Oscar Ljungström (7 November 1868 – 17 August 1943) was a Swedish archivist,

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

, and author.

Biography

Oscar

Ljungström Ljungström is a Swedish family originating from Jönköping County, Småland, through the bailiff Johan ''Liungström'' (''floruit'' 1716, died circa 1730). Members in selection * Johan Patrik Ljungström (1784–1859), jeweler * Jonas Patr ...

was born in 1868 to the

cartographer Cartography (; from , 'papyrus, sheet of paper, map'; and , 'write') is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an imagined reality) can ...

Jonas Patrik Ljungström Jonas Patrik Ljungström (12 March 1827 – 22 October 1898) was a Swedish cartographer, geodesist, and teacher at the Royal Institute of Technology. Biography Jonas Patrik Ljungström was born 12 March 1827 in Uddevalla as the son of je ...

, and Amalia (née Falck). Among his siblings were

Fredrik Ljungström Fredrik Ljungström (16 June 1875 – 18 February 1964) was a Swedes, Swedish engineer, Industrial design, technical designer, and industrialist. Considered one of the foremost inventors of Sweden, Fredrik Ljungström accounted for hundreds ...

Birger Ljungström Birger Ljungström (4 June 1872 – 17 November 1948) was a Swedish engineer, technical designer, industrialist, and inventor. Biography Birger Ljungström was born in Uddevalla, Sweden to cartographer Jonas Patrik Ljungström and Amal ...

, and Georg Ljungström. Oscar Ljungstrom served as an archivist in the urban engineering office of

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

. With a background as an officer in the ''

Swedish Landstorm The Swedish Landstorm () was a form of militia and territorial defence force, a so-called '' Landstorm'' (roughly "land assault", ), created in Sweden in 1885. It consisted of all conscripts who had completed their service, generally men between 33 ...

'' of the

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 ...

, and a determined

anti-communist Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communist beliefs, groups, and individuals. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when th ...

, he joined the

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

forces under

Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim (, 4 June 1867 – 27 January 1951) was a Finnish military commander, aristocrat, and statesman. He served as the military leader of the White Guard (Finland), Whites in the Finnish Civil War (1918), as List of ...

in Finland after the outbreak of the

Finnish Civil War The Finnish Civil War was a civil war in Finland in 1918 fought for the leadership and control of the country between Whites (Finland), White Finland and the Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic (Red Finland) during the country's transition fr ...

in 1918. He served as a platoon commander during the war, which the Whites eventually won against the Reds. Oscar Ljungström had artistic interests and made several visual artworks, working mainly with

oil painting Oil painting is a painting method involving the procedure of painting with pigments combined with a drying oil as the Binder (material), binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on canvas, wood panel, or oil on coppe ...

s. Yet, writing became his primary element. Of a family background partly of Christians outside of the mainline Lutheran

Church of Sweden The Church of Sweden () is an Evangelical Lutheran national church in Sweden. A former state church, headquartered in Uppsala, with around 5.5 million members at year end 2023, it is the largest Christian denomination in Sweden, the largest List ...

, Ljungström's main interests were in philosophy and religion – interests shared by his brother Georg Ljungström – and he wrote extensively on matters of

religious philosophy Religious philosophy is philosophical thinking that is influenced and directed as a consequence of teachings from a particular religion. It can be done objectively, but it may also be done as a persuasion tool by believers in that faith. Relig ...

Theosophy Theosophy is a religious movement established in the United States in the late 19th century. Founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and based largely on her writings, it draws heavily from both older European philosophies such as Neop ...

made an impact on European intellectuals and artists of liberal mindset around the turn of the 20th century, and this also applied to the brothers. Although an outspoken critic of

esoterism Esotericism may refer to: *Eastern esotericism, a broad range of religious beliefs and practices originating from the Eastern world, characterized by esoteric, secretive, or occult elements *Western esotericism Western esotericism, also known ...

, he advocated an eclectic ethical approach as opposed to both the state religion and

secularism Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...

of his time, sparking debate on

syncretism Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the ...

, and how Christianity could benefit from the inspiration of

Eastern philosophy Eastern philosophy (also called Asian philosophy or Oriental philosophy) includes the various philosophies that originated in East and South Asia, including Chinese philosophy, Japanese philosophy, Korean philosophy, and Vietnamese philoso ...

. After retirement, he resided with the

Theosophical Society The Theosophical Society is the organizational body of Theosophy, an esoteric new religious movement. It was founded in New York City, U.S.A. in 1875. Among its founders were Helena Blavatsky, a Russian mystic and the principal thinker of the ...

Lomaland Lomaland was a Theosophical community in Point Loma in San Diego, California, from 1900 to 1942. Theosophical Society leader Katherine Tingley founded it in 1900 as a school, cultural center, and residential facility for her followers. The Am ...

in California, United States. Among his last writings was ''Fredstankens två aspekter'' (1940), where he expressed hopes for a peaceful coexistence of nations after an anticipated end 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 ...

. He died in 1943.

Bibliography

* ''Fredstankens två aspekter'' (1940) * ''Karma in Ancient and Modern Thought'', Lund (1938) * ''A Philosophical Overhaul'' (1937) * ''Hold fast, go slow'' (1934) * ''Graded lessons in theosophy'' (1934) * ''Sagan om Visingsö'' (1925) * ''Tvenne världsreligioner. Tankar med anledning av det andliga nutidslivet och kyrkan'' (1920) * ''Motrevolution: socialismens nedkämpande'' (1917) * ''Entwicklungslehre: Entwurf einer neuen Weltanschauung'' (1907) * ''Existenslinjer och utvecklingsnormer'' (1906)

Distinctions

: Svenska skyttemärket * : 4th class of the

Order of the Cross of Liberty The Order of the Cross of Liberty (; ) is one of three official state Order (decoration), orders in Finland, along with the Order of the White Rose of Finland and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The awards of the Order of the Cross of Liberty ...

(1918) * : 2nd Class of the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

Literature

* Fredrik Ljungström 1875–1964 Uppfinnare och inspiratör (1999) by

Olle Ljungström Lars Olof "Olle" Gustaf Ljungström (12 August 1961 – 4 May 2016) was a Swedish singer, songwriter, and musician. Ljungström grew up in Vaxholm. He was vocalist and guitarist in the group Reeperbahn from 1979 to 1984; since the early 1990s he ...

, Sveriges Mekanisters Riksförening, * ''Hågkomster och livsintryck av svenska män och kvinnor''. Saml. 10, Uppsala, 1929 * ''Oscar Ljungströms efterlämnade papper'', Lund University Library,

Lund University Lund University () is a Public university, public research university in Sweden and one of Northern Europe's oldest universities. The university is located in the city of Lund in the Swedish province of Scania. The university was officially foun ...

, including correspondence with

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Nathan Söderblom Lars Olof Jonathan Söderblom (; 15 January 1866 – 12 July 1931) was a Swedish bishop. He was the Church of Sweden Archbishop of Uppsala from 1914 to 1931, and recipient of the 1930 Nobel Peace Prize. He is commemorated in the Calendar of ...

* Oscar L: O R Lande-lius' utlandssv saml, SBL:s dep i RA; * A Henning, Oscar L in memoriam (SvD 23 August 1943) * https://www.europeana.eu/portal/sv/record/9200106/2736BB73B1A839FCA564AC09823E3A0F0BE89097.html?q=ljungstr%C3%B6m#dcId=1544942773424&p=22

References

External links

Libris KB
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ljungstrom, Oscar 1868 births 1943 deaths Swedish engineers Swedish archivists Swedish Army officers 19th-century Swedish writers 20th-century Swedish writers 19th-century Swedish male writers 20th-century Swedish male writers Swedish volunteers in the Finnish Civil War (White side) Swedish Theosophists Recipients of the Iron Cross, 2nd class

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...