Gottfrid Björck

Major General Karl Gottfrid Björck (31 May 1893 – 8 July 1981) was a Swedish Army officer. He served as Inspector of the Swedish Army Service Troops from 1946 to 1949, and as such, was chief of transportation of the White Buses operation to rescue concentration camp inmates in areas under Nazi control and transport them to Sweden.

Gottfrid Björck
Birth name	Karl Gottfrid Björck
Born	31 May 1893 Bäckseda, Sweden
Died	8 July 1981 (aged 88)
Allegiance	Sweden
Service/branch	Swedish Army
Years of service	1915–1949
Rank	Major General
Commands held	Göta Train Corps Swedish Army Service Troops

Career

Björck was born on 31 May 1893 in Bäckseda, Jönköping County, Sweden, the son of merchant Karl Björck and his wife Anna (née Jonsson). He passed studentexamen in 1913 and was commissioned into the Swedish Army Service Troops as fänrik in 1915. Björck attended the Royal Swedish Army Staff College from 1922 to 1924 and served as captain in the General Staff from 1928 to 1934.[1] In 1936, Björck was appointed aide-de-camp to His Majesty the King, and in 1941 he was appointed chief aide-de-camp (överadjutant) to His Majesty the King, a position he held until the king died in 1950.[2]

He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in the Swedish Army Service Troops and was appointed commanding officer of Göta Train Corps (T 2) in 1939. Two years later, Björck was promoted to colonel in the Swedish Army Service Troops and assumed the position as head of the Information and Press Department of the Defence Staff. In 1942 he was appointed head of Troop Department at the Office of the Army Inspector.[1] The same year Björck became a member of the Folkberedskapsnämnden ("National Preparedness Commission").[3] He was also a military member of Statens informationsstyrelse ("National Information Board") from 1942 to 30 June 1944[4][5] and chairman of the board of the Kungafonden ("The King's Fund") from 1943 to 1958.[6]

Björck served as Inspector of the Swedish Army Service Troops from 1946 to 1949 when he was promoted to major general.[7] While serving as Inspector of the Swedish Army Service Troops, Björck was appointed chief of transportation of the White Buses operation to rescue concentration camp inmates in areas under Nazi control and transport them to Sweden.[8] In 1949, Björck became a member of the Statens organisationsnämnd ("National Organization Board") which he was until 1961.[7] Björck worked as a consultant at the Swedish Agency for Administrative Development (Statskontoret) from 1961 to 1965.[9]

Personal life

In 1918 he married Hovsångerska Irma Krook (1898–1993), the daughter of Nils Krook and Anna Jacobsson.[10] Björck was the father of Flory (born 1919) and Sven (born 1923).[6]

Dates of rank

• 1915 – Fänrik
• 19?? – Lieutenant
• 1928 – Captain
• 19?? – Major
• 1939 – Lieutenant Colonel
• 1941 – Colonel
• 1949 – Major General

Awards and decorations

Swedish

• King Gustaf V's Jubilee Commemorative Medal (1948)[6]
• King Gustaf V's Jubilee Commemorative Medal (1928)[6]
• King Gustaf V's Commemorative Medal (1951)[6]
• Commander First Class of the Order of the Sword[6]
• Commander First Class of the Order of Vasa[6]
• Knight of the Order of the Polar Star[6]
• First Class of the Voluntary Motor Transportation Corps Medal of Merit (Frivilliga Automobilkårens förtjänstmedalj av 1:a klass)[1]
• Shooting Medal[1]

Foreign

• Commander Second Class of the Order of the Dannebrog[6]
• Commander of the Order of St. Olav[6]
• Knight First Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland[6]
• Commander First Class of the Order of the Lion of Finland[6]

Honours

• Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1939)[5]

References

1. Harnesk, Paul, ed. (1945). Vem är vem?. D. 1, Stockholmsdelen [Who's Who?. D. 1, Stockholm part] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Vem är vem bokförlag. p. 88. SELIBR 8198269.
2. Burling, Ingeborg, ed. (1956). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1957 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1957] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. p. 107.
3. Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1943 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1943] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1940. p. 90. SELIBR 10335454.
4. Svensson, Stina; Ekstedt, Tage, eds. (1955). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1955 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1955] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. p. 103. SELIBR 3681511.
5. Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1945 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1945] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1945. p. 123. SELIBR 8261511.
6. Harnesk, Paul, ed. (1962). Vem är vem? 1, Stor-Stockholm [Who's Who? 1, Greater Stockholm] (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Vem är vem. p. 151. SELIBR 53509.
7. Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1981 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1981] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1980. p. 112. ISBN 91-1-805012-3. SELIBR 3681525.
8. Hadenius, Stig (2007). Vem var Folke Bernadotte? [Who was Folke Bernadotte?] (in Swedish). Lund: Historiska media. ISBN 978-91-85377-72-5. SELIBR 10266192.
9. Lagerström, Sten, ed. (1966). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1967 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1967] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. p. 100. SELIBR 3681518.
10. Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1939 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1939] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1939. p. 93. SELIBR 3681516.