Finnish Reconquest of Ladoga Karelia (1941) - Resumption of The Offensive

Resumption of The Offensive

Finnish VII Corps (Maj. Gen. Woldemar Hägglund) was ordered to attack along the right flank of VI Corps to Sortavala. The isthmus between Lake Ladoga and the Finnish border was quite narrow and the important rail junction of Matkaselkä was only ten kilometres from the border. So, it was no wonder that Soviets had started to fortify the border region, in depth, right after the Moscow Peace. These fortifications were weakest at the northern section of the front, so Hägglund decided to put the main thrust there. The 7th division (strengthened with pioneer units) and all of the Corps' artillery were concentrated there. The 19th division-south had to manage with only its own artillery.

On the evening of July 10 the attack began. As a heavy thunderstorm was raging at the area, it was decided that infantry would attack without artillery support so that surprise could be achieved. The plan succeeded and most Soviet forces were encircled in their pillboxes, which were then eliminated with artillery support. During the next day, the 7th division advanced, encircling Soviet strongpoints. By the morning of July 12, they managed to break through the region where the Soviets had prepared minefields and fortifications.

This was only a short relief, as the defending Soviet 168th division (Col. A. Bondarev) proved to be very capable in defence. Time after time, it created new minefields, dug strongpoints and trenches and skillfully evaded encircling Finnish units. The fighting of the 168th division was later used as a textbook example for defensive warfare in Soviet military schools.

The 7th division reached the western shore of Jänisjärvi July 13 and turned southward. By July 15 they managed to reach the Sortavala-Petrozavodsk railroad at Pirttipohja and encircled defenders there.

The 19th division (Col. Esa Hannuksela) had the unenvied task of assaulting the best defended section of the 168th division. Hannuksela decided to create a very narrow and deep breach at Niinisyrjä village, only 200-300 meters (700-1,000 feet) wide and four kilometres deep, to breach the fortified border region. IR58 (Lt. Col. Juva) was to spearhead the assault which began late in the evening of July 10. IR58 fought all night and the next day, advancing one and half kilometres. It became evident that they had insufficient artillery so they had to borrow artillery from II Corps. IR58 continued the attack and reached the end of border fortifications July 12. The Soviet 168th division counterattacked to close the breach and encircle the IR58, but the Finns managed to hold the corridor, although Soviets managed to close its usage with artillery fire. The Finnish IR16 (Col. M. Laurila), which followed IR58, managed to open the corridor by the morning of July 15.

The 7th division continued its attack July 15 eastward along the railroad. On July 17 they managed to breach Soviet defences at the isthmus between Jänisjärvi and Vahvajärvi. Meanwhile, IR30 and IR51 of the 7th division, advanced east towards Jänisjoki, where they contacted the 11th division at the same day. IR30 and IR51 cleared the western shore of Jänisjoki and reached Lake Ladoga by July 20, then started to clear islands at the front of Sortavala.

The IR37/7th division was ordered to advance westward at the southern coast of Vahvajärvi to contact the 19th division, trying to encircle the Soviets between the divisions. Bondarev recognized the situation and ordered the retreat of the IR402. The 19th division had continued its attack southeast, and between July 25-18 25 fierce encirclements and counter-encirclements raged before the Finns managed to capture the main road and cut the railroad between Sortavala and Matkaselkä, which was captured July 18. Soviet forces managed to hold the IR37 at the village of Särkisyrjä between July 19-18 19 and again at the next village, Ilola, on July 22-20 22, securing the retreat route of IR402. By July 25 the Soviet 168th Division had managed to straighten its front line to a geographically more defensible line running from the Kiteenjoki river through the hills of Tirimäki, Okanmäki and Voinmäki to the Tohmajoki river.

As the Soviets were pushed out of the Jänisjoki valley, the remainder of the 7th division turned to the south-west. On July 25 they crossed the Tohmajoki. Advancement was slow, as the Soviets managed to hold their prepared strongpoints on hills, forcing the Finns to encircle them. At July 28, the 7th Division found a hole in Soviet defenses and IR30/7 Division quickly poured through and captured Voinmäki. The advancing Finnish troops managed to ambush a car transporting the Chief of Staff of the Soviet 198 Division, Lt. Col. Sinyk. The documents captured contained the order for a Soviet counterattack, which was to start next day, so all Finnish units were ordered to stop their offensive operations and prepare for defence.

The Soviet 23rd Army transferred the 198th Division from the Karelian Isthmus to Sortavala with an order to join the counteroffensive with the 168th Division. The goal of the attack was to recapture the isthmus between Jänisjärvi and Lake Ladoga, as that would create a difficult situation for Finnish forces at the northern side of the Lake Ladoga. When the offensive began on July 29, it failed to gain ground anywhere, as available forces were too few against the Finns, and the captured information had given the Finns time to prepare for the offensive beforehand. The Finns continued their offensive against the remaining Tirimäki and Okanmäki strongpoints (which prevented advancement towards Sortavala) on August 3 and captured them on August 5.