Rudolf Walden Karl Rudolf Walden ( December 1 , 1878 , Helsinki – October 25 , 1946 ) was a Finnish industrialist and a military leader . Education . Walden received his military education at the Hamina Cadet School and graduated in 1900 . He was dismissed from service in 1902 , in connection with a conscription strike . Finnish civil war . From 20 February 1918 , till 5 March 1918 , Walden was chief of Vaasa military district . From then till 6 May 1918 , he was chief of headquarters of the rear . He then became chief of security of the occupied areas until 22 May 1918 . On 28 November 1918 , Walden became minister of war and held this position until 15 August 1919 . Walden was then promoted to commander in chief of the Finnish army and the Civil Guard ( 27 November 1918 - 30 December 1918 ) . Walden and general of the White army Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim developed a close working relationship that continued throughout the inter war period ( head of Finnish Red Cross in the 20th century ) and during the Winter War and Continuation War . Finnish paper industry . After leaving the army , Walden sought a career in business . He moved to Saint Petersburg , the capital of Tsarist Russia , and after few years founded a sales agency for Finnish paper . As a steadfast patriot , Walden also became a prominent figure in the large Finnish community of Saint Petersburg . From 1906 to 1946 , Walden worked in the paper industry . He worked to consolidate the Finnish paper industry . He founded " " ( United Paper Mills Ltd ) and was the first president of " Finpap " , a Finnish paper sales association . Winter War . During the Finnish - Soviet Winter War , Walden was recalled to active service . From 3 December 1939 to 27 March 1940 , he was a member of the war cabinet . On 27 March 1940 he became minister of defence and continued in this role till 27 November 1944 . Walden was able to maintain important diplomatic relationships with Sweden and the United States . Walden represented Finland at the Treaty of Tartu of 1920 , the Moscow Peace Treaty ( 1940 ) , and the Armistice treaty of Moscow ( 1944 ) . After the Civil war and during the 1930s there was general distrust of the labour movement and the patriotism of the Finnish worker . In Winter War this proved unfounded and the nation was united . Industrial leader Walden and Väinö Tanner ( Social Democrat leader and Finnish foreign minister ) had developed mutual respect and worked well together . In January 1940 , Finland ' s industry associations acknowledged the trade unions as negotiation partners regarding labour issues . Civilian and military decorations . In 1919 , Walden became Commander of the Order of the White Rose . Later , he received the Grand Cross of the order . For his services during and after the Finnish Civil War he was awarded the Grand Cross of Liberty . He was also awarded the Iron Cross ( 1918 ) . During the 1920s , Walden became a knight of the Order of the Polar Star ( Sweden ) . In 1928 , Walden received the Danish Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog personally from King Christian X . During his service as minister of defence , Walden received several decorations including the Swedish Order of the Sword , the German Order of the German Eagle and Iron Cross ( 1939 ) 1st and 2nd class , the Hungarian Grand Cross of Order of Merit , and the Romanian Grand Cross of Order of the Star . On 2 December 1944 he received the Mannerheim Cross of the Order of the Cross of Liberty for his services to the country .