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Hjalmar Siilasvuo

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Hjalmar Siilasvuo
Hjalmar Siilasvuo (right) receiving a situation report during theBattle of Raate-Road
Born(1892-03-18)18 March 1892
Helsinki,Grand Duchy of Finland,Russian Empire
Died11 January 1947(1947-01-11)(aged 54)
Oulu,Finland
Buried
Oulu Cemetery
Allegiance
Service/branch
Years of service1915–1947
RankLieutenant General
Commands held
Battles/warsWorld War I

Finnish Civil War

Winter War

Continuation War

Lapland War
Awards
RelationsGeneralEnsio Siilasvuo(son)
Other workWritings, Municipal Council

Hjalmar Fridolf Siilasvuo(bornHjalmar Fridolf Strömberg,18 March 1892 – 11 January 1947) was a Finnishlieutenant general(Finnish:kenraaliluutnantti), a knight of theMannerheim Crossand a member of theJäger Movement.He participated in theEastern Front of World War I,theFinnish Civil War,theWinter War,Continuation Warand theLapland War.

Early life[edit]

Hjalmar Fridolf Siilasvuo was born as Hjalmar Fridolf Strömberg on 18 March 1892 inHelsinkito newspaper reporter Frans Strömberg and Hulda Röman. He graduated as anylioppilasin 1911 fromSvenska normallyceum i Helsingforsand began to study law. During his studies, he became involved in theJäger Movement,[1]which aimed at sending Finnish volunteers to receive military training inGermany.[2]As a member of the movement, Siilavuo left for Germany in early 1915.[1]While in Germany, the Finnish volunteers formed the27th Royal Prussian Jäger Battalion,fighting for theImperial German Armyon theEastern Front of World War I.[2]During this time, Siilasvuo took part in several battles in the regions ofMisa,Gulf of RigaandLielupe.[1]

Siilasvuo returned to Finland in 1918 together with the bulk of the Finnish Jägers, taking part in theFinnish Civil Waron the side of theWhites.First alieutenant,but soon promoted to acaptain,Siilasvuo saw action as a company commander in the Battles ofTampereandViipuri.Siilasvuo was given command of a battalion in late 1918. In 1920, he was promoted to amajorand marriedpharmacistSalli Kolsi. The couple had three children between 1922 and 1926.[1]

In 1926, Siilasvuo graduated fromWar College,was promoted to alieutenant coloneland transferred to theMinistry of DefenceDepartment of War Affairs (Finnish:sota-asiain osasto) where he was promoted to a chief of office (Finnish:toimistopäällikkö) in 1927 and to head of department in 1928. Later in 1928, he again took command of a battalion, which was followed by a promotion to both the rank ofcoloneland the command of a brigade/regiment in 1933. He was given command of the PohjanmaaMilitary Districtin 1934. In 1936, hefinnicizedhis surname from the Swedish Strömberg to Siilasvuo and became a member of theOulucity council.He held the position until 1940.[1]

Winter War and Interim Peace[edit]

General Hjalmar Siilasvuo in 1939
Main articles:Battle of Suomussalmi,Battle of Raate Road,andBattle of Kuhmo

During the Finno-SovietWinter Warof 1939–1940, Siilasvuo was in charge of the Finnish forces in the region ofSuomussalmi.The initially approximately brigade-sized formation under his command eventually grew to a size where it was reorganized as the9th Division.TheBattle of Suomussalmi,as the actions in the region came to be known, resulted in the shattering of the Soviet 163rd Rifle Division which had been encircled in Suomussalmi, as well as the destruction of theSoviet 44th Rifle Division,which was attempting to reinforce the 163rd Division, in theBattle of Raate Road.The defense of Siilasvuo's forces prevented the Soviet 9th Army from reaching Oulu, which would have resulted in the bisection of Finland into two separate theatres of operation. Siilasvuo's forces were still engaged in theBattle of Kuhmowhen the war ended.[1][3]

In 1940, Siilasvuo was promoted tomajor generaland was given command of the peace-time army's V Corps. The same year, he also published a book on the Battle of Suomussalmi. Historian Mikko Uola describes the book as "taking all credit for the success of Suomussalmi and completely ignoring other commanders who influenced the events, such as Siilasvuo's superiorsViljo TuompoandPaavo Susitaival,as well as his subordinates such asAlpo Marttinen."[1]

Continuation War and Lapland War[edit]

Main article:Finnish III Corps (Continuation War)
GeneralNikolaus von Falkenhorst(left) with Major General Hjalmar Siilasvuo (right) at the start of the Continuation War.

During the 1941 Finno-Germannegotiations regarding plans for a future war with the Soviet Union, the Germans proposed that the Finns would be in charge of operations in the South-Eastern Finland and east ofLake Ladoga,with overall command of both Finnish and German troops in the area falling under the Finnishcommander-in-chief,MarshalMannerheim.In turn, the Finns would subordinate Siilasvuo's peace-time V Corps (which would become the war timeIII Corps) to the headquarters of the GermanArmy of Norway.[4]Following the start of the Finnish mobilization on 10 June 1941, the corps was subordinated to the headquarters of the German Army of Norway on 15 June 1941,[5]and was designated III Corps on 18 June 1941.[6]

Original plan forOperation Silver Fox

According to the German plans, Siilasvuo's III Corps was to secure the southern flank ofOperation Silver Fox,the German-led operation whose goal was the capture ofMurmansk.The corps was to advance first to theUkhta–Kestengaline and then to theMurmansk railroadandKem.[7]It soon became apparent that III Corps was the only corps-level unit of the Army of Norway to make significant progress. Operations of the two German corps of the Army of Norway were thus largely halted, and German reinforcements were allocated to support the attack of the III Corp. The main objective of the III Corps was to be the Murmansk railroad in the area ofLoukhi.[8]Despite the German reinforcements, III Corps was unable to reach Loukhi and by August both sides had settled for stationary warfare.[9][10]

By 6 October 1941, the situation at the front had improved to a point whereNikolaus von Falkenhorstand Siilasvuo discussed continuing the III Corps's advance towards Loukhi. Due to Hitler's August order that the forces in the area were to go on the defensive, the plan was phrased as III Corp improving its positions.[11][12]The Finnish high command was informed about the operation on 25 October, but nobody informed the German high command,OKH.[12]The operation began on 30 October,[11]but already on 5 November Siilasvuo was informed by the Finnish high command that the attack should be halted for political reasons, and that no additional Finnish reinforcements would be forthcoming despite Siilasvuo's wishes. TheUnited States of Americahad given the Finnish government a note demanding the attack be stopped, which in turn had resulted in theFinnish PresidentRisto Rytiexpressing his concern over the operation to Mannerheim. By 11 November, Siilasvuo was actively slowing down the attack by ordering construction of further field fortifications and on 17 November he gave a written order to halt the attack. By December the fighting in the area had calmed down.[13]Siilasvuo was promoted tolieutenant generalin 1942 and, in late 1942, was made the inspector of military schools. Siilasvuo himself viewed this transfer as a punishment.[1]

Following the end of theSiege of Leningradin January 1944, the Finnish high command began preparations for a Soviet offensive. As part of these preparations it split theKannas Group,responsible for the defence of theKarelian Isthmus,into two corps-level formations on 4 March 1944. The eastern side of the isthmus was handed to the III Corps, the headquarters of which was moved to the area from northern Finland,[14]with Siilasvuo reinstated as the commander of the corps.[1]The SovietVyborg–Petrozavodsk offensivebegan on 9 July 1944.[15]Threatened to be cut off, III Corps fell back and eventually took defensive positions alongVuoksi.[16][17]The III Corps front stabilized along the Vuoksi for the rest of the war, with the Soviet forces failing to break through on the III Corps sector despite several attempts.[18]

As one of the terms of theMoscow Armistice,Finland had to remove of any German forces remaining in Finland.[19]German forces in the Finnish north initially fell back towards Norway in unofficial cooperation with the Finnish forces. However, following the failure ofOperation Tanne Ostwhich involved a German attempt to captureGoglandfrom its Finnish defenders, the Finno-German cooperation completely broke down.[20][21]During the subsequentLapland War,Siilasvuo's III Corps was moved to northern Finland where it took overall command of all the Finnish forces participating in the operation.[22]Over the following months, Siilasvuo's forces slowly pushed the Germans out of Lapland,[23]with the final German forces leaving Finland on 27 April 1945.[24]Siilasvuo was awarded with theMannerheim Crossin December 1944, with the bestowal document referencing his actions in the Winter War, the Continuation War and the Lapland War.[1]

Death and legacy[edit]

Following the end of the Lapland War, Siilasvuo remained in military service, acting as the commander of the 1st Division from 1944 to 1947. He died in Oulu on 11 January 1947, and is buried in theOulu Cemetery.[1][25]

Siilasvuo's sonEnsio Siilasvuo,who had served as a platoon leader, staff officer and company commander in III Corps during the Continuation War, also became a Finnish general following service in peace-keeping duties for theUnited Nations.[26]

During his life, Siilasvuo was granted several Finnish awards, the most notable of which are Mannerheim Cross 2nd Class, the Grand Cross of theOrder of the White Rose of Finlandand theOrder of the Cross of Liberty.He also received the GermanIron Cross(both 1st and 2nd Class) and theOrder of the German Eagle;and the SwedishOrder of the Sword.[1]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^abcdefghijklUola 2006.
  2. ^abTuunainen 2015,p. 91.
  3. ^Chew 1981,pp. 17–18.
  4. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1988,p. 172.
  5. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1988,pp. 177–179.
  6. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1988,p. 183.
  7. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,pp. 14–15.
  8. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,pp. 21–22.
  9. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,p. 22.
  10. ^Ziemke 1959,p. 179.
  11. ^abZiemke 1959,p. 180.
  12. ^abSotatieteen laitos 1993,p. 100.
  13. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,pp. 101–102.
  14. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,p. 179.
  15. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,pp. 292–295.
  16. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,pp. 370–374.
  17. ^Sotatieteen laitos 1993,pp. 343–347.
  18. ^Nenye et al. 2016,pp. 245–249.
  19. ^Leskinen & Juutilainen 2005,p. 1124.
  20. ^Leskinen & Juutilainen 2005,p. 1129.
  21. ^Ziemke 1959,p. 296.
  22. ^Leskinen & Juutilainen 2005,p. 1131.
  23. ^Leskinen & Juutilainen 2005,p. 1136.
  24. ^Leskinen & Juutilainen 2005,p. 1148.
  25. ^Harju 2008.
  26. ^Uola 2000.

References[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toHjalmar Siilasvuo.
  • Chew, Allen F. (1981)."Fighting the Russians in Winter: Three Case studies"(PDF).Leavenworth Papers.5.Combat Studies Institute, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.Retrieved11 November2021.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal=(help)
  • Harju, Anja (26 October 2008)."Hjalmar Siilasvuo veti Walon talon täyteen"[Hjalmar Siilasvuo fills the Walo house].Kaleva(in Finnish).Retrieved11 November2021.
  • Leskinen, Jari; Juutilainen, Antti, eds. (2005).Jatkosodan pikkujättiläinen(in Finnish). Helsinki: Werner Söderström Osakeyhtiö.ISBN951-0-28690-7.
  • Nenye, Vesa; Munter, Peter; Wirtanen, Toni; Birks, Chris (2016).Finland at War: The Continuation and Lapland Wars 1941–45.Bloomsbury Publishing.ISBN978-1-47-281528-6.
  • Sotatieteen laitos, ed. (1988).Jatkosodan historia 1.Sotatieteen laitoksen julkaisuja XXV (in Finnish). Vol. 1. Porvoo: Werner Söderström Osakeyhtiö.ISBN951-0-15327-3.
  • Sotatieteen laitos, ed. (1993).Jatkosodan historia 4.Sotatieteen laitoksen julkaisuja XXV (in Finnish). Vol. 4. Porvoo: Werner Söderström Osakeyhtiö.ISBN951-0-15330-3.
  • Tuunainen, Pasi (2015). "The transfer of military knowledge and the Finnish Civil War: The Finnish volunteers in the Royal Prussian Jaeger Battalion 27 as adopters and disseminators of the German art of war, 1915–1918".Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte.28(1): 91–97.doi:10.13109/kize.2015.28.1.91.JSTOR24574785.
  • Uola, Mikko (2006)."Siilasvuo, Hjalmar (1892–1947)".Kansallisbiografia.Studia Biographica (in Finnish). Vol. 4. The Finnish Literature Society.ISSN1799-4349.Retrieved11 November2021.
  • Uola, Mikko (2000)."Siilasvuo, Ensio (1922–2003)".Kansallisbiografia.Studia Biographica (in Finnish). Vol. 4. The Finnish Literature Society.ISSN1799-4349.Retrieved11 November2021.
  • Ziemke, Earl F. (1959).The German Northern Theater of Operations 1940–1945(PDF).United States Government Printing.ISBN0-16-001996-6.Retrieved21 October2021.
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