Kaarlo Lauri Torvald Malmberg (May 8, 1888 in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

– March 14, 1948 in Helsinki) was a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

lieutenant general and son of Emil and Aino Malmberg. He was the

Chief of Defence The chief of defence (or head of defence) is the highest ranked commissioned officer of a nation's armed forces. The acronym CHOD is in common use within NATO and the European Union as a generic term for the highest national military position withi ...

of the

Finnish Defence Forces The Finnish Defence Forces ( fi, Puolustusvoimat, sv, Försvarsmakten) are the military of Finland. The Finnish Defence Forces consist of the Finnish Army, the Finnish Navy and the Finnish Air Force. In wartime the Finnish Border Guard (which i ...

in 1925. General Malmberg served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Finnish Civil Guards (a voluntary paramilitary defence organization) from 1921 to 1944, when the organization was abolished as an "

anti-Soviet Anti-Sovietism, anti-Soviet sentiment, called by Soviet authorities ''antisovetchina'' (russian: антисоветчина), refers to persons and activities actually or allegedly aimed against the Soviet Union or government power within the ...

" organization. He also served as the

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from coun ...

from 1924 to 1925. At the time there was a power struggle between German-trained and Russian-trained officers in the Defence Forces. His appointment was a good compromise, because on the other hand he represented the White Guards and the German-trained officer faction, but on the other hand his loyalty to the civilian Finnish government was unwavering. Malmberg is recipient of the Latvian military

Order of Lāčplēsis The Order of Lāčplēsis (also Lāčplēsis Military Order, lv, Lāčplēša Kara ordenis), the first and the highest Latvian military award, was established in 1919 on the initiative of Jānis Balodis, the Commander of the Latvian Army during ...

2nd class and Lithuanian

Riflemen's Star Riflemen's Star ( lt, Šaulių žvaigždė) is a Orders, decorations, and medals of Lithuania, decoration bestowed by the Ministry of National Defence (Lithuania), Minister of National Defence of the Lithuania, Republic of Lithuania. The star is awa ...

. Malmberg also received Estonian

Order of the Cross of the Eagle The Order of the Cross of the Eagle ( et, Kotkaristi teenetemärk; french: Ordre de la Croix de l'Aigle) was instituted in 1928 by the Estonian Defence League to commemorate the tenth anniversary of Estonian independence. It was adopted as a sta ...

1st class and Latvian

Order of the Three Stars Order of the Three Stars ( lv, Triju Zvaigžņu ordenis) is the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia. It was established in 1924 in remembrance of the founding of Latvia. Its motto is "Per aspera ad astra", meaning "Thr ...

Grand cross. His mother was Aino Malmberg and brother Erik Malmberg.

References

External links

The Finnish Defence Forces: Chiefs of Defence
1888 births 1948 deaths Ministers of Defence of Finland Military personnel from Helsinki People from Uusimaa Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Finnish lieutenant generals German military personnel of World War I People of the Finnish Civil War (White side) Finnish military personnel of World War II Finnish anti-communists Recipients of the Order of Lāčplēsis, 2nd class {{Finland-mil-bio-stub