Christianity infiltrated Finland

Christianity entered Finland about 1,100 years ago, at about the same time from the west and east, resulting in the official status of both the Evangelical Lutheran and Orthodox religions. 86% of the population belongs to the first and 1% to the second. Freedom of conscience is guaranteed by the country's Constitution.

Finland was included in the sphere of influence of the Swedish crown as a result of several crusades to the east in the 12th and 13th centuries. She received the status of a duchy within the Kingdom of Sweden in the 16th century.

As a result of the Russian-Swedish war of 1808-9. Finland became part of Russia as a Grand Duchy. The country retained the legislation of the Swedish period, introduced its own currency unit, a postal service was established and a railway was built.

Helsinki became the capital in 1812 (instead of Turku). The official language remained Swedish, and since 1863, along with it, and Finnish.

After the collapse of the Russian Empire, Finland declared independence on December 6, 1917, which led to a civil war. In 1919, the current Constitution was adopted, according to which Finland is a Western democracy with a market economy.

In the late thirties, the USSR presented Finland with an ultimatum demand for the transfer of territories, in order to guarantee the safety of Leningrad, but Finland rejected it. This led to the so-called. the "winter war" of 1939-40. As a result of World War II, Finland was forced to transfer vast areas of Finnish Karelia to the USSR. In addition, Finland paid reparations in the amount of US $ 500 million (at current exchange rates).

FINLAND IN WORLD WAR II

Winter War, 11/30/1939 - 3/13/1940

The first stage of the Russian-Finnish war was the so-called "Winter War" from November 30, 1939 to March 13, 1940, which began after Finland refused to accept the conditions of the Soviet Union on the transfer of regions of Finnish territory along the southeastern border. What really decided the fate of this conflict was the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. The speech of Prime Minister A. Kayander on November 23, 1939 shows quite clearly the Finnish point of view on this matter. The Soviet Union attacked Finland on November 30, 1939 at 06.50 - without a declaration of war (attacks from the ground along the border and aerial bombardments of Finnish cities). The government was replaced by a puppet regime called the Terijoki government. Finnish Foreign Minister Weinz Tanner spoke to American listeners on the radio following the December 3, 1939 attack on a radio broadcast.

Soviet troops initially advanced deep into the territory of Finland (except for Karelia, where Finland had an organized line of defense, the so-called "Mannerheim Line." The Finns resist stubbornly. In one of the battles, several units of Soviet troops were destroyed, their equipment was captured. Local residents who confidently fought in small groups in the forests After Finland withstood the first attacks, the Soviet Union replaced the commanders leading the attack, as well as the tactics of fighting. As the Soviet Union had absolute superiority in aviation, artillery and manpower gradually defense on the Karelian Isthmus was weakening, which forced the Finns to retreat to the reserve lines.

Finland was only able to hold the front while peace negotiations were resumed. As it became apparent that no outside aid would be arriving, Finland was forced to accept the harsh peace conditions dictated by the Soviet Union. As a result, Finland lost a tenth of its territory, but retained its independence. This campaign ended on 13 March 1940.

The Winter War may have contributed to the German attack against the Soviet Union by giving a false impression of Soviet military power.

Continuation War, 06.25.1941 - 4.9.1944

The second war is called the "Continuation War" - in it the Finns fought on the German side from June 25, 1941 to September 4, 1944. There are several reasons for this war - they are all disputed in Finland, as there are several theories on this score. The main reasons were the "Winter War" (the Finns hoped for the return of the lost areas), distrust of Soviet intentions, and the belief that Germany could win this war. It is unlikely that the Finns had a real choice (but this is history) after what happened earlier and what happened during the Second World War.

When Germany attacked the Soviet Union, Finnish troops joined the German forces and organized attacks in the North with the aim of capturing Murmansk. Finland did not declare war on the Soviet Union and did not start hostilities until the Soviet Union began bombing Finnish territory (cities) on the morning of June 25, 1941. As a result, Finnish Prime Minister Rangell declared and was supported by parliament that Finland is now at war with The Soviet Union. Finland then joined the attack on June 30 to capture areas previously annexed to the Soviet Union in the Winter War and was able to achieve that goal in the first stage of the war. In some areas, Finnish troops crossed the border with the USSR in winter in order to gain an advantage and occupy geographically advantageous positions (waterways, lakes, etc.).

However, the Finns refused to participate in the blockade of Leningrad. The so-called attack phase of the Continuation War lasted until late 1941. In early 1944 it became apparent that Germany had lost the war and Finland, and the Soviet Union had some contact regarding the end of the war, but no agreement was reached. The Soviet Union tried to "persuade" Finland with the so-called "Peaceful Bombings" - in February 1944, the city of Helsinki was bombed. The bombings failed, thanks to a reliable defense and anti-aircraft complex. The Soviet Union tried by all means to restore the position on the Karelian Isthmus - June 9, 1944 (this was calculated to accompany the Allied attack on Normandy). The massive attack was capable of disrupting the Finnish defenses at Valkeasaari on 10 June, and the front retreated quickly to the secondary line (Vammelsuu-Taipale line).

The fight was fierce. Soviet tanks and infantry, supported by massive artillery, and bombers fired at the Finnish defenders. As the fighting continued, the VT-line was disrupted at Sahakyla and Kuuterselka at 14.644 and after the main counter attack at Kuuterselka by the Finnish squad failed, the defense was forced to retreat again. The main loss during this period was the capture of Viipuri by the Soviets on 20 June. Finnish troops were able to stop the Soviet attack on the Tali-Ihantala region, where it was most difficult from June 25 to July 6. By this time, the Finnish army had enough artillery and troops equipped with new German anti-tank weapons and was capable. Soviet losses in tank and human resources were quite large.

At the same time, the Soviets tried to bypass the Finnish defenses by crossing the Viipurinlahti (bay) across the island chain. This attack began on 4 July and was fierce amphibious battles that lasted until 10 July. The third major Soviet attempt began on July 4, on Vuosalmi (crossing the Vuoksi river, however, the military did not go beyond the banks of the army as they were fired upon by Finnish artillery along with bimber aircraft from the Finnish air force and German aircraft. Finnish infantry also participated in the operation.

The Soviets ended their attacks on 11 July and began reorganizing their troops on the Karelian Isthmus. At the end of the summer, the front was stabilized, but Finland saw that peace with the Soviet Union was the only way to avoid accusations of collusion with the Germans. The truce with the Soviet Union officially began at 07:00 - September 4, 1944, although Soviet forces continued to fire until 7:00 the next morning. The temporary peace between the Soviet Union and Finland was ratified in Moscow on September 19, 1944, and the final peace agreement was signed in Paris on February 10, 1948. As a result, Finland was forced to pay huge payments to the Soviet Union.

Lapland War, 9/27/1944 - 4/27/1945

The third war was called the "Lapland War" and was a fight against Germany after the armistice with the Soviet Union. Finland really did not want to fight with the Germans, but under pressure from the Allies (mainly from the Soviet Union) was forced to enter into a real fight with the Germans until April 27, 1945.

Finland in the Second World War showed amazing endurance and courage. She fought not only with the USSR, but also with the West. For almost 5 years, from June 25, 1941 to April 27, 1945. Some historians are sure that the Winter War of 40 is also part of the Second World War. In this conflict, the Finns lost about 10% of their lands. Some of the refugees remained in the USSR, and some Russians remained forever on Finnish territory.

Finland's losses amounted to about 27,000 people. There were 5 times more wounded and prisoners. More than a thousand people died from the bombing alone. According to general estimates, during the entire period of hostilities, 81,000 Finnish residents died. They were mostly military. Of this number went to the civilian population, their number is equal to 2000 people.

Now it is difficult to judge whether Finland took the correct position in this battle, but I would like to note that the Finnish state has found in itself wisdom and with the help of diplomacy, leverage in order to conclude peace with the Soviet Union. Probably, the influence of Germany was too great and it was created over several years, when there were no prerequisites for war at all.

Finland's participation

Finland dreamed of creating a great power and wanted to annex not only Karelia, but also some lands of the Soviet territory. Due to the close proximity to the USSR, for some time, she nurtured the idea of ​​the seizure of Leningrad.

The facts speak for themselves that the military commanders of Finland and Germany had long negotiations in 1936 and planned to carry out a joint seizure. After that, already in 1939, the Finns categorically declared that they no longer wanted to have any business with the Soviet Union, and any participation of the Soviet army would be perceived as a challenge and the end of peace negotiations.

The border zones on both sides were strengthened, and a month later, debates began to be held on revising the borders of the states. The USSR offered to give the eastern part of Karelia to the Finns, and Finland asked for another territory. But these negotiations were interrupted. Again Germany intervened and did not allow an agreement between these countries.

The first shelling was not long in coming. Literally a month later, on November 26, Soviet troops carried out provocative military operations, and after 4 days war was declared on the Finnish lands. This event was also accompanied by the fact that the Soviet Union was to expunge the sludge of the League of Nations.

The Finns received significant assistance from other states. About 12,000 volunteers came from different states and about 8,000 soldiers personally from the Swedes. Great Britain handed over 75 military aircraft for use, France was also engaged in the supply of flight equipment, but for money. Denmark supplied an anti-tank gun. UAS donated 22 fighters for free use. Belgium provided the Finns with machine guns.

The course of combat events

The Finnish army proved to be skillful warriors, despite the fact that their numbers were ridiculous in comparison with the Soviet army. After the Russian aircraft raided the Finnish capital, the Finns had to go into deep defense. Due to the fact that the territory of the border was huge and amounted to almost 15,000 kilometers, it was difficult to defend.

Finland's advantage was only that they knew the border area perfectly. The Union planned to break through Petsamo, but experienced Finnish ski troops prevented a headlong seizure. The embarrassment of the Soviet army was also inaccurate maps and weather conditions.

The war was divided into three sectors:

1. The offensive of the USSR.
2. Several minor victories for Finland.
3. The main attack of the Soviet army.

The main factors of hostilities are the front of Karelia and Ladoga. It was not possible to conquer Vyborg quickly. Several times the Red Army lost in battles and the Finns held Petsamo. Even during the beginning of the Second World War, the Finns for some time supported the Germans and their troops were located in Finland.

The Finns took an active part in the battles since 1941. When Estonia was occupied, the Finns deployed their armed detachment there. First Lvov was captured, then Petrozavodsk. But even then, Stalin did not declare war on Finland and convinced the Prime Minister of Great Britain, which supported the USSR, of this.

The Finns took an active part in the battles at sea and during the blockade of Leningrad. Only when the Soviet army entered the territory of Germany did the Finns go on the defensive. According to unconfirmed reports, the Finns lost about 85,000 people, of which 2,500 were prisoners, a quarter of whom died in captivity.

It is impossible not to mention the Lapland War. The fighting was limited to skirmishes and the Germans understood that the Finns were not particularly eager to take an active part in the massacre. The passivity of Finland did not surprise the USSR. Moreover, it was seen as aiding the German army. The military commanders of the Union demanded that the Finns withdraw German troops from Finnish territory. The Germans left Finland, but before that they plundered and burned many villages.

The Finns took an active part in abusive actions not only on the territory of Karelia, but also on the entire coast of Ladoga. When they managed to reach the coast, Lakhdenpohja and Sortavala were seized in turn. Just at this time, the military commanders of Finland received a personal message from Churchill, in which he bitterly reported that Germany might have to declare war on Finland. Probably, even then it was necessary to think about the fact that it was not worth supporting the Germans.

Domestic policy

Finland's participation in the Second World War began due to the tension in relations between these countries. In the midst of the war, the Finns began to experience difficulties in the internal order. There was a lack of food, and the army was not arming as quickly as it would have liked. I had to shoot people from logging sites. Historians speak of a figure of 60,000.

These difficulties continued until Finland's withdrawal from the war in 1944. The nation's income was in the region of 77%, and industry fell by almost 20%. In construction, the situation was even worse. The decline was accounted for by almost 50%. This was due to internal devastation, besides, German troops inflicted great damage on border villages before leaving.

Agriculture also experienced difficulties. The land was emasculated and crop damage was nearly 35%. The sale of Finnish goods also suffered and began to amount to no more than 35% of the pre-war level. The Lapland War only made matters worse. If speak about navy, then it suffered from mine cans for 5 years after the end of the Second World War. Only in 1950 began large-scale demining of the Finnish coast, especially the Gulf of Finland needed it.

Accordingly, it was during 1941 - 1944. was a military ally of Germany.

As of June 22, 1941, for the war against the USSR, a grouping of German-Finnish troops with a total number of 407.5 thousand people was deployed in Finland (the equivalent of 21.5 divisions, of which 17.5 Finnish divisions and 4 German divisions).

On June 22, 1941, Germany and its allies attacked the USSR. Great began Patriotic War... At 7.15 a.m. on June 22, 1941, the USSR People's Commissar of Defense sent a directive to the armed forces, which instructed not to take action against Finland: "do not make raids against Finland and Romania until special instructions are given."

Beginning on June 22, 1941, German Luftwaffe bombers began using Finnish airfields. The first 43 German aircraft made an invasion of Soviet airspace from Finnish airspace at about 4 o'clock on June 22, 1941 over the Karelian Isthmus. On the same day, 16 Finnish saboteurs landed from two German seaplanes Heinkel He 115, which took off from Oulujärvi, near the locks of the White Sea-Baltic Canal.

On June 22-23, 1941, aircraft from Finnish airspace crossed the USSR border and conducted an active aerial reconnaissance of Karelia.

On June 25, 1941, the aircraft of the Northern Fleet and the Baltic Fleet carried out an air raid with bombing strikes on 19 airfields in Finland, on which there were German and Finnish aircraft. A session of the Finnish parliament was scheduled for June 25, at which, according to Mannerheim's memoirs, Prime Minister Rangell was supposed to make a statement about Finland's neutrality in the Soviet-German conflict, but the Soviet bombing gave him a reason to declare that Finland was again in a state of defensive war with USSR. However, the troops were forbidden to cross the border until 24:00 on July 28, 1941.

On the same day, June 25, 1941, Sweden agreed to let German troops pass from Norway through Sweden to Finland. Later, volunteers began to arrive from Sweden to Finland, from which the Swedish volunteer battalion was formed, which took part in the war against the USSR.

On June 26, 1941, the President of Finland R. Ryti announced that Finland "is in a state of war with the USSR."

On June 28, 1941, German-Finnish troops launched an offensive in the Murmansk direction, began fighting in the Arctic. In addition, with the aim of conducting propaganda against the population of the USSR, a radio station began operating in Helsinki.

On the night of July 1, 1941, the Finnish army launched an offensive with the aim of reaching Lake Ladoga.

On July 10, 1941, the commander-in-chief of the Finnish army Mannerheim publicly vowed that he would not "sheathe the sword" and would not end the war until the Finnish troops liberated the White Sea and Olonets Karelia.

On the same day, July 10, 1941, the German-Finnish Karelian army launched an offensive in two diverging directions - to Olonets and Petrozavodsk. The Soviet command was unable to provide assistance to Lieutenant General FD Gorelenko's 7th Army due to the difficult situation on other fronts.

In the summer and autumn of 1941, the Finnish army, taking advantage of a good moment to distract the main forces of the Red Army, returned the territories lost in the Soviet-Finnish war and continued the offensive, reaching Lake Onega and blocking Leningrad from the north.

Great Britain, on July 12, 1941, signed with the USSR the Moscow agreement on joint military operations against Germany, on July 30-31, 1941, without declaring war, struck an air strike on the German-Finnish forces in Petsamo and Kirkenes:

British naval aviation sunk 2 and damaged 1 merchant marine, the losses of British aviation from fighters and air defense fire amounted to 16 aircraft.

After the Finnish troops reached the shores of Lake Ladoga, the creation of the Finnish naval forces began in this area. On August 2, 1941, the command post of the Finnish flotilla was deployed to Läskelä. Only in the period until August 6, 1941, the Finns transported by land to Lake Ladoga 4 self-propelled barges, two tugboats (which were later converted into minelayers) and about 150 motor boats, and on the coast they installed batteries of 88-mm and 100-mm long-range guns ... On August 10, 1941, the Finns captured the city and port of Lahdenpohja. On August 15, 1941, the Finns captured the city and port of Sortavala, where the headquarters of the Finnish flotilla was relocated (a maneuverable naval base remained in Lahdenpohja). Later, the Finns fought against the Ladoga military flotilla.

In addition to Karelia, the Finns took part in hostilities in other sectors of the Eastern Front:

In September 1941, the 187th Finnish guard detachment (187 Sicherungsgruppe) was created in the occupied territory of Estonia, which entered the operational subordination of the German 18th Army and was used to guard facilities, patrol the area and fight Soviet partisans in the rear of the 18th Army Wehrmacht. The unit was recruited on a voluntary basis, the personnel signed a contract to perform service for 12 months.

At the end of September 1941, Finnish troops surrounded and on October 2, 1941 - captured Petrozavodsk.

On November 8, 1941, JV Stalin, in a letter to the Prime Minister of Great Britain, directly raised the question on what basis Great Britain, as an ally of the USSR, does not declare war on Finland.

On November 29, 1941, Churchill sent a personal letter to Marshal Mannerheim, in which he reported “with regret” that “in a few days we will be forced to declare war on Finland”.

On December 2, 1941, Mannerheim sent a letter to Churchill, in which he announced that Finland would not withdraw troops to the 1939 borders.

The Finns took part in the hostilities against the Northern Fleet, the blockade of Leningrad and the shelling of the Road of Life.

After the defeat of the Germans near Moscow, the Finns went on the defensive. This led to the stabilization of the front until 1944.

In January 1942, the Finnish SS volunteer battalion was sent to the eastern front, he participated in hostilities against the USSR as part of the troops of the Army Group South. The battalion fought its first battles on the front sector near the Mius River. In total, from the creation to the disbandment of the battalion, 1,500 Finnish volunteers served in it, of which 222 were killed and 557 were wounded in the war against the USSR.

On January 3, 1942, the Medvezhyegorsk offensive operation of the Soviet troops began, which lasted until January 10, 1942.

In February 1942, two Finnish companies were part of the German garrison in the city of Dorogobuzh.

In order to disrupt the navigation on Lake Ladoga, in 1942 the German military command created its own naval forces on Lake Ladoga: "Operational headquarters" Fore-Ost "", which received the German "flotilla of boats" KM "" (six German mine minelayers, as well as Finnish-built boats) and the German "flotilla of assault landing barges" (the first fifteen 144-ton assault landing barges of Siebel were transferred to Ladoga from Helsinki on July 15, 1942, the flotilla left for the first campaign on October 9, 1942). Italy sent the 12th detachment of small torpedo boats from the MAS to Lake Ladoga, they arrived on June 22, 1942.

On April 24, 1942, Soviet troops launched an offensive operation in the Kestenga area, which lasted until May 11, 1942. The two Soviet offensive operations did not lead to success, but they depleted the enemy's reserves and forced him to abandon his own offensive operations.

On June 22, 1942, on the basis of the German army "Lapland" in Finland, the 20th mountain army was created, under which the "Abwehrgroup-214" began to operate.

During 1942, Finland continued to receive military goods and raw materials from the countries of the Western Hemisphere through Sweden, since Great Britain, while implementing the naval blockade of Germany and Germany's allies, passed cargo to Sweden. According to incomplete data, only during 1942, in addition to 6.2 thousand tons of cotton from Brazil, 426 tons of rubber from Argentina and Brazil, 450 tons of copper and asbestos from Canada, from various countries of the Western Hemisphere, Finland received 400 tons of tungsten, manganese, high quality gasoline, 16 thousand bags of coffee, sugar, tobacco and wool.

The breakthrough of the blockade of Leningrad in January 1943 forced the military command of Finland to refuse to participate in the attack on Murmanskaya railroad(although earlier Mannerheim had repeatedly promised Hitler that Finland would go on the offensive "immediately after the fall of Leningrad").

The victory of the Soviet troops at Stalingrad led to a change in the mood in the ruling circles of Finland. On February 3, 1943, an emergency meeting was held at the Finnish headquarters on the events on the Soviet-German front. All participants in the meeting unanimously came to the conclusion that the war had reached a turning point and Finland should think about withdrawing from the war. From that time on, the Finnish side increasingly began to declare about the "separate" nature of the war against the USSR.

In February 1943, on the territory of Finland, 9 km from the city of Rovaniemi, an Abwehr reconnaissance school was opened, which was subordinate to the "Abwehrgroup-214" and until the disbandment at the end of 1943 was engaged in training scouts and saboteurs for German military intelligence.

In 1943-1944, the German anti-submarine position Nargen - Porkkala-Udd was created to blockade the actions of Soviet submarines.

On March 12, 1943, the US Ambassador to the USSR handed over to the Soviet government a US proposal to conclude a separate peace between the USSR and Finland through the mediation of the United States. This proposal was in direct violation of the Anglo-Soviet treaty of May 26, 1942, which stipulated that the Allied countries could not negotiate a separate peace with Germany and her allies except by mutual agreement... The USSR government rejected the US government's proposal and informed the UK government of this US initiative.

The defeat of the German troops at the Kursk Bulge increased anxiety in the ruling circles of Finland. On August 20, 1943, 20 Finnish public and political figures signed and sent a memorandum to the President of Finland R. Ryti, in which they insisted that Finland withdraw from the war.

In the summer of 1943, through the Finnish embassy in Lisbon, negotiations between Finland and the United States began on the possibility of Finland's withdrawal from the war.

In 1944, based on the experience gained in the construction of the VT defensive line, construction of the VKT defensive line began.

On January 14, 1944, the Leningrad-Novgorod strategic offensive operation of the Soviet troops began.

On February 8, 1944, the 200th Infantry Regiment of the Finnish Army (Jalkaväkirykmentti 200) was formed on the territory of Finland from Estonians, which took part in hostilities against the USSR in Karelia and after August 1, 1944 was sent to Estonia.

Already in mid-February 1944, when Soviet troops inflicted a serious defeat on the German Army Group North, the ruling circles of Finland thought about changing the political course in connection with the prospect of Germany's defeat, but at the same time they still hoped to wait for a favorable situation to withdraw from the war.

On March 16, 1944, US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt called on Finland to withdraw from the war and break off relations with Germany, but the Finns ignored this statement. Ultimately, the US did not declare war on Finland during World War II.

On June 9, 1944, the Red Army launched the Vyborg-Petrozavodsk offensive against the Finnish troops.

On June 21, 1944, the troops of the Karelian Front began the Svir-Petrozavodsk offensive operation, with the aim of crushing the group of Finnish troops between the Onega and Ladoga lakes and liberating southern Karelia.

On June 25, 1944, the Battle of Tali-Ihantala began on the Karelian Isthmus, which lasted until July 9, 1944

On June 26, 1944, Finnish President Risto Ryti and German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop signed the "Ribbentrop-Ryti agreement", according to which it was guaranteed that Finland would not conduct peace negotiations with the USSR as long as Ryti held the presidency (at the same time, during the war elections in Finland could not be held), in exchange for the supply of weapons to the Finns.

The actions of the Soviet troops led to the liberation of Karelia from the invaders and a hasty retreat of the Finns to their pre-war positions: rather quickly, Soviet troops reached the state border of 1940.

In August 1944, in accordance with an agreement between Berlin and Bern, a group of Finnish soldiers was sent to Switzerland for medical treatment along with 450 German soldiers and officers.

On August 4, 1944, President of Finland R. Ryti resigned, his post was taken by Marshal Karl Gustav Emil Mannerheim.

On August 25, 1944, the USSR received an official request for an armistice from the Finnish government.

Germany already from 1943 assumed that Finland would go over to the side of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. In the winter of 1943 - 1944. German troops in northern Finland prepared routes and plans for a retreat to Norway.

On September 3, 1944, the Finnish command ordered its troops to begin deployment to begin hostilities against German troops in Finland.

On September 4, units of the 26th Army and 18th Mountain Corps of the Wehrmacht began to withdraw from Finnish territory to Norway. Together with them, but only to Sweden, 56,500 Finns were evacuated, fearing that the Red Army would enter the interior of Finland. Refugees transported 30,000 head of cattle to Sweden.

On September 11, the German and Finnish commanders agreed on the peaceful nature of the withdrawal of German troops from Finland according to the plan outlined in the negotiations and on the transport provided by the Finnish side.

The German command, contrary to the agreements with the Finnish side, tried to maintain its positions in Finland by force.

On September 15, German forces (2,700 men led by Captain 2nd Rank Karl Conrad Mecke) attempted to capture the island of Hogland in the Gulf of Finland. The Finnish garrison (1,612 men led by Lieutenant Colonel Martti Juho Miettinen, 42 guns, 6 heavy mortars and 24 machine guns) not only repulsed the attack of the German landing, but forced him to surrender. The losses of the Finnish troops - 37 killed, 15 missing and 68 wounded. The losses of the German troops - 155 killed and 1231 prisoners. The German landing flotilla (40 ships) lost 9 ships. The attempt to seize the island of Gogland caused a wave of anti-German sentiment in Finland.

On the same day, Finland declared war on Germany. This was determined not only by the attack of German troops on the Finnish garrison of the island of Gogland, but also by the conditions for concluding an armistice with the USSR, which was confirmed by the 2nd clause of the Moscow Peace Treaty of September 19, 1944, according to which Finland undertook to disarm the German land, sea and air armed forces. forces remaining in Finland after September 15, 1944, and transfer their personnel to the USSR as prisoners of war. The fulfillment of this point logically led Finland to the beginning of hostilities against Germany, which began at the end of September 1944. In Finland, this military campaign was called the "Lapland War" (Lapin sota).

The Finnish group of troops (60,000 people) in Lapland was led by Lieutenant General Hjalmar Fridolf Siilasvuo. She was opposed by German troops (213,000 people) under the command of Colonel General Lothar Rendulic.

On September 28, near the town of Pudasjärvi, a Finnish battalion tried to seize the bridge over the Olhavanioki River, but German sappers resisted and blew up the crossing. During the battle, two Wehrmacht soldiers were killed, and two were captured. The Finns lost five people killed.

On October 1, 1944, the Finnish troops (12,500 people) landed troops in the port of Tornio on the Swedish-Finnish border.

On October 2, German troops (7,000 people, 11 captured French Somua S35 tanks) attacked the positions of the Finnish troops in the vicinity of Tornio. The Finns retreated, but captured 30 Wehrmacht soldiers.

On October 3, the German air force bombarded the port of Tornio. The losses of the Finnish troops - 2 ships, 3 killed and 20 wounded. The German command ordered the capture of 262 hostages from among the local residents and demanded that they be exchanged for 30 German prisoners of war captured by the Finns on October 2.

On October 4, the German Air Force bombarded Tornio. The losses of the Finnish troops - 60 killed and 400 wounded.

On October 4 - 8, German troops attacked Tornio unsuccessfully. Losses of German troops - 600 killed and 337 prisoners. The losses of the Finnish troops - 376 killed.

On October 13, the German command issues an order, according to which, during the retreat, the German troops must use the scorched earth tactics, destroying cities and villages, blowing up bridges and railways.

On October 17, Finnish troops entered Rovaniemi.
On October 26-30, the Finnish 11th Infantry Regiment carried out a series of attacks against the SS Mountain Rifle Regiment Reinhard Heydrich near the village of Munio, after which the latter retreated. The losses of the Finnish troops - 63 killed. The losses of the German troops - 350 killed.

At the end of October 1944, Finland began to demobilize its army. In Lapland, 12,000 Finnish soldiers and officers remained with 800 machine guns, 100 mortars and 160 artillery pieces. They did not conduct active hostilities against the German troops, which were gradually retreating to Norway.

During the period of hostilities from September 1944 to April 1945, the Finnish troops lost 774 people killed, 262 were missing and 3000 were wounded. German troops lost 950 killed, 2,000 wounded and 1,300 prisoners.

In the fall of 2012, I was sitting on the Allegro train on the way to St. Petersburg. In the same carriage with me were two Finns, apparently historians and scientists who did not hesitate to express their opinions to all other passengers. One of the men repeated his opinion several times that "Russians do not know how to study history."

I thought, why should I listen to such statements again in 2012, on the train between Helsinki and St. Petersburg, in the famous "Allegro", which symbolizes high level Russian-Finnish relations.

One of the most interesting national historiographies is the Finnish historiography of World War II. The virtuoso nature of factual distortions, falsification of historical events and contextual falsification, as well as constant pseudo-legal speculation around almost all facts and events - all this is like pseudoscientific historiography of Finland has extremely interesting psychological functions, the function of mass psychology, and importance for the study of political psychology.

The primary goal of distorting the history of the Second World War in Finland is to calm the people, prevent people from drawing the wrong conclusions about why and at what cost Finland lost the wars as an ally of Nazi Germany. The main purpose of the distortions: to make the Finnish people believe that Russia and the Russians are the eternal enemies of Finland, who have always tried to "occupy" and destroy Finland, that Finland had no relations with Nazi Germany during the war (the Germans only "helped" a little), that there was no nationalism, fascist movements and organizations in Finland. This distorted mythology is still valid, including in Finnish school history textbooks. The history departments of Finnish universities are, of course, masters in teaching the technology of these distortions.

The goal is also, at the same time, and cleverly enough, to hide the fact that there was a large-scale anti-fascist opposition movement... This means that if there is no fascism in Finland, if the Finns are not allies of the Nazis, if the Russians are only dangerous "occupiers" - then no resistance movement is needed, of course. The entire Finnish people are allegedly united against "russ" (the so-called offensive word for Russians in Finnish nationalist and fascist propaganda).

In practice, it is about preventing the denazification of Finland. This is one of the main functions of falsifying the history of the Second World War in Finland. It is important to distort history by deceiving that there are no and never were any Nazi or fascist movements in Finland, Finland was not an ally of Nazi Germany - therefore, in Finland no denazification is needed.

It is characteristic of the Finnish falsification that each fact is falsified according to one scheme: Stalin or the Russians planned to "occupy" Finland and destroy the nation, Finland was always alone, the Finns made only the right decisions, the Russians are always wrong, immoral, etc. To this end, the well-known Finnish pseudo-historian Okhto Manninen even published a book, "Study", entitled "How to Occupy Finland: Operational Plans of the Red Army 1939-1944" (2008), allegedly as proof of Stalin's "plans" to destroy the Finnish people and nation.

Thus, the falsification of the history of the Second World War in Finland can, first of all, be defined as information and psychological war against their own people... As a result, the entire Finnish people almost all the time live in a state of war psychosis... This paranoia is easy to spot in the Finnish media, which regularly broadcast highly distorted materials about the military history of Finland, Finnish-Russian relations and the internal situation in Russia.

The myth of the occupation

The main myth of the Finnish historiography of the Second World War is occupation myth, that the original goal of Stalin was supposedly to conquer all of Finland, "occupy" the country, to destroy the entire Finnish people. This myth provides many opportunities for Finnish pseudo-historians to justify the decisions and actions of the Finnish authorities during the war years.

The myth of the occupation, of course, has a lot to do with the former Baltic states, which were in fact allegedly "occupied" in the summer of 1940. Therefore, in Finland it is often said that it was right to fight (even with Hitler) against the USSR, because otherwise Finland would have faced the fate of the Baltic states. This is also related to the gross falsification of the pseudo-historian Kimmo Rentol that Stalin planned to shoot 30,000 Finns in the Katyn forest (despite the fact that not one document supports such nonsense). Although in propaganda about the occupation, the most important thing is, of course, the version that the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact allegedly determined the entire European history. Therefore, the Baltic states and Finland allegedly faced one common fate: the Soviet occupation!

For example, if it is necessary to admit the fact of Finland's alliance with Nazi Germany, Finnish pseudo-historians always emphasize that this was, at least, a personal decision of President Ryti in the summer of 1944, and the main event of this alliance is the support of the German Air Force in the summer of 1944 against a massive the offensive of Soviet troops (an attempt to "occupy" the country) on the Karelian Isthmus. The large-scale cooperation of the German and Finnish navies, infantry, reconnaissance, aviation, and the presence in Finland of dozens of German airfields for operations against Leningrad and Karelia is often silent, because these facts do not support the myth of the occupation.

In Finnish historiography, they regularly talk about the "mass offensive in the summer of 1944" in order to prove to the Finns that the Soviet Union, which attacked Finland, is to blame for the war. But in Finnish historiography, of course, they are silent about the fact that Finland from the 1920s to the 1940s was an extremely aggressive neighbor, which itself several times staged attacks on the territory of Soviet Russia and Karelia.

One typical and recent example. Finland's extremely Russophobic main newspaper, Helsingin Sanomat, asked its readers in September 2012, "When did Finland have the most independence?" One of the answers published in the newspaper is extremely interesting. A certain Matti Püstünen from Espoo answered briefly: "Historically, we were the most independent and lonely during the war years 1939-1944." Matti Püstünen's opinion is, of course, a gross falsification of facts - Finland was not really "alone" during World War II, on the contrary - it was perhaps the most important ally of Nazi Germany - and not only Germany, but also Italy - also arguably the staunchest ally of the Nazis and fascists. The goals in the war were common: the destruction of Leningrad and the USSR, the mass destruction of the "lower races" - Russians, Jews.

One illustrative example: the famous Finnish pseudo-historian Kimmo Rentola (professor at the University of Turku, also a member of the Finnish Security Police) published in 2003 a material about the reasons why Polish officers were shot in the Katyn forest. Rentola's explanation is extremely surprising: Beria and Stalin allegedly intended to shoot not Poles in Katyn, but 30,000 Finnish officers, for whom it was necessary to "make room" by killing a corresponding number of Polish officers. But when the Finns unexpectedly "won" the winter war (as the pseudo-historian Rentola writes), it turned out that it was no longer necessary to kill Polish officers. Although, Rentola writes, Stalin was so angry over the Finnish victory that he decided to kill the Poles anyway. Thus, according to Rentol's interpretation, the cause of the Katyn tragedy is the Finnish victory in the Winter War! It should be added that Rentola did not provide any evidence for his allegations of planning to kill 30,000 Finns in Katyn, or of Stalin's intentions. But all the same, he is engaged not only in the pathological distortion of history, but also in gross mockery of the feelings of Polish families, who lost their relatives in this tragedy. By the way, it was Rentola who became a Finnish security police officer on projects to falsify Finnish history in the interests of the special services. Whether the gross falsification of the Katyn tragedy is used in the interests of the Finnish law enforcement agencies, we, of course, do not know.

In many ways, the Finnish historiography of World War II is a repetition of the defense of President Risto Ryti at the trial against Finnish war criminals in Helsinki in 1945-1946. It was then that Ryti persistently repeated the cliché that Finland was alone, that Stalin intended to occupy Finland, that an alliance with Hitler was forced as the only way out for the Finns, etc.

The peculiarity of the historical falsification of Finland is that history is already falsified in the course of events. So, 25.-26. June 1941 large-scale operation Soviet aviation against German airfields and other military facilities on the territory of Finland, the Finns faked as an unexpected and unjustified offensive against civilians, women and children. This is exactly what President Risto Ryti said in a famous radio speech, knowing full well that Finland was in alliance with Hitler. In the same radio speech, Ryti called Hitler a "genius leader."

In many ways, the historiography of the Second World War in Finland is just a repetition of wartime war propaganda. Finland, of course, already then tried to emphasize the "independent" role of its campaign alongside Hitler, of course, first of all so that the Finnish front-line soldiers did not understand that they fought for Hitler and shed blood for the interests of Germany (it was with these words that he assessed the situation former President Ryti himself after the war).

Mainil's Shots

There are other examples of how the Finns falsified history already in the course of the events of history: the famous "Mainilan shots" ("Mainilan laukaukset"), which were reported by the radio of Moscow on November 26, 1939. According to the Soviet radio broadcast, the Soviet border guards noticed seven shots from the Finns, which hit the territory of the USSR. The Finnish authorities immediately decided to fabricate a case against the Soviet leadership that Soviet artillery near the border with Finland allegedly fired at their own border guards in order to have a pretext for attacking Finland. For this purpose, the Finnish General Staff at night collected "testimonies" of the Finnish border guards, who said that they allegedly "saw" from the territory of Finland how the Soviet artillery fired at their own on the territory of the USSR. The indications are contradictory. Although, in fact, there were no "Mainil shots". But until now, the invented story of "Mainil's shots" is the main event of the invented and falsified history of the so-called. "Winter war".

But that's not all. Well-known Finnish pseudo-historian Okhto Manninen stated in the early 1990s that he allegedly "found" evidence of "Mainil's shots" in Russian archives. The results of these "studies" were published in 1994. According to Manninen's materials, there are records of the winter war, where the word "execution" is written. This, according to Manninen, is proof of the "plans" of the Soviet leadership regarding "Mainil's shots." The famous Finnish professor Manninen (so far) has not found any other evidence, except for the word "execution" in one document.

On the issue of the "winter war", it is also popular among Finnish pseudo-historians to spread the opinion that the League of Nations allegedly legally deprived the USSR of its membership in this organization after the Soviet Union attacked Finland in November 1939. For Finnish pseudo-historians, this version is supposedly proof that Finland is not to blame for anything. Although in fact, as you know, the decision of the League of Nations to expel the USSR was made illegally and had no legal force.

Also in Finland it is popular among pseudo-historians to say that the so-called. The Teria government, i.e. the Finnish people's government on the Karelian Isthmus during the "winter war" was proof that the USSR intended to occupy Finland. In fact, here again the Finnish pseudo-historians want to hide the fact that the Finns themselves planned already during the "winter war" to create a Russian people's government in Reboli, under the leadership of Trotsky or Kerensky, and even planned to create a Russian people's army there (such as the predecessor Vlasovskaya army).

Thus, any choice of topics by Finnish pseudo-historians should always be assessed as an attempt to falsify history, to hide especially important facts and events of wartime.

"Yatkosota"

Of course, in falsifying history through conceptual manipulation, the Finns are simply great masters. There is, for example, the concept of "continuation war" (in Finnish "yatkosota") - the period 1941-1944, i.e. Finland's participation in Operation Barbarossa as an ally of Nazi Germany. After all, for the Finns it is just a "continuation" of something, although "Barbarossa" is a unique event in military history. Although it is not entirely clear what this war could be a "continuation" of: some Finnish pseudo-historians believe that "Barbarossa" is a continuation of the "winter war" of 1939-1940, a bilateral military conflict that, incidentally, lasted only 105 days.

The use of the term "yatkosota" (continuation war) is, of course, the best evidence that the author is falsifying history. Unfortunately, according to the data of the national bibliography of Finland, 2,143 works on "yatkosot" have been published in the country, and only 1,761 works about "talvisot" (ie about the winter war).

It must be said that the use of the term "yatkosota", unfortunately, also indicates that the author supports Nazism - after all, the term "yatkosota" itself exists in order to justify and support Operation Barbarossa. Thus, the reader should be careful, since all works using this term ("yatkosota") reflect an extremely hostile Russophobic ideology, neo-Nazism and extremism. The word "yatkosota" is an information weapon, a military threat against Russia.

But "yatkosota" is not all. The Finns also have other false terms in order to confuse the reasons and essence of this war. There is a term "separate war" (in Finnish "eryllissota"), also the period of 1941-1944, in order to tell people that Finland allegedly had nothing to do with the Germans, and fought "alone." The meaning of the terms "yatkosota" and "eryllissota" is, of course, the justification of the military aggression of Finland together with Germany against the USSR, as well as the justification of the "Barbarossa" plan itself. Thus, these terms can still be classified as a kind of military threat against Russia.

A notorious example is the speech of the President of Finland Tarja Halonen at the Institute foreign policy Paris in 2005, Halonen said that for the Finns, the second World War was a "separate war" against the USSR, and after the war Finland allegedly "retained" independence and democracy. The Russian Foreign Ministry reacted clearly and decisively, recalling the Paris Peace Treaty, which clearly defines Finland's criminal alliance with Nazi Germany, as well as Finland's role in the war.

The Finns, in principle, are ready to admit the fact that Finland, together with Germany, really attacked the USSR in the summer of 1941. But for this situation, they have a special false conceptual manipulation, dividing the "yatkosot" into three parts. Therefore, they talk about the "offensive phase" in the summer of 1941, but then very soon a supposedly defensive "phase of positional war" appeared, and in the summer of 1944, the "phase of retreat", which allegedly already testifies to Stalin's aggression, the intention to "occupy »Finland (according to Manninen), etc. By the way, in the infamous Finnish "novel" about the war "The Unknown Soldier", these three phases are supposedly very well reflected. Therefore, the book is even recommended to schoolchildren.

Typical for studies of the "winter war" of 1939-1940. that her research is practically prohibited. The main thing is that the reasons and background of this war are classified information for the Finns. The main person involved in this case, of course, is the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland in 1938-1939. Elyas Erkko, whose archives are closed. (It is interesting that the Finns always protest about the closed Moscow archives, but never about the Erkko archives, although in fact, talking about the closed Moscow archives is very beneficial to lazy Finnish pseudo-historians.) There is an opinion that at the negotiations between our countries before During the winter war, Erkko's personal position and behavior influenced the situation a lot. For example, he rejected all the constructive proposals of the Soviet leadership (for him all this was supposedly just an attempt to "occupy" Finland, of course). It is logical that after the winter war, Erkko's archives were always closed, and no one received permission to research them. In everyday life, however, a very interesting term for the winter war has appeared, "Erkko's war" (in Finnish "Erkon sota"), as if he somehow personally initiated this war. It is no secret that Erkko and his son Aatos were also the main shareholders of the Russophobic newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, which aggressively spreads anti-Russian propaganda, including the gross falsification of history, especially with regard to the Erkko war. Some research still had to be done about the life of Elyas Erkko, in the style of a biography, and for this the archives were partially opened. Although it is extremely characteristic for the Finnish historiography of the Second World War that the fact that Erkko could work with the archives of Elyas, receiving funding naturally from Erkko himself, is none other than the same Okhto Manninen, whom we, unfortunately, have repeatedly mentioned. A work about Erkko's life appeared, where, of course, it is written that the winter war was a necessity, because the Russians tried to occupy Finland, etc.

Misty curtain

The main goal of the Finnish falsification of military history is to deny an alliance with Hitler, and thus to deny Finland's responsibility in the war, which is enshrined in the Paris Peace Treaty. In a rather interesting way, for example, he described the situation of the so-called. research project of the Minister of Justice Tuja Braks in 2010 regarding the rehabilitation of Finnish war criminals convicted in the 1945-1946 Helsinki trial. Minister Brax's working group, in principle, recognized Finland's alliance with Hitler, but added that "Finland was de facto Germany's ally", which means that Finland was not "de jure" an ally. This means that the Finnish Ministry of Justice believes that Finland does not bear any responsibility in the war, because there is no evidence. Therefore, it is also legitimate, according to the Finnish Ministry of Justice, to declare that there was no alliance.

It is important to note that all this pseudo-legal speculation around Finland's alliance with Nazi Germany is a foggy curtain covering real legal problems and crimes of the Finnish leadership during World War II, for example: provocations and refusal of constructive negotiations on the eve of the "Erkko war", mass deportations of Jews, prisoners of war and Finnish political prisoners to concentration camps (including Auschwitz), genocide of civilians in Finnish concentration camps on the territory of Soviet Karelia, mass extermination Soviet prisoners of war, participation in the blockade of Leningrad, political persecution of democratic and anti-fascist resistance movements, exploitation of concentration camp prisoners (including Poles during the construction of roads in Lapland), etc. How this relates to the words of the Finnish President Halonen that Finland allegedly “defended democracy when the USSR tried to occupy it twice” is worth considering.

Master Yokisipil

There is another interesting version of the falsification of the history of Finland's alliance with Nazi Germany - this is the version that Finland allegedly "refused" from the alliance with the Nazis. Those. Germany allegedly offered the Finns to join the union, but the Finns ("democrats") refused. The master of these distortions is the relatively young historian Markku Yokisipilä of the University of Turku. Joksipilä published an article in the 1990s entitled "Finland's opposition to German proposals for an alliance treaty in 1943". This means that the idea is to prove that Finland not only waged a separate, "independent" war, but even resisted the attempts of the Germans to conclude an alliance. This means that Finland fought simultaneously against the USSR and Nazi Germany! In 2004, Yoksipil published his doctoral dissertation with the title "Brothers in Arms or Allies?" Which is quite typical for Finns. Those. back in 2004, this young "scientist" questioned the status of Finland's alliance with Nazi Germany.

Also, Jokisipil, and many other Finnish pseudo-historians, often have a false version that Finland's alliance with Germany, if at all, is a "personal affair" of President Ryti, who sent a letter to Hitler in the summer of 1944 regarding the support of the German Air Force. against the USSR on the Karelian Isthmus. This letter is supposedly the only "agreement" of alliance. Thus, the Finnish pseudo-historians are ready to betray even their president, the famous Hitler fan, the occultist Risto Ryti, who quite openly expressed his servile attitude towards Hitler in a radio speech at the end of June 1941.

It is very problematic for Finnish pseudo-historians, of course, Hitler's own radio speech on June 22, 1941, where he said that Finnish troops were advancing alongside Hitler's and in alliance with Nazi Germany. Finnish pseudo-historians believe that this was extremely "problematic", and the Finns even tried to hide Hitler's words from the people. Interestingly, though, Hitler's radio speech was published in the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper, already on the same day, in a Finnish translation. It means that it was transferred in advance. But it is quite surprising that the Finns even deny the words of Hitler, which they themselves published.

The ideological prejudices of the pseudo-historian Yoksipil are extremely interesting and reflect the thinking of the younger generation. Yoksipilya believes that "talvisota" and "yatkosota" are just "justified defensive military actions against the aggression of the USSR." For Yoksipil, “talvisota” is a “patriotic holy war”, and despite the fact that its continuation was an offensive against the USSR, only the USSR itself is to blame, Yoksipilia believes. He also writes that although Finland lost both wars, it was a "political winner" because the country "was not occupied". For Joksipilä, the massive Soviet offensive in the summer of 1944 is, of course, proof of an attempt to occupy Finland. According to Yoksipilä, Finland could conquer the city of Leningrad and help Hitler win, including in the confrontation with Great Britain, writes the Finnish historian Yoksipilä, a great expert on the history of the Third Reich (apparently, he already lives in it in his dreams). It is already clear to everyone that the Finnish historian Joksipilä is a National Socialist by political convictions, like many other Finnish pseudo-historians.

For Finnish pseudo-historians, any fact can prove the opposite. Thus, the relatively soft convictions of Finnish war criminals in the Helsinki trial for Markku Jokisipil are proof that Moscow has recognized the independent ("separate") character of the Finnish war.

"Military children"

There is another extremely tragic story associated with Finnish children. During the war, the Finnish authorities deported from Finland about 80,000 Finnish children, without parents, mainly to Sweden. The topic is still poorly understood, but there is reason to believe that the children were deported in order to save resources - to make it easier to provide and feed 200,000 German soldiers in Finland.

It was assumed that the deportation of the children would be temporary - after all, the "blitzkrieg" was supposed to end in the summer, and the children were to return to "Greater Finland". But potential "Great Finnish" children remained there. Some of them returned briefly, but were deported again. There were many tragic cases when Finns abandoned their children if mothers, for example, had a Fritz fiancé. To this day, the issue of "war children" (in Finnish "sotalapset") is a poorly studied, extremely tragic episode in Finnish history. Many children were seriously injured. Finnish pseudo-historians naturally believe that Stalin is to blame for the suffering of children. After all, because of him, the German troops were unable to arrange a "Great Finnish" future for Finnish children.

Greater Finland plans

The most influential social and political organization in Finland before the war is, of course, the Academic Karelian Society (AKC), whose goal was to create a “Greater Finland” through war, the destruction of the city of Leningrad, mass deportations and the extermination of Russians. The members of this organization were many representatives of the Finnish cultural, military, political and academic elite. AKC members signed their letters with the slogan "your brother for hating the Russians." Despite the frankly fascist character of this organization, Finnish pseudo-historians characterize it only as nationalist, partly marginal. Those. by all means justify the activities of this organization.

Literally in 2011, a large publication about the history of the AKC was published, a collection of several Finnish authors who do not write anything critical or negative about this organization. On the contrary, in the collection, the well-known Finnish pseudo-historian, journalist and publisher Jarkko Vesikansa (Vesikansa Jr.) writes about an organization called Spiritual Warfare Continuation of the AKC - Public Influence on Anti-Communist Activities in Finland during the Cold War. This means that the propaganda term "yatkosota" (continuation war) has appeared again, which has already acquired a new meaning here: the war against the USSR after World War II through the active activities of former members of the fascist organization AKC.

Especially important for Finnish pseudo-historians is the falsification of plans to create a "Greater Finland". Here the Finnish pseudo-historians act extremely cunningly. They recognize the fact that Finland has occupied "East Karelia", although they are trying to justify this occupation by necessity. This means that for the Finnish deceitful historiography, there was nothing in the "Greater Finland" except for Finland itself with the occupied "Eastern Karelia". For this purpose, the Finns even published works criticizing the occupation of "Eastern Karelia". But here again falsification: Finnish pseudo-historians only recognize the fact of "Finnish occupation" in Eastern Karelia, they deliberately hide the fact that the occupation was German-Finnish. This is again proof of the cunning of the Finnish pseudo-history of the Second World War. At one time, the widely known, first "critical" work on the occupation of Eastern Karelia is called, respectively, "Finland as an occupier" - to once again preserve the mythology that Finland fought without Nazi Germany.

The plans of "Great Finland", of course, were different: to unite the wide territories of the USSR, Norway, Sweden, Estonia, Latvia into one "Great Finnish" state. On the territory of the USSR, the goal was to occupy the Kola Peninsula, Karelia, the city of Leningrad (with its subsequent destruction), the Estonian SSR, part of the Latvian SSR, etc. In 1923, the AKC magazine published a map of "Great Finland", which stretches to Yekaterinburg, the Urals. And only with the help of Nazi Germany, the Finns considered the implementation of these plans possible. Of course, against the background of all this, it is extremely ridiculous to speak only about the "Finnish occupation of Karelia".

"Savior of Leningrad"

The complete denial of Finland's participation in the blockade of Leningrad is the main theme of the distortions of the history of the Second World War in Finland. The main motivation here, of course, is to accuse the Soviet leadership of unreasonable demands in connection with the statement that Finland threatens the security of Leningrad. Finnish pseudo-historians, despite Finland's participation in the blockade of Leningrad together with Nazi Germany, are confident that during the war years Finland did not pose any threat to Leningrad. Even the fact that a radio speech was prepared in Finland in honor of the capture of the city of Leningrad (in both Finnish and Swedish) does not affect the position of the Finnish pseudo-historians.

IN recent times In the 2000s, a new version appeared that Finland allegedly "defended" Leningrad or even "saved" it. Here they especially want to draw attention to the new role of Marshal of Finland Mannerheim as "the savior of Leningrad", when he allegedly refused to attack Leningrad. The authors of these gross falsifications and false statements are the pseudo-historians Okhto Manninen, Timo Vihavainen, as well as the revanchist organizations “ProKarelia” and others, who began to demand some compensation from Russia for Finland “saving” the city of Leningrad. We also recall the opinion of the pseudo-historian Mark Yokisipil, who writes that only Finland could lead Germany to complete victory, including the occupation of Leningrad, but Finland allegedly refused. Although it is known that Finland was ready to send about 30,000 military policemen to occupied Leningrad to organize purges in the city.

The publication in Finland of the first book about Finland's participation in the blockade of Leningrad from the famous author and historian Nikolai Baryshnikov in 2003 led to loud scandals, sharp attacks and insults from Finnish pseudo-historians. The main newspaper, Helsingin Sanomat, even falsified Baryshnikov's written response, which led to a recovery from the Finnish Glasnost Council.

Anti-fascist resistance movement in Finland

The existence of an anti-fascist resistance movement in Finland is a fact that is extremely difficult for Finnish pseudo-historians to admit, because they argue that there has never been any fascism, Nazism, or any alliance with Hitler in Finland (pseudo-historians often try to distort the facts, explaining that the Finns allegedly treated the Germans with contempt or suspicion during the war). If there is no fascism, no anti-fascist resistance movement, of course, can take place, especially when supposedly the entire Finnish people "united" in the war against the USSR already during the winter campaign (the so-called myth of "unity in the winter war", one of the main myths of pseudo-historians). It is logical that if there was "unity" in the winter war, then, naturally, it was then also in the "continuation war".

In Finland's distorted historiography of World War II, there is a tendency to deny the very existence of the resistance movement, also to deny all specific actions of this movement, to deny the heroism of the Finnish liberation fighters, and finally, to deny the existence of political repression and terror against the democratic resistance movement in Finland. In fact, despite the fact that the democratic movements were repressed already in the 1920s and 1930s, the anti-fascist resistance movement was very widespread in Finland. It is known that in the 1930s there were about 400,000 people in the files of the Finnish State Police. Tens of thousands of deserters lived in the forests, spread anti-fascist propaganda throughout the country, including regulations on the creation of partisan and sabotage brigades, and sabotage and propaganda were spread everywhere. Finnish pseudo-historians try to explain the situation by the fact that the "cowardly deserters" just hid in the forests - because of this, the derogatory name "guard of cones" ("kapyukaarti"), "forest guard" ("metsäkaarti"). Many Finnish resistance fighters fought bravely, fascist troops, police and army ruthlessly pursued them, killed on the spot.

Probably one of the most famous Finnish heroes of the anti-fascist resistance, Veikko Pasti, in December 1942 in Helsinki, fought alone with the police until the last shell, did not surrender, was killed. During the siege, which lasted all day, dozens of police officers shot thousands of times. Despite this, Pasti managed to kill two police officers and mortally wound several. One of the martyrs of the Finnish anti-fascist resistance movement is the Finnish woman Martta Koskinen, who was shot by the Nazis in Helsinki in October 1943 (just one year and 2 days before the signing of an armistice between Finland and the USSR). Martta selflessly handled the correspondence of the underground resistance movement in Helsinki, for which she was sentenced to death. Her last words before the execution: "Down with Ryti and Tanner!" A couple of years later, the same Ryti and Tanner were convicted and imprisoned in the same prison where Martta Koskinen was imprisoned.

The Finnish anti-fascist and democratic resistance movement was widely written about in the 1970s. For example, a collection of poems by the Finnish resistance movement was published in 1973. But then Finnish pseudo-historians in recent decades began to distort the history of the movement.

The myth of the Soviet partisans

Connected with the denial of the existence of a resistance movement, this is the aggressive propaganda of Finnish pseudo-historians against the Soviet partisan movement. Over the past two decades, Finnish pseudo-historians and the Finnish press have been very aggressively spreading the version that the official goal of the Soviet partisan movement is the alleged mass extermination of Finnish women and children, allegedly on the orders of Stalin. This delusional falsification, unfortunately, has become the official truth for the Finnish media and some publications in the field of Finnish pseudo-history. The main propagandist in this area is the Finnish journalist Veikko Erkkilä, who has already managed to publish 2 books on this topic.

It is clear that the trend of distortions, outright lies, are again associated with the general trend of falsification and denial of Finland's alliance with Nazi Germany. If Finland really fought "alone", if it was a victim of the Stalinist attack and the threat of "occupation", if there was "unity of the people" against the USSR, then the military operations and reconnaissance operations of the German garrisons and at other military installations near the border are easier to falsify, using the version of intentional attacks on civilians. Although here again what the pseudo-historian Erkkil writes, is very similar to the Nazi propaganda of the war period. It was the Nazis who created the mythology that the goal of the Soviet partisans was the mass destruction of civilians, women and children. Although in these cases, which after 60 years is studied by the pseudo-historian Erkkil, it is no longer possible to prove who killed whom, and why.

"Return Karelia"

There is also an interesting tendency in the Finnish revanchism of the 1990s and 2000s to falsify the history of World War II. The main slogan of the Finnish revanchists “Return Karelia” (in Finnish “Karjala takaisin”) has no real relation to reality - after all, Karelia has never been a part of Finland. Parts of it were occupied by German and Finnish invaders, but this, of course, does not give any right to its "return". If you look at the official propaganda of the "ProKarelia" organization, then against the background of the slogan "return Karelia" they actually demand from Russia the regions from the Barents Sea to the islands of the Gulf of Finland, in accordance with the Yuryevsky Peace Treaty of 1920, which has nothing to do with Karelia. Thus, the slogan "return Karelia" for the Finnish revanchists is just a foggy curtain of demands for the creation of a "great Finland" with various territorial claims.

It is interesting that the slogan "ProKarelia" is the battle cry of the Finnish fascists of the AKC movement in the 1920s, when they also demanded the creation of "Greater Finland" under this slogan. After the liquidation of this fascist organization (AKC) after the war on the basis of the Paris Peace Treaty, it continued to work until the 1980s under the name "Club 22" ("Kerho 22"), then in the early 1990s a new organization-successor of the AKC was created. , "Pro Carelia", and in the early 2000s, "ProKarelia". In the 2000s, an event was even organized where Pro Carelia activist members joined ProKarelia and handed over all the archives to them. Thus, the revanchist organization "ProKarelia" is the main successor of the fascist AKC movement in Finland.

It is also very problematic that the AKC activist members, as well as the authors-architects of Greater Finland, have never been punished - on the contrary, they continued their work, occupying key positions in Finnish society. It is characteristic that the children of prominent AKC figures, for example, the children of the famous fascist Martti Haavio, never apologized for the genocide of Russians in the German-Finnish concentration camps in the occupied territory of Soviet Karelia.

In recent years, the most heated discussion among Finnish historians has developed over the mass shootings of Finnish soldiers in the summer of 1944 on the Karelian Isthmus. Several books have been published on this topic, for and against, which either acknowledge the existence of mass secret shootings of Finnish deserters in the summer of 1944, or deny the existence of such shootings.

Demands are also interesting here: to cancel the convictions of Finnish political leaders and the conviction passed by the post-war tribunal of 1945-1946, when eight Finnish political leaders were convicted precisely for planning military aggression together with the Germans. It is often accepted to answer such demands that the convictions are allegedly unconstitutional and do not express the opinion of the people, so they do not need to be canceled.

Outcomes

As a result, we can say that the Finnish historiography of the Second World War is practically absent. There are myths, legends, war propaganda, psychological agitation. The most important thing is anti-Soviet propaganda that Stalin's main intention was to “occupy” Finland from the very beginning, to destroy its people, and therefore the Finnish attack with Hitler was “just”. In many ways, the Finnish historiography of the Second World War resembles the pro-fascist revanchism of the German historian Ernst Nolte, the main person involved in the so-called. historian strait in the 1980s. Changes in the Finnish so-called. there was practically no historiography - it remained the same as it was during the war. The main point of Finnish war propaganda is to try to hide the real nature of German-Finnish relations. There are also elements of Nazi propaganda in Finnish national historiography. Many facts and events were distorted in due time ("Mainil's shots", Soviet aviation bombings in Finland on 25.-26.6.1941, the activities of Soviet partisans on the territory of Finland). Finnish historiography of the Second World War has an extremely Russophobic character. The purpose of using terms such as "yatkosota" (continuation war) is, ultimately, to justify the policy of the Third Reich and Hitler's attack on the USSR, to recognize Operation Barbarossa as legitimate. Thus, the term "yatkosota" is a Nazi, extremely dangerous information weapon. Those people who use the term "yatkosota" justify Nazism and its crimes, recognize Operation Barbarossa as legitimate and are ready to repeat the crimes. Finnish historiography of the Second World War is extremely anti-democratic in nature. There was no real denazification in Finland, so the Finnish pseudo-historians can calmly repeat the fascist slogans of “Greater Finland”. Finnish historiography of the Second World War must be written from the point of view of the anti-fascist resistance movement. This point of view already existed during the war in leaflets and underground newspapers. The heroes of the Finnish anti-fascist resistance movement and their exploits are immortal. The time will come when their point of view will be legitimate. Only then can the Finnish people live a full spiritual life.

Johan Beckmann, Doctor of Social and Political Sciences, Associate Professor at the University of Helsinki, Chairman of the Anti-Fascist Committee of Finland

Manninen Ohto. Miten Suomi valloitetaan. Puna-armeijan operaatiosuunnitelmat 1939-1944. Edita. Helsinki. 2008.

Lukijat vastaavat kysymykseen: Milloin Suomi on ollut kaikkein itsenäisin? Helsingin Sanomat. 23 September 2012.

Kimmo Rentola. Katyn: pieni suomalainen jälkikirjoitus. // Ajankohta. Poliittisen historian vuosikirja. 2003. Toim. Klaus Lindgren. Poliittinen historia. Helsingin yliopisto ja Turun yliopisto. 2003.

Baryšnikov Vladimir. Ammuttiinko Mainilassa ollenkaan? Ulkopolitiikka Vol. 1.No. 1.2004; Helsingin Sanomat 14.2.2004: "Venäläistutkija epäilee: Mainilan laukauksia ei koskaan ammuttu."

Manninen Ohto. Molotovin cocktail - Hitlerin sateenvarjo. Toisen maailmansodan historian uudelleenkirjoitusta. Painatuskeskus. Helsinki. 1994.

Fennica (Suomen kansallisbibliografia).

Venäjä arvostelee Halosta. Yleisradio. 4.3.2005.

Manninen Ohto & Raimo Salokangas. Eljas Erkko: vaikenematon valtiomahti. WSOY. Helsinki. 2009.

Sotasyyllisyysoikeudenkäynti. Selvityksiä ja ohjeita. 22/2010. Helsinki. Oikeusministeriö. 2010.

Jokisipilä Markku. Saksan liittosopimusvaatimusten torjuminen vuonna 1943. // Leena Pylvänäinen ja Timo Soikkanen. Toim. Ajankohta. Poliittisen historian vuosikirja 1996. Poliittinen historia. Helsingin ja Turun yliopistot. Tutkijakoulu. Historia ja politiikka uudessa maailmassa (HISPO). Julkaisuja 2. Helsinki. 1996.

Jokisipilä Markku. Aseveljiä vai liittolaisia? Suomi, Saksan liittosopimusvaatimukset ja Rytin-Ribbentropin sopimus. Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura. Helsinki. 2004.

Hitlerin julistus Saksan kansalle. Helsingin Sanomat. Ylimääräinen numero. Helsingissä, sunnuntaina kesäk. 22. pnä 1941.

Jokisipilä Markku. Suur-Suomesta sosialistiseksi neuvostotasavallaksi 1939-1944. // Niemi Mari K. & Ville Pernaa. Toim. Entäs jos ... Vaihtoehtoinen Suomen historia. Ajatus Kirjat. Helsinki. 2005.

Ibidem. P. 140.

See for example: Kavén Pertti. Sotalapset: toiveet ja todellisuus. Minerva. Helsinki. 2011.

Uola Mikko. Toim. AKS: n tie. Akateeminen Karjala-Seura isänmaan ja heimoaatteen asialla. Minerva. Helsinki. 2011.

Kulomaa Jukka & Jarmo Nieminen. Toim. Teloitettu totuus: kesä 1944. Ajatus. Helsinki. 2008; Arponen Antti O. Teloitetut: viimeinen jatkosodan kesä 1944: kadonneet rintamakarkurit: Huhtiniemen mysteeri. Revontuli. Tampere. 2006; Jaakkonen Pasi. Huhtiniemi: 400 kadonneen miehen mysteeri. Minerva. Helsinki. 2007; Ylikangas Heikki. Romahtaako rintama? Suomi puna-armeijan puristuksessa kesällä 1944. Otava. Helsinki. 2007.

FINLAND IN WORLD WAR II

Winter War, 11/30/1939 - 3/13/1940

The first stage of the Russian-Finnish war was the so-called "Winter War" from November 30, 1939 to March 13, 1940, which began after Finland refused to accept the conditions of the Soviet Union on the transfer of regions of Finnish territory along the southeastern border. What really decided the fate of this conflict was the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. The speech of Prime Minister A. Kayander on November 23, 1939 shows quite clearly the Finnish point of view on this matter.

The Soviet Union attacked Finland on November 30, 1939 at 06.50 - without a declaration of war, attacks from the ground along the border and aerial bombardments of Finnish cities). The government was replaced by a puppet regime called the "Terijoki government". Finnish Foreign Minister Weinz Tanner spoke to American listeners on the radio after the attack on December 3, 1939 in a radio broadcast. Soviet troops initially advanced deep into the territory of Finland (except for Karelia, where Finland had an organized the line of defense, the so-called "Mannerheim Line." The Finns resist stubbornly. In one of the battles, several units of Soviet troops were destroyed, their equipment was captured. Very much help from local residents, who confidently operated in small groups in the forests. After Finland withstood the first attacks, the Soviet Union replaced the commanders leading the attack, as well as the tactics of fighting.Since the Soviet Union had absolute superiority in aviation, artillery and manpower, the defense on the Karelian Isthmus gradually weakened, which forced the Finns to retreat to reserve lines.

Finland was only able to hold the front while peace negotiations were resumed. As it became clear that no outside aid would be arriving, Finland was forced to accept the harsh peace conditions dictated by the Soviet Union. As a result, Finland lost a tenth of its territory, but retained its independence. This campaign ended on March 13, 1940. The Winter War may have contributed to the German attack against the Soviet Union, giving a false impression of Soviet military power.

Continuation War, 06.25.1941 - 4.9.1944

The second war is called the "Continuation War" - in it the Finns fought on the German side from June 25, 1941 to September 4, 1944. There are several reasons for this war - they are all disputed in Finland, as there are several theories on this score. The main reasons were the "Winter War" (the Finns hoped for the return of the lost areas), distrust of Soviet intentions, and the belief that Germany could win this war.

It is unlikely that the Finns had a real choice (but this is history) after what happened earlier and what happened during the Second World War. When Germany attacked the Soviet Union, Finnish troops joined the German forces and organized attacks in the North with the aim of capturing Murmansk. Finland did not declare war on the Soviet Union and did not start hostilities until the Soviet Union began bombing Finnish territory (cities) on the morning of June 25, 1941. As a result, Finnish Prime Minister Rangell declared and was supported by parliament that now Finland is at war with The Soviet Union.

Finland then joined the attack on June 30 to capture areas previously annexed to the Soviet Union in the Winter War and was able to achieve that goal in the first stage of the war. In some areas, Finnish troops crossed the border with the USSR in winter in order to gain an advantage and take geographically advantageous positions (waterways, lakes, etc.). However, the Finns refused to participate in the blockade of Leningrad. The so-called attack phase of the Continuation War lasted until the end of 1941.

In early 1944, it became apparent that Germany had lost the war and Finland, and the Soviet Union had some contact regarding the end of the war, but no agreement was reached.

The Soviet Union tried to "persuade" Finland with the so-called "Peaceful Bombings" - in February 1944, the city of Helsinki was bombed. The bombings failed, thanks to a reliable defense and anti-aircraft complex

The Soviet Union tried by all means to restore the position on the Karelian Isthmus - June 9, 1944 (this was calculated to accompany the Allied attack on Normandy). The massive attack was capable of disrupting the Finnish defenses at Valkeasaari on 10 June, and the front retreated quickly to the secondary line of defense (Vammelsuu-Taipale line). The fighting was fierce Soviet tanks and infantry, supported by massive artillery and bombers fired at the Finnish defenders. As the fighting continued, the VT-line was disrupted at Sahakyla and Kuuterselka 14.644 and after the main counter attack in Kuuterselka by the Finnish squad failed, the defense was forced to retreat again. The main loss during this period was the capture of Viipuri by the Soviets on 20 June.

Finnish troops were able to stop the Soviet attack on the Tali-Ihantala region, where it was most difficult from 25 June to 6 July. By this time, the Finnish army had enough artillery and troops equipped with new German anti-tank weapons and was capable. Soviet losses in tank and human resources were quite large.

At the same time, the Soviets tried to bypass the Finnish defenses by crossing the Viipurinlahti (bay) across the island chain. This attack began on 4 July in fierce amphibious battles that lasted until 10 July. The third major Soviet attempt began on July 4, on Vuosalmi (crossing the Vuoksi river, however, the troops did not go beyond the shore as they were fired upon by Finnish artillery along with Finnish air force and German aircraft bombers. The Finnish infantry also took part in the operation. to the reorganization of troops on the Karelian Isthmus.

At the end of the summer, the front was stabilized, but Finland saw that peace with the Soviet Union was the only way to avoid accusations of collusion with the Germans. The truce with the Soviet Union officially began at 07:00 - September 4, 1944, although Soviet forces continued to fire until 7:00 the next morning.

The temporary peace between the Soviet Union and Finland was ratified in Moscow on September 19, 1944, and the final peace agreement was signed in Paris on February 10, 1948. As a result, Finland was forced to pay huge payments to the Soviet Union.

Lapland War, 9/27/1944 - 4/27/1945

The third war was called the "Lapland War" and was a fight against Germany after the armistice with the Soviet Union. Finland really did not want to fight with the Germans, but under pressure from the Allies (mainly the Soviet Union) was forced to enter into a real fight with the Germans until April 27, 1945.