Winter War Part of World War II Finnish machine gun squad during the Winter War. 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 Date November 30, 1939 – March 13, 1940 Location Eastern Finland Result Interim Peace Territorial changes Moscow Peace Treaty Belligerents Finland Soviet Union Commanders Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim Kliment Voroshilov Kirill Meretskov Semyon Timoshenko Strength 250,000 men 30 tanks 130 aircraft[1][2] 1,000,000 men 6,541 tanks[3] 3,800 aircraft[4][5] Casualties and losses 26,662 dead 39,886 wounded 1,000 captured[6] 126,875 dead or missing 264,908 wounded 5,600 captured[7] 2,268+ tanks[8]

The Winter War (Finnish: Talvisota, Russian: Зимняя война) began when the Soviet Union led by Joseph Stalin attacked Finland on November 30, 1939, three months after the invasion of Poland by Germany that started World War II. 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. Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. 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 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 Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim ( IPA: ˡkɑːrl ˡɡɵstɑf ˡeːmil ˡmɑnːərhe͡im ( June 4, 1867 &ndash January 27, 1951 (Климе́нт Ефре́мович Вороши́лов Kliment Efremovič Vorošilov, Климент Єфремович Ворошилов popularly known as Klim Voroshilov Kirill Afanasievich Meretskov (Кири́лл Афана́сьевич Мерецко́в ( June 7, 1897 — December 30, 1968) was a Semyon Konstantinovich Timoshenko (Семё́н Константи́нович Тимоше́нко Semën Konstantinovič Timošenko; &ndash March 31, 1970 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 The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. 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. 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 Because the attack was judged as illegal, the Soviet Union was expelled from the League of Nations on December 14^[9]. The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920 Events 1287 - St Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses killing over 50000 people Finnish resistance frustrated the Soviet forces, who outnumbered the Finns 4 to 1 in men, 200 to 1 in tanks and 30 to 1 in aircraft. ^[4] The Soviet Union had just recently seen a drastic purge in 1937 that had crippled the Red Army, reducing its morale and efficiency just before the German invasion. Great Purge (Большая чистка transliterated Bolshaya chistka) was a series of campaigns of Political repression and Persecution The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya ^[10] With up to 50% of army officers executed, including the vast majority of the highest ranking officers, the result was that the Red Army officer corps in 1939 had many inexperienced senior officers. ^[11]

Finland held out until March 1940, when the Moscow Peace Treaty was signed, ceding about 9% of Finland's territory and 20% of its industrial capacity to the Soviet Union. 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 losses on the front were tremendously large, and the country's international standing suffered. Also, the fighting ability of the Red Army was put into question, a fact that contributed to Adolf Hitler's decision to launch Operation Barbarossa. The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya 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 Finally, the Soviet forces did not accomplish their primary objective of conquest of Finland but gained only a slice of territory along Lake Ladoga. Lake Ladoga (Лáдожское Óзеро Ladozhskoye Ozero; Laatokka is a Freshwater Lake located in Republic of Karelia and Leningrad The Finns retained their sovereignty and gained considerable international goodwill. Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself

The March 15 peace treaty thwarted a half hearted Franco-British plan to send troops to Finland through northern Scandinavia (the Allied campaign in Norway). Events 44 BC - Julius Caesar, Dictator of the Roman Republic, is stabbed to death by Marcus Junius Brutus, 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 This article describes Allied operations in Norway during World War II One of the operation's major goals was to take control of northern Sweden's iron ore and cut deliveries to Germany. Swedish Iron ore was an important economic factor in the European Theater of World War II. 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

Background

Pre-World War I

The Mannerheim Line, site of the fiercest fighting of the Winter War. The Mannerheim Line ( Mannerheim-linja) was a defensive fortification line on the Karelian Isthmus built by Finland against the Soviet Union.

Finland had long been the eastern part of the Swedish kingdom when Imperial Russia conquered it in 1809 during the Napoleonic Wars, converting it to an autonomous buffer state in the Russian Empire to protect Saint Petersburg, the imperial capital. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya The right of conquest is the purported Right of a conqueror to territory taken by force of arms The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions An autonomous area is an area of a Country that has a degree of Autonomy, or freedom from an external authority A buffer state is a Country lying between two rival or potentially hostile greater powers, which by its sheer existence is thought to prevent conflict between them The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River

Western Karelia's history is different from the rest of Finland's history. Karelia ( Karelian and Finnish Karjala, Карелия ( Kareliya) Karelen the land of the Karelian peoples, is an area in Most of the area paid tribute to the Russian Novgorod feudal republic, and was the arena of Swedish-Novgorodian Wars. The southwestern area, from the River Sestra to the River Vuoksi and Lake Saimaa (including Viborg) was annexed by Sweden at the same time as the rest of Finland, and the border, between Sweden and Novgorod, was defined by the Treaty of Nöteborg, in 1323. Treaty of Nöteborg, also known as Treaty of Oreshek, is a conventional name for the peace treaty that was signed at Orekhovets (Nöteborg on August 12 In 1617 (when Russia was still recovering from the Time of Troubles), Sweden captured the remainder of Western Karelia. For the Dungeons & Dragons plotline see Time of Troubles (Forgotten Realms. During the Swedish sovereignty this region lost all of its Russian ecclesiastical and bourgeois inhabitants and much of its Russian Orthodox Karelian population, with much of it moving to the Tver region. See also Eastern Orthodox Church Structure and organization The Slavic Orthodox Church is organized in a hierarchical structure Tver (Тверь is a city in Russia, the administrative center of Tver Oblast. Sweden lost the Karelian isthmus and the Ladoga Karelia in 1721 to Russia as a result of the Northern War. In 1743 Sweden ceded control of southern Karelia to Russia as a result of the Russo-Swedish War (1741–1743). The Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743, known as the Hats' Russian War in Sweden and the Hats' War in Finland, which resulted in the Lesser In 1812, Russian emperor Alexander incorporated this region (known as Old Finland or Viipuri Province in Finland) into the Grand Duchy of Finland. Old Finland ( Vanha Suomi in Finnish, Gamla Finland in Swedish is a name used for the areas that Russia gained from Sweden in the The Province of Viipuri (Viipurin lääni, commonly abbreviated Vpl Viborgs län or Wiborgs län was a province of Finland from 1917 to The Grand Duchy of Finland (Magnus Ducatus Finlandiæ Великое княжество Финляндское ' Velikoe knjažestvo finljandskoe) was the Predecessor

Finns were initially satisfied with the situation, but the attempt to strengthen central government and unify the Russian Empire by means of Russification at the beginning of the twentieth century created resentment and increased support for movements vying for self-determination. Russification (in Russian: русификация rusifikátsiya)is an adoption of the Russian language or some other Russian attribute (whether voluntarily

World War I era

During the Russo-Japanese War Imperial Japan had provided little material support to Finnish separatists, but in World War I it was Imperial Germany which actively supported Finnish independence movements, for example by training the infantry battalion from the men Finns had sent: The centuries-long existing religious, economic and cultural ties made it easy to form new political ones. The Russo-Japanese War (日露戦争 Romaji: Nichi-Ro Sensō Русско-японская война Russko-Yaponskaya Voyna;, 10 February 1904 – 5 September World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All 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

Following the October Revolution that brought the Communists to power in Russia, rights of self-determination were declared by Bolsheviks as one of founding stones of the "new order". The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists ( Большевик Большевист (singular, derived from bolshe, "more" were a faction Taking advantage of the Bolshevik's standing, Finland declared itself independent on December 6, 1917. The Grand Duchy of Finland (Magnus Ducatus Finlandiæ Великое княжество Финляндское ' Velikoe knjažestvo finljandskoe) was the Predecessor The Finnish declaration of independence was adopted by the Parliament of Finland on 6 December 1917. Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year In the subsequent Finnish Civil War, German-trained Finnish Jäger troops and regular German troops played a crucial role. The Finnish Civil War was a part of the national and social turmoil caused by World War I (1914&ndash1918 in Europe History The Jäger troops were volunteers from Finland trained in Germany as Jägers (elite Light infantry) during World War Only Germany's defeat in World War I hindered the establishment of a Germany-dependent monarchy under Frederick Charles of Hesse as King of Finland. A monarchy is a Form of government in which supreme power is actually or nominally lodged in an individual who is the Head of state, often for life or Frederick Charles Louis Constantine, Prince and Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel ( May 1, 1868, Gut Panker &ndash May 28 The nation of Finland has never been an enduring independent sovereign Monarchy in the traditional sense of a Nation-state ruled by its own monarch no attempt to

Interwar period

Following the war, German–Finnish ties remained close, thanks to the German role in Finnish independence. When the National Socialists rose to power however, relations chilled as Finns sympathizing with National Socialism were very sparse. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German ^[12] Even the clandestine military co-operation in submarine building was allowed to lapse.

Instead, Finland turned to Western Europe and Scandinavia for co-operation: More Finnish officers were trained in France than all other countries combined. Also the French officers were instrumental in designing the fortifications of the Mannerheim Line. The Mannerheim Line ( Mannerheim-linja) was a defensive fortification line on the Karelian Isthmus built by Finland against the Soviet Union. Great Britain was the largest trading partner, and Sweden was easily accessed through the same language, as native Swedish speakers were in abundance amongst the Finnish political and cultural elite.

The relationship between the Soviet Union and Finland had been tense—the two periods of forced Russification at the turn of the century and the legacy of the failed Soviet-backed socialist rebellion in Finland along with two Finnish military expeditions (Viena expedition, in 1918 and the Aunus expedition of 1919), when Finnish volunteers tried to take Russian East Karelia which had never been a part of the Swedish-Finnish state or the Great Duchy of Finland, contributed to a strong mutual distrust. The Russification of Finland (1899-1905 1908-1917 sortokaudet/sortovuodet (times/years of oppression in Finnish) was a governmental policy of the Russian Empire The Finnish Civil War was a part of the national and social turmoil caused by World War I (1914&ndash1918 in Europe 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. Stalin feared that Nazi Germany would eventually attack, and with the Soviet-Finnish border crossing the Karelian isthmus just 32 kilometres (20 mi) away from Leningrad, Finnish territory would have provided an excellent base for the attack. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River In 1932, the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact with Finland. See also Non-aggression Pact (band A non-aggression pact is an international Treaty between two or more states agreeing to avoid war The agreement was reaffirmed in 1934 for ten years. However, the Soviet Union violated the Treaty of Tartu in 1937 by blockading Finnish merchant ships navigating between Lake Ladoga and the Gulf of Finland. The Treaty of Tartu ( Russian: Тартуский мирный договор, Finnish: Tarton rauha) between Finland and Soviet Russia was 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

In April 1938 or possibly earlier, the Soviet Union began diplomatic negotiations with Finland, trying to improve their mutual defence against Germany. The Soviets were mainly concerned that Germany or France and Great Britain would use Finland as a bridgehead for an attack on Leningrad, and demanded a territorial swap to move the border farther away from Leningrad. A bridgehead (also 'Bridge-head' French tête-de-pont) is a military Fortification that protects the end of a Bridge that is closest to the Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River More than a year passed with little progress, and the political situation in Europe worsened.

Beginning of World War II

The Soviet Union and Nazi Germany signed a mutual non-aggression pact, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, on August 23, 1939. Events 79 - Mount Vesuvius begins stirring on the feast day of Vulcan the Roman god of fire Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The pact also included a secret clause allocating the countries of Eastern Europe between the two signatories. Eastern Europe is a general term that refers to the Geopolitical region encompassing the easternmost part of the European continent. Finland was consigned to the Soviet "sphere of influence". A sphere of influence ( SOI) is an area or region over which an organization or state exerts some kind of indirect cultural economic military or political domination The German attack on Poland on September 1 was followed by the Soviet invasion of Poland from the east. The Invasion of Poland (1939 precipitated World War II. It was carried out by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small German-allied Events 462 - Possible start of first Byzantine indiction cycle. Within a few weeks, they had divided the country between them.

In the autumn of 1939, the Soviet Union demanded that Finland agree to move the border 25 kilometres (16 mi) back from Leningrad. It also demanded that Finland lease the Hanko Peninsula to the USSR for 30 years for the creation of a naval base there. The Hanko Peninsula ( Finnish: Hankoniemi, Swedish: Hangö udd) is the southernmost point of mainland Finland. In exchange, the Soviet Union offered Finland a large part of Karelia (more than twice the size). This offer was referred to in Finland as "two pounds of dirt for one pound of gold".

The Finnish government refused the Soviet demands. The Soviet General Staff under Boris Shaposhnikov and Alexander Vasilevsky was already drawing up plans for an offensive. Boris Mikhailovitch Shaposhnikov (Бори́с Миха́йлович Ша́пошников ( &mdash March 26 1945) Soviet military commander Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Vasilevsky (Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Василе́вский &ndash December 5 1977 was a Soviet military commander promoted On November 26, the Soviets staged the shelling of Mainila, an incident in which Soviet artillery shelled areas near the Russian village of Mainila, then announced that a Finnish artillery attack had killed Soviet troops. Events 43 BC - The Second Triumvirate alliance of Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus ("Octavian" later "Caesar Augustus" The Shelling of Mainila (Mainilan laukaukset was a military incident on November 26, 1939, during which the Soviet Union 's Red Army initiated ^[13] The Soviet Union demanded that Finns apologized for the incident and move their forces 20–25 kilometres from the border. The Finns denied any responsibility for the attack and refused the demands, which the Soviet Union then used as an excuse to withdraw from the non-aggression pact. On November 30, Soviet forces attacked with 27 divisions, totaling 630,000 men, bombed civilian boroughs of Helsinki and quickly reached the Mannerheim Line. Events 1700 - Battle of Narva — A Swedish army of 8500 men under Charles XII defeats The capital of Finland Helsinki was bombed several times during World War II. The Mannerheim Line ( Mannerheim-linja) was a defensive fortification line on the Karelian Isthmus built by Finland against the Soviet Union.

The Terijoki Government, a Soviet puppet regime created in the occupied Finnish border town of Terijoki (now Zelenogorsk) on December 1, 1939, was also called the Finnish Democratic Republic. A puppet state is a State that is nominally independent but in reality under the control of another power Zelenogorsk pljazjpg|thumb|right| Gulf of Finland coast at Zelenogorsk]] Zelenogorsk (Зеленого́рск Terijoki before 1948 is a Town under jurisdiction Events 800 - Charlemagne judges the accusations against Pope Leo III in the Vatican Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Finnish Democratic Republic (Suomen kansanvaltainen tasavalta Demokratiska Republiken Finland was a short-lived government dependent on and only recognised by the It was headed by Otto Ville Kuusinen and was used for both diplomatic purposes (it was immediately recognized by the Soviet Union) and for military ones (they hoped it would encourage socialists in Finland's Army to defect). 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 In Politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another This republic was not particularly successful but lasted until March 12, 1940, and was eventually incorporated into the Russian Karelo-Finnish SSR on March 31. 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 Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic (Karjalais-suomalainen sosialistinen neuvostotasavalta Карело-Финская Советская Социалистическая

Hostilities

Finnish ski troops in Northern Finland on January 12, 1940. 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.

Attack directions of the Red Army and the major formations of both sides. The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya

Soviet political officer during Winter War.

Soviet troops trying to maintain their tanks in severe sub-zero temperatures.

Finnish soldiers.

Soviet Commander Semyon Timoshenko

Initially, Finland had a mobilized army of only 180,000 men, but these troops turned out to be fierce adversaries employing small-unit surrounding "motti" tactics, fast-moving ski troops in white camouflage suits, and local knowledge. Salient Salients can be formed in a number of ways An attacker can produce a salient in the defender's line by either intentionally making a Pincer movement around the Snow skiing is a group of sports utilizing Skis as primary equipment Camouflage is a method of cryptic or concealing coloration that allows an otherwise visible Organism Many had spent most of their lives in the forest; the vast majority of Finns were rural dwellers until the 1950s. The conditions of the winter of 1939–40 were harsh; temperatures of −20 °C (−4 °F) were not unusual, and the Finns were able to use this to their advantage. Often, they opted not to engage the enemy in conventional warfare, instead targeting field kitchens (which were crucial for survival in the cold weather) and picking off Soviet troops huddled around camp fires.

At the beginning of the war, only those Finnish soldiers who were in active service at the time had uniforms and weapons. The rest had to make do with their own clothing, which was their normal winter clothing in many instances, with a semblance of an insignia added. These mismatched "uniforms" were nicknamed "Model Cajander" after the Prime Minister Aimo Cajander. Aimo Kaarlo Cajander ( April 4, 1879 in Uusikaupunki – January 21, 1943 in Helsinki) was outside of Botany The Finns alleviated their shortages by making extensive use of equipment, weapons and ammunition captured from the enemy. The army had not changed the calibre of its weapons after independence and was able to use Soviet ammunition. The term caliber or calibre designates the interior Diameter of a tube or the exterior diameter of a wire or rod The deployment of poorly trained and badly led Soviet troops gave the advantage to the Finns, allowing the latter ample opportunities to capture war booty. Though the Finns had few anti-tank weapons, they had the Molotov cocktail, an improvised petrol bomb adapted from the Spanish Civil War, which was used with great success in destroying or disabling around 2,000 Soviet tanks. The Molotov cocktail, also known as the booze bomb, alcohol bomb or Molotov bomb, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of

The Soviets attacked in regimental strength, with their dark uniforms easily visible against the white snow, so they were easily targeted by the Finns' snipers and machine guns. READ DISCUSSION PAGE BEFORE MAKING ANY EDITS TO CAPTION BELOW http//en Corporal Simo Häyhä was credited with 542 confirmed kills, which probably makes him the deadliest sniper in military history. Simo Häyhä (December 17 1905 &ndash April 1 2002 nicknamed "White Death"(Белая Смерть; Valkoinen kuolema or "Teaser" by the Soviet army was When the Red Army tried to use their own snipers, the Finns countered with the "Kylmä-Kalle" (Cold Kalle) tactic. READ DISCUSSION PAGE BEFORE MAKING ANY EDITS TO CAPTION BELOW http//en A mannequin or other doll was dressed as a tempting target, such as an officer sloppily covering himself. Soviet snipers usually were unable to resist the target. Once the Finns determined the angle from which the shot had come, a heavy-calibre gun, such as a "Norsupyssy" ("Elephant rifle") anti-tank rifle, was fired in the Soviet sniper's direction to kill him. The Lahti L-39 20 mm Anti-Tank Cannon is a Finnish Anti-tank rifle used during the Second World War. An anti-tank rifle is a Rifle designed to penetrate the armour of vehicles particularly Tanks The usefulness of rifles for this purpose ran from the introduction

Soviet inexperience, naivety, and lack of motivation were important factors in the Finnish success during the war. The attackers were not expecting much resistance; General Kirill Meretskov estimated it would take only 10 to 12 days for his 26 well equipped 14,000 man divisions to reach Helsinki. Kirill Afanasievich Meretskov (Кири́лл Афана́сьевич Мерецко́в ( June 7, 1897 — December 30, 1968) was a Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. Soviet soldiers had even been warned not to cross the border into Sweden by mistake. ^[14] Their propaganda had been so convincing that it was felt that the Finns would be waving flags and welcoming the Red Army with open arms. Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people

Because of Stalin's purges, the commanders of the Red Army had suffered 80% peacetime losses. Great Purge (Большая чистка transliterated Bolshaya chistka) was a series of campaigns of Political repression and Persecution These were commonly replaced by people less competent but more "loyal" to their superiors, since Stalin had superseded his commanders with Commissars or political officers. Commissar is the English transliteration of an official title (комисса́р used in Russia after the Bolshevik revolution and in the Soviet Union Tactics which were obsolete by World War I were sometimes employed. Tactics were strictly "by the book," because failed initiative carried a high risk of execution. Many Soviet troops were lost because commanders refused to retreat; commissars disallowed them from doing so and often executed commanders that disobeyed.

The Soviet army was poorly prepared for winter warfare, particularly in forests, and heavily used vulnerable motorized vehicles. These vehicles were kept running continuously so their fuel would not freeze, which led to increased breakdowns and aggravated fuel shortages. One of the most remarkable losses in military history is the so-called "Raatteentie Incident," during the month-long Battle of Suomussalmi. The Battle of Raate road was a battle fought during the Winter War between the Soviet Union and Finland in January 1940 as a part of the Battle The Battle of Suomussalmi was fought between Finnish and Soviet forces in the Winter War. The Soviet 44th Infantry Division (c. 25,000 troops) was almost completely destroyed after marching on a forest road straight into an ambush of the Finnish "Kontula detachment" (a unit of 300 men). This small unit blocked the advance of the Soviet Division, while Finnish colonel Hjalmar Siilasvuo and his 9th Division (c. Hjalmar Fridolf Siilasvuo (1892 - 1947 was a Finnish General who led troops in the Winter War, Continuation War and Lapland War. 6,000 troops) cut off the Soviet retreat route, divided the enemy force into smaller units and then destroyed it in detail. The Soviet casualties amounted to up to 23,000 men, while the Finnish lost around 800 men. In addition, the Finnish troops captured 43 tanks, 71 field and anti-aircraft cannons, 29 anti-tank cannons, AFVs, tractors, 260 trucks, 1,170 horses, infantry weapons, ammunition, medical and communication material.

The Soviet commander, Vinogradov, and two of his chief officers survived the battle. When they reached the Soviet lines four days later they were court martialed, found guilty and sentenced to death; the executions were carried out immediately. A court-martial (plural courts-martial) is a Military court. These military courts can determine Punishments for members of the Military subject The charge was losing 55 field kitchens to the enemy.

Following this battle, on January 7, for the disastrous failures Kliment Voroshilov was replaced with Semyon Timoshenko as the commander of the Soviet forces in the war (and four months later as the People Commissar [Minister] of Defense as well). (Климе́нт Ефре́мович Вороши́лов Kliment Efremovič Vorošilov, Климент Єфремович Ворошилов popularly known as Klim Voroshilov Semyon Konstantinovich Timoshenko (Семё́н Константи́нович Тимоше́нко Semën Konstantinovič Timošenko; &ndash March 31, 1970

The Soviets failed to take advantage of their numerical superiority at the start of the war. Finland massed 130,000 men and 500 guns in the Karelian isthmus, the main theater of the war; the Soviets attacked with only 200,000 men and 900 guns. See Karelia (disambiguation for other meanings of the name Karelia. Their 1,000 tanks were ineffectively used and took massive losses.

Aerial

At the start of the hostilities the Finnish Air Force had 146 aircraft of all types at its disposal. The primary fighter aircraft were the 15 examples of the Bristol Bulldog IV which had entered service in 1935 and 41 of the more modern Fokker D.XXI, a few bombers existed in 18 license-built Bristol Blenheims. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The Fokker DXXI fighter was designed in 1935 for use by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (ML-KNIL WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout As the dark clouds had begun to set over Europe in 1939 an order had been placed in Italy for 25 Fiat G.50 Fighters of which two were being assembled in Sweden when the war broke out. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout

During the war a number of aircraft were ordered from abroad.

• 30 Gloster Gladiator II Biplane-Fighters from the United Kingdom
• 12 Bristol Blenheim IV Bombers from the United Kingdom
• 30 Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 Fighters from France
• 44 Brewster 239 Fighters from the United States
• 22 Gloster Gauntlet Trainers from the United Kingdom
• 10 Fiat G.50 Fighters from Italy

In air combat, Finland used the "finger four" formation (four planes, split into two units of two planes, one unit flying low and the other high, with each plane fighting independently of the others yet supporting their wingman in combat), which was superior to the Russian tactic of three fighters flying in a delta formation. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The French Third Republic (in French, La Troisième République, sometimes written as La IIIe WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The British Gloster Gauntlet was a single-seat Biplane fighter of the RAF designed and built by Gloster Aircraft in the 1930s WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The Kingdom of Italy ( Italian: Regno d'Italia) was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom Air power redirects here for electrical and mechanical energy supplied by air movement see Wind power Delta Formation is a formation flying manoeuvre in the shape of a V This formation and the credo of Finnish pilots to always attack, no matter the odds, contributed to the failure of Russian bombers to inflict substantial damage against Finnish positions, cities or population reserves.

Naval Activity

The Winter war was also a naval war that went on until the Baltic froze as it usually does in winter and made the movement of warships very difficult. On the water it was a mostly one sided affair. The Soviet Navy had the advantage in both the quantity of the leftovers from the Tsarist era as well as quality from a building program in the 1930s that had produced everything up to large cruisers. The Finnish Navy was bleak in comparison. The most powerful units left from the Civil war were two gunboats from 1917–18. In the inter-war years a small number of new ships had been ordered: in the early 1930s five submarines had joined the navy, as well as two well armed but slow coastal defence ships with 254mm guns as their main battery.

But in addition to the Navy, Finland had its coastal artillery batteries guarding important harbours and naval bases along its coast. Most batteries were leftovers from the Russian period, the 15. 2cm gun being the most numerous of these, but Finland had modernized its old guns and installed a number of new batteries, the largest of which was a 305mm gun battery originally intended to block the Gulf of Finland to Soviet ships with the help of Batteries on the Estonian side.

Soviet warships attacked Finnish coastal batteries as long as the weather allowed. Sending light ships against even old coastal batteries had historically proved very dangerous; with nothing but a sunk destroyer and a number of damaged ships the Soviet Navy did not manage to influence the war.

The Coastal artillery had its greatest effect upon the land war. Batteries near the front enjoyed the trappings of fixed positions giving them better protection, easy ammunition handling, and very accurate firing tables. This is why fixed guns often are more effective than mobile guns, as they can fire more shells in a shorter time. They also know their own position relative to their area, maybe years in advance, and as such are more accurate. This certainly proved true in this war. Land batteries near the coast helped steady the defence of the Karelian Isthmus in conjunction with the Army artillery.

In March, as the Soviets had broken through the front, all reserves were thrown into the fighting near Viborg. The Soviets tried to cross the Ice of the Gulf of Viipuri and come up behind the city, but the Finnish Coastal artillery fired their heaviest guns, breaking the ice under the Russians and preventing a clean break through the Finnish front.

Other considerations

The vast bulk of the Red Army's troops that fought in the Winter War were taken from the southern regions of the Soviet Union. It was Stalin's opinion that Soviet troops from the area immediately bordering Finland could not be trusted to fight against the Finns. These southern Red Army soldiers had no experience with Arctic winter conditions and virtually no forest survival skills. Not only were they up against the Finns who were experts in winter warfare and knew the land, the weather during the war was one of the three worst winters in Finland in the 20th century. ^[15]

To the surprise of both the Soviets and the Finnish Conservatives, it turned out that the majority of the Finnish Socialists did not support the Soviet invasion but fought alongside their compatriots against the common enemy. Many Finnish Communists had moved to the Soviet Union in the 1930s to "build Socialism," only to end up as victims of Stalin's Great Purges, which led to widespread disillusionment and even open hatred of the Soviet regime among Socialists in Finland.

Another factor was the advancement of Finnish society and laws after the civil war that helped decrease the gap between different classes of society. This healing of the wounds and rifts of the Finnish Civil War (1918) and from Finland's language strife and the coming together of different factions of society is still referred to as "the Spirit of the Winter War". The Finnish Civil War was a part of the national and social turmoil caused by World War I (1914&ndash1918 in Europe The language strife was one of the major conflicts of Finland's national history and domestic politics The Spirit of Winter War (Talvisodan henki is the national unity which is credited with having saved Finland from breaking under the Soviet invasion during the Winter War of The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact between the Soviet Union and Germany had shaken the world views of both the bourgeois as well as the working class Finns. Many Finns had believed that Germany would eventually intervene against the Soviet Union as Imperial Germany had in 1918. In similar fashion the ordinary workers had believed that Soviet Union was a guarantee for peace and force against Nazi Germany. After the signing, Germany was in pact with Soviet Union against Finland. The workers had witnessed the Soviet Union invading Poland instead of fighting the Nazis. On the eve of war there was very little trust for any foreign power—be it socialist internationalism, German military, League of Nations or western powers. Nonetheless, some communists were not allowed to fight in Finland's conscripted army because of their political background. Conscription (also known as the draft, the call-up or national service) is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by some established authority

Foreign support

World opinion at large supported the Finnish cause. The World War had not yet begun in earnest and was known to the public as the Phony War; at that time, the Winter War was the only real fighting besides the German and Soviet invasion of Poland, and thus held major world interest. The Phoney War, also called the Twilight War by Winston Churchill, der Sitzkrieg in German ("the sitting war" a The Soviet aggression was generally deemed unjustified. Various foreign organizations sent material aid, such as medical supplies. Finnish immigrants in the United States and Canada returned home, and many volunteers (one of them future actor Christopher Lee) traveled to Finland to join Finland's forces: 1,010 Danes (including Christian Frederik von Schalburg, a Captain in Christian X of Denmark's bodyguard and later commander of Frikorps Danmark, volunteer unit created by Nazi Germany in Denmark during WWII), 895 Norwegians, 372 Ingrians, 346 Finnish expatriates, 366 Hungarians^[16] and 210 volunteers of other nationalities made it to Finland before the war was over. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Christopher Frank Carandini Lee CBE, CStJ (born 27 May 1922 is a two-time Screen Actors Guild Award-nominated Saturn Award-winning English Actor The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Christian Frederik von Schalburg ( 15 April 1906 – 2 June 1942) was a Danish officer and the second commander of Frikorps Danmark Christian X (Christian Carl Frederik Albert Alexander Vilhelm ( 26 September 1870 &ndash 20 April 1947) was King of Denmark Frikorps Danmark ( Free Corps Denmark) was a Danish volunteer army Corps created by the Danish Nazi Party in cooperation with Germany to fight the 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 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 Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional For the Italian municipality see Ingria Italy. For the Brachiopod Genus, see Ingria (brachiopod. An expatriate (in abbreviated form expat) is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing Hungarian-Finnish Relationship before and after World War I At the end of the 19th century the Finno-Ugric linguistic affinity became widely accepted after extensive public Foreign correspondents in Helsinki wrote, and even greatly exaggerated, reports of Finnish ingenuity and successes in combat.

Pope Pius XII condemned the Soviet attack on December 26, 1939, in a speech at the Vatican and later donated a signed and sealed prayer on behalf of Finland. History See also History of the Papacy Catholics recognize the Pope as a successor to Saint Peter, who Jesus named as the "shepherd" and Pope Events 1481 - Battle of Westbrook - Holland defeats troops of Utrecht. Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome, commonly known as the Pope, and is the preeminent Episcopal see of the Roman Catholic ^[17]

Norway

Norwegian volunteers in Northern Finland, 1940

In addition to the 895 Norwegians that volunteered to fight for Finland, amongst whom were later heroes of Anti-Nazi Resistance such as Max Manus and Leif "Shetland" Larsen, there were numerous nationwide collections campaigns of supplies and money in Norway to help the Finns. Norwegian Resistance Movement (Norske Motstandsbevegelsen is a militant offshoot of the Swedish Resistance Movement, with its base in Norway His autobiographical accounts Two books were written by Max Manus shortly after World War II Leif Andreas Larsen DSO, DSC, CGM, DSM and Bar ( 9 January 1906 – 12 October 1990) popularly

This included a special Finnish day held at the Holmenkollen skiing games in Oslo to collect money for the Finnish cause. The Holmenkollen ski jump, located in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway, is host to the world's second oldest Ski jump competition still in existence (called Christiania from 1624 to 1878 and Kristiania from 1878 to 1924 is the Capital and largest city of Norway. ^[18] In all 50,000 pairs of shoes, 100,000 backpacks filled with supplies and 16,000 blankets were shipped off. Collections of rifles (mostly Krag-Jørgensen models) and home knitted shooting gloves also took place. The Krag-Jørgensen is a repeating Bolt action Rifle designed by the Norwegians Ole Herman Johannes Krag and Erik Jørgensen Sigrid Undset, Norwegian author and Nobel laureate, donated her Nobel medal to Finland on January 25, 1940. Sigrid Undset ( 20 May, 1882 &ndash 10 June, 1949) was a Norwegian novelist who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature (Nobelpriset i litteratur is awarded annually since 1901 to an author from any country who has in the words from the will of Alfred Events 41 - After a night of negotiation Claudius is accepted as Roman Emperor by the Senate Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[19]

The Norwegian government secretly donated the Finns 12 German-made 7. 5 cm field gun m/01s^[20] (designated 75 K 01 in Finnish service) in February 1940. ^[21][22] Norway also allowed the transfer of aircraft to Finland via Sola Air Station, near Stavanger. Sola Air Station (Norwegian Sola flystasjon) in Sola municipality in Norway is operated by the Royal Norwegian Air Force. is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway. ^[23][24][25] Norwegian volunteers took part in the assembly of some of the aircraft at the Saab factory in Trollhättan. Saab AB is an Aerospace and defense company based in Sweden. History "Svenska Aeroplan AB (aktiebolaget" ( Swedish for Trollhättan ( is a city (pop 53952 (2007 in Västergötland, Sweden, and the seat of Trollhättan Municipality, Västra Götaland ^[23]

The North Norwegian county of Finnmark received over 1,000 Finnish refugees from Petsamo by February 6, 1940;^[26] as the Red Army advanced through that lightly defended area Finnish civilians sought shelter on the Norwegian side of the Pasvik/Paatsjoki River. North Norway ( Norwegian: Nord-Norge ( Bokmål) or Nord-Noreg ( Nynorsk) is the geographical region of northern or Finnmárku ( Sami language) is a county in the extreme northeast of Norway. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Paatsjoki River (Paatsjoki Paaččjokk Báhčaveaijohka Pasvikelva Pasvik älv Паз or Патсойоки is the outlet from Lake Inari in Finnish soldiers of the independent Lapland Group that retreated across the border into Finnmark were transported south and interned at Hegra Fortress in the Nord-Trøndelag county of Central Norway. The Lapland Group ( Lapin Ryhmä) was a formation of the Finnish Army during the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union. Hegra Fortress ( Hegra festning) is a small mountain fortress in Hegra, Stjørdal, in the county of Nord-Trøndelag, Norway is a county in the central Norwegian region called Trøndelag. Central Norway (Midt-Norge ( Bokmål) Midt-Noreg ( Nynorsk) is an administrative division that includes the counties of Nord-Trøndelag, Sør-Trøndelag The internees were released and returned to Finland at the turn of the year 1939-1940. ^[27]

Sweden

Main article: Sweden and the Winter War

Swedish volunteers during the Winter War, carrying Boys anti-tank rifles on their backs. The Winter War was fought in the four months following the Soviet Union 's invasion of Finland on November 30, 1939. The Rifle Anti-Tank.55in Boys commonly known as the "Boys (or often and incorrectly "Boyes") Anti-tank Rifle" was a British An anti-tank rifle is a Rifle designed to penetrate the armour of vehicles particularly Tanks The usefulness of rifles for this purpose ran from the introduction

Sweden, which had declared itself to be a non-belligerent rather than a neutral country (as in the war between Nazi Germany and the Western Powers) contributed military supplies, cash, credits, humanitarian aid and some 8,700 Swedish volunteers prepared to fight for Finland. A non-belligerent is a person who or a State or other organization that does not fight in a given conflict For other uses of Neutral and Neutrality see Neutral A neutral country takes no side in a War between other parties Perhaps most significant was the Swedish Voluntary Air Force, in action from January 7, with 12 Gloster Gladiator fighters, five Hawker Hart bombers, and eight other planes, amounting to one third of all the Swedish Air Force's fighters at that time. The Flight Regiment 19 ( Finnish: Lentorykmentti 19 or LentoR 19) also known as the Swedish Voluntary Air Force or F 19 was a Events 1325 - Alfonso IV becomes King of Portugal. 1558 - France takes Calais, the last continental WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The Hawker Hart was a British two-seater Biplane light-bomber of the Royal Air Force (RAF which had a prominent role during the RAF's inter-war period Volunteer pilots and mechanics were drawn from the ranks. The renowned aviator Count Carl Gustav von Rosen, nephew of Carin Göring, Hermann Göring's first wife, volunteered independently. Count Carl Gustaf Ericsson von Rosen ( August 19 1909 &ndash July 13 1977) was a Swedish pioneer aviator son of the explorer Carin Göring ( 21 October 1888 – 17 October 1931) was the first wife of Hermann Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member There was also a volunteer work force, of about 900 workers and engineers. In March the unit was to be reinforced with five Junkers Ju 86 bombers on the 11th of March the bombers were in the Swedish town of Boden with all preparations completed but the end of hostilities on the 13th precluded their deployment. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Boden (Suttes Meänkieli: Puuti, Suttes is a Garrison town (pop

The Swedish Volunteer Corps with 8,402 men in Finland — the only common volunteers who had finished training before the war ended — began relieving five Finnish battalions at Märkäjärvi in mid-February. The Swedish Volunteer Corps ( Svenska Frivilligkåren) during the Winter War numbered 9640 A battalion is a Military unit of around 500-1500 men usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel Together with three remaining Finnish battalions, the corps faced two Soviet divisions and were preparing for an attack by mid-March but were inhibited by the peace agreement. Thirty-three men died in action, among them the commander of the first relieving unit, Lieutenant Colonel Magnus Dyrssen. Armies have Military rank systems that are often used by other military services such as Air forces or Marines.

The Swedish volunteers remain a source of dissonance between Swedes and Finns. The domestic debate in Finland had in the years immediately before the war given common Finns hope of considerably more support from Sweden, such as a large force of regular troops, that could have had a significant impact on the outcome of the war — or possibly caused the Russians not to attack at all.

However the help from volunteers, especially the Scandinavian ones, was appreciated by the Finns. This is shown by the fact that during the Norwegian Campaign against the German invasion in April 1940 a Finnish group of volunteers formed an ambulance unit and helped the defenders until forced to return home because of the success of the German armed forces. The Norwegian Campaign, lasting from 9 April to 10 June 1940, led to the first direct land confrontation between the military forces of the Allies Operation Weserübung was the codename for Nazi Germany 's assault on Denmark and Norway during World War II and the opening operation A group of Swedish and Finnish volunteers also fought along Norwegian soldiers against the German invaders near Os, on May 2 as well.

Franco-British plans for a Scandinavian theatre

Within a month, the Soviet leadership began to consider abandoning the operation, and Finland's government was approached with preliminary peace feelers (via Sweden's government), first on January 29. Events 904 - Sergius III comes out of retirement to take over the papacy from the deposed Antipope Christopher. Until then, Finland had fought for its existence as an independent and democratic country. When credible rumors of this reached the governments in Paris and London, the incentives for military support were dramatically changed.

Franco-British support was offered on the condition it was given free passage through neutral Norway and Sweden instead of taking the road from Petsamo. For other uses of Neutral and Neutrality see Neutral A neutral country takes no side in a War between other parties Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. The motive was a wish to occupy the iron ore districts in Kiruna and Malmberget. Swedish Iron ore was an important economic factor in the European Theater of World War II. Kiruna is the northernmost city of Sweden, situated in Lappland province with roughly inhabitants Malmberget ("The Ore Mountain" is a mining town in Gällivare Municipality, Norrbotten County, northern Sweden ( Lappland)
(Borders as of 1920–1940. )

In February 1940, the Allies offered to help: the Allied plan, approved on February 5 by the Allied High Command, consisted of 100,000 British and 35,000 French troops that were to disembark at the Norwegian port of Narvik and support Finland via Sweden while securing the supply routes along the way. The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Narvik ( Northern Sami: Narviika) is a town and municipality in the county of Nordland, Norway The plan was agreed to be launched on March 20 under the condition that the Finns plead for help. Events 1600 - The Linköping Bloodbath takes place on Maundy Thursday in Linköping, Sweden. On March 2, transit rights were officially requested from the governments of Norway and Sweden. Events 986 - Louis V becomes King of the Franks. 1127 - Assassination of Charles the Good It was hoped this would eventually bring the two still neutral Nordic countries, Norway and Sweden, to the Allied side by strengthening their positions against Germany — although Hitler had by December declared to the Swedish government that Western troops on Swedish soil would immediately provoke a German invasion, which in practice meant that Nazi Germany would take the populated southern part of Scandinavia while France and Britain would fight in the furthest north.

However, only a small fraction of the Western troops were intended for Finland. Proposals to enter Finland directly, via the ice-free harbour of Petsamo, had been dismissed. There were suspicions that the objective of the operation was to occupy the Norwegian shipping harbour of Narvik and the vast mountainous areas of the north-Swedish iron ore fields, from which the Third Reich received a large share of its iron ore, critical to war production. If Franco-British troops moved to halt export to Germany, the area could become a significant battleground between the Allies and the Germans. As a consequence, Norway and Sweden denied transit. Despite the Allies' pretense of mounting a defense for Finland against the Soviets, after WWII it became known that the commander of the Allied expedition forces had been ordered not to engage Soviet forces once his troops were in Finland.

The Franco-British plan initially hoped to secure all of Scandinavia north of a line Stockholm–Gothenburg or Stockholm–Oslo, i. ('stɔkhɔlm is Sweden 's Capital and its largest City. It is the site of the national Swedish government, the parliament, and the Gothenburg ( Swedish:) /jœte'bɔrj/ is a city, a municipality, and an urban area on the west-coast of Sweden. (called Christiania from 1624 to 1878 and Kristiania from 1878 to 1924 is the Capital and largest city of Norway. e. the British concept of the Lake line following the lakes of Mälaren, Hjälmaren, and Vänern, which would contribute with good natural defence some 1,700–1,900 kilometres (1,000-1,200 miles) south for Narvik. Lake Mälaren ( (historically occasionally referred to as Lake Malar in English is the third-largest Lake in Sweden, after Lakes Vänern and Lake Hjälmaren is Sweden 's fourth largest lake It is situated adjacent to Lake Mälaren through which it drains into the Baltic Sea, west of Vänern (IPA) is the largest Lake in Sweden and the third largest lake in Europe. The expected frontier, the Lake line, involved not only Sweden's two largest cities, but its consequence was that the homes of the vast majority of the Swedes would be either Nazi-occupied or in the war zone. Later, the ambition was lowered to only the northern half of Sweden and the rather narrow adjacent Norwegian coast.

The Swedish government, headed by Prime Minister Per Albin Hansson, declined to allow transit of armed troops through Swedish territory. Per Albin Hansson ( October 28, 1885 &ndash October 6, 1946) leader of the Swedish Social Democrats, was a Prime Although Sweden had not declared itself neutral in the Winter War, it was neutral in the war involving France, Britain, and Germany. Granting transit rights to a Franco-British corps was at that time considered too great a departure from international laws on neutrality.

The Swedish Cabinet also decided to reject repeated pleas from the Finns for regular Swedish troops to be deployed in Finland, and in the end the Swedes also made it clear that their present support in arms and munitions could not be maintained for much longer. The Winter War was fought in the four months following the Soviet Union 's invasion of Finland on November 30, 1939. Diplomatically, Finland was squeezed between Allied hopes for a prolonged war and Swedish and Norwegian fears that the Allies and Germans might soon be fighting each other on Swedish and Norwegian terrain. In addition, Norway and Sweden feared an influx of Finnish refugees should Finland lose to the Soviets. Also, Hermann Göring was through his private channels in Sweden offering distinct advice for peace and concessions — Göring suggested that concessions "could always later be mended. Hermann Wilhelm Göring (also spelled Goering) (12 January 1893 15 October 1946 was a German Politician, Military leader and a leading member "

While Germany and Sweden pressured Finland to accept peace on bad conditions, Britain and France had the opposite objective. Different plans and figures were presented for the Finns. To start with, France and Britain promised to send 20,000 men to arrive by the end of February, although under the implicit condition that on their way to Finland they were given opportunity to occupy North-Scandinavia.

By the end of February, Finland's Commander-in-Chief, Field Marshal Mannerheim, was pessimistic about the military situation. A commander-in-chief is the Commander of a nation's Military forces or significant element of those forces 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 Therefore, on February 29 the government decided to start peace negotiations. Leap years Although the modern calendar counts a year as 365 days a complete revolution around the sun takes approximately 365 days and 6 hours That same day, the Soviets commenced an attack against Viipuri. Vyborg (Вы́борг Viipuri Viborg Wiborg is a town in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, situated on the Karelian Isthmus near the head of

When France and Britain realized that Finland was considering a peace treaty, they gave a new offer for help: 50,000 men were to be sent, if Finland asked for help before March 12. Events 538 - Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving Only 6,000 of these would have actually been destined for Finland. The rest were intended to secure harbours, roads and iron ore fields on the way.

Despite the feeble forces that would have reached Finland, intelligence about the plans reached the Soviet Union and contributed heavily to their decision to sign the armistice ending the war. An armistice is a situation where the warring parties agree to stop fighting It is argued that without the threat of Allied intervention, nothing would have eventually stopped the Soviets from conquering the entirety of Finland because of the Soviet Union's large number of troop reserves.

Armistice

By the end of the winter, it became clear that the Russian forces were becoming exhausted, and German representatives suggested that Finland should negotiate with the USSR. Soviet casualties had been high, and the situation was a source of political embarrassment for the Soviet regime. With the spring thaw approaching, the Russian forces risked becoming bogged down in the forests, and a draft of peace terms was presented to Finland on February 12. Events 1429 - English Forces under Sir John Fastolf defend a supply convoy carrying rations to the army besieging Orleans from attack by the Both the Germans and the Swedes were keen to see an end to the Winter War; the latter feared the collapse of its neighbor. As Finland's Cabinet hesitated in face of the harsh Soviet conditions, Sweden's King Gustaf V made a public statement, in which he confirmed having declined Finnish pleas for support from Swedish troops. The Winter War was fought in the four months following the Soviet Union 's invasion of Finland on November 30, 1939.

Fallen soldiers of the Red Army

Evacuation of Finnish Karelia (Muolaa municipality)

By the end of February, the Finns had depleted their ammunition supplies. Evacuation of Finnish Karelia was the resettlement of the population of Finnish Karelia and other territories ceded by Finland to the Soviet Union into the remaining Pravdino (Пра́вдино Muolaa is a rural locality on Karelian Isthmus, in Vyborgsky District of Leningrad Oblast. Also, the Soviet Union had finally succeeded in breaking through the Mannerheim Line. The Mannerheim Line ( Mannerheim-linja) was a defensive fortification line on the Karelian Isthmus built by Finland against the Soviet Union. On February 29, the Finnish government agreed to start negotiations. Leap years Although the modern calendar counts a year as 365 days a complete revolution around the sun takes approximately 365 days and 6 hours By March 5, the Soviet army had advanced 10–15 kilometres past the Mannerheim Line and had entered the suburbs of Viipuri. Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian moves from Antioch with an army of 90000 to attack the Sassanid Empire, in a The Finns proposed an armistice on the same day, but the Soviets wanted to keep the pressure on and declined the offer the next day. Indeed, the fighting continued up to noon (Leningrad time), March 13, half a day after the peace treaty was signed, according to the terms of the protocol.

After the war, the situation of the Finnish army at Karelian Isthmus at the end of the war had created significant discussion. The orders were already given to prepare a retreat to the next line of defence in the Taipale sector. The estimates of how long the enemy could have been held in these kinds of retreat-and-stand operations varied from a few days^[28] to a couple of months,^[29] most averaging around a few weeks. ^[30]

It is speculated that Stalin had practically wiped out his intelligence apparatus during the purges, thus damaging the effectiveness of spies in Finland and other countries, as well as cowing operatives into writing the kind of reports they thought Stalin wanted to read. Thus he was not aware the real situation in Finland and amongst the Western Allies. ^[31][32]

Soviet intelligence sources were informing their leadership of the Allied plans to intervene in the war, but not of the details or the actual unpreparedness of the Allies. Therefore, the Soviets felt forced to seek a premature end to the war before the Allies intervened and declared war on the Soviet Union.

During four months of fighting, the Soviet Army suffered huge losses. One Red Army General remarked that "we have won enough ground to bury our dead. " Casualty estimates vary widely — from 48,000 killed, died from wounds, and missing in action, as quoted by Soviet officials immediately after the war, to 391,800 according to some recent research^[33] According to Nikita Khrushchev, 1. Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 17 1894 – September 11 1971 served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 following 5 million men were sent to Finland and one million of them were killed, while 1,000 aircraft, 2,300 tanks and armored cars and an enormous amount of other war materials were lost. [4] The most reliable current estimate puts the figure at 270,000. ^[7] Finland's losses were limited to around 22,830 men. ^[34]

Peace of Moscow

Winter War: Finland's Concessions

In the Moscow Peace Treaty of March 12, 1940, Finland was forced to cede the Finnish part of Karelia. 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 The land included the city of Viipuri (the country's second largest), much of Finland's industrialized territory, and significant parts still held by Finland's army: over 10% of pre-war Finland. Some 422,000 Karelians—12% of Finland's population—lost their homes. Military troops and remaining civilians were hastily evacuated; only a few score civilians chose to remain under Soviet governance.

Finland also had to cede a part of the Salla area, the Kalastajansaarento peninsula in the Barents Sea and four islands in the Gulf of Finland. Salla (former name Kuolajärvi until 1936 is a municipality of Finland and is located in Lapland. Rybachiy Peninsula (Полуостров Рыбачий Fiskerhalvøya Kalastajasaarento Giehkirnjárga is the northernmost part of continental European Russia. The Barents Sea (Barentshavet Баренцево море is a part of the Arctic Ocean located north of Norway and Russia. The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish: Suomenlahti, Russian: Финский залив, Finskiy zaliv, Swedish: Finska viken The Hanko Peninsula was also leased to the Soviet Union as a military base for 30 years. The Hanko Peninsula ( Finnish: Hankoniemi, Swedish: Hangö udd) is the southernmost point of mainland Finland. While the Soviet troops had captured Petsamo during the war, they returned it to Finland according to the treaty.

As a whole, the peace terms were harsh for Finland. Russia received the city of Viipuri, in addition to their pre-war demands. Sympathy from the League of Nations, Western Allies, and from the Swedes in particular, did not prove to be of much help.

Little more than one year later, hostilities resumed with the Continuation War and a new chapter in the history of Finland began. The Continuation War (Jatkosota Fortsättningskriget Советско-финская война ( 25 June 1941 &ndash 19 September 1944)

Post-Soviet demands for return of territory

Main article: Karelian question in Finnish politics

After the war, Karelian local governments, parishes and provincial organizations established Karjalan Liitto in order to defend the rights and interests of Karelian evacuees and to find a solution for returning Karelia. The Karelian question or Karelian issue (Karjala-kysymys is a dispute on the Fringes of Finnish politics over whether or not to try to regain Karjalan Liitto (in English: Karelian Association) is an interest group for Karelian evacuees. During the Cold War, President Urho Kekkonen tried several times to get the territories back by negotiating with the Soviet leadership, but did not succeed. 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 Kekkonen redirects here For other uses see Kekkonen (disambiguation. No one openly demanded return. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, disputes were revived. The Soviet Union 's collapse into independent nations began early in 1985 Some minor groups in Finland have been actively demanding the peaceful return to Finland of the ceded territories. The most active group in this field is ProKarelia. ProKarelia is a Finnish Non-governmental organization (NGO that works for the return to Finland of Finnish Karelia, Petsamo, Salla In the latest polls, these demands have met with 26– 38% support in Finland. ^[35] Although the peaceful return of Karelia has always been on its agenda, Karjalan Liitto has, for the most part, stayed away from these demands. Karjalan Liitto (in English: Karelian Association) is an interest group for Karelian evacuees.

In popular culture

In 1989, the Finnish movie Talvisota was released. The Winter War ( Finnish: Talvisota, Swedish: Vinterkriget) is a Finnish 1989 film directed by Pekka Parikka This film tells the story of a Finnish platoon of reservists from Kauhava. Kauhava is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Southern Ostrobothnia The platoon belongs to the 23rd Infantry Regiment, which consists almost solely of men from Southern Ostrobothnia. South Ostrobothnia is one of the 20 regions (fi maakunta / sv landskap) of Finland.

The 2006 documentary Fire and Ice: The Winter War of Finland and Russia shows how the Winter War influenced World War II and how Finland mobilized against the world’s largest military power. Fire and Ice The Winter War of Finland and Russia is a Documentary film, produced and directed by Ben Strout.

Swedish heavy metal band Sabaton recorded the song Talvisota based on the Winter War on their 2008 album The Art of War. Sabaton is a Heavy metal band from Sweden The Art of War is the fifth album by Swedish Power metal band Sabaton.

See also

• List of Finnish wars
• Finnish Army (1939)
• Hungarian Volunteers in the Winter War
• Finnish prisoners of war in the Soviet Union

Notes

References

External links

• Furious Front Across Finland
• USSR expulsion from League of Nations from the League of Nations' Official Journal
• The Battles of the Winter War comprehensively covered by Sami H. E. Korhonen
• The Front Museum on the Hanko Peninsula, documenting the lease of Hanko to the USSR
• Finnish wartime photos and history website Stories by veterans, historians, and wartime pictures.
• Halford Mackinder's Necessary War An essay describing the Winter War in a larger strategic context of World War II
• Winter War (Serbian)
• Those Burly Fins, History House magazine article