`They are also victims of the war´: heritage narratives of the Nazis and their victims in Finland

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article engages with the contemporary perceptions and representations of the Finnish cooperation with Nazis during World War II. The Finnish-German relations were complicated during the war, as Finland was first an ally of Germany but later turned against the German troops in the country. Focusing primarily on the uses of photographs, personal memoirs and oral histories in museum exhibitions and related contexts, we examine how the complex Finnish relationship with Germans is narrated. In particular, we consider the significance of the emotive and affective qualities of the presented material and how they mediate perceptions of and relationships with the wartime past. We first examine the friendly relations between Finnish civilians and German troops and move on the discuss how Finns perceive and position themselves to the Nazi racialized warfare and the Holocaust.