Arne Mohlin

Lieutenant General Arne Herman Mohlin (9 October 1909 – 2 May 1992) was a Swedish Army officer. Mohlin served as Chief of the Army Staff and the General Staff Corps from 1961 to 1963 and he was commanding officer of the VI Military District/Upper Norrland Military District from 1963 to 1972. Mohlin is also famous for being one of two survivors of SS Hansa which was torpedoed in 1944 which killed 84 people.

Arne Mohlin
Mohlin as captain (1940s).
Birth name	Arne Herman Mohlin
Born	(1909-10-09)9 October 1909 Stockholm, Sweden
Died	2 May 1992(1992-05-02) (aged 82) Täby, Sweden
Buried	Djursholm Cemetery
Allegiance	Sweden
Service/branch	Swedish Army
Years of service	1930–1972
Rank	Lieutenant General
Commands held	Göta Engineer Corps Halland Regiment Chief of the Army Staff General Staff Corps VI Military District Upper Norrland Military District

Career

Mohlin was born on 9 October 1909 in Engelbrekt Parish, Stockholm, Sweden,[1] the son of Einar Mohlin, an adjunct lecturer, and his wife Gunhild (née Appelqvist). He was commissioned as an officer with the rank of fänrik in the Fortifikationen (“Royal Engineers”) in 1930 and captain in the Swedish Engineer Troops in 1940. Mohlin served in the General Staff Corps in 1944.[2] In 1944 Mohlin was aboard SS Hansa on his way to a military inspection on Gotland when it was torpedoed by the Soviet submarine L21.[3] 84 people died and two survived, Mohlin and Arne Thuresson, the ship's second mate.[4]

Mohlin was promoted to major in the Engineer Troops in 1948. At this time, Mohlin also served as military expert in the 1949 Defense Investigation.[3] He served in the General Staff Corps in 1949 and was head of the Organization Department of the Army Staff from 1950 to 1953 where he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1952. In 1954 he was appointed commanding officer of the Göta Engineer Corps (Ing 2) and in 1955 he was promoted to colonel in the Engineer Troops.[2]

Mohlin served as commanding officer of Halland Regiment (I 16) from 1957 to 1959[5] and he was also a member of the 1958 Defense Command Committee.[3] He was then as acting military commander of the VI Military District (Milo VI) from 1959 to 1961 when he was promoted to major general. He then served two years as Chief of the Army Staff and the General Staff Corps before being appointed military commander of the VI Military District in 1963. The VI Military District changed name to Upper Norrland Military District (Milo ÖN) in 1966, the same year as Mohlin was promoted to lieutenant general.[5] Mohlin continued to serve as commanding officer of it until his retirement in 1972.[6]

Personal life

In 1937 he married Martha Uhlin (1914–1995), the daughter of captain Martin Uhlin and Dagmar Kullgren. He was the father of Björn (born 1941), Barbro (born 1943) and Karin (born 1946).[7] Mohlin died on 2 May 1992 in Täby Parish[1] and was buried on 2 June 1992 at Djursholm Cemetery.[8]

Dates of rank

• 1930 – Fänrik
• 1935 – Lieutenant
• 1940 – Captain
• 1948 – Major
• 1952 – Lieutenant Colonel
• 1955 – Colonel
• 1961 – Major General
• 1966 – Lieutenant General

Awards and decorations

• Commander First Class of the Order of the Sword[7]
• Knight of the Order of Vasa[7]
• Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1961)[5]

References

1. Sveriges dödbok 1901-2009 [Swedish death index 1901-2009] (in Swedish) (Version 5.0 ed.). Solna: Sveriges släktforskarförbund. 2010. ISBN 978-91-87676-59-8. SELIBR 11931231.
2. Burling, Ingeborg, ed. (1956). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1957 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1957] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. p. 679.
3. "Den siste överlevande från "Hansa" har avlidit" [The last survivor of "Hansa" has died]. Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). 1992-05-09. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
4. "Sovjetisk ubåt sänkte svensk passagerarfärja" [Soviet submarine sank Swedish passenger ferry]. P4 Jämtland (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio. TT. 17 November 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
5. Lagerström, Sten, ed. (1968). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1969 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1969] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. p. 667. SELIBR 3681519.
6. Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1981 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1981] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1980. p. 731. ISBN 91-1-805012-3. SELIBR 3681525.
7. Davidsson, Åke, ed. (1968). Vem är vem?. 5, Norrland : supplement, register [Who's Who?. 5, Norrland : supplements, directory] (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Vem är vem. p. 280. SELIBR 53513.
8. "Arne Mohlin" (in Swedish). Finngraven.se. Retrieved 12 October 2017.

Military offices
Preceded by Gustav Åkerman	Chief of the Army Staff General Staff Corps 1961–1963	Succeeded by Stig Synnergren
Preceded by Nils Björk	VI Military District/Upper Norrland Military District 1963–1972	Succeeded by Nils Personne