Quote Originally Posted by charter6 View Post
WM, I obviously wouldn't put him on the same level as a lot of the people we're talking about, but I think he does deserve more credit that you're giving him.

His success at Suomussalmi wasn't so much a tactical thing as it was reliant on his developing on the fly a fairly advanced operational concept -- akin to Daniel Morgan's "two volleys" at Cowpens, which completely changed the face of the American revolution. He understood the limitations of his troops, and employed them against a superior opponent in a manner in which those limitations were irrelevant. He also understood the psychological level of the battle in a way a lot of more conventional commanders don't.

I think he gets a bum rap for the 1944 Karelian Isthmus thing. He was facing an absurd concentration of Soviet artillery and armor. I don't think any commander could have done much better. I think (could be wrong) that he's one of the few, if not the only, non-Germans to lead an SS division during the war. Not really relevant but a fun tidbit.
My comment about tactical dealt with the level of action. I suspect that the Finns' actions were directed by Mannerheim who probably recognized the threat of having his country split in half

My comments about the Continuation War are from far earlier than 1944. In 1941, his Third Corps basically tried, in reverse, what the Russians failed to do during the Winter War, ending up with their defeat in detail at the extended battles around Suomussalmi. Just as the Russians never made it to the sea, the Finns never seized the Murmansk railroad.

Regarding tactics that make the best use of what you have--if that's the marker for a great general , then I guess we could include the character played by Patrick Swayze in "Red Dawn" in our list.

You are right about his command of the 6th SS Division "Nord" (which had been upgraded to a division only the previous month), but his command only lasted for about 3 months, probably a stopgap measure to reform and refit the unit after it had been routed during Operation Silverfox.