Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Karl Gottfrid Björck (31 May 1893 – 8 July 1981) was a

Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...

officer. He served as Inspector of the

Swedish Army Service Troops The Swedish Army Service Troops ( sv, Trängtrupperna, T or ''Underhållstrupperna'', before 1942 called ''Trängen'') is the military logistics (or train) branch of the Swedish Army. The task of the troops is to train personnel for maintenance un ...

from 1946 to 1949, and as such, was chief of transportation of the White Buses operation to rescue concentration camp inmates in areas under Nazi control and transport them to Sweden.

Early life

Björck was born on 31 May 1893 in Bäckseda,

Jönköping County Jönköping County ( sv, Jönköpings län) is a county or '' län'' in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Halland, Västra Götaland, Östergötland, Kalmar and Kronoberg. The total county population was 356,291 inhabitants in Sept ...

, Sweden, the son of merchant Karl Björck and his wife Anna (née Jonsson). 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 1913 and was commissioned into the

as a second lieutenant in 1915.

Career

Björck attended the

Royal Swedish Army Staff College The Royal Swedish Army Staff College ( sv, Kungliga Krigshögskolan, KHS) was a Swedish Army training establishment between 1866 and 1961, providing courses for army officers. It was the home of the Swedish Army's staff college, which provided adv ...

from 1922 to 1924 and served as captain in the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

from 1928 to 1934. In 1936, Björck was appointed '' aide-de-camp'' to His Majesty the King, and in 1941 he was appointed chief ''aide-de-camp'' (''överadjutant'') to His Majesty the King, a position he held until the king died in 1950. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in the Swedish Army Service Troops and was appointed commanding officer of Göta Logistic Corps (T 2) in 1939. Two years later, Björck was promoted to colonel in the Swedish Army Service Troops and assumed the position as head of the Information and Press Department of the Defence Staff. In 1942 he was appointed head of Logistic Department in the Army Inspectorate (''Arméinspektionen''). The same year Björck became a member of the ''Folkberedskapsnämnden'' ("National Preparedness Commission"). He was also a military member of ''Statens informationsstyrelse'' ("National Information Board") from 1942 to 30 June 1944 and chairman of the board of the ''Kungafonden'' ("The King's Fund") from 1943 to 1958. Björck served as Inspector of the

from 1946 to 1949 when he was promoted to major general. While serving as Inspector of the Swedish Army Service Troops, Björck was appointed chief of transportation of the White Buses operation to rescue concentration camp inmates in areas under Nazi control and transport them to Sweden. In 1949, Björck became a member of the ''Statens organisationsnämnd'' ("National Organization Board") which he was until 1961. Björck worked as a consultant at the Swedish Agency for Administrative Development (''Statskontoret'') from 1961 to 1965.

Personal life

In 1918 he married ''Hovsångerska'' Irma Krook (1898–1993), the daughter of Nils Krook and Anna Jacobsson. Björck was the father of Flory (born 1919) and Sven (born 1923).

Dates of rank

*1915 –

Second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

*19?? –

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 ...

*1928 –

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 ...

*19?? –

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

*1939 –

Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

*1941 –

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

*1949 –

Major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Awards and decorations

Swedish

King Gustaf V's Jubilee Commemorative Medal (1948) * Seraphimerorden_ribbon

King Gustaf V's Jubilee Commemorative Medal (1928) * Order_of_the_Polar_Star_-_Ribbon_bar,_pre_1975

King Gustaf V's Commemorative Medal (1951) * Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the Order of the Sword (15 November 1947) * SWE_Order_of_Vasa_-_Knight_2nd_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the Order of Vasa * Order_of_the_Polar_Star_-_Ribbon_bar,_pre_1975

Knight of the Order of the Polar Star * Swedish Voluntary Motor Transport Corps Merit Badge in gold * Shooting Medal

Foreign

Commander 2nd Class of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

Commander of the

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav ( no, Den Kongelige Norske Sankt Olavs Orden; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II ...

FIN_Order_of_the_White_Rose_Knight_1st_Class_BAR

Knight 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland * FIN_Order_of_the_Lion_of_Finland_2Class_BAR

Commander First Class of the

Order of the Lion of Finland The Order of the Lion of Finland ( fi, Suomen Leijonan ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Lejons orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty and the Order of the White Rose of Finland. The President o ...

Honours

*Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1939)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Björck, Gottfrid 1893 births 1981 deaths Swedish Army major generals People from Vetlanda Municipality Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Commanders First Class of the Order of the Sword Commanders First Class of the Order of Vasa Knights of the Order of the Polar Star