View source for List of wars involving Finland

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{{About|wars involving independent Finland|wars during Russian rule (1809–1917)|list of wars involving Russia|wars during Swedish rule (1249–1809)|list of wars involving Sweden|wars prior to Swedish rule|early Finnish wars}}

This is a '''list of wars involving Finland''' since its [[Finnish Declaration of Independence|declaration of independence]] on 6 December 1917.

== List ==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! rowspan="2" width=150px| Conflict
! rowspan="2" width=150px| Party 1
! rowspan="2" width=150px| Party 2
! rowspan="2" width=180px| Result
! colspan="2"| Finnish leaders
! rowspan="2"| Finnish losses<br />(dead or missing)
|-
! width=110px| Head of State
! width=110px| Chief of Defence
|-
|style="background:#efefef"| [[Finnish Civil War]]<br />(1918)
|style="background:#efefef"| {{plainlist|
*{{flagicon image|Flag of Finland 1918 (state).svg}} '''[[White Guard (Finland)|Finnish Whites]]'''
*{{flag|German Empire}}<ref>Including conspirative co-operation between Germany and Russian Bolsheviks 1914–1918, {{Harvnb|Pipes|1996|pp=113–149}}, {{Harvnb|Lackman|2009|pp=48–57}}, {{Harvnb|McMeekin|2017|pp=125–136}}</ref>
*'''Foreign volunteers:'''
** {{flagicon image|Flag of the Swedish Brigade (Ruotsalainen prikaati).svg}} [[Swedish Brigade]]
** {{flagdeco|Estonia}} [[Estonia]]n volunteers
** {{flagicon|Second_Polish_Republic|1919}} [[Polish Legion in Finland|Polish Legion]]
** {{flagicon|Russian_Empire}} [[White Army]]
}}
|style="background:#efefef"| {{plainlist|
* {{flagicon image|Red flag.svg}} '''[[Red Guards (Finland)|Finnish Reds]]'''
*{{Flagicon|Soviet Russia|1918}} [[Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic|Soviet Russia]]
}}
|style="background:#D0FFD0"| '''Finnish Whites victory'''
*German [[hegemony]] until November 1918
*Division in Finnish society
*Collapse of the Finnish Reds
*Dissolution of the [[Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic]]
| rowspan="1" style="background:#efefef" | {{center|[[Pehr Evind Svinhufvud]]}}
| rowspan="1" style="background:#efefef" | {{center|[[Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim|C. G. E. Mannerheim]]}}
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|~30,000<ref>[http://vesta.narc.fi/cgi-bin/db2www/sotasurmaetusivu/stat2 National Archive]</ref><br /><small>(Reds and Whites)</small>}}
|-
|style="background:#efefef"| [[Heimosodat]]<br />(1918–1922)
|style="background:#efefef"| {{plainlist|
* {{flagicon image|Flag of Finland 1918 (state).svg}} [[White Guard (Finland)|Finnish White Guard]] 
* {{flagicon|Estonia}} [[Estonia]]
* {{flagicon|Uhtua}} [[Republic of Uhtua|Uhtua]]
* {{flagicon|Uhtua|war}} [[Forest Guerrillas]]
* {{flagicon image|Ingrian people.svg}} [[North Ingria]]
}}{{flag|United Kingdom}} ([[Estonian War of Independence]])
|style="background:#efefef"| {{plainlist|
* {{flagdeco|Russian SFSR|1918}} [[Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic|Russian SFSR]]
* {{flagicon image|Socialist red flag.svg}} [[Red Guards (Finland)|Finnish Red Guards]]
* {{flagicon image|Flag of the Commune of the Working People of Estonia.svg}} [[Commune of the Working People of Estonia|Commune of Estonia]]
* {{flag|United Kingdom}}
}} ([[Viena expedition]] and [[Petsamo expeditions]])
|style="background:#BBF"| [[Treaty of Tartu (Russian–Finnish)|Treaty of Tartu]]
*Finnish victory in Estonia and annexation of Petsamo 
*Soviet victory in White Karelia, Aunus, Petrograd and East Karelia
| rowspan="1" style="background:#efefef" | {{center|[[Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg|K. J. Ståhlberg]]}}
| rowspan="1" style="background:#efefef" | {{center|[[Karl Fredrik Wilkama]]}}
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|~550}}
|-
|-
|style="background:#efefef"| [[Winter War]]<br />(1939–1940)<br />''Part of the [[European theatre of World War II]]''
|style="background:#efefef"| '''{{flag|Finland}}'''
* [[Foreign support of Finland in the Winter War|Foreign volunteers]]
|style="background:#efefef"| '''{{flag|Soviet Union|1936}}'''
* [[Finnish Democratic Republic]]
|style="background:#BBF"| [[Moscow Peace Treaty]]
*Soviet conquest of Finland fails
*Cession of the [[Gulf of Finland]] islands, [[Karelian Isthmus]], [[Ladoga Karelia]], [[Salla]], [[Rybachy Peninsula]] and lease of [[Hanko, Finland|Hanko]] to the Soviet Union
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|[[Kyösti Kallio]]}}
| rowspan="3" style="background:#efefef" | {{center|[[Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim|C. G. E. Mannerheim]]}}
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|   25,904{{refn|Finnish detailed death casualties: Dead, buried 16,766; Wounded, died of wounds 3,089; Dead, not buried, later declared as dead 3,503; Missing, declared as dead 1,712; Died as a prisoner of war 20; Other reasons (diseases, accidents, suicides) 677; Unknown 137.}}}}
|-
|style="background:#efefef"| [[Continuation War]]<br />(1941–1944)<br />''Part of the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]] of [[World War II]]''
|style="background:#efefef"| '''{{flag|Finland}}'''<br />'''{{flagcountry|Nazi Germany}}'''<br />'''Naval support:'''<br />{{flagcountry|Fascist Italy (1922–1943)}}{{refn|Italian participation was limited to the four motor torpedo boats of the [[XII Squadriglia MAS]] serving in the international [[Naval Detachment K]] on [[Lake Ladoga]] during the summer and autumn of 1942.{{sfn|Zapotoczny|2017|p=123}}|group="lower-alpha"}}
|style="background:#efefef"| '''{{flagcountry|Soviet Union|1936}}'''<br />'''Air support:'''<br />{{nowrap|{{flagcountry|United Kingdom}}{{refn|The United Kingdom formally declared war on Finland on 6 December 1941 along with four Commonwealth states largely for appearances' sake.{{sfn|Clements|2012|p=210}} Before that, the British conducted a [[Raid on Kirkenes and Petsamo|carrier raid at Petsamo]] on 31 July 1941,{{sfn|Sturtivant|1990|p=86}} and commenced [[Operation Benedict]] to support air raids in the Murmansk area and train Soviet crews for roughly a month from September to October in 1941}}}}
|style="background:#FFD0D0"| '''Defeat''' <ref name="Mouritzen1997">{{cite book|last=Mouritzen|first= Hans|title=External Danger and Democracy: Old Nordic Lessons and New European Challenges|year= 1997|publisher=Dartmouth|isbn=1-85521-885-2|pages=35|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O7COAAAAMAAJ&q=soviet+victory}}</ref>
* [[Moscow Armistice]]
* Start of the [[Lapland War]]
* [[Pechengsky District|Petsamo]] ceded to the USSR
* [[Porkkalanniemi|Porkkala Peninsula]] leased to the USSR for 50 years{{refn|On 19 September 1955, Finland and the Soviet Union signed an agreement to return the Porkkala Peninsula to Finland. In January 1956, 12 years after its lease to the USSR, the Soviets withdrew from [[Porkkala Naval Base|their naval base on Porkkala]] and the peninsula was returned to Finnish sovereignty.{{sfn|Jakobson|1969|pp=45–47}}|group="lower-alpha"}}
* [[Hanko, Finland|Hanko]] [[Battle of Hanko (1941)|retaken]] by Finland
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|[[Risto Ryti]]}}
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|   63,204{{refn|Finnish detailed death casualties: Dead, buried 33,565; Wounded, died of wounds 12,820; Dead, not buried later declared as dead 4,251; Missing, declared as dead 3,552; Died as prisoners of war 473; Other reasons (diseases, accidents, suicides) 7,932; Unknown 611}}}}
|-
|style="background:#efefef"| [[Lapland War]]<br />(1944–1945)<br />''Part of the [[Second World War]]''
|style="background:#efefef"| {{flagicon|Finland}} '''[[Finland in World War II|Finland]]'''<br />Minor air support:<br />{{flagicon|Soviet Union|1936}} [[Soviet Union]]{{efn|Minor air support in [[Operation Tanne Ost]] only. Further extent of Soviet belligerence in the Lapland War is debatable. Gebhardt and Ziemke mention the German withdrawal from Lapland and Finnmark, as well as the Soviet [[Petsamo–Kirkenes Offensive]] as operations of the Second World War that were either strategically overlapping or as a continuum of events without a clear stance.{{sfn|Gebhardt|1989|pp= 2–4}}{{sfn|Ziemke|2002|pp= 391–401}} Jowett and Snodgrass write about the war as a conflict between German and Finnish troops, but include the offensive in the war's timeline.{{sfn|Jowett|Snodgrass|2012|p=16}} Zabecki begins by mentioning that Lapland extends to Norway and the Soviet Union. He states that the "Finnish War of Lapland" started between Finland and Germany, but links the Soviet offensive to it.{{sfn|Zabecki|2015|p=1552}} Jaques writes of the offensive as a part of the war in a dictionary of battles.{{sfn|Jaques|2007|p=792}}}}
|style="background:#efefef"| {{flagicon|Nazi Germany}} '''[[Nazi Germany|Germany]]'''
|style="background:#D0FFD0"| '''Victory'''
*German retreat from Finnish territory
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|[[Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim|C. G. E. Mannerheim]]}}
|style="background:#efefef"| {{center|    1,036{{sfn|Ahto|1980|p=296}}}}
|}

==See also==
* [[Military of the Grand Duchy of Finland]]
* [[Military history of Finland]]
* [[List of Finnish treaties]]
* [[Finland Guard Regiment]]

==References==
===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

== Notes ==
{{notelist-la|colwidth=30}}

===Bibliography===
* {{cite book|last=Ahto|first=Sampo|year=1980|language=fi|title=Aseveljet vastakkain – Lapin sota 1944–1945|trans-title=Brothers in Arms Opposing Each Other – Lapland War 1944–1945|publisher=Kirjayhtymä|location=Helsinki|isbn=978-951-26-1726-5}}
* {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kVcrDwAAQBAJ&q=leningrad+siege+mannerheim&pg=PT213|title=Mannerheim: President, Soldier, Spy|last=Clements|first=Jonathan|publisher=Haus Publishing|year=2012|isbn=978-1-908323-18-7|archive-date=25 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425151935/https://books.google.com/books?id=kVcrDwAAQBAJ&q=leningrad+siege+mannerheim&pg=PT213|url-status=live}}
* {{Cite book |last=Gebhardt |first=James F. |url=http://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a322750.pdf |title=The Petsamo-Kirkenes Operation: Soviet Breakthrough and Pursuit in the Arctic, October 1944 |publisher=[[Combat Studies Institute]], [[U.S. Army Command and General Staff College]] |year=1989 |issn=0195-3451 |oclc=20490453 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180211130518/http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a322750.pdf |archive-date=February 11, 2018 |url-status=dead}}
* {{cite book|last=Jakobson|first=Max|title=Finnish Neutrality: A Study of Finnish Foreign Policy Since the Second World War|year=1969|isbn=978-0-238-78818-5|publisher=Praegar|location=New York|url=https://archive.org/details/finnishneutralit0000jako|url-access=registration}}
* {{Cite book |last=Jaques |first=Tony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EbLOEAAAQBAJ |title=Dictionary of battles and sieges: a guide to 8,500 battles from antiquity through the twenty-first century |date=2007 |publisher=[[Greenwood Press]] |isbn=978-0-313-33536-5 |location=Westport, Conn |oclc=ocm68786744}}
* {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iaSjCwAAQBAJ|title=Finland at War 1939–45|first1=Philip|last1=Jowett|first2=Brent|last2=Snodgrass|year=2012|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=978-1-78200-156-0|archive-date=25 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425151915/https://books.google.com/books?id=iaSjCwAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}
* {{Citation|last=Lackman|first=Matti|year=2009|title=Jääkäriliike. In: Haapala, P. & Hoppu, T. (eds.) Sisällissodan pikkujättiläinen|pages=48–57|place=Helsinki|publisher=WSOY|isbn=978-951-0-35452-0}}
* {{cite book |last=McMeekin |first=Sean |year=2017 |title=The Russian Revolution: A New History |place=London |publisher=Profile Books |isbn=978-1-78125-902-3}}
* {{cite book |last=Pipes |first=Richard |year=1996 |title=A Concise History of the Russian Revolution |place=New York |publisher=[[Vintage Books]] |isbn=0-679-74544-0}}
* {{cite book|title=British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm 1917–1990 |last=Sturtivant|first=Ray|publisher=Arms & Armour Press Ltd|year=1990|isbn=0-85368-938-5|location=London}}
* {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xXkpDwAAQBAJ&q=naval+detachment+k+italy&pg=PT123 |title=Decima Flottiglia MAS: The Best Commandos of the Second World War|last=Zapotoczny|first=Walter S. Jr.|publisher=Fonthill Media|year=2017|isbn=978-1-62545-113-2|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180221161614/https://books.google.ch/books?id=xXkpDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT123&dq=naval+detachment+k+italy&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi2zqLL0bbZAhXD_KQKHeHoCr0Q6AEIKDAA#v=onepage&q=naval%20detachment%20k%20italy&f=false |archive-date=21 February 2018}}
* {{Cite book |last=Zabecki |first=David T. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V6_lCAAAQBAJ |title=World War II in Europe: an encyclopedia |publisher=[[Garland Publishing]] |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-8240-7029-8 |editor-last=Zabecki |editor-first=David T. |series=Military history of the United States |location=New York}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ziemke |first=Earl Frederick |url=https://archive.org/details/StalingradToBerlinTheGermanDefeatInTheEast |title=Stalingrad to Berlin: the German Defeat in the East |publisher=[[United States Army Center of Military History]] |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-16-001962-3 |location=Washington}}

{{Finland topics}}
{{Finnish Defence Forces}}
{{Europe topic|List of wars involving|title=Lists of wars involving European countries}}

[[Category:Lists of wars by country involved|Finland]]
[[Category:Wars involving Finland| ]]
[[Category:Finland history-related lists|Wars]]
[[Category:Finnish military-related lists|Wars]]