Wow, Round 2 already?
Okay, just so I can pick a Finn
, and to take the word soldier literally. Not necessary historic, but legendary none the less.
In the
Soldier category, team
HeroQuest picks the White Death, Finnish sniper
Simo Häyhä.
Simo Häyhä (December 17, 1905 – April 1, 2002), nicknamed "White Death" (
Russian: Белая Смерть,
Belaya Smert;
Finnish:
Valkoinen kuolema) by the Soviet army, was a
Finnish soldier.
Using a standard iron-sighted, bolt action rifle in the Winter War, he had the highest recorded number of kills as a sniper in any major war.
In temperatures between −20 and −40 degrees Celsius (−4 and −40 degrees Fahrenheit), dressed completely in a white camouflage suit, Häyhä was credited with 505 confirmed kills of Soviet soldiers, and 542 if including the unconfirmed deaths. The unofficial Finnish frontline figure from the battlefield of
Kollaa places the number of Häyhä's sniper kills over 800. Besides his sniper kills, Häyhä was also credited with over two hundred kills with a
Suomi KP/-31 submachine gun, thus bringing his
credited kills to
at least 705. All of Häyhä's kills were accomplished in less than 100 days.
Häyhä used a Finnish variant, M/28, of the Soviet
Mosin-Nagant rifle (known as "Pystykorva" rifle, meaning "
spitz"), because it suited his small frame (5 ft 3 in/1.60 m). He preferred to use
iron sights rather than
telescopic sights to present a smaller target (the sniper must raise his head higher when using a telescopic sight), to prevent visibility risks (a telescopic sight's glass can fog up easily), and aid concealment (sunlight glare in telescopic sight lenses can reveal a sniper's position). Another tactic used by Häyhä was to compact the snow in front of him so that the shot wouldn't disturb the snow, thus revealing his position. He also kept snow in his mouth so that when breathing he wouldn't reveal his position.
The Soviets tried several ploys to get rid of him, including counter snipers
(note: for example a whole squad of counter-snipers at a time; Häyhä killed all of them, as well as at another time a special task force specially gathered for the purpose of killing Häyhä) and
artillery strikes.
On March 6 1940, Häyhä was shot in the jaw during combat. The bullet tumbled upon impact and left his head. He was picked up by fellow soldiers who said "half his head was missing". He regained consciousness on March 13, the day peace was declared. Shortly after the war, Häyhä was promoted straight from corporal to second lieutenant by
Field Marshal Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim. No one else has ever gained rank in such a quick fashion in Finland's military history.
When asked in 1998 how he had become such a good shot, he answered, "Practice." When asked if he regretted killing so many people, he has said
"I did what I was told to as well as I could."