Battle of Raate Road
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| Battle of Raate-Road | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Winter War | |||||||
 Remnants of the Soviet 44th Division on the road | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Finland |
.svg){kind=small} Soviet Union | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Hjalmar Siilasvuo | Alexey Vinogradov | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 6,000 | 25,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 100-250 killed |
17,500 killed, wounded or missing 1,200 captured | ||||||
The Battle of Raate-Road was fought between the Soviet Union and Finland in January, 1940, as a part of the Battle of Suomussalmi. This battle was strategically important because it proved the effectiveness of Finnish motti tactics.
On December 7, 1939, the Soviet 163rd division had conquered Suomussalmi, and the Soviet 44th Division was coming to help it. In the following battle colonel Hjalmar Siilasvuo's 9th Division destroyed the Soviet 44th (Ukrainian) Rifle Division on the Raate-Suomussalmi Road completely.
The Battle
At the start of the battle of Raate-Road, Siilasvuo's 9th division had already destroyed the Russian 163th division. After that, the division got orders to destroy the 44th Rifle Division which was located in Haukila, 12 kilometers from Suomussalmi. The battle was ordered to begin on January 5 1940, 08:30.
The Finnish 9th division was split in four squadrons which were named after their commanders. The battles focused to Haukila, where most of the Soviet troops were located and where squadron Mandelin and Mäkiniemi attacked. Squadron Mäkiniemi had started moving towards Haukila a few days before the official attack.
On January 6 the despairing Soviet troops began to erupt towards north. They had already tried to escape to east but squadron Kari had prevented this. In the far east squadron Fagernäs couldn't keep the bridge in Finnish control. On January 7 1940 squadron Fagernäs captured the bridge back and in forenoon all Soviet resistance had ended.
Aftermath
Badly-equipped Finland captured 43 tanks, 71 field and anti-air guns, 29 anti-tank guns, armored cars, armored tractors, 260 trucks, 1,170 horses, infantry weapons, one airplane, ammunition and medical equipment as war booty from the Soviets.
The Soviet commander, Vinogradov, and two of his chief officers survived the battle. When they reached the Soviet lines four days later they were court martialed, found guilty and sentenced to death; the executions were carried on immediately. The charge was losing 55 field kitchens to the enemy.
Today, the former battlefield is the site of the Monument of the Winter War.
References
- Ari Rautala (2004.). Sotiemme taistelupaikoilla.. Gummerus. ISBN 951-20-5995-9.