ABSTRACT
Manhood was undeniably militarized to some degree, as ever more men and women thought of military service as 'a natural part of every male citizen's duties' and 'a matter of honour for a Finnish man'. References to masculinity occurred in the imagery around conscription because military service was described as strongly formative of young men's physical and moral development, both by critics and supporters of the existing military system. The auxiliary activities of voluntary female defence organizations surely were often understood as inferior in importance and self-sacrifice to the military tasks of men. The war hero cult surrounding the Jagers as well as the military propaganda aimed at giving the conscripts a 'civic education' included powerful images of the 'Liberation War' as the dawn of a new era of Finnish military manliness. The heroic narratives about the Jagers supported notions of the national armed forces as representing something new and progressive in Finnish society.
