Comments by "John Burns" (@johnburns4017) on "How Russia Stopped The Blitzkrieg" video.

  1. Not in the winter war.
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  2. bwda666 After the 1940 peace deal the Finns moved closer to Germany. They would side with anyone to keep the Soviets out. The Soviets were retrieving former territory as far as they were concerned. The Germans gave the Finns weapons and oil which was a rare commodity for the Germans. Finnish leader Mannerheim (who could hardly speak Finnish being a Russian speaker, needing an interpreter), was the only non-German leader told of the Barbarossa attack. Not even Mussolini knew. Hitler went to Finland to wish Mannerheim a happy birthday. Finnish troops would attack the USSR simultaneously with Germany. Hitler was furious that the Finns stopped their troops at the 1939 borders. He thought they would go further with the Germans. Some Finish troops did go further into the USSR but for strategic defence reasons. Finland is not actually in Scandinavia, although they would like to be. They were one of the 4 Baltic states, but pushed themselves into the Scandinavian sphere with many thinking they are in Scandinavia. The people originate from Russia near the Urals, while Scandinavians and northern Germans are of the same stock as the British. The Finns were not in NATO fearful of the Soviets moving into the country again. They did all not to antagonise the Soviets. Finland is an eastern European country, but speaking to them you would think they were in the middle of the Irish Sea.
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  3. Mikkel Bjäll You are one screwed up man. Get therapy quick.
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  4. The Germans were not involved in the 1939 winter war. They were in the later conflict when the Soviets attacked the Finns. The Germans aided the Finns as a diversion to slow down Soviet progress into Germany. The Finns made a peace with the Soviets and Britain and then turned on the Germans to get them out.
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  5. The Germans flatly refused to aid the Finns in the 1939 winter war as they signed a pact with the USSR months previously. Between them they divided up countries. The USSR was to have the four Baltic countries which Finland was one and Germany the western part of Poland. Finland was not regarded as being grouped with Scandinavia, although in the Nordic Council. Only 20 years previously Finland was part of Russia, with the Soviets reoccupying their territory. Germany was not allied to the USSR. The British and French were attempting to get arms to Finland with some getting through. When the Soviets were threatening to invade Finland again, the Finns allowed German troops onto their soil, although not being allied to Germany. Britain then declared war on Finland being a co-belligerent. When Finland made peace with the USSR and Britain a part of the peace deal was the ejection of German forces from Finland. The Germans were asked to leave. They never, so the Finns fought the Germans to get them out, otherwise the Soviets would have run right into Finland.
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  6. bwda666 Yes. Most of Norway went Germany's way and there was a move keep the north of Norway which would give access to Finland. Matters in France took on a different complexion with French troops moving home. Without holding northern Norway it was near impossible to supply Finland properly. The Finish peace deal with the USSR which meant Soviet troops were not occupying all of Finland, scuppered any troop deployment to Finland. Churchill, who was not PM then, objected to abandoning northern Norway.
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  7. O.K. In the 1930s the German economy was that 56% of the people worked on the land. The agriculture was so poor it was similar to southern Ireland and Romania. Prof Adam Tooze states that Germany was a mid-sized workshop economy.
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  8. Batou Gintel I love to read some of the drivel. Germany declared war on the USA.
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  9. The winter did not defeat Germany. The Soviets beat the Germans at the Battle of Moscow, taking 30,000 prisoners.
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  10. Pronunciation for any is "enny" not "anny". ;)
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  11. The French had more tanks than the Germans and better tanks.
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