Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Hans Göran Berndtson (born 2 July 1945) 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. His senior commands include commanding officer of the Middle Army Division, head of the General Training and Management Directorate in the

Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters The Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters ( sv, Högkvarteret, HKV) is the highest level of command in the Swedish Armed Forces. Established in 1994, its primary task is to command operations, but is also involved in areas such as military strategy, ...

and as Deputy Supreme Commander.

Early life

Berndtson was born on 2 July 1945 in Vasa Parish,

Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...

, Sweden, the son of Birger Berndtson and his wife Ingrid (née Jacobsson). Berndtson 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 1966.

Career

He graduated from the Military Academy Karlberg in 1970 and was promoted the same year to lieutenant in

Bohuslän Regiment The Bohuslän Regiment ( sv, Bohusläns regemente), designation I 17, was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traces its origins back 1661. It was disbanded in 1992. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited from the provinces of Bohusl ...

, where he was promoted to captain in 1973 and served as a platoon leader. Berndtson was educated at the

Swedish Infantry Combat School The Swedish Infantry Combat School ( sv, Infanteriets stridsskola, InfSS) was a combat arms school of the Swedish Army which operated in various forms from 1874 to 1995. The school was located at Kvarns bruk north of Borensberg. History The Swedi ...

in 1972 and he attended the Higher Staff Course at the

Swedish Armed Forces Staff College The oyalSwedish Armed Forces Staff College ( sv, Militärhögskolan, MHS) was from 1961 to 1996 the Swedish Armed Forces highest institution for officers training, for staff and senior executive education and was located in Stockholm. In 1997 it ...

from 1978 to 1980. At the staff college, Berndtson received its

jeton Jetons or jettons are tokens or coin-like medals produced across Europe from the 13th through the 18th centuries. They were produced as counters for use in calculation on a counting board, a lined board similar to an abacus. They also found use ...

"for particularly good study results" and received a scholarship from the Association KHS Scholarship Fund (''Föreningen KHS Stipendiefond'') for military science studies abroad. In December 1980, Berndtson, an army officer, was awarded by 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 ...

, which was unusual. Berndtson had written an article about the significance of the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...

for the United States. He was promoted to major in 1981 and entered the

General Staff Corps General Staff Corps ( sv, Generalstabskåren, Gst) was an administrative corps within the Swedish Armed Forces between 1937 and 1990 and consisted of Swedish Army officers chosen for duty in the Defence Staff and Army Staff. It replaced the earlie ...

in 1983, and served as a teacher at the vid Swedish Armed Forces Staff College from 1984 to 1986. Berndtson was promoted to lieutenant colonel in the General Staff Corps in 1986, and studied at the Bundeswehr Command and Staff College in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

from 1986 to 1987, and served in the Dalarna Regiment from 1987 to 1989 and was head of the Planning Department in the Defence Staff from 1989 to 1991. In 1991, Berndtson was promoted to colonel and appointed commanding officer of the Gästrike Brigade (''Gästrikebrigaden''). He was promoted to senior colonel in 1993 and then served as commanding officer of the Gävleborg Defence District (''Gävleborgs försvarsområde'') as well as of the

Hälsinge Regiment The Hälsinge Regiment ( sv, Hälsinge regemente), designations I 14, I 14/Fo 49 and I 14/Fo 21, was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traced its origins back to the 16th century. It was disbanded in 1997. The regiment's soldiers were original ...

from 1993 to 1994. Berndtson then served as commanding officer of the Middle Army Division from 1994 to 1996. During the 1990s he also educated himself at the

Swedish National Defence College The Swedish Defence University ( sv, Försvarshögskolan, FHS) is situated on Drottning Kristinas väg 37 in Östermalm, Stockholm City Centre, next to the campus of the Royal Institute of Technology. History Today's Swedish Defence University ma ...

: Higher Operational Management Course in 1993, Main Course in 1994 and the Senior Management Course in 1996. In 1996, Berndtson was promoted to major general and from 1996 to 1998 he served as head of the Supreme Commander's coordination group for implementation of the Defence Act of 1996. He was promoted to lieutenant general in 1998 and was head of the General Training and Management Directorate (''Grundorganisationsledningen'') in the

from 1998 to 2000. From 2001, Berndtson served as Deputy Supreme Commander and head of the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters. The Swedish government decided on 25 March 2004 that Berndtson would continue to be employed as Deputy Supreme Commander from 1 April 2004 to 31 October 2004. He retired from the Swedish Armed Forces in 2005. Berndtson has also been an expert in the Swedish Parliamentary Defence Commission (''Försvarsberedningen''), and chairman of the Swedish Armed Forces Personnel Responsibility Committee (''Försvarsmaktens personalansvarsnämnd''). He was also a member of the board of the

Society and Defence Society and Defence ( sv, Folk och Försvar) is a Swedish non-governmental organisation which acts as a forum for debate over defence and national security issues in Sweden. It has other organisations rather than individuals as its members. The memb ...

, the

Swedish Coast Guard The Swedish Coast Guard ( sv, Kustbevakningen) is a Swedish civilian government agency tasked with: * maritime surveillance and other control and inspection tasks as well as environmental cleanup after oil spills at sea. * co-ordinate the civil ...

, the Swedish National Board of Psychological Defence (''Styrelsen för psykologiskt försvar'') and the ''Stiftelsen Gällöfsta kurscentrum''.

Personal life

On 24 October 1981, Berndtson became engaged to Agnetha Linder, the daughter of Olof Linder and his wife Karin (née Wennberg). The

banns of marriage The banns of marriage, commonly known simply as the "banns" or "bans" (from a Middle English word meaning "proclamation", rooted in Frankish and thence in Old French), are the public announcement in a Christian parish church, or in the town cou ...

was issued on 19 September 1982 and the wedding took place on 9 October 1982 in .

Dates of rank

*19?? –

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 ...

*1970 –

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 ...

*1973 –

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 ...

*1981 –

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 ...

*1986 –

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 ...

*1991 –

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 ...

*1993 – Senior colonel *1996 –

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 ...

*1998 –

Lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Honours

*Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1997)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berndtson, Hans 1945 births Living people Swedish Army lieutenant generals Military personnel from Gothenburg Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences 20th-century Swedish military personnel