This map shows the road from the capital of the Soviet Union, Moscow to the site of the Battle of Suomussalmi a distance of 1436 km.
War Dawns as the Winter Begins
The Winter War began on November 30, 1939 when the Soviet Union, led by
Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, invaded the country of Finland. Finland was
considered inside the Soviet sphere of influence after the Nazi-Soviet
Non-Aggression Pact was implemented earlier that year (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). Stalin therefore thought
that Finland should obey his commands and cede some of its territory to the
Soviet Union in order for the Red Army to be better prepared to defend its
homeland in case of a German attack through Poland. The Finnish Prime Minister
Aimo Cajander ardently refused to the demands.
The Soviet Union wanted more land on the Karelian Isthmus which would
increase the border areas of the country. Other territory in dispute was islands
in the Gulf of Finland and the Kalastajansaarento Peninsula as well. These areas
would allow the Soviet Union to build up its military presence in Finland by
building a “buffer zone” between Germany and the Soviet Union, particularly for
the defense of Leningrad, and also establish key military bases in the area. There
were measures taken by the Finnish Government to deter a Soviet invasion but
ultimately in late November, the Soviets saw war as
inevitable.
The Soviet Union was overconfident in its abilities to fight a war on
Finnish soil in a winter that was experiencing record freezing temperatures that
reached as low as -43oC (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). Stalin believed that they would conquer
the entire country of Finland in a matter of days due to the military advantages
they had including the overwhelming size and technology the Soviet army
possessed. What Stalin did not account for was the spirit of the Finnish
soldiers and the geography that they would encounter on foreign territory.
Finland contained immensely dense forests, many rivers and lakes, and the
bitter winter temperatures would affect the war at all stages of the conflict.
The Soviet strategy was flawed from the beginning. They planned to use a
“shock-and-awe”approach to the war in which they envisioned overwhelming the
outnumbered Finns at every battle by primarily the use of tanks. The Finnish
countryside was difficult to navigate however, containing only a few very poorly
constructed roads. In fact, the roads that were available were often narrow dirt
roads through the forests. The Soviets, plagued by their vision of rapid paced
tank warfare, were often contained to these roads which caused their brigades to
often be forced together tightly and limited to linear lines which were vulnerable to
attack (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). The Soviet stubbornness, mostly aided by their fears of not pleasing Stalin,
was easily predicted by the Finnish Generals.
The Finns realized that they could not fight the Soviet army head on. There
were far too many Soviet divisions for them to win any decisive battles if
they met the Red Army head on. Therefore, they used guerrilla style war tactics
in the countryside such as fast attacks that required the ability to be
effective at close range combat and quickly retreat from Soviet counterattacks (Irincheev, 106).
Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, invaded the country of Finland. Finland was
considered inside the Soviet sphere of influence after the Nazi-Soviet
Non-Aggression Pact was implemented earlier that year (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). Stalin therefore thought
that Finland should obey his commands and cede some of its territory to the
Soviet Union in order for the Red Army to be better prepared to defend its
homeland in case of a German attack through Poland. The Finnish Prime Minister
Aimo Cajander ardently refused to the demands.
The Soviet Union wanted more land on the Karelian Isthmus which would
increase the border areas of the country. Other territory in dispute was islands
in the Gulf of Finland and the Kalastajansaarento Peninsula as well. These areas
would allow the Soviet Union to build up its military presence in Finland by
building a “buffer zone” between Germany and the Soviet Union, particularly for
the defense of Leningrad, and also establish key military bases in the area. There
were measures taken by the Finnish Government to deter a Soviet invasion but
ultimately in late November, the Soviets saw war as
inevitable.
The Soviet Union was overconfident in its abilities to fight a war on
Finnish soil in a winter that was experiencing record freezing temperatures that
reached as low as -43oC (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). Stalin believed that they would conquer
the entire country of Finland in a matter of days due to the military advantages
they had including the overwhelming size and technology the Soviet army
possessed. What Stalin did not account for was the spirit of the Finnish
soldiers and the geography that they would encounter on foreign territory.
Finland contained immensely dense forests, many rivers and lakes, and the
bitter winter temperatures would affect the war at all stages of the conflict.
The Soviet strategy was flawed from the beginning. They planned to use a
“shock-and-awe”approach to the war in which they envisioned overwhelming the
outnumbered Finns at every battle by primarily the use of tanks. The Finnish
countryside was difficult to navigate however, containing only a few very poorly
constructed roads. In fact, the roads that were available were often narrow dirt
roads through the forests. The Soviets, plagued by their vision of rapid paced
tank warfare, were often contained to these roads which caused their brigades to
often be forced together tightly and limited to linear lines which were vulnerable to
attack (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). The Soviet stubbornness, mostly aided by their fears of not pleasing Stalin,
was easily predicted by the Finnish Generals.
The Finns realized that they could not fight the Soviet army head on. There
were far too many Soviet divisions for them to win any decisive battles if
they met the Red Army head on. Therefore, they used guerrilla style war tactics
in the countryside such as fast attacks that required the ability to be
effective at close range combat and quickly retreat from Soviet counterattacks (Irincheev, 106).
Finnish Soldiers Harass the Enemy
The way that they did this was through the use of skis. Finnish
soldiers were expert cross country skiers, a skill that was not as familiar to the Soviet soldiers, which allowed them to move small units of soldiers quickly across the snow covered terrain (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). Soviet soldiers were therefore restricted in the movements that could make. This left them open to attack from multiple sides. The use of skis and sledges was instrumental in Finnish victories throughout the war.
The sledges were usually pulled by animals, usually horses, and allowed the Finns to easily transport their wounded away from the battlefields.
soldiers were expert cross country skiers, a skill that was not as familiar to the Soviet soldiers, which allowed them to move small units of soldiers quickly across the snow covered terrain (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69). Soviet soldiers were therefore restricted in the movements that could make. This left them open to attack from multiple sides. The use of skis and sledges was instrumental in Finnish victories throughout the war.
The sledges were usually pulled by animals, usually horses, and allowed the Finns to easily transport their wounded away from the battlefields.
Freezing Temperatures Plague the Red Army
Another major factor of the war was that because the Soviet Union thought that their army would be able to
overrun Finland in a few days, they did not prepare accordingly for a conflict that would end up taking months in one of the coldest winters on record. The
Soviet army could not supply all of their soldiers with multiple layers of proper winter clothing which lead to thousands of soldiers suffering from frostbite (Bellamy, 76). When the soldiers delevoped frostbite, many of them died soon after due to the lack of Soviet medical supplies for the wounded. The Finnish soldiers on the other hand wore heavy winter gear that kept them warm through the freezing conditions. A far less amount of Finnish soldiers suffered from frostbite or died because of the extreme temperatures than the Soviet soldiers who were ill prepared on foreign
soil. Although not all of the Finnish soldiers were properly equipped for the
frigid conditions, the majority had proper clothing and had heated operating
rooms in which their wounded soldiers could gain their strength and return
to the battlefield when well (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69).
overrun Finland in a few days, they did not prepare accordingly for a conflict that would end up taking months in one of the coldest winters on record. The
Soviet army could not supply all of their soldiers with multiple layers of proper winter clothing which lead to thousands of soldiers suffering from frostbite (Bellamy, 76). When the soldiers delevoped frostbite, many of them died soon after due to the lack of Soviet medical supplies for the wounded. The Finnish soldiers on the other hand wore heavy winter gear that kept them warm through the freezing conditions. A far less amount of Finnish soldiers suffered from frostbite or died because of the extreme temperatures than the Soviet soldiers who were ill prepared on foreign
soil. Although not all of the Finnish soldiers were properly equipped for the
frigid conditions, the majority had proper clothing and had heated operating
rooms in which their wounded soldiers could gain their strength and return
to the battlefield when well (Hughes-Wilson, 46-69).
Use of Camouflage
The Finns had another major advantage. They wore white snow capes and even had their equipment, including tanks, painted white in order to better blend in with their surroundings. This aided them greatly as soldiers were able to hold better surprise attacks on the Soviet ground forces. The Soviet soldiers did not have any camouflaged clothing or equipment at the beginning of the war. They were usually dressed in their standard olive colored uniforms that were supplied to them. The snow capes (such as the ones worn by the Finnish sniper team in the picture, left) made the Finns virtually invisible to the Soviets.
All of these issues came to a head at the Battle of Suomussalmi. The battle is seen by most military historians as being the most important battle in the Winter War. The result was an unlikely victory for the Finns and complete devastation from the side of the Soviet army.
All of these issues came to a head at the Battle of Suomussalmi. The battle is seen by most military historians as being the most important battle in the Winter War. The result was an unlikely victory for the Finns and complete devastation from the side of the Soviet army.