Battle of Suomussalmi | |||||||
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Part of the Winter War | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Finland | Soviet Union | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Wiljo Tuompo Hjalmar Siilasvuo Paavo Susitaival Kaarle Kari |
Mikhail Dukhanov Vasily Chuikov Ivan Dashichev Alexei Vinogradov Andrei Zelentsov | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
North Finland Group |
163rd Rifle Division 13,562[2] 47th Rifle Corps units 3,238[2] 44th Rifle Division 11,416[2] 3rd NKVD regiment 1,600[2] Total: 29,816 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
2,700 killed, wounded, or missing [3] | 22,500 killed [3] | ||||||
The Battle of Suomussalmi was fought between Finnish and Soviet forces in the Winter War. The action took place from 30 November 1939 to 8 January 1940. The outcome was a Finnish victory against superior forces. This battle is considered the clearest, most important, and most significant Finnish victory in the northern half of Finland.[4] In Finland, the battle is still seen today as a symbol of the entirety of the Winter War itself.