100 years of the Hanging Tree

Just after midnight on the 3rd or 6th of October 1916 , a figure was escorted by soldiers to a wooded area outside of the city of Oulu and then hung from a tree. The next day his lifeless corpse was buried by the tree in an unmarked grave. He would become the last person hanged in Finland.

The man’s name was Taavetti Lukkarinen, a forestry foreman and his crime was high treason. But what were the details of his crime?

Finland in 1916 was part of the Russian Empire under the title of the Grand Duchy of Finland. While technically an autonomous region of the Empire, it was still ruled by the Tsar, Nicholas II, and his representative, the Governor-General Franz Albert Seyna, who were limiting the power of the Finnish Diet in a period know as the Russification.

When Russia went to war with the Central Powers in 1914, Finland was obviously in tow too, and many of Finland’s young men became part of the Russian war machine. Some, however, continued in their normal occupations and some others still supported the Central Powers.

Finland saw numerous Prisoner of War camps dotted across its landscape and became the ‘home’ of many German soldiers, captured on the Eastern Front until peace was declared. Like many POW camps, there were escape attempts, and one camp in the Oulu/Kemi area saw 3 German soldiers escape in December 1915. The harsh winter made it difficult for the Germans but they did find a sympathetic ear in the local population and soon found their way to Kemi (107km north of Oulu) with the intention of getting to the border city of Tornio and into neutral Sweden. Lukkarinen decided to help hide the Germans near the train station but all 4 were soon caught by the Russian authorities. On their way to a new holding facility, Lukkarinen managed to escape and cross the border into Sweden.

He would have remained safe there if not for homesickness. Getting passage to Finland on a forged passport, he made his way by train to Oulu but on getting jitters he jumped off shortly before the main station. His act would be witnessed by Russian soldiers who soon tracked him down and arrested him. His identity was discovered and he was taken to Oulu Prison to await trial. Finland, like all of the Russian Empire, was under Martial Law because of the war and so Taavetti’s trial was to be held in a secret court by the VI Corps. He was declared a traitor to the state and that he would be hanged for high treason. His execution was kept a secret and he saw himself moved in the dead of the night to a horse drawn cart surrounded by 40 Russian soldiers, the site chosen was a place known as Kontinkangas, part of the military area of the Oulu Garrison but outside of the city grid. The only Finns present at his hanging were the Prison Priest and 2 Finnish policemen.

However, the secrecy didn’t last long and despite orders to keep clear of the area, Finns started to visit the area on Sundays in an act of protest towards the hanging, they carved crosses into the hanging tree and the surrounding trees. Oulu’s Governor, Axel Enehjelm, was criticized for his lack of action to try and save Taavetti. Soon the Russian authorities became irate and orders were given to cut down the trees in the area and to deter Finns from visiting the area, forcibly if needed.

This did not deter the remembrance of the event and soon after Finland gained its independence the site became a sacred spot. In 1935 a memorial was erected in the area and given a very patriotic and moving ceremony, attended by Veterans of the Civil War and Lukkarinen’s widow and two children. The memorial is a iron fence on a red granite base surrounding a tree, obviously the tree isn’t the actual tree but its symbolism is what has become important. The tree became a symbol to many as a reminder of the harsh days of Russian rule. Until its closing down, the Oulu Garrson used to take the new recruits here as part of a three stop tour, it was used as evidence of what would happen to them if their motherland was ever taken by foreign troops.

As for the body of Taavetti, it was exhumed shortly after the independence of Finland and interned at the main Oulu cemetery. His memorial and grave are maintained by the Artillerymen guild of Northern Finland and the Oulu Chapter of the Lions Club. His memory is still remembered 100 years on and he has become a symbol for how important it is for Finland to remain independent and in charge of its own affairs.

Weapons of War: Berdan Rifle II

When the nine Rifle Battalions of the newly created Army of the Grand Duchy of Finland were raised in 1881 the most obvious choice for arming them was the Berdan II (Model 1870) which had been adopted by the Russian army in 1870's. The rifle was designed by famous American firearms inventor Hiram Berdan in 1868. The rifles (both the Berdan I and II) became the standard Russian small arm from 1870 to 1891, where it saw itself replace by the Mosin-Nagant line of rifles. However, despite this, it still saw service in the Russian army up to the Revolution of 1917.

The Model 1870 was a single shot, bolt action rifle that was characterised by a distinctive short, pear shaped, bolt handle. This handle also represented the only locking lug (it holds the bolt in place when the weapon is fired) and when closed, stood up at a 30 degree angle, instead of the normal horizontal. All the rifles  as well as their accompaniments (cartridges, bayonets etc) came from Russia, mainly from the famous Izhevskii ordnance factory.

It weighed 4.3 kg without its bayonet (4.8 kg with bayonet) and was 1.35 m long without its bayonet (1.85 m with bayonet). It used a 10.75x58 mmR Cartridge which had a 5 gram charge of black powder, which were issued in blue paper packets of 6 rounds each. The round was also developed by Hiram Berden in conjunction with Russian Colonel Gorloff. There was also 'half-cartridges' which were used for training purposes and contained only 0.5 grams of powder. These cartridges were breechloaded and a well trained unit could fire 6-8 rounds a minute. It had a muzzle velocity of 437m/sec and was sighted to 1500 paces (1065 m) but its effective range was 450 paces (630 m). It became known for its ruggedness, reliability and simplicity. 

The Finnish army as a whole maintained a high standard of marksmanship with this rifle, better than the Russian army. The Rifle was still in many Battalions and Reserve companies armouries way after the introduction of the Mosin-Nagant in 1890s. When Civil War broke out in January 1918, there was still many Berdan II's in storage and it saw itself employed by 2nd Line troops during World War one. Both sides of the Civil War (Reds and Whites) obtained many Berdan IIs. Once the war was over, the newly created Finnish Defence force was not interested in the obsolete Berdan and stored most but gave around 2,500 to the Suojeluskunta (Civic Guard, a Militia unit that gained infamy as the White Guard during the Civil War). The Civic Guard soon upgraded to the more modern Mosin-Nagant rifle versions. When the Winter War broke out in 1939, the Finnish army was short on many small arms and so the Berdan II saw service again, over 3,000 were issued (mainly to rear echelon and reserve troops) but these were replaced as soon as possible by more modern firearms. When World War two ended in 1945, the Finnish military started to scrap its stores of Berdan IIs, in 1955 the remaining 1,029 were sold off, many to surplus dealers abroad.

Introduction to Finnish Military History

The military history of Finland can be divided into four distinct periods. The first period being 'Pre-Swedish Era', the Second 'The Swedish Empire Era', Third 'Grand Duchy of Finland/Russian Empire Era' and the fourth being the 'Independent Republic of Finland/Modern Era'.

The Pre-Swedish Era consists of poorly documented battles, most coming from Nordic Sagas, Germanic/Russian Chronicles and Swedish Legends. Archaeological evidence shows Bronze Age (1500-500BC) Finns specialising in weapons such as the battle axe and swords, there are also indications of hill forts. Viking attacks from Sweden and Norway have been found with runic inscriptions as well as unhistorical sources.

The Swedish Empire Era which began officially ran from 1352 till 1808 in which Finnish soldiers fought in at least 38 wars of note for Sweden. Whether they be during the power struggles of the Swedish Royals or in wars between Sweden and other nations.

During the period in which Finland was known as the Grand Duchy of Finland; we see Finland changing hands from Swedish to Russian rule as a result of the 1808-1809 Finnish War. Fighting on its on soil against the British and French during the Crimean conflict and on the Eastern Front during the First World War.

From when Finland declared its independence in 1917 to present day it has been involved in a civil war, which saw the country torn apart by two opposing factors, the Reds (Communists) and the Whites (Right wing groups, Liberals and centralists, all allied and against Communist beliefs). The Kinship Wars in which Finland helped other Baltic states, the most notable being the Estonian War of Independence. There was also the Soviet Invasion of 1939-'40 which is known as the Winter War, this was soon followed by the joint Finnish and Nazi Germany attack on Soviet Russia (The Continuation War). When the Finns signed a peace treaty in 1944 with the Soviet Union they fought against their former German Allies in the Lapland war. Since the foundation of the United Nations in 1945, Finnish Troops have served in various peacekeeping operations.