Photos of bombed, WWII Helsinki mashed up with prosperous modernity
Burning street car in Helsinki during USSR air raids, 1944.
During WWII, Finland was twice involved in military confrontation with the Soviet union. For the capital, Helsinki, the most intense air raids and bombings occurred in February 1944, a campaign which is usually referred to as The Great Raids Against Helsinki. These amazing photographs, created by the Finnish Defence Forces Combat Camera unit, mash up haunting photos of wartime destruction with modern pics from a couple years back, in nice black and white plus colour images.
The USSR was under the impression its bombing campaigns were more successful and expected Helsinki to be pretty much gone by the end of the war. The Soviets didn’t learn of the relatively limited damage until after the war when Allied Control Commissioner Andrei Zhdanov visited Helsinki.
It’s, of course, a great joy that so much of Helsinki was repaired after the war rather than being bulldozed to be replaced with modernist downtowns, which usually are pretty rubbish looking. Post-war Helsinki has mostly grown in suburbs scattered around the region, leaving the old city core that existed during the war mostly intact.
Helsinki Wartime Mashups
Furniture in the street beside a bombed house in Helsinki during the Great Raids Against Helsinki, 1944.
Bombed out wooden houses in Helsinki, 1944.
Streetscape of a bombed Yrjönkatu, Helsinki during the Continuation war in 1944.
Badly bombed houses in Helsinki, 1944.
The damaged Main Building of Helsinki University on Unioninkatu, beside the senate square.
Damaged building in Helsinki after a bombing raid during the Continuation War.
Streetscape with bombed buildings on Porthaninkatu in Hakaniemi, in the now hip neighbourhoods, greater Kallio region.
Kluuvikatu in the Kluuvi district in ruins after Soviet air raids during the Continuation War.
Image Credits and Sources
Credits for colorized title photo.
Credit combination pictures: Finnish Defence Forces Combat Camera – (Tommi Kangasmaa, Markus Kontiainen, Anssi Uusitalo, Thomas Litchfield, Timo Kankkunen, Nico Stalberg, Niko Tiranis)
Photos By Finnish Defence Forces Combat Camera
https://www.facebook.com/pg/puolustus/photos/?tab=album&album_id=249927285079603
Great photos and a great idea. Who came up with it?
Crazy awesome photos!! Had no idea it was so badly bombed. Nobody seems to mention it much. Wonder why?
The Soviet air force arranged heavy attacks on Helsinki in 1944 but the city was well protected and the Soviets dropped their bombs on the Baltic herrings mostly. A couple of hundred people died, the damaged buildings were quickly repaired.
Picture of Kluuvi is not on Kluuvikatu, it is on Kasarmikatu. Kluuvikatu is on the other side of Esplanadi.
These pictures remind me as to why the Finns didn’t care whose side they fought on, as long as they fought against the Russians.
Really? An overwhelming majority of Finns were anglo oriented. However, facing a hostile Soviet Union left us with little choice other than seek German support.
Why do I see a Mc Donalds logo? The picture was supposed to be from 1944.
That’s the whole idea, Elizabeth. These are pictures of the Helsinki bombed in WWII with a stealthy detail in each giving an impression of modern day prosperity. Check all the other photos and you will find some little detail of this sort.
They have mixed a old photo with a modern one. As was said in the article.
Pics have been retouched and overlaid with modern day image.
I think some of these pictures are how the streets are today and the older black and white picture is added on top of it, because the older streets in Helsinki haven’t changed almost at all from year 1944, same old buildings.
Great compilations. a bit of ” modernism” in times of trouble
It just looks like Photoshopped. Mostlikely it is.
Other cities were bombed worse.
Hi! I am publishing comparison of Great Raids of Helsinki to Rocket Attacks to Israel. Mashup comparison of numbers and size of area, and your image would be perfect. May I use it with credentials?