Birger Furugård (8 December 1887 – 4 December 1961) was a Swedish politician and

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet) or veterinary surgeon is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, veterinarians also play a role in animal r ...

. He hailed from Deje in

Värmland Värmland () is a ''Provinces of Sweden, landskap'' (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west. Name Several Latinized version ...

. During the 1920s Furugård became inspired by the advance of

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. He made several trips to Germany, and met with

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician, aviator, military leader, and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which gov ...

and

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and military leader who was the 4th of the (Protection Squadron; SS), a leading member of the Nazi Party, and one of the most powerful p ...

. In 1924 Furugård, together with his two brothers Gunnar and Sigurd, founded the Swedish National Socialist Freedom League. The following year the group was converted into the Swedish National Socialist Peasants and Workers Party. In 1930 Furugård's party merged with the

National Socialist People's Party of Sweden Fascist People's Party of Sweden (in Swedish language, Swedish: ''Sveriges Fascistiska Folkparti'') was a fascist and later Nazi political party in Sweden. History It was founded on 3 September 1926 by a circle around the fascist publication ''Na ...

and formed the New Swedish National Socialist Party. Furugård became ''Riksledare'' (National Leader) of the party. Soon, the party changed its name to Swedish National Socialist Party (SNSP). In March 1931 Hitler and

Joseph Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician and philologist who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief Propaganda in Nazi Germany, propagandist for the Nazi Party, and ...

were invited to speak at public meetings in Sweden, but the police chief in Stockholm refused to give permission. Until 1933 Furugård was the main leader of the Swedish extreme right, and he was portrayed by his followers as future

Führer ( , spelled ''Fuehrer'' when the umlaut is unavailable) is a German word meaning "leader" or " guide". As a political title, it is strongly associated with Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. Hitler officially cal ...

of Sweden ( Swedish: ''riksledare'') in the event of a Nazi seizure of power. In 1933 the second-in-command

Sven Olov Lindholm Sven Olov Knutsson Lindholm (8 February 1903 – 26 April 1998) was a Swedish Nazi leader, active in far-right politics from the 1920s to the 1950s. This included leading the Nazi party named Svensk socialistisk samling (SSS; literally "Swedis ...

formed the National Socialist Workers Party (NSAP), rapidly superseding Furugård as the most prominent Nazi leader in Sweden. In the Swedish press and the public he was often called "Deje-Hitler". Furugård was later sentenced to two months in prison for defaming Criminal Police Superintendent Alvar Zetterquist. Furugård disbanded his party in 1936, following a meagre performance at the national election earlier that year. After the war, Furugård continued his work as a veterinarian. When

Dagens Nyheter (, ), abbreviated ''DN'', is a daily newspaper in Sweden. It is published in Stockholm and aspires to full national and international coverage, and is widely considered Sweden's newspaper of record A newspaper of record is a major nationa ...

interviewed him in 1951, the "ex-Führer in Molkom" was described as a broken man. The newspaper noted that Furugård admitted that there had been atrocities in Hitler's Germany, but refused to accept the existence of the gas chambers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Furugard, Birger 1887 births 1961 deaths People from Årjäng Municipality Swedish Holocaust deniers Swedish Nazis Swedish politicians convicted of crimes Swedish prisoners and detainees Swedish veterinarians Nazi politicians Nazis convicted of crimes Prisoners and detainees of Sweden