Louis Palander | |
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| Birth name | Adolf Arnold Louis Palander |
| Born | (1842-10-02)2 October 1842 Karlskrona,Sweden |
| Died | 7 August 1920(1920-08-07) (aged 77) Djursholm, Sweden |
| Allegiance | Sweden |
| Service | Swedish Navy |
| Years of service | 1864-1910 |
| Rank | Admiral |
| Awards | Founder's Medal (1880) Vega Medal (1882) |
| Spouse(s) | Anna Katarina Grischotti |
| Other work | Arctic explorer Minister for Naval Affairs (1901–05) |
Adolf Arnold Louis Palander af Vega (2 October 1842 – 7 August 1920) was a Swedish naval officer, mostly remembered as the captain onAdolf Erik Nordenskiöld'sVega expedition, the first successful attempt to navigate theNortheast Passage.[2]
Louis Palander was born in Karlskrona, Sweden. His father Axel Fredrik Palander was arear admiral in theSwedish Navy, and the director of the Royal Navy shipyard inKarlskrona. His mother was Emelie Jacquette Constance du Rées. Louis Palander became a navalcadet at the early age of 14. In 1864 he graduated from theRoyal Swedish Naval Academy atKarlberg Palace as asecond lieutenant and participated in expeditions to theMediterranean,Sierra Leone andLiberia on thecorvetteGefle, as well as in a trip to theUnited States. After several other appointments at sea, Louis Palander participated inNordenskiöld's expedition toSpitsbergen in 1868, on board the steamerSofia. The ship's captain wasbaronFredrik von Otter. He married Anna Katarina Grischotti the same year.[3]
Thereafter, Palander served on the shipVanadis on an expedition to theMediterranean in 1869–1870. He was subsequently promoted tolieutenant and was the ship's captain on the postalsteamerPolhem, first during the winter of 1870–1871 betweenGotland and main landSweden, and then during 1871–1872 to secure the postal route across theØresund in severe winter conditions. He was also the ship's captain on the steamerPolhem during Nordenskiöld's winter expedition to the Spitsbergen islands in 1872–1873, where he significantly contributed to the scientific work. From the base camp at Mosselbay, Palander and nine other men accompanied Nordenskiöld on the unsuccessful attempt to reach theNorth Pole in May–June 1873. Upon return to Sweden, Palander's request for anhonourable discharge from the navy was granted, and he took employment first as a captain oncargo ships en route toEngland, and later as a captain for a steamer line based inGothenburg.
In 1877 Palander returned to the Royal Navy and offered to become the captain on the expedition to navigate theNortheast Passage. For this purpose, Palander secured the whaling shipVega, and selected thecrew andofficers. The ship sailed fromKarlshamn on 22 June 1878, and arrived inTromsø, (Norway) on 17 July where Nordenskiöld boarded the ship. The expedition, which was carried out during 1878–1879, was ultimately successful, and shortly before the end of the voyage, he was promoted to the full rank of captain.[4]
Upon return to Sweden, he was made a noble by KingOscar II under the surnamePalander af Vega, and the Swedish Parliament awarded him an annualpension of 4,000Swedish crowns. Palander was an accomplished amateurphotographer and brought home approximately 60 photographic plates depicting the journey and people encountered during the trip.
During 1881–1883, Palander served as anaide-de-camp to the director of the Royal Navy shipyard in Karlskrona, as well as to the Department of Sea Warfare during 1886–1889. In 1889 he was promoted tocommander and in 1893 he was appointed as chief of the supply service (intendenturavdelningen) for theRoyal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration. In 1896 he was promoted torear admiral and first aide-de-camp to the king, and subsequently in 1897 appointed as the director of the Royal Navy shipyard inKarlskrona. In 1899 he was made the Chief of the Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration and in 1900 promoted to full rank of rear admiral.In 1901 he became acabinet minister responsible for theMinistry for Naval Affairs. In 1903 he was promoted tovice admiral.
On 2 August 1905 he resigned his post as cabinet minister together with the rest of the government (as a consequence of the political crisis arising from thedissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden) and resumed his post in the Swedish Royal Navy.
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| Preceded by | Minister for Naval Affairs 1901–1905 | Succeeded by |
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