The Battle of Tali–Ihantala (June 25 to July 9, 1944) 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 marked a point in the Soviet offensive when the Finnish forces first prevented the Soviets from making any significant gains. Earlier at Siiranmäki and Perkjärvi the Finns had halted advancing Soviet forces. The Finnish forces achieved a defensive victory against overwhelming odds.
After the Soviets had failed to create any breakthroughs at Tali–Ihantala, Vyborg Bay, or Vuosalmi, the Soviet Leningrad Front started the previously planned transfer of troops from the Karelian Isthmus to support the Narva offensive, where they were encountering particularly fierce resistance. Though the Leningrad Front failed to advance into Finland as ordered by the Stavka, some historians state that the offensive did eventually force Finland from the war.
Background
After the initial Finnish advance of 1941, the Continuation War was stabilized to trench warfare with very little activity on either side. When the Siege of Leningrad was lifted in January 1944, the Stavka received orders to plan an offensive against Finland to push it out of the war.
The Soviet attack on the Finnish front commenced on the Karelian Isthmus on June 9, 1944, (coordinated with the Allied Invasion of Normandy). Three Soviet armies were pitted there against the Finns, among them several experienced Guard formations.
The attack soon breached the Finnish front line of defence in Valkeasaari on June 10, and the Finnish forces retreated to their secondary defence line, the VT-line (which ran between Vammelsuu and Taipale). The Soviet attack was supported by a massive artillery barrage, air bombardments, and armoured forces.
The VT-line was breached in Sahakylä and Kuuterselkä on June 14; and after a failed counterattack in Kuuterselkä by the Finnish armoured division, the Finnish defence had to be pulled back to the VKT-line (Viipuri – Kuparsaari – Taipale).
The abandonment of the VT-line was followed by a week of retreat and delaying battles. The Soviet offensive was crowned when the city of Viipuri (Russian: Vyborg) was captured by the Soviets on June 20 after only a short battle. Despite the Red Army's great success in smashing two Finnish defense lines and capturing a substantial piece of territory in just ten days, it had failed to destroy the Finnish army which was able to concentrate its depleted forces on the VKT-line, and had time to get reinforcements from the other main front north of Lake Ladoga.
Baron Mannerheim, Marshal of Finland,
Finnish commander in chief, had asked for German help on June 12, and on June 16 the Flight Detachment Kuhlmey (a composite ad hoc wing of about 70 dive bombers and ground attack fighters, with a fighter and an air transport component) arrived in Finland. A few days later the battalion-sized 303 Assault Gun Brigade and the 122nd Division Greif also arrived; but after that the Germans offered only supplies, the most important of which were Panzerfaust anti-tank weapons. During one engagement the Finns destroyed 25 Soviet tanks with the Panzerfaust weapons.
On June 21 the Stavka ordered the Leningrad Front to breach the defensive line and advance to Lake Saimaa.
On June 21 the Finnish government asked the Soviets about the possibility for peace and accompanying Soviet conditions. The Soviet response arrived on June 23; it demanded a signed statement to the effect that Finland was ready to surrender and was asking for peace, but the Finnish government rejected this.
German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop arrived on June 22 and demanded a guarantee that Finland would fight to the end as a precondition of continued German military support. President Ryti gave this guarantee as a personal undertaking.
Order of battle
Finnish
HQ of the Commander of the Isthmus Forces (Lieutenant General Karl Lennart Oesch)
On average the strength of the Finnish infantry division was 13,300 men, Armoured Division 9,300 and Brigade 6,700–7000 men. With other troops (at least 4 other battalions), Corps/HQ artillery battalions, AA batteries etc. Finnish ground forces during last days of battle were actually near around 100,000 and not 50,000.
German
Soviet
The Soviet forces that took part in the battle belonged to the Soviet Leningrad Front under Marshal Leonid Govorov's command.
These five corps had together the 45th, 63rd and 64th Guards Rifle Divisions and 46th, 72nd, 90th, 109th, 168th, 178th, 265th, 268th, 286th, 314th, 358th and 372nd Rifle Divisions.
Armoured units of 21st Army and armoured reserves of Leningrad Front in Karelian Isthmus:
- 1st Guards Tank Brigade (described as extremely strong)
- 30th Guards Tank Brigade
- 152nd Tank Brigade
- 220th Tank Brigade
- 26th Guards Breakthrough Tank Regiment
- 27th Guards Heavy Breakthrough Tank Regiment
- 27th Separate Tank Regiment
- 31st Guards Breakthrough Tank Regiment
- 98th Tank Regiment
- 124th Tank Regiment
- 185th Tank Tank Regiment
- 260th Guards Breakthrough Tank Regiment
- 351st Guards Heavy Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
- 394th Heavy Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
- 396th Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
- 397th Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
- 1222nd Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
- 1238th Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
- 1326th Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
- 1439th Self-Propelled Gun Regiment
Strength of armoured brigades around 60 and regiments around 15–21 tanks or assault/ Self-propelled guns.
The 21st Army did not commit all of its forces simultaneously but instead kept some of the forces in reserve and committed them only after the initially committed formations had spent their offensive capability and required rest and refit. Also, at the beginning of the battle, some of the Soviet forces that later took part in the battle were deployed on nearby sections of the front, such as the 108th Rifle Corps with its three divisions being deployed to Vyborg and the Vyborg Bay area. According to Doctor Ohto Manninen some 25% of 21st Army forces did not take part at Battle of Tali–Ihantala.
Artillery of Leningrad Front and 21st Army
- 5th Guards Breakthrough Artillery Division
- 15th Breakthrough Artillery Division
- 51st Artillery Brigade
- 127th Artillery Brigade
- 3rd Guards Mortar Brigade (rocket launchers)
- 19th Guards Mortar Brigade (rocket launchers)
– 7 field artillery regiments (corps)
– 4 mortar regiments (using rocket launchers)
Average Red Army division of Leningrad Front in early June 1944 had 6,500–7,000 men, which is half the size of a Finnish infantry division.
Soviet air power
32nd Anti Aircraft Artillery Division, having 4 AA-regiments.
13th Air Army 9 June 1944 (exact information, according to documents in TsAMO = Russian Defence Ministry Archice in Podolsk): 817 aircraft (including e.g. 235 Il-2s and 205 fighters ). Guards Fighter Aviation Corps, Leningrad: 257 fighters. VVS KBF (Baltic Fleet Air Force) : ~545 aircraft.
Altogether approx 1600 combat aircraft, of which periodically up to 80% were used against the Finnish forces in June 1944 (the rest securing the southern shore of Gulf of Finland against German Luftflotte 1).
The terrain
The Battle of Tali–Ihantala was fought in a small area – 100 square kilometres (39 sq mi) – between the northern tip of Vyborg Bay and the River Vuoksi around the villages of Tali and Ihantala, 8 to 14 kilometres (5.0 to 8.7 mi) northeast of Vyborg.
The Soviet forces were concentrated on the area east of the city of Vyborg, from where the attack started, through the southern village of Tali, northwards to Ihantala (Petrovka). This was the only suitable exit terrain for armoured forces out of the Karelian Isthmus, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) wide, broken by small lakes and limited by Saimaa Canal on the west and the River Vuoksi on the east.
Tali: June 25–30
The fighting in the area began on June 20.
June 20–24
The first days were a defensive battle that the Finnish 18th Division (6th and 48th Infantry Regiment and 28th Independent Battalion) and 3rd Brigade (4 battalions) and the 3rd battalion of the 13th Regiment (Swedish speaking) fought against the Soviet 97th and 109th Corps and 152nd Tank Brigade. The defenders were hit especially hard by artillery and air attacks, but managed to put up a strong defense that stalled the Soviet advance long enough for Finnish reinforcements to join the battle.
June 25–26
The action of June 25 started at 06:30 with a one-hour Soviet heavy artillery bombardment and air attack, followed by a major Soviet offensive from Tali village at 07:30. The Soviets' goal in the attack was to reach Imatra-Lappeenranta-Suurpäälä before June 28. The 30th Guards Rifle Corps had now also joined the battle.
The Soviet army tried to break through along both sides of Lake Leitimojärvi. The attack on the eastern side of the lake was stopped after three kilometers by the Finnish 4th Division. On the west side, the Soviet infantry of the 45th Guards Division and the 109th Corps got stuck in defensive positions around the hills of Konkkalanvuoret defended by the Finnish regiment JR48.
However, the Soviet 27th Tank Regiment was able to force their way to the Portinhoikka crossroads.
The Soviets also attacked with the 178th Division over the Saarela Strait, which was defended by Finnish regiment JR6's 1st battalion, but the attack was thrown back here as well. Meanwhile, the Soviet 97th Corps attacked the Finnish 3rd Brigade's positions but gained little ground. At this stage the situation was very critical for the Finns, whose units were at risk of being cut off and surrounded. This would inevitably have led to the defeat of the Finnish IV Corps and the loss of the VKT line.
The Finns were able to organize a counterattack with the reserves of the 18th Division, parts of the 17th Division, and some battle groups from the 4th Division. Later that afternoon, the Finnish armored division joined the battle and managed to push the Soviet attackers on the west side of the Lake Leitimojärvi back to their starting point. The Soviet 27th Tank Regiment was annihilated except for six tanks that were captured by the Finns.
June 27–30
More Finnish units joined the battle along with the German 303rd Sturmgeschütz brigade. The Finnish units had been spread out and mixed in the battle, which made the organization of a concentrated defence difficult. The Finnish units were therefore reorganized into two battle groups, BG Björkman and BG Puroma. The Soviets also reinforced their forces with the 108th Corps. At this stage, the Soviet forces included at least one armored brigade, two armored breakthrough regiments, and four assault gun regiments (around 180 AFVs if full strength).
The Finns tried to regain the initiative by attacking the four Soviet divisions (46th Guard, 63rd Guard, 64th Guard, 268th Division and the 30th Guards Tank Brigade) – that had broken through east of Leitimojärvi – from three directions, in order to make a "motti" of the Soviet divisions. The two battle groups, Björkman and Puroma, did manage to advance to within one kilometer of each other but failed to surround the Soviet divisions who had set themselves up into a hedgehog defense around Talinmylly.