Major General, ''Friherre'' Axel Oscar Rappe (22 June 1884 – 31 October 1945) 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. Rappe's senior commands include commanding officer of the Göta Artillery Regiment and

Svea Artillery Regiment The Svea Artillery Regiment (), designation A 1, was a Swedish Army artillery regiment that traced its origins back to the 17th century. It was disbanded in 1997. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited from Svealand, and it was also gar ...

, Inspector of the Artillery and military commander of the V Military District. He also served in

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

during 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 ...

where attained the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Early life

Rappe was born on 22 June 1884 in

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 ...

, Sweden, the son of general, ''friherre''

Axel Rappe ''Friherre'' General Axel Emil Rappe (2 October 1838 – 18 December 1918) was a Swedish Army officer and Minister of War from 1892 and 1899. Early life Rappe was born on 2 October 1838 in Christinelund manor in Arby, Kalmar County, the son of ...

and his wife Anna (née Sandahl). He was brother of ''hovsångerska'' Signe Rappe-Welden.

Career

Military career

Rappe was commissioned as an officer in 1904 and was assigned as a ''

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 ...

'' to the

. Rappe attended the Artillery and Engineering College from 1906 to 1907 when he was promoted to lieutenant. He then attended the Royal Swedish Army Staff College from 1908 to 1910 and served as an officer candidate in 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 ...

from 1911 to 1913. Rappe served as a teacher at the Artillery and Engineering College from 1914 to 1918 and he was promoted to captain in 1917. He left the

in 1918 to participate in the

. In

, Rappe served in the General Staff of

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 ...

and was promoted to lieutenant colonel. He also served as chief of staff of the Eastern Army. Back in Sweden, he was appointed captain in the Svea Artillery Regiment in 1918. He then served as a teacher at the Artillery and Engineering College from 1922 to 1928. In 1927, he served as captain in the General Staff and in 1928 he was promoted to major and was appointed chief of staff of the military command of

Upper Norrland Upper Norrland () is a national area () of Sweden. The national areas are a part of the NUTS statistical regions of Sweden. Geography Övre Norrland is the northernmost region of Sweden and forms part of Sápmi (Lapland). It is the Sweden's la ...

. Two years later Rappe was appointed chief of staff of the Eastern Army Division (''Östra arméfördelningen'') from 1930 to 1931 and from 1931 to 1935 he served as head of the Central Department of the General Staff. Rappe was appointed lieutenant colonel in the General Staff in 1931 and colonel in the General Staff in 1935. He then served as regimental commander of the Göta Artillery Regiment (A 2) from 1936 to 1938 when he was promoted to major general, and then he served as regimental commander of the Svea Artillery Regiment (A 1) from 1938 to 1940. Rappe served as

Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spain, ...

from 1939 to 1941 and Inspector of the Artillery as well as commanding officer of the Artillery Staff Corps (''Artilleristabskåren'') from 1941 to 1942. In 1942, he was appointed military commander of the V Military District and in 1944 Rappe was appointed military commander of the IV Military District and Commandant General in Stockholm. However, the nomination was recalled, most likely to keep Rappe on the post as commanding officer of the I Army Corps (''Första armékåren'').

Other work

Rappe was a member of the Field Service Regulations Committee 1927 (''Fälttjänstreglementskommittén'') in 1927 and was its chairman from 1935 to 1937. He served as military expert in the 1930 Defense Commission. Rappe was also a member of the Committee for the Reorganization of the Central Military Administration (''Kommittén för omorganisationen av den centrala militärförvaltningen'') from 1940 to 1941.

Personal life

On 22 June 1923 in

Strängnäs Strängnäs is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Strängnäs Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 15,363 inhabitants in 2020. It is located by Lake Mälaren and is the episcopal see of the Diocese of Strängnäs, one of t ...

, Rappe married Gurli Matilda Johansson (12 February 1888 in Stockholm – 21 February 1966 in Sköldinge), the daughter of the carpenter Claes August Johansson and his wife Edla Matilda Gustafsson (previously Thulin).

Death

Rappe died suddenly only 61 years old on 31 October 1945 in

Karlstad Karlstad (, ) is the 20th-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Karlstad Municipality, the capital of Värmland County, and the largest city in the province Värmland in Sweden. The city proper had 67,122 inhabitants in 2020 with 97,233 inhabitan ...

Dates of rank

Rappe's dates of rank:

Sweden

*8 December 1904 – ''

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 ...

'' *31 August 1907 –

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 ...

2nd Class *9 June 1911 –

1st Class *30 December 1916 –

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 ...

2nd Class *11 April 1919 –

1st Class *1 January 1928 –

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 ...

*18 December 1931 – Lieutenant colonel *23 June 1935 –

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 ...

*3 November 1938 – Major general

Finland

*22 February 1918 –

*12 April 1918 – Lieutenant colonel

Awards and decorations

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 ...

(6 June 1939) * SWE_Order_of_Vasa_-_Knight_2nd_Class_BAR

Commander 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 ...

(6 June 1944) * 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 ...

(1934)

Foreign

* 1st 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 ...

with star and sword * FIN_Order_of_the_Lion_of_Finland_1Class_BAR

Grand Cross of the

Order of the Lion of Finland Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...

(1944) *

FIN_Order_of_the_Lion_of_Finland_2Class_BAR

Commander 1st Class of the

Order of the German Eagle The Order of Merit of the German Eagle () was an award of the German Nazi regime, predominantly to foreign diplomats. The Order was instituted on 1 May 1937 by Adolf Hitler. It ceased to be awarded following the collapse of Nazi Germany at the e ...

with Star * Order of the Medjidie - Ribbon bar

4th Class of the

Order of the Medjidie Order of the Medjidie (, August 29, 1852 – 1922) was 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 five classes, with the Firs ...

Honours

*Member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences () 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 military (army and air force) and de ...

(1932)

Bibliography

* * * *

References

External links

Entry
at '' Svenskt biografiskt lexikon'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Rappe, Axel 1884 births 1945 deaths Swedish Army major generals Swedish volunteers in the Finnish Civil War (White side) Military personnel from Stockholm Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Commanders First Class of the Order of the Sword Commanders of the Order of Vasa Knights of the Order of the Polar Star