Lauri Elias Simojoki (28 January 1899 – 25 January 1940) was a Finnish clergyman who became a leading figure in the country's far right movement. The son of a clergyman, Simojoki was born on 28 January 1899 in

Rautio Rautio is a former municipality, now a small village of Kalajoki, Finland. It was consolidated to Kalajoki in 1973. History The name ''Rautio'' comes from a word meaning "blacksmith". Rautio has existed at least since 1547, at the time it on ...

Philip Rees Philip Rees (born 1941) is a British writer and librarian formerly in charge of acquisitions at the J. B. Morrell Library, University of York. He has written books on fascism and the extreme right. Works *''Fascism in Britain'' (Harvester Pres ...

, ''

Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890 The ''Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890'' is a reference book by Philip Rees, on leading people in the various far right movements since 1890. It contains entries for what the author regards as "the 500 major figures on the r ...

'', Simon & Schuster, 1990, p. 359 As a youth he saw service in the struggle for Finnish independence and then with the

Forest Guerrillas Forest Guerrillas ( fi, Metsäsissit) was a Finnic resistance movement formed by some of the inhabitants of the parishes of Repola and Porajärvi, in addition to several White Guard volunteers after their territory was ceded to Bolshevist Rus ...

East Karelia East Karelia ( fi, Itä-Karjala, Karelian: ''Idä-Karjala''), also rendered as Eastern Karelia or Russian Karelia, is a name for the part of Karelia that since the Treaty of Stolbova in 1617 has remained Eastern Orthodox under Russian supremacy ...

. A student in

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

at the

University of Helsinki The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...

, he became involved in the formation of

Academic Karelia Society The Academic Karelia Society (''Akateeminen Karjala-Seura'', AKS) was a Finnish nationalist and Finno-Ugric activist organization aiming at the growth and improvement of newly independent Finland, founded by academics and students of the Univer ...

, serving as chairman from 1922-1923 and secretary from 1923-1924. He advocated the union of all

Finnish people Finns or Finnish people ( fi, suomalaiset, ) are a Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland. Finns are traditionally divided into smaller regional groups that span several countries adjacent to Finland, both those who are native to these ...

into a Greater Finland whilst in this post. Strongly influenced by Russophobia, the student Simojoki addressed a rally on '

Kalevala The ''Kalevala'' ( fi, Kalevala, ) is a 19th-century work of epic poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Karelian and Finnish oral folklore and mythology, telling an epic story about the Creation of the Earth, describing the controversies an ...

Day' in 1923 with the slogan "In the name of Finland's lost honour and her coming greatness, death to the Ruskis." Simojoki was ordained as a minister in 1925 and he held the chaplaincy at

Kiuruvesi Kiuruvesi is a town and municipality of Finland located in the Northern Savonia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . Neighbour municipalities are Iisalmi, Pielavesi, Py ...

from 1929 until his death. He became involved with the

Patriotic People's Movement Patriotic People's Movement ( fi, Isänmaallinen kansanliike, IKL, sv, Fosterländska folkrörelsen) was a Finnish nationalist and anti-communist political party. IKL was the successor of the previously banned Lapua Movement. It existed from 1 ...

and, in 1933, took command of their youth movement, ''Sinimustat'' (The

Blue-and-Blacks The Blue-and-Blacks (Sinimustat) was a fascist youth organization that operated in Finland from 1930 to 1936, initially affiliated with the Lapua movement and then the Patriotic People's Movement (IKL).Mikko Uola: Sinimusta veljeskunta – Isänm ...

), which looked for inspiration to similar movements amongst fascist parties in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. The movement was banned in 1936 due to its involvement in revolutionary activity in

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and t ...

, although Simojoki continued to serve as a leading member of the Patriotic People's Movement. He was a Member of Parliament in 1933-1939. He founded a second youth group, ''Mustapaidat'' (the Black Shirts), in 1937, although this proved less successful. When the

Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...

broke out in 1939, Simojoki enlisted as a chaplain in the

Finnish Army The Finnish Army ( Finnish: ''Maavoimat'', Swedish: ''Armén'') is the land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces. The Finnish Army is divided into six branches: the infantry (which includes armoured units), field artillery, anti-aircra ...

. He was killed in action on Koirinoja's ice in

Impilahti Impilahti (russian: Импила́хти; krl, Imbilahti; sv, Impilax) is a rural locality in the Republic of Karelia, Russia, located at the northern tip of Lake Ladoga near the Finnish border, about west of Petrozavodsk, the capital city o ...

, while putting down a wounded horse in

no man's land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...

. After the Finnish troops were unable to put down the horse from their positions, Simojoki skied to the horse and euthanized it with a pistol. Having done that, he was gunned down by a Soviet machine gun.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Simojoki, Elias 1899 births 1940 deaths People from Kalajoki People from Oulu Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) 20th-century Finnish Lutheran clergy Patriotic People's Movement (Finland) politicians Members of the Parliament of Finland (1933–36) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1936–39) People of the Finnish Civil War (White side) University of Helsinki alumni Finnish military personnel killed in World War II Deaths by firearm in Finland Anti-Russian sentiment Finnish fascists