Lieutenant General Gustaf Martin Hanngren (24 May 1880 – 31 July 1945) was a senior

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. Hanngren began his military career in the Dalarna Regiment in 1900 and progressed through various positions. He became a major 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 ...

in 1920 and served as the chief of staff for the 1st Army Division. In 1926, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in the General Staff and transferred to the

Värmland Regiment The Värmland Regiment ( sv, Värmlands regemente), designations I 22, I 2 and I 2/Fo 52, was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traces its origins back to the 16th century. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited from the province o ...

. In 1936, he was promoted to the rank of major general and appointed Inspector of the Infantry, where he worked to enhance infantry combat capabilities and introduced new equipment and drill regulations. In 1945, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general.

Early life

Hanngren was born on 24 May 1880 at in Dala-Husby socken,

Kopparberg County Dalarna County ( sv, Dalarnas län) is a county or '' län'' in central Sweden (Svealand). It borders on the counties of Uppsala, Jämtland, Gävleborg, Västmanland, Örebro and Värmland. It also borders on the Norwegian counties of Hedmark ...

, Sweden, the son of Colonel and his wife Olga (née Lagergren). His brother Harald Wilhelm Hanngren (1882–1959) became the sales manager at Korsnäs sågverks AB in 1909 and the managing director there in 1942.

Career

Hanngren became a ''underlöjtnant'' in the Dalarna Regiment in 1900, a lieutenant in 1903, and 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 1905 to 1907. He completed his

aspirant Aspirant is a rank in the Royal Canadian Navy, Estonian Defence Forces, French military, Brazilian military, Portuguese military, Swiss military, Italian Air Force, Argentinian Armed Forces, Romanian Navy, Polish Policja and Państwowa Straż ...

service from 1908 to 1910 at the

and was appointed a lieutenant at the General Staff in 1911. He became a captain in 1912 and served as an air observer from 1912 to 1913, served at the

Military Office of the Land Defence The Military Office of the Land Defence ( sv, Lantförsvarets kommandoexpedition), from 1840 to 1922 called the Military Office of the Ministry of Land Defence ( sv, Lantförsvarsdepartementets kommandoexpedition), was an office in the Royal Chance ...

from 1912 to 1914, and was the chief of staff at the command in Boden from 1914 to 1917, as well as a captain at the

Life Regiment Grenadiers Life Regiment Grenadiers ( sv, Livregementets grenadjärer), also I 3, was a Swedish Army infantry unit that was active in various forms 1815–2000. The unit was based in Örebro Garrison in Örebro and belonged to the King's Life and Household T ...

in 1918. He became a major at the General Staff in 1920 and served as the chief of staff of the 1st Army Division (''Första arméfördelningen'') from 1920 to 1926. In 1926, Hanngren became a lieutenant colonel in the General Staff. In the same year, he was transferred to the

, became a lieutenant colonel at the Svea Life Guards in 1928, and served as acting head of the Royal Swedish Army Staff College from 1928 to 1929. He became a colonel in the army in 1929 and served as the colonel and commander of the

North Scanian Infantry Regiment North Scanian Infantry Regiment ( sv, Norra skånska infanteriregementet), designation I 6, was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that operated from 1812 to 1963. The unit was based in the Kristianstad Garrison in Kristianstad. In 1963 the regiment ...

from 1929 to 1936, as well as a brigade commander in the Western Army Division (''västra arméfördelningen'') in 1936. In 1936, he was promoted to the rank of major general and appointed Inspector of the Infantry. Under his tenure as Inspector of the Infantry, efforts were made to enhance the infantry's combat capabilities, including the introduction of a new and lighter field equipment, with the replacement of the old satchel by the backpack being particularly significant. He also played a key role in developing a new drill regulation for the infantry, for which he personally authored much of the content. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general in 1945.

Personal life

In 1914, Hanngren married Elin Lundmarker (born 1892), the daughter of banker Wilhelm Lundmarker and Carolina Almblad. They had two daughters, Ulla (born 1915) and Margaretha (born 1919).

Death

Hanngren died on 31 July 1945 in

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 ...

, Sweden. He was interred at the Eastern Cemetery in Kristianstad.

Dates of rank

*1900 – ''

Underlöjtnant ''Underlöjtnant'' (from the German word ''Unterleutnant'') was the lowest officer rank in the Swedish Army from 1835 to 1937 instead of the previous ranks of ''fänrik'' and cornet. was reintroduced in 1914 with the same position as , from 1926 ...

'' *1903 – Lieutenant *1912 –

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 ...

*1920 –

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 ...

*1926 –

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 ...

*1929 – Colonel *1936 – Major general *1945 – Lieutenant general

Awards and decorations

Swedish

Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the Order of the Sword (6 June 1935) * Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_BAR

Commander of the Order of the Sword (6 June 1932) * Order of the Sword - Ribbon bar

Knight of the Order of the Sword (1921) * SkdlGM *

Landstorm (plural ) was a form of militia (see ) and territorial defence force created in Sweden in 1885. It consisted of all conscripts who had completed their service, generally men between 33 and 40 years of age, as well as a smaller number immediately tr ...

en Silver Medal (''Landstormens silvermedalj'') * Army Shooting Medal (''Arméns skyttemedalj'')

Foreign

Commander 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland * FIN_Order_of_the_White_Rose_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau with swords * FIN_Order_of_the_White_Rose_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Knight 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 ...

* Austrian Red Cross Honor Badge for Officers

Honours

*Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1928)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanngren, Martin 1880 births 1945 deaths Swedish Army lieutenant generals People from Hedemora Municipality Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences 20th-century Swedish military personnel Commanders First Class of the Order of the Sword