![Rudolf Walden](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Rudolf_Walden.jpg)
Karl Rudolf Walden (1 December 1878 in
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...
– 25 October 1946) 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 ...
industrialist and a military leader.
Education
Walden received his military education at the
Hamina Cadet School
The Hamina Cadet School and Finland Cadet School were the common names for the Fredrikshamn cadet school during the period 1819–1901. The Cadet School was founded in 1780 by Georg Magnus Sprengtporten at Kuopio and transferred in 1781 to Ranta ...
and graduated in 1900. He was dismissed from service in 1902, in connection with
conscription strikes.
Finnish civil war
From 20 February 1918 till 5 March 1918, Walden was chief of
Vaasa
Vaasa (; sv, Vasa, , Sweden ), in the years 1855–1917 as Nikolainkaupunki ( sv, Nikolajstad; literally meaning "city of Nicholas), military district. From then until 6 May 1918, he was chief of headquarters of the rear. He then became chief of security of the occupied areas until 22 May 1918. On 28 November 1918, Walden became minister of war and held this position until 15 August 1919. Walden was then promoted to commander in chief of the Finnish army and the
Civil Guard (27 November 1918 - 30 December 1918). Walden and general of the White army
Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim developed a close working relationship that continued throughout the inter war period (head of Finnish Red Cross in the 20th century) and during the Winter War and Continuation War.
Finnish paper industry
After leaving the army, Walden sought a career in business. He moved to
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, the capital of the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
, and after few years founded a sales agency for Finnish paper. As a steadfast patriot, Walden also became a prominent figure in the large Finnish community of Saint Petersburg. From 1906 to 1946, Walden worked in the
paper industry
The pulp and paper industry comprises companies that use wood as raw material and produce pulp, paper, paperboard and other cellulose-based products.
Manufacturing process
The pulp is fed to a paper machine where it is formed as a paper web a ...
. He worked to consolidate the Finnish paper industry. He founded ''
Yhtyneet Paperitehtaat Oy'' (
United Paper Mills Ltd) and was the first president of "Finpap", a Finnish paper sales association.
Winter War
During the Finnish-Soviet
Winter War
The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...
, Walden was recalled to active service. From 3 December 1939 to 27 March 1940, he was a member of the war cabinet. On 27 March 1940 he became
Minister of Defence
A defence minister or minister of defence is a 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 country to country; in som ...
and continued in this role till 27 November 1944.
Walden was able to maintain important diplomatic relationships with
Sweden and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. Walden represented Finland at the
Treaty of Tartu of 1920, the
Moscow Peace Treaty (1940)
The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on 12 March 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on 21 March. It marked the end of the 105-day Winter War, upon which Finland ceded border areas to the Soviet Union. The ...
, and the
Armistice treaty of Moscow (1944).
After the Civil war and during the 1930s there was general distrust of the labour movement and the
patriotism of the Finnish worker. In Winter War this proved unfounded and the nation was united. Industrial leader Walden and
Väinö Tanner
Väinö Alfred Tanner (; 12 March 1881 – 19 April 1966; surname until 1895 ''Thomasson'') was a leading figure in the Social Democratic Party of Finland, and a pioneer and leader of the cooperative movement in Finland. He was Prime Minister ...
(
Social Democrat
Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soc ...
leader and Finnish foreign minister) had developed mutual respect and worked well together. In the so-called
Betrothal of January
The Betrothal of January (, ) was a declaration given by the that recognized the trade unions and their central organization the Finnish Federation of Trade Unions (SAK) as parties in collective bargaining on questions of industrial relations. T ...
1940, Finland's industry associations acknowledged the trade unions as negotiation partners regarding labour issues.
Civilian and military decorations
In 1919, Walden became Commander of the
Order of the White Rose
The Order of the White Rose of Finland ( fi, Suomen Valkoisen Ruusun ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Vita Ros’ orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. T ...
. Later, he received the Grand Cross of the order. For his services during and after the
Finnish Civil War
The Finnish Civil War; . Other designations: Brethren War, Citizen War, Class War, Freedom War, Red Rebellion and Revolution, . According to 1,005 interviews done by the newspaper ''Aamulehti'', the most popular names were as follows: Civil W ...
he was awarded the
Grand Cross of Liberty. He was also awarded the
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...
(1918). During the 1920s, Walden became a knight of the
Order of the Polar Star
The Royal Order of the Polar Star ( Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim.
The Order of t ...
(Sweden). In 1928, Walden received the Danish Grand Cross of the
Order of the Dannebrog personally from King
Christian X
Christian X ( da, Christian Carl Frederik Albert Alexander Vilhelm; 26 September 1870 – 20 April 1947) was List of Danish monarchs, King of Denmark from 1912 to his death in 1947, and the only List of rulers of Iceland, King of Iceland as ...
. During his service as minister of defence, Walden received several decorations including the Swedish
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 ...
, the German
Order of the German Eagle
The Order of Merit of the German Eagle (german: Verdienstorden vom Deutschen Adler) was an award of the German Nazi regime, predominantly to foreign diplomats. The Order was instituted on 1 May 1937 by Adolf Hitler.
It ceased to be awarded follo ...
and
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...
(1939) 1st and 2nd class, the Hungarian Grand Cross of Order of Merit, and the Romanian Grand Cross of
Order of the Star. On 2 December 1944 he received the
Mannerheim Cross
The Mannerheim Cross ( fi, Mannerheim-risti, sv, Mannerheimkorset), officially Mannerheim Cross of the Cross of Liberty ( fi, Vapaudenristin Mannerheim-risti, link=no, sv, Frihetskorsets Mannerheimkors, link=no) is the most distinguished Finnis ...
of the
Order of the Cross of Liberty
The Order of the Cross of Liberty ( fi, Vapaudenristin ritarikunta; sv, Frihetskorsets orden) is one of three official state orders in Finland, along with the Order of the White Rose of Finland and the Order of the Lion of Finland.
Organisation
...
for his services to the country.
See also
*
Russification of Finland
The policy of Russification of Finland ( fi, sortokaudet / sortovuodet, lit=times/years of oppression; russian: Русификация Финляндии, translit=Rusyfikatsiya Finlyandii) was a governmental policy of the Russian Empire aimed at ...
*
Finnish Civil War
The Finnish Civil War; . Other designations: Brethren War, Citizen War, Class War, Freedom War, Red Rebellion and Revolution, . According to 1,005 interviews done by the newspaper ''Aamulehti'', the most popular names were as follows: Civil W ...
*
Pulp and paper industry
*
Winter War
The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...
*
Spirit of the Winter War
*
Continuation War
The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet-Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1944, as part of World War II.; sv, fortsättningskriget; german: Fortsetzungskrieg. A ...
References
Paper Industry Hall of Fame.
Mannerheim website.
UPM-Kymmene Oyj website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walden, Rudolf
1878 births
1946 deaths
Businesspeople from Helsinki
People from Uusimaa Province (Grand Duchy of Finland)
Ministers of Defence of Finland
Finnish generals
Papermakers
People of the Finnish Civil War (White side)
Knights of the Mannerheim Cross
Grand Crosses of the Order of the Star of Romania
Grand Crosses of the Order of the Cross of Liberty
Knights of the Order of the Polar Star
Grand Crosses of the Order of the Dannebrog
Knights of the Order of the Sword
Recipients of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary
Recipients of the Iron Cross (1939), 1st class