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 ...

Torsten Reinhold Engberg (28May 1934 – 7February 2018) was a senior

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 ...

officer. Engberg was Chief of the Naval Staff from 1984 to 1987 and Chief of the Defence Staff from 1987 to 1991 as well as military commander of the

Middle Military District Middle Military District ( sv, Mellersta militärområdet, Milo M) was a Swedish military district, a command of the Swedish Armed Forces that had operational control over Middle Sweden, for most time of its existence corresponding to the area cov ...

(Milo M) from 1991 to 1994. He also served as the first director general of the

Swedish Fortifications Agency The Swedish Fortifications Agency ( sv, Fortifikationsverket, FortV) is a Swedish government agency under the Ministry of Finance , tasked with managing government-owned defense-related buildings and land. The agency functions as the landlord fo ...

from 1994 to 1999.

Early life

Engberg was born on 28 May 1934 in

Norrfjärden Norrfjärden is a locality situated in Piteå Municipality Piteå Municipality (; ) is a municipality in Norrbotten County in northern Sweden. Its seat is located in Piteå. Localities There are 14 localities (or urban areas) in Piteå Mun ...

Parish,

Norrbotten County Norrbotten County ( sv, Norrbottens län; se, Norrbottena leatna, fi, Norrbottenin lääni) is the northernmost county or '' län'' of Sweden. It is also the largest county by land area, almost a quarter of Sweden's total area. It shares border ...

, Sweden, the son of Amandus Engberg and his wife Märta (née Johansson). He passed ''

studentexamen Studentexamen (Swedish for "students' examination" or "students' degree"), earlier also ''mogenhetsexamen'' ("maturity examination") was the name of the university entrance examination in Sweden from the 17th century to 1968. From 1862 to 1968 ...

'' in 1957. He was selected for conscription in

Norrbotten Regiment The Norrbotten Regiment ( sv, Norrbottens regemente), designation I 19, is a Swedish Army arctic armoured, light infantry and commando regiment that traces its origins back to the 19th century. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited fr ...

(I 19) in Boden but wanted to join the

and began his training in

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 ...

(KA 2) 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 ...

Career

Engberg graduated from 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 ...

in 1959 and was commissioned as an officer the same year and was assigned as a second lieutenant to

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 ...

(KA 1). There, he participated early on in rasing the new light missile units. Engberg served in the Naval Staff from 1964 to 1965 and attended the

Swedish Armed Forces Staff College The oyalSwedish Armed Forces Staff College ( sv, Militärhögskolan, MHS) was from 1961 to 1996 the Swedish Armed Forces highest institution for officers training, for staff and senior executive education and was located in Stockholm. In 1997 it ...

from 1966 to 1968. He served in the Defence Staff in 1968 and the year after he served in the staff of the

Eastern Military District The Eastern Military District (Russian: Восточный военный округ) is a military district of Russia. It is one of the five military districts of the Russian Armed Forces, with its jurisdiction within the Far Eastern Federal ...

(Milo Ö). On 1 October 1971, Engberg was promoted to major and served in the Defence Staff and the year after he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. He then served as commanding officer of the Coastal Ranger School in

Vaxholm Vaxholm is a locality and the seat of Vaxholm Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden. It is located on the island of in the Stockholm archipelago. The name Vaxholm comes from Vaxholm Castle, which was constructed in 1549 on an islet with this nam ...

from 1974 to 1976. He was deputy section chief in the Defence Staff from 1976 to 1980 and in 1979 he underwent a course for senior unit commanders in the planning and implementation of amphibious operations at the Naval Amphibious School in

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 territorie ...

. Engberg was promoted to colonel and appointed commanding officer of the Gotland Coastal Artillery Defence (KA 3) on 1 October 1980. He was promoted to senior colonel in 1982 and was appointed Chief of Staff of the

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

(Milo V) in

Skövde Skövde () is a locality and urban centre in Skövde Municipality and Västra Götaland County, in the Västergötland (Western Gothland region) in central Southern Sweden. Skövde is situated some 150 km northeast of Gothenburg, between Swe ...

. In 1984, Engberg attended the

Naval Postgraduate School The Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a public graduate school operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. It offers master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 70 fields of study to the U.S. Armed Forces, DOD ci ...

in the United States and back in Sweden he was appointed Chief of the Naval Staff and promoted to major general on 1 April 1984. On 1 April 1987, Engberg was promoted to lieutenant general and appointed Chief of the Defence Staff. In Commander 's memoirs ''I kamp mot överheten'' ("In Battle Against the Authority"), Enberg is accused of filtering out sensitive information in the submarine reports regarding foreign submarines in Swedish waters, and of withholding important facts from the Supreme Commander, General

Bengt Gustafsson Bengt Gustafsson may refer to: *Bengt Gustafsson (astronomer) (born 1943), Swedish professor of astronomy *Bengt-Åke Gustafsson (born 1958), Swedish ice hockey player and coach *Bengt Gustafsson (general) General Sten ''Bengt'' Gustaf Gustafsso ...

and the Social Democratic government. The result was abandoned submarine hunts and a low political profile towards the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. Engberg commented on the allegations as "sad speculations" from von Hofsten's side. On 1 July 1991, Engberg was appointed military commander of the

(Milo M). At the same time he served as the

Commandant General in Stockholm The Commandant General in Stockholm ( sv, Överkommendanten i Stockholm) is a military position in Sweden with responsibility for state ceremonial activities. Lieutenant General Michael Claesson, Chief of Joint Operations is the Commandant Genera ...

. He served in this position until 1994. He then served as the first director general of the

from 1 July 1994 to 1999. The agency was undergoing reorganization and received new tasks both for the

Swedish Armed Forces The Swedish Armed Forces ( sv, Försvarsmakten, "the Defense Force") is the government agency that forms the armed forces of Sweden, tasked with the defense of the country as well as with promoting Sweden's wider interests, supporting internati ...

and abroad, among other things he led the creation of protected, underground oil storage facilities in countries in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

where the experience from the Swedish Total Defence came in handy.

Personal life

In 1962, Engberg married Gun Zander (born 1941), the daughter of Hjalmar Zander and Elizabeth (née Persson). They had two children: Anna and Henrik.

Death

Engberg died on 7 February 2018 in

Simrishamn Simrishamn (old da, Simmershavn) is a locality and the seat of Simrishamn Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 6,527 inhabitants in 2010. Despite its small population, Simrishamn is, for historical reasons, usually still referred to as a ''c ...

. The funeral service was held on 2 March 2018 in in Simrishamn.

Dates of rank

*1959 –

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 ...

*19?? –

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 sub ...

*19?? –

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 ...

*1 October 1971 –

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 ...

*1972 –

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 ...

*1 October 1980 –

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 of ...

*1982 – Senior colonel *1 April 1984 –

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 a ...

*1 April 1987 –

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

Den_kongelige_norske_fortjenstorden_storkors_stripe

Grand Cross of the

Royal Norwegian Order of Merit The Royal Norwegian Order of Merit (Norwegian: ''Den Kongelige Norske Fortjenstorden'' (Bokmål) or ''Den Kongelege Norske Fortenesteordenen'' (Nynorsk)) was instituted by King Olav V in 1985. It is awarded to foreigners, Norwegian citizens livin ...

(1 July 1992)

Honours

*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 ...

*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 ...

(1979)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Engberg, Torsten 1934 births 2018 deaths Swedish Coastal Artillery lieutenant generals People from Piteå Municipality 20th-century Swedish military personnel Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Members of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences Naval Postgraduate School alumni Chiefs of the Defence Staff (Sweden)