Finland at War 1939–45

In the face of two Soviet invasions within five years, the armies raised by Finland, a tiny nation of only 4 million people, astonished the world with their effective resistance. At the end of both campaigns, the Winter War of 1939-40 and the Continuation War of 1941-44, the fiercely patriotic defiance of vastly stronger Soviet forces by Marshal Mannerheim's soldiers won their country a unique prize: although forced to accept harsh terms, Finland was never occupied by the Red Army, and retained its independence. This book explains and illustrates, for the first time in English, the organization, uniforms, equipment and tactics of Finland's defenders. Book jacket.

Philip Jowett was born in Leeds in 1961, and has been interested in military history for as long as he can remember. His first Osprey book was the ground-breaking Men-at-Arms 306: ‘Chinese Civil War Armies 1911–49’. He has since published a three-part sequence on the Italian Army 1940–45 (Men-at-Arms 340, 349 & 353). A rugby league enthusiast and amateur genealogist, he is married and lives in Lincolnshire.