Battle of Kelja

Last updated
Battle of Kelja
Part of Winter War
Taipale.jpg
Aerial photograph of the Koukunniemi cape in the Taipale sector, taken from the south, facing north.
Date25-27 December 1939
Location
Kelja area, eastern Karelian Isthmus, Finland
60°40′29″N30°14′42″E / 60.67472°N 30.24500°E / 60.67472; 30.24500
Result Finnish victory
Belligerents
Flag of Finland.svg  Finland Flag of the USSR (1936-1955).svg  Soviet Union
Strength
10th Division [1] 4th Division [2]
Casualties and losses
141 killed
375 wounded
2,000 killed [3]
Relief Map of Leningrad Oblast.png
Red pog.svg
Location within Leningrad Oblast
Finland adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Battle of Kelja (Finland)
Relief Map of Karelia.png
Red pog.svg
Battle of Kelja (Karelia)
Monument at the place of former Kelja village Kelja monument.JPG
Monument at the place of former Kelja village

The Battle of Kelja, fought from December 25 to December 27, 1939 in and around the village of Kelja (now Portovoe, Priozersky District, Leningrad Oblast, Russia), was a part of the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union. [4]

Contents

Prelude

In the weeks before the Soviet attack, the whole Taipale sector had been under heavy shelling and daily infantry attacks. These attacks were all repulsed, mainly by Finnish artillery. The infantry attacks had reached their climax on December 17, and abruptly ceased the next day. However, the shelling increased in intensity, and lasted throughout the invasion. In the final days before the main attack, Finnish reconnaissance planes reported the arrival of the Soviet 4th Rifle Division, and ground patrols reported unusually high amounts of Soviet soldiers in the area.

Battle

December 25

The attack began early in the morning, with Soviet soldiers crossing the iced-over Lake Suvanto under the cover of darkness. With the help of dense snowfall, the attack achieved nearly total surprise. The Soviets unleashed a massive artillery barrage on Patoniemi Fort, away from the main attack at Kelja. When the first Soviet soldiers reached the beachhead, artillery finally opened up on rear Finnish positions. This caused confusion as to the size of the attack, including the company defending the beachhead reporting the attack as “nothing unusual”. [5]

Eventually, three beachheads were established at Patoniemi, Volossula, and Kelja. [6] Finnish artillery was able to repel the second and third waves of reinforcements, however a battalion had already landed at each of the three beachheads.

At the Patoniemi sector, the Soviets had deployed their heavy machine guns on the flanks of the Finns before they realised what was happening. The defenders were able to stall the attack long enough to alert their battalion headquarters. Finnish command reacted swiftly, committing a reserve battalion to the defence, and within a few hours the majority of the attackers had been pushed back across the ice or destroyed. However, sporadic resistance lasted until evening, when the area was finally cleared.

The Volossula sector was put on alert after the regimental headquarters was informed of the Patoniemi landings. After reporting that there were no Soviet forces in sight, they were ordered to advance towards Patoniemi. However, the Soviet troops began landing on the shores and they were forced to deal with them before advancing. The Finnish battalion sent to reinforce the company defending the beach was hit by an artillery barrage, but nevertheless reached the objective within an hour. When they got there, the Soviets were already starting to dig in. Intense fighting ensued, and the Soviets were pushed back across the ice with heavy casualties.

At the Kelja sector, the battalion commander received reports of Soviet forces crossing the ice. Finnish artillery opened up immediately and prevented the left wing of the attack from reaching the shores. By the time the battalion reserves could be mobilised, the rest of the attacking forces were already at the edge of the field near Kelja. A Finnish counter-attack managed to push them back to the edge of the forest with the help of an artillery barrage. The Soviet troops dug in and managed to repel another counter-attack, with fighting lasting throughout the day.

December 26

Patoniemi cape from the Southeast Patoniemi.jpg
Patoniemi cape from the Southeast

Throughout the day, the Soviets tried to send reinforcements across the ice, most of which were repulsed by Finnish artillery. Two more counter-attacks against the dug-in Soviet positions failed, as the situation became more serious. The Finnish command decided an immediate and decisive attack was needed to defuse the situation. Early in the morning on December 26, the attack began as a company of Finns advanced towards the Soviets. Without artillery, the mortars they were promised and under heavy fire, they were forced to retreat.

Another attack, this time with two companies, began later that day. The attack made some gains early on, but after using most of their ammunition and coming under a heavy artillery bombardment, they were forced to withdraw. The rest of the battalion was ordered to hold their positions and stop reinforcements from crossing the ice.

Throughout the night, the Soviet 4th division made repeated attempts to reinforce their positions on the shore, but because of the clear moonlight, all were repulsed by Finnish artillery. Nearly a regiment took part in these attacks, which were disastrous. Finnish observers reported “...the ice is littered with piles of bodies...”. [7]

December 27

The Finns launched yet another counter-attack after the Soviets were bombarded by artillery. This attack failed due to heavy machine gun fire, and they were forced to withdraw again.

Then, later that day, another counter-attack with more artillery support was launched. This was a success, as the battered Finnish company managed to infiltrate Soviet positions. After over seven hours of continuous fighting, the majority of Soviet resistance collapsed, though with a high cost. By the morning of December 28, the area was entirely cleared, and the Battle of Kelja was over.

Conclusion

Although the attack eventually failed, it did succeed in draining the Taipale sector of its reserves. [8] The Finns were so short on manpower that reserves from the Western Isthmus had to be relocated to Taipale, further weakening the area. However, they did capture much desperately needed equipment from the Soviets, including 12 anti-tank guns, 140 machine guns, 200 light machine guns and 1500 rifles. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Tolvajärvi</span> Battle in Winter War between Finland and Soviet Union

The Battle of Tolvajärvi was fought on 12 December 1939 between Finland and the Soviet Union. It was the first large offensive victory for the Finns in the Winter War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mannerheim Line</span> Defensive line used by Finland

The Mannerheim Line was a defensive fortification line on the Karelian Isthmus built by Finland against the Soviet Union. While this was never an officially designated name, during the Winter War it became known as the Mannerheim Line, after Finnish Army's then commander-in-chief Field Marshal Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim. The line was constructed in two phases: 1920–1924 and 1932–1939. By November 1939, when the Winter War began, the line was by no means complete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Albert (1916)</span> Part of the Battle of the Somme

The Battle of Albert is the British name for the first two weeks of British–French offensive operations of the Battle of the Somme. The Allied preparatory artillery bombardment commenced on 24 June and the British–French infantry attacked on 1 July, on the south bank from Foucaucourt to the Somme and from the Somme north to Gommecourt, 2 mi (3.2 km) beyond Serre. The French Sixth Army and the right wing of the British Fourth Army inflicted a considerable defeat on the German 2nd Army but from near the Albert–Bapaume road to Gommecourt, the British attack was a disaster, where most of the c. 57,000 British casualties of the day were incurred. Against the wishes of General Joseph Joffre, General Sir Douglas Haig abandoned the offensive north of the road to reinforce the success in the south, where the British–French forces pressed forward through several intermediate lines closer to the German second position.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Second Battle of Artois</span> 1915 Allied offensive, World War I

The Second Battle of Artois from 9 May to 18 June 1915, took place on the Western Front during the First World War. A German-held salient from Reims to Amiens had been formed in 1914 which menaced communications between Paris and the unoccupied parts of northern France. A reciprocal French advance eastwards in Artois could cut the rail lines supplying the German armies between Arras and Reims. French operations in Artois, Champagne and Alsace from November–December 1914, led General Joseph Joffre, Generalissimo and head of Grand Quartier Général (GQG), to continue the offensive in Champagne against the German southern rail supply route and to plan an offensive in Artois against the lines from Germany supplying the German armies in the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Summa</span> Battle in the Winter War

The Battle of Summa was fought between the Soviet Union and Finland, in two phases, first in December 1939 and then in February 1940. It was part of the Winter War and was fought near the village of Summa along the main road leading from Leningrad to Viipuri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Vuosalmi</span> 1944 battle of the Continuation War

The Battle of Vuosalmi – the main bulk of it – lasted from July 4 to July 17, 1944. It was fought during the Continuation War (1941–1944), a part of World War II, between Finland and the Soviet Union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capture of Schwaben Redoubt</span> Incident in the 1916 Battle of the Somme

The Capture of Schwaben Redoubt was a tactical incident in the Battle of the Somme, 1916 during the First World War. The redoubt was a German strong point 500–600 yd (460–550 m) long and 200 yd (180 m) wide, built in stages since 1915, near the village of Thiepval and overlooking the River Ancre. It formed part of the German defensive system in the Somme sector of the Western Front during the First World War and consisting of a mass of machine-gun emplacements, trenches and dug-outs. The redoubt was defended by the 26th Reserve Division, from Swabia in south-west Germany, which had arrived in the area during the First Battle of Albert in 1914. Troops of the 36th (Ulster) Division captured the redoubt on 1 July 1916, until forced out by German artillery-fire and counter-attacks after dark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vyborg–Petrozavodsk offensive</span> 1944 Soviet military offensive against Finland during the Continuation War

The Vyborg–Petrozavodsk offensive or Karelian offensive was a strategic operation by the Soviet Leningrad and Karelian Fronts against Finland on the Karelian Isthmus and East Karelia fronts of the Continuation War, on the Eastern Front of World War II. The Soviet forces captured East Karelia and Vyborg/Viipuri. After that, however, the fighting reached a stalemate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Vyborg Bay (1944)</span>

The Battle of Vyborg Bay was fought in the Finnish-Soviet Continuation War (1941–1944).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Nietjärvi</span>

The Battle of Nietjärvi was part of the Continuation War between Finland and the Soviet Union, which occurred during World War II. The battle ended in a Finnish victory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Suursaari</span> Battle between Finland and the Soviet Union in 1942 during the Continuation War

The Battle of Suursaari was fought over the frozen Gulf of Finland on and around the islands of Gogland and Bolshoy Tyuters during the Second World War. After sharp fighting the numerically superior Finnish forces seized the Gogland and Bolshoy Tyuters, and later provided support for Nazi German forces defending Bolshoy Tyuters against Soviet counterattacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Taipale</span> Battle in Winter War 1939

The Battle of Taipale was a series of battles fought during the Winter War between Finland and Soviet Union from 6 to 27 December 1939. The battles were part of a Soviet campaign to penetrate the Finnish Mannerheim Line in the Karelian Isthmus region to open a route into southern Finland. Despite their numerical superiority, the Soviet forces were unable to break through the Finnish defences.

The Naval warfare in the Winter War was the naval part of the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union from 30 November 1939 to 13 March 1940. Overall, the level of naval activity was low. However, Finland had coastal artillery batteries which took part in battles along its coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Tali–Ihantala</span> 1944 battle of the Continuation War

The Battle of Tali–Ihantala was part of the Finnish-Soviet Continuation War (1941–1944), which occurred during World War II. The battle was fought between Finnish forces—using war materiel provided by Germany—and Soviet forces. To date, it is the largest battle in the history of the Nordic countries.

The Battle of the Crna Bend was a significant military engagement fought between the forces of the Central Powers and the Entente in May 1917. It was part of the Allied Spring Offensive of the same year that was designed to break the stalemate on the Macedonian Front. Despite the considerable numerical and material advantage of the attackers over the defenders, the Bulgarian and German defence of the positions in the loop of the river Crna remained a formidable obstacle, which the Allies were unable to defeat not only in 1917 but until the end of the war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of the Menin Road Ridge</span>

The Battle of the Menin Road Ridge, sometimes called "Battle of the Menin Road", was the third British general attack of the Third Battle of Ypres in the First World War. The battle took place from 20 to 25 September 1917, in the Ypres Salient in Belgium on the Western Front. During the pause in British and French general attacks from late August to 20 September, the British changed some infantry tactics, adopting the leap-frog method of advance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Action of 25 September 1917</span>

The action of 25 September 1917 was a German methodical counter-attack (Gegenangriff) which took place during the Third Battle of Ypres (31 July – 10 November) on the Western Front during the First World War. On the front of the British X Corps at the south-east side of the Gheluvelt Plateau, two regiments of the German 50th Reserve Division attacked on both sides of the Reutelbeek stream, on a 1,800 yd (1,600 m) front. The Gegenangriff was supported by German aircraft and 44 field and 20 heavy batteries of artillery, four times the usual amount of artillery for a German division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Actions of 30 September – 4 October 1917</span>

The Actions of 30 September – 4 October 1917 were German methodical counter-attacks during the Third Battle of Ypres, in Flanders, during the First World War. Hasty counter-attacks by the German 4th Army during the Battle of the Menin Road Ridge on 20 September and the Battle of Polygon Wood on 26 September, had been costly failures. On 29 September, a review was held at Roulers by Erich Ludendorff, the Generalquartiermeister with the commanders of Heeresgruppe Kronprinz Rupprecht von Bayern and the 4th Army staffs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Kuhmo</span> Battle fought during the Winter War

The Battle of Kuhmo was a series of skirmishes, mainly between January 28 and March 13, 1940, near the town of Kuhmo during the Soviet-Finnish Winter War. The 54th Soviet Rifle Division was encircled, but was able to hold out until the end of the war.

The 224th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, originally formed as one of the first reserve rifle divisions following the German invasion of the USSR. A large part of this first formation took part in amphibious landings near Kerch in late December 1941 but it was encircled and destroyed during the Battle of the Kerch Peninsula in May 1942.

References

  1. "Battles: The Karelia Isthmus".
  2. "Battles of the Winter War: Battle of Kelja".
  3. "The Battle of Kelja, 25 - 27 December 1939".
  4. "STMMain".
  5. "The Battle of Kelja, 25 - 27 December 1939".
  6. "Talvisota 1939-1940". Archived from the original on 2010-01-11. Retrieved 2008-02-05.
  7. "The Battle of Kelja, 25 - 27 December 1939".
  8. "Fire and Ice: History". wfyi.org. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
  9. "The Battle of Kelja, 25 - 27 December 1939".