Frans ''Hugo'' Ärnfast (2 June 1908 – 11 July 1965) was a Swedish

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

. Ärnfast began his career working at the Swedish Dairies' Association and the Swedish Farmers' Meat Marketing Association before joining the

Ministry for Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral rela ...

in 1937. He served in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

, and

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before becoming a second secretary in 1941. During the final days of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Ärnfast stayed in war-torn Berlin, helping fellow Swedes in the chaotic aftermath of the

Battle of Berlin The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II. After the Vistula–Od ...

. He later held diplomatic roles in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

, and

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

, eventually becoming ambassador to

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

in 1964. Ärnfast died in a drowning accident near Bogotá on 11 July 1965, after being swept away by strong currents while on a trip to a mountain village.

Early life

Ärnfast was born on 2 June 1908 in ,

Västernorrland County Västernorrland County () is a county ('' län'') in the north of Sweden. It is bordered by the counties of Gävleborg, Jämtland, Västerbotten and the Gulf of Bothnia. The name ''Västernorrland'' means "Western Norrland", as it was in the ...

, Sweden, the son of August Pettersson, a farmer, and his wife Helga Olsson. He earned a degree in economics from the

Stockholm School of Economics The Stockholm School of Economics (SSE; , HHS) is a private business school located in city district Vasastaden in the central part of Stockholm, Sweden. SSE offers BSc, MSc and MBA programs, along with PhD- and Executive education progr ...

in 1932 and obtained a Bachelor of Arts from

Stockholm University College Stockholm University (SU) () is a public university, public research university in Stockholm, Sweden, founded as a college in 1878, with university status since 1960. With over 33,000 students at four different faculties: law, humanities, social ...

on 15 December 1936.

Career

Ärnfast worked at the Swedish Dairies' Association (''Svenska mejeriernas riksförening'') from 1933 to 1935 and at the Swedish Farmers' Meat Marketing Association (''Sveriges slakteriförbund'') from 1936 to 1937. He joined the

as an attaché in 1937, serving in

in 1938 and

in 1940. Later that year, he was appointed acting consul in

before returning to the ministry as an attaché. In 1941, he became second secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, serving in Berlin in 1944, and in 1945, he was promoted to first secretary at the legation there. Ärnfast was one of the Swedes who, in 1945, remained in war-torn Berlin alongside envoy and future ambassador Axel Lewenhaupt. They stayed in the legation bunker to assist fellow Swedes until the very end. When the Swedish personnel were forced to leave their post on 22 May, they had spent nearly three weeks helping the few remaining Swedes in the chaotic aftermath of the

. For ten days, they endured complete isolation, experiencing relentless Russian artillery fire and continuous air raids. However, the bombproof bunker provided sufficient protection, and according to Ärnfast, they were never in real distress—supplies were ample, and morale remained high despite the uncertainty and psychological strain. As the Russian assault swept through Berlin's devastated quarters, where the last German defenders held out, the Swedes waited. Eventually, after the resistance was overcome, Soviet troops allowed them to continue their mission of assisting the remaining Swedes in the city. He was appointed first secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1945, then served as first vice consul in

in 1948. In 1951, he became first secretary at the Swedish embassy in

, before returning to the ministry in 1952. The following year, he was promoted to director (''byråchef'') at the Foreign Ministry. From 1957 to 1960, he served as envoy to

, and in 1960, he was appointed ambassador to

. In October 1964, he became ambassador to

, with additional accreditation to

Quito Quito (; ), officially San Francisco de Quito, is the capital city, capital and second-largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its metropolitan area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha Province, P ...

and

Panama City Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...

Personal life

In 1940, Ärnfast married Annemarie Brettel (1918–2007) from Germany, the daughter of Dr med Otto Brettel and Marie Eibach. They had three children: Torsten Ärnfast (1941–1976), Inger, and Bengt.

Death

Ärnfast died in a drowning accident near

on 11 July 1965. He had driven to a mountain village in the outskirts of Bogotá, where he parked his car and left it by a river. It is believed that he was swept away by the strong currents. A few hours later, locals found his body two kilometers downstream from the site. Officially, it was reported that he had slipped from his boat during a fishing trip and drowned. His funeral took place on 23 July 1965, at the Northern Crematorium. He was buried on 26 September 1965, at

Norra Begravningsplatsen Norra begravningsplatsen, literally "The Northern Burial Place" in Swedish, is a major cemetery of the Stockholm urban area, located in Solna Municipality. Inaugurated on 9 June 1827, it is the burial site for a number of Swedish notables. Th ...

in Stockholm.

Awards and decorations

Knight 1st Class 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 ...

(15 November 1945) * Knight of the

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Swedish language, Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden''), sometimes translated as the Royal Order of the North Star, is a Swedish order of chivalry created by Frederick I of Sweden, King Frederick I on 23 F ...

(6 June 1957) * Order of the Dannebrog K

Commander of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arnfast, Hugo 1908 births 1965 deaths Ambassadors of Sweden to New Zealand Ambassadors of Sweden to Pakistan Ambassadors of Sweden to Colombia Ambassadors of Sweden to Ecuador Ambassadors of Sweden to Panama Stockholm School of Economics alumni Stockholm University alumni People from Sollefteå Municipality Deaths by drowning Burials at Norra begravningsplatsen Knights of the Order of the Polar Star Knights of the Order of Vasa