ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Battle of Åland Islands

Okay kiddo, I'll explain the Battle of Åland Islands, but first let's learn some things to better understand it.

So, there are countries in this world that sometimes have disagreements and don't like each other very much. These disagreements can sometimes lead to battles or wars where they fight with weapons and try to defeat the other country.

One of these countries is Finland, which is a place where it's really cold and snowy most of the time. Finland is a small country north of Europe and part of Scandinavia, and it has neighbours that don't always get along with them. One of these neighbours is Russia, which is a very big country that's located east of Finland.

Now, let's talk about the Battle of Åland Islands. This happened a long time ago, in 1918, during a big conflict in Finland called the Finnish Civil War. This was a battle between the people of Finland, who were divided into two groups. One group were the Reds, who were Communists and wanted to change the way things were done in Finland, and the other group were the Whites, who were more traditional and wanted things to stay the same.

During the Finnish Civil War, the Reds were getting help from Russia, and the Whites didn't like that very much. So, to try to stop the Russians from helping the Reds, the Whites decided to attack the Russians on the Åland Islands.

The Åland Islands are a group of small islands located in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden. They are very important for ships that go between the east and west of Europe because they need to pass them to get to their destination. The Russians had taken control of the islands during the war, and the Whites wanted to take them back.

So, the Whites attacked the Russians on the Åland Islands, and a big battle happened there. They fought with guns and bombs, and it was very scary and dangerous. Eventually, the Whites were able to defeat the Russians and take back the Åland Islands.

After the war ended, the Åland Islands became a demilitarized zone, meaning that no military activities are allowed on the islands. They are still a very important place for ships and are now known as a peaceful and beautiful tourist destination.

That's the story of the Battle of Åland Islands, kiddo. It was a scary time in Finland's history, but now they are a peaceful country that gets along with their neighbours.