1944.06.14 “Help from the Rear”
by Ralph Lee (1906-1947)
14 x 17 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection
Ralph Lee was an editorial cartoonist for the Portland Oregonian. He died suddenly, at 41, in January 1947. His cousin, Art Bimrose, was the editorial cartoonist for the Oregonian for more than three decades. In 1937, the Oregonian hired him part-time to work on printing plates. Following Lee’s death, Bimrose was hired as the Sunday editorial cartoonist.
Finland had been involved in a conflict with the Soviet Union since the Winter War (1939-1940), and although they had managed to maintain some degree of independence, the relationship was strained. The 1941-1944 Continuation War saw Finland allied with Nazi Germany against the Soviets. As the tide of the war turned against Germany, Finland found itself in a precarious position.
The Soviet leadership, particularly Joseph Stalin, recognized that negotiating a peace with Finland could help secure the northern flank of the Soviet Union. A peace treaty would allow the Soviets to focus their military efforts elsewhere and stabilize the region.
On June 9, 1944, the Soviet Leningrad Front launched an offensive against Finnish positions on the Karelian Isthmus and in the area of Lake Ladoga, timed to coincide with
Operation Overlord in Normandy.
By September, Finland broke its relationship with Germany, demanded the withdrawal of German troops, and signed an armistice with the Soviets on September 19.
