Branches and Secretaries of the RTR Association

In America, maverick inventor Walter J Christie proposed a fast tank to the US Army on a new suspension system he had designed. He was an awkward character and fell out with many he dealt with but examples of his vehicle suspension were used in Soviet Russia on their BT tanks and in Britain on some Cruiser tanks.

One of the Finnish snipers gained a fearsome reputation – Simo Häyhä was credited with over 500 kills. Whilst his role was undoubtedly built up for propaganda reasons, the extraordinary total was confirmed after his death in 2002 when his wartime diary was found. The stoic resistance of many Finnish units gave a sense of national pride to the beleaguered nation and the term Finnish term Sisu became known to the wider world.

The Finns have something they call sisu. It is a compound of bravado and bravery, of ferocity and tenacity, of the ability to keep fighting after most people would have quit, and to fight with the will to win. The Finns translate sisu as "the Finnish spirit" but it is a much more gutful word than that. Last week the Finns gave the world a good example of sisu by carrying the war into Russian territory on one front while on another they withstood merciless attacks by a reinforced Russian Army. In the wilderness that forms most of the Russo-Finnish frontier between Lake Laatokka and the Arctic Circle, the Finns definitely gained the upper hand.

TIME MAGAZINE, JANUARY 8, 1940

Finland had wide international support after the Soviet invasion, the Soviet Union was ejected from the League of Nations and much of the world’s attention was drawn sympathetically to the Finnish plight. However little in the way of real material aid arrived in Finland before the war ended although volunteers from Sweden and Norway did cross the border with some planes and antiaircraft guns. Finland suffered from the call up of reservists which put a great strain on the economy with workers absent at the front. The country had little in the way of an arms industry and war reserves of fuel, ammunition and weaponry was minimal. One small advantage the Finns had was that their rifle ammunition was the same as the Red Army’s 7.62×54mmR rounds. Captured ammunition was vital to keep the Finns fighting. Britain and France proposed a number of schemes to help Finland, one in late January demanded the right of passage through Sweden and Norway for troops. However the Finnish surrender stopped this plan from happening.

A SOVIET RE-THINK

Stalin was exasperated by the failure of the Red Army and the consequent humiliation in the Western Press. Soviet propaganda spouted reasons for the delays in victory – including the arrival of over 1,000 pilots from America. On 7 January Kliment Voroshilov was replaced by Semyon Timoshenko as the overall commander in the area. Soviet forces were reinforced and the concentration of effort now centred only on the Karelian Isthmus. Two army groups – the 7th and the 13th were formed – the 7th concentrating its attack on a 16km front. 25 divisions were now in positions where 10 had been earlier. Exercises were carried out attacking dummy positions to give confidence and experience to the new troops and white winter suits were issued. New tank units arrived along with a coating of whitewash to better hide them in