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{{Short description|Finnish Army unit of Estonian volunteers during World War II}}
The '''Erna long-range reconaissance group''' ({{lang-et|Erna luuregrupp}}) was a Finnish Army's formation, largely of Estonian volunteers, that fulfilled reconaissance duties in Estonia but became notorious for its ability to hold back the superior in numbers ], allowing thousands of civilians to escape.


The '''Erna long-range reconnaissance group''' ({{langx|et|Erna luuregrupp}}) was a ] unit of Estonian volunteers that fulfilled reconnaissance duties in Estonia behind ] lines during ]. The unit was formed by Finnish military intelligence with the assistance of German military intelligence for reconnaissance operations.<ref name="okupatsioon"> {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523025306/http://www.okupatsioon.ee/english/overviews/ylev/ylev-RESISTAN.html |date=May 23, 2010 }}</ref>
⚫ The group's task was to perform ] deep behind enemy lines for the Finnish Army, but it turned to saving thousands of civilians hiding in the Kautla woods by allowing them to escape while the outnumbered Erna force engaged Soviet ]s in fierce battles in the summer of ] <ref>p16, Mart Laar: ''War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, 1944-1953''. Howells House, 1991, ISBN 0929590082</ref>. The majority of the unit were killed in this action. {{fact}}


], Finland]]
⚫ The group was originally formed from volunteer Estonian veterans of the ] in Finland. Armed and wearing the uniform of the Finnish army<ref>C. Jurando, N Thomas PhD: ''Germany's Eastern Front Allies(2): Baltic Force'', page 5. Osprey Publishing, 2002, ISBN 1841761931</ref>, the Germans originally intended it to be a unit of the German army. However, ] of Estonian Army ], in charge of the newly formed unit, strongly opposed this position.<ref name="erna">{{cite web |url=http://www.erna.ee/en/?Erna_History/Birth_of_the_ERNA-organization |title=Birth of the ERNA-organization and its operations in 1941 |first=Ülo |last=Jõgi |publisher=ERNA Society |accessdate=2007-08-10}}</ref> Accordingly, a compromise was reached, and on ], ], the core unit of 68 men took an oath of allegiance to ], not to ] as the ] Reinhardt and ] Schwarz, German ]s, had originally insisted.<ref name="erna"/>


==Formation of the Erna platoon==
The group was active from the summer of 1941 until the end of ] on ]n territory and in ]. The group operated behind Soviet lines until ], ].
After the ] in 1940 hundreds of Estonian men went to Finland rather than accept Soviet rule. The Estonian ] in Finland, Major Aksel Kristian, in the spring of 1941 compiled a list of Estonians in Finland who wanted to liberate their homeland. Finnish intelligence subsequently recruited 15 volunteers and began training them on the island of Staffan in ], ].


On 22 June 1941 ] invaded the Soviet Union in ].<ref name="erna"/> Finland re-entered the war in alliance with Germany in the ]. Estonians living in Finland were assembled in ] to establish a voluntary unit to go to Estonia.<ref name="erna"/> The platoon commander was Colonel ]<ref name="erna"/> of the Estonian Army, who had been the last Estonian military attaché to France.
With the end of the war, the group was officially demobilised; however, a number of fractions continued ] activities, becoming ] (Baltic partisans).<ref>p147, Mart Laar: ''War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, 1944-1953''. Howells House, 1991, ISBN 0929590082</ref> (In interests of clarity, it should be pointed out that veterans of the Erna group were only a small fraction of the whole Forest Brothers resistance movement.)


⚫ The Germans gave the group the name "Erna".<ref name="erna"/> Two German liaison officers, Oberleutnant Reinhardt and ] Schwarze, also joined the group.<ref name="erna"/> Erna was armed by and wore the uniform of the Finnish Army.<ref>C. Jurando, N Thomas PhD: ''Germany's Eastern Front Allies(2): Baltic Force'', page 5. Osprey Publishing, 2002, {{ISBN|1-84176-193-1}}</ref> The two Germans in charge wanted Erna to pledge allegiance to the ]. However, Colonel Kurg strongly opposed this;<ref name="erna">{{cite web |url=http://www.erna.ee/en/?Erna_History/Birth_of_the_ERNA-organization |title=Birth of the ERNA-organization and its operations in 1941 |first=Ülo |last=Jõgi |publisher=ERNA Society |accessdate=2007-08-10}}</ref> he insisted that they were not Germans but Estonian volunteers, ready to co-operate, but without any commitments to ].<ref name="erna"/> An agreement was reached that being in the service of the Finnish Army, Erna should give the oath of loyalty to Finland. Accordingly, on 24 July 1941, the 15 specially trained men and 52 volunteers took an oath of allegiance to Finland.<ref name="erna"/>
===Soviet historigraphy===
Soviets considered the group hostile to Soviet interests, and soviet historigraphy denounced it -- just like the ] -- as "bandits". Russian Federation has continued on this line.


==Action==
{{Stub}}
{{see also|Battle of Kautla}}
⚫ On the night of 10 July the platoon made a seaborne landing on the northern coast of ] with 42 men arriving onshore and hiding in the Kautla Marshes 60&nbsp;km south east of ]. Another 17 team members were parachuted in on 28 July. The group's task was to perform ] deep behind Red Army lines for the ] but it turned to saving around 2,000 civilians hiding in the Kautla woods by allowing them to escape while the outnumbered Erna force engaged Soviet ]s in a fierce battle on 31 July to 1 August 1941.<ref>p16, Mart Laar: ''War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, 1944-1953''. Howells House, 1991, {{ISBN|0-929590-08-2}}</ref> On 4 August, the platoon was ordered to cross the frontline and terminate their activities. A total of 32 men were lost, either killed or missing in action.<ref>pp. 170-172, Formation of the Erna Platoon, ''Estonian State and People in World War 2'', Volume 5, Stockholm, 1957</ref>

==Aftermath==
A battalion attached to the ] was formed from the remnants of the original Erna platoon, with an additional 400 men, and dubbed "Erna II", but it was disbanded on 10 October 1941.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}} With the end of the war a number of the original members of Erna continued ] activities against Soviet forces, becoming ].<ref>p147, Mart Laar: ''War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, 1944-1953''. Howells House, 1991, {{ISBN|0-929590-08-2}}</ref> The ] (Estonian: ''Erna retk'') was an annual international military exercise and competition, commemorating the action of 1941 and held from 1995.<ref name='uk-emb-2006'>] Embassy in Tallinn; August 5, 2006: {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927002455/http://www.britishembassy.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket%2FXcelerate%2FShowPage&c=Page&cid=1046181016323&a=KArticle&aid=1156398966204 |date=2007-09-27 }}</ref>

Soviet propagandists{{according to who|date=October 2023}} claimed the original Erna team participated in the mass murder of Soviet political activists.{{fact|date=October 2023}} These claims were revived in the 1980s as a way of distracting historians analysing the ], and have been repeated in ] in the 2000s.<ref>]: {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090827075510/http://www.postimees.ee/160807/esileht/arvamus/277366.php |date=2009-08-27 }}, printed in ] 16 August 2007</ref> Russian authorities regard the commemorative Erna Raid as "heroizing ]".<ref> Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, July 30, 2007</ref>

==See also==
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Erna Long-Range Reconnaissance Group}}
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Latest revision as of 11:08, 8 November 2024

Finnish Army unit of Estonian volunteers during World War II

The Erna long-range reconnaissance group (Estonian: Erna luuregrupp) was a Finnish Army unit of Estonian volunteers that fulfilled reconnaissance duties in Estonia behind Red Army lines during World War II. The unit was formed by Finnish military intelligence with the assistance of German military intelligence for reconnaissance operations.

Reconnaissance group Erna memorial plaque in Espoo, Finland

Formation of the Erna platoon

After the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940 hundreds of Estonian men went to Finland rather than accept Soviet rule. The Estonian military attaché in Finland, Major Aksel Kristian, in the spring of 1941 compiled a list of Estonians in Finland who wanted to liberate their homeland. Finnish intelligence subsequently recruited 15 volunteers and began training them on the island of Staffan in Soukka, Espoo.

On 22 June 1941 Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa. Finland re-entered the war in alliance with Germany in the Continuation War. Estonians living in Finland were assembled in Helsinki to establish a voluntary unit to go to Estonia. The platoon commander was Colonel Henn-Ants Kurg of the Estonian Army, who had been the last Estonian military attaché to France.

The Germans gave the group the name "Erna". Two German liaison officers, Oberleutnant Reinhardt and Sonderführer Schwarze, also joined the group. Erna was armed by and wore the uniform of the Finnish Army. The two Germans in charge wanted Erna to pledge allegiance to the Führer. However, Colonel Kurg strongly opposed this; he insisted that they were not Germans but Estonian volunteers, ready to co-operate, but without any commitments to Hitler. An agreement was reached that being in the service of the Finnish Army, Erna should give the oath of loyalty to Finland. Accordingly, on 24 July 1941, the 15 specially trained men and 52 volunteers took an oath of allegiance to Finland.

Action

See also: Battle of Kautla

On the night of 10 July the platoon made a seaborne landing on the northern coast of Estonia with 42 men arriving onshore and hiding in the Kautla Marshes 60 km south east of Tallinn. Another 17 team members were parachuted in on 28 July. The group's task was to perform reconnaissance deep behind Red Army lines for the Finnish Army but it turned to saving around 2,000 civilians hiding in the Kautla woods by allowing them to escape while the outnumbered Erna force engaged Soviet NKVD Destruction Battalions in a fierce battle on 31 July to 1 August 1941. On 4 August, the platoon was ordered to cross the frontline and terminate their activities. A total of 32 men were lost, either killed or missing in action.

Aftermath

A battalion attached to the German 311th Infantry was formed from the remnants of the original Erna platoon, with an additional 400 men, and dubbed "Erna II", but it was disbanded on 10 October 1941. With the end of the war a number of the original members of Erna continued guerrilla activities against Soviet forces, becoming Forest Brothers. The Erna Raid (Estonian: Erna retk) was an annual international military exercise and competition, commemorating the action of 1941 and held from 1995.

Soviet propagandists claimed the original Erna team participated in the mass murder of Soviet political activists. These claims were revived in the 1980s as a way of distracting historians analysing the Kautla massacre, and have been repeated in Russian media in the 2000s. Russian authorities regard the commemorative Erna Raid as "heroizing fascism".

See also

References

  1. Estonian Citizens in the German Armed Forces. Volunteers, Conscripts and Commandeered Troops Archived May 23, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Jõgi, Ülo. "Birth of the ERNA-organization and its operations in 1941". ERNA Society. Retrieved 2007-08-10.
  3. C. Jurando, N Thomas PhD: Germany's Eastern Front Allies(2): Baltic Force, page 5. Osprey Publishing, 2002, ISBN 1-84176-193-1
  4. p16, Mart Laar: War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, 1944-1953. Howells House, 1991, ISBN 0-929590-08-2
  5. pp. 170-172, Formation of the Erna Platoon, Estonian State and People in World War 2, Volume 5, Stockholm, 1957
  6. p147, Mart Laar: War in the Woods: Estonia's Struggle for Survival, 1944-1953. Howells House, 1991, ISBN 0-929590-08-2
  7. British Embassy in Tallinn; August 5, 2006: ERNA RAID 2006 1–5 August Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
  8. Mart Laar: Tavaline stalinism Archived 2009-08-27 at the Wayback Machine, printed in Postimees 16 August 2007
  9. Russian MFA Information and Press Department Commentary Regarding New Facts of Heroization of Nazism in Estonia Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, July 30, 2007
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