Winter War

battle_name=Winter war

The War

Initially Finland had a mobilized army of only 180,000 men, but the Finnish troops turned out to be fierce adversaries employing guerrilla tactics, fast-moving ski troops in white camouflage suits, and capitalizing on their local knowledge. A certain improvised petrol bomb adapted from the Spanish Civil War was used with great success, and gained fame as the Molotov cocktail. The conditions of the winter 1939/40 were harsh; temperatures of -40°C were not unusual, and the Finns were able to use this to their advantage.

Related Topics:
Guerrilla - Ski - Camouflage - Petrol bomb - Spanish Civil War - Molotov cocktail - °C

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In addition, to the surprise of both the Soviet leadership and the Finns, 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 disillusion 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 to decrease the gap between different classes of society. This partial healing of the wounds and rifts after the Civil War in Finland (1918), and Finland's language strife, is still referred to as "the Spirit of the Winter War," although it should also be noted that many communists were not allowed to fight in Finland's conscription army because of their political background.

Related Topics:
Socialist - Communist - 1930s - Great Purges - 1918 - Finland's language strife - Conscription

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Soviet arrogance and incompetence was an important factor. The attackers were not expecting much of a struggle, and due to Stalin's purges, the commanders of the Red Army had suffered 80% peacetime losses. These were commonly replaced by people less competent but more pleasing to their superiors, and tactics which were obsolete by World War I were sometimes employed. Tactics were strictly "by the book," as a failed initiative carried a high risk of execution for its leadership. The Soviet army was also far less well prepared for winter warfare, particularly in forests, and heavily used vulnerable motorized vehicles. The so-called "Raatteentie Incident," during the month-long Battle of Suomussalmi, where one Soviet division was defeated after marching on a forest road straight into an ambush with vastly outnumbered Finnish soldiers, is still used in military academies as an example of what not to do.

Related Topics:
World War I - Battle of Suomussalmi

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As a result of both arrogance and incompetence, the Soviets also failed to achieve a decisive 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, and the Soviets attacked with only 200,000 men and 900 guns. The Soviets massed 1,000 tanks on the front, but they were utilized very badly and took massive losses.

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The Finnish equipment shortage is also worth noting. At the beginning of the war, only those soldiers who had been receiving basic training had uniforms and weapons. The rest had to make do with their own clothing with a semblance of insignia added. These mismatched "uniforms" were nicknamed "Model Cajander" after the Prime Minister Aimo Cajander. The Finns tried to alleviate the shortages by making extensive use of equipment, weapons and ammunition captured from the enemy. Fortunately, the army had not changed the caliber of its weapons after independence and was able to use Soviet ammunition.

Related Topics:
Aimo Cajander - Caliber

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