Simo Häyhä, a.k.a. The White Death: The Story of Finland’s Top Sniper

He became the terror and a nightmare for Soviet soldiers, was probably the most successful sniper of all time, and for his 505 kills in the Finnish Winter WarWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More, he earned the nickname “The White Death” from the Russians.

He was extolled by Finnish propagandaPropaganda is a form of communication aimed at influencing p... More, and his enemies feared him. Yet he did not consider himself a hero, simply saying he did what needed to be done. Although he was severely wounded shortly before the end of the warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More, he went on to become a hunter and lived to be 96. Simo Häyhä. This is his story.

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Youth

Simo Häyhä was born on December 17, 1905, in the village of Kiiskinen in the municipality of Rautjärvi. This area is in southern Finland, near the Russian border. Even today, it’s not very densely populated—about fifteen times fewer people live there per square kilometer than in the Czech Republic. It was no different before the warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More.

Simo was the seventh of eight children in a modest Lutheran farming family. His father, Juho Häyhä, owned the Mattila farm, while his mother, Katriina (née Vilkko), is remembered as a loving and hardworking woman. Simo attended school in the village of Miettilä in the Kivennapa parish and, after classes, helped work the family farm alongside his eldest brother. Before military service, he was engaged in farming and enjoyed hunting and skiing.

At age 17, Häyhä joined the Finnish voluntary militia, the Civil Guard (Suojeluskunta). His innate talent for marksmanship soon became evident—he excelled in shooting competitions, and his home quickly filled with trophies. At the time, he could not have guessed that, just a few years later, he would put this talent to use under far harsher conditions: in warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More.

In 1925, at the age of 19, Häyhä began his 15-month mandatory military service with the 2nd Bicycle Battalion in Raivoli, in the province of Viipuri. He attended an NCO school and later served as a professional officer in Terijoki. However, he did not receive formal sniper training until 1938, one year before the warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More, at the training center in Utti.

By all accounts, he excelled in this discipline. According to Major Tapio Saarelainen—who met Häyhä several times and wrote five books about him, including a biography—Häyhä could estimate distances of up to 150 meters with an accuracy of one meter. Then came the Winter WarWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More, when the Soviet Union attacked Finland.

The Winter War

For context, a quick summary: the Winter WarWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More was a conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with the Soviet invasion of Finland on November 30, 1939—three months after the outbreak of World WarWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More II—and ended three and a half months later with the signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty on March 13, 1940. Despite its military superiority, especially in tanks and aircraft, the Soviet Union suffered heavy losses and initially made little progress. The League of Nations declared the attack illegal and expelled the Soviet Union from its organization.

It all started in a familiar way. The Soviets made several demands—for instance, that Finland cede substantial border territories in exchange for other lands—allegedly for security reasons, primarily to protect Leningrad, just 32 km from the Finnish border. However, the Soviets already had a puppet government prepared, as the entire operation aimed to transform sovereign Finland into a puppet state. When the Finns refused, the Russians launched their invasion. Conditions were grueling and did nothing to ease the Soviets’ efforts—Finland repelled Soviet attacks for over two months, inflicting heavy losses on the invaders in temperatures as low as −43 °C.

Because nothing went according to plan, following their initial failures the Soviets scaled back their strategic goals. At the end of January 1940, they abandoned the puppet Finnish communist government and informed the Finnish government of their willingness to negotiate. The warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More ended in March 1940 with the signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty, which required Finland to cede 9% of its territory to the Soviet Union. Soviet losses were extremely high, and the country’s international reputation suffered greatly.

The Birth of the White Death

During this period, Simo served as a sniper in the Finnish Army. Over the course of this brief service, he received his nickname, “White Death,” from the Red Army. Finnish propagandaPropaganda is a form of communication aimed at influencing p... More, of course, helped fuel and spread the legend of this “magical sniper,” portraying the ordinary soldier Simo so frequently that he came to be seen as a hero of nearly mythical proportions.

Yet these stories were based on actual accomplishments. In fewer than 100 days, Simo killed over 500 Russians—at least five per day—during the short Nordic winter days, when temperatures dropped to around −40 °C.

His confirmed kills, recorded from the start of the warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More on November 30, 1939, and verified by the Finnish Army, are truly impressive:

• December 22, 1939: 138 sniper kills in 22 days.
• January 26, 1940: “By 1940, 15 men had been shot”: 199 sniper kills (61 in 35 days).
• February 17, 1940: 219 sniper kills (20 in 22 days).
• March 7, 1940 (the day after he was wounded): 259 sniper kills in total (40 in 18 days).

Simo Häyhä himself never spoke publicly about this, but his private memoirs, discovered in 2017, refer to it as his “list of sins” and put the total count at around 500. Both Finnish Army records and his memoirs identify him as the deadliest sniper of all time.

Technique

Häyhä used a rifle issued to him by the Civil Guard—an early-series SAKO M/28-30, serial number 35281, Civil Guard number S60974. This was a Finnish variant of the Mosin-Nagant (known as the “Pystykorva,” meaning “Spitz,” because its fore-end resembled a spitz dog’s head), chambered for the Finnish 7.62×53R Mosin-Nagant cartridge. When fighting as a squad leader alongside his unit, he used a Suomi KP/-31 submachine gun.

Häyhä preferred iron sights to telescopic sights because they present a smaller target to the enemy (with a telescopic sight, a sniper must raise his head a few centimeters higher) and remain dependable even in extreme cold, whereas telescopic sights can fog up in freezing temperatures. Another drawback of telescopic sights is that sunlight can reflect off the lenses, revealing the sniper’s position. Häyhä had no training with optical rifles and therefore chose not to switch to a Soviet optical model (M/91-30 PE or PEM).

He usually moved into position long before dawn and stayed there until sunset, shooting any enemy soldier who came into view.

Injury

On March 6, 1940, just a week before the warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More ended, Häyhä was severely wounded when an explosive bullet fired by a Red Army soldier tore through his face, shattering his lower left jaw. After the battle, when he appeared to be dead, he was placed on a pile of corpses alongside other fallen soldiers. However, he survived.

Rumors of Häyhä’s death spread across Finland and the Soviet Union. He regained consciousness a week later, on March 13—the day peace was declared. When he read about his own death in the newspaper, he sent a letter to correct the misunderstanding.

His recovery was long and required extensive treatment and multiple surgeries, which left visible scars he carried for the rest of his life. Nevertheless, when the Continuation WarWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More (1941–1944) broke out, he asked to return to the front lines. Due to the severity of his facial injuries, from which he was still recovering, his request was denied. Häyhä spent the Continuation WarWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More on the home front, tending to his farm. He also received several decorations.

Life After the War

It took Häyhä several years to recover fully from his wounds, and his face remained disfigured. He worked on the family farm and, in addition to farming, he continued to enjoy hunting; over the years, Finnish President Urho Kekkonen even joined him on some of his hunts. Häyhä also became a successful moose hunter and dog breeder.

Nevertheless, some people disapproved of his actions during the Winter WarWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More; he encountered hatred and even death threats. The injuries he had sustained left recognizable scars, so as a well-known figure, he avoided large gatherings of people. He never married and remained a bachelor; eventually, farm work became too difficult for him, so he rented out his farm and moved to an apartment building in downtown Ruokolahti.

Häyhä was known as a modest individual who never boasted about his wartime deeds. He rarely spoke about the warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More or his experiences. When asked in 1998 how he had become such a good sniper, he replied simply, “Practice.” In an interview with Helsingin Sanomat for Independence Day in December 2001, shortly before his 96th birthday, Häyhä opened up about his wartime experiences. Asked whether he felt remorse for having killed so many, he answered, “I did what I was told, to the best of my ability. There would be no Finland if everyone hadn’t done the same.”

Häyhä spent his final years in a warWar (General Definition) War is a state of armed conflict be... More veterans’ nursing home in Hamina, where he died in 2002 at the age of 96. He was buried in his hometown of Ruokolahti.