Battle of the Finnish Boys' Regiment "Northern Boys" in Beja

Somu karavīru kapi Bejā (ap 1930.gadu). Avots: https://lv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bejas_kauja

On February 23, 1919, an intelligence unit of the Finnish Volunteer Regiment "Northern Boys", hoping to obtain additional armaments and ammunition, reached the cliff of the river Beja School, where a collision with the Bolsheviks took place (Battle of Babeckas). 10 soldiers of the Finnish regiment fell in this battle.

 

"During the War of Liberation, his mother's brother Eino Soriola studied at the Curci Agricultural School. One day the Reds came to the school and announced that they would kill the capitalist puppies. 22 boys were taken out into the yard and shot, but the mother's brother and another boy managed to stay alive. They lay wounded under a pile of members' bodies. The other guy, who was injured in the abdomen, was then found and stabbed. The mother's brother was injured in the lungs, severely frozen, avoiding the seekers for two days, entering the stable manure pile, warming himself from the rotting horse manure. Hiding, he came to the family in the red-occupied Kuhmo. There was an anti-tuberculosis sanatorium nearby, where he improved his health. Here Eino and a member secretly gathered news from the reds, especially well, walking with the reds in the sauna. Sent by Kalmin, his mother's brother, Eino, worked in Kuhmo throughout the War of Independence, wanting to avenge the death of his schoolmates in his hatred. In the Civil War he took part in the Aries march and the Vieni march, was wounded in the great battle of Vuokkiniemen on September 29, 1918, and after recovering he no longer wanted to go to the Estonian battles. But Hans Kalms sent a letter to his mother's brother, Eino, reminding the Finnish volunteers of his arrival and waiting for response services for the liberation of Estonia.

Mother's Brother went on the Northern Boys' Road, about which Hans Kalms wrote. Uncle served as the leader of the machine gun group, was promoted to sergeant at the Battle of Valka. During the marienburg march, a group of 56 men rode into hiding, where their mother's brother was injured on February 23, 1919, due to incorrect information. He stayed with the machine gun, covering the rest of the wounded with the horses. No uncle's body was found. No information was received about him either.

Juho Kallinen, who was also on the Auna civil war, as well as the Estonians, told about the uncle's injury because they were in the same group in the battle. Grandfather and grandmother tried to find out something about the son's fate, but all efforts were in vain. It turned out that he had died in the Battle of Babecka and was buried together with the other fallen Finnish soldiers in the land of the local farmer Bērziņš in Latvia. ”

Video of the Finnish soldiers' cemetery in the Bay of Bays and the Battle of Babecka. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbN5d9Y5ju8

 
Storyteller: Matti Matinolli; Wrote down this story: Bejas bibliotēka
Used sources and references:

Matti Matinolli tells the story of his mother's brother Eino Schōneman-Soriola, who died on February 23, 1919 in the Battle of Babecka (Beja) and was buried in the Cemetery of the Finnish Soldiers in Beja. Bay Library.

https://timenote.info/lv/Somu-karaviru-Bralu-kapi-Beja

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beja_kauja

https://www.sargs.lv/lv/ Tarpkaru-periods/2015-01-10/somu-ziemelu-zenu-cinas-latvija#lastcomment

 
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Related objects

Memorial stone to the Finnish Volunteer Regiment "Boys of the North"

Located in Alūksne, Jāņkalna Street 52, near Alūksne Narrow Gauge Railway Station.

On February 23, 2019, to mark the centenary of the Latvian War of Independence, a special memorial was created at the initiative of the Association of Independence Fighting Traditions (Finland) to honor the fallen Finnish volunteers, with a special boulder and information board. The memorial stone to Alūksne was removed from the Salpa line in Finland, which was built in 1940-1944. to protect the eastern border of Finland. The 1,200 km long Salpa line is one of the most important lines of defense in independent Finland, as well as one of the strongest and best-preserved defenses of its kind in Europe since World War II.

The stone brought to Aluksne symbolizes the struggle for independence of two nations - the Finns and the Latvians. A group of Finnish volunteers "Northern Boys" went to help Latvians protect the freedom of the new Latvian state. On February 21, 1919, the "Northern Boys" took part in fierce battles around Alūksne (Marienburg). After a five-hour battle at Alūksne railway station, the Finns occupied Alūksne. 23 Finnish volunteers were killed and many injured in the fight.

Collections of the Apriķi Museum and areas of activity of the Red Partisans

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The Baroque ensemble of the Aprikku manor (Apprikken) building was formed by the Alokste River in the 18th century. at first. 20th century in the beginning, the owner of the manor is Carl Gustav Mannerheim, who later became the president of Finland, and is known as the author of the legendary Mannerheim line - the fortification system during the Winter War.

 
Memorial plaque to the Finnish Jaegers in the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Liepāja

A memorial plaque dedicated to the Finnish Jaegers is located in Liepāja Holy Trinity Cathedral, Lielā iela 9.

The Finnish Jägers were a unit of the German Empire, formed by volunteers from Finland, which, under the name of the 27th Royal Prussian Jäger Battalion, took part in the First World War battles on the Eastern Front of Latvia in 1916-1917.

During World War I, the Grand Duchy of Finland was part of the Russian Empire and many Finns wanted a German victory in the war in order to promote the establishment of an independent state. On 20 November 1914, the Finnish Independence Movement was founded in Helsinki, which also planned to form the armed forces of an independent state. When the German government confirmed its readiness to train the Finns in January 1915, the recruitment of volunteers began and by the spring of 1916 almost 2,000 soldiers were stationed in Germany and were named the 27th Royal Prussian Jäger Battalion.

From June 1916 the battalion was on the Riga front, when it was moved to Liepaja until March 1917. After the February Revolution, the Russian Empire began to collapse and on 6 December 1917 the Finnish Parliament declared independence.

On 13 February 1918, the Battalion swore allegiance to Finland in the Holy Trinity Church in Liepāja. On 15 February 1918, the battalion left the port of Liepaja by ship to return home to the port of Vasa and take part in the Finnish Civil War against the Reds, who had staged a coup d'état on 27 January 1918. The well-trained and combat-experienced Jägers formed the core of the Finnish national army and a large number became commanders during the Second World War.

The battalion's flag, consecrated in Holy Trinity Church, became the first flag of independent Finland.