Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Karl Rudolf Kolmodin (17 January 1896 – 29 August 1978) was a

Swedish Coastal Artillery The Swedish Coastal Artillery () has its origin in the Archipelago Artillery that was raised in 1866. The Coastal Artillery was formed from the Archipelago Artillery, the Marine Regiment and parts of the Artillery in 1902. Kustartilleriet, abbr ...

officer. Kolmodin's senior commands include postings as commanding officer of the Gothenburg Coastal Artillery Defence and Stockholm Coastal Artillery Defence and as Inspector of the

Early life

Kolmodin was born on 17 January 1896 in Bromma Parish,

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 Professor Adolf Kolmodin (1855–1928) and his wife Nelly (née von Post) (1858–1944). He was the brother of Colonel Gustaf Kolmodin (1893–1975) and Diplomat Johannes Kolmodin (1884–1933). Kolmodin passed ''

studentexamen Studentexamen (Swedish for "students' examination" or "students' degree"), earlier also ''mogenhetsexamen'' ("maturity examination") was the name of the university entrance examination in Sweden from the 17th century to 1968. From 1862 to 1968, ...

'' in

Uppsala Uppsala ( ; ; archaically spelled ''Upsala'') is the capital of Uppsala County and the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, fourth-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. It had 177,074 inhabitants in 2019. Loc ...

in 1914.

Career

Kolmodin was commissioned as an officer in the

in 1916 with the rank of second lieutenant. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1918. Kolmodin attended the general course of the

Royal Swedish Naval Staff College The Royal Swedish Naval Staff College (, KSHS) was a Swedish Navy training establishment between 1898 and 1961, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Swedish Navy's staff college, which provided advanced training for office ...

from 1921 to 1922 and the senior course of the

Artillery and Engineering College Artillery and Engineering College (, AIHS) was a Swedish Army training establishment active between 1878 and 1992, providing courses for artillery officers. It was located within the Stockholm Garrison in Stockholm, Sweden. History The Higher Art ...

from 1922 to 1924. He served as an Adjutant in the staff of the commanding officer of the

from 1925 to 1928 and as a mathematics, physics and artillery teacher at the Royal Swedish Naval Staff College and the Swedish Coast Artillery School (''Kustartilleriets skjutskola'', KAS) from 1927 to 1937. Kolmodin then served in the Artillery Department of the

Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration The Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration (, KMF) was the central board of the Swedish Navy in technical and economic terms. It was active between the years 1878 and 1968 when it was disbanded and amalgamated into the Defence Materiel Adm ...

from 1928 to 1935. He also served as an expert in the 1930 Defense Commission (''1930 års försvarskommission'') from 1930 to 1935. Kolmodin was promoted to captain in 1929 and to major in 1936. He was appointed Chief of Staff of the Fortification Staff (''Fästningsstaben'') at

Vaxholm Fortress Vaxholm Fortress (), also known as Vaxholm Castle, is a historic fortification on the island of Vaxholmen in the Stockholm archipelago just east of the Swedish town of Vaxholm. It is home to the . The fortress is accessed by the Kastellet ferr ...

in 1937 and in 1941 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and first became Air Defence Commander at

Karlskrona Karlskrona (, , ) is a locality and the seat of Karlskrona Municipality, Blekinge County, Sweden with a population of 66,675 in 2018. It is also the capital of Blekinge County. Karlskrona is known as Sweden's only baroque city and is host to ...

Fortress. When, during

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 ...

, it was deemed necessary to provide the Swedish west coast with an effective coastal artillery defence, it was Kolmodin, who led the final expansion of this defence and gained command of it. He served as Commandant of

Älvsborg Fortress Älvsborg Fortress (), with its main facility Oscar II's Fort () built 1899–1907, is a now-defunct Swedish fortification located at the mouth of the Göta River in the Älvsborg district of Gothenburg, Sweden. History Construction of the fo ...

Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...

in 1941. In 1942,

Älvsborg Coastal Artillery Regiment The Älvsborg Coastal Artillery Regiment (), designation KA 4, was a Swedish Navy coastal artillery regiment of the Swedish Armed Forces which operated between 1942 and 2000. The unit was based in Gothenburg. History After the Swedish Coastal A ...

(KA 4) in Gothenburg was raised and Kolmodin was promoted to colonel and became its first commander. He was at the same time commanding officer of Gothenburg Coastal Artillery Defence. Four year later, Kolmodin became commanding officer of Stockholm Coastal Artillery Defence (''Stockholms kustartilleriförsvar'', SK) and

Defence District Commander The Defence District Commander (, Fobef) within the Swedish Armed Forces was a senior commanding officer who led forces in a geographical/military territorial district, or within a specific area of responsibility. The post was created in 1942 in co ...

of Stockholm Archipelago Defence District (''Stockholms skärgårds försvarsområde'', Fo 46). In 1953, Kolmodin was promoted to major general and appointed Inspector of the Swedish Coastal Artillery. Kolmodin was chairman of the 1958 Defense Command Commission (''1958 års försvarsledningskommission'') and an expert in the 1960 Defense Command Inquiry (''1960 års försvarsledningsutredning''). In 1961, Kolmodin retired from the military and was promoted to lieutenant general.

Personal life

In 1934, Kolmodin married Baroness Christina Leijonhufvud (1902–1994), the daughter of major general, Baron Gösta Leijonhufvud and Sigrid Lagercrantz.

Death

Kolmodin died on 29 August 1978 in Oscar Parish, Stockholm and was interred 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.

Dates of rank

*1916 – Second lieutenant *1918 –

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 ...

*1929 –

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 ...

*1936 –

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 ...

*1941 – Lieutenant colonel *1942 –

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 ...

*1953 – Major general *1961 –

Lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

Awards and decorations

Kolmodin's awards: * Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Commander_Grand_Cross_BAR

Commander Grand Cross 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 ...

(4 June 1960) * Order_of_the_Vasa_-_Ribbon_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 ...

SWE_Home_Guard_Royal_Medal_of_Merit_ribbon

Home Guard Medal of Merit in Gold * Swedish Central Federation for Voluntary Military Training Medal of Merit in silver * Swedish Women's Voluntary Defence Organization Royal Medal of Merit in gold * Swedish Military Sports Association's Gold Medal (''Sveriges militära idrottsförbunds guldmedalj'') * 2 x ''Sjövärnsflottiljen''s Gold Medal * (Sthlmsförsv:KGM) * Stockholm Officers’ Association's Silver Medal (''Stockholms befälsförbunds silvermedalj'') * Coastal Artillery Reserve Officer's Badge of Honor (Kustartilleriets reservofficerares hederstecken)

Foreign

Commander 1st Class 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 ...

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 ...

(1939) *President of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1961–1963) *Member of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences (1943) *Honorary member of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences (1953)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kolmodin, Rudolf 1896 births 1978 deaths Swedish Coastal Artillery lieutenant generals Military personnel from Stockholm Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of the Sword Knights of the Order of Vasa Members of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences