#thewinterwar
The Winter War (1939-40)
Today we are going to talk about the Russo-Finnish War, also known as The Winter War.
Back in early 1939, Soviet Union had a non-aggression pact with Nazi Germany called Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. The treaty included a secret protocol that divided territories of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Romania into German and Soviet "spheres of influence".
(Here is picture of two cool mustache men and the treaty.)
Just don't tell Stalin that Hitler secretly despised his whole communism stuff and will backstab him later. Shhhhh... SNAKE!
When World War 2 started and Poland was crushed, the Soviet Union turned their attention to Finland. They thought to themselves, "we want to free the workers and bring equality! And maybe take some land while we're at it! And maybe also secure a 30-YEAR lease for a naval base at Hanko (Hangö)!"
Of course, Finland rejected this unreasonable request.
The Soviet Union, unable to handle the rejection, became PB&J (pitty, bitter, and jealous). They declared war on Finland.
And so began the Winter War.
The performance of the Red Army was disappointing. (Maybe because comrade Stalin PURGED ALL THE OFFICERS AND COMMANDERS!)
On the other hand, Finland was heavily outnumbered but they put up a hard fight against the Red Army.
Another reason why Finland was so effective against the Soviets was because they had SKIS! Finland had an elite infantry division called the Ski-Troops. These soldiers would utilize their God-given talent in ski-riding into combat situations. Since Finland is a very cold country and the war was during winter, they were able to inflict heavy casualties to the Soviets.
Here is a picture:
A legendary sniper was also born during this war. He was called "The White Death". He was a Finnish sniper named Simo Häyhä who would dress in an all-white suit. He reportedly killed 505 men during the war, the highest recorded number of sniper kills in any major war.
Here is a picture of him:
However, in the end, the Red Army was able to overrun the Finish defenses across the border with brute force. They used effective, up to date, mind-blowing, and high tech military strategy/tactic called "We Have More Men than They Have Bullets".
Allow me to demonstrate:
Finland- they have 1000 bullets
Major Premise: Soviet sends 1001 men
Minor Premise: Finland no bullets
Conclusion: Soviet still have 1 man = win
Although Finland was defeated, Finish army surprised many nations around the world with the valiant fight they put up against the expansionist invaders.
Stalin seized much of valuable agricultural land from the Finns as well as strategic poisons. The Finns preserved their independence, which is more than Poland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania were able to do. However, it was a costly and humiliating victory for Soviets because of how the underdog was able to do so well against a major country and the sheer amount of casualties for the Soviets during the war.
- GunWoo Jin
Works Cited:
- https://www.britannica.com/event/Russo-Finnish-War
- https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/a-short-history-of-the-winter-war
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcJbJUDVAPM