Introduction
The Little Giant: Finland Victorious in the Winter War
-Finnish Troops and Swedish Volunteers enter the Soviet town of Repola in the 1942 Winter Counter Offensive
"...77 years ago, the Karelian War (also known as the Soviet War of Aggression against Finland) [1] began with the Soviets invading Finland in order to force the upstart Finns to cede the Karelian Isthmus and the Gulf of Finland islands to the USSR. Despite the fact that Stalin gave his generals months [2] to prepare the necessary logistics and supplies to crush the Finnish Armed Forces, the Red Army would face its master in the tiny, sparsely populated nation in the north. Finland, a nation of 3.5 million people at the time, fended off the mighty Russian Bear for a full eight months and ultimately forced the Soviet Union to kneel at the negotiating tables. The world watched in stunned silence as the Soviet Union signed the Peace of Leningrad to cede parts of East Karelia and Kola after the Red Army's failure to break the Mannerheim Line, the freezing winter, and the Finnish counteroffensives in the northern and central fronts. The peace did allow the Soviets to claim Finnish territory up to the Mannerheim Line, but the war resulted in the loss of face of the Soviet Union, the unexpected death of Stalin, and another purge that resulted in the destabilization of the Red Army, which allowed Germany to advance deeply into Russia and even capture Moscow (Finland did contribute to the German offensive by breaking the Siege of Leningrad with troops and supplies, but stayed fairly neutral afterwards [3]).
The Allies weren't too pleased with Finland's actions during the Second World War, but left the Finns to their own accord when the war finally came to an end in 1946. Even though Finland was partially blamed for the quick German successes and the breakdown of the Soviet troops during the Second World War, their unrelenting bravery and successes (in addition to their alignment with the Allies later on in the war were still respected by most countries (except the Russians, who were bitter that Finland managed to keep its occupied territory).
Many people wonder just how different the Second World War would have turned out if the USSR was victorious during the Karelian War, but historians generally agree that Finland was well prepared and motivated to defend. Some historians and professors argue that the Soviet Union might have won if they invaded in the winter of 1940 [4]. However, these arguments are usually refuted and countered by the fact that Finland's plans and preparations, even if it was limited or ineffective, were not the ultimate deciding factor and the Soviets would've been bogged down in the marshes and forests while the Finns would've fought off the Soviet invaders using guerrilla warfare.
Thus it was no surprise that the world gave Finland, possibly one of the most important nations in WW2, a new nickname after the Second World War; "The Little Giant...""
-Introduction of Finland's Second War for Independence.
+++++
[1] - The war doesn't begin in the winter, thus the "Winter War" doesn't really apply to TTL's version of the Winter War.
[2] - The Winter War ITTL begins on June 2nd of 1940, 6 months later than OTL.
[3] - Unlike OTL, the Finns actively participate in the Siege of Leningrad and help the Germans cut off any aid to the besieged city (instead of cutting of parts and allowing small amount of aid to flow into Leningrad). As a result, Leningrad actually falls ITTL as the Finns, seeking full revenge and wanting to fully secure Karelia, offer the Soviets stuck within Leningrad a chance to surrender and fight for Finland. And with the early fall of Leningrad, this frees up nearly 500,000-700,000 men to participate in other offensives.
[4] - Finland begins preparations for war early on in the 30's and have several key changes in their military and equipment/supplies before the war begins, thus enabling Finland to beat back the Red Army.
+++++
This will be a TL that I will be working on with one of my friends from college. This idea mainly popped into my head after reading about the Winter War and researching various PoDs and ideas that could have affected the overall result of the Winter War.
This will not be a "German victorious in WW2," but more of a "Germany does much better than OTL and the Allies barely grind out a victory." This will be a bit of a Finland-wank and a communist screw (due to the war turning out a lot differently).
Hope you do enjoy this TL.
-Finnish Troops and Swedish Volunteers enter the Soviet town of Repola in the 1942 Winter Counter Offensive
"...77 years ago, the Karelian War (also known as the Soviet War of Aggression against Finland) [1] began with the Soviets invading Finland in order to force the upstart Finns to cede the Karelian Isthmus and the Gulf of Finland islands to the USSR. Despite the fact that Stalin gave his generals months [2] to prepare the necessary logistics and supplies to crush the Finnish Armed Forces, the Red Army would face its master in the tiny, sparsely populated nation in the north. Finland, a nation of 3.5 million people at the time, fended off the mighty Russian Bear for a full eight months and ultimately forced the Soviet Union to kneel at the negotiating tables. The world watched in stunned silence as the Soviet Union signed the Peace of Leningrad to cede parts of East Karelia and Kola after the Red Army's failure to break the Mannerheim Line, the freezing winter, and the Finnish counteroffensives in the northern and central fronts. The peace did allow the Soviets to claim Finnish territory up to the Mannerheim Line, but the war resulted in the loss of face of the Soviet Union, the unexpected death of Stalin, and another purge that resulted in the destabilization of the Red Army, which allowed Germany to advance deeply into Russia and even capture Moscow (Finland did contribute to the German offensive by breaking the Siege of Leningrad with troops and supplies, but stayed fairly neutral afterwards [3]).
The Allies weren't too pleased with Finland's actions during the Second World War, but left the Finns to their own accord when the war finally came to an end in 1946. Even though Finland was partially blamed for the quick German successes and the breakdown of the Soviet troops during the Second World War, their unrelenting bravery and successes (in addition to their alignment with the Allies later on in the war were still respected by most countries (except the Russians, who were bitter that Finland managed to keep its occupied territory).
Many people wonder just how different the Second World War would have turned out if the USSR was victorious during the Karelian War, but historians generally agree that Finland was well prepared and motivated to defend. Some historians and professors argue that the Soviet Union might have won if they invaded in the winter of 1940 [4]. However, these arguments are usually refuted and countered by the fact that Finland's plans and preparations, even if it was limited or ineffective, were not the ultimate deciding factor and the Soviets would've been bogged down in the marshes and forests while the Finns would've fought off the Soviet invaders using guerrilla warfare.
Thus it was no surprise that the world gave Finland, possibly one of the most important nations in WW2, a new nickname after the Second World War; "The Little Giant...""
-Introduction of Finland's Second War for Independence.
+++++
[1] - The war doesn't begin in the winter, thus the "Winter War" doesn't really apply to TTL's version of the Winter War.
[2] - The Winter War ITTL begins on June 2nd of 1940, 6 months later than OTL.
[3] - Unlike OTL, the Finns actively participate in the Siege of Leningrad and help the Germans cut off any aid to the besieged city (instead of cutting of parts and allowing small amount of aid to flow into Leningrad). As a result, Leningrad actually falls ITTL as the Finns, seeking full revenge and wanting to fully secure Karelia, offer the Soviets stuck within Leningrad a chance to surrender and fight for Finland. And with the early fall of Leningrad, this frees up nearly 500,000-700,000 men to participate in other offensives.
[4] - Finland begins preparations for war early on in the 30's and have several key changes in their military and equipment/supplies before the war begins, thus enabling Finland to beat back the Red Army.
+++++
This will be a TL that I will be working on with one of my friends from college. This idea mainly popped into my head after reading about the Winter War and researching various PoDs and ideas that could have affected the overall result of the Winter War.
This will not be a "German victorious in WW2," but more of a "Germany does much better than OTL and the Allies barely grind out a victory." This will be a bit of a Finland-wank and a communist screw (due to the war turning out a lot differently).
Hope you do enjoy this TL.
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