Maximilian Maksolly (actually Feichter, the original spelling of his first name was Maksimilian) was an Estonian painter who is now possibly best remembered for his war art from the time of the Estonian War of Independence. I touch on him in this blog largely because of his series of war … Continue reading
Valaam Monastery. Valamo Monastery. The heart of the Orthodox Church in Karelia and an outpost of Russia within the lands of the Finns. Mount Athos of the North – so was called this ancient monastic dwelling, which was founded a thousand years ago in the dawn of Christianity in Russia … Continue reading
The Valamo Monastery is an Orthodox monastery in what used to be Finnish Karelia but is now part of Russia, located on Valamo, the largest island and part of an island archipelago of the same name in Lake Laatoka (Ladoga), itself the largest lake in Europe. The archipelago consists of … Continue reading
The content of this post is quoted in its entirety from Japan’s Relations with Finland 1919-1944, as Reflected by Japanese Source Materials and authored by Hiroshi Momose, published in 1973 by Hokkaido University, Japan. The original is available at http://hdl.handle.net/2115/5026. Please note that this article is more or less as written … Continue reading
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Duchy of Finland was part of the Russian Empire, ruled by the autocratic Tsar Nicholas. Finnish Nationalism had been on the rise since the 1830’s and by 1900, resistance to Russian rule was growing, aided by the policy of Russification which had resulted … Continue reading
The Finnish Trilogy from Miku Games is an epic wargame trilogy about the Finnish struggle to remain a free and independent country during World War II. The game is being produced in three volumes: Volume I – Winter War 1939-1940 campaign; Volume II – Continuation War 1941-1944 campaign and Volume III … Continue reading
How many of us today know that there were Finns in the Boer War in South Africa – who fought with the Boer forces? Well, they did, within the ranks of the Skandinaviska Karen (the Scandinavian Corps) of volunteers who were a part of the Transvaal militia. Following the outbreak of war, … Continue reading
Located within the Natural History Museum of Kauhava, the Jaeger Museum of Finland is a permanent exhibition telling the story of the formation, operations and history of nearly 2000 young men who went to Germany during World War One to learn military skills, with the aim fighting for an independent … Continue reading
Suomalainen sänky (The Finnish Bed), by ethnologist Leena Sammallahti and researcher Marja-Liisa Lehto (SKS 2006), is an illustrated history of Finnish sleeping arrangements, from simple benches along the wall, once common in many farmhouses, to elaborately carved and cushioned laps of luxury from upper-class homes. Sammallahti wanted to place the Finnish bed into … Continue reading
Between 1900 and 1908, the Russians built 25 Sokol (“Falcon”) class torpedo boats for the Russian Baltic Fleet. These boats served in various roles in the Tsarist Russian Baltic Fleet in WW1. The war went badly for the Russians and in 1917 the Russian Navy mutinied. The mutiny turned into a revolution and … Continue reading
