It's a battle between two of the twentieth century's most stringent resistance movements that rose to prominence in the earliest stages of the Second World War! The Finnish White Guard, the anti-socialist militia movement that earned victory in the Finnish Civil War and went on to mobilize a fierce patriotic fervor during the Winter War takes on the Italian Blackshirts, the fascist paramilitary forces that strong-armed their way to power and enabled Mussolini's government to impose its iron will on the country! It will be a high-caliber, high-stakes confrontation between two Axis sympathizers, but when the last blow has been dealt and the blood dried into the ground, only one will be the deadliest warrior!
White Guard[]
| “ | Kollaa kestää! (Kollaa holds!)
— Finnish motto during the Winter War
|
” |
The Finnish White Guard was formed in 1918 during the Finnish Civil War as an antisocialist nationalist militia. They triumphed over the socialist Red Guard and existed as a gendarme-style police force in the interwar years. On the onset of the Second World War and with the invasion of the Soviet Union and the start of the Winter War, the White Guard rapidly mobilized to counter the communist threat. The White Guard engaged in heavy fighting along the front but was also responsible for troop movement and logistics for the duration of the fight. Eventually, after the end of hostilities the White Guard was disbanded, as per Soviet demands.
Weapons[]
Finnish Mosin-Nagant M/91
- 7.62x53mmR
- Bolt-action
- 5-round non-detachable magazine (individually loaded or fed by stripper clips)
- 500 m effective firing range, although the maximum firing range exceeds 800 m
- 8.8 lbs.
Suomi KP/31
- 9x19mm Parabellum
- 750/900 rds/min
- 71-round drum magazine
- 200 m effective firing range
- 10.14 lbs.
Lahti L-35
- 9x19mm Parabellum
- 8-round detachable box magazine
- Muzzle velocity of 350 m/s
- 2.76 lbs. loaded
Puukko
- Short blade ( < 100 mm)
- Stabbing blade
- Steel blade between two laminated layers
- Birch handle
Lahti-Saloranta M/26 LMG
- 7.62x53mmR
- 450-550 rds/min
- 20-round magazine
- 400 m effective firing range
- 20.5 lbs.
Blackshirts[]
| “ | Me ne frego! (I don't give a damn!)
— Blackshirts motto
|
” |
The Italian Blackshirts were the fascist paramilitary forces that helped facilitate Benito Mussolini's rise to power in the early 1920s. His October 1922 March on Rome, an event with heavy Blackshirt involvement, was a bullying tactic that effectively secured fascist control in the Kingdom of Italy. In the interwar years they fought in Ethiopia and served as military police forces. During the Second World War the Blackshirts served in North Africa and in Operation Barbarossa, although in this venture they suffered unsustainable losses. This, coupled with the Allied invasion in 1943, led to the dissolvement of the organization in December of that year.
Weapons[]
Mannlicher Carcano Model 1891
- 6.5x52mm Carcano
- Bolt-action
- 6-round integral magazine (loaded with an en-bloc clip)
- 1,000 m effective firing range (look, Wikipedia said that, not me)
- 8.6 lbs.
MAB 38
- 9x19mm Parabellum
- 600 rds/min
- 30-round drum magazine
- 250 m effective firing range
- 9.25 lbs. unloaded
Beretta M1934
- .380 ACP
- 7-round detachable box magazine
- Muzzle velocity of 229 m/s
- 1.45 lbs. loaded
Blackshirt Dagger
- 14-in. blade
- Stabbing blade
- Steel blade
- Ceremonial handle
Breda Modello 30 LMG
- 6.5x52mm Carcano
- 150 rds/min (practical rate of fire, technically can go up to 500 rds/min)
- 20-round stripper-clips
- 1,000 m effective firing range
- 10.6 lbs.
X-Factors[]
White Guard: 66
Blackshirts: 66
I'm just gonna call it even here since both groups were primarily paramilitary organizations formed with the explicit purpose of militarily furthering a political agenda. They were both militia groups, so... yeah. Let's just move on.
White Guard: 87
Blackshirts: 79
The White Guard fought in both the Finnish Civil War and against the Soviets, granting them invaluable combat experience. The Blackshirts were definitely combat competent, having served in the Italo-Ethiopian War and on the North African and Soviet fronts during the Second World War, but their level of involvement was much more limited when compared to the Finns, who were constantly fighting on the front lines.
White Guard: 71
Blackshirts: 74
The White Guards were in charge of logistics during the Winter War but this was a very difficult role as the Soviets pushed forward. The Finns often relied on German material for support. Meanwhile, the Italians were at least able to keep themselves well-supplied at the onset of the war (even if after their luck changed they kind of fell apart).
White Guard: 75
Blackshirts: 88
Obviously the Blackshirts take the edge here. As Mussolini's paramilitary forces they dealt with his political opponents and generally made their unpleasant presence known as they saw fit. The Finns were certainly capable of fighting hard against the Soviets but the White Guard was never as notorious for war crimes or atrocities like other Axis troops were.Battle[]
White Guard: 
Blackshirts: 
It was noon in the small coastal village. Scattered around a small central plaza marked only by a cracked fountain stood about a dozen or so aged houses. Before the start of the war they were hybrids--places of residence and places of business together in the same building. Now, though, they were simply deserted.
Five Finnish White Guard soldiers moved up into position through the square, splitting up and searching the houses. Poking in to one of the larger buildings, a White Guard stumbled upon five Italian Blackshirts sitting at a table, smoking and talking. There was the briefest of silences as the White Guard and the Blackshirts stared. Raising his rifle, the White Guard fired once, catching a seated Blackshirt square in the chest and sending him crashing to the ground. Before he could even attempt to work the bolt, though, a volley of fire from the four remaining Blackshirts tore through him in response. The Blackshirts jumped to their feet, grabbed their weapons, and scattered for the back door as the White Guardsmen turned their attentions to the source of the gunfire.
One of the White Guards moved up to the fountain and set up the bipod on his Lahti M/26 machine gun. He had a perfect view on the Blackshirts as they bolted out the building, but their scattered covering fire sent rounds slamming into the top of the fountain over the machine gunner's head, forcing him to duck. Peeking over the lip of the fountain, he angrily rattled off a long string of rounds to chase the Italians, but could do little more than hold his position. His three squadmates flew past in a battle frenzy, armed with submachine guns and pistols.
Crouching down behind a tree, a Blackshirt with a MAB submachine gun opened fire at the White Guards as they came into view, killing one. The bullets slammed right into the man's chest, sending him flying backwards in an arc of blood and ripped fabric and flesh. The two other White Guards dove for cover--one behind a parked and long-abandoned car, the other back behind the corner of a building. Behind the Italian submachine gunner, his teammates set up their Bredo machine gun on a demolished brick wall that now stood waist-high. The White Guard unleashed fury with their Suomi submachine guns, the rate of fire forcing the Blackshirts to duck down behind the wall. One of the rounds nicked the Blackshirt desperately trying to flatten himself against the tree, and as he jerked in pain, stumbling forward, the White Guards focused their fire on their unfortunate victim. Two of the Italian machine gunners opened fire in response as the White Guards stopped to change magazines. The third Blackshirt crept away, making sure to stay low behind the wall, and headed back around into the square.
The two White Guards tried to advance but were consistently forced back to cover by the Breda. Eventually one of the two turned around back into the square while the other remained, keeping himself suppressed to trick the Blackshirts into thinking they still had more than one soldier pinned. The Blackshirt in the square emerged low behind the fountain, where he spotted the White Guard lying in wait with the Lahti M/26 machine gun. Taking out his dagger, the Italian got close enough to wrap one hand around the White Guard's mouth and slice the man's throat with the knife. Looking up, the Blackshirt spotted the two White Guards near the corner of the building, just as the retreating White Guard spotted his squadmate being killed. Still in the process of a magazine change, the White Guard dropped his weapon and drew his pistol as the Blackshirt frantically scrambled forward, shoving the dead machine gunner out of his way, and aimed with the M/26 machine gun.
Meanwhile the two Blackshirts had exhausted their Breda's ammunition. With their rifles, they began to trade potshots with the White Guard behind the building, who had also switched to his rifle. As one of the Blackshirts stood and aimed to take another shot, a rifle round caught him in the neck and he fell, spurting blood. Looking down, his teammate ducked and put a hand over the wound in a futile attempt to stem the bleeding. The mortally wounded man was shaking involuntarily, one leg kicking frantically up and down, his hands fluttering as he lay on the ground. With a rattling gasp, the Blackshirt expired. Realizing that his was a futile effort, the other Blackshirt removed his now-soaked hand and stood back up only to find the White Guard mere feet away with a Puukko knife. Tackling his shocked opponent to the ground, the White Guard drew the tiny blade up to the Blackshirt's throat and slashed open his throat. Stabbing the Blackshirt a few more times in the face and neck to ensure he was dead, the White Guard stood up, looked wildly around, then ran back to where he had left his teammate.
The Blackshirt at the fountain pulled the trigger on the Finnish machine gun only to realize, to his horror, that the weapon was completely empty. He raised his head just in time to catch the White Guard's solitary pistol shot--the bullet entered right below the Blackshirt's left eye and exploded out the back of his skull in a pulpy shower of blood, brains, and bone. The Blackshirt slumped forward, one arm dangling over the lip of the fountain, his head resting on his shoulder. Just at that moment the other White Guard turned the corner. Making eye contact with his teammate, they raised their weapons into the air and shouted in victory.
Expert's Opinion[]
The White Guard did have several advantages with regards to weaponry (most notably, submachine guns), but, historically, they were also far more combat competent than the Blackshirts. The Blackshirts were certainly a formidable and fanatical opponent, but their relative inability to fight effectively and their logistical and tactical problems that plagued them later in the Second World War were obstacles that were too large to overcome.