THE FINNISH GUARD IN THE BALKANS, 1877–1878 links together a Russo-Turkish war and the Balkans, the not unambiguous loyalty of Finns to their then master, the Russian emperor, and the growing Finnish nationalism. The work shows how the latter two affected the interpretation of the first, with the effect that officers and the more educated NCOs saw the war as a civilisation-project of the "barbarian" enemy and despised all Turkish in favour of pre-Ottoman antiquity, while rankers felt satisfaction of a well-done job, but, newertheless, grudged against the hardships they had to endure.