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{{Infobox military person
| honorific_prefix =
| name = Carl-Fredrik Algernon
| honorific_suffix =
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| native_name =
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| birth_name = Carl-Fredrik Robert Algernon
| nickname =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1925|10|9|df=yes}}
| birth_place = [[Stockholm]], Sweden
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1987|1|15|1925|10|9|df=yes}}
| death_place = Stockholm, Sweden
| placeofburial = [[Norra begravningsplatsen]]
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| allegiance = [[Sweden]]
| branch = [[Swedish Navy]]
| serviceyears = 1947–1974
| rank = Rear Admiral
| servicenumber = 
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| commands = {{bulleted list|1st Destroyer Flotilla|Vice Chief, [[Eastern Military District (Sweden)|Eastern Military District]]|Section 2, [[Defence Staff (Sweden)|Defence Staff]]|[[Military Office of the Ministry of Defence|Military Office of the Minister of Defence]]}}
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| laterwork = [[National Swedish War Materials Inspectorate|War Materials Inspector]]
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}}

[[Rear admiral (Sweden)|Rear Admiral]] '''Carl-Fredrik Robert Algernon''' (9 October 1925 – 15 January 1987) was a [[Swedish Navy]] officer. Algernon served as War Materials Inspector and head of the [[National Swedish War Materials Inspectorate]] from 1981 to 1987.

==Early life==
Algernon was born on 9 October 1925 in [[Stockholm]], Sweden, the son of head of department Carl Algernon and his wife Dagmar (née Alderin).<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39">{{cite book |date=1984 |title=Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1985 |trans-title=Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1985 |location=Stockholm |publisher=Norstedt |language=sv |isbn=91-1-843222-0 |url=http://runeberg.org/vemardet/1985/0039.html |page=39}}</ref>

==Career==
Algernon was accepted as a naval officer candidate in June 1944 and was commissioned as a naval officer and appointed acting sub-lieutenant in the [[Swedish Navy]] in September 1947.<ref name="Enqvist (1987), p. 217">{{cite journal |url=https://www.koms.se/content/uploads/2013/07/TiS-nr-4-1983.pdf |journal=Tidskrift i sjöväsendet |title=Minnesteckningar |first=Jan |last=Enqvist |year=1987 |number=4 |location=Carlskrona |language=sv |id={{LIBRIS|8258455}} |page=217}}</ref> Algernon served afloat on various types of ships in the Swedish Navy during 1947–1955, 1958–1964, 1968–1969 and 1971–1972.<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/> He was promoted to sub-lieutenant in 1949 and did flight interaction training from 1955 to 1956 and completed the staff course at the [[Royal Swedish Naval Staff College]] from 1956 to 1957. Algernon was promoted to lieutenant in 1959 and was a member of the 1961 Defence Commission.<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/> Algernon became one of the few who in the [[Coastal Fleet]] was allowed to serve as ship commander and division commander at both [[motor torpedo boat]] units and [[torpedo boat]] units. From 1962 to 1964 he served as tactical adjutant in ''Flaggen'', the staff of the Chief of the Coastal Fleet, when the new tactical regulations for the navy were to be put into practice.<ref name="Enqvist (1987), p. 217"/> From 1964 to 1967, Algernon served as a teacher of tactics at the [[Swedish Armed Forces Staff College]] and regionally in [[Gothenburg]] and in [[Karlskrona]].<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/><ref name="Enqvist (1987), p. 217"/> During this time, he was promoted to lieutenant commander in 1965 and to commander in 1966.<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/>

Algernon was a member of the Navy Officer Investigation (''Marinbefälsutredningen'') from 1969 to 1971 when he was promoted to captain. Algernon was commanding officer of the 1st Destroyer Flotilla (''Första jagarflottiljen'', 1. jaflj) from 1971 to 1972 when he was promoted to senior captain. He was vice chief at the staff of the [[Eastern Military District (Sweden)|Eastern Military District]] (Milo Ö) from 1972 to 1974 and chief of Section 2, the intelligence section, in the [[Defence Staff (Sweden)|Defence Staff]] from 1974 to 1978 when he was promoted to rear admiral on 1 October.<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/><ref name="Enqvist (1987), p. 217"/> He was head of the [[Military Office of the Ministry of Defence|Military Office of the Minister of Defence]] from 1978 to 1979 and its subsequent agency, the [[Ministry of Defence (Sweden)|Ministry of Defence]]'s International Unit (''Försvarsdepartementets internationella enhet'', Fö/INT) from 1979 to 1981<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/> when he was appointed War Materials Inspector and head of the [[National Swedish War Materials Inspectorate]], a governmental agency tasked with supervising and revise exports of war materiel to foreign countries.

==Bofors scandal and death==
{{Main|Bofors scandal}}

At the so-called [[Bofors scandal]] in the mid-1980s, when the arms manufacturer [[Bofors]] was suspected of extensive smuggling of munitions to "illicit" countries around the [[Persian Gulf]], Algernon was appointed investigator. As such, he was controversial.<ref name="Stengård (1987)">{{cite news |newspaper=[[Dagens Nyheter]] |title=Polisen utreder Algernons död |trans-title=Police are investigating Algeron's death |last=Stengård |first=Rolf |date=17 January 1987 |language=sv}}</ref> Among other things, the [[Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society]] criticized him and demanded his resignation.<ref name="Stengård (1987)"/> He was accused, among other things, of having too lightly approved Bofors' request for arms exports to mainly [[Singapore]].<ref name="Stengård (1987)"/> Large parts of this exported munitions were suspected to have ended up in the illicit countries of the [[United Arab Emirates]] (more specifically the [[Emirate of Dubai]]) and [[Bahrain]].<ref name="Stengård (1987)"/> Algernon is said to have been on good terms with Bofors' CEO Martin Ardbo.<ref name="Anno (1988), pp. 57-58">{{cite book |title=Anno. [19]87 |year=1988 |publisher=Corona |location=Malmö |language=sv |isbn=91-564-1987-2 |id={{SELIBR|3759317}} |pages=57–58}}</ref>

Algernon died when he was hit by a train at the [[Stockholm metro]] station [[T-Centralen]] on 15 January 1987.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://nwt.se/karlskoga-degerfors/2016/09/03/statsrad-talar-om-bofors-under |newspaper=[[Nya Wermlands-Tidningen]] |title=Statsråd talar om Bofors under turbulent 1980-tal |trans-title=Minister talks about Bofors during the turbulent 1980s |first=Benny |last=Abrahamsson |date=2016-09-03 |access-date=22 November 2017 |language=sv |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201034142/https://nwt.se/karlskoga-degerfors/2016/09/03/statsrad-talar-om-bofors-under |archive-date=1 December 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Earlier on the day he had a meeting with the CEO of [[Nobel Industrier]] (the new owners of Bofors), Anders Carlberg, about the allegations of smuggling against the company. During the conversation, Carlberg had told Algernon about an internal investigation which had confirmed that smuggling had existed. Algernon then ended up in a conflict of loyalty.<ref name="Anno (1988), pp. 57-58"/> Due to Algernon's position as a leading investigator of the Bofors scandal, it was speculated that he might have been [[Assassination|assassinated]] (i.e. pushed down on the railway). The police also chose to initiate a criminal investigation when, among others, the train driver witnessed how Algernon fell backwards on the track.<ref name="Stengård (1987)"/> The subsequent investigation into his death, which ended on 11 March 1987, concluded that he had committed [[suicide]].

There were theories that Algernon's death had something to do with the [[assassination of Olof Palme]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://hd.se/inrikes/2006/02/25/palmemordet_konspirationsteorier/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141215132436/http://hd.se/inrikes/2006/02/25/palmemordet_konspirationsteorier/ |newspaper=[[Helsingborgs Dagblad]] |title=Palme - konspirationsteorier |trans-title=Palme - conspiracy theories |first=Stefan |last=Lindqvist |date=25 February 2006 |access-date=15 December 2014 |archive-date=15 December 2014 |language=sv}}</ref> Other theories claim that the [[Stasi]] assassinated Algernon.<ref>{{cite book |last=Andersson |first=Christoph |title=Operation Norrsken: om Stasi och Sverige under kalla kriget |trans-title=Operation Northern Lights: About Stasi and Sweden during the Cold War |year=2013 |publisher=Norstedt |location=Stockholm |language=sv |isbn=9789113044354 |id={{SELIBR|13500912}} }}</ref> Former Minister of Trade and County Governor in the 1980s Björn Molin claims in his book ''Ingen väg tillbaka'' ("No way back", 2002) that Algernon was murdered because he knew too much.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/a/BJj8ll/minister-algernon-blev-mordad |newspaper=[[Aftonbladet]] |title=Minister: Algernon blev mördad |trans-title=Minister: Algernon was assassinated |first=Annika |last=Sohlander |date=31 October 2002 |access-date=4 May 2022 |language=sv}}</ref>

The funeral service was held on 3 February 1987 in [[Skeppsholmen Church]] in Stockholm.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.svd.se/arkiv/1987-01-23/14/SVD |newspaper=[[Svenska Dagbladet]] |title=Döda |page=18 (14)|date=23 January 1987 |access-date=1 September 2022 |language=sv |url-access=subscription}}</ref> Algernon was interred on 4 March 1987 at [[Norra begravningsplatsen]] in Stockholm.<ref name="svenskagravar.se">{{cite web |url=http://www.svenskagravar.se/gravsatt/45667752 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200712004105/http://www.svenskagravar.se/gravsatt/45667752 |website=www.svenskagravar.se |title=Algernon, KARL FREDRIK R. |archive-date=12 July 2020 |access-date=4 May 2022 |language=sv}}</ref>

==Personal life==
In 1947 he married Margareta Erlandson (1925–2015), the daughter of construction engineer Harald Erlandson and Signe (née Hallgren).<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/> They had two sons, Göran and Stefan (1950–2012).<ref name="Enqvist (1987), p. 217"/><ref name="svenskagravar.se"/>

==Dates of rank==
*1947 – [[Fänrik#Navy|Acting sub-lieutenant]]
*1949 – [[Löjtnant#Navy|Sub-lieutenant]]
*1959 – [[Kapten#Navy|Lieutenant]]
*1965 – [[Kommendörkapten|Lieutenant commander]]
*1966 – [[Kommendörkapten|Commander]]
*1971 – [[Kommendör|Captain]]
*1972 – [[Kommendör av 1. graden|Senior captain]]
*1 October 1978 – [[Rear admiral (Sweden)|Rear admiral]]

==Awards and decorations==
* [[File:Royal_Order_of_the_Sword_-_Knight_1st_Class_BAR.svg|50x50px]] {{flagicon|Sweden}} Knight 1st Class of the [[Order of the Sword]] (1965)<ref>{{cite book |url=https://gupea.ub.gu.se/bitstream/2077/65665/1/gupea_2077_65665_1.pdf |title=Sveriges statskalender. 1969 |editor-first=Bengt |editor-last=Sköldenberg |year=1969 |publisher=Fritzes offentliga publikationer |location=Stockholm |language=sv |id={{LIBRIS|3682754}} |page=102}}</ref>

==Honours==
*Member of the [[Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences]] (1965)<ref name="Vem är det (1984), p. 39"/>

==See also==
*[[Cats Falck]]
*[[Claes-Ulrik Winberg]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{S-start}}
{{S-mil}}
{{Succession box
| title = Section 2, [[Defence Staff (Sweden)|Defence Staff]]
| years = 1974–1978
| before = Gösta Lundström
| after = [[Bengt Wallroth]]
}}
{{Succession box
| title = {{no wrap|[[Military Office of the Ministry of Defence|Military Office of the Minister of Defence]]}}
| years = 1978–1979
| before = [[Dag Arvas]]
| after = None
}}
{{s-gov}}
{{succession box
| title = {{no wrap|[[National Swedish War Materials Inspectorate|War Materials Inspector]]}}
| years = 1981–1987
| before = Sven Olof Olin
| after = [[Sven Hirdman]]
}}
{{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Algernon, Carl Fredrik}}
[[Category:1925 births]]
[[Category:1987 deaths]]
[[Category:Swedish Navy rear admirals]]
[[Category:Bofors scandal]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Stockholm]]
[[Category:Swedish military personnel who committed suicide]]
[[Category:Members of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences]]
[[Category:20th-century Swedish military personnel]]
[[Category:Suicides by jumping in Sweden]]
[[Category:Knights First Class of the Order of the Sword]]
[[Category:Burials at Norra begravningsplatsen]]

Carl-Fredrik Algernon - Revision history

Bot at 09:33, 13 October 2022