Brigadier General Jan Patrik Gardesten (born 7 July 1967) is an officer in the

Swedish Amphibious Corps The Amphibious Corps ( sv, Amfibiekåren, Amf) is the maritime land force arm of the Swedish Navy, with an emphasis on coastal defence. Until 2000 it was known as the Coastal Artillery ( sv, Kustartilleriet), but the name was changed to reflect i ...

. He currently serves as Deputy Chief of Navy since 2022. Gardesten had previously served as commander of the 2nd Marine Battalion,

1st Marine Regiment The 1st Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. The regiment is under the command of the 1st Marine Division and the I Marine Expeditionary Force. The 1st ...

(2010–2013), head of the J3 Operations Department (2016–2018) in the Joint Forces Command and as regimental commander of the

(2018–2022)

Early life

Gardesten was born on 7 July 1967 in Motorp Parish,

Kalmar Municipality Kalmar Municipality (''Kalmar kommun'') is a municipality in Kalmar County, southeastern Sweden. The city of Kalmar is the municipal seat. The present municipality was created in 1971, when the ''City of Kalmar'' was amalgamated with five surroun ...

, Sweden. Gardesten enrolled at the Coastal Ranger School (''Kustjägarskolan'') in

Vaxholm Coastal Artillery Regiment The Vaxholm Coastal Artillery Regiment ( sv, Vaxholms kustartilleriregemente), designation KA 1, was a Swedish Navy coastal artillery regiment of the Swedish Armed Forces which operated between 1902 and 2000. The unit was based at Rindö in the ...

for his

mandatory military service Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...

in 1988. There he served in the 1st Coastal Ranger Platoon. His deputy platoon leader was the then lieutenant

Peder Ohlsson Brigadier General Dennis ''Peder'' Dag Ohlsson (born 10 March 1962) is an officer in the Swedish Amphibious Corps. He currently serves as Director of Communication and Public Affairs and head of the Communications Department in the Swedish Armed F ...

Career

Gardesten graduated from the Swedish Navy Officers' College (''Marinens officershögskola'', MOHS) in

Karlskrona Karlskrona (, , ) is a locality and the seat of Karlskrona Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden with a population of 66,675 in 2018. It is also the capital of Blekinge County. Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to Swed ...

in 1991. He was commissioned as an officer the same year and was assigned as a second lieutenant to

. Gardesten then served in the 4th Coastal Artillery Brigade with the Karlskrona Coastal Artillery Regiment (from 1998 called the Karlskrona Coastal Artillery Regiment with the 2nd Coastal Artillery Brigade), where he was promoted to lieutenant in 1995 and to captain in 1998. When the

Swedish Coastal Artillery The Swedish Coastal Artillery ( sv, Kustartilleriet, KA) has its origin in the Archipelago Artillery that was raised in 1866. The Coastal Artillery was formed from the Archipelago Artillery, the Marine Regiment and parts of the Artillery in 1902 ...

was decommissioned, he transferred to the

on 1 July 2000. Gardesten later served in the Amphibious Combat School (''Amfibiestridsskolan'', AmfSS) In 2006, Gardesten completed a bachelor's thesis in military science at the

Swedish Defence University 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 ...

about the Swedish Navy's response organization by analyzing the Defence Act of 2004. The purpose of the thesis was to "increase the understanding of political decision-making and of which factors, via political decision, can indirectly influence the design of the navy response organization." After management course at the Swedish Defence University he served as section head at the

Swedish Naval Warfare Centre The Swedish Naval Warfare Centre ( sv, Sjöstridsskolan, SSS) is a joint naval school of the Swedish Navy which has been operating since 2005. The unit is based in Karlskrona Garrison in Karlskrona. History Prior to the Defence Act of 2004, the S ...

. Gardesten was commander of the Swedish contingent TD01/F, part of the European Union Military Operation in Chad and the Central African Republic (EUFOR Tchad/RCA) in

Chad Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic ...

and the Central African Republic from 2008 to 2009. He served as commander of the 2nd Marine Battalion of the

from 2010 to 2013. In March 2012, Gardesten served as deputy commander of the mechanized battalion that marines were part of during exercise

Cold Response Cold Response is the name given to Norwegian led military exercises with NATO member countries and invited Partnership for Peace countries held in Norway every second year. Cold Response 2006 The first exercises was the largest military exerci ...

in Norway. During 2013, Gardesten was posted as deputy commander of the 25th Swedish contingent (FS25) in Afghanistan, part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). Gardesten was promoted to colonel on 1 January 2016 and assumed the position as head of the J3 Operations Department in the Joint Forces Command (''Insatsstaben'', INSS) at 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, ...

in Stockholm. In this position he also served as Operations Commander (''operationsledare'') to the Chief of Joint Operations, Vice Admiral Jan Thörnqvist. On 18 January 2018, Gardesten assumed the command of the 1st Marine Regiment. He also assumed the command of Haninge Garrison. At a ceremony at

Berga Naval Base Berga Naval Base ( sv, Berga örlogsbas) is a naval base of the Swedish Navy located in the Hårsfjärden fjard near Berga, Haninge Municipality. Today it is the home of the 4th Naval Warfare Flotilla, the 1st Marine Regiment and Home Guard unit ...

in Haninge Garrison on 19 January 2018, colonel

handed over command to colonel Gardesten. In September 2021, Gardesten commanded exercise Archipelago Endeavor in Stockholm Archipelago in cooperation with the United States Marine Corps which began the day after

Zapad 2021 Zapad 2021 (russian: Запад-2021) was a joint strategic exercise between the armed forces of the Russian Federation and Belarus, which took place from 10 to 15 September 2021. According to the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation ...

ended. The exercise contained units from the

1st Battalion, 6th Marines The 1st Battalion, 6th Marines (1/6) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. It consists of approximately 1,100 marines and sailors. They fall under the command of the 6th Marine Regiment ...

2nd Marine Division The 2nd Marine Division (2nd MARDIV) is a division of the United States Marine Corps, which forms the ground combat element of the II Marine Expeditionary Force (II MEF). The division is based at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina ...

and Swedish marines from the 204th Rifle Company, 2nd Marine Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment. On 30 June 2022, the

Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces The Supreme Commander ( sv, överbefälhavaren; acronym: ÖB) is the highest ranked professional military officer in the Swedish Armed Forces, and is by NATO terminology the Swedish chief of defence equivalent. The Supreme Commander is the agency ...

, General Micael Bydén decided to appoint Gardesten as the new Deputy Chief of Navy and was simultaneously promoted to brigadier general.

Dates of rank

*1991 –

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 ...

*1995 – Lieutenant *1998 –

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 ...

*???? –

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 ...

*???? –

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 ...

*2016 – Colonel *2022 – Brigadier general

Awards and decorations

Swedish

For Zealous and Devoted Service of the Realm ribbon

For Zealous and Devoted Service of the Realm For Zealous and Devoted Service of the Realm ( sv, För nit och redlighet i rikets tjänst) is a reward medal awarded to one who has been a Swedish State employee for 30 years and has shown "zealous and devoted service". As an alternative to the m ...

FMGUSM - Försvarsmaktens grundutbildningsmedalj (Sverige)

Swedish Armed Forces Conscript Medal * FMintBM bar - no 2

Swedish Armed Forces International Service Medal The Swedish Armed Forces International Service Medal ( sv, Försvarsmaktens medalj för internationella insatser, FMintBM) is a Swedish reward medal instituted by the Swedish Armed Forces in 1991. The medal regulations has been revised twice, in 1 ...

* National Swedish Association of Military Friendship Merit Badge (''Sveriges Militära Kamratföreningarnas Riksförbunds förtjänsttecken'', SMKRGFt) in gold (18 June 2020) * SWE_Home_Guard_Bronze_Medal_ribbon

Home Guard Bronze Medal The Home Guard Bronze Medal ( sv, Hemvärnets bronsmedalj, HvBM) is a Swedish reward medal established in 2006 by the National Home Guard Council (''Rikshemvärnsrådet''). It is awarded for valuable service contributed to the development of the ...

(18 March 2022) *

Coastal Ranger Association Medal of Merit (''Förbundet Kustjägarnas förtjänstmedalj'') * 1st Marine Regiment Medal of Merit (''Vaxholms amfibieregementes förtjänstmedalj'', VaxamfregGM/SM) * Smålands regementes och Smålandsbrigadens minnesmedalj

Smålands regementes och Smålandsbrigadens minnesmedalj

Småland Brigade Commemorative Medal (''Smålandsbrigadens minnesmedalj'') *

Amphibious Combat School Commemorative Medal (''Amfibiestridsskolans minnesmedalj'', AmfSSMSM) in silver *

4th Marine Regiment The 4th Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps. Based at Camp Schwab in Okinawa, Japan, it is part of the 3rd Marine Division of the III Marine Expeditionary Force. Mission Close with and destroy the enemy by fi ...

Commemorative Medal (''Älvsborgs amfibieregementes minnesmedalj'', ÄlvsbamfregMSM) *

Karlskrona Coastal Artillery Regiment The Karlskrona Coastal Artillery Regiment ( sv, Karlskrona kustartilleriregemente), designation KA 2, was a Swedish Navy coastal artillery regiment of the Swedish Armed Forces which operated between 1902 and 2000. The unit was based in Karlskron ...

Commemorative Medal (''Karlskrona kustartilleriregementes minnesmedalj'', KarlskronakaregSMM)

Foreign

Cross for the Four Day Marches * ESDP_Medal_EUFOR_TCHAD-RCA_ribbon_bar

Bridging Operation in Chad and the Central African Republic (EUFOR Tchad/RCA) (October 2008) * NATO_Medal_ISAF_ribbon_bar_v2

NATO Non-Article 5 medal for ISAF (2013)

Honours

*Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (18 May 2016) *Member 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 ...

(25 September 2019)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gardesten, Patrik Living people 1967 births Swedish Amphibious Corps generals Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences People from Kalmar Municipality