Åke Karl Wilhelm Hök (17 June 1889 – 2 May 1963) was a

Swedish Army The Swedish Army () is the army, land force of the Swedish Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Sweden. Beginning with its service in 1521, the Swedish Army has been active for more than 500 years. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1 ...

officer and

horse rider The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million ...

. He competed in the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad () and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 6 July and 22 July 1912. The opening ceremony was he ...

and finished 22nd in the individual jumping event on the horse ''Mona''.

Early life

Hök was born on 17 June 1889 in

Järlåsa Järlåsa is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality situated in Uppsala Municipality, Uppsala County, Sweden with 577 inhabitants in 2020. References

Populated places in Uppsala County Populated places in Uppsala Municipality {{Uppsala- ...

Uppsala County Uppsala County () is a county or '' län'' on the eastern coast of Sweden, whose capital is the city of Uppsala. It borders the counties of Dalarna, Stockholm, Södermanland, Västmanland, Gävleborg, and the Baltic Sea. Province The nor ...

, the son of lieutenant colonel Carl Hök and his wife Hilma Smitt. He passed '' mogenhetsexamen'' in

Västerås Västerås () is a city in central Sweden on the shore of Mälaren, Lake Mälaren in the province of Västmanland, west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 158,653, over 100,000 mo ...

in 1908.

Career

Hök was commissioned as an officer in 1910 and was assigned as an ''

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 19 ...

'' in the Scanian Dragoon Regiment where he was promoted to lieutenant in 1912. He attended the

Royal Swedish Army Staff College The Royal Swedish Army Staff College (, KHS) was a Swedish Army training establishment between 1866 and 1961, providing courses for army officers. It was the home of the Swedish Army's staff college, which provided advanced training for officers ...

from 1917 to 1919 and was captain of the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, Enlisted rank, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commanding officer, commander of a ...

in 1923. Hök served in the Military Office of the Land Defence and in the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

in 1927. He became ''

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 the Life Regiment of Horse in 1928. Hök served as an expert in the

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

in 1928, 1931 and 1936. He was chief of staff of the Cavalry Inspectorate (''Kavalleriinspektionen'') from 1932 to 1935, and in 1933, he became major of the General Staff. Hök was promoted to lieutenant colonel and assigned to the Scanian Cavalry Regiment (''Skånska kavalleriregementet'') in 1936, where he became colonel and commanding officer in 1937. He was then appointed executive commander of the

Life Regiment Hussars The Life Regiment Hussars (; 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 up a draft of horses and ...

in 1942 and served as acting Inspector of the Local Defence within the III Military District from 1943 to 1944. Hök was commanding officer of the Scanian Cavalry Regiment from 1946.

Personal life

In 1920, Hök married Hattie Pauli. They had three children: Hans (born 1921), Margareta (born 1926) and Lenore (born 1935).

Dates of rank

*1910 – ''

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 19 ...

'' *1912 –

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

*1923 –

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

*1928 – ''

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 ...

'' *1933 –

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

*1936 – Lieutenant colonel *1937 –

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

Awards and decaorations

Hök's awards:

Swedish

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 23 February 1748, together with the Or ...

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 founded on 29 May 1772 by Gustav III, King Gustav III. It is awarded to Swedish citizens for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. His ...

Foreign

Officer of the

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate Italian unification, the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for ...

* Officer of the

Order of the Three Stars Order of the Three Stars () is the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia. It was established in 1924 in remembrance of the founding of Latvia. Its motto is ''Per aspera ad astra'', meaning "Through hardships towards the ...

* Knight of the Order of Leopold * FIN Order of the White Rose Knight 1st Class BAR

Knight 1st Class of the

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland (; ) 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. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The ...

Knight of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

* Cross of Military Merit with White Decoration

References

External links

* 1889 births 1963 deaths Swedish Army colonels Swedish male equestrians Swedish show jumping riders Olympic equestrians for Sweden Equestrians at the 1912 Summer Olympics People from Uppsala Municipality Commanders First Class of the Order of the Sword Knights of the Order of Vasa Sportspeople from Uppsala County {{Sweden-equestrian-bio-stub