Finland, officially the Kingdom of Finland, is a Nordic country located in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the west, Russia to the east, Norway to the north, and is defined by the Gulf of Bothnia to the west, and the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea across the Grand Duchy of Courland to the south. Finland covers an area of 338,455 square kilometres (130,678 sq mi), with a population of 5.5 million. Helsinki is the country's capital and largest city. Finnish, the native language of the Finns, is among the only few Finnic languages in the world. The climate varies relative to latitude, from the southern humid continental climate to the northern boreal climate. The land cover is primarily a boreal forest biome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes
History[]
Before World War II[]
Finland was inhabited around 9000 BC after the Last Glacial Period. The Stone Age introduced several different ceramic styles and cultures. The Bronze Age and Iron Age were characterised by extensive contacts with other cultures in Fennoscandia and the Baltic region. From the late 13th century, Finland gradually became an integral part of Sweden as a consequence of the Northern Crusades. In 1809, as a result of the Finnish War, Finland was annexed by Russia as the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland, during which Finnish art flourished and the idea of independence began to take hold. In 1906, Finland became the first European state to grant universal suffrage, and the first in the world to give all adult citizens the right to run for public office. Nicholas II, the last Tsar of Russia, tried to russify Finland and terminate its political autonomy, but after the 1917 Russian Revolution, Finland declared independence from Russia. In 1918, the fledgling state was divided by the Finnish Civil War. Finland was about to be ruled by Fredrik Kaarle I who was elected as King of Finland, however before he was coordinated, Carl Mannerheim became regent when Germany was loosing. Sadly his regency failed when the Finnish Republicans overthrew the monarchy to turn Finland into a republic as a way to appease the victorious allies who might not want a monarchy to exist. However Fredrik Kaarle I still has a claimant to the Finnish throne.
World War II[]
During the Winter War period, the relationship between Finland and the Soviet Union was tense. Some elements in Finland maintained the dream of "Greater Finland" which included the Soviet-controlled part of Karelia. The proximity of the Finnish border to Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) caused worry in the Soviet leadership. On 23 August 1939 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. A secret clause of this agreement marked Finland as part of the Soviet sphere of influence.
On 12 October the Soviet Union started negotiations with Finland concerning parts of Finnish territory, the Karelian Isthmus, the Gulf of Finland islands and the Hanko Peninsula. No agreement was reached. On 26 November the Soviet Union accused the Finnish army of shelling the village of Mainila. It was subsequently found that the Soviets had in fact shelled their own village to create an excuse to withdraw from their non-aggression pact with Finland. On 30 November the Soviet Union attacked Finland. The attack was denounced by the League of Nations and, as a result, the Soviet Union was expelled from that body on 14 December.
The aim of the invasion was to annex Finland to the Soviet Union. The first attack, on 30 November 1939, was an aerial bombardment of the city of Helsinki and all along the Finnish-Soviet border. This put the Finnish people on the defensive without having to make any decision, unifying the once divided country. The Soviet invasion was intended to be a liberation of the 'Red Finns', with the eventual annexation of Finland into the USSR. To this end, a puppet government, the "Finnish Democratic Republic" was established in Terijoki under the leadership of the exiled O. W. Kuusinen.
Strategic goals of the Red Army included cutting Finland in half and capturing Petsamo in the north and Helsinki in the south. The Soviets had been building their forces up on the border for several months during the previous negotiations. The Soviet Union fielded four armies composed of 16 divisions and another three were being brought into position; meanwhile, the Finnish army had 9 smaller divisions. In addition, Soviet forces enjoyed an overwhelming superiority in the numbers of armour and air units deployed. The problem with numbers was a Finnish issue as they had to defend a border that was some 1287 km (800 miles) in length, presenting the defenders with a significant disadvantage.
The Winter War was fought in three stages: the initial Soviet advance, a short lull and then a renewed Soviet offensive. The war was fought mainly in three areas. The Karelian Isthmus and the area of Lake Ladoga were the primary focus of the Soviet war effort. A two-pronged attack, with one pincer engaging the Finnish forces on the Isthmus while the other went around Lake Ladoga in an attempt at encircling the defenders. This force was then to advance to and capture the city of Viipuri. The second front was in central Karelia, where the Soviet forces were to advance to the city of Oulu, cutting the country in half. Finally, a southwards drive from the north was to capture the Petsamo region. By late December, the two main fronts had come to a standstill as the Finns were counterattacking with more strength and the Soviets were being bogged down. With the failure of two of its three offensives by the end of December, the Soviet headquarters ordered a cessation of operations. By 27 December it was observed that the Soviet forces were digging in on the Karelian Isthmus. In the north, however, the Finns had been pushed back to Nautsi and with reinforcements took the higher ground to halt the Soviet advance south of Petsamo. During this period the Finns are known to have been harassing supply columns and even carrying out raids against fortified Soviet positions. A lull period followed in January 1940, as the Soviet army reassessed its strategy, rearmed and resupplied. The last phase began in February 1940 with a major artillery barrage that began on the 2nd and lasted till the 11th, accompanied by reconnaissance raids at key objectives. The Soviets, using new equipment and materials, also began using tactics of rotating troops from the reserve to the front, constantly applying pressure to the Finnish defenders. It seemed that the Red Army had inexhaustible amounts of ammunition and supplies, as attacks were always preceded by barrages, followed by aerial assaults and then random troop movements against the lines. Finnish military and government leaders saw that the only thing left to do was to negotiate a peace treaty with Moscow.
The tenacity of the Finnish people, both military and civilian, in the face of a superior opponent gained the country much sympathy throughout the world. However, material support from other countries was small, and none of Finland's neighbors were willing to commit their militaries to a war against the USSR. The need for a diplomatic solution became even more apparent, after the Soviet forces broke through the Finnish defensive line on the Karelian Isthmus and moved on towards Viipuri.
A demanding peace proposal was sent to Finland by Molotov in mid-February, claiming more land for the USSR and significant diplomatic and military sanctions. By 28 February, Molotov made his offer an ultimatum with a 48-hour time limit, which pushed the Finnish leadership to act quickly. The Finnish people were worn down and could no longer hold out against such vast, well-supplied numbers. By 13 March 1940, the Winter War was officially over, the Moscow Peace Treaty was signed and the Soviet Union had gained more territory than it originally demanded.
This had made Finnish people loose faith in their republic and it even provoked fears of Socialists rising to power. Because of this, the Monarchists rose to power and they had elected Frederick Charles as King as they did in WWI, Charles took the throne and ruled Finland until 28 May 1940 in which his son, the Pro-Nazi Philipp, Prince and Landgrave of Hesse as King of Finland in which he was coordinated Phillip I of Finland.
The Pro-Nazi Finnish Kingdom immediately joined sides with the Nazis to help the Finnish people get revenge on the Soviets when Hitler invaded the Soviet Union. Finland was successful in winning against the Soviets as it was able to create the Kingdom of Greater Finland.
Nazi Takeover of all Europe[]
The Reich had taken over all of it's allies and Puppet Regimes Hitler had gained during the war becoming Constituent States of the German Reich with Nazis taking control of their governments as Reichkommissars. Finland was one of those states until the revolution by the Monarchists and Louis I of Germany.
Notable Members[]
Monarchs[]
- Fredrik Kaarle I (1940)
- Phillip I (1940-present)
Order of Succession[]
- Fredrik Kaarle I (1868-1940)
- Phillip I (b. 1893) + Mafalda (b. 1902)
- (1) Prince Moritz (b. 1926) + Princess Tatiana of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b. 1940)
- Princess Mafalda (b. 1965)
- (2) Prince Donatus (b. 1966)
- Princess Elena (b. 1967)
- (3) Prince Philipp (b. 1970)
- (4) Prince Heinrich (b. 1927) + Marian Seldes (b. 1928)
- (5) Prince Fredrik Kaarle (b. 1965)
- (5) Prince Otto (b. 1937) + Angela von Doering
- Princess Elisabeth (b. 1940)
- (1) Prince Moritz (b. 1926) + Princess Tatiana of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (b. 1940)
- (6) Prince Wolfgang (b. 1896) + Princess Marie Alexandra of Baden (b. 1901)
- (7) Prince Christoph (b. 1901) + Princess Sophie of Greece and Denmark (b. 1914)
- Princess Christina Margarethe (b. 1933)
- Princess Dorothea Charlotte Karin (b. 1934) + Prince Friedrich Karl zu Windisch-Grätz (b. 1917)
- (8) Prince Karl Adolf Andreas (b. 1937) + Countess Yvonne Margit Valerie Szapáry von Muraszombath, Széchysziget und Szapár (b. 1944)
- (9) Christoph Prinz von Hessen-Kassel (b. 1969)
- Irina Verena Prinzessin von Hessen-Kassel (b. 1970)
- (10) Prince Rainer Christoph Friedrich (b. 1939) + Elizabeth Ann Cole (b. 1939)
- (11) Prince Carl Fredrich (b. 1969)
- Princess Clarissa Alice
- (12) Richard Wilhelm Leopold (b. 1901) + Alice Prin (b. 1901)
- Phillip I (b. 1893) + Mafalda (b. 1902)
Prime Ministers[]
- Carl Gustav Mannerheim
- Bruno Salmiala
- Aimo Cajander
- Kyosti Järvinen
- Vihtori Kosola
- Johan W. Rangell
- Pekka Siitoin
Military Leaders[]
- Jouko Itälä
- Vilho Annala
- Kurt Wallenius
- Vilho Helanen
- Lauri Tiainen
- Tauno Viljanen