Bunkers of the Mannerhiem Line

All,

I used the "Search" option before making this thread. There were "No Results" found. Maybe this thread might last 10 minutes.

Can anyone tell me what weapons were used within the bunkers of the Mannerhiem Line.

I am currently reading Winter War by Robert Edwards and the book describes the Mannerhiem Line as fictious fortification thought up by the world press that was locked in a hotel in Helsinki.

Just want to be enlightened to what the truth is.

 

Have you tried Google? Very first hit gave me... Mannerheim Line - Finnish fortifications of Winter War period

 

Glantz described it as a very weak line of fortifications, neither continuous nor very sturdy, and in many cases lightly armed.

 

I have seen info from some internet sites.

But thought this thread may bring up discussions about what they were and what type weapons may have been inside.

 

In what book is this information found?

 

When Titans Clashed.

 

Mannerheim Line - Finnish fortifications of Winter War period

I really liked this site. Thanks for sharing. These bunkers do not seem as elaborate as other made in WWII. The German bunkers of the Atlantic Wall were probably the best made and prepared.

 

They also had to contend with different threats. For example, the Arctic Zone (Iforget the German designation) didn't have to worry about armor threats. That's why you see different designs and arrangements. There's an excellent Leavenworth paper documenting the battle from both sides. Leavenworth Papers No.17: The Petsamo-Kirkenes Operation: Soviet Breakthrough and Pursuit in the Arctic, October 1944

 

Really? I am no connoisseur of bunkers, but I would have thought the Maginot was the queen of them all. The Germans incorporated it into their West Wall fortifications and the Alsace-Lorraine defenses which Patton struck was rated as the toughest. That's the French fortresses.

 

There were some problems with the Maginot Line though.....Great fortifications yet they did not extend the border of France. The Germans simply went around. They also were not fully supported by air cover. The Germans called in the Luftwaffe then sent in the Panzers.

 

The Maginot Line started on the Swiss Border just south of the German, Swiss, French border. This line of fortification extended to just south of the Ardennes Forest (considered to restrictive for mobile warfare). The fortifications of the Maginot line were "State-of-the-Art" where fixed fortification were concerned. Even the towns just beyond the line were built strongly (these are the towns Patton had problems with).

If you read the "Action at Singling", a free publication you can find at the Center of Military History. This story tells of how this town was reinforced during the 1920s to support the Maginot Line fortifications just to the East of this town.

The Germans "flanked" the Maginot Line and then ran behind the line in June 1940 (after the fall of Dunkirk). They encircled the line, rather than try WWI tactics to try and breach the fortifications.

 

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Correct...By WWI standards the Line was state of the art. In WWII, it was nearly obselete.

 

Yes, that's true, but they were very wisely positioned, shielded from direct artillery shot and hard for reconnaissance.
We should also take into consideration that the country of Karelian Isthmus is a sort of natural fortress itself, so these fortifications had not to be really continuous.
There were 2 generations of bunkers: 1) built before 1937, 2) built in 1938-1939, promoted by baron Mannerheim personally. Older bunkers were not too strong, they had 1-2 machine guns. Newer ones, "million bunkers" (for their cost was greater than million marks each) had 4-6 embrasures and were armed with 2 artillery guns (mainly 76-mm Russian guns of year 1900 and 37-mm Bofors anti-tank guns) and machine guns.
The whole Mannerheim Line contained 150 machine gun bunkers (including 13 of 2 machine guns and 7 of 3 machine guns) and 8 artillery bunkers.

 

nice site too.. Inkila sector bunkers