20 Rare Color Photographs of the Continuation War From the Early 1940s

For the sovereign Finland, the Continuation War is the longest and in many ways the most exhausting struggle, which still today occasionally causes heated discussions.

The Continuation War refers to the hostilities between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II, from 1941 to 1944.

At the time of the war, the Finns adopted this name to clarify how they viewed it in relation to the preceding Winter War. The Soviet Union saw the war as part of its struggle against Nazi Germany and its allies, on the Eastern Front of World War II. The war was known in the Soviet Union as the Great Patriotic War. Germany regarded its operations in the region as part of its overall war efforts on the Eastern Front, and it provided Finland with critical material support and military cooperation.

(These color photos are published at the Finnish Defence Forces photo archive)