Pro-German Resistance Movement In Finland
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Pro-German resistance movement in Finland was set up during the latter stages of the Second World War after the
Moscow Armistice The Moscow Armistice was signed between Finland on one side and the Soviet Union and United Kingdom on the other side on 19 September 1944, ending the Continuation War. The Armistice restored the Moscow Peace Treaty of 1940, with a number of modi ...
by
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
and the extreme right in Finland, who prepared for armed struggle against the expected Soviet occupation. Germany funded the activities and provided the necessary training. The project was separate from the plans drawn up by Finnish chief of staff officers in the summer of 1944 for the transition to guerrilla warfare. When there was no occupation, propaganda and smuggling hundreds of people out of Finland became the principal activity of the organization. After the defeat of Germany, the movement did not disintegrate but operated in Finland for several more years. Some members of the movement were caught, and 11 were convicted of treason in
1946 1946 (Roman numerals, MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1946th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 946th year of the 2nd millennium, the 46th year of the 20th centur ...
.


Background

During Finland's participation on the Eastern Front, two German intelligence organizations operated in Finland: the SS intelligence service SD and the military intelligence service
Abwehr The (German language, German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', though the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context) ) was the German military intelligence , military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ...
under German chief of staff. The SD's Finnish arm was led by
Sturmbannführer __NOTOC__ ''Sturmbannführer'' (; ) was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank equivalent to Major (rank), major that was used in several Nazi organizations, such as the Sturmabteilung, SA, Schutzstaffel, SS, and the National Socialist Flyers Corps, NSFK ...
(Major) Alarich Bross, the Abwehr's by
Fregattenkapitän () is the middle ranking senior officer in a number of Germanic-speaking navies. Austro-Hungary Belgium Germany , short: FKpt / in lists: FK, is the middle Senior officer military rank, rank () in the German Navy. It is the equivalent o ...
(Commander) Alexander Cellarius. In February 1944, the organizations were merged under the SD, and in August, Bross, who had good relations with Finland's extreme right circles, was appointed head of Germany's intelligence efforts in Finland.


SD's resistance movement set up

Bross was immediately tasked with forming a resistance movement in Finland that would serve German interests. The plan for the organization was presented to a select group of Finns in August 1944 at a meeting convened by Bross, which was attended by, among others, Colonel
Ragnar Nordström Ragnar ( ) is a masculine Germanic given name, composed of the Old Norse elements ''ragin-'' "counsel" and ''hari-'' "army". Origin and variations The Proto-Germanic forms of the compounds are "ragina" (counsel) and "harjaz" or "hariz" (army). ...
, Lieutenant Colonels Carl Lindh and Johan Christian Fabritius, Counselor
Petter Forsström Petter Teodor Forsström (7 November 1877 Särkisalo - 13 November 1967 Lohja) was a Finnish industrialist, Vuorineuvos and the father of the Lohja lime industry. Forsström worked as Lohjan Kalkkitehdas Oy's (Lohja Lime Factory Ltd) managing dire ...
and Dr. Erkki Osmonsalo. Aarne Runolinna, working as Bross's assistant, had prepared the structure draft of the organisation. At the meeting, a resistance movement in accordance with the SD's plans was established under veteran organisation " Front Soldier League". Carl Lindh was elected to lead the movement.


Other German-led resistance plans


AKS chairman Helanen's plan

At the same time as the SD founded its own resistance organization, Dr.
Vilho Helanen Vilho Veikko Päiviö Helanen (24 November 1899 – 8 June 1952) was a Finnish civil servant and politician. Helanen was born in Oulu, and was a student as the University of Helsinki, where he gained an MA in 1923 and completed his doctorate in 1 ...
, chairman of the
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 Univers ...
, developed his own plan for a resistance movement in the event that the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
occupied Finland or a
communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
- led government came to power. Helanen's plan was based on the support of the Germans from
Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
. He presented his plan in Tallinn on September 7, 1944, to the local SD, and possibly Cellarius was also involved.Lappalainen 1997, p. 107–109 According to the plan, the leadership of the organization would be in
Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...
, and the liaison committee in Finland would handle communications, transportation and safehouses with the support of the Germans. Landing areas for German
aircraft An aircraft ( aircraft) is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or, i ...
and landing areas for ships would be established in advance. The actual armed activity would be carried out by a regional resistance movement, for which the weapons would be obtained from the Germans and in connection with the possible disarmament of the
Finnish army The Finnish Army ( , ) is the army, land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces. The Finnish Army is divided into six branches: infantry (which includes armoured units), field artillery, anti-aircraft artillery, Combat engineering, engineer ...
. After a possible occupation, a partisan war would be waged by first hitting the occupier’s communication and maintenance connections. The resistance would bind as many occupying forces as possible until they retreat to isolation in large cities. The ultimate goal was to conquer the whole of Finland and also East Karelia. However, the plan was conditional on German troops remaining in Estonia and northern Finland, which made it impossible to implement. The withdrawal from northern Finland had already begun, and there was only a week left for the Estonian evacuation order. Helanen joined the SD resistance movement, where he was named the organization's second leader. He returned to Finland in a German motor torpedo boat with the task of attracting politicians behind the movement.


Other German projects

The SD resistance project was not the only one of the Germans. On 5 September 1944, the 20th Mountain Army Commander,
Lothar Rendulic Lothar Rendulic (; 23 October 1887 – 17 January 1971)Rudolf Neck, Adam Wandruszka, Isabella Ackerl (ed.) (1980): ''Protokolle des Ministerrates der Ersten Republik, 1918–1938, Abteilung VIII, 20. Mai 1932 bis 25. Juli 1934''. Vienna: Verlag ...
, proposed the establishment of a resistance operation at the German chief of staff. The situation was favorable due to the division of opinions caused by the ceasefire.Lappalainen 1997, p. 112 In addition to the resistance movement , SD also had other secret activities in Finland. SD Lieutenant Hans Seidl and Finnish Lieutenant Kai Laurell established several radio stations and weapons caches in northern Finland. Until the spring of 1945, the stations kept in touch with the German military intelligence service Sonderabteilung Lappland (Special Department Lapland). Wilhelm Laqua, head of SD's Kirkenes office and commander of Einsatzkommando Finnland, founded
Karesuvanto Karesuvanto or Kaaresuvanto (, ) is a village in Enontekiö municipality, located in Finnish Lapland, the largest and northernmost region in Finland. It is located on the Muonio River, which follows Finland's western border with Sweden. The vil ...
radio station that operated in October 1944. The station was later transferred to the Swedish side and communication was maintained by couriers from Norway. In Norway, Laqua also had radio, postal and flight connections to Finland. The Germans also organized weapons caches in northern Finland and built safehouses.Vertanen, Anu: Rintamalta Ratakadulle: suomalaiset SS-miehet kommunistisen Valpon kohteina 1945–1948 (pdf) 2005. Jyväskylä: Jyväskylän yliopisto.


The organization of the resistance movement is created

Carl Lindh and Vilho Helanen were appointed to lead the SD resistance movement. Bross's assistant Aarne Runolinna was the propaganda manager. The liaison was journalist Karl Jansson, from May 1945 Lieutenant Colonel Fabritius. The organizer was long-distance patrolman Arthur Björklund , later lieutenant Seppo Veli Heikkilä . Nationwide, the organization was divided into eight districts, each of which was to have local leadership. Underground activities would be organized according to the three-cell system inherited from the Communists. Members of the Front Soldier League,
Patriotic People's Movement Patriotic People's Movement (, IKL, ) was a Finnish nationalist and anti-communist political party. IKL was the successor of the previously banned Lapua Movement. It existed from 1932 to 1944 and had an ideology similar to its predecessor, exce ...
and different Nazi organisations were recruited. The resistance movement had good connections to various parties: several people from Valpo were involved, such as detective Urho Rantala and detective
Arvid Ojasti Arvid (Arvi) Edvard Ojasti (born Arvid Fagerström; 18 June 1903 – 6 December 1963) was a Finnish chief detective of the ValPo. In July 1941, during the Continuation War, Ojasti, who worked as a superior in ValPo's Rovaniemi department, was ...
, who moved to Norway. Arno Anthoni, former head of the Central Detective Police advised on the practical arrangements for underground operations. The organization also kept in touch with Finnish army officers who moved to Sweden and wartime military intelligence chiefs. Former intelligence chief Colonel
Aladár Paasonen Colonel Aladár Antero Zoltán Béla Gyula Árpád Paasonen (December 11, 1898 in Budapest, Austria-Hungary – July 6, 1974 in Flourtown, Pennsylvania, United States), known as Aladár Paasonen, was a Finnish military officer who served as Chie ...
was present, Harri Paarma (formerly Paatsalo), Director of the intelligence gathering and sabotage unit "Remote Patrol Department", in charge of Northern Finland's intelligence, and Major Pauli Marttina , Second Director of the Remote Patrol Department.Lappalainen 1997, p. 110–111 In addition, there were plans to recruit high-ranking officers. Lieutenant General
Paavo Talvela Paavo Juho Talvela (born Paavo Juho Thorén; 19 February 1897 – 30 September 1973) was a Finnish general of the infantry, Knight of the Mannerheim Cross and a member of the Jäger movement. He participated in the Eastern Front of World Wa ...
, Major General Kaarlo Heiska or Colonel Matti Aarnio were planned to be the commander of the military wing.


Swedish connections

Safehouses were built to Sweden with the help of a network of liaison officers. Two of the routes passed through the country to Norway , the others to the port cities of
Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
,
Malmö Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...
and
Trelleborg Trelleborg () is a town in Skåne County, Sweden, with 43,359 inhabitants as of 31 December 2015. It is the southernmost town in Sweden located some west from the Smygehuk, southernmost point of Sweden and the Scandinavian Peninsula. It is one ...
. In addition to the safehouses, the Finnish leader of the Swedish operations had assistants in
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
,
Luleå Luleå ( , , locally ; ; ) is a Cities in Sweden, city on the coast of northern Sweden, and the County Administrative Boards of Sweden, capital of Norrbotten County, the northernmost county in Sweden. Luleå has 48,728 inhabitants in its urban ...
and
Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
, two in each. The leader himself worked in Boden and co-operated with the Swedish military intelligence: Swedish Major Danielsson arranged passports and other assistance. The Swedish organisation's contacts with the Germans were handled either by the German military ombudsman Edmund Sala via Stockholm or directly to Berlin. The courier to Helsinki was businessman Arne Blom.


Financial

Funding for the activities of the resistance movement came mainly from the Germans. For the initial organization, the organization is known to have received an equivalent amount of € 350,000 (based on 2007 value) from Cellarius. At least the shipowner, Colonel Ragnar Nordström, and Councilor
Petter Forsström Petter Teodor Forsström (7 November 1877 Särkisalo - 13 November 1967 Lohja) was a Finnish industrialist, Vuorineuvos and the father of the Lohja lime industry. Forsström worked as Lohjan Kalkkitehdas Oy's (Lohja Lime Factory Ltd) managing dire ...
also funded the organization by purchasing motorboats for its use. Funding from Germany was provided, directly by SD's Major Bross, partly through a cache located in Sweden near the Norwegian border, from which Finns were allowed to apply for the amount with Bross's permission. There is conflicting information about the size of the cache, according to one information, the currency of the various countries would have been worth a total of 65 million euros (according to the 2007 monetary value). In 1945, the cache is known to have fetched currency on at least two occasions, totaling more than 650,000 euros. Weapons, radio equipment and money received from Germany and Sweden were hidden in
Närpes Närpes (Finland Swedish: ; ) is a town in Finland, located on the west coast of the country. Närpes is situated in Ostrobothnia, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Närpes is approximately , while the sub-region has a population of ...
,
Vaasa Vaasa (; , ), formerly (1855-1917) known as Nikolaistad (; ),Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...
and
Hämeenlinna Hämeenlinna (; ; ; or ''Croneburgum'') is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Kanta-Häme. It is located in the southern interior of the country and on the shores of Vanajavesi, Lake Vanajavesi. The population of Hämeenlinna is appr ...
. A lot of material had been placed in various caches in
Vaasa Vaasa (; , ), formerly (1855-1917) known as Nikolaistad (; ),Southern Finland Southern Finland (, ) was a province of Finland from 1997 to 2009. It bordered the provinces of Western Finland and Eastern Finland. It also bordered the Gulf of Finland and Russia. History On September 1, 1997 the Uusimaa Province, the Ky ...
in the first week of September 1944, Sonderkommando Nord was established as the governing body of the Finnish resistance movement. The department was directly subordinated to
Ernst Kaltenbrunner Ernst Kaltenbrunner (4 October 1903 – 16 October 1946) was an Austrian high-ranking SS official during the Nazi era, major perpetrator of the Holocaust and convicted war criminal. After the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich in 1942, and a ...
, head of the
Reich Security Main Office The Reich Security Main Office ( , RSHA) was an organization under Heinrich Himmler in his dual capacity as ''Chef der Deutschen Polizei'' (Chief of German Police) and , the head of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS). The organization's stat ...
. Bross was appointed head of the department.Alava, Ali: Erikoisosasto Pohjoinen. Hämeenlinna: Karisto, 1978. . A base was established for the department on the German Baltic coast on the island of
Usedom Usedom ( , ) is a Baltic Sea island in Pomerania, divided between Germany and Poland. It is the second largest Pomeranian island after Rügen, and the most populous island in the Baltic Sea. It lies north of the Szczecin Lagoon estuary of the ...
in the spa town of
Heringsdorf Heringsdorf is a semi-urban municipality and a popular seaside resort on Usedom Island in Western Pomerania, Germany. It is also known by the name Kaiserbad ('). The municipality was formed in January 2005 out of the former municipalities of H ...
, owned by the German navy, to which German intelligence services in Finland moved. The crew was obtained from Finnish SS men and prisoners of war from the German withdrawal from Finnish Lapland who defected to the German side. Contacts with Finland were handled by radio messages and submarines. Contact with the Finns lasted at least until April 1945, although the leadership of the resistance movement was already disengaging from German control at that time. The German military surrendered on 8 May 1945.


Training in the winter of 1945

In February 1945, Sonderkommando Nord began training Finns for reconnaissance in Heringsdorf . In the first course, morse code and cryptography training was given to SS men. The trainees for the courses were obtained from various sources; for example, there were Finnish prisoners of war enlisted from German prison camp and other volunteers who joined the Germans. The base came from the German-occupied
Kongsvinger Fortress Kongsvinger Fortress () is located in the city of Kongsvinger which is located within Kongsvinger Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is situated on a hill west and north of the Glomma river, standing astride the ancient Vinger Royal Roa ...
in Norway, where Finnish SS men had been trained as group leaders for a volunteer unit from Finland.Lappalainen 1997, p. 114–115 A detachment of Finnish SS men was formed in Major
Otto Skorzeny Otto Johann Anton Skorzeny (12 June 1908 – 5 July 1975) was an Austrian-born German SS-''Standartenführer'' in the ''Waffen-SS'' during World War II. During the war, he was involved in a number of operations, including the removal from power ...
's regiment Jagdregiment in
Neustrelitz Neustrelitz (; ) is a town in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the shore of the Zierker See in the Mecklenburg Lake District. From 1738 until 1918 it was the capital o ...
. The detachment was intended to be trained for special missions, but there was no time to begin training until the war was over. There was also a small group of about twenty volunteers from those Finnish women who had moved to Norway and Germany with German troops and were recruited to the same detachment for message training.


The negotiations in January 1945 and Fabritius travels to Germany

In January 1945, Major Bross, his political advisers Aarne Runolinna and Cellarius traveled by submarine from Heringsdorf to the coast of Finland in front of
Kristinestad Kristinestad (; ; ; ) is a town in Finland, located on the west coast of the country. Kristinestad is situated in Ostrobothnia, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Kristinestad is approximately , while the sub-region has a population o ...
to negotiate with the Finnish leadership of the resistance movement. On January 17, Johan Fabritius, the practical organizer of the movement, and Karl Jansson, a liaison officer and journalist, were transported to the ship. The nominal leaders of the movement, Carl Lindh and Vilho Helanen, who were invited to the meeting, did not arrive to the chagrin of the Germans.Lappalainen 1997, p. 116–118 A meeting was held on the submarine, during which Jansson explained the situation in Finland to the Germans. Bross suggested that a refugee government be established for Finland and that sabotage activities in the war reparations industry be started . The Germans had planned to take Professor
Toivo Mikael Kivimäki Toivo Mikael Kivimäki (5 June 1886 – 6 May 1968), ( J.D.), was a Finnish politician of the National Progressive Party who served as the head of the department of civil law at Helsinki University 1931–1956, Prime Minister of Finla ...
to Sweden to lead the refugee government. Fabritius refused both projects, and eventually the Germans agreed with him. At the end of the negotiations, Jansson was sent ashore with equipment, money and weapons. Seppo Heikkilä, who had received intelligence training from Germany and was the former commander of the Navy's Liinahamari patrol ship, took part. Heikkilä had to support the resistance movement and report on Finnish conditions. Based on the reports, it would be decided when it would be time to send troops and material with special training from Germany to Finland. Fabritius stayed in a submarine to travel to Germany. He had a report with the Germans on the new organization of the Finnish army and the Soviet troops in the country. Captain
Lauri Törni Lauri Allan Törni (28 May 1919 – 18 October 1965), later known as Larry Alan Thorne, was a Finnish-born soldier who fought under three flags: as a Finnish Army officer in the Winter War and the Continuation War ultimately gaining a rank of cap ...
and Lieutenant Solmu Korpela, who had arrived from Finland, also stayed on board, and had been recruited to train in Germany as trainers for the men of the resistance movement.Saksa tuki Suomen vastarintaliikettä ase- ja muilla kuljetuksilla 1945 talvella. ("HS 50 vuotta sitten", alkuperäinen uutinen julkaistu 24.7.1946)
Helsingin Sanomat , abbreviated ''HS'' and colloquially known as , is the largest subscription newspaper in Finland and the Nordic countries, owned by Sanoma. Except after certain holidays, it is published daily. Its name derives from that of the Finnish capital ...
, 27.6.1996.
The ship returned to Heringsdorf without difficulty, and Fabritius and Runolinna prepared a memorandum on the situation in Finland for the headquarters of Sonderkommando Nord. He was also transported to Berlin to present the memorandum first to Dr. Scheffer, then directly to Kaltenbrunner. After returning to Heeringsdorf, Fabritius received a quick training in parachuting, and on February 20 he was dropped off in Finland.


Resistance action


Radio stations and propaganda

The organization built a network of radio stations in Finland for communication and promotion. In addition to one mobile radio station, there were stations in Helsinki at the Helvar radio factory and in
Huopalahti Huopalahti () was a municipality during the years 1920–1945 in Uusimaa, Finland. Areas of Munkkiniemi, Lauttasaari and parts of northern Pasila were parts of Huopalahti. The area was separated from former Helsinki parish in 1920. Haaga was ...
,
Hämeenlinna Hämeenlinna (; ; ; or ''Croneburgum'') is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Kanta-Häme. It is located in the southern interior of the country and on the shores of Vanajavesi, Lake Vanajavesi. The population of Hämeenlinna is appr ...
,
Tampere Tampere is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Pirkanmaa. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Tampere is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . It is the most populous mu ...
,
Turku Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...
,
Vaasa Vaasa (; , ), formerly (1855-1917) known as Nikolaistad (; ),Raahe Raahe (; ; ) is a town in Finland, located on the western coast of the country. Raahe is situated in the North Ostrobothnia region, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Raahe is approximately , while the sub-region has a population of a ...
region and
Närpes Närpes (Finland Swedish: ; ) is a town in Finland, located on the west coast of the country. Närpes is situated in Ostrobothnia, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Närpes is approximately , while the sub-region has a population of ...
. Thoralf Kyrre, a Danish engineer, was recruited as a technical expert.


Safehouse network in Finland

The most significant form of action was to smuggle out those who wanted to leave the country to Germany and Sweden for various reasons. For this purpose, a safehouse network was built in Finland and the cover company "''Great fishing cooperative''" was established. In Finland, safehouse routes were provided by a 50-70-man maritime transport organization. In Sweden, the target was the small town of
Härnösand Härnösand () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Härnösand Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden with 25,012 inhabitants in 2023. It is called "the gate to the High Coast" because of the world heritage landscape just ...
in western Norland. From Finland, the ships were driven to secret loading bays around the city, where the men of the organization were ready. Some of the smuggled men were delivered to Sweden from the north over the
Tornio river The Torne, also known as the Tornio (, , , , ), is a river in northern Sweden and Finland. For approximately half of its length, it defines the border between these two countries. In the upper parts, the river is situated in Sweden before it meets ...
. Access to Europe was opened through the Swedish safehouse network. The resistance movement in Blacknäs,
Vaasa Vaasa (; , ), formerly (1855-1917) known as Nikolaistad (; ),Närpes Närpes (Finland Swedish: ; ) is a town in Finland, located on the west coast of the country. Närpes is situated in Ostrobothnia, along the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Närpes is approximately , while the sub-region has a population of ...
. Motorboats purchased for the cover company were placed in Närpes. The area also served as a loading bay for German submarines. The organization bought a detached house in Närpes, and houses and farms were acquired for accommodation. Transport between Helsinki and Närpes was handled by two cars acquired for this purpose.Lappalainen 1997, p. 113–114 Through the safehouse routes, the resistance movement transported Finnish Nazis and fascists, officers and intelligence personnel, Estonian and East Karelian refugees and German citizens out of the country. Hundreds of people were assisted in Sweden, including more than a hundred German prisoners of war who had fled the Finns. Transport to Germany took place after the September 1944 break in German submarines, smuggling hundreds of people. At the same time Organisation brought refugees from Germany to the Finnish coast, sometimes in several submarines at the same time. They were transported along the safe house route to Sweden and further from there.


Operation after spring 1945

During his trip to Germany in January-February, Fabritius had become convinced that the situation in Germany was hopeless and that no further help to the resistance in Finland could be expected. At the beginning of April, meetings were held in
Lohja Lohja (; ) is a town in Finland, located in the southern interior of the country. Lohja is situated in the western part of the Uusimaa region. The population of Lohja is approximately . It is the most populous Municipalities of Finland, munici ...
, Helsinki and Tampere. The organisation sought to become independent of the Germans. On the other hand, there were still fears of a Soviet occupation, and the focus of action was on plans to get as many patriotic-minded people as possible into the movement and smuggled into Sweden. Contact with the Germans was maintained still in April 1945. After the defeat of Germany, the resistance movement continued to operate. Finland was not occupied, so the plan for armed struggle was not implemented. Activities focused on safehouses.Lappalainen 1997, p. 120 In 1948, representatives of the resistance movement, Major General Harald Roos and Professor Lauri "Tahko" Pihkala traveled to Norway to inquire about support for the movement in the event that the Soviet Union occupied Finland. They were in contact with the Commander of the Norwegian Army, General
Olaf Helset Olaf Helset (28 July 1892 – 21 August 1960) was a Norwegian military officer with the rank of major general and a sports administrator. He played a central role in the early resistance during the German occupation of Norway, both civil and m ...
, and the US Military Ombudsman in Oslo. The military ombudsman reported to the U.S. that the resistance movement had 100,000 infantry weapons and some grenade launchers. The movement would be ready for action with three weeks' notice. Neither party promised support to the Finns.


Disclosure and litigation

The secret police ValPo was convinced of the organization's existence from an early stage. In January 1945, the radio station of the Helvar radio factory was revealed, and Valpo arrested Thoralf Kyrre. The resistance movement arranged for Kyrre to flee to Sweden in March. In early 1946, Valpo tracked down the organization and arrested its leaders during the spring, such as Fabritius on April 12. Karl Jansson , Arthur Björklund and Ragnar Nordström fled to Sweden. Eleven people were convicted in a treason trial, and the longest sentence, 7 years in prison, was given to Karl Sundholm, who helped Kyrre escape.
Lauri Törni Lauri Allan Törni (28 May 1919 – 18 October 1965), later known as Larry Alan Thorne, was a Finnish-born soldier who fought under three flags: as a Finnish Army officer in the Winter War and the Continuation War ultimately gaining a rank of cap ...
and Seppo Heikkilä trained at Sonderkommando Nord received six years in prison, others shorter sentences. Fabritius, who served as the leader of the resistance movement, died in pre-trial detention in the fall of 1946 before sentencing.Pohjonen, Juha: Maanpetturin tie: maanpetoksesta Suomessa vuosina 1945-1972 tuomitut. Helsinki : Otava, 2000. .


See also

*
Aarne Kauhanen Aarne Emil Kauhanen (29 November 1909 – 11 October 1949) was a Finnish officer of the Central Detective Police (EK) and its successor, the State Police (ValPo), with special responsibility for aliens in the 1930s and 1940s.Norssit 1867–1992 ...
* Karl Jansson *
Ratlines (World War II aftermath) The ratlines () were systems of escape routes used by German Nazis and other fascists to flee Europe from 1945 onwards in the aftermath of World War II. These escape routes mainly led toward havens in South America, particularly Argentina, ...
* Thoralf Kyrre *
Arvid Ojasti Arvid (Arvi) Edvard Ojasti (born Arvid Fagerström; 18 June 1903 – 6 December 1963) was a Finnish chief detective of the ValPo. In July 1941, during the Continuation War, Ojasti, who worked as a superior in ValPo's Rovaniemi department, was ...


Sources

*Kumenius, Otto: Tiedustelu - tehtävä yli rajojen:viiden rintaman vastavakoilija muistelee ja kertoo. Muistelmat. Alea-Kirja, 1969. .


References

{{Finnish far right World War II resistance movements Military units and formations established in 1944 1944 establishments in Finland Anti-communist organisations in Finland Collaboration with Nazi Germany Finland–Germany relations Nazism in Finland