnerable to Soviet amphibious assaults. Hanko (ˈhɑŋko in Finnish Hangö in Swedish, and Гангут in Russian) is a Bilingual port town on the south coast
The Finnish Navy (Merivoimat) was divided into two branches, coastal artillery and the navy. The Finnish Navy ( Finnish: Suomen merivoimat, Swedish: Finlands sjöstridskrafter) is one of the branches of the A string of fixed coastal artillery forts had been built by the Russians before World war I (Peter the Great's Naval Fortress) and was now maintained by the Finns. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Peter the Great's naval fortress or the Tallinn-Porkkala defence station was a Russian fortification line which aimed to block access to the Russian capital The Navy was small, consisting of 2 coastal defense ships, 5 submarines and a number of small craft.
The German Navy could only provide a small part of its naval force to the Baltic Sea as it was tied up in the war with Great Britain. The German Navy ( Deutsche Marine ( is the Navy of Germany and part of the Bundeswehr (German Armed Forces See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands Germany's main concern in the Baltic sea was to protect the routes which supplied its war industry with vital iron ore imported from Sweden.
Cooperation between Germany and Finland was closest in the Baltic sea/Gulf of Finland theater and already before the war both sides had agreed on using the naval tactics from WWI. Both navies would use mine warfare in order to neutralize the superiority of the Soviet navy and let the land forces seek the victory. The naval base at Hanko was to be besieged. Hours prior to Operation Barbarossa, Finnish and German navies began to lay mine belts in the Baltic and in the Gulf of Finland. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Already on the second day of the war, the Soviet navy lost its first destroyer to a mine. Because of this tactic, the Soviets were unable to make use of their superior Navy and its losses increased over the summer of 1941.
As its naval bases at Riga and Liepaja were lost, the Soviet Navy withdrew to Tallinn. Riga (Rīga riːga) the Capital of Latvia, is situated on the Baltic Sea coast on the mouth of the river Daugava. Liepāja (liepaja) is a city in western Latvia on the Baltic sea and the administrative center of Liepāja district. Tallinn (historically known by the German, Swedish and Danish name Reval or the Polish name Rewal, among other names By the end of August, German troops surrounded Tallinn and the Soviets were preparing an evacuation from the sea. As a countermeasure to this the German and the Finnish navy dropped 2400 mines, to add to the 600 mines already in the sea lanes outside Tallinn. German artillery was set up at Cap Jumida and a couple of Finnish and German torpedo boats were put on alert. A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval Ship designed to carry Torpedoes into battle The Soviet evacuation consisted of 160 ships, which evacuated 28 000 people (including Communist leadership and their families, army and navy personnel and 10,000 Estonians drawn into forced labor)and 66,000 tons of materiel. The Soviet evacuation of Tallinn in August 1941 was a Naval operation which consisted of 165 ship and evacuated 28000 passengers and 66000 ton of equipment The evacuation began on the night of the 27 August, at the same time as the first German troops entered the city. During the embarkation the Soviet navy was under constant attack by German bombers and artillery; particularly as the armada reached the heavily-mined Cap Jumida. At midnight of the 28th the armada ran into the minefield of Cap Jumida while being attacked by Finnish and German torpedo boats; casualties were heavy, 65 of the 160 ships were lost, and several more were damaged. 16,000 of the 28,000 evacuees perished. With very small means the German and the Finnish navies had delivered a serious blow to the Soviet navy. It withdrew to the Kronstadt naval base outside of Leningrad where its capital ships would remain until the summer of 1944. Kronstadt (Кроншта́дт also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt (Krone for Crown and Stadt for City) is a Russian Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River [15][16][17]
Soon after this the Finnish navy suffered its heaviest loss on 13 September 1941, when the Finnish coastal defence ship Ilmarinen hit a mine and sank during Operation Nordwind, killing 271 Finnish sailors on board. Events 509 BC - The Temple of Jupiter on Rome 's Capitoline Hill is dedicated on the ides of September Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Operational history Ilmarinen and her sister ship ''Väinämöinen'' took part in the Winter War "Operation North Wind" was also a German offensive on the Western Front in 1945 see Operation Nordwind Operation North
Soviet forces still held the naval base at Hanko on the southwest coast of Finland, but as the Siege of Leningrad tightened, it had lost its importance and was evacuated by December 1941. The Siege of Leningrad, also known as The Leningrad Blockade ( Russian: блокада Ленинграда ( transliteration: blokada Leningrada
Political development
On 10 July, the Finnish army began a major offensive on the Karelian Isthmus and north of Lake Ladoga. Events 48 BC - Battle of Dyrrhachium, Julius Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in Macedonia. See Karelia (disambiguation for other meanings of the name Karelia. Lake Ladoga (Лáдожское Óзеро Ladozhskoye Ozero; Laatokka is a Freshwater Lake located in Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Mannerheim's order of the day, the Sword scabbard declaration, clearly states that the Finnish involvement was an offensive one. The Order of the Day of the Sword Scabbard, or the Sword Scabbard Declaration, actually refers to two related declarations by the Finnish Commander-in-Chief [2] By the end of August 1941, Finnish troops had reached the pre-war boundaries. The crossing of the pre-war borders led to tensions in the army, the cabinet, the parties of the parliament, and domestic opinion. Military expansionism might have gained popularity, but it was far from unanimously championed.
Also, international relations were strained — notably with Britain and Sweden, whose governments in May and June had learned in confidence from Foreign Minister Witting that Finland had absolutely no plans for a military campaign coordinated with the Germans. Risto Heikki Ryti ( February 3, 1889 - October 25, 1956) was the President of Finland from 1940 to 1944 Professor Rolf Witting (1879&ndash1944 was a renowned oceanographist and Finland-Swedish politician member of four of Finland 's cabinets 1926&ndash1943 Finland's preparations were said to be purely defensive.
Sweden's leading cabinet members had hoped to improve the relations with Nazi Germany through indirect support of Operation Barbarossa, mainly channelled through Finland. Prime Minister Hansson and Foreign Minister Günther found however, that the political support in the National Unity Government and within the Social Democratic organizations turned out to be insufficient, particularly after Mannerheim's Sword Scabbard Declaration, and even more so after Finland within less than two months undeniably had begun a war of conquest. Per Albin Hansson ( October 28, 1885 &ndash October 6, 1946) leader of the Swedish Social Democrats, was a Prime Christian Ernst Günther (1886&ndash1966 was Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs in the National Unity Government that was formed as a consequence of the Soviet National governments (alternatively national unity governments or national union governments) are broad Coalition governments consisting of all parties (or War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units A tangible effect was that Finland became still more dependent on food and munitions from Germany.
The Commonwealth put Finland under blockade and the British ambassador was withdrawn. On 31 July 1941, British RAF made an air raid on the northern Finnish port of Petsamo [3]. Events 30 BC - Battle of Alexandria: Mark Antony achieves a minor victory over Octavian 's forces but most of his army subsequently Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Damages were limited since the harbour was almost empty of ships.
On 11 September, the US ambassador Arthur Schoenfeld was informed that the offensive on the Karelian Isthmus was halted on the pre-Winter War border (with a few straightened curves at the municipalities of Valkeasaari and Kirjasalo), and that "under no conditions" would Finland participate in an offensive against Leningrad, but would instead maintain static defence and wait for a political resolution. Events 9 - The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest ends 506 - The Bishops of Visigothic Gaul Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Witting stressed to Schoenfeld that Germany, however, should not hear of this. Mannerheims refusel to attack Leningrad was what ultimately saved Leningrad, for if a coordinated German-Finnish attack had been lanched in September 1941 there is a little doubt that the Soviet defence of the city would have been overwhelmed. [18]
On 22 September, a British note was presented (by Norway's ambassador Michelet) demanding the expulsion of German troops from Finland's territory and Finland's withdrawal from East Karelia to positions behind the pre-Winter War borders. Events 66 - Emperor Nero creates the Legion I Italica. 1236 - The Lithuanians East Karelia, in Finnish Itä-Karjala also Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty Finland was threatened by a British declaration of war unless the demands were met. The declaration of war was exacted on Finland's Independence Day, 6 December. Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev The declaration delayed the state of war until 1200GMT 7 December. Events 43 BC - Marcus Tullius Cicero assassinated 1696 - Connecticut Route 108, one of the oldest highways The timing with respect to Japanese naval movements toward southeast Asian colonies indicates British declaration of war in the Soviet-Finnish conflict was expected to encourage Soviet declaration against Japan. [19]
In December 1941, the Finnish advance had reached River Svir (which connects the southern ends of Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega and marks the southern border of East Karelia). Svir (Свирь Syväri Sviri is a river in the north-east of Leningrad Oblast, Russia. Lake Ladoga (Лáдожское Óзеро Ladozhskoye Ozero; Laatokka is a Freshwater Lake located in Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Lake Onega (also known as Onego, Онежское озеро Onezhskoe ozero, i East Karelia, in Finnish Itä-Karjala also Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty By the end of 1941, the front stabilized, and the Finns did not conduct major offensive operations for the following two and a half years. The fighting morale of the troops declined when it was realized that the war would not soon end.
It has been suggested that the execution of the prominent pacifist Arndt Pekurinen in November 1941 was due to fear of army demoralization being exacerbated by such activism. Arndt Juho Pekurinen ( August 29 1905 in Juva, Finland – November 5 1941 in Suomussalmi, Finland was a
Trench warfare 1942-1943
Diplomatic manoeuvres
Operation Barbarossa was planned as a blitzkrieg lasting a few weeks. Blitzkrieg (German for "lightning war" is a popular name for an Offensive operational-level Military doctrine which involves an initial British and US observers believed that the invasion would be concluded before August. In the autumn of 1941, this turned out to be wrong, and leading Finnish military officers started to doubt Germany's capability. German troops in Northern Finland faced circumstances they were not properly prepared for, and failed badly to reach their targets, most importantly Murmansk. Murmansk (Му́рманск Murmanska Muurman is a city and Seaport in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, 12 km Finland's strategy now changed. A separate peace with the Soviet Union was offered, but Germany's strength was too great. The idea that Finland had to continue the war while putting its own forces at the least possible danger gained increasing support, perhaps in the hopes that the Wehrmacht and the Red Army would wear each other down enough for negotiations to begin, or to at least get them out of the way of Finland's independent decisions. Some may also have still hoped for an eventual victory by Germany.
Finland's participation in the war brought major benefits to Germany. The Soviet fleet was blockaded in the Gulf of Finland, so that the Baltic was freed for the training of German submarine crews as well as for German shipping, especially for the transport of the vital iron ore from northern Sweden, and nickel and rare metals needed in steel processing from the Petsamo area. The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish: Suomenlahti, Russian: Финский залив, Finskiy zaliv, Swedish: Finska viken Swedish Iron ore was an important economic factor in the European Theater of World War II. The Finnish nickel Deposits were found in the Petsamo area at Barents Sea, which until the Paris Peace Treaties 1947, was the northernmost part The Finnish front secured the northern flank of the German Army Group North in the Baltic states. Army Group North ( Heeresgruppe Nord) was a strategic echelon formation commanding a grouping of Field Armies subordinated to the OKH during World War The sixteen Finnish divisions tied down numerous Soviet troops, put pressure on Leningrad — although Mannerheim refused to attack — and threatened the Murmansk railway. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Additionally, Sweden was further isolated and was increasingly pressured to comply with German and Finnish wishes, though with limited success.
Despite Finland's contributions to the German cause, the Western Allies had ambivalent feelings, torn between residual goodwill for Finland and the need to accommodate their vital ally, the Soviet Union. As a result, Britain declared war against Finland, but the United States did not. With few exceptions, there was no combat between these countries and Finland, but Finnish sailors were interned overseas. In the United States, Finland was denounced for naval attacks made on American Lend-Lease shipments, but received approval for continuing to make payments on its World War I debt throughout the inter-war period. Lend-Lease (Public Law 77-11 was the name of the program under which the United States of America supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union,
Because Finland belonged to the Anti-Comintern Pact and signed other agreements with Germany, Italy and Japan, the Allies characterized Finland as one of the Axis Powers, although the term used in Finland is "co-belligerence with Germany". The Anti-Comintern Pact was concluded between Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan (later to be joined by other countries on November 25, 1936 Co-belligerence is waging the War in Cooperation against a common enemy without the formal treaty of Military alliance.
International volunteers and support
Like in the Winter War, Swedish volunteers were recruited. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the Until December, for guarding the Soviet naval base at Hanko, that was then evacuated by sea, and the Swedish unit was officially disbanded. Hanko (ˈhɑŋko in Finnish Hangö in Swedish, and Гангут in Russian) is a Bilingual port town on the south coast During the Continuation War, the volunteers signed for three to six months of service. In all, over 1,600 fought for Finland, though only about 60 remained by the summer of 1944. About a third of the volunteers had been engaged already in the Winter War. Another significant group, about a quarter of the men, were Swedish officers on leave.
There was also an SS battalion of volunteers on the northern Finnish front from 1942 to 1944, that was recruited from Norway, then under German occupation, and similarly some Danes. The ( German for "Protective Squadron" abbreviated SS - or ( Runic)- was a major Nazi organization under Adolf Hitler and the Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional
About 3,400 Estonian volunteers took part in the Continuation War.
On other occasions, the Finns received around 2,100 Soviet prisoners of war in return for those POWs they turned over to the Germans. These POWs were mainly Estonians and Karelians who were willing to join the Finnish army. Estonians ( Estonian: eestlased, previously maarahvas) are a Finnic people closely related to the Finns and inhabiting primarily the country The Karelians (also Karels are descendants of Baltic Finns whose historic homeland Karelia is divided between Finland 's counties North Karelia These, as well as some volunteers from occupied Eastern Karelia, formed the Kin Battalion (Finnish: "Heimopataljoona"). At the end of the war, the USSR required members of the Kin Battalion to be handed over. Some managed to escape before or during transport, but most of them were either sent to the Gulag or executed. The Gulag was the government agency that administered the penal labor camps of the Soviet Union.
Jews in Finland
Finland refused to allow extension of Nazi anti-Semitic practices. Finnish Jews are Jews who are Citizens of Finland. The country is home to the approximately 1300 Jews Antisemitism (alternatively spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism; also rarely known as judeophobia) is the Prejudice against or hostility Finnish Jews served in the Finnish army, and Jews were not only tolerated in Finland but most Jewish refugees were granted asylum (only 8 of more than 500 refugees were handed over to the Nazis). [20] The field synagogue in Eastern Karelia was one of the very few on the Axis side during the war. A synagogue (from Greek: grc συναγωγή transliterated synagogē, "assembly" he בית כנסת beit knesset, "house of Karelia ( Karelian and Finnish Karjala, Карелия ( Kareliya) Karelen the land of the Karelian peoples, is an area in In the few cases in which Jewish officers from Finland's defence forces were awarded the German Iron Cross, they declined. For other meanings please see Iron Cross (disambiguation The Iron Cross ( was a Military decoration of the Kingdom of Prussia [21]
Finnish occupation policy
About 2,600–2,800 Soviet prisoners of war were handed over to the Germans. Most of them (around 2,000) joined the Russian Liberation Army. Russian Liberation Army (Russian Russkaya Osvoboditel'naya Armiya, Русская Освободительная Армия abbreviated in Cyrillic as РОА in Latin Many of the rest were army officers and political officers, and based on their names, 74 of them were Jews, most of them dying in Nazi concentration camps, while some were given to the Gestapo for interrogation. A political commissar, or politruk, is an officer appointed by a government to oversee a unit of the military Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people commonly in large groups without trial The ( contraction of ge heime Sta ats' po' lizei: "Secret State Police" was the official Secret police of Nazi Germany Sometimes these hand overs were demanded in return for arms or food. [23]
The latter was especially scarce in 1942 in Finland due to a bad harvest, and for primarily this reason the number of deaths in Finnish camps rose dramatically. Punishments for escape attempts or serious breaking of rules included solitary confinement and execution. Solitary confinement, colloquially referred to in American English as "the hole" or "the pound" (or in British English "the block" is a Punishment Capital punishment, the death penalty or execution, is the Killing of a person by judicial process as Punishment. Out of 64,188 Soviet POWs, 18,318 died in Finnish prisoner of war camps. [24]
After the war, based on the testimonies of the former prisoners of war, criminal charges were preferred against 1381 Finnish camp staff, resulting in 723 convictions and 658 persons released. They were accused of 42 executions, 242 murders. There were the seven cases led death under the request of former prisoners, 10 cases of death as a result of the tortures, eight infringements of the property rights, 280 official infringements and 86 other crimes.
A significant number of Soviet immigrants who had come to East Karelia after 1917 were placed in concentration camps. East Karelia, in Finnish Itä-Karjala also Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty These were Russian women, young children, and the elderly as almost all of the working age male and female population was either drafted or evacuated: only ⅓ of original population of 470,000 remained in East Karelia when the Finnish occupiers arrived, and only half of them were Karelians. About 30% (24,000) of remaining Russian population were confined in camps, 6,000 of them refugees on the move captured when awaiting Soviet transportation over Lake Onega, and 3,000 from the southern side of the River Svir, allegedly to secure the area behind the front line against partisan attacks. Lake Onega (also known as Onego, Онежское озеро Onezhskoe ozero, i Svir (Свирь Syväri Sviri is a river in the north-east of Leningrad Oblast, Russia. The first of the camps were set up on 24 October 1941 in Petrozavodsk. Events 69 - Second Battle of Bedriacum, forces under Antonius Primus the commander of the Danube armies loyal to Vespasian, defeat Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. During the spring and summer of 1942 3,500 detainees died of malnutrition. During the last half of 1942 the number of detainees dropped quickly to 15,000 as people were released to their homes or were resettled to the "safe" villages, and as the nutrition situation improved, only 500 more people died during the last two years of war. [25][26] During the following years Finns detained a few thousand more civilians from partisan active areas, but as the releases continued the total number of detained remained at 13,000–14,000.
Soviet partisan activity
Soviet partisans operated in Finland and in Karelia from 1941 to 1944. The Soviet partisans were members of a Resistance movement which fought a Guerrilla war against the Axis occupation of the Soviet Union Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. Karelia ( Karelian and Finnish Karjala, Карелия ( Kareliya) Karelen the land of the Karelian peoples, is an area in 24,000 ethnic Russians were interred by occupying Finnish forces. 4,000-7,000 of them died, mostly from hunger during the spring and summer of 1942 due to failed harvest of 1941. [28][25] Segregation in education and medical care between Karelians and Russians created resentment, making many ethnic Russians support the partisan attacks.
Soviet partisans conducted a number of operations. The major one failed when the 1st Partisan Brigade was destroyed in the beginning of August 1942 at lake Seesjärvi. Partisans distributed propaganda newspapers "Pravda" in Finnish language and "Lenin's Banner" in Russian language. Pravda (Правда "The Truth" was a leading Newspaper of the Soviet Union and an official organ of the Central Committee of the Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages One of the leaders of the partisan movement in Finland and Karelia was Yuri Andropov. Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov (Ю́рий Влади́мирович Андро́пов Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov) ( &ndash 9 February 1984 was a Soviet politician [29]
In East Karelia most partisans attacked Finnish military supply and communication targets, but on the Finnish side of the border, almost two thirds of the attacks targeted civilians,[30] killing 200 and injuring 50, including children and elderly. [31][32][33]
Soviet Offensive 1944
Overtures for peace
Finland began to actively seek a way out of the war after the disastrous German defeat at the Battle of Stalingrad in January–February 1943. The Battle of Stalingrad is a commonly used name in English sources for several large operations by Germany and its allies and Soviet forces conducted with the Edwin Linkomies formed a new cabinet with peace as the top priority. Edwin Linkomies ( December 22 1894 &ndash September 9 1963, until 1928 Edwin Flinck was Prime Minister of Finland March Negotiations were conducted intermittently in 1943–44 between Finland and its representative, Juho Kusti Paasikivi, on the one side and the Western Allies and the Soviet Union on the other but no agreement was reached. Juho Kusti Paasikivi juho kusti pɑsikiʋi ( November 27, 1870 &ndash December 14, 1956) was the 7th President of Finland (1946–1956 Stalin decided to force Finland to surrender; a terror bombing campaign followed. The air campaign in February 1944 included three major air attacks on Helsinki involving a total of over 6000 bombing sorties. However, Finnish anti-aircraft defences managed to repel the raids; it is estimated that only about 5% of the bombs hit the planned targets. Major air attacks also hit Oulu and Kotka but, because of radio intelligence and effective AA defences, the number of casualties was small.
Recapture of Karelian Isthmus
On 9 June 1944, the Soviet Union opened a major offensive against Finnish positions on the Karelian Isthmus and in the Lake Ladoga area (it was timed to accompany D-Day). Events 53 - Roman Emperor Nero marries Claudia Octavia 62 - Claudia Octavia commits Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. D-Day may also refer to Decimal Day in the United Kingdom. D-Day is a term often used in Military parlance to denote On the second day of the offensive, the Soviet forces broke through the Finnish lines and, in the succeeding days, made advances that appeared to threaten the survival of Finland. On the 21. 7 km wide breakthrough point the Soviet Union had concentrated 2,851 45-mm guns and 130 50-mm guns. On the heaviest places in Karelian isthmus, the Soviet Union had concentrated over 200 guns for each frontier kilometer (one for each 5m). On 9 June, Soviet artillery fired over 80,000 rounds at the Karelian isthmus. Soviet troops liberated Petrozavodsk on 28 June 1944. Petrozavodsk (Петрозаво́дск Karelian / Vepsian / Petroskoi) is the Capital of the Republic of Karelia, Russia Events 1098 - Fighters of the First Crusade defeat Kerbogha of Mosul. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Before they retreated, the Finns delivered two weeks worth of food to the locals.
Finland especially lacked modern anti-tank weaponry, which could stop heavy Soviet tanks, and German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop offered them in exchange for a guarantee that Finland would not again seek a separate peace. Ulrich Friedrich Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946 was Foreign Minister of Germany from 1938 until 1945 On 26 June, President Risto Ryti gave this guarantee as a personal undertaking, which he intended to last for the remainder of his presidency. Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian is killed during the retreat from the Sassanid Empire. Risto Heikki Ryti ( February 3, 1889 - October 25, 1956) was the President of Finland from 1940 to 1944 The Ryti-Ribbentrop letter of agreement ( Finnish: Ryti–Ribbentrop-sopimus of June 26, 1944, signifies the closest to an alliance Finland In addition to material deliveries, Hitler sent some assault gun brigades and a Luftwaffe fighter-bomber unit to temporarily support the most threatened defence sectors. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force.
With new supplies from Germany, the Finns were now able to handle the crisis, and halted the Soviets in early July 1944. At this point, the Finnish forces had retreated about one hundred kilometres bringing them to approximately the same line of defence they had held at the end of the Winter War. This line was known as the VKT-line (for "Viipuri–Kuparsaari–Taipale", running from Vyborg to River Vuoksi, and along the river to Lake Ladoga at Taipale) where the Soviet offensive was stopped in the Battle of Tali-Ihantala in spite of their numerical and material superiority. VKT-line or Viipuri-Kuparsaari-Taipale line (VKT-linja was a Finnish defensive line on Karelian Isthmus during the Continuation War, spanning The Vuoksi River (Вуокса Vuoksi Vuoksen runs in the northernmost part of the Karelian Isthmus from Lake Saimaa in southeastern Finland to Solovyovo (Соловьёво Taipale formerly Taipale, is a settlement in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, situated on the shore of Lake The Battle of Tali-Ihantala ( June 25 to July 9, 1944) was part of the Continuation War (1941-1944 that occurred during World War II Finland had already become a sideshow for the Soviet leadership, who now turned their attention to Poland and southeastern Europe. The Allies had already succeeded in their landing in France and were pushing towards Germany, and the Soviet leadership did not want to give them a free hand in Central Europe. Although the Finnish front was once again stabilized, the Finns were exhausted and wanted to get out of the war.
Armistice and the Aftermath
Mannerheim had repeatedly reminded the Germans that in case their troops in Estonia retreated, Finland would be forced to make peace even on extremely unfavourable terms. Soviet-occupied Estonia would have provided the Soviets a favourable base for amphibious invasions and air attacks against Helsinki and other cities, and would have strangled Finnish access to the sea. When the Germans indeed withdrew, the Finnish desire to end the war increased. Perhaps realizing the validity of this point, initial German reaction to Finland's announcement of ambitions for a separate peace was limited to only verbal opposition. However, the Germans arrested hundreds of sailors on Finnish merchant ships in Germany, Denmark and Norway.
President Ryti resigned, making a separate peace possible, and Finland's military leader and national hero, Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, was extraordinarily appointed president by the parliament, accepting responsibility for ending the war. Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim ( IPA: ˡkɑːrl ˡɡɵstɑf ˡeːmil ˡmɑnːərhe͡im ( June 4, 1867 &ndash January 27, 1951
On 4 September, the cease-fire ended military actions on the Finnish side. Events 476 - Romulus Augustus, last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, is deposed when Odoacer proclaims himself The Soviet Union ended hostilities exactly 24 hours after the Finns. The Moscow armistice was signed in Moscow on 19 September between the Soviet Union and Finland. Finland and the Soviet Union signed the Moscow Armistice on September 19, 1944, ending the Continuation War. Events 335 - Dalmatius is raised to the rank of Caesar by his uncle Constantine I. Finland had to make many concessions: the Soviet Union regained the borders of 1940, with the addition of the Petsamo area; the Porkkala peninsula (adjacent to Finland's capital Helsinki) was leased to the USSR as a naval base for fifty years and transit rights were granted; Finland's army was to be demobilized with haste, and Finland was required to expel all German troops from its territory within 14 days. Porkkala (Porkala is a peninsula in the Gulf of Finland located at Kirkkonummi (Kyrkslätt in Southern Finland. Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. As the Germans did not leave Finland in time for the given deadline, the Finns fought their former allies in the Lapland War. The Lapland War (Finnish Lapin sota) were the hostilities between Finland and Nazi Germany between September 1944 and April 1945 fought in the Finland's The Finns were also to clear the mine fields in Karelia (including East Karelia) and in the Gulf of Finland. A land mine is an Explosive device designed to be placed on or in the ground to explode when triggered by an operator or the Proximity of a vehicle person The demining was a long operation, especially in the sea areas, lasting until 1952 and inflicting casualties of 100 killed and over 200 wounded, most of them in Lapland. Demining is the process of removing Land mines or Naval mines from an area
Nevertheless, in contrast to the rest of the Eastern front countries, where the war was fought to the end, a Soviet occupation of Finland did not occur and Finland retained sovereignty. Neither did Communists rise to power as they had in Eastern Bloc countries. During the Cold War, the term Communist Bloc (or Soviet Bloc) was used to refer to the Soviet Union and countries it either controlled or that were A policy called the Paasikivi-Kekkonen line formed the basis of Finnish foreign policy towards the Soviet Union until its dissolution. The Paasikivi-Kekkonen line is president Urho Kekkonen 's (1956-1981 realization and development of his predecessor Paasikivi 's doctrine aimed at
Analysis
Aims of the War
Unlike the Winter War, which was a Soviet war of aggression against Finland, the Continuation War was a war of aggression initiated by the Finns,[34][35] which attempted to rectify the territorial losses of the Winter War and pre-empt Soviet aggression. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the A war of aggression is a Military conflict waged in the absence of "a necessity of self-defense instant overwhelming leaving no choice of means and no moment of deliberation The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the Preemptive war (or a preemptive strike) is waged in an attempt to repel or defeat a perceived inevitable offensive or Invasion, or to gain a strategic advantage in There is a debate in Finland on whether the country had a realistic option of not joining the German Operation Barbarossa, and about how much of the Finnish action was morally justified. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II However, there exists a consensus that one of the main Finnish objectives was an attempt to get back the areas lost in the Winter War. The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the
Finland's main goal during World War II was, although it was nowhere openly stated, to survive the war as an independent democratic country, capable of maintaining its sovereignty in a politically hostile environment. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including A state is a political association with effective Sovereignty over a geographic Area and representing a Population. Specifically for the Continuation War, Finland also aimed at reversing its territorial losses under the March 1940 Moscow Peace Treaty and by extending its territory further east, to have more non-Finnish land to defend before armies from the USSR could enter Finnish territories. The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21 Some small right-wing groups also supported a Greater Finland ideology. Greater Finland (Suur-Suomi was an idea which was born in some irredentist movements emphasizing pan-Finnicism and expressed a Finnish version of pre- World War II Finland's efforts during World War II were, as regards survival and with hindsight, successful, although the price was high in war casualties, reparation payments, territorial loss, bruised international reputation, and subsequent adaptation to Soviet international perspectives during the Cold War (see: Finlandization). Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Finlandization (suomettuminen finlandisering Finnlandisierung is the influence that one powerful country may have on the policies of a smaller neighboring country The Finnish-German alliance was different from most of the other Axis relationships, an example of which is represented by the participation of Finnish Jews in the fight against the Soviet Union. [36] The Finns did not take any anti-Jewish measures in Finland, despite repeated requests from Nazi Germany. [37]
The Soviet Union's war goals are harder to assess on account of the secretive nature of the Stalinist Soviet Union. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Stalinism is the political regime named after Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1929–1953 Soviet sources maintain that Soviet policies up to the Continuation War were best explained as defensive measures by offensive means: the division of occupied Poland with Germany, the annexation of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, and the attempted invasion of Finland in the Winter War are seen by them as elements in the construction of a security zone or buffer region between the perceived threat from the capitalist powers of Western Europe and the Communist Soviet Union – as some see the post-war establishment of Soviet satellite states in the Warsaw Pact countries and the Agreement of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance concluded with post-war Finland. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the Latvia ( Latvija officially the Republic of Latvia (Latvijas Republika is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region. Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region Capitalism is the Economic system in which the Means of production are owned by private Persons and operated for Profit and where Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based Satellite state is a political term that refers to a country which is formally independent but under heavy influence or control by another country The Warsaw Pact (see Nomenclature) was an organization of Communist states in Central and Eastern Europe. The Agreement of Friendship Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, also known as the YYA Treaty from the Finnish Ystävyys- yhteistyö- ja avunantosopimus [38][39][40] Notable modern western scholars such as Norman Davies and John Lukacs reject this view and claim that the pre-war Soviet policy was aimed at staying out of the war and regaining land lost after the fall of the Russian Empire. Ivor Norman Richard Davies Fellow of the British Academy (born 8 June 1939 to Richard and Elizabeth Davies John Adalbert Lukacs (born 31 January 1924 in Budapest; in Hungary his name spelled Lukács) is a Hungarian -born American [41]
Battles and operations
- Finnish reconquest of Ladoga Karelia (1941)
- Finnish reconquest of the Karelian Isthmus (1941)
- Finnish occupation of East Karelia (1941)
- Siege of Leningrad (1941-1943)
- Operation Silberfuchs (1941)
- Fourth strategic offensive (1944)
- Battle of Tali-Ihantala (1944)
- Battle of the Bay of Viipuri (1944)
- Battle of Vuosalmi (1944)
- Battle of Nietjärvi (1944)
- Battle of Ilomantsi (1944)
See also
- Co-belligerence
- Finlandization
- Finnish Waffen SS volunteers
- Military history of Finland
- History of Finland
- History of the Soviet Union
- List of Finnish corps in the Continuation War
- List of Finnish divisions in the Continuation War
- List of Finnish wars
- Lotta Svärd
- Paasikivi-Kekkonen Line
- Salpalinja
- Luftwaffe Northern (Arctic) detachment(Luftflotte 5)(Finland-Norway)
- RAF 151 Wing based at Murmansk
References
- ^ Figure indicates total number of all men in service in the theatre of war. The Finnish reconquest of Ladoga Karelia (1941 refers to a military campaign carried out by Finland in 1941 The Finnish reconquest of the Karelian Isthmus (1941 refers to a military campaign carried out by Finland in 1941 The Finnish conquest of East Karelia (1941 refers to a military campaign carried out by Finland in 1941 The Siege of Leningrad, also known as The Leningrad Blockade ( Russian: блокада Ленинграда ( transliteration: blokada Leningrada Operation Silver Fox ( Silberfuchs) was a joint German - Finnish military operation during World War II. The Battle of Tali-Ihantala ( June 25 to July 9, 1944) was part of the Continuation War (1941-1944 that occurred during World War II The Battle of the Bay of Viipuri (Viipurinlahden taistelu was a battle in the Finnish - Soviet Continuation War (1941-1944 The Battle of Vuosalmi (also known as the Battle of Äyräpää-Vuosalmi) — the main bulk of it — lasted from July 4 to July 11, 1944 The Battle of Nietjärvi ( July 15 to July 17, 1944) was part of the Continuation War (1941–1944 — between Finland and the The Battle of Ilomantsi was a part of the Continuation War (1941–1944 Co-belligerence is waging the War in Cooperation against a common enemy without the formal treaty of Military alliance. Finlandization (suomettuminen finlandisering Finnlandisierung is the influence that one powerful country may have on the policies of a smaller neighboring country The Finnisches Freiwilligen-Bataillon der Waffen-SS was a Finnish Volunteer combat Battalion of the German Waffen-SS. Prehistory Finland was first settled around 8300 BC and the prehistoric era lasted there until around AD 1200 History of Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union is covered in the following series of articles List of military corps &mdash List of Finnish corps in the Continuation War This is a list of Finnish army Corps that existed during the Continuation List of military divisions &mdash List of Finnish divisions in the Continuation War This is a list of Finnish divisions that existed during the This is a list of Wars fought by independent Finland between 1917 and 1945: The Civil War ( 1918) The "kinship Lotta Svärd was a Finnish voluntary auxiliary Paramilitary organisation for women The Paasikivi-Kekkonen line is president Urho Kekkonen 's (1956-1981 realization and development of his predecessor Paasikivi 's doctrine aimed at Salpa Line (Salpalinja literally Bolt-line) or its official name Suomen Salpa ( Finland's Bolt) is a bunker line on the eastern border of Finland This Luftwaffe detachment served in Finland and Norway for air support of the Axis forces in the sector with command offices in Oslo, Norway (at July 26 1944 No 151 Wing Royal Air Force was a British unit which fought alongside the Soviets on the Kola Peninsula during the first months of Operation Barbarossa
- ^ a b Manninen, Ohto, Molotovin cocktail- Hitlerin sateenvarjo, 1994, Painatuskeskus, ISBN 951-37-1495-0
- ^ National Defence College (1994), Jatkosodan historia 6, Porvoo. ISBN 951-0-15332-X
- ^ a b FAA archive :raid on Petsamo
- ^ Great Soviet Encyclopedia, Finland, Moscow, 1974, ISBN 0-02-880010-9
- ^ World War II :Finland
- ^ The Royal Air Force in Russia :Hurricanes at Murmansk
- ^ Ahtokari, Reijo and Pale, Erkki: Suomen Radiotiedustelu 1927-1944 (Finnish radio intelligence 1927-1944), Helsinki, Hakapaino Oy, pp. The Great Soviet Encyclopedia ( Большая Советская Энциклопедия, or БСЭ; transliterated Bolshaya Sovetskaya Entsiklopediya 191-198, ISBN 952-90-9437-X
- ^ Seppinen, Ilkka, Suomen ulkomaankaupan ehdot, 1939-1944, 1983, ISBN 951-9254-48-X
- ^ Transcript of secret taping of Hitler's conversation with Mannerheim
- ^ Max Jacobsson 1999 Century of Violence
- ^ Nordberg, Erkki, Arvio ja ennuste Venäjän sotilaspolitiikasta Suomen suunnalla, 2003, ISBN 951-884-362-7
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica Premium, Finland, 2006, http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-26105
- ^ Jokipii, Mauno, Jatkosodan synty, 1987, ISBN 951-1-08799-1
- ^ Finnish Navy in WW II - Mine warfare
- ^ Naval War in the Baltic Sea 1941-1945
- ^ Finnish navy in Continuation War, year 1941
- ^ Battle of the Baltic,The wars 1918-1945 Robert Jackson 2007 page 105 ISBN 184415422-x
- ^ Wuorinen 1948 p. Mauno Jokipii ( 21 August 1924 &ndash 2 January 2007) was a Finnish professor at the University of Jyväskylä in 135
- ^ http://yad-vashem.org.il/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%205852.pdf
- ^ Rautkallio, Hannu, Suomen juutalaisten aseveljeys (Finnish Jews as German Brothers in Arms), 1989, Tammi
- ^ http://gov.karelia.ru/Karelia/1174/sk.pdf
- ^ Helsingin Sanomat 8 November 2003: Wartime refugees made pawns in cruel diplomatic game. Events 1519 - Hernán Cortés enters Tenochtitlán and Aztec ruler Moctezuma welcomes him with great a Celebration Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar.
- ^ Ylikangas, Heikki, Heikki Ylikankaan selvitys Valtioneuvoston kanslialle, Government of Finland
- ^ a b Laine, Antti, Suur-Suomen kahdet kasvot, 1982, ISBN 951-1-06947-0, Otava
- ^ Maanpuolustuskorkeakoulun historian laitos, Jatkosodan historia 1-6, 1994
- ^ Anna-Stina Nykänen (2006-11-19). The Finnish National Defence University ( Finnish: Maanpuolustuskorkeakoulu MPKK, Swedish: Försvarshögskolan) is the Finnish Defence Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1095 - The Council of Clermont, called by Pope Urban II to discuss sending the First Crusade to the Holy Land Sixty years on, there are no grounds to withhold images kept in a Finnish Defence Forces' safe. Too awful an image of war. HELSINGIN SANOMAT (International Edition). Retrieved on 2008-01-17. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 38 BC - Octavian marries Livia Drusilla. 1287 - King Alfonso III of Aragon invades Minorca “The half-naked bodies of Finnish women and children lie strewn on the ground, their corpses partly decomposed. The body of a fair-haired boy of around five years of age is lifted onto the flat bed of a truck. A Finnish soldier holds the burnt and blackened corpse of an infant in his arms.
Another envelope reveals images of cannibalism. Russian troops, surrounded by Finns and with no hope of relief, have started to eat their dead. A third envelope contains graphic images of executions. A Russian infiltrator, caught behind the Finnish lines, laughs and smiles at the camera as a Finnish officer raises a pistol to despatch him. ” - ^ (Russian)"Равнение на Победу" (Eyes toward Victory), the Republic of Karelia (Russian). the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, National Delphi Council of Russia. Retrieved on 2006-08-10. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 612 BC - Killing of Sinsharishkun, King of Assyrian Empire
- ^ (Russian)Andropov Yuri Vladimirovich. Biography.
- ^ (Finnish)Eino Viheriävaara, (1982). Partisaanien jäljet 1941-1944, Oulun Kirjateollisuus Oy. ISBN 951-99396-6-0
- ^ Veikko Erkkilä, (1999). Vaiettu sota, Arator Oy. ISBN 952-9619-18-9.
- ^ Lauri Hannikainen, (1992). Implementing Humanitarian Law Applicable in Armed Conflicts: The Case of Finland, Martinuss Nijoff Publishers, Dordrecht. ISBN 0-7923-1611-8.
- ^ (Finnish)Tyyne Martikainen, (2002). Partisaanisodan siviiliuhrit, PS-Paino Värisuora Oy. ISBN 952-91-4327-3.
- ^ Jatkosodan synty suomalaisen menneisyyden kipupisteenä (Finnish)
- ^ SUOMEN MARSSI JATKOSOTAAN (Finnish)
- ^ Tuulikki Vuonokari (2003-11-21). Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 164 BC - Judas Maccabaeus, son of Mattathias of the Hasmonean family restores the Temple in Jerusalem. "Jews in Finland During the Second World War". University of Tampere. Retrieved on 2008-01-17. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 38 BC - Octavian marries Livia Drusilla. 1287 - King Alfonso III of Aragon invades Minorca
- ^ Letter to the New York Times by Mark Cohen, Executive Director of Holocaust Publications in New York, April 28, 1987
- ^ (Russian)The problem of ensuring the security of Leningrad from the north in light of Soviet war planning of 1932-1941 by V. N. Baryshnikov: The actual war with Finland began first of all due to unresolved issues in Leningrad's security from the north and Moscow's concerns for the perspective of Finland's politics. At the same time, a desire to claim better strategic positions in case of a war with Germany had surfaced within the Soviet leadership.
- ^ (Russian)Финская война. Взгляд "с той стороны". A. I. Kozlov:After the rise of National Socialism to power in Germany, the geopolitical importance of the former "buffer states" had drastically changed. Both the Soviet Union and Germany vied for the inclusion of these states into their spheres of influence. Soviet politicians and military considered it likely, that in case of an aggression against the USSR, German armed forces will use the territory of the Baltic states and Finland as staging areas for invasion - by either conquering or coercing these countries. None of the states of the Baltic region, excluding Poland, had sufficient military power to resist a German invasion.
- ^ (Russian)[1] Stalin's Missed Chance, by Mikhail Meltyukhov:The English-French influence in the Baltics, characteristic for the '20s - early '30s was increasingly limited by the growth of the German influence. Stalin's Missed Chance is a study by Russian military historian Mikhail Ivanovich Meltyukhov, author of several books and articles on Soviet military Mikhail Ivanovich Meltiukhov (also spelled Meltyukhov or Mel'tiuhov, Russian Михаил Иванович Мельтюхов mixʌ'il i'vʌnəviʨ mʲil'tʲuxəf Due to the strategic importance of the region, the Soviet leadership also aimed to increase its influence there, using both diplomatic means as well as active social propaganda. By the end of the '30s, the main contenders for the influence in the Baltics were Germany and the Soviet Union. Being a buffer zone between Germany and the USSR, the Baltic states were bound to them by a system of economic and non-aggression treaties of 1926, 1932 and 1939
- ^ Norman Davies 2007 'No simple victory'ISBN978-0-670-01832-1
Further reading
- Vehviläinen, Olli (2002). Finland in the Second World War: Between Germany and Russia. New York: Palgrave. ISBN 0-333-80149-0.
- Jokipii, Mauno (1987). Jatkosodan synty. Otava. ISBN 951-1-08799-1.
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