Thursday 28 December 1939

The XB-24. Notice no armament yet.

Winter War Army Operations: Today, 28 December 1939, is a bug-out day for the Soviets. While the Finns control the few roads and the woods, there is always one route of escape: the frozen lakes. They are extremely dangerous to use because of how exposed to enemy fire the troops are, but they can't be blocked and are always open for business to get home. Today, the Soviets use them.

Winter War Army Operations: Comrade Zelentsov in Suomussalmi gathers his men of the 163rd Rifle Division together at dawn. The troops form a 4 kilometer-long column on the ice of Kiantajärvi lake and head away from the doomed village they have been defending for weeks. The two regiments, the 81st Mountain Rifles, and the 759th Rifle Regiment receive elaborate Red Air Force protection, and tanks assist on the ground. By evening, they have made good progress toward safety that lies 20 km to the northeast, taking with them 2000 men, 48 trucks, 20 field guns, and 6 tanks. The going is slow on the ice, but the Soviets are motivated.

However, not everyone gets away. Zelentsov's division actually has three regiments, the third being the 662nd Rifle Regiment. It remains back forming a defensive perimeter by the road, oblivious to the departure of the men it had been guarding. Regiment commander Sharov and commissar Podhomutov - both having equal authority - sneak out on their men and leave them to their fate, making their way together through the forest to safety. Virtually everyone they leave behind is annihilated. Both Sharov and Podhomutov are immediately arrested and executed in front of the few of their troops that also survived.

The Soviets are not out of danger yet. They still must cross a very long lake and get ashore before the Finns catch up with them.

Finns at Taipale sorting through booty, most obviously some Maxim machine guns, 28 December 1939.

Aside from recapturing the village and eliminating a substantial Soviet formation, for the Finns it also is a huge strategic victory because now they can turn all of their attention to the stranded and immobile Soviet 44th Rifle Division on the Ratte road. The beleaguered division is stretched over 20 kilometers on what essentially is a rough logging road through deep forests. The division is oriented to proceed west to Suomussalmi, but now there is no need to go there. The division's only rational destination is where it came from, but the best troops are at the wrong end of the 20 kilometers. The division headquarters (kombrig Vinogradov and commissar Parkhomenko) is all the way back on the Soviet side of the border. Orders to the division: no retreat. Form a defensible perimeter and hold on for ... something.

The Soviets are bringing in reinforcements to the Karelian Isthmus, including picked Ogpu troops. However, they are not intended to help the Soviet troops that are in trouble.

Comrade Stalin is showing his ruthlessness. He essentially writes off the Soviet formations in the most difficulty in Finland and prepares a completely new plan. The new mission for Soviet 8th, 9th and 14th Armies essentially is to stand their ground for as long as they can, with no permission to retreat and no plans to resupply or reinforce them. Soviet liquidation squads are ready for any commanders that return from the front without orders or success.

HMS Barham in 1938.

Battle of the Atlantic: First thing in the morning, at 04:00, U-30 (Kapitänleutnant Fritz-Julius Lemp) sinks the anti-submarine trawler HMS Barbara Robertson. One crew member perishes. This is the equivalent of clearing one's throat, as trawlers are hardly worth the torpedo.

That afternoon, at 15:30, though, Lemp sees a much more appetizing target. U-30 torpedoes British battleship HMS Barham, which sustains relatively minor damage northwest of Butt of Lewis in the North Atlantic. Four crew members perish from the explosion, but the battleship has no difficulty making it back to port. The Barham's escorts HMS Isis and Nubian prevent U-30 from further attacks this day. Lemp is establishing himself as a top U-boat commander.

Danish freighter Hanne (2,473 tons) hits a mine and sinks just one mile off of Blyth Pier, Scotland. Fifteen crew perish and only two survive.

British fishing trawler Resercho (258 tons) hits a mine and sinks southeast of Flamborough Head, England.

US freighter Exilona is detained by the British at Gibraltar.

Convoy OA 62 departs from Scotland, OB 62 departs from Liverpool and OG 12 forms at Gibraltar.

European Air Operations: The British lose a reconnaissance plane over northwest Germany during the night.

US Air Force: First flight of the XB-24 Liberator at Lindbergh Field, San Diego.

British Homefront: Meat rationing is imposed.

Occupied Poland: The Germans plan to remove 70,000 people from the Polish town of Kalisz to make room for ethnic Germans "returned" from the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Switzerland: Fritz Thyssen, who supported Hitler's rise to power and whose assets have been confiscated by the Germans, protests that "I have not sacrificed my millions for Bolshevism but against it." Actually, he has sacrificed his millions to save his own neck. Statements like this, though, do not endear him to Hitler, and Hitler is not someone that you want to cross unless you are behind a big, bad army.

China: The Japanese bomb the Chinese military supply depot at Lanchow.

The Chinese 3rd War Area interdicts boat traffic on the Yangtze River.

Chinese 5th War Area takes Yuntankang. The Japanese are attacking it at Loyangtien, Tzepakang, Tuchungshan, and Hsuchiatien. Japanese troops take Changshoutien from it.

In the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Chinese are attacking the Japanese Fifth Infantry Division at Kunlunkuan.

Finnish soldier using an anti-aircraft rangefinder, 28 December 1939.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Saturday 26 December 1939

The Finnish Air Force, here a Bristol Blenheim bomber, stays in the air with the aid of horses.

Winter War Army Operations: The Finnish 9th Division brings up some artillery on 26 December 1939 and begins shelling the Soviets trapped in the town of Suomussalmi. The Soviet 163rd Rifle Division has no escape route, and the 44th Rifle Division remains trapped on the Ratte road.

In the Taipale area, the Soviets send reinforcements across the ice to the men at Kelja who crossed on the 25th. The Finns attempt several counterattacks starting early in the morning, but they fail. The Soviets continue sending over more men in the teeth of Finnish artillery and shore batteries at the Kekinniemi fort which has a clear field of fire over the ice. It is a brutal battle, with nowhere to hide and shells raining down everywhere. The lake "is littered with piles of bodies” according to one onlooker. The day ends with the situation relatively unchanged, which is a defeat for the Finns because the Soviets have consolidated their position.

Battle of the Atlantic: Royal Navy submarine HMS Triumph is damaged by a mine.

German freighter Glucksburg is chased by the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Wishart and runs aground near Cadiz in the Mediterranean.

Convoy OA 60G departs from Southend, Convoy OB 60 departs from Liverpool, and Convoy SL 14 departs from Freetown.

Australia: The First Squadron of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) lands at Pembroke, Wales for active duty with Coastal Command. They will fly Sunderland flying boats with No. 10 Squadron.

Sweden: The military calls up the reserves.

China: At the Battle of South Kwangsi, the Chinese attack the Japanese near Kunlunkuan. The Chinese 5th War Area attacks around Hsinyang. The Japanese 21st Army crosses the North River in the Chinese 4th War Area.

December 26, 1939, The Disney Studio begins its move to Burbank, California, from the Hyperion Studio in Los Angeles.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Monday 25 December 1939

Finnish Army Lieutenant Aarne Juutilainen and his company holding a Christmas service near the Kollaa River, 25 December 1939.

Winter War Army Operations: The Taipale sector heats up again on 25 December 1939. After days of bombing and shelling, the Soviet 4th Rifle Division crosses Lake Suvanto before dawn. The Soviets quickly take "beachheads" (everything is frozen anyway) of battalion strength at Patoniemi, Volossula, and Kelja.

The day turns into a wild melee at each of the three beachheads. At Patoniemi, the Finns send a reserve battalion that spends the rest of the day ejecting and eliminating the attackers. At Volossula, the Finns send a battalion to reinforce the local company and eject the Soviets while sustaining heavy casualties. At Kelja, Finnish artillery catches some of the attackers on the ice, but even desperate counter-attacks can't dislodge the Soviets. There is savage fighting all day long at all three flashpoints.

At Suomussalmi, the 163rd Division tries to break out again, but fails. With their backs to Lake Vuonanlahti and no way out to the east, the Soviets are starting to try to escape to safety that way, but with little success. The Soviets on the Ratte road 25th Regiment) remain quiet.

Soviet 13th Army forms up in the Karelian Isthmus.

Winter War Air Operations: The Soviets launch merciless bombing and strafing attacks on all major (and minor) Finnish cities, including Helsinki, Viipuri, Borga, Tampere, Koivisto and Turku. The Soviets focus on railway lines. The Finnish fighter force goes up and, along with anti-aircraft forces, downs or damages 20 Soviet bombers.

Winter War Naval Operations: The Soviet cruiser Marat shells Kovisto coastal batteries.

Four Soviet submarines leave port.

Battle of the Atlantic: The 2,473-ton British freighter Stanholme hits a mine and sinks in the Bristol Channel, Irish Sea. Twelve survive and 12 perish.

British minesweeping trawler HMS Loch Doon hits a mine and sinks near Blyth, Scotland.

General Freyberg.

British Military: General Bernard Freyberg arrives in New Zealand to assume command of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force.

German Government: Hitler continues his visit to the Siegfried Line.

British Government: The King broadcasts a Christmas message, stating:

A New Year is at hand. We cannot tell what it will bring. If it brings peace, how thankful we shall all be. If it brings us continued struggle, we shall remain undaunted.

Italian/Romanian Relations: Italy pledges to support Romania against the Soviet Union.

China: Japanese 21st Army captures  Liangkou and attacks around Meikeng in the Chinese 4th War Area zone. In the continuing Battle of South Kwangsi, the Japanese 5th Infantry Division receives badly needed supplies in a relief column. However, the Chinese West Route Force sends the Japanese 5th Infantry Division at Lungchow into retreat toward Nanning.

Père Noël visits French soldiers of the recently reformed 331st Infantry Regiment with gifts for the soldiers. Blois, Loir-et-Cher, Center Region, France. 25 December 1939.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Thursday 24 December 1939

Winter War Army Operations: International aid to the Finns continues. Volunteers from virtually other European nations have been pouring in. Today, 24 December 1939, 50 Finnish-American volunteers arrive at the port of Oulu to serve in the military.

The campaign now has been in progress for 24 days, twice the amount of time expected in the Soviets' overly optimistic plans.

The remnants of Soviet 75th and 139th Divisions have been on the run in the Tolmojaervi and Aglajaervi (Ägläjärvi) districts. Group Talvela is pursuing them and enter into Soviet territory, though only briefly.

At Suomussalmi, the trapped Soviet 163rd Division tries to break out east down the Ratte road but makes no progress against the Finnish 9th Division. Soviet 44th Division, trapped further down the road, does not have enough strength to help them. The winter is working its magic on the Soviet troops and their vehicles, robbing them of strength and initiative. Part of the problem is that the Soviet 44th Division has plenty of skis, but no ski troops. The Finns can maneuver through the woods on skis and attack the Soviets all along the road.

Soviet troops further north are being pushed back to Salla from the Kemijoki River by the Finnish troops under the command of  Major General Kurt Martti Wallenius.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 17 planes to attack German shipping but has no success.

Battle of the Atlantic: The fire on the Admiral Graf Spee finally burns out.

Convoy OB 59 departs from Liverpool and HG 12 from Gibraltar.

German/Soviet Relations: The two nations sign an agreement restoring rail links between their occupied areas.

German Government: Hitler is still inspecting the Siegfried Line.

Vatican: Pope Pius XII makes an appeal for peace on Christmas Eve before 25 Cardinals. He denounces aggression and the right of small countries to exist. He says that there have been "acts which cry for the vengeance of God." The Pope also offers a 5-point program to achieve "a just and honorable peace."

China: While elements of the Chinese forces remain on the offensive, the Japanese counterattacks are increasing. Japanese 21st Army Yinchanao and Pachiangkou north of Canton, while the Japanese 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade helps out the Japanese at Paotou and sends the Chinese 8th War Area on to the defensive. The Chinese West Route Force is attacking the Japanese 5th Infantry Division near Lungchow but is making slow progress.

Holocaust: German troops accompanied by Polish policemen encircle the synagogue in Siedlce, remove the two Torah scrolls, and set the synagogue on fire. They also burn the scrolls separately. The fire spreads to nearby Jewish offices. The Polish police prepare a report blaming the fire on the Jews. The Germans then prepare to deport many of the Jews of Lublin to labor camps.

The synagogue in Siedlce burning on 24 December 1939.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Sunday 17 December 1939

A Finnish soldier on the Kollaa front, 17 December 1939.

Battle of the Atlantic: On 17 December 1939, Captain Langsdorff must make a decision, and he does. The Admiral Graf Spee only has left a third of its ammunition, about as much as expended during the previous battle. It also has insufficient fuel left to return to Germany, with the prospect of being able to refuel while being chased by the British very unlikely. So, after consulting with his officers, at 6:15 p.m., Langsdorff sails slowly west out of Montevideo and scuttles the ship in neutral waters. It sits mostly submerged in 7 meters of water, blazing away.

Most of Langsdorff's crew transfers to the German freighter Tacoma. He and his 1,039-man crew wind up in detention in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The outcome is a huge propaganda victory for the British and First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill, but the sailors from Admiral Graf Spee survived. Churchill spins into rhetorical overdrive:

the outcome was "like a flash of light and colour on the scene, carrying with it an encouragement to all who are fighting, to ourselves, and to our Allies."

The Admiral Graf Spee had sunk 50,089 tons of shipping, nine ships. It also badly damaged a heavy cruiser and kept a large portion of the Allied fleets searching the South Atlantic for weeks. This deprived convoys further north of protection. The Altmark, its supply ship, remains free and heads back north to Germany, loaded with Allied prisoners.

U-59 (Oberleutnant zur See Harald Jürst) sinks the 1.245-ton Danish freighter Jaegerborg east of the Firth of Forth in Scotland. All eighteen crew perish.

U-59 also torpedoes and sinks the 1,214-ton Danish freighter Bogø. Of the 20-man crew, three survive.

British destroyers lay mine off the German coast.

The British at Gibraltar detain the US freighter Meanticut.

Admiral Graf Spee burning in the Platte River, 17 December 1939.

Winter War Army Operations: Soviet attacks continue at Summa. Soviet tanks continue attempting to penetrate the gap in the defenses in the nearby swamp. The Finnish infantry holds its ground and separates the Soviet tanks from their infantry support, then pick the tanks off with anti-tank guns and Molotov Cocktails primarily after dark.

The Soviet 163d Rifle Division remains surrounded at Suomussalmi. The relief force is reeling from Finnish counterattacks and is not trying to break through again. The Finnish strategy is to cut the elongated Soviet caravan on the Ratte road into separate pieces and then finish them off individually.

The Finns at Kollaa are counterattacking two Soviet divisions trapped on the coastal road. The Finns operating on skis can pick and choose their points of attack, while the Soviets are defending their immobile vehicles. The process is debilitating for both sides, but the Finns have turned the tables and are attacking the helpless Soviets.

Snipers are of huge importance in the woods. Finnish sniper Simo Häyhä, nicknamed "The White Death," is accumulating kills.

At Salla, the Soviets have split into two parts at a fork in the road. The Finns block the Soviet move on the southern road toward  Kemijärvi and put the weight of their effort on the north road. The Finns use these men to ambush the northern pincer moving toward Pelkosenniemi. The Soviet force on the north road, an infantry regiment a battalion, and a company of tanks, is outflanked and begins to retreat. A wild fight ensues.

League of Nations: The Soviets issue a long and entirely negative reply to the League of Nations resolution expelling it.

BEF: The first convoy of Canadian troops arrives in Liverpool, some 7,500 men of the 1st Canadian Division (Canadian Major-General McNaughton). It consists of five ocean liners.

China: The Chinese Winter Offensive continues. While the Chinese 3rd War Area attacks the 116th Infantry Regiment and captures Hsientao and Szekang, elsewhere the Japanese begin counter-attacking. The Japanese 5th Infantry Division attacks toward Lungchow, the 104th Infantry Division reaches Yuantan in Kwantung Province, and the Japanese counterattack the Chinese 2nd War Area.


December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019

Friday 15 December 1939

Women wave farewell to members of the 6th Division AIF aboard troop transport ship Strathallan, December 15, 1939.

Winter War Army Operations: The Finns on 15 December 1939 have been launching attacks on Suomussalmi that the Soviets in the town have been deflecting. Today, after days of waiting, the Finns on the Ratte road are attacked from the east. Units of the Soviet 44th Rifle Division reach Battle Group Kontula, which is barricading the road. Stretched out over the road, the Soviets attempt a company-sized assault which the Finns easily brush off.

The leader of the 163rd Rifle Division in Suomussalmi knows the danger and repeatedly requests permission to withdraw. He is told to await the 44th Rifle Division. Ninth Army (KomKor M.P. Duhanov) fails to coordinate assaults from the village and the relief force. With this failed attempt, the relief attack, in fact, ends for the time being. The 44th Division itself, confined to the road, now presents a tempting target for the Finns.

At Taipale, the Soviet attacks are failing. In the far north, the Finns withdraw from Salmijaervi near the coast and blow up the nickel mines. They can easily travel off-road, the Soviets not so much.

Western Front: British 5th Division of the BEF is formed from three infantry brigades and deployed south of Lille. The British are not shielded by the Maginot Line but are constructing some of their own fortifications. The German and British lines are far apart except at Metz.

Battle of the Atlantic: Captain Langsdorff of the Admiral Graf Spee spends part of the day going to funerals for 36 of his men and ponders what to do with his ship and men. The released British sailors attend the funeral of their own volition and lay wreaths.

Langsdorff is told that he must leave within 72 hours. His men are repairing what battle damage they can, but the ship requires much more time. The British spread rumors by various means, including phony radio transmissions, suggesting that the British forces awaiting the Admiral Graf Spee are larger than they actually are. The British also play games with departures of British merchant ships, sending them out at intervals - the Admiral Graf Spee must give departing ships 24 hours head start, and the British want more time to assemble a fleet outside the Platte River estuary.

Light cruiser HMS Ajax is refueled while the heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland minds the store.

U-48 (Kapitänleutnant Herbert Schultze) torpedoes and sinks the Greek freighter, Germaine, south of Ireland. Kpt. Schultze disembarks the ship before sinking it, so all of the crew survives.

US destroyers continue shadowing the German liner Columbus, which is near Key West, Florida. Two of the destroyers head off after the German freighter Arauca, which left Vera Cruz shortly before the Columbus.

The British release US freighter Exmoor from detention at Gibraltar.

German liner Columbus (Ang, Federal Archive).

British Government: Prime Minister Chamberlain visits the BEF in France with General Ismay.

Peace Talks: The Foreign Minister broadcasts an appeal to the Soviet Union to reopen negotiations, saying, "the Finns will never submit to a foreign yoke." The appeal is ignored.

China: The Chinese Winter Offensive shifts into high gear:

• Chinese 1st War Area captures Lowang railway station;
• Chinese 6th War Area (southern Hupei and western Hunan), assisting 9th War Area, unsuccessfully attacks Yuehyang and railroad station at Kaochiao approximately this date, but plays no other role in the winter offensive
• Chinese 8th War Area (Kansu, Ninghsia, Tsinghai, and Suiyuan) commences operations with 35th Army and 81st Army capturing Anpei approximately this date
• 19th Army Group of Chinese 9th War Area attacking Hsintanpu, Tongyang, and Nanliqiao
• Chinese East Hupei guerrilla forces begin nuisance raids

The Japanese throw in some counterattacks where possible:

• Japanese counterattacks against Chinese 2nd War Area
• Japanese counterattack Southern Honan Army of Chinese 5th War Area and recapture Yangliuho
• Japanese counterattack Left Flank Army of Chinese 5th War Area around Chihchengshan, forcing the Chinese to withdraw to Chikutien and Sanchingkuan
• Elements of Japanese 33rd Infantry Division and 40th Infantry Division attack Chinese 9th War Area around Shihmen and Shihpihu

Overall, the Japanese are withstanding the Chinese Winter Offense and throwing in some solid counter-punches.

American Homefront: Nylon yarn begins to be manufactured. "Gone With the Wind" premieres in Atlanta. Eurith D. Rivers, the governor of Georgia, declares December 15 a state holiday.

Atlanta premiere of "Gone With the Wind" on 15 December 1939.

December 14, 1939: Quisling Meets Hitler
December 15, 1939: Chinese Winter Offensive in High Gear
December 16, 1939: Battle of Summa
December 17, 1939: End of Admiral Graf Spee
December 18, 1939: Battle of Heligoland Bight
December 19, 1939: British Disarm Magnetic Mines
December 20, 1939: Finnish Counterattacks Continue
December 21, 1939: Finns Plan More Counterattacks
December 22, 1939: Enter Chuikov
December 23, 1939: Failed Finnish Counterattack
December 24, 1939: Soviets on the Run
December 25, 1939: Fresh Soviet Attacks
December 26, 1939: Vicious Battles at Kelja
December 27, 1939: Grinding Finnish Victories
December 28, 1939: Liberators
December 29, 1939: Finns Tighten the Noose
December 30, 1939: Finnish Booty
December 31, 1939: Planning More Soviet Destruction

2019