Commander-in-chief and unifying figure: Carl Gustaf Mannerheim. The picture was taken in 1943 while he was convalescing in Switzerland.
Commander-in-chief and unifying figure: Carl Gustaf Mannerheim. The picture was taken in 1943 while he was convalescing in Switzerland. Keystone

Donning skis and snowsuits to fight the Red Army

Marshal Carl Gustaf Mannerheim led tiny Finland’s stand in several wars against the Goliath that was the Soviet Union, earning him considerable admiration among the Swiss.

Géraldine Lysser

Géraldine Lysser

Géraldine Lysser studied history and business administration and works in communications at the Swiss National Museum.

On 14 May 1955, the memorial in Territet just outside Montreux commemorating Finnish Marshal Carl Gustaf Mannerheim was finally ready to be unveiled. The chairman of the committee that had proposed erecting the monument was none other than General Guisan. He had known Mannerheim personally and been able to study Finnish tactics when he took part in an exchange of officers. But admiration for Carl Gustaf Mannerheim was by no means confined to military circles, and he was seen as a unifying force for post-independence Finland.
Memorial to Marshal Carl Gustaf Mannerheim (1867–1951) in Territet near Montreux.
Memorial to Marshal Carl Gustaf Mannerheim (1867–1951) in Territet near Montreux. Keystone

Bloody battle to unite Finland

After 700 years under Swedish rule, Finland became an autonomous grand duchy within the Russian Empire in 1809. The upper classes, including the Mannerheims, an aristocratic family of Dutch descent, continued to speak Swedish as their first language. Carl Gustaf was born in 1867 and began attending the Cavalry School in St. Petersburg at the age of 20, marking the start of his three decades of service in the Tsar’s army. He gained his first taste of battle during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905). Thanks to his tactical and operational nous, Mannerheim was then tasked with leading a two-year intelligence-gathering expedition to the area along the Russian-Chinese border. Mannerheim fought on the Russian side again during the First World War. But then the February Revolution of 1917 brought his career in the Imperial Army to an end and he returned to his native Finland, where the situation was no less chaotic. The government had seized its opportunity to declare the country independent. At the same time, Lenin was hinting that Finland could be given even more territory if the Bolsheviks were to come to power there too. An uprising by the Bolshevik-supporting ‘Reds’ led to civil war with the ‘Whites’, the faction loyal to the government. Mannerheim was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the White Army. The civil war, which raged on for four months before the Whites emerged victorious, was fought using extremely ruthless tactics, caused thousands of casualties on both sides and created divisions in society that would last long after it was over. Mannerheim subsequently withdrew from the public sphere and devoted himself to humanitarian activities in particular. It was during this period that Mannerheim discovered Switzerland and paid frequent visits to Lausanne to enjoy the natural environment and receive medical treatment.

If there is one place on Earth dedicated to sweet idleness, rest and recuperation, then it is Switzerland, […] the beauty of the landscape, but especially the mountains, the Alps, which give you the impression that you are floating in the atmosphere, above the clouds, between heaven and Earth.

Mannerheim in a letter, 1947.

“The greatest strength of a small country is unity”

In 1932, Finland signed a non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union, thus appearing to dispel any immediate danger. However, this did not stop the Soviet Union from repeatedly calling upon Finland to cede territory. Mannerheim, who had meanwhile come out of retirement and been appointed supreme commander of the country’s armed forces, recommended that the government give in to these demands, arguing that the Finnish Army was not strong enough to repel a Soviet attack. Shortly after signing the Hitler-Stalin Pact, which placed Finland in the Soviet sphere of influence, Stalin resumed negotiations on ceding territory, but these did not meet with success. The Soviet Union no longer felt compelled to honour the terms of its non-aggression treaty with Finland, and the Red Army launched a major offensive just a few days later. The Winter War had begun. Despite the vast superiority of its forces and weapons, the Soviet Union was not able to occupy Finland. In fact, the Red Army suffered severe losses. The Finnish Army demonstrated creativity in its employment of shrewd tactics. Instead of attempting to directly protect the border, it concentrated its positions along a line that was easy to defend. The soldiers camouflaged themselves in white attire and moved across the deep snow on skis, making them more flexible than the Soviets in their heavy boots.
The Molotov cocktail was another invention of the Winter War. It was the Finn’s cynical response to Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Mikhaylovich Molotov’s claim that Soviet fighter planes were dropping food parcels and not bombs.
The Molotov cocktail was another invention of the Winter War. It was the Finn’s cynical response to Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Mikhaylovich Molotov’s claim that Soviet fighter planes were dropping food parcels and not bombs. Wikimedia
The Finns were not the only ones to be heartened by these successes: the grit and determination shown by this small nation in standing up to its Bolshevik opponent also met with great approval in Switzerland. After all, many Swiss likewise felt threatened by the urge for territorial expansion of the major powers that wedged them in. Some wanted to join the Finnish Army as volunteers, but the Federal Council refused them permission to do so. A fund-raising campaign brought in more than four million francs in donations in just a few months. The wave of solidarity was accompanied by expressions of veneration for Marshal Mannerheim.
“Though deeply shaken, we keep watch and ask ourselves what has become of right and honour. Your bitter fate concerns us too, and your freedom is as dear to us as our own.” Excerpt and front page of Nebelspalter magazine, 1940.
“Though deeply shaken, we keep watch and ask ourselves what has become of right and honour. Your bitter fate concerns us too, and your freedom is as dear to us as our own.” Excerpt and front page of Nebelspalter magazine, 1940. e-periodica
The Swiss armed forces were also interested in finding out more about the defence tactics employed by the extremely mobile Finnish Army, and about the clothing and weapons used. The military was keen to send a fact-finding mission to the Finnish front, but Mannerheim refused permission. However, he did agree to answer a Swiss questionnaire about the experiences gained in the Winter War. The Red Army learned from its mistakes and began making better preparations for a large-scale offensive in February 1940. Finland was forced to concede defeat and accept drastic terms of capitulation. Despite this outcome, Mannerheim gained international recognition for his leadership style, having achieved a number of remarkable victories over a more powerful opponent. In Switzerland, the Winter War served the armed forces as an example of how a small nation state could stand up to a great power. Finland’s defensive action became part of the history curriculum in secondary schools, helping to keep the Winter War alive in the collective memory until well into the 1970s.
Excerpt from a textbook on the Second World War for secondary schools in the canton of St. Gallen, published in 1970.
Excerpt from a textbook on the Second World War for secondary schools in the canton of St. Gallen, published in 1970.
Excerpt from a textbook on the Second World War for secondary schools in the canton of St. Gallen, published in 1970. Zentralbibliothek Zürich

From Continuation War to separate peace

However, the state of peace that followed the Winter War was short-lived. The Second World War raged on: Nazi Germany occupied first Denmark, then Norway, while the Soviet Union annexed the Baltic states. Seeking a way to reclaim its lost territories, Finland cooperated with the still victorious Germany. The resulting Continuation War against the Soviet Union lasted until 1944. The predominant view in Switzerland was that Finland had not entered into a formal alliance with the Third Reich, but was fighting against the Soviet Union on its own terms. Nevertheless, some were disappointed that Finland, which they had previously admired, was now throwing in its lot with Nazi Germany – a few even went so far as to ask for the return of the money they had donated to the cause of the Winter War. One year after the renewed outbreak of war, an exchange of officers took place. Two Swiss officers spent several weeks in Finland drawing up reports on the country and its history, as well as on the front and military training. In 1943, Germany’s defeat started to look inevitable. Finland wanted to withdraw from the fighting and agree peace terms with the Soviet Union. Mannerheim later repeatedly insisted that he had never shared the ideology of the Third Reich and that Finland had only allied itself with Germany in order to defend itself. In the end, he was entrusted with the mammoth task of negotiating a separate peace with the Soviet Union. And, to the surprise of many, he succeeded: although forced to cede extensive areas of land and pay reparations, the country did not become a Soviet satellite state.
At the end of the Continuation War, Finland was forced to cede even more territory to the Soviet Union than after the Winter War.
At the end of the Continuation War, Finland was forced to cede even more territory to the Soviet Union than after the Winter War. Wikimedia
Shortly after the conclusion of the peace negotiations, Mannerheim withdrew permanently from active service, citing his declining health. From 1948, he spent most of his time in Switzerland, at the Valmont Clinic near Montreux in the canton of Vaud. Here, away from war-torn Europe, he devoted himself to writing his memoirs while undergoing various medical treatments. He had been suffering for some time from pulmonary infections, from stomach ulcers and from eczema that continued to spread to new parts of his body. However, he did not lead an entirely secluded life: he often met with former consuls, aristocrats and members of the military.

Death and legacy

Mannerheim’s health took a considerable turn for the worse in January 1951. He passed away in the Cantonal Hospital in Lausanne shortly before midnight on 27 January. The deceased’s body was initially laid out in Switzerland, with Swiss officers forming a guard of honour. Many notable people, including General Guisan, came to pay their last respects. The Marshal was finally flown home to be buried in his native Finland.
The Swiss cinema newsreel reported on Carl Gustaf Mannerheim’s death (video in German, subtitles in French). Memobase
Today, Mannerheim’s name remains inextricably linked with Finland’s independence and with the Finnish Army. A commemorative ceremony is held at his memorial in Switzerland every year. And the exchange of officers continues: the Mannerheim Scholarship offers Swiss and Finnish officers the chance to spend several weeks familiarising themselves with the military organisation in the other country.

Published on: 17.12.2024

Modified on: 08.01.2025

URL: https://blog.nationalmuseum.ch/en/2024/12/donning-skis-and-snowsuits-to-fight-the-red-army/

More of: 20th / 21st centuryPoliticsWar/battlePersonalities

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