This is one of the pleasures in introducing dead Heroes which the world at large has never heard of, but this Gentleman is a Hero of Finland, and to all people who have ever stood against tyranny with all odds stacked against them, and survived.
The person I feature is a little guy, like most little guy Soldiers, he served his people in a very big way in Corporal Simo Häyhä. What makes Mr. Häyhä so special in he was a one man wrecking crew on the entire Russian army when they invaded Finland.
His story is unique to all free peoples in he was a farmer and a hunter, like Teddy Roosevelt, but when duty called, he rose like George Washington to defend his land and did it like no other Soldier in history. Simo Häyhä single handedly in combat facing the enemy against all odds killed a total of 1000 Soviet troops.
His record is remarkable in he was a Finnish Sniper who perfected the art of hunting humans, in 20 below cold, snows and a Russian army which was so furious about what this Fin was accomplishing that they sent out snipers to hunt him and called in artillery strikes just to try and kill him.
In all of that, Corporal Häyhä never quit. His methods were astounding when one considers he never used a scope on his Spitz rifle which was nothing more than a Model 28 Mosin Nagant, which fit his five foot three inch frame.
This Soldier preferred iron sites as a scope would give too high of a profile to his position, so he literally shot over 700 communist invaders undetected, with a further several hundred with a submachine gun. This Soldier repeatedly faced his enemy and did it with a serene smile on his face.
He really has the most simple of protocols in he would pack snow down in front of his position so the rifle blast would not give away his position, and he would keep snow in his mouth, so his breath would not mist and give away his position.
If there had been 10,000 Simo Häyhä, there never would have been a Soviet army to enslave all of eastern Europe or cause a Cold War, as the communists would have all been dead.
He accomplished this incredible feat in only 100 days, in below zero weather, on the front lines, under heavy fire, with shortened winter days.
The Russians did eventually send a bullet smashing into Corporal Häyhä's face which blew off it's left side. He was rescued from the field and a week later a peace treaty was signed. He would spend the next several years recuperating from having his jaw literally blasted away.
For this incredible service to Finland and the world, Corporal Simo Häyhä was promoted by Field Marshal Mannerheim to 2nd Lieutenant, no one in the Finish service has ever risen to that rank so quickly.
Simo Häyhä would with the rest of his life become a successful moose hunter and dog breeder, living up until the year 2002 as the one man wrecking crew hunted by the Russians, because he wrecked the Russian army almost by himself.
Not enough can be said of such a warrior as this, a mild mannered Hero of his people. This is what a real Soldier can accomplish whether it is stringing communication wire at Normandy at the front every day or sniping during the daylight hours with a bare bones rifle, because the intent was duty, honor and country that these Soldiers love.
The Heroic Poetic Warrior, mild mannered in peace, called to war in defending their People and in peace, returning home to serve their lands in quiet heroism in providing for family and community.
There are fighter pilots flying billion dollar aircraft and dropping 200 pound bombs, who have not killed as many enemy combatants as one little man with one of the most primitive and simple firearms ever created in the Mosin Nagant, because Simo Häyhä was the weapon, and there are few Soldiers ever born like him.
agtG
Simo Häyhä
Mosin Nagant
