Military history of Finland during World War II
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The Military history of Finland during World War II covers the history of Finland from 1939 to 1945. During World War II the fate of Finland was unique among the belligerent nations. Finland fought three wars: the Winter War alone against the Soviet Union, the Continuation War with Germany against the Soviet Union, and the Lapland War alone against Germany. In the end, Finland had managed, against all odds, to defend its independence and democratic constitution while suffering relatively minor territorial losses.
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[edit] Background
In 1809 Russia conquered Finland from Sweden in the Finnish War. Finland entered a personal union with the Russian Empire as a grand duchy with extensive autonomy. During the Russian rule the country generally prospered. However, in the early 20th century Russia tightened its grip on Finland, causing wide-spread resentment. When revolution broke out in Russia in 1917 Finland declared independence. In 1918 the Finnish Civil War broke out between the generally right-wing government supporters and left-wing rebels. The war ended with the victory of the government forces, supported by Germans, and the expulsion of Russian troops.
During the inter war period the relationships between Finland and the Soviet Union was tense. Some elements in Finland maintained the dream of "Greater Finland" which included the Soviet-controlled part of Karelia. The proximity of the Finnish border to Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) caused worry in the Soviet leadership.
In 1938 negotiations started between Finland and the Soviet Union concerning the safety of Leningrad. No agreement was reached. In 1939 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. In a secret clause of the agreement Finland was part of the Soviet sphere of influence. In November 1939 the Soviet Union falsely accused the Finnish army of the shelling of the village of Mainila. On November 30th the Soviet Union attacked Finland.
[edit] Winter War
The Soviet forces arrayed against Finland greatly outnumbered the Finnish army. The Red Army enjoyed 2.5 fold advantage in the number of troops and even greater advantage in equipment, including a virtually complete air supremacy. The Soviet leadership also established a puppet regime of Finnish Democratic Republic in an occupied border town in the hope that this would encourage the former "reds" of the Finnish Civil War to defect or to rebel. The time needed for the defeat of Finland was estimated as 2-4 weeks.
The war, however, unfolded very differently. The country united against the aggressor and the puppet regime failed to have a noticeable effect. The Finnish army was fighting on their home turf in winter conditions with which they were very familiar. The high morale of Finnish troops, their flexible and often unorthodox strategy, difficult terrain and harsh winter caused significant problems for the Red army. The Russians were routed in several key battles, the Battle of Suomussalmi being a classic example. The war dragged on for months, casualties mounted and the international prestige of the Soviet Union suffered. Finland also negotiated for aid from Great Britain, France and Sweden. Some aid was promised, but very little of it ever materialised.
By March 1940 sheer exhaustion led to the situation where both parties were willing to negotiate for a peace treaty. The Finnish army was running out of even the most basic material, and the Soviet Union wanted to end the costly war that had become an international embarrassment. In the Moscow Peace Treaty Finland had to make significant territorial concessions.
[edit] Interim Peace
The period of peace following the Winter War was widely regarded as temporary even when peace was announced in March 1940. A period of frantic diplomatic efforts and rearmament followed. Soviet Union kept up intense pressure on Finland, thereby hastening the Finnish efforts to improve the security of the country.
Defensive arrangements were attempted with Sweden and Great Britain, but the political and military situation in the context of the Second World War rendered these efforts fruitless. Finland therefore turned to Nazi Germany for military aid. As the German offensive against the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa) approached, the cooperation between the two countries intensified. German troops arrived to Finland and took positions in Lapland.
Operation Barbarossa began on June 22, 1941. On June 25th the Soviet Union launched a massive air raid against Finnish cities, after which Finland declared war and also allowed German troops stationed in Finland to begin offensive warfare. The resulting war was to be called the Continuation War.
[edit] Continuation War
During the summer and autumn of 1941 the Finnish army was on offensive, retaking the territories lost in the Winter War. However, the Finnish army also advanced further, especially in the direction of Lake Onega, (east from Lake Ladoga), leading to the occupation of Russian East Karelia (it never had been a part of Finland — or before 1809 of Sweden-Finland). This caused Great Britain to declare war on Finland on December 6. The German-Finnish troops in Northern Finland were less successful, failing to take the Russian port city of Murmansk.
In September 1941 the Finnish army took defensive positions. This led to a long period of relative calm in the front line, lasting until 1944. During this period, especially after the major German defeat in the Battle of Stalingrad, intermittent peace negotiations had taken place. These negotiations did not lead to any settlement.
In June 9, 1944, the Red Army launched a massive attack against Finland. The fact that the enemy had vast numerical superiority and had managed to surprise Finnish army, led to a retreat approximately to the same positions as Finns were holding at the end of the Winter War. Eventually the Soviet offensive was fought to a standstill (see Battle of Tali-Ihantala) while still tens or hundreds of kilometres in front of the main Finnish line of fortifications, the Salpa Line.
The dire situation in 1944 had led to Finnish president Risto Ryti giving Germany his personal guarantee that Finland would not negotiate peace with the Soviet Union. In exchange Germany delivered weapons to the Finns. However, after the Soviet invasion was halted, Ryti resigned. Due to the war, elections could not be held, and therefore the Parliament elected Mannerheim, the Finnish commander-in-chief, as the president and charged him with negotiating a peace.
The Finnish front had became a side show for the Soviet leadership, as they were in a race to reach Berlin before the Western Allies. This, and the heavy casualties inflicted to the Red Army by the Finns, led to withdrawal of most troops from the Finnish front. In September 4, 1944 a cease-fire was agreed, and the Moscow armistice was signed on September 19. In the armistice agreement Finland was obliged to expel German troops from the country. This led to the Lapland War.
[edit] Lapland War
The Lapland War was fought between Finland and Nazi Germany in Lapland, the northernmost part of Finland. The main strategic interest of Germany in the region were the nickel mines in the Petsamo area.
Initially the warfare was cautious on both sides, but by the end of 1944 the fighting intensified. The Germans adopted a scorched earth policy, and proceeded to lay waste the entire northern half of the country as they retreated. Some 100 000 people lost their homes, adding the burden of post-war reconstruction. The actual loss of life, however, was not catastrophic. Finland lost some 1000 troops and Germany about 2000. The Finnish army expelled the last of the foreign troops from their soil in April 1945.
[edit] Moscow Armistice
[edit] Post War
The war had caused great damage to infrastructure and the economy. From the autumn of 1944 the Finnish army and navy performed many mine clearance operations, especially in Karelia, Lapland and the Gulf of Finland. The sea mine clearance lasted until 1950. The mines caused many military and civilian casualties, particulary in Lapland.
As part of the peace agreement the Soviet Union imposed heavy war reparations on Finland and took the Porkkala area near the Finnish capital Helsinki as a military base. The reparations were initially thought to be crippling for the economy, but a determined effort was made to pay them. They were actually paid off years in advance, in 1952. Porkkala was returned back to Finnish control in 1956.
In subsequent years the position of Finland was unique in the Cold War. The country was heavily influenced by Soviet Union, but retained democracy and a market economy. Finland neither entered into a military alliance with Soviet Union nor became a member of Comecon.
[edit] Assessment
[edit] Finland and Nazism
During the Continuation War (1941-1944) Finland was co-belligerent with Nazi Germany, and dependent on food, fuel and armament shipments from Germany. The country did, however, retain a democratic form of government. During the war Germany and Finland were united by a common enemy, the Soviet Union, yet Finland kept her army outside the German command structure despite numerous attempts to tie them tighter together.
Finnish Jews were not persecuted, and even among extremists of the Finnish Right they were highly tolerated, as many leaders of the movement came from the clergy. Of approximately 500 Jewish refugees, 8 were handed over to the Germans, a fact for which Finnish prime minister Paavo Lipponen issued an official apology in 2000. The field synagogue operated by the Finnish army was probably a unique phenomenon in Europe. (See external links for more information)
Approximately 2600-2800 prisoners of war were exchanged for 2100 Finnish prisoners of war with Germany. About 2000 of them joined the Wermacht, but among the rest there were about 500 political officers or politically dangerous persons, who most likely perished in concentration camps. Based on the a list of names, there were about 70 Jews among the extradicted, although they were not extradited based on nationality.
When the Finnish Army occupied Russian East Karelia 1941–1944 several concentration camps were set up for Russian civilians. The first camp was set up on 24 October 1941, in Petrozavodsk. Around 4,000 of the prisoners perished due to malnourishment, 90% of them during the spring and summer of 1942[1].
During World War II Finland was in many ways a unique case. It was the only country which fought against both sides of the conflict under the same leadership. It was the only European country which bordered the Soviet Union in 1939 and was still unoccupied in 1945. Of all the European countries fighting in World War II, only three European capitals were never occupied: Moscow, London and Helsinki. It was also a country which sided with Germany, but in which native Jews (and most refugees) were safe from persecution.
[edit] Finnish policy during WWII: Success or failure?
Finnish policy during WWII could be seen as a series of miscalculations, a stunning example of cunning planning, or a simple case of driftwood going with the flow. All three interpretations have their merits.
There is probably very little Finland could have done to prevent the Winter War without losing independence. Several politicians, such as Paasikivi and Kekkonen, have argued that different foreign policies in Finland during the decade before World War II could have averted the Winter War. The fact that the country survived was more a matter of martial prowess than skillful diplomacy, as Finland was completely isolated from potential allies.
The Continuation War was certainly based on the assumption that Germany would triumph over the Soviet Union. This incorrect assessment proved to be costly for the country. On the other hand, refusal to join with Germany against the Soviets may have led to German occupation and subsequently to Soviet occupation and possible annexation in a manner similar to the Baltic States. The Finnish cease fire with the Soviet Union in 1944 required both hard fighting in the frontline (see Battle of Tali-Ihantala) and skillful diplomatic manoeuvres. Also timing was extremely important. An early cease fire would have meant that Germany would have been able to retaliate. On the other hand, keeping on fighting for too long would have risked Soviet occupation of Finland. In this respect the cease fire was perfectly timed.
In the end, Finland came out of the war with relatively minor damage, regardless of the reasons leading to this. Casualties, and especially civilian casualties, were relatively light in the scale of the WWII. Territorial losses mounted to some 10% of the surface area of the country, which again is not an overwhelmingly large figure when compared to countries which suffered substantial territorial losses or a complete loss of independence.
[edit] References
- ^ Laine, Antti, Suur-Suomen kahdet kasvot, 1982, ISBN 951-1-06947-0, Otava
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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