Simo Häyhä

Simo Häyhä (17 December 1905 – 1 April 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 Sotamuistoja (lit. 'War Memories') 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.