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 ...

Henrik Lange (27 May 1908 – 5 November 2000) was a Swedish Coastal Artillery officer. Lange's senior commands include postings as Inspector of the Swedish Coastal Artillery, Chief of the Naval Staff and military commander of the

Western Military District The Western Military District (russian: Западный военный округ, Zapadnyy voyennyy okrug) is a military district of Russia. It is one of the five military districts of the Russian Armed Forces, with its jurisdiction primari ...

Early life

Lange was born on 27 May 1908 in Nacka, Stockholm County, Sweden, the son of Karl Lange, an accountant, and his wife Märtha (née Lagercrantz), a bank clerk. He passed ''

studentexamen Studentexamen (Swedish for "students' examination" or "students' degree"), earlier also ''mogenhetsexamen'' ("maturity examination") was the name of the university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and r ...

'' at Nya Elementarskolan in 1926 and immediately enrolled at 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 ...

Career

Military career

Lange was commissioned as an officer in the Swedish Coastal Artillery in 1930 with the rank of ''

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 ...

''. He became lieutenant in 1933 and attended the Royal Central Gymnastics Institute from 1933 to 1934 and 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 ...

from 1935 to 1936 and served as

regimental adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forc ...

in Karlskrona Coastal Artillery Regiment (KA 2) from 1936 to 1937. Lange attended the Royal Swedish Naval Staff College, where he completed the general course in 1936 and the two-year staff course in 1939. He was promoted to captain in 1939 and served as a teacher at the

from 1940 to 1942. During the first years of the war, he also served as an adjutant to the Chief of the Swedish Coastal Artillery, and in 1942 he became head of a 15 cm artillery battery in Karlskrona. During the troubled and cold winter of 1942, he participated with a mobile 15 cm artillery battery during the Jämtland field service exercises led by Major General Helge Jung. The artillery battery was grouped with firing direction towards the Norwegian border, but the order was that it would not be camouflaged. It was primarily a demonstration of strength, to show the Germans in Norway that there was modern long-range heavy artillery ready to fire on the border area. He was promoted to major in 1944, and served as battalion commander in Älvsborg Coastal Artillery Detachment (KA 4) in 1945 and was head of department in the Coastal Artillery Inspectorate (''Kustartilleriinspektionen'') in 1948. The war had brought with it a strong technological development. In 1946, Henrik Lange underwent training in radar service with the Royal Marines in various locations in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and in 1948 he participated in the

Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration The Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration ( sv, Kungliga Marinförvaltningen, KMF) was the central board of the Swedish Navy in technical and economic terms. It was active between the years 1878 and 1968 when it was disbanded and amalgamated ...

's radar procurement in the same country. Lange was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1950 and served as commanding offier of the Swedish Coast Artillery School (''Kustartilleriets skjutskola'', KAS) from 1950 to 1954. In 1954 he attended the Swedish Infantry Combat School, and was promoted to colonel and was appointed Chief of Section I in the Naval Staff. In 1957, Lange was appointed commanding officer of Gothenburg Coastal Artillery Defence with Älvsborg Coastal Artillery Regiment (KA 4). In 1958 he was appointed Defence District Commander of Gothenburg and Bohus County as well as Halland Defence District (Fo 32/31) as well as commanding officer of

Gothenburg Coastal Artillery Defence Gothenburg Coastal Artillery Defence ( sv, Göteborgs kustartilleriförsvar, GbK) was a unit of the Swedish Coastal Artillery which operated from 1942 to 1980. The staff was located in the Gothenburg Garrison in Gothenburg, Sweden. The Gothenbu ...

(GbK). Lange attended the Royal Swedish Army Staff College in 1959 and in 1961 he was promoted to major general and appointed Inspector of the Swedish Coastal Artillery. Lange served in this position for three years and was then Chief of the Naval Staff from 1964 to 1968 and military commander of the

from 1968 to 1972 when he was promoted to lieutenant general and retired from the military.

Other work

Lange was deputy chairman of the Central Federation for Voluntary Military Training (''Centralförbundet för Befälsutbildning'') from 1964 to 1970, a member of the Real Estate Board of the Swedish Armed Forces (''Försvarets fastighetsnämnd'') from 1954 to 1957 and of the National wedishBoard of the Swedish Military Sports Association (''Sveriges militära idrottsförbund'') from 1947 to 1950. He was secretary there from 1955 to 1957 and chairman from 1957 as well as chairman of its federation board from 1967 to 1972. Lange was also a board member of the Swedish Fencing Association (''Svenska Fäktförbundet'') from 1948 to 1956, chairman of the ''Göteborgs sportskyttar'' ("Gothenburg's Sport Shooters") from 1957 to 1961, of Stockholm Sport Shooting Federation (''Stockholms sportskytteförbund'') from 1961 to 1964 and of the Swedish Sport Shooting Association (''Svenska Sportskytteförbundet'', SSF) from 1961 to 1964. Lange was a member of

Lidingö Lidingö, also known in its definite form ''Lidingön'' and as ''Lidingölandet'', is an island in the inner Stockholm archipelago, northeast of Stockholm, Sweden. In 2010, the population of the Lidingö urban area on the island was 31,561. It is ...

City Council from 1963 to 1964. Lange was chairman of Department II 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 ...

from 1965 to 1968.

Personal life

In 1934, Lange married Birgitta Cedercrona (1913–2005), the daughter of Lieutenant Colonel Hjalmar Cedercrona and Carin Kugelberg. He was the father of Carin (born 1936), Märtha (born 1938) and Carl-Henrik (born 1942).

Death

Lange died on 5 November 2000 in

and was interred in Lidingö Cemetery on 12 December 2000.

Dates of rank

*1930 – Second lieutenant *1933 –

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 ...

*1939 – Captain *1944 – Major *1950 – Lieutenant colonel *1954 –

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 o ...

*1961 –

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 ...

*1972 –

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 ...

Awards and decorations

Lange's awards: * 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 ...

(6 June 1968) * Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the

(24 November 1960) * Order_of_the_Vasa_-_Ribbon_bar

Knight of the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III. It was u ...

SWE_Home_Guard_Royal_Medal_of_Merit_ribbon

Home Guard Medal of Merit in Gold * For Zealous and Devoted Service of the Realm ribbon

Medal for Noble Deeds in gold (1933) * Försvarsutbildarnas förtjänstmedalj

Swedish Central Federation for Voluntary Military Training Medal of Merit in silver * Swedish Women's Voluntary Defence Organization Royal Medal of Merit in gold *

Swedish Auxiliary Naval Corps The National Association of Naval Volunteer Corps ( sv, Sjövärnskårernas Riksförbund, SVK RF), commonly known as the Swedish Auxiliary Naval Corps ( sv, Sjövärnskåren, SVK) is a Swedish auxiliary defence organization that cooperate with the ...

's Gold Medal (''Sjövärnskårens guldmedalj'') * Swedish Military Sports Association's Gold Medal (''Sveriges militära idrottsförbunds guldmedalj'') * (''?:s guldmedalj'', SVFIGM) * Swedish Fencing Association's Gold Medal (''Svenska fäktförbundets guldmedalj'') * Bohus County Officers’ Association's Gold Medal (''Bohusläns befälsförbunds guldmedalj'') * Gothenburg Officers’ Association's Gold Medal (''Göteborgs befälsförbunds guldmedalj'') * Halland Officers’ Association's Gold Medal (''Hallands befälsförbunds guldmedalj'') * Coastal Artillery Reserve Officer's Badge of Honor (''Kustartilleriets reservofficerares hederstecken'') * Swedish Civil Defence League's Badge of Merit in Gold (''Sveriges civilförsvarsförbunds förtjänsttecken i guld'') * Army Shooting Medal (''Arméns skyttemedalj'')

Honours

*Member of the

(1951) *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 ...

(1954) *Honorary member of the

(1961)

Footnotes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lange, Henrik 1908 births 2000 deaths Swedish Coastal Artillery lieutenant generals Military personnel from Stockholm Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of the Sword Knights of the Order of Vasa Members of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences