"...In the very first days of the war, a German division was passed through the territory of Sweden for operations in Northern Finland. However, the Prime Minister of Sweden, Social Democrat P. A. Hansson, immediately promised the Swedish people that no more troops would be allowed through the territory of Sweden. one German division and that the country would in no way enter into a war against the USSR. And yet, the transit of German soldiers and military materials to Finland and Norway began through Sweden; German transport ships transported troops there, taking refuge in the territorial waters of Sweden, and until the winter of 1942/ In 1943 they were accompanied by a convoy of Swedish naval forces. The Nazis secured the supply of Swedish goods on credit and their transportation mainly on Swedish ships..."

"...It was Swedish iron ore that was the best raw material for Hitler. After all, this ore contained 60 percent pure iron, while the ore received by the German military machine from other places contained only 30 percent iron. It is clear that production military equipment made of metal smelted from Swedish ore, it cost the treasury of the Third Reich much less.
In 1939, the same year when Hitler's Germany unleashed the Second world war, it was supplied with 10.6 million tons of Swedish ore. After April 9, that is, when Germany had already conquered Denmark and Norway, ore supplies increased significantly. In 1941, 45 thousand tons of Swedish ore were supplied daily by sea for the needs of the German military industry. Little by little Sweden's trade with Nazi Germany grew and eventually accounted for 90 percent of all Swedish foreign trade. From 1940 to 1944, the Swedes sold more than 45 million tons of iron ore to the Nazis.
The Swedish port of Luleå was specially converted to supply iron ore to Germany through the Baltic waters. (And only Soviet submarines after June 22, 1941, at times caused great inconvenience to the Swedes, torpedoing Swedish transports in whose holds this ore was transported). Supplies of ore to Germany continued almost until the moment when the Third Reich had already begun, figuratively speaking, to give up the ghost. Suffice it to say that in 1944, when the outcome of the Second World War was no longer in doubt, the Germans received 7.5 million tons of iron ore from Sweden. Until August 1944, Sweden received Nazi gold through the banks of the same neutral Switzerland.

In other words, wrote Norschensflamman, “Swedish iron ore ensured the Germans’ success in the war. And this was a bitter fact for all Swedish anti-fascists.”
However, Swedish iron ore came to the Germans not only in the form of raw materials.
The world-famous SKF concern, which produced ball bearings, supplied these, not so, at first glance, tricky technical mechanisms to Germany. Ten percent of the ball bearings received by Germany came from Sweden, according to Norschensflamman. Anyone, even someone completely inexperienced in military affairs, understands what ball bearings mean for the production of military equipment. But without them, not a single tank will move, not a single submarine will go to sea! Note that Sweden, as Norschensflamman noted, produced bearings of “special quality and technical characteristics", which Germany could not obtain from anywhere else. In 1945, economist and economic adviser Per Jakobsson provided information that helped disrupt the supply of Swedish bearings to Japan.

Let's think: how many lives were cut short because formally neutral Sweden provided Nazi Germany with strategic and military products, without which the flywheel of the Nazi war mechanism would, of course, continue to spin, but certainly not at such a high speed as it was? The issue of “infringed” Swedish neutrality during the Second World War is not new; Russian Scandinavian historians and diplomats, who by their nature worked in the USSR Foreign Ministry in the Scandinavian direction, are well aware of this. But not even many of them are aware of the fact that in the autumn of 1941, that very cruel autumn, when the existence of the entire Soviet state was at stake (and therefore, as a consequence, the fate of the peoples inhabiting it), King Gustav V Adolf of Sweden sent Hitler a letter in which he wished “dear Reich Chancellor further success in the fight against Bolshevism..."

Hermann Goering and Gustav V Adolf

1941-1944
900 Swedish Nazis participated in the occupation of the USSR as part of the Finnish army.

Wallenberg family
With great reluctance and awkwardness, the Wallenberg family remembers that during the war years the Wallenbergs took part in the financing and supply of iron ore to Hitler's Germany from Sweden (from 1940 to 1944, the Nazis received more than 45 million tons of ore), steel, ball bearings, electrical equipment, tools , pulp and other goods that were used in military production.

Many in Sweden still remember this and reproach the Wallenbergs for collaborating with the Nazis.

The Wallenberg family, through banking and industrial empires from major corporations and stakes in other large companies, controls a third of Sweden's GDP.
The family controls more than 130 companies.
The largest: ABB, Atlas Copco, AstraZeneca, Bergvik Skog, Electrolux, Ericsson, Husqvarna, Investor, Saab, SEB, SAS, SKF, Stora Enso. 36% of shares listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange belong to the Wallenbergs.

The Wallenberg-owned bank SEB received more than $4.5 million from the German Central Bank between May 1940 and June 1941 and acted as a purchasing agent (through intermediaries) for the German government in the purchase of bonds and securities in New York. .

In April 1941, Finance Minister Ernst Wigforss and SEB Bank President Jacob Wallenberg agreed to issue a loan to Germany for the construction of ships in Swedish shipyards, the Nazis received a very significant amount for those times - 40 million crowns, which corresponds to today's 830 millions of crowns.

Swedish historian and ambassador Christer Wahl Brooks, together with archivist Bo Hammarlund, proved the duality of the Swedish Ministry of Finance's policies during the Second World War. The head of this department, Ernst Wigforst, went down in history as an opponent of the passage of Nazi troops through Sweden during the attack on Norway. Val Brooks found out that Wigforst actively helped Nazi Germany with money, although he did it in Swedish interests.

As part of a routine check in the archives of the Ministry of Finance, Hammarlund found a document in the form of a letter dating from April 1941, reports the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter. This letter was written by the director of the Swedish bank Skandinaviska Banken, Ernst Herslov, but was never officially registered.

The letter states summary conversation between the Minister of Finance and Herslov. Wigforst argued for the need to send Germany loans that would allow the Nazis to pay for the work of Swedish shipbuilders. “The minister made it clear that it would be desirable to provide loans,” Herslov wrote. In reality, the money was supposed to help Sweden increase exports to Nazi Germany. According to historians, the existence of such secret deals is a much more serious indication of assistance to the Nazis than the opening of borders for the free movement of Nazi troops.

The researcher was shocked that such important conversations from a state point of view were conducted one-on-one between the minister and the banker. By law, a decision to provide loans to a foreign country would have to be approved by the Swedish government. “One can understand why Wigforst avoided publicity in this matter,” writes Dagens Nyheter.

The text of the letter indicates that Wigforst managed to secure the allocation of loans.

Historians found confirmation of their hypothesis in the diaries of the head of the Swedish central bank, Ivar Rooh. He mentioned that his company allocated significant sums to ensure that Germany supplied Sweden with fewer products in response to iron ore and other raw materials exported from Scandinavia for the war industry.

According to Val Brooks and Hammarlund, the amount of bribes reached 40 million crowns.

The letter also indicates that in the spring of 1941 Germany continued to actively build ships in Sweden, although Stockholm officially declared its neutrality. A similar policy was pursued by Madrid, which helped with the basing of Nazi submarines and the placement of Berlin spies, but did not officially consider itself a belligerent.

Ingvar Feodor Kamprad(Swedish: Ingvar Feodor Kamprad) (born March 30, 1926) is an entrepreneur from Sweden. One of richest people world, founder of IKEA, a chain of stores selling household goods.

In 1994, the personal letters of Swedish fascist activist Per Engdahl were published. From them it became known that Kamprad joined his pro-Nazi group in 1942. At least until September 1945, he was actively raising money for the group and attracting new members. The timing of Kamprad's departure from the group is unknown, but he and Per Endahl remained friends until the early 1950s. After these facts became known, Kamprad said that he bitterly regretted this part of his life and considers it one of his most big mistakes. After this, he wrote a letter of apology to all Jewish IKEA employees.

The founder of the Swedish furniture concern IKEA, Ingvar Kamprad, was much more closely associated with the Nazi movement than was previously known. Thus, Kamprad was not only a member of the fascist movement “New Swedish Movement” / Nysvenska rörelsen, but also in the Nazi Lindholm Association / Lindholmsrörelse. This became known from a book by an employee of the Swedish television SVT - Elisabeth Åsbrink.

This book also publishes for the first time data that a case was opened against the 17-year-old Kamprad, already in 1943, by the Swedish Security Police Säpo, where he was held under the heading “Nazi.”

After the war, in the 50s, Kamprad continued to be friends with one of the leaders of the Swedish fascists, Per Engdahl. And just a year ago, in a conversation with Elisabeth Osbrink, he called Engdahl a “great man.”

Ingvar Kamprad's involvement in the Nazi movement in Sweden was known earlier, but this information had not been published before.

Ingvar Kamprad's spokesman, Per Heggenes, said that Kamprad had already repeatedly apologized and asked for forgiveness for his past Nazi views. He has repeatedly said that today he has no sympathy for the Nazis or Nazism.

“This whole story is 70 years old,” said Pär Heggenes, noting that Kamprad himself knew nothing about the fact that he was being monitored by the Security Police.

Historians question Sweden's neutrality during World War II

A number of studies commissioned by the Swedish government confirm assumptions that Sweden, which officially remained neutral during the Second World War, was ready to meet Nazi Germany halfway in many ways.

The revelation may add fuel to debate over the country's immigration policies and Sweden's decision not to join NATO.

Once powerful and warlike, Sweden last time took part in the war 200 years ago. The Second World War was a serious test of Swedish neutrality. The prospect of an invasion by both fascist troops and allies seemed quite realistic at that time.

Until now, Sweden seemed to be quite pleased with itself. Yes, it supplied a significant amount of iron ore to Germany, allowed Nazi troops to pass unhindered through its territory and did not allow in Jews fleeing from the Germans.

However, at the same time, they allowed the Allies to develop an intelligence network on their territory, and at the end of the war they provided refuge to Jews from neighboring countries occupied by the Germans. They also developed an emergency plan to participate in the liberation of Denmark.

Thus, Swedes who married Germans had to provide evidence that their parents, as well as grandparents, did not have Jewish roots. Marriages between Germans and Swedish Jews were annulled.

By order of their German partners, German companies fired Jewish employees. Newspapers were ordered not to criticize Hitler and not to publish articles about the concentration camps or the occupation of Norway.

Cultural ties between Sweden and Nazi Germany remained very close.

Meanwhile, the Nazis' attitude towards the Swedes remains very vague. On the one hand, they were respected as “an exceptionally pure example of the Nordic race.” On the other hand, the German leadership complained that modern Swedes had become too peace-loving and non-conflict, that is, they bore little resemblance to the ideal of the Aryan warrior.

Neighboring countries often accuse Sweden of taking an overly preachy tone when it comes to moral and ethical debates. Some attribute this to the country's Protestant heritage. Some see this as a throwback to Sweden's once "dominant" position. Still others believe that complacency is explained by the fact that Sweden has not been at war for a long time.

Whatever the real reason, it is likely that Swedes will now be more willing to moderate their tone and become more self-critical, and recognize that their past may not seem so blameless to other countries. An example of this is the recent controversy over Sweden's controversial human sterilization program.

According to the 1935 "racial hygiene" law, because they did not have a sufficiently "Nordic" appearance, they were born from parents of different races or showed "signs of degeneration."

In the 1920s, 30s and 40s. The idea of ​​“racial hygiene” was extremely popular not only in Germany. Denmark, Norway, Canada, and 30 American states have implemented sterilization programs.

Marie Stopes, a pioneer of family planning in Britain, was a strong advocate of this idea: she argued that by encouraging working-class people to have fewer children and upper-class people to have more children, the gene pool of the Anglo-Saxon nation could be improved.

However, most European countries abandoned this idea after the war. The Swedish Institute of Racial Biology continued to operate until 1976.

It is also interesting that sterilization was advocated not only by far-right nationalists, but also by governments formed by Social Democrats.

Sweden received even more military orders after the outbreak of World War II. And mostly these were orders for Nazi Germany. Neutral Sweden became one of the main economic pillars of the national Reich. Suffice it to say that in 1943 alone, of the 10.8 million tons of iron ore mined, 10.3 million tons were sent to Germany from Sweden. Until now, few people know that one of the main tasks of the ships of the Soviet Navy that fought in the Baltic was There was not only a fight against fascist ships, but also the destruction of ships of neutral Sweden carrying cargo for the Nazis.

Well, how did the Nazis and the Swedes pay for the goods they received from them? Only by what they plundered in the territories they occupied and most of all - in Soviet occupied territories. The Germans had almost no other resources for settlements with Sweden. So, when they once again tell you about “Swedish happiness,” remember who paid for it for the Swedes and at whose expense.

The period of preparation for war,

Sweden during World War II

wars, coalition rule

government

/248/ In his famous speech at Skansen on August 27, 1939, Prime Minister Per Albin Hansson declared: “Our preparedness for war must be considered good.” He meant economic side of preparations for war. Important raw materials were stockpiled. The main threat in Sweden was considered a possible blockade of the country, as happened during the First World War. On September 1, in connection with the outbreak of war between Germany and Poland, the government published a declaration of neutrality. After the outbreak of war between England/France and Germany, on September 3, another declaration of neutrality was issued.

The Soviet Union used the non-aggression pact with Germany to strengthen its position. Bases were established in the Baltic states. Representatives of Finland were also summoned to Moscow, but the parties were unable to reach any agreement, and the Soviet Union attacked Finland on November 30, 1939.

In Sweden this caused an internal political crisis. Foreign Minister Sandler was more determined to help Finland than other members of the government. Sandler was forced to resign. 13 Dec- /249/ A coalition government was formed, consisting of representatives of Social Democracy, the Right Party, the People's Party and the Peasant Union. Per Albin Hansson remained prime minister. Diplomat Christian Günther became Foreign Minister.

The “Winter War” in Finland deeply hurt the feelings of the Swedish people. Under the slogan “Finland’s cause is our cause,” various types of assistance were organized for the Finns. The Swedish government provided Finland with significant loans. Weapons were sent to our eastern neighbor. Good results gave a collection of funds and things. A volunteer corps was created, which by the end of the war numbered 12 thousand people. The solidarity movement also demanded that regular troops be sent to Finland, but the government refused this. The Freikorps did not participate in major operations, but relieved the Finnish army of guard duty in the vast border areas of Northern Finland.

It ended with the Soviet Union. Finland managed to maintain its independence, but it lost a significant part of its territories. Less than a month later, on April 9, the next blow to the Nordic countries was dealt: Germany attacked Denmark and Norway. Denmark was occupied in one day, and the Norwegians resisted. German troops in northern Norway found themselves in a particularly difficult situation. The Germans demanded from Sweden permission to transport weapons to their formations in the north, but the Swedish government refused them this. After the end of the war in Norway, it admitted, however, that the Germans sent their soldiers for rest or re-formation using Swedish railways. This transit lasted until 1943.

In 1940–1941, Sweden was under strong pressure from Germany. In his foreign policy Sweden tried to adapt to the new balance of power in Europe. It provided Germany with all sorts of privileges. The biggest concession came in June 1941, when a fully armed German division was sent along the Swedish railway from Norway to Finland. (See section Swedish policy of concessions during the Second World War.)

The government called on the Swedish press to be careful in its assessments of events on the world stage, so as not to upset relations. /250/ ties with a powerful neighbor to the south. Most of the funds mass media showed understanding of the problem and followed the rules of strict self-censorship. But some newspapers refused to “break ranks” and published openly anti-Nazi articles. The most famous in this sense were the Gothenburgs Handels o Schöfartstidning, published by Torgny Segerstedt, and the weekly Trots Alt, published by the writer and social democrat Thure Nerman. Publications containing articles that could irritate the Germans were destroyed or confiscated. This policy reached its peak in March 1942, when no fewer than 17 newspapers were seized because they contained articles about German torture of members of the Norwegian Resistance. In 1943, when military fortunes turned against the Germans, the confiscation of newspapers stopped. The restrictions on freedom of speech have been heavily criticized. After the war, in 1949, under new legislation on freedom of the press, the provision for freedom of expression was strengthened. However, there were groups of the population who wanted a rapprochement between Sweden and Germany, as they believed that the latter would emerge victorious from the war. The concessions that were made to the Germans did not seem to be some kind of “concessions”, but only a natural adaptation to the future winner. Even if we take into account that the number of Nazis in Sweden was small, during the period of Germany’s victories there was a trend friendly towards this country. The violence committed by the Germans in Denmark and Norway did not allow these sentiments to be advertised or made public.

After Germany attacked Denmark and Norway, Sweden's contacts with the West were disrupted. The Germans laid minefields from the southern coast of Norway to the northern tip of Jutland. Sweden could not conduct free maritime trade. It began to depend on imports from Germany: coal and coke were imported as energy sources, artificial fertilizers for agriculture and raw materials for industry. In exchange, it supplied Germany with large quantities of iron ore, bearings and timber. At the end of 1940, the government managed to force the Germans and the British to agree to limited shipping connections with Western countries through mined areas. It was the so-called guaranteed shipping. Thus, Sweden could import certain goods that were important to it, primarily oil, hides, leather, as well as such “luxury goods” as coffee.

The reduction in foreign trade had negative consequences for the Swedish economy. To curb inflation, in 1942 /251/ prices and wages were frozen. Despite the difficulties, the country was able to maintain relatively high level life. It is estimated that real wages have fallen by 10–15%. For certain

For groups of the population, such as peasants, the blockade created the opportunity to raise prices for their products. They're up about 40%.

Many men, fit for military service by age, were regularly called up for retraining to receive military education and perform coast guard service “somewhere in Sweden.” Despite the tedious work, retraining for many it was a distraction from everyday life. The feeling of camaraderie and shared experiences made us remember these events with a nostalgic feeling even after a number of years.

During the war, Sweden began to arm itself intensively. In 1936, many believed that 148 million crowns was too much for defense. In 1941–1942, the defense budget reached 1846 million, that is, it exceeded the original figure by more than ten times. There were heated discussions in the government about how to finance rapidly growing defense spending. Social Democrats believed that this burden should be borne by everyone according to their income, that is, that the rich should pay proportionately more than ordinary workers. The right, in contrast, believed that everyone should pay an equal percentage of defense costs, subject to compensation for the poorest groups. The policies pursued by the coalition government can be seen as a compromise. State control was introduced for the most important food products, such as butter and milk. /252/ subsidies to ensure that rising agricultural prices do not hit the poorest people too hard. Tax oppression also increased during the war. By 1943

This year the estimated value of taxes increased by 35%. To distribute scarce goods, they were formed administrative bodies wartime. In fact, a kind of planned economy was introduced, on the basis of which all economic life was regulated. The liberal market economy has largely been abandoned.

During the final period of the war, the Swedish people were primarily interested in events in the neighboring northern countries. The Swedes deeply resented the German terrorist regime in Norway and the attempts of the Norwegian Nazi leader Vidkun Quisling to force the Norwegians to submit to Nazism. Sweden also followed developments in Denmark with unflagging interest. Thanks to cooperation between Danish politicians and the Swedish government, virtually the entire Jewish population of Denmark was able to move to Sweden in October 1943. Thus, it avoided deportation to concentration camps and destruction. Since 1943, Danes and Norwegians who moved to Sweden received military education in specially organized camps. It was believed that at the end of the war they should take part in military operations to liberate their countries and restore order there. In February 1945, the Norwegian government, which was located in London, expressed the wish that the Swedish army would be ready to enter Norway to disarm the Germans. The Swedish Defense Headquarters had been developing plans for invasion of both Norway and Denmark since the autumn of 1942. But the government, as before, remained cautious. It was believed that a favorable opportunity was emerging for a peaceful end to the German occupation in Norway and Denmark. Swedish intervention would be unnecessary in this case. And so it happened. Day- /253/ Indeed, German troops surrendered two days before the end of the war in Europe.

IN last year During the war, refugees from Germany and the Baltic states poured into Sweden. The Soviet Union demanded in June 1945 that Sweden hand over all soldiers who arrived there in German military uniform. We were talking about two thousand soldiers. The overwhelming majority were Germans, but there were about a hundred Balts there. The government resolutely refused to hand over 30 thousand. civilians, fled to Sweden. As for the Balts who arrived in the country in German uniforms, the government considered itself bound by the obligation given to the allies even before the end of the war that this category of persons would be expelled to their places of residence. The government sought to establish a trusting relationship with the Soviet Union after the war and was afraid that refusal would be perceived negatively. The prestige of the Soviet Union during this period was the highest, since the contribution of this state to the victory over Nazi Germany was the most significant. But public opinion in Sweden was against the extradition of the Baltic states. They were afraid that these people would be severely punished in the Soviet Union. However, the government remained firm in its decision. At the end of 1946, scenes occurred that could not but excite: 145 people from the Baltic states were handed over to the Soviet authorities. For many, this fact became a shameful stain on Sweden's reputation as a humane nation.

During the war, Sweden was the organizer of several humanitarian actions: in 1942, grain supplies to Greece, whose population was experiencing hunger. The Netherlands also received similar assistance. Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg made an important contribution to saving Jews from Nazi persecution in Hungary in 1944. Folke Bernadotte, vice-chairman of the Swedish Red Cross, negotiated with Nazi leader G. Himmler at the end of the war for the release of Norwegian and Danish resistance members from German concentration camps. Gradually Himmler agreed to this. Those released were transported to Sweden on so-called “white buses”. Later, other prisoners were transported on these buses, receiving asylum in Sweden.

On May 7, 1945, a message arrived that Germany had capitulated. The war in Europe is over. “It feels like this endless nightmare has finally ended,” the prime minister said in a radio speech. For our northern neighbors, the war turned out to be a difficult ordeal. Sweden, thanks to its cautious policy, was able to very easily /254/ survive this time. Finland lost 80 thousand people. Of those who were 20–25 years old at the beginning of the war, 10% died. At the end of the war, 50 thousand children were left without fathers in Finland. Norway lost 10 thousand people during the war. Most of them were sailors on merchant ships. During the war, many Swedish sailors also died.

The war contributed to a certain leveling of class differences in Sweden. People from various social strata took part in long-term military retraining. During the war, national feelings were more strongly expressed, which contributed to a sense of unity.

The war led to freer forms of communication between the sexes. Conservative circles opposed this. A heated debate arose on the issue of the so-called “harm from dance floors.” They were believed to encourage alcohol abuse and sexual promiscuity.

Political life was generally calm. Sweden held elections three times during the war years: in 1940, 1942 and 1944 (local elections were held in 1942). The 1940 elections were a great success for the Social Democrats, who received about 54% of the vote, the highest ever seen in the history of Swedish Social Democracy. It was said that the people voted for Per Albin Hansson because, in the opinion of many, he saved Sweden from war. A significant reason that Sweden did not participate in the hostilities was that Germany, after occupying Denmark and Norway, had no motive to attack Sweden. This country was of interest to Germany, primarily as a supplier of iron ore.

On the eve of the Second World War and at its beginning, the Scandinavian countries sought, as in the First World War, to adhere to a policy of neutrality. This foreign policy course found support among the population of Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The working masses of these countries saw in the policy of neutrality an opportunity to avoid being drawn into an armed conflict of imperialist coalitions, which was deeply alien to their interests. The bourgeoisie hoped to use the conditions of neutrality to increase profits on military supplies and ship chartering.

The governments of Norway, Denmark and Sweden intended to regulate their relations with the states of the warring factions so that neither one nor the other could accuse them of being one-sided. Based on past experience, they counted on the success of such a political course. But the situation was different. If in 1914 - 1918. Since the Scandinavian countries found themselves on the sidelines of the main highways of the war, they have now become important objects of the policy and strategy of both imperialist coalitions. First of all, the Scandinavian countries and their neighboring Finland provided a convenient springboard for unleashing aggression against the USSR. At the same time, dominance in Scandinavia provided obvious advantages for one imperialist group in the fight against another, opened up the possibility of expanding the system of basing naval and air forces, and using the economic resources of the area, in particular Swedish iron ore and timber.

Already on September 4, 1939, the British War Cabinet discussed the issue of Norwegian neutrality and its significance, which it acquired at that time for the Western Allies (138). On September 19 and 29, W. Churchill demanded to blockade Narvik and lay minefields in Norwegian territorial waters to prevent the supply of Swedish iron ore to Germany.

The strategic pause in the actions of the Wehrmacht ground forces, which occurred in Europe after the end of the German-Polish War, and the fact that Germany, having captured Poland, did not continue its “natural” path to the east, increased the attention of the Western powers to the Scandinavian bridgehead. Their original plan, as noted, was to use this springboard to attack the Soviet Union and then draw Germany into a united campaign against the USSR. After Czechoslovakia and Poland, the Scandinavian countries thus became the next victim of the policies of the Western powers. “The allies,” writes the English historian A. Taylor, “turned their gaze to the north...” (139)

On October 31, 1939, the Committee of Chiefs of Staff of the British Armed Forces, on instructions from the Chamberlain government, devoted a meeting to discussing the issue of declaring war on the Soviet Union under the pretext of “protecting the Scandinavian countries from Soviet aggression.” At the very beginning of this discussion, they were forced to state that “there is no question of Russia being able to attack Norway and Sweden through Finland in the winter” (140). However, in its recommendation to the government, the Committee of Chiefs of Staff emphasized that any weakening of tension near the borders of the Soviet Union, including in the Scandinavian region, “will increasingly turn the West into the decisive front of the armed struggle” (141). In the minutes of the British War Cabinet there is an entry that “the spread of Bolshevism is a worse evil than the spread of Hitlerism, against which we entered the war. The danger, therefore, is that if we fail to move decisively against Russia, we risk losing the sympathy of neutral states, which will lead to serious military consequences" (142).

The plan to draw the Scandinavian countries into the war, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff of England believed, had “many advantages and could become decisive. It will certainly force the Germans to act immediately, force them to disperse their forces and get involved in hostilities not only in the land theater... This will be the most effective means preventing German advances on other fronts" (143). The Chief of the General Staff of the National Defense of France, General Gamelin, shared the same opinion. He was an ardent supporter of the landing of expeditionary forces in Narvik in order to somehow “pull” the Germans into Scandinavia, after which they would “forget about the western front - the most important for England and France” (144)

With the beginning of the Finnish-Soviet military conflict, the allied governments, in the words of English Field Marshal A. Brooke, with the “excitement of beast hunters” began to create a new front in Northern Europe (145).

The fascist leadership, like the Western allies, understood the strategic importance of the Scandinavian bridgehead, which, according to Hitler, “has become an area of ​​​​interest of decisive importance for both warring parties” (146).

The capture of the Scandinavian bridgehead gave Germany the opportunity to strengthen the defense of the northern flank of the Reich and, in addition, made it possible to threaten the strategic reach of Great Britain from the east. True, this danger was somewhat reduced, since the range of most German aircraft, if they were based at Norwegian airfields, was insufficient to bomb England, and especially France.

When developing plans to seize the Scandinavian countries, Hitler's leadership took into account the possibility of basing their naval forces on the Norwegian coast. This, in the opinion of the fascist German command, had both positive and negative aspects. “German occupation of Norwegian coastal bases,” Raeder reported on December 12, 1939, “will naturally cause strong British retaliation. As a result, serious events will occur off the Norwegian coast. naval battles, and German navy I am not ready to cope with such a task for a long time. In the event of the occupation of Norway, this will be one of the vulnerable places" (147). Despite this, Raeder insisted on capturing Norway.

The main significance of the Scandinavian bridgehead for the fascist command was determined by the prospect of a war against the USSR. From here it was most convenient to block sea routes from the Soviet Arctic. Back in 1937, the fascist magazine Deutsche Wehr emphasized that for the USSR, the sea route to Murmansk around Norway would be the only connection with the ocean in a future war, and protecting this route was extremely important for the USSR. Its violation in the Russian-German war, it was said further, is of great importance. This explained Germany's great interest in the northern Norwegian fiords, which could become strongholds for Germany's blockade of the sea route to Murmansk.

The countries were able, like Sweden, to officially maintain this position throughout the Second World War; these were Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Vatican City, San Marino and Switzerland. The social democratic Swedish government made several concessions, sometimes breaking neutrality to benefit both Germany and the Western Allies.

Sweden's cooperation with opponents of the USSR

During the German attack on the USSR, Sweden allowed the Wehrmacht to use Swedish railways to transport (June-July 1941) the German 163rd Infantry Division along with howitzers, tanks, anti-aircraft guns and ammunition from Norway to Finland. German soldiers traveling on leave from Norway and Germany were allowed to pass through Sweden. In total, 12 thousand Swedes served in the armed forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.

Iron ore was sold by Sweden to Germany throughout the war. Since Swedish ore contained twice as much iron as ore mined in Germany, Czechoslovakia or France, about 40% of German weapons were made from Swedish iron.

Cooperation between Sweden and the USSR

During the last year of the war, Sweden accepted refugees from Germany and the Baltic states. In June 1945, the Soviet Union demanded the extradition of about two thousand soldiers who arrived in Sweden in German military uniform. The bulk of them were Germans. The Swedish government refused to extradite them, as did the 30 thousand civilians who fled to the country. However, at the beginning of 1946, 145 Baltic legionnaires and 227 Germans who committed war crimes on the territory of the USSR were extradited to the Soviet Union. However, most of the Nazi soldiers, including the Swedes, remained in the country and were not punished for their crimes.

Sweden's cooperation with Western allies

Swedish military intelligence assisted [ When?] to train soldiers and refugees from Denmark and Norway in military affairs. The Allies used Swedish air bases in 1944 and 1945. Sweden also became a refuge for anti-Nazi and Jewish refugees from all over Europe. In 1943, while hiding from an order to deport the Jewish population from Denmark to concentration camps, about 8,000 Jews fled to Sweden [ ] . Sweden also became a refuge for Norwegian Jews who fled Nazi-occupied Norway.

Notes

Literature

In English

• Carlgren, W. M. Swedish foreign policy during the Second World War(London: E. Benn, 1977)
• Fritz, Martin. The Adaptable Nation: essays in Swedish economy during the Second World War(Göteborg: Ekonomisk-historiska inst., Univ.: 1982)
• Gilmour, John. Sweden, the Swastika, and Stalin: The Swedish Experience in the Second World War(2011) online
• Levine Paul A. “Swedish neutrality during the Second World War: tactical success or moral compromise?” in Wylie, Neville, European neutrals and non-belligerents during the Second World War(Cambridge University Press, 2002)
• Levine, Paul A. From indifference to activism: Swedish diplomacy and the Holocaust, 1938-1944(Uppsala: Univ.: 1996)
• Ludlow, Peter. "Britain and Northern Europe 1940-1945", Scandinavian Journal of History (1979) 4: 123-62
• Ross, John. Neutrality and International Sanctions. - New York: Praeger, 1989. - ISBN 978-0-275-93349-4.
• Scott, Carl-Gustaf (2002). “The Swedish Midsummer Crisis of 1941: The Crisis that Never Was.” . 37 (3). OCLC.
• Wahlbäck, Krister. "Sweden: Secrecy and Neutrality", Journal of Contemporary History (1967) 2#1
• Ziemke, Earl F. (1960). "Command Decisions" United States. Dept. of the Army. Office of Military History. OCLC. Parameter |contribution= missing (help in English)

In Swedish

• Adolfsson, Mats. Bondeuppror och gatustrider: 1719–1932: . - Natur och kultur; Svenskt militärhistoriskt bibliotek, 2007. -

In Russian educational institutions, teachers together with students are busy preparing a lesson on peace. And if a few years ago, let’s be honest, even in the teaching community the peace lesson held on September 1 was perceived as something more “on duty” than truly relevant, now the situation has changed radically. It has changed, since the very concept of “peace” has been updated against the background of well-known events.

And it’s difficult to stay outside of this actualization when very close by exactly the same people are experiencing the whole nightmare that war brings with it: they are losing loved ones and relatives, they are losing their homes, they are faced with the reincarnation of ideas of misanthropy.

Together with the realization that the lesson of peace is absolutely in any educational institution country ceases to be a “passing” event, but by definition must carry a very deep meaning, attention is drawn to the increased interest of the younger generation (and not only the young) of Russians in history. The reasons are basically the same - events in a neighboring state, where distortion of history is becoming one of the main drivers of the fratricidal war.

During a conversation with students, teachers involved in preparing a lesson on peace, we touched upon a very interesting topic. The topic concerns how, in the conditions of world wars, some states resist aggressive campaigns, while others, without hesitation, declare their neutrality and quite calmly turn enormous human grief into more than profitable business. The topic seemed relevant also due to the fact that for a considerable number of representatives of modern students with whom they have the opportunity to work, information about the presence of “neutrals” in World War II who escaped the Nazi occupation and the need for armed resistance was a real revelation. And I will quote one of the questions voiced verbatim, especially since it, as they say, hits the nail on the head: “Was it possible?” It’s not that the young man who asked such a question wanted to say that the USSR also had to declare neutrality, it’s just that we are talking about a completely understandable surprise, which the very fact of the possibility of declaring neutrality in a WORLD WAR can cause.

Historiography tells us that one of the European states that declared neutrality in World War II was Sweden. This state and its “neutrality” will be discussed in the material. In order for the subject of discussion to be, as they say, illustrated, it is worth immediately presenting this entertaining photograph.

The photographer reports that the photo shows the diplomatic mission of the Third Reich in May 1945 in the Swedish capital. On the flagpole crowning the diplomatic mission, you can see the flag of Nazi Germany at half-mast in connection with (attention!) the death of Adolf Hitler... It would seem that this is some kind of phantasmagoria, a theater of the absurd: the victory of the Allies, May 1945, neutral Sweden and suddenly - mourning of death the main ideologist of a monstrous campaign that claimed the lives of tens of millions of people around the world. Just one question: How is this possible?..

But this question is actually easy to answer. By and large, Sweden during the Second World War, declaring its neutrality, did not intend to be neutral at all. Quite definite sympathies for Nazi Germany and its leader showed themselves in the mid-30s. To be honest, at that time not only German citizens applauded Hitler’s speeches and raised their hands in a Nazi salute...

Even the occupation of Sweden's neighbor Norway by the Nazis, which began in 1940, did not cause a negative reaction from neutral Stockholm. After several meetings between the “neutral” Swedish king Gustav V and representatives of the top of the Third Reich, “independent” Swedish newspapers and magazines, as if by the wave of a conductor’s baton, suddenly stopped publishing articles that contained at least some hint of criticism of the actions of the Nazis in Europe. All this was called "temporary censorship due to the military situation in Europe."

A Swedish newspaper calls the war unleashed by Hitler "European liberation" --
And a few years before this, the Swedish church begins to speak out in the spirit that the National Socialists of Hitler’s Germany “are on the right path, since they are fighting for the purity of the Aryan race.” At the same time, the Swedish Church from about 1937-1938. officially distributes a circular in which local priests were prohibited from blessing marriages between ethnic Swedes and representatives of the so-called “Untermensch” - Jews, Slavs, etc. Such information became public knowledge after the end of World War II thanks to research conducted at one of the oldest universities in Sweden - Lund University.

From more ancient history: Sweden declared itself a non-aligned state in peacetime and a neutral state during wartime back in early XIX century. This happened in 1814 immediately after the signing of a truce agreement with Norway. The Declaration of Swedish Neutrality was officially proclaimed in 1834 by King Charles XIV Johan (the founder of the Bernadotte dynasty still ruling in Sweden). A remarkable fact It can be considered that the non-aligned status of Sweden and its sovereignty in the event of a major war was announced by a man born as Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte, who at the beginning of the 19th century received the rank of Marshal of the Empire in the Napoleonic army. Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte took part in the battle of Austerlitz. In 1810, Bernadotte was dismissed from service in France and, according to historians, was officially invited to the post of Swedish and Norwegian monarch "in connection with his humane treatment of Swedish prisoners." After ascending to the Swedish throne, the newly-crowned Charles XIV Johann formed an alliance with Russia and began to fight on the side of the anti-Napoleonic coalition... After all these tossing and turning, the king-marshal was reportedly drawn to proclaiming the neutral status of the Kingdom of Sweden, which Sweden skillfully used.

Returning to the events of the Second World War, it should be noted that the “testaments” of Charles XIV Johan were applied exclusively from a pragmatic point of view. Thus, the grandson of King Gustav V, who ruled Sweden from 1907 to 1950, Gustav Adolf (Duke of Västerbotten) is known for the fact that before and during WWII, he conducted active “diplomatic” work with representatives of the Third Reich.

Among those with whom the Duke met were such people as, for example, Hermann Goering and Adolf Hitler. These meetings, it should be noted, predetermined the very strange (to say the least) neutrality of the Swedish crown. The first “neutral” agreement that attracts attention is the contract for the supply of Swedish iron ore to the Reich, which was not terminated at all after the start of Hitler’s expansion on the European continent.

Gustav V - on the right, Goering - in the middle, Gustav Adolf - on the left--
It is also noteworthy that Sweden’s neighbor, Norway, also declared its neutrality. And if during the First World War the Norwegians managed to “go” to a declaration of neutral status, then WWII did not allow the Norwegians to do the same. Hitler stepped over Norwegian “neutrality” quite calmly - declaring that Norway needed protection from “probable aggression of Great Britain and France.” Operation Weserübung-Nord began, during which official Oslo Berlin, of course, did not ask whether Norway really needed “protection from the probable aggression of the British and French.”

But Berlin did not step over the “neutrality” of Sweden... Well, just as it did not... More on that below. Most Swedish historians declare that Sweden’s neutrality in WWII is “understandable”, because only about 6 million people lived in Sweden, and therefore the country could not afford to compete with the powerful Third Reich, making all concessions to Berlin. An interesting statement... Interesting, especially considering that the population of Norway at that time was even smaller, but at the same time, firstly, the neutrality of the Norwegians quickly, excuse me, wiped out the authorities of the Third Reich, and, secondly, themselves The Norwegians organized a more or less “comprehensible” resistance movement against Nazi occupation.

So about the “neutrality” of Sweden... In fact, it was a typical fact of opportunism, in which Sweden was de facto occupied, but not in a military, but in a political sense. And the country’s authorities were quite pleased with this Hitlerite occupation. After all, for them, growing Germany was an excellent market for what was produced or created by Swedish companies. They sold at a reasonable price not only raw materials - the same iron and copper ore, but also goods created by Swedish companies. Swedish bearings were used to equip German equipment. Ships carrying rolled metal, weapons, machine tools, and lumber went to the Reich. At the same time, Sweden, through a whole network of financial agents, lent to the economy of Nazi Germany, having previously blocked the issuance of loans to its neighbors in Norway. In other words, economically, Sweden did everything in order to make dividends from the military successes of Nazi Germany and its commodity-money demands.

From Swedish official sources on the volume of supplies of goods to Nazi Germany (1938-1945):

Iron ore: 58 million tons,
cellulose – 7 million tons,
bearings – 60 thousand tons,
lumber – 13-14 million cubic meters,
vehicles and anti-aircraft guns - more than 2 thousand units.

Cargoes were delivered to the Reich under the protection of German and Swedish warships. Several Swedish ships (Ada Gorthon, Luleå, etc.) loaded with iron ore destined for Germany were sunk by Soviet submarines. After this, Swedish patrol ships dropped about 26 “neutral” depth charges into the sea with the aim of damaging Soviet submarines. Apparently, ever since then Sweden has had a special passion for searching for Soviet (Russian) submarines...

Further - more. Sweden's "neutrality" was transformed into the creation in the country of so-called volunteer battalions, which sided with the Nazis. Swedish armed formation Svenska frivilligbataljonen began to take shape into a real force operating as part of the forces of the Hitlerite coalition immediately after the German attack on Soviet Union. The Swedish “volunteers” underwent training on Finnish territory - in Turku.

At the beginning of October 1941, the Swedish Nazi battalion was visited by Gustav V and Gustav Adolf (Duke of Västerbotten), highly appreciating its “neutral” actions on the side of the Nazi allies in the Hanko area... And about a month later, the Swedish monarch sent a congratulatory telegram to Hitler, expressing admiration actions of the German army to “defeat Bolshevism.”

But after the defeat of the Nazis at Stalingrad and Kursk, “neutral” Sweden suddenly changes course... Stockholm informs its German friends that it is forced to block the sea routes that had previously passed through the Swedish territorial waters German warships and transport vessels followed. As they say, Stockholm felt the wind of change, and like a weather vane, it reacted almost instantly. In October 1943, a circular banning marriages with “Untermensch” was lifted in Sweden, and Jews who left the kingdom were allowed to return. At the same time, they did not close the embassy of the Third Reich (just in case...), suddenly the Reich will rise again...

An important fact of Sweden’s “neutrality” can be considered that, at the request of the USSR in 1944-1945. Stockholm extradited about 370 German and Baltic military personnel of Hitler's troops, who, as Moscow reported, were involved in war crimes in the North-West of the USSR, including the Baltic republics. As you can see, the Swedish weather vane reacted here too...

During the war, the Swedish economy not only was not seriously tested, but even gained a lot. At the same time, the average earnings of Swedish workers fell, but the reduction in real terms amounted to only about 12% over 6 years, while the economies of most European countries, like the countries themselves, lay in ruins. The Swedish banking sector grew along with large industrial companies that supplied goods to Germany.

It can be stated that Sweden’s current non-aligned status is another declarative “parable”, behind which the real interests and sympathies of Stockholm are clearly visible... Such a story...
Author Volodin Alexey