On the territory of the Republic of Finland, a search expedition continues its work on the battlefields of the Soviet-Finnish war. A joint search team from Arkhangelsk, Moscow, and the Republic of Karelia is searching the area for the remains of soldiers and officers. In the winter of 1940, soldiers and commanders of 9th independent ski battalion fought and perished in these forests. The expedition is funded by the Presidential Grant with the support of the Russian Military Historical Society, the Governor and the Government of the Arkhangelsk Region.
Search works are held in places of heavy bloody battles of the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939-1940. A study of archival documents and survey among local residents preceded the expedition.
As of today, the remains of 17 Soviet servicemen have been exhumed from the sanitary burial in Palo-Akho. During the excavations, the personal belongings of the dead were found: a signed bowler hat with the name "Tanin" and a straight razor with initials. There is an ongoing search for personal data of servicemen.
Members of the expedition found that the Finnish historian Veyno Mononen recently wrote a book about an independent ski team under the command of Colonel Vyacheslav Dmitrievich Dolin. Also, thanks to the stories of local residents, it became possible to find the alleged death place of the commander. The historian and Finnish activists installed a memorial cross on his grave.
The Russian Military Historical Society, the Government of the Arkhangelsk Region, and the Mayor's Office of the city of Kuhmo (the Republic of Finland) are working on the organization of the burial for the found soldiers and on the installation of the obelisk at the site of their burial.
Historical reference:
The 9th ski battalion was formed in Arkhangelsk in 1939. In a report "on the Formation of Ski Battalions" dated 01.01.1940 to the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, the Marshal of the Soviet Union is noted the exceptional patriotism of the inhabitants of the Arkhangelsk Region during the formation of the 9th independent ski battalion. For the service in the division of 601 people, 1820 applications were submitted.
At the very beginning of 1940 the battalion was included in the independent ski team under the command of colonel Vyacheslav Dmitrievich Dolin. On January 11th, 1940, the battalion contained 761 men. On February 11th, 1940, the 9th Army command sent this brigade to rescue the surrounded Soviet units of the 54th Infantry Division in the Kukhmo district.
Initially, the offensive was successful, but the connection with the operative group was interrupted. Later it turned out that the brigade was ambushed. At the very beginning of the battle, Colonel Vyacheslav Dolin was killed, the Commissioner and Chief of Staff were wounded. On February 14th, the commander of the 9th ski battalion, captain Ivan Ivanovich Lutaev, was wounded, his further fate is unknown. By February 21st, out of three thousand fighters, 240 people escaped, fifty were transported by airplanes.
Reference about the activities of The Russian Military Historical Society
