ORDER OF THE DAY Nr.34

[Franz repper]

Issued by Mannerheim
Order of the day Nr 34


General Headquarters , March 14.1940


Soldiers of the glorious Finnish army!



Peace has been concluded between Finland and Soviet Russia, a harsh peace in which Soviet Russia has been ceded nearly every battlefield on which you have shed your blood on behalf of everything we hold sacred and dear.



You did not want war; you loved peace, work and progress; but you were forced into a struggle in which you have achieved great deeds, deeds that will shine for centuries in the annals of history.



Soldiers!
I have fought on many a battlefield, but never have I seen such warriors as you. I am as proud of you as if you were my own children; I am as proud of the man from the northern fells as of the son of Ostrobothnia's plains, of the Karelian forests, the hills of Savo, the fertile fields of Häme and Satakunta, the leafy glades of Uusimaa and Varsinais-Suomi. I am equally proud of the sacrifice of the factory worker and the poor crofter as of that of the wealthy.



With joy and pride my thoughts dwell on the women of the Lotta Svärd - on their spirit of self-sacrifice and untiring work in myriad fields, work which has freed thousands of men to fight at the front. Their noble spirit has given inspiration and support to the army, and they have thoroughly earned our gratitude and respect.



A place of honour has also been earned by the thousands of workers who, often as volunteers and during air raids, have worked on their machines to provide the army with vital supplies, and those, too, who have laboured unflinchingly under fire to strengthen our defensive positions. On behalf of our native land, I thank you all.