Search results

IIRC Paasikivi was the Finnish Minister to the Soviet Union, so he was permanently stationed at the Finnish Legation in Moscow (ambassador and embassy with modern terms, only grand powers had embassies and ambassadors to each other before 1945), so he was called from the Finnish Legation in...

"Shot down by Stockholm" is an oversimplification, IMHO. Jarl Wasastierna, the Finnish minister in Stockholm officially suggested an union on the 20th of September 1940. The Soviet minister in Stoclholm, Alexandra Kollontaj initially expressed a careful support of the project, but recieved new...

Of course, the fact that it did not happen OTL shows us it was not easy. Peasants are generally conservative, because a failed experiment might mean starvation for them, so they will stick with what they know works. You bring up two very good points - capital and skilled labour. The second...

In general, industrialisation tended to be slow where a land-owning elite held the economic and political power. Compare northern US to the southern, western Germany to eastern Germany, Austria to Hungary, Russia to Britain or France. Russia needs several things in order to industrialise. It...

It will not make much of a difference. The Hammarskjöld government held to the Hague convention principles that a neutral power had the right to trade non-contraband goods with a warring power. The British warned Sweden several times to not sell food to the Germans. When the government refused...

To be honest, I don't think that will be much of a limiting factor - the force that can be supplied will be smaller than what Sweden would prepared to commit. Say for example that half the force is sent - the line divisions and the cavalry division, some 120 000 men. Considering the problems the...

The Swedish army in Spring 1915 consisted of 6 line divisions, 6 reserve divisions and 1 cavalry division, plus a landstorm local defence - 220 000 men in the line army and 170 000 in the landstorm. I agree with @DrakonFin and his statements - the Russians would move an army corps to defend a...

It would take them too much time - byt he time they have built up their forces and ammunition depots in Norway and are ready for an invasion, the Soviets are in Berlin.

Swedish coastal artillery at Öresund is completely superior to its German counterparts in Denmark at this time. On the Swedish side: 12x15,2cm m/37 and 21cm m/42 mobile artillery guns (the 21cm was mobile but not tactically so, which the 15,2cm was). HMS Äran (the armoured ship HMS Äran's...

Iron ore exports to Germany ceased in late September, early October 1944 due to Allied pressure anyway, so the Germans will not lose much compared to OTL. Sweden was well aware of the potential of AA guns in the AT role, and all AA guns (20, 40 and 75mm) were equipped with armour-piercing...

Here's the planned OoB for Operation Save Norway, that I wrote for a post on reddit some time ago: Operation Rädda Norge (Operation Save Norway) was the more ambitious plan, and cetainly the more realistic one compared to Operation Rädda Danmark. The Swedish legation (embassy in modern terms -...

Perhaps a deal being worked out with the Soviets, where they only agree to peace with Finland if both Sweden and Finland go to war with Germany and clear the Nordics out. Sweden did not want the Soviets at the Swedo-Finnish border.

Yes, October 1944 is one of the best dates. If Sweden can capture Narvik, the entire 20. Gebirgs-armee is cut off trying to retreat from Finnish Lappland to Narvik, over Finnmark, in winter. However, the weather will soon make it much harder to conduct any kind of military operations in northern...

Hwre do you get the idea that the German troops in Denmark and Norway are better equipped than the Swedish army? At this time, the Germans have some 300 000 men in Norway, of which about 80 000-100 000 are frontline troops - and "frontline troops" is being generous here. They are 2nd rate...

Sweden's ability to project power there would be even less than Denmark-Norway's. Any Swedish defence or reinforcements would have to come out of Göteborg and sail through potentially (very much so in this era) hostile Danish-Norwegian waters to get to Arhangelsk. Compare the OTL 1701 expedition...

Arhangelsk was a very important Russian trade port - and it is pretty well connected to northern central Russia through the Northern Dvina river - thus the Russians have a pretty good ability to project power there, both in Winter (with sleds on a frozen river) and in Summer (with barges)...

If we were to consider the Central Asian Khanates as an option, how successful could Peter be? Russia has some problems operating far from their centre of supply and reinforcement before the later parts of the Great Northern War - the Azov campaign, Grodno and Prut seem to be indications of...

Yes, the German garrisons were 8 000 men in peacetime, and using them and beefing them up with some volunteers, especially Swedish officers to give them experience and some northern German mercenaries is likely. That they'll be attached to an Allied army without their own operational...

Well, yes, that was the entire point of the Swedish school - ensure that firepower did not play a role. A charge to rout the enemy and then pursue mercilessly, as Karl XI knew that Sweden would almost always have inferior numbers and standing in enemy fire was a sure way to suffer more...

I'd argue that Rehnskiöld faced some serious firepower at Fraustadt. The Saxonian (and a small Russian force) - 16 000 infantry supported by 32 guns. The infantry was also reinforced by 50 small mortars for increased firepower and deployed behind cheval de frises for extra protection. The...