The Lapland War was a military conflict that arose after Finland sought to distance itself from its former ally, Germany, following the conclusion of the Continuation War against the Soviet Union. After the armistice with the Soviet Union in September 1944, Finland was required to expel German forces from its territory. The movement initiated by road and mountain warfare in Lapland led to a series of confrontations between Finnish forces and the German troops who were entrenched in the region. German forces implemented a scorched earth policy during their retreat, destroying infrastructure and resources to hinder Finnish advances. The conflict reached its critical point as the last German troops formally withdrew from Finnish soil in April 1945, effectively marking the end of organized military actions in Finland during World War II. This retreat not only concluded combat operations but also highlighted the shifting alliances and the deterioration of German military influence in Northern Europe as the war drew to a close in other theatres.