Nils Swedlund

Swedish Army officer (1898–1965)

Nils Swedlund
Swedlund in Karlskrona in 1958.
Birth name	Nils Per Robert Swedlund
Nickname(s)	Stora Bullret^[1] ("Big Noise")
Born	(1898-05-16)16 May 1898 Gävle, Sweden
Died	28 June 1965(1965-06-28) (aged 67) Mariehamn, Åland Islands
Buried	Skogsö cemetery, Saltsjöbaden
Allegiance	Sweden
Service/branch	Swedish Army
Years of service	1919–1961
Rank	General
Commands held	Norrbotten Regiment Army Department, Defence Staff Vice Chief of the Defence Staff Section 1, Defence Staff Chief of the Defence Staff Supreme Commander
Relations	Sten Swedlund (nephew)

General Nils Per Robert Swedlund (16 May 1898 – 28 June 1965) was a senior Swedish Army officer. Swedlund, commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1919, served in Hälsinge Regiment. He rose through the ranks, becoming a captain in the General Staff Corps in 1933 and later teaching at the Royal Swedish Army Staff College. Promoted to major in 1940 and lieutenant colonel in 1942, he held key roles in the Defence Staff.

During World War II, Swedlund trained Norwegian police troops and later commanded Norrbotten Regiment. He served as Chief of the Defence Staff from 1947 to 1951, achieving major general, lieutenant general, and general ranks in quick succession. As Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces from 1951 to 1961, he strongly advocated for Swedish nuclear weapons and played a role in forming a secret resistance movement in case of a Soviet invasion, known as the Stay-behind movement.

Early life

Swedlund was born on 16 May 1898 in Gävle, Sweden, the son of major Gustav Swedlund and his wife Ellen (née Reuterskiöld) and brother of the archivist and historian Robert Swedlund [sv]. His nephew was the Chief of the Costal Fleet, Rear Admiral Sten Swedlund. Nils Swedlund passed studentexamen at the Högre allmänna läroverket in Gävle in 1917.^[2]

Career

Swedlund was commissioned as an officer with the rank of second lieutenant in 1919 and was assigned to Hälsinge Regiment (I 14).^[2] Swedlund became captain in the General Staff Corps in 1933 and conducted rehearsals and was a teacher at the Royal Swedish Army Staff College from 1934 to 1938 and from 1940 to 1942. He was promoted to major in 1940 and lieutenant colonel in 1942. Swedlund was head of department at the Defence Staff in 1942 and was appointed vice chief and section chief in the Defense Staff in 1944. He was promoted to colonel the same year.^[3]

During World War II Swedlund was involved in the Swedish training of Norwegian police troops.^[4] Swedlund was then commanding officer of Norrbotten Regiment (I 19) from 1946 to 1947 and the Chief of the Defence Staff from 1947 to 1951. He was promoted to major general in 1948, lieutenant general in 1951 and finally general in 1951. Swedlund was the Supreme Commander from 1951 to 1961.^[3] As Supreme Commander Swedlund was a strong supporter of nuclear weapons and a driving force in continuing the Swedish nuclear weapons program. He regarded them as necessary for the Swedish defence and worked hard to gain the government's support on the issue. He was also involved in the secret operations for the formation of a Swedish resistance movement in the event of a Soviet invasion, the so-called Stay-behind movement.^[5]

Personal life

On 14 April 1927 in Halmstad, Swedlund married Brita Alexandra Broberg (26 November 1901 in Eftra, Halland – 17 July 1993 in Danderyd), the daughter of major Carl Alfred Broberg and Ebba Susanna Ståhle.^[6] They had four children, Birgitta, Per, Katarina, and Kristina.^[7]

Death

Swedlund died on 28 June 1965 at Mariehamn hospital on Åland. It was during a sailing from Stockholm to Åland that his illness worsened during the journey on the Sea of Åland. His personal doctor, who was on the sailing trip, took him to the hospital in Mariehamn where he died.^[8] Swedlund was buried at Skogsö Cemetery in Saltsjöbaden.^[9]

Dates of rank

1919 – Second lieutenant
19?? – Lieutenant
1933 – Captain
1940 – Major
1942 – Lieutenant colonel
1944 – Colonel
1948 – Major general
1951 – Lieutenant general
1951 – General

Awards and decorations

Swedish

Knight and Commander of the Orders of His Majesty the King (Order of the Seraphim)^[10] (21 November 1963)
Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Sword^[11]
Commander of the Order of the Polar Star^[11]
Knight of the Order of Vasa^[11]

Foreign

Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog^[2]
Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland^[2]
Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav (1 July 1954)^[12]
Grand Decoration of Honour of the Order of Merit of the Austrian Republic^[2]
King Christian X's Liberty Medal^[2]
Commemorative medal for humanitarian work (Medaljen för humanitär verksamhet)^[2]

Honours

Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1943)^[3]
Honorary member of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences (1952)^[3]

References

^ "Mellan Thörnell och Syrén" [Between Thörnell and Syrén]. Kristianstadsbladet (in Swedish). 1 December 2003. Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 2013-03-24.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Harnesk, Paul, ed. (1962). Vem är vem? 1, Stor-Stockholm [Who is who? 1, Greater Stockholm] (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Vem är vem. p. 1249.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Burling, Ingeborg, ed. (1956). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1957 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1957] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. p. 933.
^ Pierre, Erik (14 November 2005). "15 000 norrmän fick hemlig polisutbildning" [15,000 Norwegian received secret police training]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 26 March 2009.
^ Övervakningen av nazister och högerextremister: forskarrapporter till Säkerhetstjänstkommissionen (PDF). Statens offentliga utredningar, 0375-250X ; 2002:94 (in Swedish). Stockholm: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 2002. ISBN 91-38-21775-9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-26.
^ Zetterberg, Kent (2014). "Nils Per Robert Swedlund". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (in Swedish). Vol. 34. National Archives of Sweden. p. 542. Retrieved 2017-12-15.
^ Göransson, Curt (1965-06-30). "General Nils Swedlund död" [General Nils Swedlund has died]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). p. 15. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
^ "General Swedlund död" [General Swedlund has died]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). 1965-06-30. p. 3. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
^ Åstrand, Göran (1998). Känt och okänt på Stockholms kyrkogårdar [Known and unknown at the Stockholm cemeteries] (in Swedish). Bromma: Ordalaget. p. 158. ISBN 91-973128-2-7.
^ Sveriges statskalender för skottåret 1964 (in Swedish). Uppsala: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1964. p. 350.
^ ^a ^b ^c Sveriges statskalender. 1963 (in Swedish). Uppsala: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1963. p. 346.
^ "Tildelinger av ordener og medaljer" [Awards of medals and medals]. www.kongehuset.no (in Norwegian). Royal Court of Norway. Retrieved 2021-12-13.

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Military offices
Preceded by Nils Björk	Defence Staff's Army Department 1942–1944	Succeeded by Malcolm Murray
Preceded by Carl August Ehrensvärd	Vice Chief of the Defence Staff 1944–1946	Succeeded by Thord Bonde
Preceded by None	Section 1 of the Defence Staff 1944–1946	Succeeded by Thord Bonde
Preceded by Carl August Ehrensvärd	Chief of the Defence Staff 1947–1951	Succeeded by Richard Åkerman
Preceded by Helge Jung	Supreme Commander 1951–1961	Succeeded by Torsten Rapp