Simo Häyhä (17December 1905 1April 2002), often referred to by his nickname The White Death, was a Finnish military sniper during the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union in World War II. He used a Finnish-produced M/28-30 rifle (a variant of the Mosin–Nagant) and a Suomi KP/-31 submachine gun. Häyhä is believed to have killed more than 500 enemy soldiers during the conflict, the highest number of sniper kills in any major war. Consequently, he is generally regarded as the deadliest sniper in history.
Häyhä estimated in his private war memoir that he shot around 500 Soviet soldiers. Written in 1940, a few months after he was wounded, his () recounts his experiences before and during the Winter War, from 13 November 1939 to 13 March 1940. Hidden for decades, the memoir was discovered in 2017.
After his death, sudden historical events—such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Finland's subsequent NATO membership—have increased interest in Häyhä. Over the years, Häyhä's cult reputation has grown not only among those interested in military history but also among various subcultures; Häyhä has found his way into the lyrics of metal bands and into Japanese manga comics.
Early life, family and education Simo Häyhä was born on 17 December 1905 in the Kiiskinen hamlet of the Rautjärvi municipality in the Viipuri Province of southern Finland. He was the seventh of eight children in a Lutheran family of farmers. His father, Juho Häyhä, was the owner of the Mattila farm, while his mother, Katriina (née Vilkko), was a loving and hard-working farmer's wife. He attended school in the village of Miettilä in Rautjärvi and helped cultivate the home farm alongside his eldest brother. Before his military service, he was a farmer and enjoyed hunting and skiing.
Militia and military training
Häyhä joined the Finnish voluntary militia, the Civil Guard (Suojeluskunta), at age 17. He excelled in shooting competitions in the Viipuri Province, and his home was reportedly filled with trophies for marksmanship. Not keen to hog the spotlight, he usually stood at the back in group photos during his youth, until his later successes forced him to take centre stage.
In 1925, at age 19, Häyhä began his 15-month compulsory military service in the Bicycle Battalion 2 in Raivola, Viipuri Province. He attended the Non-Commissioned Officer School and served as a conscript officer in the Bicycle Battalion 1 in Terijoki. However, he did not receive formal sniper training until 1938, a year before the war, at a training centre in Utti.
According to Major Tapio Saarelainen, who met Häyhä several times and has written five books about him, including his biography, Häyhä was able to estimate distances up to within a margin of error of .
Winter War service
Häyhä served as a sniper in the Finnish Army during the Winter War against the Soviet Union. He operated in the 6th Company of Infantry Regiment 34 (, or JR 34) under Lieutenant Aarne Juutilainen during the Battle of Kollaa. The winter of 1939–40 was one of the coldest on record in Finland. During the battle, temperatures ranged from . Häyhä wore all-white camouflage, while Soviet troops were not issued camouflage uniforms for most of the war, making them easily visible in snowy conditions. The lack of winter camouflage reflected broader disorganisation within the Red Army following the purges of military leadership ordered by Joseph Stalin during the Great Purge of the late 1930s.
Finnish sources state that Häyhä was nicknamed "The White Death" by the Red Army (, ; ; ). The name "White Death" has been suggested to originate entirely in Finnish propaganda, rather than having been given to Häyhä by the Russians; according to information from prisoners, to the Russians "White Death" referred to a severe frost in the deep forest. Häyhä having the nickname "White Death" first appeared in the Finnish Winter War literature of the late 1980s. During the war, the "White Death" was one of the leading themes of Finnish propaganda. Finnish newspapers frequently featured the invisible Finnish soldier, thus creating a hero of mythical proportions. To add to the myth, he was also nicknamed "The Magic Shooter" among Finns (, in close reference to the Finnish word for "sniper"; ).
Achievements as a sniper
All of Häyhä's kills were accomplished in less than 100 days, an average of five per day at a time of year with very few daylight hours. His kill count as a sniper was based on his own reporting, with the confirmation of his comrades, and only those who were verified to be dead were counted. No count was taken when several snipers shot at the same target. Enemy soldiers killed with a submachine gun with Häyhä as a group leader were not counted.
Häyhä's division commander Antero Svensson credited him with 219 confirmed kills with a rifle and an equal number of kills by submachine gun, when he awarded Häyhä with an honorary rifle on 17 February 1940. On 21 December 1939, Häyhä achieved his highest daily count of 25 kills. In his diary, military chaplain Antti Rantamaa reported 259 confirmed kills made by rifle and an equal number of kills by submachine gun from the beginning of the war until 7 March 1940, one day after Häyhä was severely wounded.
Some of Häyhä's figures are from a Finnish Army document, counted from the beginning of the war, 30 November 1939: 22 December 1939: 138 sniper kills in 22 daysJR34:n toimintakertomus 30.11.39–1.12.40. SPK 1327. Finnish National Archive Sörnäinen; Alikersantista vänrikiksi. Hurtti Ukko 1/1941 26 January 1940: 199 sniper kills (61 in 35 days)Rantamaa, A. J. 1942. Parlamentin palkeilta Kollaanjoen kaltahille. WSOY, Porvoo. pp. 84, 206 17 February 1940: 219 sniper kills (20 in 22 days) 7 March 1940 (one day after he was wounded): total of 259 sniper kills (40 in 18 days)
Häyhä never discussed it publicly, but his own private memoir, discovered in 2017, states a number. He begins by stating that "this is his sin list", and estimates the total number he shot to be around 500.
Finnish historian Risto Marjomaa questions the large number, as confirmation of casualties was difficult due to the absence of the bodies. In his article, published by the National Biography of Finland, Marjomaa credited Häyhä with the total number of "more than two hundred" kills. Complicating matters further is the use of Häyhä's achievements as a tool of propaganda: the Finnish press built a hero's myth around Häyhä at the early stage of the war.
Firearms and tactics Häyhä used his issued Civil Guard rifle, an early series SAKO M/28-30, serial number 35281, Civil Guard number S60974. It was a Finnish Civil Guard variant of the Mosin–Nagant rifle known as "Pystykorva" ( due to the front sight's resemblance to the head of a spitz-type dog) chambered in the Finnish-designed Mosin–Nagant cartridge 7.62×53R. When fighting as a group leader with the rest of his unit, he used a Suomi KP/-31 submachine gun.
Häyhä preferred iron sights over telescopic sights, as they enable a sniper to present a smaller target for the enemy (a sniper must raise his head a few centimetres higher when using a telescopic sight), and can be relied on even in extreme cold, unlike telescopic sights which tend to cloud up in cold weather. Another disadvantage of telescopic sights is that sunlight may reflect off the lenses and reveal the sniper's position. Häyhä did not have prior training with scoped rifles, and therefore preferred not to switch to the Soviet scoped rifle (M/91-30 PE or PEM).
Häyhä dealt with the intense cold by dressing properly with multiple layers of clothing. He kept sugar and bread in his pockets, consuming them for the calories necessary to keep his body warm. His slight stature of assisted him in disguising his position. Hidden in a snow pit, he could lie still and observe the enemy for long periods of time. It was Häyhä's custom to move, well before daybreak, to the position he had prepared, and stay there until after sunset. He would frequently pack dense mounds of snow in front of his position to conceal himself, provide padding for his rifle, and reduce the characteristic puff of snow stirred up by the muzzle blast. He was known to keep snow in his mouth while sniping to prevent his breath in the cold air from giving away his position.
Injury
On 6 March 1940, just a week before the end of the war, Häyhä was severely wounded when an explosive bullet fired by a Red Army soldier tore through his face and shattered his lower left jaw. After the battle, as he appeared to be dead, he was placed on a pile of corpses. Someone later noticed his foot moving and he was removed from the pile and taken to hospital.Saarelainen (2016). The White Sniper
Rumours of Häyhä's death spread throughout Finland and the Soviet Union. He regained consciousness a week later, on 13 March, the day peace was declared. Reading about his own death in a newspaper, he sent a letter to the paper to correct the misunderstanding.
Recovery took considerable time and required extensive treatment and multiple surgeries, leaving visible scars that remained for the rest of his life. Despite this, when the Continuation War (1941–1944) broke out, he requested permission to return to the front lines. However, due to the severity of his facial injuries, from which he was still recovering, his request was denied. Häyhä spent the Continuation War on the home front, tending to his farm.
In his private war memoir, written a few months after he was wounded, Häyhä recorded several brief accounts from the Winter War. Discovered decades later, one anecdote describes an incident involving the capture of a Soviet soldier by his unit: "After Christmas, we captured a Russkie, blindfolded him, spun him around until he was disoriented, and took him to a feast in the tent of the Terror of Morocco. The Russkie was content with the revelry, but when he was sent back, it felt very repugnant to him."
Honours
Häyhä was awarded the First and Second class Medals of Liberty, as well as the Third and Fourth class Crosses of Liberty. The latter two were normally granted to only commissioned officers. As an additional honour, on 17 February 1940, he received a name-plated SAKO M/28-30 “Pystykorva” Honorary Rifle (serial number 100 781), donated by Eugen Johansson, a Swedish businessman and supporter of Finland. According to an unofficial count, he had shot 219 Red Army soldiers at the time. He later donated the rifle to the Karelia Jaeger Battalion's Heritage Room, from where it was transferred to the Finnish Military Museum's collection after the dissolution of the North Karelia Brigade in 2013.
Shortly after the Winter War, on 28 August 1940, Finnish Field Marshal Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim promoted Häyhä straight from alikersantti (the lowest military rank of a non-commissioned officer) to vänrikki (the first military rank of an officer). In 1941, Häyhä was also nominated as a Knight of the Mannerheim Cross, the most distinguished Finnish military honour. However, due to administrative reasons, the knighthood was not granted, as the cross was not awarded to anyone solely for achievements in the Winter War. He also received the Cross of Kollaa medal, one of the first seven made of silver. Häyhä's cross was numbered four, following Marshal Mannerheim, President Kyösti Kallio, and Häyhä's division commander, Colonel Antero Svensson.
The Kollaa and Simo Häyhä Museum () is located in the village of Miettilä at Rautjärvi, in a former infirmary. The museum, opened in 1983, covers the Battle of Kollaa, and features a special permanent exhibition dedicated to the life of Simo Häyhä.
In the 2004 Suuret suomalaiset (Great Finns) television show and poll, which determined the 100 greatest Finns of all time, Häyhä was ranked 74th.
Post-war life