Hilding Gustaf Sigvard Ekström (9 October 1907Rotemansarkivet
/ref> – 16 July 1995Sveriges dödbok 1947–2003) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

chemist, Waffen-SS volunteer, and co-founder of the

Sweden Democrats The Sweden Democrats ( sv , Sverigedemokraterna ; SD ) is a nationalist and right-wing populist political party in Sweden. As of 2022, it is the largest member of Sweden's right-wing governing bloc to which it provides confidence and supply, a ...

party.

Biography

Gustaf Ekström was born on 9 October 1907 in

Hedvig Eleonora Parish Hedvig Eleonora Parish ( sv, Hedvig Eleonora församling) is a parish in Östermalm's church district (''kontrakt'') in the Diocese of Stockholm, Sweden. The parish is located in Stockholm Municipality in Stockholm County. The parish forms its own ...

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, the son of gymnastics director Johan Gottfrid Samuel Ekström from Undersvik and of Hilda Katarina Mickelsson from

Färila Färila () is a locality situated in Ljusdal Municipality, Gävleborg County, Sweden with 1,293 inhabitants in 2010. Färila is situated in a valley near the river Ljusnan. People to commute to and from Ljusdal. The town is an industrial centre in ...

. Both had been residing in Stockholm since 1899. After his mother's divorce, Gustaf Ekström moved to

Lindesberg Lindesberg () is a locality and the seat of Lindesberg Municipality, Örebro County, Sweden with 9,672 inhabitants in 2017. History Lindesberg has centuries old history, being the center of an old mining district. The earliest known traces ...

with his mother and her sister. Ekström graduated as an engineer and moved to

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

in the United States in 1929, where he worked at an oil refinery and later as a sailor. In 1932 he returned to Sweden and joined the

Swedish National Socialist Party The Swedish National Socialist Party ( sv, Svenska nationalsocialistiska partiet, abbreviated SNSP) was a Nazi political party in Sweden. Birger Furugård served as ''riksledare'' ('National Leader') of the party.Schön, Bosse. Svenskarna som ...

(SNSP) under the leadership of

Birger Furugård Birger Furugård (8 December 1887 – 4 December 1961) was a Swedish politician and veterinarian. He hailed from Deje in Värmland. During the 1920s Furugård became inspired by the advance of Nazism in Germany. He made several trips to German ...

, and a year later joined the Swedish Socialist Assembly (SSS) led by Sven Olov Lindholm. In October 1936, he became Federal Secretary of the Nordic

Youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. You ...

. He volunteered to join the Waffen SS in 1941, serving in the

11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland The 11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland (german: 11. SS-Freiwilligen Panzergrenadier-Division "Nordland") was a Waffen-SS division recruited from foreign volunteers and conscripts. It saw action, as part of Army Group North, i ...

. He achieved the rank of ''SS- Rottenführer'' and served from 1941 to 1943 at the

SS-Hauptamt The SS Main Office (german: SS-Hauptamt; SS-HA) was the central command office of the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) in Nazi Germany until 1940. Formation The office traces its origins to 1931 when the SS created the SS-Amt to serve as an SS Headquarters ...

in Berlin, where he translated, among other things, Swedish newspaper articles to German for the needs of Nazi Germany. After World War II, Ekström stayed in Germany and studied chemistry. Upon retiring, he returned to Sweden and founded the

party in 1988, at the age of 81. He was initially elected auditor of the newly formed party and was elected to the party board the following year. He was monitored by SÄPO since 1940 as he was classified as one of the most dangerous Nazis in Sweden and a potential traitor in the event of a German occupation. He died at the Sankt Hans Assembly in

Lund Lund (, , ) is a city in the southern Swedish provinces of Sweden, province of Scania, across the Øresund, Öresund strait from Copenhagen. The town had 91,940 inhabitants out of a municipal total of 121,510 . It is the seat of Lund Municipali ...

in 1995, and is buried at the cemetery in Färila.Gravar.se

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ekstrom, Gustaf 1907 births 1995 deaths Swedish Waffen-SS personnel Politicians from Stockholm Sweden Democrats politicians Leaders of political parties in Sweden