Good afternoon all.

I have been researching British involvement in Finland 1939-45 for several years, both here in the UK and in Helsinki. Without going into too much detail I can say:

An Anglo/French plan was in place and was being put into effect when the Winter War ended. I have full details of the forces and the plan. The force included the only British Ski Battalion ever raised.

The plan was highly secret at the time, with only the senior commanders aware of the destination. When the Winter War ended before it could be put into effect, the whole thing was buried. Later research revealed that one of the reasons that Stalin was willing to end the war was that he was aware of the plan and did not want to confront Britain and France.

Had the plan proceeded it is hard to imagine what would have happened.

How close did we come? British troops were boarding ships when the news came that the war had ended. The planners believed that we were about a month away from war with the Soviet Union.

Another interesting aspect was that the British commanders requested clarification on what they should do if either Norway or Sweden opposed their arrival?

The British Volunteer Company of the Finnish Army, which again I have researched, was not part of the plan. But they were a fascinating collection of men and I have a lot of interesting research about them. I have the medals and documents of two of the volunteers and a sidecap with badge.