FINLAND Was READY FOR WAR! | The Immense SALPA LINE 🇫🇮

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

THANKS FOR WATCHING!! 👍 If you enjoyed the video please consider LIKING & SUBSCRIBING - they really help me out! 👍 🇫🇮 My FINLAND Travel Vlogs → bit.ly/mwt_finland | 📷 Connect on INSTAGRAM → bit.ly/mwt_instagram 📍 My videos on a TRAVEL MAP → bit.ly/mwt_map

[@carkawalakhatulistiwa]

Sometimes I wonder if the younger generation of people in European countries have forgotten how terrible nuclear war was. When the United States invaded Cuba's bay of pigs just because Cuba declared joining the Warsaw fact. And it ended with the Soviets sending missiles to Cuba to defend Cuba. 2014 Ukrainian coup.Nazis in Ukraine. Laying a military base 300 km from Moscow. The West wanted this war and they got it.

[@scanpolar]

You are doing very important historic info . Very few foreigners have any knowledge of our wars . Thank you!

[@RichardMathews-gv7lb]

Some great Finnish films about the wars with the SU on Prime

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you for watching, really interested to learn more so it's great reading all the comments.

[@trespire]

I have worked with Finnish machinery and been to Kauhava for training. I found the Fins very intriguing. While you are quiet and almost intraverted, your expertese and dedication to doing things the right way is admirable. I learned it is the land of a thousand lakes, there are more trees than people, in rural areas you leave cabins unlocked and stocked with food and fire making provisions in case some traveler has an emergency. You have a great tradition of outdoor activities (picking mushrooms, hiking, hunting, fishing). In Kauhava there is a tradition of forging quality steel, especially the Kauhava knife. A nation of good people.

[@asicdathens]

It is quite a known fact in Europe. Elsewhere perhaps no

[@taavihorila3879]

My grandma was a Lotta, serving in one of those Observation Towers. During the wartime, she was taught some meteorological basics too. And decades later, she taught us kids the cloud types in Latin: cirrus, cumulus, stratus and so on.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's incredible, love how she taught you the cloud types! A real heroine for sure!

[@Juhani96]

This line was very last defensive line, meant for the last stand if all VKT's and Mannerheim line would fall. Fortunately soviet's never manage to break trough of all frontline obstacles.

[@herptek]

Mannerheim-line was the most important defence line during the winter war, but after ceding the Karelian Isthmus for peace all Finnish fortifications there were demolished by the Soviet Union. Construction of Salpa-line was supposed to guard the rest of mainland Finland during the interim peace. After Finnish reconquest of the Karelian Isthmus in 1941 the main defensive lines were once again located in the Karelian Isthmus and additionally also on the Olonets Isthmus that fell under Finnish control during the offensive phase of the continuation war. The notable defensive lines on the Karelian Isthmus during the defensive phase of the continuation war in 1944 were the boringly named main defence line, the VT-line and the VKT-line, where the Soviet summer offensive was ultimately stopped. In case that the defenses on the Karelian Isthmus and/or Olonets Isthmus and Ladoga Karelia had broken, there would of course still had been the Salpa-line just in case. Thankfully the Soviet offensive was halted before reaching the interior of Finland, however.

[@Juhani96]

@@herptek thanks for pointing those details down 👍

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

It was an impressive feat to build such a long defensive line along the border but very much needed just in case. Thanks for the info.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the information posted here, very interesting to read. Always good to get some of the details such as you have provided with your comment. Much appreciated.

[@MultiMeetube]

Fun fact about Finnish conscription. The NCO course lasts for 105 days which is not a coincidence.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

What are the chances of that, huh?

[@curtisackenbrack2669]

Is there still conscription in the Finnish Army?

[@MultiMeetube]

​@@curtisackenbrack2669 Most definitely is! I myself completed it some years ago

[@Valokaari]

@@curtisackenbrack2669 Never ended. System has been over 100 years and still going strong!

[@stefanobonaiuti8243]

I didn't know that, interesting.

[@MS940]

Thanks for coming here again and making this👋 We finnish viewers are quite active in YT so you might get good views on this 😎

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, fingers crossed! Always good to be back in Finland. 🇫🇮

[@vincent5981]

The Finns are a great and hardy people. They are a well respected part of the nordic countries. Sweden can be very happy to have them as their neighbour to the east.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Don't mess with the Finns 🇫🇮

[@seazonchik]

​@@MattWhitingsEuropedont mess with Russians

[@vincent5981]

@@seazonchik Why don't mess with the russians?

[@seazonchik]

@@vincent5981 just learn the history. And make conclusions

[@linas-y3s]

@@seazonchik 🤣

[@turvis94]

It's nice you visit eastern Finland, many foreigners only visit Helsinki and Lapland

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's what I realised when researching the trip. Pretty much everyone goes to Helsinki or Lapland! I've been to Helsinki but wasn't all that fussed about Lapland, seemed very touristy and I wanted to see the real Finland. Maybe I'll visit Lapland one day but I prefer to get off the beaten track, so to speak.

[@FINMrCurly]

Joo ja ne on vaan kissankusi suomesta

[@eerokutale277]

In the last two wars against Finland, Soviet Union suffered 1.3 million total casualties of which 0.5 million were KIA/MIA, more than US casualties in the WW2, 9 x US casualties in the Vietnam war.

[@kukaliemikalie8157]

Good

[@mjfan653]

The finns were fighting for their survival. They shot to kill. Something not done in most wars. That meeting soviet wave tactics was brutal.

[@peterpanini96]

Yeah Vietnam War was won by usa because usa victoriously retreated after bombing the shit out of Vietnam and the french lost their colonies... thanks godness Vietnam is independent now... 😅

[@ivanskirchak4935]

The Soviets aren’t known for much strategy other than throwing numbers at problems.

[@johanpuotila7210]

@@peterpanini96 Vietnam is indeed another good example of not always getting what you want, no matter how big you are. In case of the U.S., domestic public opinion as a result of free media also played a major role, as we know. Stalin did not need to worry about that. Propaganda, censorship plus the jailing and elimination of dissidents - and millions more - took care of that. As to state propaganda, censorship and dealing with dissent or peace movements, we see the same in Russia today.

[@juhakivimaki94]

handful of volunteers still dig up bodies from the swamps near the border.they are surprisingly well preserved,some are even identifiable

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Incredible, especially after all these years.

[@greighwulf]

Finland is such a beautiful country

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Very true.

[@bobbrown5529]

very impressive fortifications . One hopes , that they will not be needed again with the Russian aggression . The country side is stunning and I look forward to your Lakes episodes . I have just subscribed so I don't miss them . I Love people who do this type of stuff . You make it very enjoyable , yet there is the serious side to these stories and I thank you for sharing Finland's History with us . Many thanks from Australia .

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much, Bob. Glad you're enjoying the videos, just in case you've missed them here's a playlist with all my Finnish Lakeland videos --> bit.ly/mwt_finnishlakeland . It certainly is a shame that the threat and aggression remains, especially the way things are in eastern Europe. Thanks again for tuning in and happy to have you on board!

[@johanpuotila7210]

To clarify and to be accurate, in the Continuation War the Finns made it indeed very close to St. Petersburg - or Leningrad in those days - in search of defensively optimal positions, but the Finnish army stopped its attack after this and took defensive positions. The Germans encouraged the Finnish army to go on towards Leningrad itself, but the Finnish leadership refused. The goal was not to attack a Russian city. It was not ”Germans and Finns” that advanced this far on the Finnish front but the Finnish army alone as the limited German troops in Finland were stationed in Lapland. So the Finns did not attack or shell Leningrad. The Finnish army was pushed back only in summer of 1944 when Soviet Union started its second major strategic attack with the objective of occupying Finland. For such a situation the Salpa line had been built, as the last lock (”salpa” means latch or bolt). Also the Russians knew of its existence, meaning that after the Russian attack was stopped in the summer of 1944 in the Tali-Ihantala area, the attacking Russians having suffered huge casualties, they knew that if regrouping and keep trying their casualties would only accumulate further - and the Salpa-line was still waiting ahead, untouched. So for the Russians it was suddenly better to focus on Berlin, a strategically more important goal, pulling troops from the Finnish front instead of shipping even more to replace the heavy losses and instead engage in peace negotiations with the Finns. Thereby Salpa-line was never needed, luckily, it never saw any action. But it did its job as a precaution.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's really interesting and informative, thank you for explaining some of the detail. Really fascinating to read.

[@ConradAinger]

When you say the Soviet Union engaged in negotiations with Finns, that is to express it euphemistically. In September 1944 Finland accepted the Soviet Union's terms terms.t..

[@ConradAinger]

When you say the Soviet Union engaged in negotiations with Finns, that is to express it euphemistically. In September 1944 Finland accepted the Soviet Union's terms terms.t..

[@ConradAinger]

Apologies for repetition, a typing error.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

No probs, thanks for the info!

[@Joka_kuti_huti]

Glad to know that u visited my home town Miehikkälä! Feel free to explore more of Miehikkälä and visit more often if u can!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much, cool place!

[@acmelka]

The Winter war fascinates me. Great content. I have added this tour to my bucket list.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Very interesting indeed. Glad you found the video helpful.

[@RoyalMela]

14:45. Finland never went towards Leningrad during Continuation war. Finland only took back the land lost in Winter War and never pursued further in Karelian isthmus. All finnish troops stayed at the pre-war border. Finns did advance beyond old border, but that was only north of Lake Ladoga. That part of Soviet Union had dozens of small towns and cities which were ethnically finnish, and were a target for Stalins ethnic purges. Finland tried to liberate those towns and it's people from being sent to gulaks or killed.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the information, very interesting.

[@meomarte]

And here the mandatory Unknown Soldier quote: Ja tähän loppui sitten meitin oikeutemme. Meinaan tästä lähtien ollaan rosvoretkellä.

[@Pippie5555]

Nobody here in Scandinavia Iikes Russia.

[@outsider7658]

Hello. Nice to see somebody, interested in our history. I am originally from Karelia, and also a great fan of history. One or two points though: The "real" meaning of "salpa" is a construction to prevent opening of a door ( like a latch) or making it impossible/more difficult, to get in/out, of "somewhere". Same, per definition, as this barrier line. Both my grandfather fought along the Karelian line, during both wars. If You have time, visit the Suomussalmi and Raatteentie. The Ruzzians got whipped there, big time. Worth a visit. from a Finn in Diaspora

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you for your comment, I found this subject really interesting - there's certainly plenty to learn. Thanks for the further information, very useful and good to read. Thanks also for the suggestions, they sound like the type of places that would really interest me, however I won't get chance to visit them on this trip - I've made a note on my map though and may visit them if I find myself in that area in the future. Thanks again.

[@EiraAimo]

One thing worth of mentioning is the no man is left behind -attitude. Search operations have been going on all these years, latest result is when 2 weeks ago families buried 3 soldiers in their home soil after 80 years MIA. History is alive in many ways...

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Really interesting and thought provoking, I didn't realise bodies were still being found and laid to rest. Thanks for the update!

[@oh2mp]

Great documentation again, Matt! You may know these things but maybe some of your watchers want to know a little extra information: Salpa can be translated as hasp or latch, and in my opinion it was a great word chosen for that fortification line. The building project was the biggest in Finnish history that time. There were 35000 men building it. Lotta Svärd was a voluntary military support association for women and the members were called as Lottas. Lotta is a girl's name which is shorter version of Charlotta and used in Finland and Sweden. Svärd is Swedish for a sword, and it is also a surname used in Finland and Sweden (I even know some people who have that surname). Although the name of that association sounds like a real woman's name, it really doesn't refer to any real person. Lottas were working eg. in military hospitals, catering, military communications, aerial surveillance etc. at the wartime and they are very respected about their work.

[@PSPaaskynen]

Lotta Svärd was a character from Runeberg's "The Tales of Ensign Stål" and the organisation was named after that (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotta_Svärd_(poem)

[@oh2mp]

@@PSPaaskynen yep. Not a real person.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much for the additional information, very interesting to read!

[@dananorth895]

Interesting. Women in critical positions deserve respect and usually earn it. During the great Spanish flu epidemic, doctors had no knowlede of viruses yet. They believed it was bacterial or its byproducts/poison. They were helpless to assist thecsick and dying. The women who were nurses provides the most good to the sick, dying and recouvering. The were highly regarded and within 3-4 yrs were finally given the right to vote in america. Amazing how much is overlooked by so many.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@dananorth895 Yes indeed. Excellent point!

[@WITYTRAVELS]

What a fascinating video. Great job Matt!!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@shoaibiqbal391]

Informative

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks

[@Pyhantaakka]

And it was never used, soviets didn't make it that far.

[@DT-wp4hk]

😂

[@herptek]

​@@DT-wp4hkThe Soviet offensive was defeated in decisive defensive battles at the VKT-line, on the Karelian Isthmus, roughly on the same spot as where the Mannerheim line had been during the earlier winter war, and in the U-position in the Olonets Isthmus. The Soviet offensive totally failed in its objectives.

[@DT-wp4hk]

@@herptek I know. Well done.

[@Pyhantaakka]

​@@DT-wp4hk😂

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Go Finland! 🇫🇮

[@Zuggaguz]

Hi Matt, thank you for the video. I would like to visit this line at some point. Just a tip to help on your travels: install "Google lens" on your phone if you don't have it already. You can translate text with it live through your phone's camera or snap a photo and even translate from photos on your phone. So you can translate the boards and such immediately or snap pictures of them and translate it later. You can also copy the translated text so it should help with editing the videos.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much, that will prove useful I'm sure. I've used Google Translate before but not heard of Lens so will give it a go. Thanks for watching!

[@nostromo.]

The Soviets did never declare their losses. Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev told The Finnish president Kekkonen that they lost over one million men against Finland.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Incredible, those numbers are staggering and horrific in equal measure. They don't seem to care about their people.

[@j.dunlop8295]

Definitely, Russian poor showing led to Germany attacking Russia, weakness calls for invasion?

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

So it seems yes.

[@teuvodogg]

@@MattWhitingsEurope They have always done it without caring about casualties. It is their style to this day, just look at what they are doing in Ukraine.

[@RiasSenpaiTheWallet]

@@MattWhitingsEurope According to my uncles, they met Kekkonen and Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev in lapland on a reindeer hut, he gave them few Kopecks. Can't say how reliable this info is since my uncles were around 5-10 years old back then.

[@BeauInPDX]

Thank you for visiting and showcasing some of our history. We are Karelian, I grew up listening to my Ukki telling the war stories that he and his brothers experienced. I've been to the Salpa line ruins as a kid but only when I grew into adulthood did I understand that it was sort of our last defense line.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

You're welcome, I'm really enjoying my time in Finland. Interesting to hear about your Ukki and his brother telling stories of the war, those two are real heroes.

[@Finland-SkiTeam39-40]

Thank you Matt and huge respect; randomly saw this and addition to that you look like a finnish dude with perfect english 🙂.Great on point video and all us Finns must always remember that we still speak our language because what our nation did at that time and further. RUK 185

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Haha and thank you! Glad you randomly bumped into this video and thanks for watching! It's always important to remember the past and the sacrifice previous generations made for our freedom, in this case all those who fought against Soviet invasion.

[@TheMlgFox]

Stumbled on your channel, can already say I love your content so far, very informative and dedicated to explanation. Subscribed!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much, welcome aboard. Glad you're enjoying the content, makes my day when I hear people saying that! 😁

[@sampohonkala4195]

At 15:00 No, The USSR did not get even close to the 1940 border that was agreed after the Winter War. The Red Army took the city of Viipuri, but soon after the USSR lost the battles of Tali-Ihantala near Viipuri and could never advance further. Understanding they were stuck paved the way to the armistice in September 1944. The USSR realized it had failed to conquer Finland for the second time in WW2.

[@georgevladimirovich7190]

Actually my friend, the armistice was the initiative of General Mannerheim and for a very sound reason. The Finns had limited resources in terms of equipment and manpower vs the Soviets who had unlimited resources in terms of equipment and manpower. That being said it was his decision to sue for peaceful compromise.

[@sampohonkala4195]

@@georgevladimirovich7190 Of course it was. But If the Red Army had been smoothly advancing towards Helsinki they would have had zero reason to accept any other terms than unconditional surrender, which they had demanded earlier during the summer offensive. The reason Finland's future was not in the Warsaw pact but the free world on the Western side of the iron curtain was that the Soviet army was defeated in Karelia and it could not reach its military goals.

[@georgevladimirovich7190]

@@sampohonkala4195 I respect the fact that you love your country but facts are facts even if we like them or not. The Soviet leadership had no interest in going to Helsinki but rather in using Finland as a buffer zone. They also would have had preferred a neutral Finland, as it was the case until recently. The demise of the tsarist empire implied automatically a re-drawing of the existing borders. So at the end of the winter war of 1940, a large part of Karelia was ceded by Finland to the Soviet Union bringing the border more or less similar to the one tsarist empire had in 1721.

[@magnusgeirkjartansson5972]

⁠@@georgevladimirovich7190Sweden became the de facto buffer state. When Finland signed the armistice their situation was hopeless in the long term, but they had proven to Moscow that conquering Finland would not just be a operation; but a whole campaign of it self. While that was going on the soviets were closing in on the german border after the major victories of operation bagration in the previous summer. At that time the Germans were still very much capable of waging war which they were trying to do on multiple fronts. Stalin was very concerned about the possibility of Germany making separate peace of some sort with the allies. His paranoia must undoubtedly have driven him to the conclusion that the finnish front was simply not worth it compared to the gains he could win or loose in central and south Europe. The soviets would obviously never be the one to ask for armistice with Finland since they had the upper hand by any point of view in the end of 1944; that’s just negotiation tactics 101. They could’ve just waited and let the finns watch how the red army rolled through Germany, and they could also have invaded Finland successfully in the summer of 1945. Stalin was very calculated in his ways to maximise soviet influence and gains, his paranoia was one of the main factors behind the original invasion if Finland; and it was certainly driving him towards closing the Finnish front asap at the time.

[@sampohonkala4195]

@@georgevladimirovich7190 And exactly what in my text you consider not a fact? The Soviet government demanded unconditional surrender as a requirement for peace during their summer offensive 1944. So they were aiming for the occupation of Finland just like the Baltic countries. This demand was lifted after the Red Army lost the battles in Tali-Ihantala and Ilomantsi. Finland was neutral before 1939 so that was not the goal of the Invasion of Finland in 1939 and Finland as a sovereign country could of course not be a 'buffer zone' for anything. Normal countries arrange military buffer zones within their own borders, just like Finland did with Salpa line.

[@FINNIUSORION]

that bunker gun would have been deafening in that concrete room with no way for sound to escape. I'm third gen American, all my grandparents were Finnish. they're a very proud people with an extremely difficult language lol. but good video, its one of my favorite subjects. they really gave the ussr a run for their money. sisu!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed the video, fascinating place for sure. And yes, they certainly did 💪

[@fmalovegirl98]

Ah, I'm from these areas, really familiar sceneries! You can indeed feel the history there, we even have those stones (similar to the ones seen at 17:00) near of our backyard at my parents place bc my childhood home is pretty close to the baltic sea. Really underrated area, Eastern Finland is imo so beautiful but really underrated! Thank you for showing these dear sceneries to others here on yt! Truly appreciate your efforts to see and visit these historical places people might not know about! That museum too is really familiar to me (my dad and I are history junkies so I love museum visits haha), we even planted some tree saplings not that far away from the museum when I was in middle school lol, a nice activity during the last week of school before summer holidays :")

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Great story, you should go back and see what they have become! From small things big things one day come! Thanks for the comment, very interesting to read.

[@43isak]

Tack för filmen. Min far var under beredskasåren placerad i Vittangi som bilförare, (gengas) Gissar undertecknad blev till under någon permission. örde honom berätta om slitet.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Tack för att du tittade, intressant att höra om din far. Tack för kommentaren!

[@scanpolar]

Interesting Salpalinja bunkers south of Joensuu and in Joensuu itself.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the info, I'm going to visit a few more during my trip!

[@michaelteasdale4708]

Some years ago, my wife, grandson and I were visiting Family in Hattula / Parola, about 110 km north of Helsinki. Situated near there is the PANSAAR MUSEO (think I have that right!!!!) Very interesting, and well worth a visit!!!!!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the info, sounds intriguing. However I can't seem to find it on my map, the only thing that's coming up is the Panser & Artillerimuseum in Denmark!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Got it! Thank you.

[@ScenesBySevy]

Several movies about these wars: Tuntematon sotilas (2017) Tuntematon sotilas (1955) Talvisota (1989)

[@mopojopo2]

tali-ihantala, rukajärventie, etulinjan edessä...

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's good to know, I didn't realise so many movies had been made about the wars. Thanks for adding that and I hope all is well with you!

[@tiistai9696]

Tuntematon sotilas (1985)

[@dananorth895]

Thanks, screen copied your list. Someone said there on prime. I think I've seen all of them but I downloaded them on torrents. I'd forgotten their names.🤔

[@kukaliemikalie8157]

And it still works + the trees and the lakes.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Impressive for sure, designed to withstand the test of time!

[@AB-pp2zy]

Hi! New finnish viewer! I have to say, I've never seen a foreigner look this Finnish.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Haha you're not the first to say that 😆 Welcome aboard!

[@Bob94390]

Blondes have more fun :-)

[@dananorth895]

I assumed Finnish at first bit the accent didn't match up. Lol

[@joshflugel]

Finnish sniper Simo Häyhä, better known as the White Death, is one of my favorite badass heroes in history.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

A few others have mentioned him, apparently he was buried in Ruokolahti which I visited in the first Route 62 video --> kzbin.info/www/bejne/lYTHgKibj6iKrJY - unfortunately I didn't realise it at the time!

[@joshflugel]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Nice, wonderful channel!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@@joshflugel Thank you 😁

[@GreySectoid]

Nice tour around the Salpa line, greetings from Kuopio.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much!

[@OsmoAntero]

Good work, mate !

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks a lot!

[@robertwilkinson8421]

Very nice video of some Interesting Historical sites. Many Thanks for sharing!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Glad you enjoyed the video and thanks for watching. 👍

[@sleepybubbi9638]

Excellent video, Matt! The production level on your videos just keeps going up and up 😁 i like the new intro, too! It looks absolutely beautiful there. I'd love to go back to Finland!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much, hope all is well with you! Glad you noticed the little intro I did for this series, thought it would make a bit of a change. Finnish Lakeland is incredible, you must visit at some point!

[@sleepybubbi9638]

@MattWhitingsEurope all is good thanks, I hope all is good with you too! I definitely noticed the new intro and I thought it was lovely! I'd definitely love to return to Finland in the future. Currently planning to make a trip to Tartu in the future, I was inspired by your last video on that! Also, congrats on the success of this video, its got so many views! Really well deserved 👏🏻

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much, pleased to hear you're off to Tartu - wonderful place and I'm sure you'll love it! I've been pleasantly surprised by the popularity of this video, I rarely get videos that perform like this so it's nice when it happens.

[@sleepybubbi9638]

@@MattWhitingsEurope It looks beautiful in Tartu! There is a 1.5 week long summer course at the University there (beginner level) for learning Estonian at the end of July/early Aug and I'm weighing up whether or not to go for it...🤔 And yes for sure, give yourself a big pat on the back, this video has done so well! 🙌🎉✨

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Sounds like a great opportunity, good luck if you decide to go!

[@arisoini3426]

Nice walk through

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you!

[@Hammer-u2b]

I am planning a trip in Finland. By camper. From Italy. These informations are interestings.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Good luck with the trip, I'm sure you'll have a great time! Hope my videos are proving useful.

[@Hongaars1969]

Hi Matt. Wow, truly amazing sights and insights and highly relevant to this day…Looking at the remoteness of where you travelled, for me, an ideal location to escape the mass tourism that prevails in so many other places around the world…..I also wonder if many of those defences would still manage to repel another attempt by Russia to attack Finland. Curious…are you currently traveling and editing, or was this from last year? And Euro 8 is bloody good value indeed. Thanks again. Safe travels. Zoltán

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Hi Zoltán, glad you're enjoying the videos. It's certainly good to get away from the tourist zones of Europe and out to somewhere that's a little less familiar to international tourists (and perhaps some Finns too!). Personally I love the remoteness and isolation that comes along with the Lakeland's of Finland - what an incredible place! There's a few other comments on the fortifications and their use today, I think the general consensus is that they would still be employed for limited tasks but modern warfare has changed the significance of these trenches perhaps forever. Yes I filmed this last year and have edited the videos together recently, it's nice when I do that as I get to walk down memory lane myself and relive the whole trip. Thanks for watching, more videos coming from Finnish Lakeland!

[@Bob94390]

Such trenches still play a role in modern warfare, as we see in Ukraine. Finland is now acquiring F-35 fighter planes with missiles that can reach Kremlin. This might influence the russian eagerness to invade, occupy and suppress smaller neighbour countries. Finland is now a part of NATO. Any russian dicktator who would try to invade Finland would find himself in big trouble. Respect for the Finns!

[@philipacino]

On your phone if you have Google Translate app, you can use a feature called Google lens, it uses your camera by pointing at a text you want to translate into English. On your screen the text will be overwritten with English text over the top. Very handy to have.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, yes I have that now so am all set to go!

[@philipacino]

@@MattWhitingsEurope No problem mate. look forward to future videos.

[@druidofthefang]

I have visited the museum a few times and the bunkers like 15:30 this one were quite scary. They were very small and echoey. I rememeber thinking how it would sound to fire the gun inside, the noise must be really loud. I very much recommend to go visit, even from far away it's worth it.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

It's a fascinating experience for sure. Walking around it does make you imagine what it would have been like during war time, and like you said, the sound of the machine guns and explosions nearby.

[@NexPutax]

At ~ 14:32, most likely a sauna not "some kind of storage room". Essential for morale & condition of "rintama sotilaat".

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Interesting, I would never have guessed. Thanks!

[@cfox7811]

Excellent presentation. Thank. You!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, very kind of you!

[@Teh0X]

Large portion of Salpa line went through nearly unbroken chain of lakes. Most of the isthmuses between would have been easy chokepoints to defend. It was this Southern section which didn't have many lakes and thus needed much heavier fortifications. The very Northern part was barely just a line on the map, because the fighting over there was different.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I see. Makes sense to focus on fortifying the areas that most need it, I guess the lakes up north made great natural barriers, would have been a lot harder to attack through them. And even if they did, when they made it across the lake there would be miles and miles of wild forests waiting for them with not a road in sight?

[@dananorth895]

Great bit of history! There are some very good Finnish movies on the Winter War, subtitled of course. Well worth searching for. Like most war it was brutal.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks!! Yes a few others have mentioned the movies, I hope to watch one at some point - I find it all very interesting. All the best.

[@dananorth895]

Thanks, saw your channel. Draculas Castle and Beatles tour,👍

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's great, always interests me to know how people found my channel. Good to have you on board!

[@Leopardipzg]

If you head up a bit north, you can find a piece of defensive line called "viisikon linja", that actually saw fighting and stopped the soviet invasion in Winter War. Nearby you also have the salpa line Bunker museum in Joensuu, and you also have another surprise: several kilometers of WW1 trenches. So you have remnants of these three different wars to explore close to each other if you have a car.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the tip, I hadn't heard of viisikon linja so I've made a note of it on my map. If I'm ever back in the area I'll take a look. Thanks for the information too, always good to read a bit more on the places I visit.

[@mariamm9460]

Hi Matt, watching now this video and must say you done so great video and information as all your videos are !👍I used to play in such trenches near the Russian border as a child in Ilomantsi..Tervaruukki and Oinassalmi and Petkeljärvi ..if you check the places somehow ..hope to visit there again ..Love your videos ❤😊

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Hello Mariam, thanks for watching - cool that you use to play in these trenches when you were younger. It must be amazing to find bits of the Salpa Line as you walk and play in the woods. Thanks also for mentioning those places, I had a look on Google maps and am impressed. The forests and lakes in this region are seemingly never ending - amazing!

[@mariamm9460]

@@MattWhitingsEuropeHello Matt😊 You are very Welcome Matt, good morning 😊been thinking all this morning how I can make my trip to my childhood places, thanks you Google places , those places I was so long time ago, but memories always fresh in mind..hope those trenches are still there in Tervaruukki..I went to swimming school in the Ruhkaranta/Ilomantsi beach (if u look that Ruhkaranta from Google ) Ruhkaranta is near Tervaruukki on the same road ...that is maybe some tourists place these days ..wish I had friend/friends who could travel with me by car, Those places need time and car to enjoy there and see carefully ...I am not giving up my dream to visit there..in Joensuu can rent a car if nothing else comes ..Thanks Matt, hope you have a lovely Thursday ☕❤😊🙋‍♀️

[@mariamm9460]

@@MattWhitingsEurope just looked up from Google, Ruhkaranta Holiday Village ,,so lovely pictures, made tears on my eyes, so touching me that my childhood place there ..I used to go all the summers swimming in that beach..and we did many other activities there ..🌊🛶😊❤

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Good morning, sounds like your adventure is getting closer to reality every day, planning is always the key to success and it's always good to have a plan B. Sounds like you have some wonderful places on your list, I'm sure it will all work out and you'll have a memorable time! Have a great day too!

[@mariamm9460]

​​@@MattWhitingsEuropehello Matt😊you are very Welcome..writing answer now second time,, something went wrong earlier dont see myself my reply to you sent little earlier ..Thank you so much Google those places , Tervaruukki and Petkeljärvi , Oinassalmi ..so touches me think those places from my childhood, I was swimming in Ruhkaranta wish is on the same road towards Tervaruukki..I did also my swimming school there and other activities 🛶🌊😂wish I can see those places still,,need car to travel there, maybe rent a car in Joensuu , if not get any friend with me traveling by car..You are so kind and great to give information and videos, giving me much lovely feelings and push to go to my birthplace soon as possible..I just Google : Ruhkaranta Holiday Village looks lovely, there can overnight if it's open dont know now....Have a lovely Thursday..😊❤🙋‍♀️

[@jerekorva]

about the obeservation tower: the sign says there (in finnish) something like "this tower was built in the late 1980s" but of course there were plenty of towers alike 50ish years earlier, just not that one.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I see. Thanks for the information, so I guess it was more of an example of the towers that were actually used?

[@jerekorva]

@@MattWhitingsEurope more like that tower was used during 80s (and after?) and there were towers alike before.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Ah yes I understand. Thanks 👍

[@jerekorva]

@@MattWhitingsEurope as with everything else about the internets, don't consider my trueness to be the truth. i do think that i replied with an accurate information but one might never know.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yeah no worries, interesting to get your take and I'll try to look into it. Thanks for the heads up. 👍

[@elRiku00]

I believe you might have mentioned the Virolahti bunker museum located near Salpamuseo. Great place with same kind of things as Salpamuseo. It's about 20km from Salpamuseo in Virolahti and they have the best butter eye bunns as well :D

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes indeed, I really wanted to visit it but just couldn't fit it into my schedule. My aim for that day was to make it up to the Lakes and see as much stuff as possible doing so. Who knew there would be soooo much to see on the way! Those buns you mentioned make me feel hungry, I will definitely have to check them out next time. Thanks for the tip.

[@Knightonagreyhorse]

It is a museum but it still serves its function as far as I can tell.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Interested to learn more about this. I read that with modern warfare the Salpa Line had lost most of its military advantages, however I'm sure there would still be some uses for it. Make sense to defend from a line of fortifications that already exist, especially as most of them are in forests and by lakes.

[@danielhammond3012]

I only have a cursory knowledge of the Finnish wars but I do know for certain that I would rather have the Finns on my side than as opposition.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Having heard about the Winter War I'm inclined to agree!

[@dananorth895]

There's a Finnish Counterinsurgency book that was put out back then. Iused to have a copy but I think it's gone. It was a government print though. One of the best manuals on fighting guerrilla style war in winter as well.

[@oliverraupp6440]

Interesting history between those two countries.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's one word for it.

[@raatteenlumipuku]

we have already 5 kilometer deep minefield all th way south to north on the east border

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I think it's best to be prepared!

[@sqb_]

I clicked on this video because I couldn't help but comment about the fact that you look very, very Finnish yourself!! Haha

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Haha a few people have said the same thing. Too many for it just to be a coincidence 😂 I will have to get a Finnish version of my name sorted out!

[@cinnamontea326]

Your Finnish name would be Matti😊​@@MattWhitingsEurope

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Matti? I like it!! 😆

[@larrywave]

​@@MattWhitingsEuropeWhiting is maybe a valkoturska in Finnish

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Cool, thanks!

[@hannumononen6345]

The Salpa line was the greatest single construction project in Finnish history. Considering the total population of Finland at the time of its building was no more than some 3.8 million people, it was indeed quite an investment of resources. - Like mentioned in the video, the defensive structures include plenty of various tank traps and obstacles. On top of that, anti-tank mines could be placed to cripple the approaching vehicles of the enemy, and hollow-charge recoilless guns (German Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck weapons) used to destroy them.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

The more I think about it the more impressed I am with the Salpa Line, you're right it was an incredible piece of organisation and construction. It's easy to overlook how massive Finland is compared to the size of the population. It was a huge ask but the Finns pulled it off.

[@opa6662]

You should see also Bunker museum. And bunkers that are just waiting to be seen in the woods

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Bunker hunting sounds like a lot of fun, especially as there are so many to find. Will be visiting a few more as I head north.

[@leo.soininen]

A slight inaccuracy I have noted at around 15:00. Finland did indeed go deeper into the USSR, but not around Leningrad (they went a bit), rather it was in Karelia, where Finland advanced basically up to Petrozavodsk. Once the advancing was finished, Mannerheim ordered the army to dig in, where it formed 3 defensive lines along the Karelian Isthmus (The main line, VT line, and VKT line). The Soviet offensive of 1944 was stopped at the VKT line, and peace was made. Actually, it is due to Finland stopping their advancing that Hitler visited Finland in June 1942 in an attempt to have Finland contribute more offensively to the war.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the update and further information, very interesting to read. 👍

[@leo.soininen]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Glad to contribute a little to this amazing video!

[@tapio_m6861]

Finland has had a really complex relationship with Russia for a millenia. During the 18th century, when Finland was still part of Sweden, the Russians invaded Finland and raped, enslaved, burglarised, and razed practically speaking the entire area known as Finland proper. This period is dissected into two periods: the Great Wrath and the Lesser Wrath. I would say that then, if not even earlier, Finns grew to have suspicions about our neighbor to the east. So, when we talk about the WWII and Finland fighting against Russians, people might think that it was the first instance where Finns went against them, which is not true. We have fought against them for centuries. Edit: Finland did have radar equipment, but not a lot. Good set of binoculars would do almost as well. The radars were used in the high value areas, namely Tampere and Helsinki.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the additional info, very useful! The history is crazy, it goes back when further than I realised!!

[@Letstalkgaming]

Darn ... I missed that when I visited the Ease of Finland !

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

A great reason for going back someday! 😉

[@tak4043]

When Soviets finally offered Finland a peace treaty on February 23rd of 1940, Britain and France began to pressure Finland to stop negotiating. Lots of empty promises and threats. Apparently Finland would be on Germany's side if they made peace, wouldn't get any help in the future from them and that the whole Great War would be over if Finland made peace. The French mainly did the threatening and the British the empty promises. Göring had told Finland on February 22nd that Finland should accept the peace offer. Paasikivi said that the war had not gained Finland any respect in Soviet Union and Stalin alone agreed to offer the peace treaty. All the other military leaders wanted to continue. - Väinö Tanner - Olin Ulkoministerinä Talvisodassa(1951) (I Was the Foreign Minister in the Winter War)

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the information, very interesting to read.

[@juhopuhakka2351]

Aid that soviet got from America and Uk all most made us a soviet rebuplic.

[@bogtrottername7001]

@@juhopuhakka2351 Finland may have been the most politically complicated region during WWII. Perhaps a point of interest - I remodeled the Finish ambassador's basement (in D.C.) in the 1990's ! Such a lovely family with 3 adult children.

[@markanderson3870]

Just an idea, haha, but you might mention when the Salpa Line was built, and if it had any part in the Continuation War, and when it was decomissioned. I know it's in the written description, but you know, its a video thingy, and kind of important info.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the feedback. I'll certainly keep that in mind. 👍

[@ilari90]

I recommend watching "The Unknown Soldier" from some years ago. There's 3 of those but the newest one is good for international audiences. It's about Continuation War. There is a line when one guy boasts about Finnish bravery: "One Finn matches 10 Russkies!" and then one of the main guys says "Yeah, but what will you do when the eleventh comes..?" Nowadays on independence day we watch mostly the first or the last one, i've heard the middle one has it's benefits also, but haven't watched that properly. It has pretty gnarly take on the war, and was a groundbreaking book and movie after the war and the has shaped the view about the war somewhat to this day in our eyes.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for those suggestions, interesting to hear. I will have to try and catch it at some point, sounds like an entertaining film.

[@Munakas-wq3gp]

The book is also largely based on the authors own experiences in the war and the key characters have a real life counterpart. Some scenes like 'Rokka' mowing down a team of russians was even downplayed: In reality he killed around 200 enemies in one standing.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@@Munakas-wq3gp Incredible stuff, thanks for the explanation.

[@greendotblue5463]

Interesting video, thanks

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@abokickel]

Finland never went for Leningrad and never cut the life line of the city, the Murmansk railroad to the Arctic Sea, even though Germans were pushing them to do it. They stopped and the front line was more or less stationary from the late fall of -41 until June -44 when the Sovjets launched their massive attack.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Interesting, thanks for the information - always good to read about the history of these conflicts in a bit more detail.

[@kathleenmann7311]

Cool 😎👍

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you 😀

[@McSlobo]

So, in Barbarossa Finnish troops progressed to the edge of Leningrad but also all the way to lake Onega and river Svir between it and lake Ladoga. There was also some moderate progress north of that. German troops attacked from Lapland towards Murmansk managed to do little progress - the main objective is to defend Nikkeli - for obvious reasons. The situation stayed stationary in these positions, way further than the original border, until summer of 1944 when Soviet Union started to push back against Germany. As Soviet troops were overpowering Finland negotiated a deal and switched to beating Germans in the north.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the information, very interesting. Always good to learn a bit more about the places I visit and things I talk about. 👍

[@hannumononen6345]

" As Soviet troops were overpowering Finland negotiated a deal and switched to beating Germans in the north." - You are unfortunately cutting corners and oversimplifying history. Finland had been feeling for peace with the USSR since 1943 (to the outrage of Germans!), but every time Stalin insisted in unconditional surrender that would have destroyed Finland as we now know it, most likely leading to genocide of Finns in the style carried out under Soviet rule in each of the Baltic States since 1940. The Soviet long-range air force ADD attacked Helsinki trying to bomb it into ruins in 1944, but failed in their effort. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Helsinki_in_World_War_II When the tide had turned on the eastern front and Germany was retreating, Stalin made yet another attempt at taking all of Finland in his en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vyborg%E2%80%93Petrozavodsk_offensive , which turned out the largest battle in the history of Northern Europe. At the Battle of Tali-Ihantala, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Tali%E2%80%93Ihantala Finns gained a defensive victory with German support that terminated that offensive. Only thereafter did Stalin drop his demand of unconditional surrender, which made negotiated peace possible for Finland. The terms were still harsh but Finland's independence and sovereignty were saved. Fighting Germans in Lapland 1944-45 were built-in into Soviet peace terms, despite of neither Finns nor Germans had reasons of their own to start fighting each other, but Finland then had no choice, in order to get its exit from the war.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Very interesting, thank you for your detailed explanation.

[@Lepe_pro]

very nice video. You should go grill some sausage at matsun laavu. I suggest HK sininen lenkki. Its the best sausage in finn :D. At matsun laavu there is bunker you can explore freely and if you continue the main road at matsun laavu there is secon and third bunker also you can see. They are not maintained so its very cool to explore them when nobody has gone there. I lived there about ten years. Its very nice place. And actually there is military pracises still going on. There is also Valkjärvi what is very good place to swimming. Its located in harju.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, I'll keep that in mind if I fancy a bit of sausage when in Finland again. However, I can't see matsun laavu on a map, where is it near?

[@bleo8371]

Can i recommend you our Czech defense line around borders?.. google Czech bunkers.. we have a lot ! i live in location where every forest or field almost have it.. Its around Náchod close to Poland borders... these are massive bunkers, wehrmacht trained on them France attack.. they didnt know how to break them.. its like 1m concrete wall at least :D

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes you definitely can! Sounds really interesting, I've made a note of Náchod in case I'm ever in the area (which I hope to be, Czechia is a country I want to revisit having only seen Prague), if you have any other specific recommendations in that area I'd love to hear them. Thanks for watching!

[@timovilkki5209]

Thank you.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for watching!

[@CulturalBarbarian]

"Säkkijärvi is no more, but at least we still have the polka"

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I will take your word for it 😊

[@FINMrCurly]

There is Säkkijärvi still. Not there but is

[@FINMrCurly]

Kauhajoella on Säkkijärvi

[@AngeFIN]

I hope you don't mind me saying this, but you look very Finnish!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I don't mind at all. A few people have said the same thing!! 😂

[@iam5085]

I was absolutely sure this was some Finnish blogger, lol. Based on my DNA tests, I am 73% Finnish, 20% Swedish, 7% Irish/Brittish etc, Viking heritage? 😅

[@DT-wp4hk]

Interesting.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you!

[@iz778]

My grandfather fought in the Winter War on the Soviet side and then in the WWII. We were planning to go to Kareliya to visit some sites of the Mannerheim Line but then the whole Russia-Ukraine thing happened.

[@WITYTRAVELS]

20K already? Let's dive in!

[@qwertcvbnmm]

10:20 you forgot to turn the arrow XD

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Ooops! 😬

[@RoyalMela]

Salpa in english means "a latch." "A metal bar with a catch and lever used for fastening a door or gate."

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That makes sense, thanks for mentioning it.

[@RiasSenpaiTheWallet]

My grandpa was fighting in karelia and my granny was a lotta in Lapland

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's amazing! Real people fighting for their country, and most probably their survival.

[@larsrons7937]

Thank you for an interesting tour. I never saw the Salpa Line myselfso I'm glad to at least watch this video. 18:47 - This T-34 tank, are you sure it's not one of the russian tanks captured by the Ukrainians recently? We know we've seen its big brother the T-54 (basically a slightly modified version of the T-44) used in the Ukraine war. Or maybe this one is from the WWII; it's hard to know when it's the russians. Nice tank b.t.w.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

You're welcome, glad you're enjoying the content and I could take you to the Salpa Line virtually! My research indicated that it is a T-34, I'm sure I did find some info on how it came to be in Finland but I can't find it now. If I locate it I'll add a link but there doesn't seem to be much information on it!

[@larsrons7937]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Thank you. It would have to wait as I'm about to travel myself for 2-3 weeks, to Northern Jutland. I'm Danish but haven't been up there for many years, except for a short private visit I haven't done holiday there since 1983. Yes it is a T-34 and the gun looks like an 85. The Finns must have captured it during the Continuation War. It looks intact so it probably had engine failure or some other breakdown, or simply ran out of gas.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the info, very interesting to read. From memory it was something like that! Northern Jutland sounds and looks amazing, I have that on list to do at some point. Have a great time!!

[@larsrons7937]

@@MattWhitingsEurope The same to you. Yes, Northern Jutland is amazing. Grenen isthmus, the northernmost part of Skagen, where the waves from the seas of Skagerak and Kattegat slam into eachother. Råbjerg Mile a bit further south is a huge sand dune slowly crawling over land. It resembles Sahara. There's a buried medieval church there, only the tower is visible. There are the impressive Viking graves just north of the city of Aalborg. And I remember as a child we were playing in the many old German bunkers scattered along the coast. There's a very good museum in a large German bunker at Hanstholm. Here they had four huge guns, 42 cm, that could fire across the sea of Skagerak half the way to Norway. And naturally in Norway they had similar guns firing in the opposite direction. But the British found out that there was a gap of 70 meters (!) where none of the guns could reach. So if they navigated carefully... They could pass unharmed.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

​@@larsrons7937 I was just looking up some of those places you mentioned, really makes me want to road trip there and explore some of those places. Looks incredible for sure!! Love the story about the British navigating through the gap, made me chuckle!!

[@jozq9277]

Finland had radars Irja and Raija (German) defending Helsinki. But yeah not there what i know...

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I guess it makes sense to secure the capital.

[@Munakas-wq3gp]

The radars came for the continuation war when we started to get german weapons. In the winter war the soldiers didn't always even have uniforms, all they got was a cap and the insignia. The lotta's had to do their aerial observation work at up to -40 degree temperatures...

[@Kuuj12]

Nice video

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks! 😁

[@gundelgaukeley6731]

Hi from Germany! We are very happy to welcomed Suomi into Europe! (Also your neighbors too!)

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Good evening, hope all is well in Germany. Two great countries if you ask me!

[@gundelgaukeley6731]

@@MattWhitingsEurope I hope all goes well for all of us ;) At the moment we have a big court trial for a dangerous group, media in other countrys will take the news for sure soon. I hope and pray that the borders to ruzzia in your land are to scary for them to try. But seems Nato is ready for every possibilitys. Together we are strong :)

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you! I really hope things settle down soon. It's always good to stand together as part of the NATO alliance.

[@shadeburst]

The Winter War one of the craziest, Russia was German ally after the Pact and had climbed into Poland to claim its share of the spoils. Finland though nominally neutral supported Germany. So much for "my enemy's enemy is my friend."

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Indeed. A very complicated situation!

[@georgevladimirovich7190]

Fins are used to snow and winter and so are the Russians. One aspect however should be mentioned. The commander of the Finish forces, General Mannerheim, was originally a tsarist trained military officer, perfectly familiar with the Russian war strategy. When the tsarist empire collapsed he found his new allegiance to Finland, given the fact he was part finish. In fact he could hardly speak the Finish language however this aspect improved enough with time. While he managed to keep the Soviet army at the bay for about four months, he realized that lack of resources and manpower will not allow the war to continue and, as such, he decided to call for an armistice and a peaceful compromise about the province of Karelia. Those were very interesting times in which the fins were rebuilding their national identity, also a time of creativity and dedication; during those times, the famous Finish composer Jean Sibelius composed his master piece Finlandia, which is also one of my favorite peace of classical music. On the military aspect, the Soviets for the first time in history, created the first airborne troops designed to land behind the Salpa lines, without much success, mind you.

[@ilesalmo7724]

While Russians were used to Winter, their soldiers were conscripted from warmer parts of the Empire, to make them less likely to have warm (pun intended) feelings towards the Finns, so they didn't have training in winter-survival. And Soviets had just purged their officers of less loyal (but experienced) personnel.

[@imas84]

@@ilesalmo7724I have heard that a lot of soldiers was from Ukraine 🇺🇦

[@georgevladimirovich7190]

@@ilesalmo7724 There are not too many warm parts in the Russian Empire, maybe with the exception of Black Sea. In any case this may or may not be truth.

[@XGD5layer]

​@@georgevladimirovich7190 I'd assume that they are referring to the regions such as Chechnya and Kazakh

[@willydawiller]

@@georgevladimirovich7190 Southern Russia along with Ukraine has average winter temperatures between +2 and -6 while entirety of Finland has -4 to -13 While 39-40 were exceptionally cold and wintery years across Europe, in Finland the average winter temperature was closer to -25. If the coldest you've experienced is -10 then -45 would be quite an unfortunate experience, even for Finns

[@Eternal_viking]

Finland better kick the frontlines back into working order. Karelia is calling for liberation.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

😮

[@BFVsnypEz]

making a mistake everytime you say "was". I can clearly say, just from the fact that the clear-cut area is still well kept, If there was an invasion, those trenches and bunkers would be back in use in no time.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I'm sure there would be a use for them but thought that the Salpa Line had lost most of its military significance with the equipment and tactics of modern warfare? Happy to learn more about this.

[@BFVsnypEz]

@@MattWhitingsEurope you are partly correct, but I think Ukraine has shown that trench warfare has not gone away, the modern Finnish military still uses trenches and dugout bunker systems extensively. Finland is highly prepared for war, and there are many secretive things they have, as well as simple things most people overlook. Take for instance the thousands of well maintained "forest service" and "recreational ATV" roads and trails that run all along the Russian border on the Finnish side, many with dead ends, and escape routes. These can be seen even on Google maps. Many large buildings in Finnish cities are also engineered to have an area under the foundation where explosives can be placed, and whole buildings, or even whole blocks can be levelled to create shooting lanes for artillery during urban combat. Also if you drive the roads near the Russian or Norwegian border, you will notice many small, sometimes overgrown pull off roads/paths that lead nowhere. These are used my mechanised units to quickly pull off of the road and hide under the trees when there is an air to ground threat, whole columns of vehicles can be cleared from the road within minutes. Lapland also has sections of the highways that are widened to be used as landing strips for the Finnish F-18 hornet and Swedish SAAB Gripen to quickly refuel, rearm, and takeoff again. Just a few examples that you wouldn't notice unless you knew to look for them, my guess with the trench system is the same, sure they may be empty now, but they can be re-dug and rebuilt within days if needed, especially with modern military engineers' heavy equipment(excavators, bulldozers).

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Interesting account, thanks for the details. I think you are right, there's only so much a government should be willing to make public, there will no doubt be plenty that's classified until the time comes.

[@Bob94390]

@@MattWhitingsEurope As we see in Ukraine, trenches can still play a major role in modern warfare. Fighter jets and missiles come as a supplement, not a replacement, for fortified lines. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortifications_of_the_Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine

[@staffanvonmulqwist4311]

Jag älskar Finland.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Det gör två av oss! Tack för att du tittade.

[@EngineerCreeper]

I am a simple fin i see Finland mentioned i click

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks, hope you enjoyed watching! 😊

[@sgkonfetti]

You should consider having a look at the Mannerheim Line: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mannerheim_Line

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, yes I did a bit of reading on these fortifications too. Aren't they now in Russia?

[@sgkonfetti]

@@MattWhitingsEurope I tried a research on Google and Chat GPT, but none of them answer my question where Mannerheim Line is now. Sorry.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

No worries. Thanks for looking.

[@FoxBodyDale]

Theyre still ready

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I'm sure they are!

[@SamiHeiskanen-jl4vt]

Salpalinja still there. 90yers updating and continue still

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

It's a very impressive fortification for sure. The size of it is mind boggling!

[@SamiHeiskanen-jl4vt]

Can you see modern MASSIVE salpaline? Every yers we fix this top and underground

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I'm sorry I'm not sure what you mean?

[@SamiHeiskanen-jl4vt]

It is there and so massive with tunnels underground bunkers & magazines. I can see now they jpfatins and make more around east fuöl finland!

[@echohunter4199]

Wow, I had no idea the Finns had those fortifications. Those wide open areas are perfect for engaging troops since there’s no trees for them to use for cover and then there’s the thousands of mines in the open area and zeroed in Finnish artillery that will hammer the Russians once they get close. And crossing those tank traps isn’t easy but it can be done but it’ll cost the Russians VERY dearly. Most think the Russians are on the same quality level as the rest of Europe which is far from the truth. We saw a perfect example of this during the winter war which was unbelievable and I almost feel sorry for the Russians. In a way, it is sad that all those poor Russian soldiers were marched to their slaughter by idiotic leaders. As a US Army sniper, I know the story of the short man with the rifle that nobody expected could be so deadly, I’m glad the Finnish people bought him a house to retire in, very nice. Now that I’m retired from the Army, I’m concerned with the current Saber rattling going on in Europe at the moment and I hope those trenches and blockhouses won’t have to be used in the near future. My advise is to buy lots of canned food and anticipate internet and cell phone outage.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the info, very interesting to read. It's an incredible story but the threat remains - with neighbours like that it's always best to be on your guard.

[@Tesnopesno]

story tells that finland decided not to go siege leningrad since it was going to be blood bath and probably revenged dearly. it is also thought that it was kinda crucial decision so russian demands against finland stayed as reasonable as they did. in hindsight, would have been probably a better idea to stop at the old border and start fortifying it like there's no tomorrow. dunno how germany would have reacted though and I guess it seemed like they were kinda winning the war still then.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Great point, hindsight is a wonderful thing and I suspect there were lots of politics and arguments involved in the decision making process.

[@apuuvah]

"When a jaeger stops, he starts digging."

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

What's a jaeger?

[@heikkipaasi1279]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Now it is used sort of like "private" in Finland. The word comes from Germany where it means "hunter" and it was used for light infantry riflemen. German military from around the first world war is also where some of Finnish military tradition comes from.

[@Fleshgear1]

​@@MattWhitingsEuropeInfantry rifleman. Word jäger comes from germany and it means a hunter.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Ah I see. Thanks for the detailed explanation, much appreciated.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the explanation, that's good to know.

[@kukaliemikalie8157]

Subscribed. I didn't know brits use miles 🤔

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you! Yes we primarily use miles.

[@franklinwerren7684]

I knew a Finish solder back in the 1960-70’s-80s. When I think back, he had PTSD but was the most gentle soul you would know. He had nightmares from fighting the Russian Bears as he would say. God rest his soul. DE N2JYG

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Very sad, yes God rest his soul.