Hundred Day Winter War

Finland's Gallant Stand Against the Soviet Army
Erscheinungsjahr 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7006-1910-8
Verlag: University Press of Kansas

Buch, Englisch, 400 Seiten, Hardback, Format (B × H): 159 mm x 236 mm, Gewicht: 797 g

Reihe: Modern War Studies

When the Red Army invaded Finland in November 1939 most observers expected a walkover. Instead, in a gallant stand that captured the world’s imagination, the tiny Finnish army was able to hold off Stalin’s mechanised echelons for 105 days. <br><br>Gordon F. Sander peels away the layers of myth surrounding this Nordic Thermopylae to reveal the conflict in its full military, political, and cultural contexts. A bestseller in Finland, the English-language version of Sander’s book draws on interviews with both Finnish and Russian veterans of the war, in addition to a bountiful archive of articles from both the Western and Finnish press, to create the most comprehensive and up-to-date single-volume history of the war. <br><br>Written in “real time” to give the reader a you-are-there feeling, the book describes the Finns’ stunning defeat of the Soviets’ initial massive offensive, including the destruction of several Red divisions by Finnish ski troops; the deceptively calm January interregnum, when the two sides engaged in a complicated diplomatic minuet; and the final, titanic Red assault itself, which finally drove the Finns to the peace table—though not before they had forged one of the great legends of modern military history. <br><br>Using his intimate knowledge of Finland and Finnish history, the author explains how the Finns’ winter skills, their innate <em>sisu</em>, or toughness, and their devotion to both their young republic and their brilliant and inspiring commander-in-chief, Gustav Mannerheim, together enabled them to make their historic stand. <br><br>Sander explores such oft-ignored aspects of the conflict as Finnish press censorship; the abortive Allied “rescue mission” across Scandinavia that was a factor in Stalin’s surprising decision to bring the war to a halt; the Kremlin’s novel use of paratroopers in the war; and the pivotal role played by the <em>Lotta Svard</em>, the Finnish all-purpose women’s auxiliary. <br><br>Illustrating Sander’s fast-paced text are nearly 50 photographs, including numerous never-seen-before images of both the battlefront and the home front. <br><br>Hailed by <em>Helsingin Sanomat</em>, Finland’s leading daily, as “a bittersweet morality play” that “opens up this quintessentially Finnish tale to a much wider and admiring readership” and by STT, Finland’s leading news agency, as “an outstanding book that combines brilliant writing with a rock-solid factual foundation,” Sander’s compelling book fills a key gap in the record of the Second World War.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Über Autor(innen)

<strong>Gordon F. Sander</strong> is a journalist, historian, and Nordic expert. His books include <em>The Frank Family That Survived</em> and the recently published <em>Off the Map: A Personal History of Finland.</em>