Bolshevik victory
166-473: White movement : [REDACTED] Russian State Allied powers : Bolsheviks : Central Powers : [REDACTED] Edmund Ironside [REDACTED] Frederick Poole [REDACTED] Sir Charles Maynard [REDACTED] George E. Stewart [REDACTED] Wilds P. Richardson Total: 32,614 The North Russia intervention , also known as the Northern Russian expedition ,
332-604: A presidential republic , with K. J. Ståhlberg elected as its first president on 25 July 1919. A liberal nationalist with a legal background, Ståhlberg anchored the state in liberal democracy , promoted the rule of law and initiated internal reforms. Finland was also one of the first European countries to strongly promote women's equality , with Miina Sillanpää becoming the first female minister in Finnish history in Väinö Tanner's cabinet in 1926–1927. The Finnish-Russian border
498-610: A White Russian battalion mutinied, and, after 300 men went over to the Bolsheviks, they turned and attacked the Allied troops at Tulgas. The Canadian defenders had to withdraw six miles to the next village, where attacks were eventually beaten off after heavy casualties. The capture of Tulgas by the Bolsheviks meant that the Reds now held the left bank of the Dvina 10 miles behind the Allied line. On 30 April
664-510: A battalion of marines, the 6th Royal Marine Light Infantry, was sent to assist the British at the end of July. The final two months on the Dvina front, August and September 1919, would see some of the fiercest fighting between British and Red Army troops of the Civil War. In August, a major offensive was launched along the Dvina to try and strike a blow at Bolshevik morale and to increase the morale of
830-463: A diverse and extensive range of fauna. There are at least sixty native mammalian species, 248 breeding bird species, over 70 fish species, and 11 reptile and frog species present today, many migrating from neighbouring countries thousands of years ago. Large and widely recognized wildlife mammals found in Finland are the brown bear , grey wolf , wolverine , and elk . Three of the more striking birds are
996-672: A final successful engagement with the Bolshevik gunboats in September 1919. However two British monitors, HMS M25 and HMS M27 , unable to sail downstream when the river's levels dropped, were scuttled on 16 September 1919 to prevent their capture by Bolshevik forces. White movement Central Powers intervention : Separatists: Other factions: The White movement (Russian: pre–1918 Бѣлое движеніе / post–1918 Белое движение , romanized : Beloye dvizheniye , IPA: [ˈbʲɛləɪ dvʲɪˈʐenʲɪɪ] ), also known as
1162-526: A heavily pressed force on the Vaga, marching with sledges over 50 miles (80 km) in temperatures 40–60 degrees below freezing. On 27 January 1919, word was received at Archangel that the Bolsheviks had fired poison gas shells at British positions on the Archangel-Vologda railway. The use of poison gas by the Bolsheviks was soon announced in the British press. The Bolsheviks would use poison gas shells against
1328-518: A mutual security pact with the United Kingdom. On 12 May, Finland's president and Prime Minister called for NATO membership "without delay". Subsequently, on 17 May, the Finnish Parliament voted 188–8 in favour of Finland's accession to NATO. Finland became a member of NATO on 4 April 2023. Lying approximately between latitudes 60° and 70° N , and longitudes 20° and 32° E , Finland
1494-468: A raid on the settlement of Alenxandrova took place on 19 August. On 24 August, there was an aerial dogfight between a British RE8 aircraft and two Bolshevik Nieuport fighters over the Pinega River , with the British plane only returning safely when the observer flew 100 miles back to base whilst his pilot lay unconscious. On 10 September, the city of Onega was retaken. The American River Force monitors made
1660-486: A result of the two wars, Finland lost 12% of its land area, 20% of its industrial capacity, its second largest city, Vyborg ( Finnish : Viipuri ), and the ice-free port of Liinakhamari ( Finnish : Liinahamari ). The Finns lost 97,000 soldiers and were forced to pay war reparations of $ 300 million ($ 4.1 billion in 2023). However, the country avoided occupation by Soviet forces and managed to retain its independence. Along with Great Britain, Finland emerged from
1826-518: A role as well. The most notable operation on this front, Operation White Sword , saw an unsuccessful advance towards the Russian capital of Petrograd in the autumn of 1919. The defeated anti-Bolshevik Russians went into exile, congregating in Belgrade , Berlin , Paris , Harbin , Istanbul , and Shanghai . They established military and cultural networks that lasted through World War II (1939–1945), e.g.
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#17328442571091992-683: A violent time in the northern Baltic Sea. The Livonian Crusade was ongoing and the Finnish tribes such as the Tavastians and Karelians were in frequent conflicts with Novgorod and with each other. Also, during the 12th and 13th centuries several crusades from the Catholic realms of the Baltic Sea area were made against the Finnish tribes. Danes waged at least three crusades to Finland, in 1187 or slightly earlier, in 1191 and in 1202, and Swedes , possibly
2158-570: Is a member of various international organisations, such as the Nordic Council , the Schengen Area , and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The nation performs extremely well in national performance metrics , including education , economic competitiveness, civil liberties, quality of life, and human development. The area that is now Finland was settled in, at
2324-599: Is one of the world's northernmost countries. Of world capitals, only Reykjavík lies more to the north than Helsinki. The distance from the southernmost point – Hanko in Uusimaa – to the northernmost – Nuorgam in Lapland – is 1,160 kilometres (720 mi). Finland has about 168,000 lakes (of area larger than 500 m or 0.12 acres) and 179,000 islands. Its largest lake, Saimaa , is the fourth largest in Europe. The Finnish Lakeland
2490-691: Is shared between the Arctic, central European, and northern European provinces of the Circumboreal Region within the Boreal Kingdom . According to the WWF , the territory of Finland can be subdivided into three ecoregions : the Scandinavian and Russian taiga , Sarmatic mixed forests , and Scandinavian Montane Birch forest and grasslands . Taiga covers most of Finland from northern regions of southern provinces to
2656-493: Is the area with the most lakes in the country; many of the major cities in the area, most notably Tampere , Jyväskylä and Kuopio , are located near the large lakes. The Finnish coastline is speckled with the world's largest archipelago, encompassing more than 50,000 islands, greatest concentration of which is found in the southwest, in the Archipelago Sea between continental Finland and the main island of Åland . Much of
2822-427: Is the highest point in Finland. It is found in the north of Lapland at the border between Finland and Norway. The highest mountain whose peak is entirely in Finland is Ridnitšohkka at 1,316 m (4,318 ft), directly adjacent to Halti. The retreating glaciers have left the land with morainic deposits in formations of eskers . These are ridges of stratified gravel and sand, running northwest to southeast, where
2988-487: Is the largest producer of wood in Europe and among the largest in the world. The most common type of rock is granite . It is a ubiquitous part of the scenery, visible wherever there is no soil cover. Moraine or till is the most common type of soil, covered by a thin layer of humus of biological origin. Podzol profile development is seen in most forest soils except where drainage is poor. Gleysols and peat bogs occupy poorly drained areas. Phytogeographically , Finland
3154-780: The "Armed Forces of the South of Russia" in January 1919. The Southern Front featured massive-scale operations and posed the most dangerous threat to the Bolshevik Government. At first it depended entirely upon volunteers in Russia proper, mostly the Cossacks, among the first to oppose the Bolshevik Government. On 23 June 1918, the Volunteer Army (8,000–9,000 men) began its so-called Second Kuban Campaign with support from Pyotr Krasnov . By September,
3320-869: The Archangel campaign , and the Murman deployment , was part of the Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War after the October Revolution . The intervention brought about the involvement of foreign troops in the Russian Civil War on the side of the White movement . The movement was ultimately defeated, while the British-led Allied forces withdrew from Northern Russia after fighting a number of defensive actions against
3486-659: The Bolsheviks , such as the Battle of Bolshie Ozerki . The campaign lasted from March 1918, during the final months of World War I , to October 1919. In March 1917, Tsar Nicholas II in Russia abdicated and was succeeded by a provisional government. The US government declared war on the German Empire and its allies in April, after learning of the former's attempt to persuade Mexico to join
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#17328442571093652-566: The Central Powers . The Russian Provisional Government , led by Alexander Kerensky , pledged to continue fighting Imperial Germany on the Eastern Front . In return, the US began providing economic and technical support to the Russian provisional government, so they could carry out their military pledge. The Russian offensive of 18 June 1917 was crushed by a German counteroffensive. The Russian Army
3818-579: The Corded Ware culture in Southern coastal Finland between 3000 and 2500 BC may have coincided with the start of agriculture. Even with the introduction of agriculture, hunting and fishing continued to be important parts of the subsistence economy. In the Bronze Age , permanent all-year-round cultivation and animal husbandry spread, but the cold climate slowed the change. The Seima-Turbino phenomenon brought
3984-678: The Czechoslovak Legions , who were then stranded in Siberia by the Bolshevik Government, who had barred them from leaving Russia, and with the Japanese, who also intervened to help the Whites in the east. Admiral Alexander Kolchak headed the eastern White Army and a provisional Russian government. Despite some significant success in 1919, the Whites were defeated being forced back to Far Eastern Russia, where they continued fighting until October 1922. When
4150-550: The Declaration of Independence on 4 December 1917, which was officially approved by the Finnish Parliament on 6 December. The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR), led by Vladimir Lenin was the first country to recognise Finland's independence on 4 January 1918. On 27 January 1918, the government began to disarm the Russian forces in Ostrobothnia . The socialists took control of southern Finland and Helsinki, but
4316-600: The German Empire in its extended occupation of western Russia , the Baltic states , Poland , and Ukraine on the Eastern Front in the closing days of the World War, debating whether or not to ally with it. The Whites wanted to keep from alienating any potential supporters and allies and thus saw an exclusively monarchist position as a detriment to their cause and recruitment. White-movement leaders, such as Anton Denikin , advocated for Russians to create their own government, claiming
4482-815: The Harbin and Shanghai Russians . Afterward, the White Russians' anti-communist activists established a home base in the United States, to which numerous refugees emigrated. Moreover, in the 1920s and the 1930s the White movement established organisations outside Russia, which were meant to depose the Soviet government with guerrilla warfare , e.g., the Russian All-Military Union , the Brotherhood of Russian Truth , and
4648-672: The National Alliance of Russian Solidarists , a far-right anticommunist organization founded in 1930 by a group of young White emigres in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Some White émigrés adopted pro-Soviet sympathies and were termed "Soviet patriots". These people formed organizations such as the Mladorossi , the Eurasianists , and the Smenovekhovtsy . A Russian cadet corps was established to prepare
4814-482: The National Alliance of Russian Solidarists . Other organizations either dissolved, or began concentrating exclusively on self-preservation and/or educating the youth. Various youth organizations, such as the Russian Scouts-in-Exteris, promoted providing children with a background in pre-Soviet Russian culture and heritage. Some supported Zog I of Albania during the 1920s and a few independently served with
4980-800: The Nationalists during the Spanish Civil War . White Russians also served alongside the Soviet Red Army during the Soviet invasion of Xinjiang and the Islamic rebellion in Xinjiang in 1937 . After the February Revolution , in western Russia, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania declared themselves independent, but they had substantial Communist or Russian military presence. Civil wars followed, wherein
5146-682: The Northern Army (previously the army of Alexander Kerensky 's provisional Russian government, led by General Evgenii Miller ) Opposing these international forces were the Bolshevik Sixth and Seventh Red Army , combined in the Northern Front (RSFSR) , which was poorly prepared for battle in May 1918. The First British involvement in the war was the landing in Murmansk in early March 1918. Ironically,
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5312-697: The Northern Dvina and Lake Onega Area as Bolshevik attacks became more sustained. The Bolsheviks launched their largest offensive yet on Armistice Day 1918 along the Northern Divina front, and there was heavy fighting on Armistice Day 1918 at the Battle of Tulgas (Toulgas) at the Kurgomin – Tulgas line: the final defensive line in 1919. Trotsky as Commander in Chief of the Red Army personally supervised this task on
5478-603: The Onciderini also being common. The most common breeding birds are the willow warbler , common chaffinch , and redwing . Of some seventy species of freshwater fish, the northern pike , perch , and others are plentiful. Atlantic salmon remains the favourite of fly rod enthusiasts. The endangered Saimaa ringed seal , one of only three lake seal species in the world, exists only in the Saimaa lake system of southeastern Finland, down to only 390 seals today. The species has become
5644-430: The Onega River in the west, and the Yomtsa River providing a line of communication between the Vaga River and the railway in the centre. As soon as Archangel had been captured, preparations were made for a push southwards along the Archangel- Vologda railway. An armoured train was commissioned to support the advance, and a battle took place between Allied and Bolshevik armoured trains on 18 August. In September 1918,
5810-404: The Protestant Reformation , the Finns gradually converted to Lutheranism . In the 16th century, a bishop and Lutheran Reformer Mikael Agricola published the first written works in Finnish; and Finland's current capital city, Helsinki , was founded by King Gustav Vasa in 1555. The first university in Finland, the Royal Academy of Turku , was established by Queen Christina of Sweden at
5976-414: The Russian Empire , as recognised by the Diet of Porvoo . This situation continued until the end of 1917. In 1812, Alexander I incorporated the Russian province of Vyborg into the Grand Duchy of Finland. In 1854, Finland became involved in Russia's involvement in the Crimean War when the British and French navies bombed the Finnish coast and Åland during the so-called Åland War . Although Swedish
6142-411: The Russian Empire . During this period, Finnish art flourished and the independence movement began to take hold. Finland became the first territory in Europe to grant universal suffrage in 1906, and the first in the world to give all adult citizens the right to run for public office. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, Finland declared its independence . A civil war was fought in Finland
6308-445: The Social Democratic Party . The development of trade with the Western powers, such as the United Kingdom, and the payment of reparations to the Soviet Union led to Finland's transformation from a primarily agrarian society to an industrialised one. Valmet , originally a shipyard and then several metal workshops, was established to produce materials for war reparations. After the reparations were paid, Finland continued to trade with
6474-473: The Social Democrats , passed the so-called Power Act to give the parliament supreme authority. This was rejected by the Russian Provisional Government , which decided to dissolve the parliament. New elections were held in which the right-wing parties won by a small majority. Some social democrats refused to accept the result, claiming that the dissolution of parliament and the subsequent elections were extra-legal. The two almost equally powerful political blocs,
6640-424: The Socialist Revolutionary Party , and others who opposed Lenin's Bolshevik coup in October 1917. Depending on the time and place, those White Army supporters might also exchange right-wing allegiance for allegiance to the Red Army. Unlike the Bolsheviks, the White Armies did not share a single ideology, methodology, or political goal. They were led by conservative generals with different agendas and methods, and for
6806-483: The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany, which formally ended the war on the Eastern Front. This allowed the German army to begin redeploying troops to the Western Front , where the depleted British and French armies had not yet been bolstered by the American Expeditionary Force . Coincidental with the Treaty, Lenin personally pledged that if the Czechoslovak Legion would stay neutral and leave Russia, they would enjoy safe passage through Siberia on their way to join
North Russia intervention - Misplaced Pages Continue
6972-408: The Whites (Бѣлые / Белые, Beliye ), was a loose confederation of anti-communist forces that fought the communist Bolsheviks , also known as the Reds , in the Russian Civil War (1917–1923) and that to a lesser extent continued operating as militarized associations of rebels both outside and within Russian borders in Siberia until roughly World War II (1939–1945). The movement's military arm
7138-412: The World Bank , the International Monetary Fund and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade . During the Cold War , Finland officially embraced a policy of neutrality . The YYA treaty (Finno-Soviet Pact of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance) recognized Finland's desire to remain outside great-power conflicts. From 1956 president Urho Kekkonen had a virtual monopoly on relations with
7304-458: The last Ice Age . During the Stone Age , various cultures emerged, distinguished by different styles of ceramics. The Bronze Age and Iron Ages were marked by contacts with other cultures in Fennoscandia and the Baltic region . From the late 13th century, Finland became part of Sweden as a result of the Northern Crusades . In 1809, as a result of the Finnish War , Finland was captured from Sweden and became an autonomous grand duchy within
7470-454: The whooper swan , a large European swan and the national bird of Finland; the Western capercaillie , a large, black-plumaged member of the grouse family; and the Eurasian eagle-owl . The latter is considered an indicator of old-growth forest connectivity, and has been declining because of landscape fragmentation. Around 24,000 species of insects are prevalent in Finland some of the most common being hornets with tribes of beetles such as
7636-429: The 1950s. After World War II, it industrialised quickly and established an advanced economy, with a welfare state built on the Nordic model . This allowed the country to experience overall prosperity and high per capita income . During the Cold War , Finland officially embraced a policy of neutrality. Since then, it has become a member of the European Union in 1995, the Eurozone in 1999, and NATO in 2023. Finland
7802-461: The Allied Powers took Obozerskaya, around 100 miles (160 km) south of Archangel. During the attack, the RAF provided air support to the advancing Allied infantry, conducting bombing and strafing runs. On 4 September 1918 the promised American forces arrived. Three battalions of troops, supported by engineers and under the command of Colonel George Stewart, landed in Archangel. This force numbered 4,500 troops. In early September also an RAF squadron
7968-449: The Allied forces as it was the only overland route available for the transfer of supplies and men between the Murmansk and Arkhangel theatres, a particularly vital line of communication during the months of the year when the White Sea froze over rendering Arkhangel inaccessible to maritime traffic. This event led to the British losing all remaining trust for the Whites and contributed to the desire to withdraw. Attempts were soon made to retake
8134-423: The Allied forces on the Western Front. However, as the 50,000 members of the Legion made their way along the Trans-Siberian Railroad to Vladivostok , only half had arrived before the agreement broke down and fighting with the Bolsheviks ensued in May 1918. Also worrisome to the Allied Powers was the fact that in April 1918, a division of German troops had landed in Finland , creating fears they might try to capture
8300-424: The Allied war materiel stockpiles in Arkhangelsk from falling into German or Bolshevik hands; to mount an offensive to rescue the Czechoslovak Legion which was stranded along the Trans-Siberian Railroad, and resurrect the Eastern Front; and by defeating the Bolshevik army with the assistance of the Czechoslovak Legion, to expand anti-communist forces drawn from the local citizenry. Severely short of troops to spare,
8466-423: The Allied withdrawal already ongoing, a British detachment from the Royal Scots was sent by river to Kandalaksha on four fishing boats to stop sabotage operations carried out by Finnish Bolsheviks against the railway there. The British party was ambushed even before landing and suffered heavy casualties, with 13 men killed and 4 wounded. Consequently, the unopposed Bolsheviks destroyed a number of bridges, delaying
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#17328442571098632-429: The Allies decided to withdraw, setting fire to the settlement as they evacuated four days later. The Allied troops then reoccupied the town soon after. By early 1919 the Bolshevik attacks along the Dvina were becoming more substantial. The River Force monitors made a final successful engagement with the Bolshevik gunboats in September 1919. However two monitors, HMS M25 and HMS M27 , unable to sail downstream when
8798-514: The American North Russia Expeditionary Force, which came to be nicknamed the Polar Bear Expedition . Under his Aide Memoire , Wilson set the guidelines for American intervention by saying the purpose of American troops in Russia was "to guard military stores which may subsequently be needed by Russian forces and to render such aid as may be acceptable to the Russians in the organization of their own self-defense." Lieutenant General Frederick C. Poole , who had previously spent two years in Russia,
8964-402: The Armistice. In mid July, the two companies of American railway troops were also withdrawn. The Royal Marines unit had been expressing its dissatisfaction with being forced to stay in Russia after the Armistice since February, and had been openly demanding to their commanding officers that they be sent home. Threatening letters were sent to their officers stating that if they were not repatriated,
9130-418: The Baltic Sea region approximately 1900 BC. Common Finnic language was spoken around Gulf of Finland 2000 years ago. The dialects from which the modern-day Finnish language was developed came into existence during the Iron Age. Although distantly related, the Sami people retained the hunter-gatherer lifestyle longer than the Finns. The Sami cultural identity and the Sami language have survived in Lapland ,
9296-438: The Bolshevik flotilla appeared – 29 river craft – and, together with 5,500 troops, attacked the 550 total Allied troops in three area. Only superior artillery saved the Allied forces, with the river flotilla eventually withdrawing. Tulgas was then eventually recaptured. In May and June, the units of the original British force which had arrived in Archangel in August and September 1918 finally received orders for home. In early June
9462-417: The Bolshevik government. White Finns volunteers who had crossed the border during the Finnish Civil War had captured the Russian town of Pechenga , and it was feared that the Whites would hand over the town to the Germans who would then use the bay as a submarine base. The Germans were allies of the White Finns as they had been assisting them militarily during their Civil War. British troops saw action for
9628-420: The Bolshevik offensive by 14 November. When the news came through of the Armistice with Germany, many of the British troops in Archangel eagerly anticipated a quick withdrawal from North Russia, but their hopes were soon dashed. The Bolsheviks had an advantage in artillery in 1919 and renewed their offensive while the Vaga River was hurriedly evacuated. 'A' Company of 2/10th Royal Scots had to be sent to reinforce
9794-400: The Bolsheviks in January 1918) could be convened. They worked to remove Soviet organizations and functionaries in White-controlled territory. Overall, the White Army was nationalistic and rejected ethnic particularism and separatism . The White Army generally believed in a united multinational Russia and opposed separatists who wanted to create nation-states. The propaganda service of
9960-465: The Bolsheviks, determined to push the British from their positions on the Vaga, attacked Kitsa. The Reds went as far as using gas shells to bombard the settlement, but all attacks were repulsed. However, with much of the village being destroyed and the Allied force being outnumbered by the enemy, it was decided to withdraw. On the railway front south of Archangel, the Allied forces were gradually advancing. On 23 March, British and American troops attacked
10126-441: The British Yorkshire Regiment and Royal Marines rebelling at points as well as American and Canadian forces. In April, a pre-emptive strike against the Bolsheviks was launched against Urosozero . A French armoured train shelled the town and it was then captured with the loss of 50 Bolshevik troops. A major offensive was then launched in May. On 8 May, Allied positions in Karelskaya came under attack, with 8 men being killed. During
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#173284425710910292-408: The British and French requested that US President Woodrow Wilson provide U.S. troops for what was to be called the North Russia campaign, or the Allied intervention in North Russia. In July 1918, against the advice of the US War Department , Wilson agreed to a limited participation in the campaign by a contingent of U.S. Army soldiers of the 339th Infantry Regiment , that was hastily organized into
10458-415: The British fought defensively against attacking Bolshevik forces, the British decided to launch an offensive, aiming to capture extra territory from which locals could be conscripted. This would be the first significant action on the Murmansk front between the Allies and the Bolsheviks. With a force of only 600 men, most of whom were Canadians, the attack was launched in mid-February. Met with stiff opposition,
10624-405: The British on at least two occasions in North Russia, although their effectiveness was limited. On the Dvina front, Tulgas was attacked by the Reds on 26 January. The Bolsheviks originally drove back the American and Scots defenders but the following morning saw the Allied forces retake the settlement after a determined counter-attack. The Bolsheviks continued to attack for the next three days until
10790-473: The Civil War. The Volunteer Army in South Russia became the most prominent and the largest of the various and disparate White forces. Starting off as a small and well-organized military in January 1918, the Volunteer Army soon grew. The Kuban Cossacks joined the White Army and conscription of both peasants and Cossacks began. In late February 1918, 4,000 soldiers under the command of General Aleksei Kaledin were forced to retreat from Rostov-on-Don due to
10956-438: The Elders of Zion . Although Denikin's troops committed only 17.2% of the pogroms (most of which were carried out by Ukrainian nationalists or by rebel armies not affiliated with any side), "white" officers praise soldiers who commit anti-Semitic crimes, some of whom even receive bonuses. British parliamentary influential leader Winston Churchill (1874–1965) personally warned General Anton Denikin (1872–1947), formerly of
11122-445: The Finns as the Greater Wrath (1714–1721) and the Lesser Wrath (1742–1743). It is estimated that almost an entire generation of young men was lost during the Great Wrath, due mainly to the destruction of homes and farms, and the burning of Helsinki. The Swedish era ended with the Finnish War of 1809. On 29 March 1809, after being conquered by the armies of Alexander I of Russia , Finland became an autonomous grand duchy within
11288-478: The French troops were withdrawn and the Royal Marines detachment was also sent home, followed by all Canadian troops after it was requested that they be repatriated. All remaining American troops also left for home. The Serbian troops (perhaps Maynard's best infantry fighters) became unreliable as others withdrew around them. By 3 July, the Italian company was on the verge of mutiny as its men were seriously disaffected with their continued presence in Russia so long after
11454-515: The Imperial Army and later a major White military leader, whose forces effected pogroms and persecutions against the Jews: [M]y task in winning support in Parliament for the Russian Nationalist cause will be infinitely harder if well-authenticated complaints continue to be received from Jews in the zone of the Volunteer Armies. However, Denikin did not dare to confront his officers and remained content with vague formal condemnations. Aside from being anti-Bolshevik and anti-communist and patriotic,
11620-427: The Japanese withdrew, the Soviet army of the Far Eastern Republic retook the territory. The Civil War was officially declared over at this point, although Anatoly Pepelyayev still controlled the Ayano-Maysky District at that time. Pepelyayev's Yakut revolt , which concluded on 16 June 1923, represented the last military action in Russia by a White Army. It ended with the defeat of the final anti-communist enclave in
11786-429: The Jews were more complex. Some historians distinguish the White movement from the so-called "democratic counter-revolution" led mainly by the Right SRs and the Mensheviks that adhered to the values of parliamentary democracy and maintained democratic anti-Bolshevik governments ( Komuch , Ufa Directory ) until November 1918 and then supported either the Whites or the Bolsheviks or opposed both factions. Following
11952-467: The Kotlas offensive was cancelled. In early July 1919, another White unit under British command mutinied and killed its British officers, with 100 men then deserting to the Bolsheviks. Another White mutiny was foiled later in the month by Australian troops. On 20 July, 3,000 White troops in the key city of Onega mutinied and handed over the city to the Bolsheviks. The loss of the city was a significant blow to
12118-541: The Middle Ages, Finland gradually became part of the kingdom of Sweden and the sphere of influence of the Catholic Church . Under Sweden, Finland was annexed as part of the cultural order of Western Europe . Swedish was the dominant language of the nobility, administration, and education; Finnish was chiefly a language for the peasantry , clergy, and local courts in predominantly Finnish-speaking areas. During
12284-538: The Murmansk– Petrograd railroad, the strategic port of Murmansk and possibly even the city of Arkhangelsk. It was also feared that large military stores at Archangelsk might fall into unfriendly hands. Faced with these events, the leaders of the British and French governments decided the western Allied Powers needed to begin a military intervention in North Russia . They had three objectives: they hoped to prevent
12450-616: The Northern Region Government to fly it. It was reported in the British press in early August that the Allied Powers had occupied Arkhangelsk, although not officially confirmed by the British authorities at the time. By 17 August it was being reported that the Allies had advanced to the shores of Onega Bay . The lines of communications south from Arkhangelsk were the Northern Dvina in the east, Vaga River , Arkhangelsk Railway,
12616-487: The Red Army due to military and ideological disunity, as well as the determination and increasing unity of the Red Army. The White Army operated in three main theatres : White organising in the South started on 15 November 1917, ( Old Style ) under General Mikhail Alekseyev . In December 1917, General Lavr Kornilov took over the military command of the newly named Volunteer Army until his death in April 1918, after which General Anton Denikin took over, becoming head of
12782-685: The Russian White Army made the point moot in this dispute. The countries remained independent and governed by non-Communist governments. Finland – in Europe (green & dark grey) – in the European Union (green) – [ Legend ] Finland , officially the Republic of Finland , is a Nordic country in Northern Europe . It borders Sweden to
12948-841: The Slavo-British Aviation Corps (S.B.A.C.). The Russian ace Alexander Kazakov operated within this unit. The White movement's leaders and first members came mainly from the ranks of military officers. Many came from outside the nobility, such as generals Mikhail Alekseyev and Anton Denikin , who originated in serf families, or General Lavr Kornilov , a Cossack. The White generals never mastered administration; they often utilized "prerevolutionary functionaries" or "military officers with monarchististic inclinations" for administering White-controlled regions. The White Armies were often lawless and disordered. Also, White-controlled territories had multiple different and varying currencies with unstable exchange-rates. The chief currency,
13114-636: The Soviet Union as part of bilateral trade . In 1950, 46% of Finnish workers were employed in agriculture and a third lived in urban areas, but new jobs in manufacturing, services and trade quickly attracted people to the cities. The average number of births per woman fell from a baby boom peak of 3.5 in 1947 to 1.5 in 1973. As the baby boomers entered the workforce, the economy failed to create jobs fast enough and hundreds of thousands emigrated to more industrialised Sweden, with emigration peaking in 1969 and 1970. Finland participated in trade liberalisation in
13280-456: The Soviet Union, and a global economic downturn caused a deep recession in Finland in the early 1990s . The recession bottomed out in 1993 and Finland enjoyed more than a decade of steady economic growth. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Finland began to integrate more closely with the West. Finland joined the European Union in 1995 and the euro zone in 1999. Much of the economic growth of
13446-554: The Soviet Union, which was crucial to his continued popularity. In politics, there was a tendency to avoid any policy or statement that could be interpreted as anti-Soviet. This phenomenon was dubbed " Finlandisation " by the West German press. A market economy was maintained in Finland. Various industries benefited from trade privileges with the Soviets. Economic growth was rapid in the post-war period, and by 1975 Finland's GDP per capita
13612-853: The Volunteer Army comprised 30,000 to 35,000 members, thanks to mobilization of the Kuban Cossacks gathered in the North Caucasus . Thus, the Volunteer Army took the name of the Caucasus Volunteer Army. On 23 January 1919, the Volunteer Army under Denikin oversaw the defeat of the 11th Soviet Army and then captured the North Caucasus region. After capturing the Donbas , Tsaritsyn and Kharkiv in June, Denikin's forces launched an attack towards Moscow on 3 July, (N.S.). Plans envisaged 40,000 fighters under
13778-469: The Volunteer Army grew from 64,000 to 150,000 soldiers and was better supplied than its Red counterpart. The White Army's rank-and-file comprised active anti-Bolsheviks, such as Cossacks, nobles, and peasants, as conscripts and as volunteers. The White movement had access to various naval forces, both seagoing and riverine, especially the Black Sea Fleet . Aerial forces available to the Whites included
13944-789: The Volunteer Army's ruble, had no gold backing . The Whites and the Reds fought the Russian Civil War from November 1917 until 1921, and isolated battles continued in the Far East until June 1923. The White Army—aided by the Allied forces ( Triple Entente ) from countries such as Japan , the United Kingdom , France , Greece , Italy and the United States and (sometimes) the Central Powers forces such as Germany and Austria-Hungary —fought in Siberia , Ukraine , and in Crimea . They were defeated by
14110-579: The Volunteer Army, the Osvag [ ru ] ( Russian : ОСВАГ (ОСВедомительное АГентство) , romanized : OSVAG (OSVedomitelnoe AGentstvo) , lit. 'Informing Agency'), made the claim that "the Jews must pay for everything: for the February and October revolutions, for Bolshevism and for the peasants who took their land from the owners". The organization also reissued The Protocols of
14276-402: The White forces before a withdrawal. As part of this, an attack was made on the village of Gorodok. Before the attack began, 6 RAF DH.9s , 5 DH.9As and two Sopwith Snipes dropped three tonnes of bombs on the village in two successful raids, and on 10 August British planes also dropped bombs on other Bolshevik held villages. During the attack, 750 Bolshevik prisoners were taken, and one battery
14442-429: The White movement had no unifying political convictions, as members could be monarchists, republicans, rightists, or Kadets . Among White Army leaders, neither General Lavr Kornilov nor General Anton Denikin were monarchists, yet General Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel was a monarchist willing to fight for a republican Russian government. Moreover, other political parties supported the anti-Bolshevik White Army, among them
14608-444: The Whites had no set ideology or main leader. The White Armies did acknowledge a single provisional head of state in a Supreme Governor of Russia in a Provisional All-Russian Government , but this post was prominent only under the leadership in the war campaigns during 1918–1920 of Admiral Alexander Kolchak , formerly of the previous Russian Imperial Navy . The movement had no set foreign policy. Whites differed on policies toward
14774-631: The advance of the Red Army. In what became known as the Ice March , they traveled to Kuban in order to unite with the Kuban Cossacks , most of whom did not support the Volunteer Army. In March, 3,000 men under the command of General Viktor Pokrovsky joined the Volunteer Army, increasing its membership to 6,000, and by June to 9,000. In 1919 the Don Cossacks joined the Army. In that year between May and October,
14940-400: The advance on Medvezhyegorsk on 15 May, the stubborn Bolshevik defence was only ended with a bayonet charge. British and Bolshevik armoured trains then traded blows as the British attempted to seize control of more of the local railway. The town was finally seized on 21 May, as Italians and French troops pushed forward with the British. The May offensive never quite carried the Allies as far as
15106-497: The allied forces. The Allied troops, led by Lionel Sadleir-Jackson , were soon combined with Poles and White Guard forces. Fighting was heavy along both banks of the Northern Dvina . The River Force outflanked the enemy land positions with amphibious assaults led by Royal Marines, together with coordinated artillery support from land and river. Their Lewis guns proved to be an effective weapon, since both sides were only armed with bolt-action rifles. The 2/10th Royal Scots cleared
15272-446: The ancient edge of the glacier once lay. Among the biggest of these are the three Salpausselkä ridges that run across southern Finland. Having been compressed under the enormous weight of the glaciers, terrain in Finland is rising due to the post-glacial rebound . The effect is strongest around the Gulf of Bothnia, where land steadily rises about 1 cm (0.4 in) a year. As a result,
15438-525: The anti-communist side may be referred to as White Armies, e.g. in Finland the White Guard -led, partially conscripted Finnish White Army [ fi ] ( Finnish : Valkoinen Armeija ) who fought against Soviet Russia -sponsored Red Guards . However, since they were nationalists, their aims were substantially different from the Russian White Army proper; for instance, Russian White generals never explicitly supported Finnish independence. The defeat of
15604-568: The arrival of a force of 1,200 Italians as well as small Canadian and French battalions. By early Autumn, British forces under Maynard in the Murmansk region were also 6,000 strong. However, on 11 November, the armistice between Germany and the Allies was signed , ending the First World War, meaning that the primary objective of re-establishing the Eastern Front was now irrelevant. However, the British forces did not leave. From this point onwards,
15770-684: The beginning of the war to govern Finland after Soviet conquest. There was widespread international condemnation of the unprovoked attack and it led to the Soviet Union being expelled from the League of Nations . The Red Army was defeated in numerous battles, most notably the Battle of Suomussalmi . After two months of negligible progress on the battlefield, as well as heavy losses in men and material, Soviet forces began to advance in February and reached Vyborg ( Finnish : Viipuri ) in March. The Moscow Peace Treaty
15936-412: The city, but in a failed attack in late July the British had to force detachments of White forces to land at gunpoint in the city, since they were adamant that they would not take part in any fighting. On one Allied ship, 5 Bolshevik prisoners captured in battle even managed to temporarily subdue the 200 White Russians on board and take control of the ship with little resistance. Despite the Allied setbacks,
16102-454: The coastal areas such as Helsinki, snow often covers the land from late December to late March. Even in the south, the harshest winter nights can see the temperatures fall to −30 °C (−22 °F) although on coastal areas like Helsinki, temperatures below −30 °C (−22 °F) are rare. Climatic summers (when mean daily temperature remains above 10 °C or 50 °F) in southern Finland last from about late May to mid-September, and in
16268-616: The command of General Vladimir May-Mayevsky storming the city. After General Denikin's attack upon Moscow failed in 1919, the Armed Forces of the South of Russia retreated. On 26 and 27 March 1920, the remnants of the Volunteer Army evacuated from Novorossiysk to the Crimea, where they merged with the army of Pyotr Wrangel . The Eastern Front started in spring 1918 as a secret movement among army officers and right-wing socialist forces. In that front, they launched an attack in collaboration with
16434-550: The country, signalling the end of all military hostilities relating to the Russian Civil War. Headed by Nikolai Yudenich , Evgeni Miller , and Anatoly Lieven , the White forces in the North demonstrated less co-ordination than General Denikin's Army of Southern Russia. The Northwestern Army allied itself with Estonia , while Lieven's West Russian Volunteer Army sided with the Baltic nobility . Authoritarian support led by Pavel Bermondt-Avalov and Stanisław Bułak-Bałachowicz played
16600-451: The decade. Sauli Niinistö was elected President of Finland from 2012 until 2024, when Alexander Stubb took over. Finnish support for NATO rose sharply after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 . Before February 2022, opinion polls showed a narrow but decisive majority against NATO membership; by April, a supermajority was in favour of membership. On 11 May 2022, Finland signed
16766-541: The eighth and ninth centuries. Main exports from Finland were furs, slaves, castoreum , and falcons to European courts. Imports included silk and other fabrics, jewelry, Ulfberht swords , and, in lesser extent, glass. Production of iron started approximately in 500 BC. At the end of the ninth century, indigenous artefact culture, especially weapons and women's jewelry, had more common local features than ever before. This has been interpreted to be expressing common Finnish identity. An early form of Finnic languages spread to
16932-595: The emblem of the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation. A third of Finland's land area originally consisted of moorland , about half of this area has been drained for cultivation over the past centuries. The main factor influencing Finland's climate is the country's geographical position between the 60th and 70th northern parallels in the Eurasian continent's coastal zone. In the Köppen climate classification ,
17098-635: The evacuation for a time. One of the fatalities, a Private from Ormesby , Yorkshire , who succumbed to his injuries on 26 September, was the last British servicemen to die in action in Northern Russia. The furthest advance south on the northern front in early 1919 was an Allied Mission in Shenkursk on the Vaga River and Nizhnyaya Toyma on the Northern Dvina where the strongest Bolshevik positions were encountered. The strategicly important city of Shenkursk
17264-447: The figure of Alexander Kolchak as its principal leader. It defended the ideal of pre-revolutionary Imperial Russia , and its positive program was largely summarized in the slogan of " united and indivisible Russia [ ru ] " which meant the restoration of imperial state borders and its denial of the right to self-determination ; the movement is associated with pogroms and antisemitism , although its relations with
17430-652: The first British landing in Russia came at the request of a local Soviet council. Fearing a German attack on the town, the Murmansk Soviet requested that the Allies landed troops for protection. Leon Trotsky had ordered the soviet to accept Allied aid after the German invasion of Russia in February–March 1918 . 170 British troops arrived on 4 March 1918, the day after the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk between Germany and
17596-560: The first bronze artefacts to the region and possibly also the Finno-Ugric languages . Commercial contacts that had so far mostly been to Estonia started to extend to Scandinavia. Domestic manufacture of bronze artefacts started 1300 BC. In the Iron Age , population grew. Finland Proper was the most densely populated area. Commercial contacts in the Baltic Sea region grew and extended during
17762-414: The first time in early May, when a party of White Finns ski troops beat off a patrol led by Royal Marines and sailors from HMS Cochrane . The second clash took place on 10 May at Tunturimaja, where Royal Marines and their local guides were outflanked and forced once again to retreat. The British forces, alongside Red Guards, eventually prevailed and secured Pechenga by 11 May with several casualties. In
17928-470: The following months, British forces in the area were largely engaged in small battles and skirmishes with White Finns in support of the Red Army . Command of the British forces in the area was given to Major General Sir Charles Maynard . In late June, 600 British reinforcements arrived. By this time, Soviet–Allied relations were passing from distrust to open hostility. A Bolshevik force was sent to take control of
18094-694: The following year, with the Whites emerging victorious. Finland's status as a republic was confirmed in 1919. During World War II , Finland fought against the Soviet Union in the Winter War and the Continuation War , and later against Nazi Germany in the Lapland War . As a result, it lost parts of its territory but retained its independence and democracy. Finland remained a largely agricultural country until
18260-590: The geography of Finland is a result of the Ice Age. The glaciers were thicker and lasted longer in Fennoscandia compared with the rest of Europe. The eroding effects have contributed to a mostly flat landscape in Finland, characterized by hills. However, in the northern regions, including areas bordering the Scandinavian Mountains, the terrain features mountainous elevations. At 1,324 metres (4,344 ft), Halti
18426-511: The help of a Canadian Field Artillery battery, culminating in a very heavy assault on 11 November. An RAF squadron was set up at Bereznik on the bank of the Dvina, equipped with RE8s. Meanwhile, in October fighting between Bolshevik and American and French troops had occurred along the Archangel-Vologda railway. US rail troops worked to repair the trainline so as to allow the advance along the line to continue. The Allied troops were mainly inactive in
18592-447: The inland, the warmest days of July can reach over 35 °C (95 °F). Although most of Finland lies on the taiga belt, the southernmost coastal regions are sometimes classified as hemiboreal . In northern Finland, particularly in Lapland, the winters are long and cold, while the summers are relatively warm but short. On the most severe winter days in Lapland can see the temperature fall to −45 °C (−49 °F). The winter of
18758-493: The largest town in the region, Petrozavodsk . After the May offensive, there was a considerable amount of aerial activity around Lake Onega. The British constructed an airfield at Lumbushi, and seaplanes were brought in to add to the force of 6 R.E.8 planes. The seaplanes bombed Bolshevik vessels, sinking four and causing the capture of three, including an armoured destroyer. In April, public recruiting began at home in Britain for
18924-464: The late 1990s was fuelled by the success of mobile phone manufacturer Nokia . The Finnish people elected Tarja Halonen in the 2000 Presidential election , making her the first female President of Finland. Her predecessor, President Martti Ahtisaari , later won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008. Financial crises paralysed Finland's exports in 2008, leading to weaker economic growth throughout
19090-563: The latest, around 8,500 BC during the Stone Age towards the end of the last glacial period . The artefacts the first settlers left behind present characteristics that are shared with those found in Estonia , Russia, and Norway. The earliest people were hunter-gatherers , using stone tools. The first pottery appeared in 5200 BC, when the Comb Ceramic culture was introduced. The arrival of
19256-565: The laws passed by the Finnish parliament. The desire for independence gained ground, first among radical liberals and socialists , partly driven by a declaration called the February Manifesto by the last tsar of the Russian Empire, Nicholas II , on 15 February 1899. After the February Revolution of 1917, Finland's position as a Grand Duchy under the rule of the Russian Empire was questioned. The Finnish parliament , controlled by
19422-472: The main force behind the movement were the conservative officers, and the resulting movement shared many traits with widespread right-wing counter-revolutionary movements of the time, namely nationalism, racism, distrust of liberal and democratic politics, clericalism, contempt for the common man and dislike of industrial civilization; in November 1918, the movement united on an authoritarian-right platform around
19588-616: The men would commandeer the first train going to Murmansk. The men became increasingly unwilling to participate in serious military action throughout 1919. The French and American troops stationed in the north were similarly reluctant to fight, and French troops in Archangel refused to take part in any action that was not merely defensive. During June, small naval battles occurred on Lake Onega between Allied and Bolshevik ships. The Bolshevik forces were completely taken by surprise when British seaplanes emerged and attacked. The settlement of Kartashi
19754-532: The military could not decide in Russians' steads. Admiral Alexander Kolchak succeeded in creating a temporary wartime government in Omsk , acknowledged by most other White leaders, but it ultimately disintegrated after Bolshevik military advances. Some warlords who were aligned with the White movement, such as Grigory Semyonov and Roman Ungern von Sternberg , did not acknowledge any authority but their own. Consequently,
19920-577: The military defeat of the Whites, remnants and continuations of the movement remained in several organizations, some of which only had narrow support, enduring within the wider White émigré overseas community until after the fall of the European communist states in the Eastern European Revolutions of 1989 and the subsequent dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1990–1991. This community-in-exile of anti-communists often divided into liberal and
20086-446: The moderating effects of the Baltic Sea and numerous inland lakes to explain the unusually warm climate compared with other regions that share the same latitude , such as Alaska , Siberia , and southern Greenland . Winters in southern Finland (when mean daily temperature remains below 0 °C or 32 °F) are usually about 100 days long, and in the inland the snow typically covers the land from about late November to April, and on
20252-531: The more conservative segments, with some still hoping for the restoration of the Romanov dynasty . In the Russian context after 1917, "White" had three main connotations which were: Defunct Above all, the White movement emerged as opponents of the Red Army . The White Army had the stated aim to reverse the October Revolution and remove the Bolsheviks from power before a constituent assembly (dissolved by
20418-408: The most part they operated quite independently of each other, with little coordination or cohesion. The composition and command structure of White armies also varied, some containing hardened veterans of World War I, others more recent volunteers. These differences and divisions, along with their inability to offer an alternative government and win popular support, prevented the White armies from winning
20584-498: The newly created 'North Russian Relief Force', a voluntary force which had the claimed sole purpose of defending the existing British positions in Russia. By the end of April 3,500 men had enlisted, and they were then sent to North Russia. Public opinion regarding the formation of the force was mixed, with some newspapers being more supportive than others. The relief force eventually arrived in North Russia in late May–June. On 25 April
20750-616: The next generation of anti-Communists for the "spring campaign"—a hopeful term denoting a renewed military campaign to reclaim Russia from the Soviet Government. In any event, many cadets volunteered to fight for the Russian Protective Corps during World War II, when some White Russians participated in the Russian Liberation Movement . After the war, active anti-Soviet combat was almost exclusively continued by
20916-536: The north of Lapland. On the southwestern coast, south of the Helsinki- Rauma line, forests are characterized by mixed forests, that are more typical in the Baltic region. In the extreme north of Finland, near the tree line and Arctic Ocean, Montane Birch forests are common. Finland had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 5.08/10, ranking it 109th globally out of 172 countries. Similarly, Finland has
21082-525: The northernmost province. The name Suomi ( Finnish for 'Finland') has uncertain origins, but a common etymology with saame (the Sami) has been suggested. In the earliest historical sources, from the 12th and 13th centuries, the term Finland refers to the coastal region around Turku . This region later became known as Finland Proper in distinction from the country name Finland. (See also Etymology of Finns .) The 12th and 13th centuries were
21248-475: The northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, opposite Estonia . Finland covers a total area of 338,145 square kilometres (130,559 sq mi), including a land area of 303,815 square kilometres (117,304 sq mi), and has a population of 5.6 million. Helsinki is the capital and largest city. The vast majority of
21414-471: The old sea bottom turns little by little into dry land: the surface area of the country is expanding by about 7 square kilometres (2.7 sq mi) annually. Relatively speaking, Finland is rising from the sea. The landscape is covered mostly by coniferous taiga forests and fens , with little cultivated land. Of the total area, 10% is lakes, rivers, and ponds, and 78% is forest. The forest consists of pine , spruce , birch , and other species. Finland
21580-631: The orders of Lenin. 1,000 Red troops attacked the village, and the American and Scots defenders were driven back rapidly. The field hospital was captured and the large defensive gun batteries were threatened, but after heavy hand-to-hand fighting, the Red troops were pushed away from the guns. The Bolshevik force lost as many as 650 men killed, wounded or taken prisoner, whilst the Americans lost three men and seventeen Scots were killed. The Allied forces had managed to quell
21746-427: The population are ethnic Finns . The official languages are Finnish and Swedish ; 84.9 percent of the population speak the first as their mother tongue and 5.1 percent the latter. Finland's climate varies from humid continental in the south to boreal in the north. The land cover is predominantly boreal forest biome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes . Finland was first settled around 9000 BC after
21912-430: The population, making it one of the worst famines in European history. The famine led the Russian Empire to relax financial regulations, and investment increased in the following decades. Economic development was rapid. The gross domestic product (GDP) per capita was still half of that of the United States and a third of that of Britain. From 1869 to 1917, the Russian Empire pursued a policy of Russification , which
22078-459: The port from the White Sea . There was some resistance at first and Allied ships were fired on, but 1500 French and British troops soon occupied the city. The Northern Region Government was established by Chaplin and popular revolutionary Nikolai Tchaikovsky ; to all intents and purposes, however, General Poole ran Archangelsk, declaring martial law and banning the red flag , despite the decision of
22244-405: The process. The battle for Shenkursk took place in -45 degree Celsius temperatures. Over the following days, RAF aircraft flew several bombing and reconnaissance missions to support the withdrawal from Shenkursk. The battle of Shenkursk was a key turning point in the campaign, and the Allied loss put them very much on the back foot for the next few months along the railway and Dvina fronts. On 8 March
22410-485: The proportion of the population with capital. About 70% of the workforce was employed in agriculture and 10% in industry. The Soviet Union launched the Winter War on 30 November 1939 to annex Finland in accordance with the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany to divide Europe into spheres of influence between the two dictatorships. The Finnish Democratic Republic was set up by Joseph Stalin at
22576-511: The proposal of Count Per Brahe in 1640. The Finns reaped a reputation in the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) as a well-trained cavalrymen called " Hakkapeliitta ". Finland suffered a severe famine in 1695–1697 , during which about one third of the Finnish population died, and a devastating plague a few years later . In the 18th century, wars between Sweden and Russia twice led to the occupation of Finland by Russian forces, times known to
22742-553: The publication of what would become Finland's national epic , the Kalevala , in 1835 and the legal equality of the Finnish language with Swedish in 1892. In the spirit of Adolf Ivar Arwidsson - "we are not Swedes, we do not want to become Russians, so let us be Finns" - a Finnish national identity was established. Nevertheless, there was no real independence movement in Finland until the early 20th century. The Finnish famine of 1866–1868 occurred after freezing temperatures in early September devastated crops and killed around 15% of
22908-452: The right-wing parties and the Social Democratic Party, were deeply divided. The October Revolution in Russia changed the geopolitical situation once again. Suddenly the right-wing parties in Finland began to reconsider their decision to block the transfer of supreme executive power from the Russian government to Finland when the Bolsheviks came to power in Russia. The right-wing government, led by Prime Minister P. E. Svinhufvud , presented
23074-523: The river's levels dropped, were scuttled on 16 September 1919 to prevent their capture by Bolshevik forces. In the Murmansk sector, the British decided that the only way to achieve success in ejecting the Bolsheviks from power was by raising, training and equipping a large White Russian Army. However, recruitment and conscription attempts failed to provide a sizable enough force. It was therefore decided to move south to capture more populated areas from which recruits could be conscripted. During February 1919, as
23240-431: The settlement to be retaken. By late September, Royal Marines and 2/10th Royal Scots had reached Nijne-Toimski, which proved too strong for the lightly equipped Allied force. The monitors having withdrawn before the Dvina froze, the force was shelled by Bolshevik gunboats. In early October, the village of Borok was taken but, after a series of Bolshevik attacks were launched on 9 October, the Scots were forced to withdraw from
23406-402: The so-called second crusade to Finland , in 1249 against Tavastians and the third crusade to Finland in 1293 against the Karelians. The so-called first crusade to Finland , possibly in 1155, most likely never occurred. As a result of the crusades (mostly with the second crusade led by Birger Jarl ) and the colonization of some Finnish coastal areas with Christian Swedish population during
23572-420: The sole objectives of the British were to restore a White government and to remove the Bolsheviks from power. On 2 August 1918, anti-Bolshevik forces, led by Tsarist Captain Georgi Chaplin, staged a coup against the local Soviet government at Archangelsk . British diplomats had traveled to the city in preparation of the invasion, and General Poole had coordinated the coup with Chaplin. Allied warships sailed into
23738-471: The summer of 1944 led to a breakthrough until the Finns finally repulsed it at Tali-Ihantala . This partial Soviet success led to a stalemate and later an armistice . This was followed by the Lapland War of 1944–1945, when Finland fought retreating German forces in northern Finland. The Armistice and treaty signed with the Soviet Union in 1944 and 1948 included Finnish obligations, restraints, and reparations, as well as further territorial concessions. As
23904-498: The town of Segeja was captured and half the Red Army garrison was killed, wounded or taken prisoner. A Bolshevik train carrying reinforcements was intentionally derailed when the line was cut, and any escaping men were cut down by machine-gun fire. During the February offensive, the British forces pushed the Red Army beyond Soroko and as far south as Olimpi. Despite an attempted Bolshevik counter-attack, by 20 February, 3,000 square miles of territory had been taken. On 22 September, with
24070-517: The town up the Murmansk-Petrograd railway, but in a series of skirmishes the Allied forces repelled the attack. This was the first real fighting between the troops of the Allies and Soviet Russia. A trainload of Bolshevik troops was also found at Kandalaksha heading north, but Maynard managed to convince them to stop, before Serb reinforcements arrived and took over the train. In September, the British forces, who had so far mainly only engaged White Finns in small battles and skirmishes, were reinforced by
24236-591: The triangle between the Dvina and Vaga and took a number of villages and prisoners. The strongly fortified village of Pless could not be attacked frontally, so 'A' Company, less one platoon, attempted a flanking movement through the marshes. The following morning the company reached Kargonin, behind Pless, and the defenders – thinking themselves cut off by a large force – evacuated both villages. The regimental historian describes this as 'a quite remarkable march by predominantly B1 troops'. In mid-September, Allied troops were driven out of Seletskoe , and it took three days for
24402-462: The village of Bolshie Ozerki, but the first wave of attackers were pushed back. Orders were made to resume the attack the next morning, but some of the British troops protested as they had not had a hot meal for some time. Another assault was repulsed on 2 April. The next day, 500 Bolsheviks attacked Shred Mekhrenga but were eventually repelled, with over 100 Red troops being killed despite the British suffering no fatal casualties. Another Bolshevik attack
24568-422: The village. The Scots lost 5 men in their defence of the village. On 27 October, Allied forces were ambushed at Kulika near Topsa , losing at least 27 men killed and dozens wounded, a figure that could have been higher if it had not been for a detachment of Poles who bravely covered the retreat as others panicked. The Allied force withdrew to a defensive line for the winter, first driving off a number of attacks with
24734-427: The war as the only European country to have taken part in hostilities that was never occupied and managed to preserve its democracy throughout. For a few decades after 1944, the Communists were a strong political party. Furthermore, the Soviet Union persuaded Finland to refuse Marshall Plan aid. However, in the hope of preserving Finland's independence, the United States provided secret development aid and supported
24900-400: The white government continued in exile in Vaasa . This led to a short but bitter civil war . The Whites , backed by Imperial Germany , prevailed over the Reds and their self-proclaimed Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic . After the war, tens of thousands of Reds were interned in camps where thousands were executed or died of malnutrition and disease. A deep social and political enmity
25066-416: The whole of Finland lies in the boreal zone , characterized by warm summers and freezing winters. Within the country, the temperateness varies considerably between the southern coastal regions and the extreme north, showing characteristics of both a maritime and a continental climate . Finland is near enough to the Atlantic Ocean to be continuously warmed by the Gulf Stream . The Gulf Stream combines with
25232-414: The winter of 1918, building blockhouses with only winter patrols sent out. On the first occasion that White Russian troops were sent into the line of combat during the North Russian campaign, on 11 December 1918, the White Russian troops mutinied . The ringleaders were ordered to be shot by General Ironside . Within four months the Allied Powers' gains had shrunk by 30–50 kilometres (19–31 mi) along
25398-461: Was appointed by the British Secretary of State for War , Lord Milner , to lead the expedition to Archangel . The international force included: In late May 1919, the British North Russia Relief Force (British Army) arrived to cover the withdrawal of British, US and other anti-Bolshevik forces. It was made up primarily of: 1,350 men in the it:Corpo di spedizione italiano in Murmania commanded by Colonel Sifola. " White Russian" forces included
25564-508: Was captured during the month. Despite being told when volunteering that they were only to be used for defensive purposes, plans were made in June to use the men of the North Russian Relief Force in a new offensive aimed at capturing the key city of Kotlas and linking up with Kolchak's White forces in Siberia. The villages of Topsa and Troitsa were captured in anticipation of this action, with 150 Bolsheviks being killed and 450 being captured. However, with Kolchak's forces being pushed back rapidly,
25730-462: Was described by British commander Ironside as 'the most important city in North Russia' after Archangel and he was determined to hold the line. However, British and Allied troops were expelled from Shenkursk after an intense battle on 19–20 January 1919, with the Americans losing seventeen men in the process. One American and White Russian force numbering 450 men drove back a Bolshevik force three or four times its size, but suffered some 50 casualties in
25896-400: Was established in 1920 by the Treaty of Tartu , which largely followed the historical border but gave Finland Pechenga ( Finnish : Petsamo ) and its Barents Sea port. Finnish democracy survived Soviet coup attempts and the anti-communist Lapua movement . In 1917 there were three million people in the country. After the civil war, a credit-based land reform was introduced, increasing
26062-422: Was found to have been manned by German troops. The village of Seltso was also attacked, but a strong Bolshevik defence halted any British progress. However, the villages of Kochamika, Jinta, Lipovets and Zaniskaya were captured with little resistance. In total the offensive led to the deaths of around 700 Reds and was considered a success. There was also action on the railway front south of Archangel at this time, and
26228-471: Was launched on Seltskoe, but that attack also failed. In total, the Bolsheviks lost 500 men in one day in the two attacks. Many of the British and foreign troops often refused to fight, and Bolshevik attacks were launched with the belief that some British troops may even defect to their side once their commanders had been killed. The numerous White mutinies demoralised Allied soldiers and affected morale. The Allied forces were affected by their own mutinies, with
26394-480: Was plagued by mutinies and desertions. Allied war materiel still in transit quickly began piling up in warehouses at Arkhangelsk (Archangel) and the ice-free port of Murmansk . Anxious to keep Russia in the war, the Royal Navy established the British North Russia Squadron under Admiral Kemp . The Bolsheviks , led by Vladimir Lenin , came to power in October 1917 and established the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic . Five months later, they signed
26560-408: Was set up specifically for service at Archangel, equipped with obsolete RE8 reconnaissance-bomber aircraft. A British River Force of 11 monitors ( HMS M33 , HMS Fox and others), minesweepers , and Russian gunboats was formed to use the navigable waters at the juncture of the rivers Vaga and Northern Dvina . Some 30 Bolshevik gunboats , mines, and armed motor launches took their toll on
26726-514: Was signed on 12 March 1940, and the war ended the following day. Finland had defended its independence, but ceded 9% of its territory to the Soviet Union. Hostilities resumed in June 1941 with the Continuation War , when Finland allied itself with Germany following the latter's invasion of the Soviet Union ; the main aim was to regain the territory lost to the Soviets barely a year earlier. Finnish troops occupied Eastern Karelia from 1941 to 1944. The massive Soviet Vyborg-Petrozavodsk offensive in
26892-425: Was sown between the Reds and the Whites that would last until the Winter War and beyond. The civil war and the activist expeditions to Soviet Russia in 1918–1920, known as the " Kinship Wars ", strained relations with the East. After a brief experiment with monarchy , when an attempt to make Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse the king of Finland failed, a republican constitution was adopted and Finland became
27058-441: Was still widely spoken, the Finnish language began to gain recognition during this period. From the 1860s, a strong Finnish nationalist movement , known as the Fennoman movement , grew. One of the movement's most prominent leaders was the philosopher and politician J.V. Snellman , who worked to stabilise the status of the Finnish language and its own currency, the Finnish markka , in the Grand Duchy of Finland. Milestones included
27224-411: Was suspended between 1905 and 1908. In 1906, universal suffrage was introduced in the Grand Duchy of Finland. However, relations between the Grand Duchy of Finland and the Russian Empire soured when the Russian government began to take steps to restrict Finland's special status and autonomy. For example, universal suffrage was virtually meaningless in practice, as the tsar did not have to approve any of
27390-490: Was the White Army (Бѣлая армія / Белая армия, Belaya armiya ), also known as the White Guard (Бѣлая гвардія / Белая гвардия, Belaya gvardiya ) or White Guardsmen (Бѣлогвардейцы / Белогвардейцы, Belogvardeytsi ). Although the White movement included a great variety of political opinions in Russia opposed to the Bolsheviks, from the republican-minded liberals through monarchists to the ultra-nationalist Black Hundreds , and did not have universally-accepted leader or doctrine,
27556-404: Was the 15th highest in the world. During the 1970s and 1980s, Finland built one of the most extensive welfare states in the world. Finland negotiated a treaty with the European Economic Community (EEC, a forerunner of the European Union) that largely eliminated tariffs with the EEC from 1977. Miscalculated macroeconomic decisions, a banking crisis , the collapse of its largest trading partner,
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