Liinakhamari
Encyclopedia
Liinakhamari is an ice-free harbour and a rural locality in Pechengsky District
of Murmansk Oblast
, Russia
. The harbour belonged to Finland
from 1920 until 1944 when it was handed over to the Soviet Union
.
Liinakhamari was handed over to Finland after the Treaty of Tartu
in 1920. Liinakhamari was Finland's only ocean harbour. The so called Arctic Sea Road from Rovaniemi
to Liinakhamari was ready by 1931. The harbour housed a toll, a fish factory, and a hotel. The harbour was extended by the end of the 1930s.
During the Russo-Finnish Winter War
, the Soviet Union conquered Liinakhamari, but it was given back to Finland in the Moscow Peace Treaty. During 1940–1941, the peace-time period between the Winter War and the Continuation War
, Liinakhamari was Finland's and Sweden's only route past the German and Soviet areas of influence. Ten thousand men were working along the Arctic Sea Road helping thousands of trucks to transport cargo from the northernmost railway station in Rovaniemi to Liinakhamari harbour. The trip was almost 700 miles up North along the narrow gravelled road, in the middle of sparsely inhabited Arctic taiga
.
During the Continuation War 1941–1944 Liinakhamari was governed by German
forces. The harbour was attacked by Royal Air Force
Fairey Albacore
and Fairey Swordfish
bomber aircraft on 30 July 1941. Fairey Fulmar
fighters were covering the bombers. The United Kingdom
announced the declaration of war between UK and Finland half a year later.
Finnish civilians were evacuated when Lapland War
between Germany and the Finns broke out autumn 1944. The harbour was conquered from the Germans by Soviet troops on 12 October 1944. Liinakhamari was handed over to the Soviet Union according to rules of the Moscow armistice
.
Liinakhamari is currently a military harbor. During the Cold War
, the harbor was a submarine
base and at present it is housing border patrol boats.
Pechengsky District
Pechengsky District is an administrative and municipal district , one of the five in Murmansk Oblast, Russia. It is located to the northwest of the Kola Peninsula on the coast of the Barents Sea and borders with Finland in the south and southwest and with Norway in the west, northwest, and north...
of Murmansk Oblast
Murmansk Oblast
Murmansk Oblast is a federal subject of Russia , located in the northwestern part of Russia. Its administrative center is the city of Murmansk.-Geography:...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. The harbour belonged to Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
from 1920 until 1944 when it was handed over to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Liinakhamari was handed over to Finland after the Treaty of Tartu
Treaty of Tartu (Russian–Finnish)
The Treaty of Tartu between Finland and Soviet Russia was signed on 14 October 1920 after negotiations that lasted for four months. The treaty confirmed the border between Finland and Soviet Russia after the Finnish civil war and Finnish volunteer expeditions in Russian East Karelia. Ratifications...
in 1920. Liinakhamari was Finland's only ocean harbour. The so called Arctic Sea Road from Rovaniemi
Rovaniemi
Rovaniemi is a city and municipality of Finland. It is the administrative capital and commercial centre of Finland's northernmost province, Lapland. It is situated close to the Arctic Circle and is between the hills of Ounasvaara and Korkalovaara, at the confluence of the Kemijoki River and its...
to Liinakhamari was ready by 1931. The harbour housed a toll, a fish factory, and a hotel. The harbour was extended by the end of the 1930s.
During the Russo-Finnish Winter War
Winter War
The Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
, the Soviet Union conquered Liinakhamari, but it was given back to Finland in the Moscow Peace Treaty. During 1940–1941, the peace-time period between the Winter War and the Continuation War
Continuation War
The Continuation War was the second of two wars fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II.At the time of the war, the Finnish side used the name to make clear its perceived relationship to the preceding Winter War...
, Liinakhamari was Finland's and Sweden's only route past the German and Soviet areas of influence. Ten thousand men were working along the Arctic Sea Road helping thousands of trucks to transport cargo from the northernmost railway station in Rovaniemi to Liinakhamari harbour. The trip was almost 700 miles up North along the narrow gravelled road, in the middle of sparsely inhabited Arctic taiga
Taiga
Taiga , also known as the boreal forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests.Taiga is the world's largest terrestrial biome. In North America it covers most of inland Canada and Alaska as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States and is known as the Northwoods...
.
During the Continuation War 1941–1944 Liinakhamari was governed by German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
forces. The harbour was attacked by Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Fairey Albacore
Fairey Albacore
The Fairey Albacore was a British single-engine carrier-borne biplane torpedo bomber built by Fairey Aviation between 1939 and 1943 for the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm and used during the Second World War. It had a three-man crew and was designed for spotting and reconnaissance as well as delivering...
and Fairey Swordfish
Fairey Swordfish
The Fairey Swordfish was a torpedo bomber built by the Fairey Aviation Company and used by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy during the Second World War...
bomber aircraft on 30 July 1941. Fairey Fulmar
Fairey Fulmar
The Fairey Fulmar was a British carrier-borne fighter aircraft that served with the Fleet Air Arm during the Second World War. A total of 600 were built by Fairey Aviation at its Stockport factory between January 1940 and December 1942...
fighters were covering the bombers. The United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
announced the declaration of war between UK and Finland half a year later.
Finnish civilians were evacuated when Lapland War
Lapland War
The Lapland War were the hostilities between Finland and Nazi Germany between September 1944 and April 1945, fought in Finland's northernmost Lapland Province. While the Finns saw this as a separate conflict much like the Continuation War, German forces considered their actions to be part of the...
between Germany and the Finns broke out autumn 1944. The harbour was conquered from the Germans by Soviet troops on 12 October 1944. Liinakhamari was handed over to the Soviet Union according to rules of the Moscow armistice
Moscow Armistice
The Moscow Armistice was signed between Finland on one side and the Soviet Union and United Kingdom on the other side on September 19, 1944, ending the Continuation War...
.
Liinakhamari is currently a military harbor. During the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, the harbor was a submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
base and at present it is housing border patrol boats.