The Lapland War is one of the little-known episodes of World War II. Needless to say, of course, the serious impact of the events of this war on the overall victory of the USSR, but these hostilities led to a general decrease in the number of opponents of the Union.
What did Hitler Finland promise?
This war could not have happened only in the event of the victory of the Nazis over the USSR until a maximum of the summer of 1943. Why is this a specific date? The fact is that the Finns were initially considered by the Germans as allies in the struggle against the USSR. At the time of 1941, it was planned to strengthen the Finnish army with a large number of German units for the offensive by Finland from the direction of Karelia and Leningrad.
In fact, the situation was completely different. The Finnish command received at its disposal the 303rd brigade of assault artillery and several small units. Technical support was manifested in the transfer of 20-30 tanks and aircraft by the Germans to the Finns, which had been in service with the German army for more than a year.
The logic of the situation is that Finland had its own grudge against the USSR for the events of 1939-1940, therefore, representatives of the Suomi people initially saw an ally in the Wehrmacht who promises to help return the lost territories.
Lapland war: preconditions for conflict
The German command understood that sooner or later Finland would leave the war against the USSR. On their own, they could not fight against the Suomi Union. They stopped active hostilities in 1942 (in the summer). The Finnish-German army stopped at the defense of nickel deposits in the Petsamo region (now Murmansk region). By the way, in addition to armaments, the Finnish side also received food from Germany. In mid-1943, these deliveries ceased. The sanctions did not affect the Finns, since they still understood all the risks of participating in hostilities against the USSR. The Germans, in turn, understood the strategic importance of control over nickel deposits, and therefore planned to transfer additional parts to these areas if necessary. Thus, the Finnish-German relations developed as of the summer of 1943.
The formal causes of war
In 1944, hostilities between the USSR and Finland intensified. We are talking about the offensive of the Soviet army in the framework of the Vyborg-Petrozavodsk operation. As a result, after this operation, a peace treaty was signed between Finland and the USSR on the following conditions:
- The border between states is established as of 1940;
- The USSR gains control over the Petsamo sector (nickel deposits);
- rental of territory near Helsinki for a period of 50 years.
The conditions for the ratification of a peace treaty by the Union are the following requirements:
- the expulsion of German soldiers from Finnish lands;
- the demobilization of the Finnish army.
The Lapland War is, in fact, the actions of the Finns aimed at implementing the requirements of the Moscow Peace Treaty.
General starting conditions for war
The number of groups at the time of September 1944, when the Lapland War began, spoke of the complete advantage of the German troops. Another thing is the moral condition of these troops, how much they were provided with equipment, fuel, etc. The Finnish army under the command of Yalmar Siilasvuo numbered 60 thousand people. The group of German troops led by Lothar Rendulich numbered up to 200 thousand people.
Finnish troops looked more combat-ready. Firstly, most units had experience participating in the battles of the Finnish War. Secondly, the Soviet-made T-34 and KV tanks came into service with the Suomi army. The superiority of the Nazis in the number of people by 140 thousand was completely leveled by an advantage in technology.
Start of war
The Lapland War in Finland began on September 15, 1944. The Germans' plan was that their troops would capture the island of Hogland and be able to restrain the Soviet Baltic fleet. For the Nazis, Finland has never been a base front. It was used as a distraction and a deterrent, so that the Soviets would hold a certain amount of forces there and could not transfer them to more important sectors. So, the events happened as follows. A coastal defense unit was based on this island. The Germans were counting on the effect of surprise, but this trap did not work for them. In addition, the Nazis mined all approaches to the island. The battle might not have happened if the Finns had obeyed the command of the airborne command to surrender, but they realized that they were standing on their land, which they had to defend.
The Hogland Island was not captured by German troops . If we talk about the loss of German forces in this battle, then various sources provide quite contradictory information. There is evidence that the invaders lost precisely 2,153 people killed on the ground and in wrecks in this clash. Other sources claim that the entire Lapland War took about 950 German soldiers.
The fighting in October-November 1944
At the end of September 1944, a major ground battle took place near the city of Pudojärvi. The Finns won this fight. According to many historians, the main result of the battle was the release of the order for the Nazi forces to withdraw from Estonia. The Germans were no longer as strong as in the early years of World War II.
On September 30, a major landing operation of the Finnish troops began, within the framework of which a transfer of forces from Oulo to Tornio was accomplished by sea. On October 2, additional forces of the Finnish army approached Tornio to strengthen their positions. Fierce fighting in this area lasted a week.
The offensive of the Finnish troops continued. On October 7, the Suomi army took the city of Kemijoki. Note that every day the promotion was complicated, because the Nazis gained combat experience and strengthened their positions. After the capture of the city of Rovaniemi on October 16, the advance from the more active phase goes into the positional one. The fighting takes place along the German defensive line between the cities of Ivalo and Caaressuvanto.
Unknown Lapland War: USSR participation
Union forces performed a very interesting function during the clashes between Finland and Germany. The Soviet aviation took part in the hostilities, which, in theory, was supposed to help the Finns clear the territory of their state from the Nazis. Military historians indicate that there were different situations:
- Soviet aircraft really destroyed German equipment and personnel;
- USSR aviation crippled Finnish infrastructure, bombed military facilities of the Suomi army.
There can be several explanations for such actions of the USSR. The Lapland War of 1944 was the first combat experience for many Soviet pilots, because the staff was constantly updated due to huge losses. Lack of experience led to pilot errors. In addition, a version of a certain revenge for the unsuccessful war of 1939 is also allowed.
For a long time, Soviet military strategists did not enter into a conflict between Finland and Germany, which lasted, in general, from July 1943. The military had a strategic choice: to have Finland as a friend and ally, or to occupy. The generals of the Red Army eventually chose the first option.
Second stage of the war
In October 1944, the Lapland War (photos attached) received a new round of development. The fact is that units of the Red Army entered combat operations on this sector of the front. On October 7–10, Soviet troops attacked Hitler’s positions in the direction of Petsamo (a nickel ore deposit). The mines located in this area produced up to 80% of nickel, which was used in the manufacture of weapons.
After successful attacks by the Soviet army and constant pressure from the Finns, the Germans began a retreat into the territory of Norway occupied by them. Until the end of January, the main forces of the Wehrmacht left Finland. The end date of the war is April 25, 1945. It was on this day that the last German soldier left Suomi.
War results
Here we should speak not so much about the results of the Lapland War as about the consequences of the entire Second World War for Finland. The level of economic development has fallen sharply. More than 100 thousand people were forced to become refugees due to the loss of a roof over their heads. All damage was estimated at the equivalent of 300 million US dollars at the exchange rate of 1945.