Gustaf Adolf Boltenstern (1 April 1861 – 9 October 1935) was a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

officer and

horse rider Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

Early life

Boltenstern was born on 1 April 1861 in

Helsingborg Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...

, Sweden, the son of major Gösta Boltenstern and his wife Charlotte von Boltenstern.

Career

Military career

Boltenstern was commissioned as an officer in 1892 and was assigned with the rank of '' underlöjtnant'' to the

Life Guards of Horse Life Guards of Horse ( sv, Livgardet till häst, K 1) was a Swedish Army cavalry regiment, first raised in 1770. It saw service for two centuries, before being amalgamated with the Life Regiment Dragoons (K 2) to form the Life Regiment of Horse ( ...

in 1882. He attended the royal riding school in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, Austria from 1884 to 1885 and served as a stablemaster at the

Swedish Army Riding and Horse-Driving School Swedish Army Riding and Horse-Driving School ( sv, Arméns rid- och körskola, RS) was a Swedish Army equestrian facility which operated from 1868 to 1970. Its tasks from the 1930s were to train commanders at the infantry and cavalry into instruct ...

at Strömsholm Palace from 1896 to 1899. Boltenstern was promoted to ''

ryttmästare ''Ryttmästare'' (from the German word ''Rittmeister'') was a military rank in the Swedish cavalry in the Swedish Army. The rank corresponded to the rank of captain in other service branches. The rank was abolished in 1972. History The military ...

'' in 1898 and to major in 1908. He was then head of the Swedish Army Riding and Horse-Driving School from 1908 to 1912 when he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in the

Life Regiment Hussars The Life Regiment Hussars ( sv, Livregementets husarer; designated K 3) is one of the world's oldest regiments still active. The regiment descends directly from units set up by King Gustav I of Sweden (Gustav Vasa) in 1536, when Sweden set ...

. He was promoted to colonel in 1915 and was appointed executive commander of the

Life Regiment Dragoons The Life Regiment Dragoons ( sv, Livregementets dragoner), designated K 2, was a Swedish Army cavalry regiment that was active in various forms 1791–1927. The unit was based in the Stockholm Garrison in Stockholm and belonged to the King's Life ...

, serving until 1921.

Sports career

Boltenstern competed in the individual dressage at the 1912 and 1920 Summer Olympics. He won a silver medal in 1912 with his horse ''Neptun'', but eight years later he and his horse ''Iron'' were disqualified.

Personal life

In 1889, Boltenstern married Amelie von Dardel (1866–1919), the daughter of cabinet chamberlain Fritz von Dardel and Baroness Augusta Silfverschiöld. His son Gustaf Adolf Boltenstern, Jr. won four Olympic medals in dressage in 1948–1956.

Dates of rank

*1882 – '' Underlöjtnant'' *18?? –

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 ...

*1898 – ''

Ryttmästare ''Ryttmästare'' (from the German word ''Rittmeister'') was a military rank in the Swedish cavalry in the Swedish Army. The rank corresponded to the rank of captain in other service branches. The rank was abolished in 1972. History The military ...

'' *1908 – Major *1912 – Lieutenant colonel *1915 –

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 o ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boltenstern, Gustaf Adolf 1861 births 1935 deaths Swedish dressage riders Olympic equestrians of Sweden Swedish male equestrians Equestrians at the 1912 Summer Olympics Equestrians at the 1920 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for Sweden Olympic medalists in equestrian Sportspeople from Helsingborg Swedish Army colonels Medalists at the 1912 Summer Olympics