With the departure of the Swedish volunteers, the major neighborhoods in Viborg immediately became deserted.
This important city garrisoned by the Nordic Army now only has a reinforced battalion of Norwegian troops left. Of course, this may be a bit inaccurate. After all, there are still hundreds of thousands of Finnish citizens and thousands of reserve soldiers in the city.
"Civil Guard" and the Women's Service Corps.
Perhaps the term garrison is not accurate. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that a Norwegian volunteer battalion of several hundred people, all equipped with rifles and light weapons, cannot even defend the forward positions outside the city!
Rather than saying that these troops stayed to defend against the Soviet attack, it was better to say that they were there to maintain order in Vyborg and its surrounding areas, or that they simply existed to prove that the city was still in the hands of the Finnish side.
Without the Swedish division supporting the Nordic Army, the trenches and fortifications on the outskirts of Viborg seemed much empty. Those extremely confident volunteer soldiers from Sweden had disappeared. The Norwegian Battalion was the last remaining force of the entire Nordic Army in Viborg.
A group formed into an organized unit.
Counting from the time when the Soviet army attacked the Danish regiment's position, in less than three hours, the Swedish division, which had been gearing up for a long time, completed its entire departure. In order to fill in the broad defense line left by them, the Norwegian battalion was almost split into
Squadron-level units squatted in the front trenches.
As for Viborg, which is relatively far back, it can be said that it is not much different from the undefended state.
Several Finnish guerrilla detachments, after gathering many defeated Danish regiments, joined the trenches at the front of Viborg. Even many Finnish "People's Guards" without weapons also ran to the front. Everyone knows that
, the final ownership of Vyborg will determine the direction of the war, but no one, including the citizens of Vyborg, dares to assert that their side has the possibility of holding on.
The anxious Finnish officers and Norwegian volunteer battalion commanders who had gathered in Vyborg could only do their best to collect the defeated troops of the Danish regiment who had lost their fighting spirit and mix them into various trenches.
, and finally waited for the showdown between the Swedish army and the Soviet army to end.
If the Swedish division can really defeat the Soviet army, the defense of Viborg will be greatly consolidated. But once the news of defeat comes, what awaits them will be a difficult defensive battle.
The moment that will determine the course of the war has arrived!
Unlike the Swedish division, which was bent on repelling the Soviet attack, as one of the three major members of the Nordic Volunteer Army, Alfred, the commander of the Norwegian battalion, had no interest in defeating the Soviet Union. He was not as interested as the commander from Sweden.
He was eager to perform meritorious service, and unlike the Finnish officers, he was eager to hold on to Vyborg to protect his country.
After all, their own country is still under the "borrowing" pressure exerted by the British, and may face the League of Nations volunteer troops forcibly landing on the mainland at any time to assist Finland. And the reason why their Norwegian battalion was sent to cooperate with Finland at this time
The military operation was purely to appease the criticism from the League of Nations and to prove with actions that Norway was biased towards the League of Nations.
However, Norway sent troops, but the League of Nations under the control of Britain and France did not appreciate it. They insisted on sending 100,000 troops to Norway, and then chose an opportunity to go to Finland to fight.
If, in the end, the day comes when the British and French forces forcefully land, the Norwegians will never sit back and wait for death, and may even fight back. In that case, Alfred will not be able to let this important force in his hands
, being "transferred" to a foreign country like the Danish volunteer group.
The Norwegian army is an important part of Norway's national defense force. Even if there are only about 700 people, they are extremely precious to the Norwegian Defense Force, which is already stretched thin!
While thinking about a small calculation, a Finnish second lieutenant walked into his headquarters under the guidance of Adjutant Alfred.
"Commander Alfred."
"Well?" Alfred was stunned for a moment when his thoughts were interrupted, then nodded calmly and said: "Second Lieutenant, what can I do for you?"
Since the Nordic Army has been stationed in the area of Vyborg, the sparse Finnish Army does not have any large forces around Viborg. In desperation, the distressed Mannerheim has completely entrusted Viborg to the Nordic Army. Therefore,
The Finnish residents in Vyborg could not even see a Finnish officer.
The Finnish troops that exist in this area are just a few small groups responsible for guerrilla warfare. The leaders who lead them are usually experienced veterans rather than military officers.
And this time, although there was only a Finnish second lieutenant, his military rank may have been the highest among all Finnish soldiers within a few miles.
"Mr. Battalion Commander, according to the order of Marshal Mannerheim, all guerrilla groups under my command have stopped guerrilla operations and joined your team to jointly build the defense of Vyborg." The Finnish second lieutenant spoke politely in Swedish.
Report to Alfred.
Among the four Nordic countries, since Sweden has long been in a leading position, most members of these countries can speak some basic Swedish. And among the volunteer units of the Nordic Army, almost all members are selected to speak Swedish to facilitate communication.
.
After listening to the report of the Finnish second lieutenant, Alfred touched his chin and asked calmly: "How many people did you bring?"
Alfred is not as reckless as the Swedish commander. He has always been a meticulous and steady person. What's more, he didn't have much enthusiasm for participating in the war between the Soviet Union and Finland. Now he has more,
It’s just a spectator and passer-by mentality.
After receiving the inquiry from the superior of the friendly army, the Finnish second lieutenant did not think much and immediately replied respectfully, "I brought a total of 7 Finnish guerrilla teams from the surrounding areas, a total of 27 people. In addition, our 7 teams along the way
I gathered about 200 skirmishers who were retreating from the Danish friendly forces, and I brought them with me."
From the answer of the Finnish second lieutenant, Alfred quickly concluded that he only brought about two hundred people, and they were all fragile infantry without heavy weapons.
So, with this small number of people, even if he added the Norwegian troops under his command, there were only a thousand people, and they were definitely no match for the Soviet army. He even doubted whether this small number of people could withstand the first round of charge after the Soviet artillery bombardment.
"We have understood the situation. Now you must first arrange the people you brought into the defense line, and then come over to discuss the following matters with us." The person who spoke was Alfred's adjutant Marvin.
It is no secret that Marvin is a member of the Quisling faction in the country. And since he arrived in Finland with the Norwegian Volunteer Battalion as Alfred's adjutant, he immediately met with the German diplomats in Finland.
.Alfred actually didn’t have a good impression of people like Marvin.
On weekdays, Marvin would go to the German Embassy in Finland whenever he had nothing to do, and he would always mention the German ambassador's suggestions. This time, he took the initiative to take the Finnish second lieutenant to Viborg. It was probably the Germans' intention behind the scenes.
Alfred put his hands behind his back and remained silent. With Marvin, the guy sent by Quisling, it was really not easy to pull the team out of Viborg and escape the battlefield.
Alfred took a few steps back and forth, thinking with a wry smile: Damn it! The Germans didn't send troops themselves, but they brought them here to watch them tightly, and let them fight against the Soviet army. And those idiots in the Swedish division
He is probably doomed to lose. Once the news of defeat comes, it will be difficult to escape...
