Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

Bengt Gustaf Gottfrid Lundvall (30 October 1915 – 30 November 2010) was a senior

Swedish Navy The Swedish Navy ( sv, Svenska marinen) is the naval branch of the Swedish Armed Forces. It is composed of surface and submarine naval units – the Fleet () – as well as marine units, the Amphibious Corps (). In Swedish, vessels o ...

officer. He was Chief of the Navy from 1970 to 1978.

Early life

Lundvall was born on 30 October 1915 in Björkäng parish,

Töreboda Municipality Töreboda Municipality (''Töreboda kommun'') is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Töreboda and it includes the population centers of Älgarås and Moholm. The present municipality ...

, Sweden, the son of the clerk Gottfrid Lundvall and his wife Elna (née Andersson). He passed ''

studentexamen Studentexamen (Swedish for "students' examination" or "students' degree"), earlier also ''mogenhetsexamen'' ("maturity examination") was the name of the university entrance examination in Sweden from the 17th century to 1968. From 1862 to 1968 ...

'' in

Skövde Skövde () is a locality and urban centre in Skövde Municipality and Västra Götaland County, in the Västergötland (Western Gothland region) in central Southern Sweden. Skövde is situated some 150 km northeast of Gothenburg, between Swe ...

in 1934.

Career

Military career

Lundvall graduated from the

Royal Swedish Naval Academy The Royal Swedish Naval Academy ( sv, Kungliga Sjökrigsskolan, KSS) was a school for officer training for the Swedish Navy, which operated in various forms between the years 1756 and 1987. History 1683–1791 In 1683, when the charter was issue ...

in 1938. He was commissioned as a naval officer in the

the same year with the rank of acting sub-lieutenant (''

fänrik ''Fänrik'' () ( en, second lieutenant in the Swedish Army/Air Force, Acting sub-lieutenant in the Navy) is a company grade officer rank. In the army/airforce, it ranks above sergeant and below lieutenant. In the navy, it ranks above sergeant and ...

''), after which he was promoted to sub-lieutenant (''

löjtnant ''Löjtnant'' ( en, Lieutenant in the Swedish Army/Air Force, Sub-lieutenant in the Navy) is a company grade officer rank. In the army/airforce, it ranks above second lieutenant and below captain. In the navy, it ranks above acting sub-lieutenant ...

'') in 1940. He trained for submarine duty and did submarine service during the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

's neutrality guard and a few years after the end of the war. He also specialized in connection, radio, radar and combat control. He completed the

Royal Swedish Naval Staff College The Royal Swedish Naval Staff College ( sv, Kungliga Sjökrigshögskolan, KSHS) was a Swedish Navy training establishment between 1898 and 1961, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Swedish Navy's staff college, which prov ...

general course and staff course from 1944 to 1946. He also passed the signal officer course at the Submarine School. Lundvall was promoted to lieutenant in 1946 and attended the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

's signal and radar school from 1946 to 1947. He was captain and division commander of submarines and was promoted to lieutenant commander in 1954 and to commander in 1957. Lundwall was captain of the minelayer in 1957 and 1958 during which the ship transported expeditions to the Swedish station Kinnvika on

Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...

during the

International Polar Year The International Polar Years (IPY) are collaborative, international efforts with intensive research focus on the polar regions. Karl Weyprecht, an Austro-Hungarian naval officer, motivated the endeavor in 1875, but died before it first occurred i ...

. Lundvall was military expert in the Airport Committee in 1956 and the 1960 and the 1962 Defense Committee. He was also an naval contributor to the ''

Svenska Dagbladet ''Svenska Dagbladet'' (, "The Swedish Daily News"), abbreviated SvD, is a daily newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden. History and profile The first issue of ''Svenska Dagbladet'' appeared on 18 December 1884. During the beginning of the ...

'' from 1957 to 1964. He also served in the staff of the Chief of the

Coastal Fleet The Coastal Fleet ( sv, Kustflottan, Kfl) was until 1994 a Swedish Navy authority with the main task of training the naval ships commanders and crews. After the formation of the authority Swedish Armed Forces in 1994, the Coastal Fleet remained ...

and was adjutant of the commanding officer of the Submarine Department and was head of the Communications and Planning Department in the Naval Staff as well as head of the Planning Department in the Defence Staff. Lundvall was promoted to captain in 1961 and was appointed head in the Operations Management in the Defence Staff. He was Vice Chief of the Defence Staff from 1964 to 1966 when he was promoted to rear admiral. Lundvall was then chief of the staff of the Eastern Military District (Milo Ö) from 1966 to 1970 and was promoted to vice admiral in 1970. Lundvall was Chief of the Navy from 1970 to 1978 and was promoted to full admiral upon retirement. In June 1975 Lundvall invited, after consultation with the

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the professional head of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the secretary of the Navy. In a separate capacity as a memb ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt, and the

First Sea Lord The First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS) is the military head of the Royal Navy and Naval Service of the United Kingdom. The First Sea Lord is usually the highest ranking and most senior admiral to serve in the British Armed ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, admiral Sir

Edward Ashmore Admiral of the Fleet Sir Edward Beckwith Ashmore, (11 December 1919 – 28 April 2016) was a senior Royal Navy officer. He saw active service in the Second World War and later commanded two frigates before achieving high command in the Navy. ...

, to the North Atlantic Seapower Symposium in

Saltsjöbaden Saltsjöbaden is a locality in Nacka Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 9,491 inhabitants in 2010. It is on the Baltic Sea coast, deep in the Stockholm Archipelago. History Saltsjöbaden () was developed as a resort by Knut Agathon Wa ...

. Lundvall's intention was, among other things, that the naval chiefs of the East and West would meet each other for the first time since the end of

to discuss marine issues and thus increase stability in the areas around the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe and ...

. During a week, naval chiefs from the United States (admiral

James L. Holloway III James Lemuel Holloway III (February 23, 1922 – November 26, 2019) was a United States Navy admiral and naval aviator who was decorated for his actions during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. After the Vietnam War, he was poste ...

), United Kingdom (admiral Ashmore),

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

participated. From the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

, Admiral Amelko, who was the naval commander

Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

, was a substitute for admiral Gorshkov who was unable to attend. The meeting became a veritable success and was repeated in the summer of 1978 in Finland.

Post-retirement

He was inspector of the association UppSjö from 1970 to 1978 and was board member of Saléninvest AB from 1976 to 1982 and chairman of the foundation Ymer 80 from 1979 to 2000. Lundvall had a strong feeling for his home district and was a board member of AB Göta kanalbolag from 1978 to 1984 and after his retirement improved the so-called ''Kanalvillan'' (the Canal Villa) in

Forsvik Forsvik is a locality situated in Karlsborg Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the King ...

, which became his home. After his active military career, Lundvall took the initiative for a polar expedition in memory of

Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld Nils Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld (18 November 183212 August 1901) was a Finland-Swedish aristocrat, geologist, mineralogist and Arctic explorer. He was a member of the Fenno-Swedish Nordenskiöld family of scientists and held the title of a friher ...

's expedition through the

Northeast Passage The Northeast Passage (abbreviated as NEP) is the shipping route between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, along the Arctic coasts of Norway and Russia. The western route through the islands of Canada is accordingly called the Northwest Passage (N ...

with the ship 1878-1880. Lundvall served as chief operating officer for the expedition that was carried out by the icebreaker ''Ymer'' during the summer of 1980. He also took the initiative to form the foundation Ymer-80 in order to support young researchers and was its chairman for 10 years. In 1998, it was revealed in the newspaper ''

'' that during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, Lundvall as Chief of the Navy would leave Sweden for the

to establish a Swedish war time headquarters in case of a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

invasion of Sweden. From there, he would, in close cooperation with the

Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces The Supreme Commander ( sv, överbefälhavaren; acronym: ÖB) is the highest ranked professional military officer in the Swedish Armed Forces, and is by NATO terminology the Swedish chief of defence equivalent. The Supreme Commander is the agency ...

back in Sweden, coordinate the warfare with support from the

west West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...

, mainly from the NATO countries United Kingdom and the

. If the defense management in Sweden failed, he would take over the highest Swedish command and lead the battle on Swedish soil with regular units. In a situation where the Swedish defence failed and Sweden became occupied, it was the Chief of the Navy's task to start the resistance. The Chief of the Navy's mission was so secret that it was never written down on paper, nor did Lundvall ever mentioned this to his wife or his son who also was an naval officer. This mission was confirmed by both Lundvall himself and the former Supreme Commander, General Stig Synnergren.

Personal life

In 1941 he married Karin Rydnäs (born 1920), the daughter of the merchant Johannes Rydnäs and Ida Spjuth. He was the father of Thomas (born 1943), Ylva (born 1945) and Boel (born 1949).

Death

Lundvall died on 30 November 2010 in Undenäs parish,

Karlsborg Municipality Karlsborg Municipality (''Karlsborgs kommun'') is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Karlsborg. The present municipality was formed in 1971 when "old" Karlsborg was amalgamated with ...

Dates of rank

*1938 –

Acting sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

*1940 –

Sub-lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

*1946 –

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

*1954 –

Lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

*1957 –

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

*1961 –

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

*1966 –

Rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

*1970 – Vice admiral *1978 –

Awards and decorations

Swedish

Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_Grand_Cross_BAR

Commander Grand Cross of the

Order of the Sword The Royal Order of the Sword (officially: ''Royal Order of the Sword''; Swedish: ''Kungliga Svärdsorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry and military decoration created by King Frederick I of Sweden on February 23, 1748, together with the Or ...

(6 June 1972) * Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the

(6 June 1967) * Royal Order of the Sword - Commander BAR

Commander of the

(6 June 1964) * Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Knight_1st_Class_BAR

Knight 1st Class of the

(1956) * Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences' honorary shield (1980)

Foreign

Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav (1 July 1974) * Cordone_di_gran_Croce_OMRI_BAR

1st Class / Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking ...

(14 March 1973)

Honours

*Member of the

Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences The Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences ( sv, Kungliga Örlogsmannasällskapet, KÖMS), founded in 1771 by King Gustav III, is one of the Royal Academies in Sweden. The Society is an independent organization and a forum for navy and defence i ...

(1954; honorary member in 1970) *Member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences ( sv, Kungliga Krigsvetenskapsakademien) is one of the Royal Academies in Sweden and was founded on 12 November 1796 by Gustaf Wilhelm af Tibell. The academy is an independent organization and a forum for m ...

(1963) *Chairman of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences (1970–1978) *President of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1973–1975)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lundvall, Bengt 1915 births 2010 deaths Swedish Navy admirals People from Töreboda Municipality Members of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of the Sword