The Finnish Armoured Division was a Finnish armoured division during the Continuation War

Continuation War

The Continuation War was the second of two wars fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II.At the time of the war, the Finnish side used the name to make clear its perceived relationship to the preceding Winter War...

.

Foundation

The Finnish Supreme headquarters ordered the foundation of an armoured division on 28 June 1942 and the actual foundation was on 30 June 1942. The division consisted of the newly formed Armoured Brigade and the old (1st) Jaeger Brigade. The Cavalry Brigade was also part of the division until January 1943. The division artillery consisted of the 14th Heavy Artillery Battalion. The division commander was Major General

Major General

Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...

 Ruben Lagus

Ruben Lagus

Ernst Ruben Lagus was a Finnish Major General.Lagus was one of the Finnish Jaeger troops trained in the volunteer Royal Prussian 27th Jäger Battalion...

. During most of the war, the division was located at Petrozavodsk

Petrozavodsk

Petrozavodsk is the capital city of the Republic of Karelia, Russia. It stretches along the western shore of the Lake Onega for some . The city is served by Petrozavodsk Airport. Municipally, it is incorporated as Petrozavodsky Urban Okrug . Population:...

, but in the spring of 1944 it was moved to the Karelian Isthmus

Karelian Isthmus

The Karelian Isthmus is the approximately 45–110 km wide stretch of land, situated between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga in northwestern Russia, to the north of the River Neva . Its northwestern boundary is the relatively narrow area between the Bay of Vyborg and Lake Ladoga...

 to form the reserve of the headquarters.

Battles

• Battle of Kuuterselkä
• Battle of Tali-Ihantala
  Battle of Tali-Ihantala
  The Battle of Tali-Ihantala was part of the Continuation War , which occurred during World War II. The battle was fought between Finnish forces—using war material provided by Germany—and Soviet forces...
  
  
• Battle of Vuosalmi
  Battle of Vuosalmi
  The Battle of Vuosalmi — the main bulk of it — lasted from July 4 to July 11, 1944. It was fought during the Continuation War , a part of World War II, between Finland and the Soviet Union....
  
  
• Battle of Rovaniemi
  Battle of Rovaniemi
  The Battle of Rovaniemi was an event during the 1944 Lapland War. The actual fighting between the Finnish Armoured Division and the troops of the German Twentieth Mountain Army took place to the south of the town of Rovaniemi...
  
  

Order of battle 1944

• HQ of the Armoured Division
  • Armoured Brigade
    • 1st Armoured Battalion (T-26, T-26E), Armoured car company with FAI
      FAI armoured car
      The FAI armoured car was a replacement for the D-8 armoured car, used by the Soviet Union from the early 1930s to early 1940s....
      
      s and BA-10
      BA-10
      The BA-10 was an armored car developed in the Soviet Union in 1938 and produced till 1941. It was the most produced Soviet pre-1941 heavy armored car – 3311 were built in three versions. These versions were the BA-10, the BA-10M , and the BA-10ZhD...
      
      s
    • 2nd Armoured Battalion (T-26, T-26E, heavy company with KV-1s, T-28
      T-28
      The Soviet T-28 was among the world's first medium tanks. The prototype was completed in 1931 and production began in late 1932. It was an infantry-support tank intended to break through fortified defences...
      
      s and T-34
      T-34
      The T-34 was a Soviet medium tank produced from 1940 to 1958. Although its armour and armament were surpassed by later tanks of the era, it has been often credited as the most effective, efficient and influential design of World War II...
      
      s)
    • Armoured AA Battery (Landsverk Anti II)
    • Assault Gun Battalion (StuG IIIG
      Sturmgeschütz III
      The Sturmgeschütz III assault gun was Germany's most produced armoured fighting vehicle during World War II. It was built on the chassis of the proven Panzer III tank...
      
      )
    • Armoured Training Battalion (older types and a few T-26s)
  • Jaeger Brigade
    • 2nd Jaeger Battalion
    • 3rd Jaeger Battalion
    • 4th Jaeger Battalion
    • 5th Jaeger Battalion
    • Armoured Jaeger Battalion (towed 50 mm and 75 mm AT guns)
  • 14th Heavy Artillery Battalion
  • 6th Signals Battalion
  • 2nd Pioneer Battalion
  • Separate Armour Company (BT-42
    BT-42
    The BT-42 was a Finnish assault gun, constructed during the Continuation War. It was constructed from captured Soviet BT-7 light tanks and British 4.5-inch howitzers from 1918, which had been donated during the Winter War...
    
    )