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backstabbing, Baltic states, brotherly nation, Chechnya, Finland, Georgia, history, invasion, Israel, Moldova, mother russia, Poland, russia, terroRussia, Ukraine, war, WW2
My translation of a short piece written by an Ukrainian Canadian. A short course of non-mainstream History for those who still don’t understand why Russia has “suddenly” became so aggressive.
Hey, Mother Russia – a lowlife bitch!
I wanna ask you, for whom you ever were a brotherly nation?
Whom, which people did you ever respect or care for?
Which one of former “free republics” joined you on their own will without a bloodshed?
Your fellow feelings have always meant death for others.
In 1939 for Poland and Finland.
In 1940 for the Baltic countries.
Until June 22, 1941 you had been an ally of Nazi Germany.
Don’t attribute yourself with victory in WWII – without U.S, France, Britain and Canada you would have never saw it!
It’s you who’s the first to backstab everyone around!!!
In 1956 Hungary was your another victim, then in 1968 you plunged a knife into Czechoslovakia, and then were Afghanistan, Chechnya, Georgia, Ukraine in the list.
You hadn’t forgot to “feel” for Israel as well, by bringing up and training a horde of Arab-speaking terrorists. You are their puppeteer and they are your puppets. You are constantly inciting Iran. You’ve arranged a flood of Syrian refugees in Europe. You’ve destituted Ossetia and Abkhazia, turning their blooming lands into wasteland. Thanks to your compassion, Moldova has been torn to pieces with creation of so-called Transnistrian Republic, recognized by no one. The same thing you scum have done in Ukraine, annexing the Crimea and usurping part of the Donbass just to create the similar unrecognized DNR and LNR. Who will be the next victim of your fraternal feelings? You don’t have any even for your own people, having it turned into drunk cattle. Everything that you touch turns to ashes.
You are the leprosarium populated by rotting lepers.
Away with you and be damned!
Der Einsamer Krieger 
FYI some 7 million Ukrainians fought for the Red Army in WW2. The architect of the Katyn Massacre was Ukrainian. The most famous Soviet female sniper was Ukrainian.
You seem to paint the communists in Europe as “Russian” when in reality they were quite diverse. The Soviets were “Russian” no more than the American army in Vietnam was protestant Anglo American.
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There is enough commie scum in every nation, not only in Ukraine (which BTW has been occupied by ruskies for centuries). However, of all former Soviet republics now only TerroRussia is a zombified Soviet-esque thuggish regime with insane world domination plans.
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Thank you so much for remembering Finland also, it means a lot.
Of course russkies could occupy Poland, because they got help from the Germans, who attacked from the other side. But tiny Finland was going to be a walk in the park, although they attacked with massive forces, bomb planes, artillery, tanks and infantry.
Reason why the Winter War has been silenced in Russia is clear; Finns showed how rotten and crappy russkies are and how even the greatest military in the world can be destroyed by a handful of Finns.
If only we would have got help from the West…. the only thing we could do was to besiege division after division and cut them off from communication, roads and supplies.
Of course the russkies made plans to break through, too stupid to realize that Finns were listening to every word they said. So they knew exactly where they would attempt to break through and waited for them. Finns had three guarding rings around each blocked and besieged division. So that all russkies would be killed.
When in one siege a thousand of russkie soldiers surrendered, they were met by a few Finnish soldiers. Finns also used to destroy the divisions when they had enough manpower and ammunition, after that they took a few thousand russkie soldiers as prisoners and made them clean up the ‘camp’.
One Finnish War Veteran remembered:
“The russkie divisions were like a humiliated cattle, we could make them go wherever we wanted.”
Russkies didn’t even realize they were trapped – alongside the whole border – until it was too late.
Had we gotten help from other countries, then things would have looked different. But since we lacked manpower and weaponry, the only way was to create military blockades with an immense amount of Soviet soldiers in each blockage.
The blockades were quarded by few Finnish soldiers, with Soviets thinking there were more Finns.
When there was manpower and time, the divisions under siege were destroyed one after another.
They cried for help from the Red Army, who occasionally sent divisions to help them. But the divisions never got to them. They were also put under siege and destroyed.
Soviet Union failed their soldiers and badly. Someone should tell their story and how they suffered, instead of sweeping it under the carpet and pretend they were victorius.
When the Winter War ended we still had several divisions under siege, so Stalin had no other choice but to quickly make peace with Finland.
This is from the POV of a Soviet senior politruk from the 18th Division, about how it all started and how it all ended. Keep in mind that it is only from one division under siege, similar sieges were alongside the whole border (sorry for the poor translation) – it is worth a read, showing their arrogance and creeping despair, lol:
***
These are notes made by N. I. Klimov, a Senior Politruk from the Soviet 18th Division; notes about events, discussions, cables and personal diary.
In fear of NKVD (KGB/FSB) he didn’t write everything down, and he mentions in his diary that he tore the worst pages off.
*** The beginning and USSR:s goals in the Winter War” ***
” A representant of the 8th Army held a lecture and there was a huge map on the wall:
The high command has planned a devious plan to attack Finland from following directions:
Main offense to Karelian Ishtmus, occupying Vyborg, crushing the Mannerheim Line, then troops proceed to Helsinki.
Our 8th Army will strike the white Finns in the belly.
Troops will occupy the northern shore of Laatokka, Salmi, Pitkäranta, Läskelä, Sortavala and Värtsilä.
From there they will proceed to Joensuu, turn left and encircle the Finnish troops in Mannerheim Line’s trenches.
This direction is called Petroskoi.
Now I concentrate only on the 18th division’s mission:
Here you see Porajärvi and Repola. Higher up is Uhtua.
There our troops will cross the border in Suomussalmi and proceed towards the Northern Sea, occupy Tornio at the Swedish border and stop there.
Finland is now cut in half. Then we will attack from Kantalahti.
Comrades, Commanders, the final attack starts behind the northern pole.
All troops will attack Petsamo, occupy it and proceed to the Norwegian border, where there is a lot of nickel and other iron assets.
By new year we have sliced Finland like a lingonberry pie. Finland will be crushed, unless it capitulates before that.
We have three times more infantry than they have.
We have two thousands tanks, they don’t even have one hundred.
Same in the artillery and air force. We have one thousand air planes, they have 150.
It is like an elephant and a doggie. Even the doggie will give its pawn, and if it doesn’t, then it will be crushed.
All of us laughed.
He continued:
“This bold plan has been carefully designed by comrade Meretskov. It was approved in the War Council, even Vorosilov himself supports it. Even comrade Stalin follows closely how it is carried out.
Your 18th division is part of our 56th Army.
The 18th division will occupy the village Käsnäselkä, strike the enemy from its positions and proceed from Käsnäselkä to Pitkäranta and Sortavala, and occupy Uoma, Lavajärvi, Mitro, East-Lemetti and villages and houses in Koirinoja.
After two weeks we are on the line Kitelä-Leppäsilta-Impilahti-Läskelä-Sortavala.
From there the 18th division heads to Sortavala, occupies the town and proceeds towards the Finnish troops, encircles them and unites with our other divisions, who have finished their battles on the Karelian Ishtmus.
Our intelligence knows that there are only a few Finns ahead of you, so I can assure to the command of the 8th Army, that the plan will be executed with precision and in schedule.”
*** Klinov remembers: ***
Our motorized division proceeded slowly due to the narrow roads. Soviet pioneers built a new bridge, despite Finns sniping them one after the other. They also had to broaden the road, so that a two-way traffic would be possible.
The soldiers were a little bit shocked and outraged, because the lousy Finnish cottage people didn’t greet the Red Army with “bread and salt” and because young Finnish women didn’t bring them flowers and smiles, like they had been promised before the war.
They also complained to politruks, that Finns shoot at them from a ‘hiding place’, stressing how “unfair” it was.
3.12.1939:
We have an emergency: our division commander is badly wounded. A Finnish sniper shot him with only one shot.
The new division commander told, that the 56th Army division and 8th Army were not pleased, because the 18th division’s attack has stagnated, and informed that our division will get an additional Tank Brigade.
5.12.1939:
Soviet troops occupied Uoma. They suffered huge losses. They got one wounded Finnish corpral as a prisoner. The prisoner refused to speak.
11.12.1939:
Prisoner: You are not human beings. You are greedy pigs, who invade other stalls by force and without asking for permission. We will burn our houses, but we will leave you the stinking pig stall. That is where you belong to! You can shoot me now, perkele!
Interrogator: That is the talk of a parasite, are you a kulak or from the civil guard?
Anwer me, nettle seed, and stand up when a Red Commissar speaks to you! You are too far from your people, your cause will not succeed. The ordinary people will greet us with open arms.
I ask you one more time: what are the names of your commanders?
Prisoner: Field Marshal Mannerheim and his friend General Johan Hägglund.
What you don’t know is that both of them are real hunters. They have a lot of experience in hunting tigers, wolves and bears. How do they act? They poke with a stick, luring the bear out. Then they pretend to escape in fear. The bear goes after them and they go deeper and deeper in the forest, where a camouflaged hole awaits the bear. They needed a fur without gunholes. General Hägglund is a master in iron traps.
Interrogator: What are you foaming about?
Prisoner: The end. Take me away. One wish from a soldier to another soldier: dig a grave in the forest. The forest is my home.
The Finnish prisoner was taken away.
19.12.1939:
Pioneers are digging a dugout in East-Lemetti for the division’s command.
28.12.1939:
Razumov:
“This is a sad day in our life, Kolja. Today the Finns broke to Lavajärvi Ishtmus and cut off the road.
Our road to Käsnäselkä has been cut off. Some battalions of Finns left Syskyjärvi and moved alongside us without us seeing them.
We don’t have any neighbors there as you know. Nobody – not the promised division, not the regiment, not the battalion – and this is the result.
The Finns have moved on forest roads all the way to Lavajärvi, where our military base, 97th regiment’s battalion, is.
They fought almost all day long. But we weren’t able to chase the Finns off the road, there are more and more of them.
Then another Finnish troop attacked in Uomaa. The telephone communication broke down, apparently they cut the cables and the radio is not working.
We have our maintenance center in Uomaa: food storages, ammunition, bullets, gas, fodder for horses.
Kondrasov doesn’t want to help, because he would have to abandon the attack, the schedule and break the order from the high command.”
Division commander Kondrasov is in panic, completely out of his mind, he doesn’t listen to his superior Aleksejev, he only repeats that the Finns have closed the bag. He still has some kind of connection with the 168th division in Pitkäranta.
5.1.1940:
”There is less porridge, less bread, no fat to speak of. This sad news is already two days old.
5.-6.1.1940: The blockade is cut into pieces
”We heard shooting from far, from West-Lemetti. When the artillery fire started we went to the dugout. Grenades whistled and we heard a disgusting smack when they exploded in the snow.
Rybakov shouted: Blow out the camines, pour some water in them and fast. Sparks are flying in the air!
Pavel Gultjai shouted: Our guys are coming here. Boys, life wins!
The next day we found out, that the Finnish troops had separated us from West-Lemetti with two strong wedges. They now have our whole village, our military base is in their claws.
The Finns are now heading towards Pitkäranta.”
Commander Rjazanov from the 34th brigade has been executed, because he had already in December suggested that the siege should be broken, that we could break out and go to our own soldiers. He was executed for cowardness and for spreading panic.”
8.1.1940:
”Our telephone connection to other regiments was cut off, but now it is working again. Finns have probably fixed it, which means that all our lines are listened to.”
Finns fire at us with a heavy artillery fire, and they have cut roads that unite our regiments.”
”Things are worse in West-Lemetti. All tanks from the 34th brigade are in a blockade.
Finns brought anti-tank artillery and 76 mm cannons there secretly and they are consistently firing at our tanks.”
Commander Grigori Mihailovits Stern from the 8th Army promised to bring all necessary items to our division by air: food, medicine and ammunition.”
9.1.1940:
”It was snowing so we dined without fear in the command’s dining tent. Horsemeat soup, yucky sweet frozen potatoes. Dessert; tea made of spruces without sugar, bitter. 100 gram of bread with the food and one spoonful of marmelade.”
10.1.1940:
”I was about to leave when the division’s financial officer Nesterov arrived. You could see from his face that things were bad.
“The worst has happened: Finnish troops have isolated us from the 168th division, who is battling in Pitkäranta.
Finnish troops have laid mines, so that every single soldier trying to break out from the siege is either killed by machine guns or explodes on the road.
They are running out of food, there aren’t many horses left.
The 316th and 208th regiments are also under siege. Nobody can help them, because the tank brigade is also under siege.”
Regiment’s flag
10.-15.1.1940:
A soldier from the tank brigade, who managed to escape through three blockade rings, told me:
“We found out that Finns had opened fire against Ruokojärvi. There were battles every day. The 316th regiment has suffered horrible losses…
When we got there we reported ourself to the 316th regiment’s command. I reported:
“Comrade Commander of the regiment, there are no tanks left anymore. Only two survived; I, Tregubenko and Gordijenko.”
The next day we were called back to the command and given orders to break into East-Lemetti’s siege with 25 soldiers; mission was to liberate the command under siege and grab the regiment’s flag and secret documents.
It took a long time for us to find an opening, because Finnish trenches are all over. Finns have completely taken us under siege.
15.1.1940:
”It was -48 degrees during the night and -42 degrees in the morning. I haven’t written in my diary – my fingers are numb, I can’t hold a pen. I didn’t go anywhere.
“All horses are eaten
16.1.1940:
”This was the worst day of all. -40 degrees, -50 degrees during the night. Several guards and several soldiers in dugouts froze their hands and legs. The medical battallion is filled. On top of that a never-ending artillery fire.
Normally Finns fire 10-20 grenades per day, they don’t seem to have a lot of weapon material, but now they are practically drowning us with their “gifts”.
It started in the evening from the air. A fleet of three Fokker-planes – harmless spraying planes – but just wait until they go for a low attack…. Their bombs and machine guns form a symphony of hell.
While Pasa Gultjain and I crawled through the forest during noon a massive amount of grenades flew in the air. We lied in the snow for an hour in a freezing temperature, I already started to fall asleep.
While eating in the morning a grenade exploded almost beside us. All of us took cover under the table, the tent jolted and the counter fell down.
Three commanders were wounded outside the diner, they were from the 34th brigade.
My teeth clattered from cold, fear and weakness.
The soup was especially disgusting: frozen potatoes, cabbage stems.
All horses were eaten a long time ago – some were butchered, some died naturally, because they hadn’t seen fodder or oat in ages. They ate everything possible in the camp, the bark from trees, bushes, chewed on each others tails.
At dinner we were informed, that the diner will be closed.”
Legs are sawed like logs
22.-24.1.1940:
”In the morning the pioneers collected all frozen corpses and stacked them up behind the sheds.
One soldier was on his back, his arms toward the sky as if he had prayed for help from above. He had shoes, a mantle and a hat. Why did he have a hat instead of our hoods? The boy was probably from the latest recruits. Most horrible was his eyes. They were filled with snow. They looked like small white butterflies. The soldier looked at the grey sky through his horrid eyes, as if asking: — What for?
All medical tents were filled with frozen people. The tired doctors sawed one leg after another, like we saw logs.
28.1.1940:
Kondrasov sent a radio cable to the Army Command on 26th:
“We are starving, we need rusk, concentrates and salt.”
“We have survived by eating horses. All horses are now eaten. The 76th tank battalion has 20-30 wounded and sick, there is no food, they are starving. People are starving. We need salt. Deliver salt today. Do something.”
Porridge” from the dump
4.2.1940:
”The long awaited salt was dropped from a plunging airplane.The package broke. Daredevils who weren’t afraid of the Finnish snipers, crawled under crashed cars, tanks and wagons, in the midst of corpses, and licked the salt from the snow.
Smirnov and Gultjai went yesterday with shovels to dig in dumpsters around the diner and field kitchens, looking for leftovers of porridge. “The gold diggers” returned happy and satisfied.
Army Commander’s radio message to the siege
7.-8.2.1940:
“Kondrasov’s heroes! Stay strong, don’t worry, reinforcement is coming to you. You will soon be liberated and you will all get a prize!”
There was an embarrassing silence instead of the usual “Hooray” shouts.
A radio message to the Army high command
13.-14.2.1940:
»Situation is serious. Horses are eaten. No food. 600 men wounded. Hunger, scurby, death.»
»Many frozen. No medicine left. Wounded are starving to death. Why don’t you come to rescue us?»
Razumov whispered: “I’m telling this only to you. Our 316th and 208th regiments are gone. —
We are no longer a division, we are merely a fly with it’s wings torn off.
17.2.1940:
”About ten of our tanks tried to break through the siege from Mitron-Ruuskanen’s military base.
They broke through the first and second Finnish blockade rings, but did not make it to the 168th division. Instead they walked into a mine field and machine gun fire from all sides, nearly everyone died.
1700 men!
*
Dropping cargo on the Finnish side
One of our planes dropped a cargo of boxes and sacks, but on the Finnish side. The Finns had built a cross on the meadow after listening to our radio.
That is how “slow and stupid” the Finns are.
“Cries for help
19.2.1940:
Vladimir Vesnin showed a few more uncoded radio messages. I read them and tried to memorize them.
“Army command, Kovaljov. Why do you want to starve us? Give us food. Help us, come and save us, otherwise all of us will die. Kondrasov, Razumov.”
“The situation is difficult. We suffer losses, 360 healthy, 750 wounded. We have weakened for good. Help us soon. We can’t go on anymore.”
The latter was from 34th tank brigade’s command.”
Soup of horse intestines
19.2.1940:
”There was a horrid stench in the dugout. The pioneers were cooking horse intestines, that earlier were immediately thrown away. The intestines were not properly cleansed – we have a lack of water.
Finnish snipers have already killed tens and tens oof our soldiers who try to get water from the ice.
I swallowed the dark liquid trying not to breathe. I thought I would throw up right there. But my stomach demands food! The first five spoons went down with force, but after that it started to go well and I ate all the soup.
Other soldiers took out the inner tube from a bicycle. It was impossible to cut with a knife, but with an axe it was cut into small pieces.
I got three pieces. I started to chew on the grey gum, but it was impossible. In the end my jaws got tired and started aching. I stopped, rested and continued chewing. Then I closed my eyes and with all strength swallowed it.”
Soup made of horseskin
20.2.1940:
”The strongest, Rybakov and Samoznajev, went out to saw a pine tree. They found a horseskin. All intestines and bones had been taken ages ago, but the skin was left behind. It was covered with dirt.
What a lucky break! The skin reminded of metal roofing – it was frozen, red and brown, inflexible and rattled when we dragged it to the dugout.
The skin was cut into twelve pieces, one for everyone.
After the skin had melted, we all started to work: to clean and remove the hair, but it wasn’t that easy. The hair was like iron. We took off as much as we could.
After that we cut the skin into slices and boiled them.
After that we peeled off the rest of the hair, then cut it into squares and put it to boil again.
When you first eat a spoonful of skinmacaroni and then two spoonfuls of soup, warmth starts to spread in your chest, then your stomach bubble. The head is dizzy. It is best to not hurry, not drink, eat with a spoon and lick it clean every time.”
Siege-Matti
22.2.1940:
What gifts did we get from the Red Army? Nothing. And we believed and we waited.
Instead we got an offer from the Finns. A good, strong and raspy voice, with a barely recognizable noble accent from Petersburg, talked through Kondrasov’s loud speakers:
“I plead with you in the name of our commander Major Matti Aarnio. Colleagues! Capitulate, otherwise you are destroying yourself and your men. It can’t be your goal. Your goal is to stay alive.
“Unless you send a peace negotiator, we will open heavy artillery fire tomorrow at 11 a.m.
“You are surrounded by three circles. Resistance is futile. Give yourself a gift on your Army’s birthday.”
23.2.1940:Finns open direct fire
”Finnish cannons are blasting again. When counting seconds from when they fire to the explosion, I realize that they cannons are near us. And they were….
The Finns had somehow managed to drag cannons – our cannons – right beside our trenches. They started to pound our tanks from 300 meters.
By noon the Finns had already destroyed almost all our tanks. We had only five or six left, nobody knows.
This is the end. Our cannons were our defense’s biggest hope and all firepower. Our 122-mm haupitzs are silent, there is no ammunition left.”
23.2.1940:
”Around noon Rybakov crawled to our dugout informing us, that we have permission to break out in the evening.
After Kondrasov and Kondratjev had seen our losses, they sent a sharp secret radio message to the 15th Army’s Commander Kovaljov and to the War Council’s member Vasugin:
“We are dying. The catastrophe has began. We demand permission to break out. We will wait until 4 p.m. Kondrasov. Kondratjev.”
When the Red Army replied with a normal radio message, Kondratjev sent the following radio message to the 15th Army’s Command – without coding it:
“We have suffered huge losses during the last days. We need realistic help. You only promise. Save us. Send a regiment, it will save us. Send it tonight. Send your decision. Refusal means destruction.”
25.2.1940:
Aleksei read out loud radio messages.
“Kovaljov Vasugin from the 15th Army. We have been under siege for 40 days. It is difficult to believe, but the enemy is strong. Help us get out of this useless death. People and machinery are unable to fight. We are practically a camp for wounded. Even those who are healthy are starving.”
“Kovaljov Vasugin from the 15th Army. Help us, attack the enemy, bring us food and cigarettes. Yesterday three planes flew above us and left without dropping anything. Why are you teasing us with hunger? Help, otherwise we will all die.”
Siege of Generals
Aleksejev joined our group.
Zinovi Nesterovits showed from a map how all our nine (9) Divisions were under siege.
The first siege is in Uomaa, then in Suuri, Saarijärvi and Lavajärvi.
One siege around Syskyjärvi, two sieges near Ruokojärvi, an armored siege in West-Lemetti and our siege in East-Lemetti.
The Finns apparently called our siege a “General Siege”, because we have the division’s command and the tank brigade’s command, plus all leading Red Army Generals here.
We have underestimated the Finnish soldiers and especially their high command.
We believed Finns to be lumberjacks, who know nothing and can’t do anything. And here we are. Their soldiers are strong and their command is active. They are Siege Masters.
28.2.1940:
”I write in a hurry. We just returned with Rybakov. We have permission to break through the ambush at 6 p.m. today.
The strongest column will take off first. Then the weakest column. After us comes a third column, a strong one.
The operation is carried out by General Aleksejev. Razumov is War Commissar. Major Zarov is Aleksejev’s reserve.
The third column consists of soldiers from the 34th Brigade with their Commanders. Kondrasov and Kondratjev will lead this unit.
We have already decided from where we can break through. We got orders to only take a gun and ammunition with us. All documents, money and maps have to be burned.
“We are going to face a real battle. The cannons will fire and the machine guns chug and grenades explode. We are going to shout “Hooray” and start shooting everywhere.
Later on we found out, that our first column had broken through three Finnish siege circles and made it all the way to the meadow. There they bumped into a Finnish camp one kilometer away. We didn’t even know it was there. Our scouts had been there and found nothing.
A tough battle broke out and we think it was the battle that saved us.
Our Commander Aleksejev ordered us to go left and off the road, and run as fast as we can to the forest. We take turns, four of us walk ahead and trample the snow, then we change again and again, this way proceeding faster. The noise of the battle on the right side is ongoing, but lamer. We don’t hear our rifles very often.
Two hundred of our men died in that battle.
We are moving forward in the snowbanks and arrive to Mustavaara in the morning.
We go to the forest avoiding the hill. They believe Finnish snipers are on the hill. They were right: soon we cross two fresh skiing tracks to the hill.
I try for days to find out where the 34th tank brigade’s men disappeared, where Gaponjuk, Kondratjev, Grjaznov and General Smirnov are.
They were supposed to follow us when breaking through the siege. They were relatively strong boys, and they were ordered to resist the Finns and and protect the main column.
But their column, with technical men and with what was left of the infantry, 2.000 soldiers, didn’t follow us, instead they turned left and walked along a familiar road to Lavajärvi.
The Finnish troops were prepared and laid mines along the road, and built dugouts on both sides of the road.
Finns let them through, guided them to the mines and completely destroyed the column.
***
Here is a Finn remembering a Red Army general, who was taken as prisoner from one siege:
“He talks to himself in a sad tone and chainsmokes. He talks how all his friends, comrades and soldiers are lying dead in the Finnish forest. And what kind of a death, oh my, with no reputation, shameful, unneccesary…
When we attacked Poland our battle slogan was: Liberate our bloodbrothers from slavery. We believed in that and that is why we won once again.
But when we went to Finland we were supposed to liberate workers from the greedy capitalists and other bla bla bla.
I felt in my own skin how the Finns welcomed us as “liberators”. Frankly speaking; what could we have offered them?
I am a prisoner, but after looking around I have seen a thing or two.
There is wealth and well-being everywhere.
Even your workers are better dressed than our high command, the communists.
A normal worker in Russia is a beggar when compared to the Finns. This is how things are.
My soldiers were excellent men! When we went to Poland they sang and shouted Hooray, the attack was a celebration for them. It was an elite division – the very best Russian army had, both for the men’s quality and their weapons’ quality.
When the first regiment took off to Finland in a train from Leningrad, the boys laughed and shouted to us:
“There won’t be anything for you to do, we will sweep the route clean. See you in Oulu next year.”
From the rail station to the border is 350 km. We marched it in eleven days. That is an accomplishment even you Finns would be proud of, but we, we got two reprimands from the high command that we were too slow.
We lost ten % of our men due to fatigue and frostbites. And we did not have a roof over our head even one night. In the evening you are dead tired, soaked wet – and start a campfire in the middle of nowhere. You saw the trees, light the fire and fall half asleep beside it. — One side gets burned, the other side freezes….
When crossing the border this luxury stopped. If you lit a campfire it started to rain bullets, grenades… oh my the coldness, the shoreless wilderness, the darkness.
We tried to stay together so we wouldn’t get lost; cramped on a small area. Of course we tried to attack and push forward, but it was like banging your head on the wall.
It was completely different than attacking Polish regiments or Denik’s officer battalions. It was something incomprehensable, horrible…
Our communication contacts were cut off. We started to starve. Yet we did not see one single Finn.
Can you believe, that the first Finn I saw was the one who captured me after destroying my division!
We did not see Finns, but they were everywhere. If someone tried to go outside the camp area, he was dead.
When someone was sent out as a sentry, we could be certain that we would see him dead, with a bullet in his forehead or his throat shlashed.
And from every direction, somewhere in the depth of the wilderness, it rained bullets and grenades.
An invisible and silent death everywhere, men were killed in hundreds, in thousands. It was horrible, horrible.
Many went insane, many, especially officers, put a bullet in their head, as if the Finns’ bullets wouldn’t have been equally efficient.
Horrible, horrible battle – this whole war is insane. Russian people did not want it…. communists? – Ah, they didn’t want it either.
And those mad dogs: Molotov, Shdanov and Kuusinen, those insane war mongers and heartless provocators, they should be forced to dig through the stacks of corpses….
Nah, they were not stacks of corpses, they were mountains of corpses.
I can not understand how my comrades ended up in those stacks.
We Russians always were for peace, we talked about peace and we loved peace.
How popular we were back then. The whole civilized world stood behind us, we were the dearest child to all free people.
But now we are bashed, hated and disgusted. We are a pariah, thanks to comrade Molotov’s policy.
I ask only one thing from you Finns; bury those horrid stacks of corpses before it gets warmer. Otherwise you will get a plague.
I don’t hate you, although you destroyed my division in a horrifying way. I understand that you had to do it…. we were the guilty ones. Or rather our leaders. You are good soldiers, too tough for us.
But you have one flaw and it is bad: You despise us Russians too much, you underestimate us.
For example, a patrol of two Finns captured me. They didn’t even bother to disarm me, they only made gestures and ordered us to walk ahead of them. They gathered about 20 soldiers from my division and herded us like we were cattle – both with rifles on their backs.
When I was transported away from the frontier, the car suddenly stopped in front of a house. The officer went inside. The driver followed him after a while, leaving his rifle beside me and the car running.
Of course I didn’t go anywhere, where would I go in this snowy wilderness, but still… Carelessness and underestimating the enemy is never a good thing.
We know how to fight, but only when the circumstances are favourable.
***
These two russkies survived the Winter War.
This is why Russia hasn’t occupied Finland. They are put in sieges on the border, or lured to an empty village and after that they have lost. We didn’t get help from the West so that we could destroy them all, but we could keep them in line and order.
After Stalin was forced to sign a Peace Treaty several russkie divisions were still under siege. Hence occupation of Finland never became a subject.
Sorry for the long rant.
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As always, thanks for the valuable input. I wish I could make a separate post on Winter War but I barely have time to answer the comments here now.
It’s simply amazing to see how ruskies are being thrashed by lesser, weaker nations. They are just like street thug who picks a seemingly easy victim, gets his ass perforated by a .44 slug then whines all over TV how “evil” people hate him. Ruskies have only two really powerful and terrible weapons – CORRUPTION and STUPIDITY of some politicians, because of which their sh#thouse empire still exists and keeps bragging with so-called “great victory”.
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Die Voraussetzung zur Lösung aller deutschen Zukunftsfragen:
https://archive.org/details/HermannLachhansHrsgDieZertruemmerungDerEwigenSchuld284CompleteKopie
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!Achtung!!
Die Zertrümmerung der ewigen Schuld (archive.org)
(Hermann Lachhans)
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