Finnish Forces

16th Infantry Regiment

Lieutenant Colonel Pajari inspecting his regiment (JR 16) in Tampere, at start of the extra war manouvres, on October 16, 1939. The regiment had been formed two days earlier mainly of reservists of Tampere and nearby area, and was sent to the front of Ladoga Karelia on December 6, 1939, where it received it's baptism of fire two days later. They fought in area of Lake Tolvajärvi and were major part of first counter-offensive against Soviet forces, in the first notable Finnish victory known as the Battle of Tolvajärvi.