Field marshal and statesman Gustaf Mannerheim (1867-1951) was the most acclaimed and the most hated Finn of the twentieth century. After three decades of loyal and distinguished service in the Russian Tsarist army, he returned to his homeland in 1917 to defend its new independence. This iconic figure led the Finnish forces as Commander-in-Chief during both World Wars, then ended his career as President of Finland. This new critical biography sets Mannerheim's entire life's work, and his often nerve-wracking decisions as a Finnish leader on the world stage, against the backdrop of his elite upbringing and lifestyle, his adventurous imperial career, his outspoken anti-communism, and his keen instincts for great power politics. Painful details emerge about Mannerheim's private life, and myths and rumours are scrutinised, as Henrik Meinander charts the complex legacy of this nationalist cosmopolitan who found himself fighting on the same side as Hitler. Meinander paints his portrait with strong contrasts and bright colours. This is the story of a multicultural Russian empire, a newborn nation-state treading warily between Europe's military titans, a front of the Second World War not easily reduced to moral binaries--and, above all, a shrewd political operator playing many a dangerous game.

In the Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland), as elsewhere, sport has been an assertion of individual and group identity, a demonstration of modernity, a source of personal, local and regional self-esteem, a symbol of confrontation and a preparation for war.
This volume is the first major work in the English language to bring together the research and reflections of scholars who have chosen to concentrate on the cultural impact of sport - the modern opium of the masses - in a Scandinavian setting. It explores the political, social and aesthetic impact of modern sport on Northern Europe, and the relationship between the Nordic nations and Nordic cultures, attitudes to the body and the evolution of specific Nordic visions of sport. The Nordic World shows why sport has played such an important part in both twentieth-century Nordic society and contemporary European culture.

Henrik Meinander paints a brisk and bold picture of the history of Finland from integrated part of the Swedish kingdom to autonomous Grand Duchy within the Russian empire, gradually transformed and maturing into a conscious nation, independent state and skilful adapter of modern technology. The main geographical context for his study is the Baltic region, and the author links his analysis to structural developments and turning points in European history. The book blends politics, economy and culture to show how human and natural resources in Finland have been utilized and the impact its cultural heritage and technological innovation have had on its development. In a departure from most conventional approaches, Meinander gives greater emphasis to recent and contemporary events. In other words, he puts Finland into a range of historical contexts in its Baltic and European settings to highlight how both together have formed Finland into what it is at the beginning of the twenty-first century.

In the Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland), as elsewhere, sport has been an assertion of individual and group identity, a demonstration of modernity, a source of personal, local and regional self-esteem, a symbol of confrontation and a preparation for war.
This volume is the first major work in the English language to bring together the research and reflections of scholars who have chosen to concentrate on the cultural impact of sport - the modern opium of the masses - in a Scandinavian setting. It explores the political, social and aesthetic impact of modern sport on Northern Europe, and the relationship between the Nordic nations and Nordic cultures, attitudes to the body and the evolution of specific Nordic visions of sport. The Nordic World shows why sport has played such an important part in both twentieth-century Nordic society and contemporary European culture.