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 ...

Karl Albert Byron Amundson (KABA) (29 November 1873 – 21 February 1938) was a Swedish Air Force officer, ballooner and military attaché. He was the first Swedish Chief of the Air Force (1926–31).

Career

Amundson was born on 29 November 1873 in Grythyttehed, Grythyttan, Sweden, the son of colonel Johan ''Albert'' Amundson (born 1840) and Alma Helena Albertina Godtknecht (born 1854). Amundson became second lieutenant at the Fortification (''Fortifikationen'') in 1894, and was promoted to captain in 1904. He was a teacher at the Artillery and Engineering College from 1906 to 1910 and at the

Royal Swedish Naval Staff College The Royal Swedish Naval Staff College ( sv, Kungliga Sjökrigshögskolan, KSHS) was a Swedish Navy training establishment between 1898 and 1961, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Swedish Navy's staff college, which prov ...

from 1910 to 1912. From 1911 to 1915 he was the Swedish military attaché in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

and from 1912 to 1918 the one in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, where he followed on the French side the operations during the

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the beginning and the end. Amundson was promoted in 1915 to major and was elected the same year as a 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 ...

. He was commander of the

Field Telegraph Corps Field Telegraph Corps ( sv, Fälttelegrafkåren), designation Ing 3, was a Swedish engineering unit within the Swedish Armed Forces which served in various forms between 1902 and 1937. The main part of the unit was located in the Stockholm Garris ...

from 1915 to 1920 and 1924 to 1925 and ''Arméns flygväsende'' in 1915. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1918 and was the commander of the Svea Engineer Corps (Ing 1) from 1920 to 1924 and was promoted to colonel in 1924 commander of ''Arméns flygväsende''. He was promoted to major general in 1925 and was Chief of the Swedish Air Force from 1925 to 1931.

Balloon activities

Amundson was in Paris during the year 1900 along with August Saloman to study balloons and aeronautics on the behalf of the Swedish Coastal Artillery and the Swedish Army. In December the same year he took part in the founding of a Swedish Aeronautic Society – or SAS – where he was the chairman from 1906 to 1911 and again 1930 to 1932. He was one of the first Swedish ballooner (in 1903 he raced from Stockholm to

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).Gothenburg in 1923. Amundson became vice president of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1924.

Other work

Amundson was a member of the Defense Committee in 1916 and studied in the German, French and Belgian armies, in part during the war and at the fronts and in the Spanish Army. He was the Swedish representative at the aeronautic conferences in Paris, Brussels, Berlin, Madrid, Rome, Copenhagen and Kristiania. He was chairman of the Swedish delegation for the Scandinavian Airline Convention from 1919 to 1921, chairman of the Air Commission from 1919 to 1921 and chairman of the Airport Advisory Board from 1920 to 1921. Amundson was a member of the Air Traffic Commission from 1919 to 1921, member of the Society of Idun and vice president of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. He was one of the founders of the Royal Swedish Aero Club, Swedish Military Sports Association and Solna Rifle Club. He was a board member of the Sweden's Central Association for the Promotion of Sport, the Royal Swedish Aero Club, the

Royal Automobile Club The Royal Automobile Club is a British private social and athletic club. It has two clubhouses: one in London at 89 Pall Mall, and the other in the countryside at Woodcote Park, near Epsom in Surrey. Both provide accommodation and a range ...

and more.

Personal life

In 1903 he was married Blenda Millberg (born 1880), the daughter of wholesaler Seth Millberg and his wife (née Bothén). They had three daughters, one of which, Ingrid Gudrun Murray (1905–1980), married lieutenant general

Fale Burman Lieutenant General Fale Faleson Burman (12 January 19036 September 1973) was a Swedish Army officer. Burman served as commander of Göta Life Guards (1951–1955), as Inspector of the Army Signal Troops (1955–1959) and as Commanding General o ...

in 1951.

Dates of rank

*1894 – ''

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 192 ...

'' *1904 – Captain *1915 – Major *1918 – Lieutenant Colonel *1924 –

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 ...

*1925 –

Awards and decorations

Swedish

King Gustaf V's Jubilee Commemorative Medal (1928) * Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_1st_Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the

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 ...

Order_of_the_Polar_Star_-_Ribbon_bar,_pre_1975

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 ...

SWE_Order_of_Vasa_-_Knight_2nd_Class_BAR

Knight of the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry, awarded to citizens of Sweden for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. It was instituted on 29 May 1772 by King Gustav III. It was u ...

* Swedish Military Sports Association's gold medal (''Sveriges militära idrottsförbunds guldmedalj'') * Swedish Sports Confederation's badge of merit in gold (''Riksidrottsförbundets förtjänsttecken i guld'')

Foreign

Grand Officer of the Order of the Crown of Italy * BEL_Kroonorde_Commandeur_BAR

Commander of the Order of the Crown * Order_of_the_Dannebrog_K

Commander Second Class of the Order of the Dannebrog * FIN_Order_of_the_White_Rose_Commander_BAR

Commander Second Class of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland 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. ...

Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

Commander Second Class of the Order of St. Olav * Ordre_du_Nichan_Iftikhar_Commandeur_ribbon_(Tunisia)

Commander of the

Order of Glory Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

Officer of the

Order of the Black Star The Order of the Black Star (''Ordre de l'Étoile Noire'') was an order of knighthood established on 1 December 1889 at Porto-Novo by Toffa, future king of Dahomey (today the Republic of Benin). Approved and recognised by the French government ...

ROM Order of the Crown of Romania 1938-war-ribbon Officer BAR

Officer of the Order of the Crown * Order_of_the_Osmanie_lenta

Fourth Class of the

Order of Osmanieh The Order of Osmanieh or Order of Osmaniye ( ota, نشانِ عثمانیہ) was a civil and military decoration of the Ottoman Empire. History The order was created in January 1862 by Sultan Abdülaziz. With the obsolescence of the Nişan-i ...

Fourth Class of the

Order of the Medjidie Order of the Medjidie ( ota, نشانِ مجیدی, August 29, 1852 – 1922) is a military and civilian order of the Ottoman Empire. The Order was instituted in 1851 by Sultan Abdulmejid I. History Instituted in 1851, the Order was awarded in f ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amundson, Karl 1873 births 1938 deaths Swedish Air Force major generals Swedish balloonists People from Hällefors Municipality Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Commanders First Class of the Order of the Sword Knights of the Order of the Polar Star Knights of the Order of Vasa Balloon flight record holders Swedish military attachés