'''The Battle of Ahvenkoski''' was fought during the [[Finnish Civil War]] between 10{{nbsp}}April and 5{{nbsp}}May 1918 at [[Ahvenkoski]] ({{lang-sv|Abborfors}}), Finland between the [[German Empire]] and the [[Red Guards (Finland)|Red Guards]] ({{Lang-fi|punakaartit}}) of the [[Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic]], more commonly known as Red Finland.<ref name="leivo">{{cite web|url=http://www.sshs.fi/binary/file/-/id/17/fid/352/|title=Kyminlinnan taistelu 8.4.1918|author=Leivo, Teemu|publisher=Finnish Military History Society|date=27 August 2011|accessdate=1 September 2017|language=fi}}</ref> For most of the battle both sides occupied trenches along the [[Kymi (river)|Kymi river]].<ref name="vainio2008">{{cite book|last=Vainio|first=Seppo|date=2008|title=Saksalaiset Suomen sisällissodassa 1918|location=Vantaa|publisher=Seppo Vainio|pages=108|isbn=978-952-92425-5-9}}</ref> [[Ahvenkoski]] and the surrounding [[Kymenlaakso|Kymi valley]] region were the last strongholds of the [[Red Finland|Reds]]. The battle ended with the surrender of the last of the Red Guards on May 5, which ended the war with [[White Finland]] and Germany defeating Red Finland.<ref name="hautamaki1997">{{cite web | url=http://www15.uta.fi/yky/arkisto/suomi80/v18v19.htm | title=Sodan lopputulos ratkeaa | publisher=University of Tampere | date=1997 | accessdate=31 August 2017 | author=Hautamäki, Kirsi | language=fi}}</ref>
== German campaign begins ==
Line 38:
== Aftermath ==
According to a list of Germans who were killed in action during the war, at least 2413 Germans died during the battle: eleven on 11 and 12{{nbsp}}April and thirteen during the attack of 22 and 23{{nbsp}}April.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.helsinki.fi/~jjeerola/englskuol.htm|title=Suomen sotatoimissa 1918 ja niiden yhteydessä surmansa saaneiksi tai kadonneiksi ilmoitetut saksalaissotilaat|last=Eerola|first=Jari|date=|website=|publisher=University of Helsinki|language=fi|access-date=2017-07-23|language=fi}}</ref> According to a Finnish casualty database, at least 13 Reds died during the battle within the [[Pyhtää]] municipality are.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://vesta.narc.fi/cgi-bin/db2www/sotasurmaetusivu/main?lang=en|title=The registry of names of the war dead between 1914–1922|last=|first=|date=2004-05-19|website=|publisher=[[National Archives of Finland]]|accessdate=2017-07-23}}</ref> Seven Germans were buried in Ahvenkoski Cemetery,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.denkmalprojekt.org/misc_laender/ruotsinpyhtaeae.htm|title=Ruotsinpyhtää, Friedhof Ahvenkoski, Provinz Uusimaa, Finnland|author=|publisher=Onlineprojekt Gefallenendenkmäler|date=|accessdate=1 September 2017|language=de}}</ref> as well as an unknown number of Reds. A memorial on the Red mass grave was erected in 1946.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tpertt.blogspot.fi/2013/06/punaisten-muistomerkit-kymenlaaksossa.html|title=Punaisten muistomerkit Kymenlaaksossa|author=Perttilä, Tommi|publisher=Sekalaista propagandaa|date=17 June 2013|accessdate=1 September 2017|language=fi}}</ref> In September 2013, a memorial to the end of the Civil War was unveiled at the site where the last Reds surrendered.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.loviisansanomat.net/lue.php?id=6522&vo=50|title=Muistakaa ja unohtakaa|author=Kosonen, Eija|publisher=Loviisan Sanomat|date=10 September 2013|accessdate=1 September 2017|language=fi}}</ref> The Battle of Ahvenkoski was the last action of the Civil War, but the White Army Commander-in-Chief [[C. G. E. Mannerheim]] did not declare the war over until 16{{nbsp}}May, when the Russians had left [[Fort Ino]] near [[Petrograd]].<ref name="apunen" />
