Civil War in Finland and Сolonel Svechnikov

Abstract

Events related to the history of the Finnish Civil War of 1918, are, undoubtedly, of research interest. This war was the first such kind of military-social clash in the territory of the former Russian Empire and presented a very bloody display of internal confrontation, which characterized the Finnish society of the observed period. However, there are still no real analytical researches in the national literature, especially concerning military aspects of the Civil War. Many historians traditionally ascribe the determinant role in the victory of the white movement to the merits of Mannerheim. Much less attention is devoted to the organizational abilities of the former Russian army colonel Svechnikov who was the main coordinator of the activities of the Finnish Red Guard during the war. It was thanks to him that the Red Guards managed to stabilize the front and prevent the breakthrough of Mannerheim's troops in February-March 1918 to the most vital southern regions of Finland. As a result, on March 20, Mannerheim was forced to send a request to the German military command to "speed up the arrival" of regular units of the German army to Finland. This appeal was justified by the fact that "procrastination is fatal" for the white movement in Finland. Thus, the analysis of the activities of Colonel Svechnikov clearly indicates that he turned out to be a very worthy opponent to Mannerheim. The defeat of the Reds was mainly the result of the German military intervention that began on April 3, 1918.