| Chief of Defence of the Swedish Armed Forces | |
|---|---|
| Överbefälhavaren | |
 Command flag of the Chief of Defence | |
.jpg) | |
| Swedish Armed Forces | |
| Reports to | TheGovernment (in practice through theMinister for Defence) |
| Residence | Karlberg Palace |
| Seat | Lidingövägen 24,Stockholm,Sweden |
| Nominator | Minister for Defence |
| Appointer | TheGovernment |
| Constituting instrument | Förordning (2007:1266) med instruktion för Försvarsmakten (current ordinance) |
| Precursor | None[a] |
| Formation | 8 December 1939 |
| First holder | Olof Thörnell |
| Deputy | Director General of the Swedish Armed Forces |
| Website | Official website |
TheChief of Defence (Swedish:överbefälhavaren;acronym:ÖB), formerly referred to in English as theSupreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces[b], is the highest ranked professional military officer in theSwedish Armed Forces. The chief of defence is the agency head of the Swedish Armed Forces and formally reports to theGovernment of Sweden, though normally through theminister for defence.[5][c] The primary responsibilities and duties of the chief of defence (and the charter for the Armed Forces) are prescribed in anordinance issued by the Government.[6]
The present Chief of Defence, GeneralMichael Claesson, took office on 1 October 2024. His appointment marked the adoption of the title "chief of defence" in English-language usage, in line withNATO terminology.
Before the modern era, the King was expected to command the forces himself; not seldom on location during war campaigns as shown byGustavus Adolphus,Charles X,Charles XI,Charles XII andGustav III. This remained the case formally until the 20th century. From the late 19th century onwards, there were no service chiefs of theArmy orNavy; all senior service commanders reported directly to theKing in Council. Apart from a singleminister for defence created in 1919 by merging the position of ministers of the land forces and naval forces, no joint command structure existed.[7]
In 1936, a Supreme Commander was intended to be appointed in war-time-only, and on 1 December 1939, duringWorld War II, the first Supreme Commander, GeneralOlof Thörnell, was appointed.[7] In 1942 it was decided to keep this office even after the end of the war. The Supreme Commander would in wartime formally report to the King in Council until the enactment of the newInstrument of Government in 1974, and after 1 January 1975 to theSwedish government.[7]
The supreme commander position was renamed chief of defence in 2024.[b] The chief of defence is, apart from the honorary ranks held by theKing of Sweden and in the past other members of theSwedish royal family, by unwritten convention normally the only professional military officer on active duty to hold the highest rank (a four-stargeneral oradmiral).[7] An exception was made 2009–2014 when GeneralHåkan Syrén was chairman of theEuropean Union Military Committee. During the 20th century, there have been more examples where other senior officers have held the rank of general in addition to the supreme commander.[d]
The coat of arms of the supreme commander was used from 1991 to 1993. It has since 1993 been used by theSwedish Armed Forces and was used from 1994 to 2001 by theSwedish Armed Forces Headquarters.Blazon: "Azure, lessercoat of arms of Sweden, three open crowns or placed two and one. The shield surmounting an erect sword of the last colour".[8]
The command flag of the chief of defence is drawn by Brita Grep and embroidered by hand by the Kedja studio, Heraldica.Blazon: "Fessed in blue and yellow; on blue three open yellow crowns placed two and one, on yellow two blue batons of command with sets of open yellow crowns placed two and one in saltire."[9]
| No. | Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch | Prime Minister | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Thörnell, OlofGeneral Olof ThörnellRoKKMO, KmstkSO, RVO (1877–1977) | 8 December 1939 | 31 March 1944 | 4 years, 114 days |  Army | Per Albin Hansson | [7] |
| 2 | .jpg) | Jung, HelgeGeneral Helge JungRoKKMO, KmstkSO, RVO1kl, RNO (1886–1978) | 1 April 1944 | 31 March 1951 | 6 years, 364 days | Army | Per Albin Hansson Tage Erlander | [7] |
| 3 |  | Swedlund, NilsGeneral Nils SwedlundRoKKMO, KmstkSO, KNO2kl, RVO (1898–1965) | 1 April 1951[e] | 30 September 1961 | 10 years, 182 days | Army | Tage Erlander | [10] |
| 4 |  | Rapp, TorstenGeneral Torsten RappRoKKMO, KmstkSO, RNO, RVO (1905–1993) | 1 October 1961 | 30 September 1970 | 8 years, 364 days |  Air Force | Tage Erlander Olof Palme | [7] |
| 5 |  | Synnergren, StigGeneral Stig SynnergrenKmstkSO (1915–2004) | 1 October 1970 | 30 September 1978 | 7 years, 364 days | Army | Olof Palme Thorbjörn Fälldin | [7] |
| 6 |  | Ljung, LennartGeneral Lennart LjungKSO1kl (1921–1990) | 1 October 1978 | 30 September 1986 | 7 years, 364 days | Army | Thorbjörn Fälldin Ola Ullsten Olof Palme Ingvar Carlsson | [7] |
| 7 |  | Gustafsson, BengtGeneral Bengt Gustafsson (1933–2019) | 1 October 1986 | 30 June 1994 | 7 years, 272 days | Army | Ingvar Carlsson Carl Bildt | [7] |
| 8 |  | Wiktorin, OweGeneral Owe Wiktorin (born 1940) | 1 July 1994 | 30 June 2000 | 5 years, 365 days | Air Force | Carl Bildt Ingvar Carlsson Göran Persson | [7][11] |
| 9 |  | Hederstedt, JohanGeneral Johan Hederstedt (born 1943) | 1 July 2000 | 31 December 2003 | 3 years, 184 days | Army | Göran Persson | [7][12] |
| 10 |  | Syrén, HåkanGeneral Håkan Syrén (born 1952) | 1 January 2004 | 24 March 2009 | 5 years, 82 days |  Navy (Amphibious Corps) | Göran Persson Fredrik Reinfeldt | [7] |
| 11 |  | Göranson, SverkerGeneral Sverker Göranson (born 1954) | 25 March 2009 | 30 September 2015 | 6 years, 189 days | Army | Fredrik Reinfeldt Stefan Löfven | [13] |
| 12 |  | Bydén, MicaelGeneral Micael Bydén (born 1964) | 1 October 2015 | 30 September 2024 | 8 years, 365 days | Air Force | Stefan Löfven Magdalena Andersson Ulf Kristersson | [14] |
| 13 | | Claesson, MichaelGeneral Michael Claesson (born 1965) | 1 October 2024 | Incumbent | 1 year, 137 days | Army | Ulf Kristersson | [15] |
Every time a new Chief of Defence is to be appointed, there is some debate between the different services. Some feel that some kind of rotational system would be appropriate. In actuality, most Chiefs of Defence have come from theArmy, and only one,Håkan Syrén, from theNavy. Because he is ageneral of theAmphibious Corps, there has to this day not been a singleadmiral to hold the office.
Until 30 June 1994, thechief of the defence staff was the second most senior member of theSwedish Armed Forces. When the Swedish Armed Forces was reorganized on 1 July 1994, the chief of the defence staff position was abolished. Lieutenant GeneralPercurt Green became the first deputy supreme commander who took office on 1 July 1994. He also held the post of head of the Joint Operations Command (Operationsledningen, OpL).[16]
In conjunction with theSwedish Armed Forces Headquarters reorganization in 1998, a special position was created as deputy supreme commander to relieve the supreme commander. The deputy supreme commander led the Headquarters work through coordination of the operations. He also exercised employer responsibility for the staff in the Headquarters. In order to coordinate the operations he had a Coordination Department.[17] The deputy supreme commander also acted as the deputy agency executive (Ställföreträdande myndighetschef).[18] A formal position of head of the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters was established in 2002.[19]
From 1 October 2005, the post of deputy supreme commander became thedirector general of the Swedish Armed Forces held by a civil servant.[20]
| No. | Portrait | Name | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch | Prime Minister | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Green, PercurtLieutenant General Percurt Green (1939–2025) | 1 July 1994 | 30 June 1998 | 3 years, 364 days | Army | Carl Bildt Ingvar Carlsson Göran Persson | [16][21] |
| 2 | .jpg) | Rosenius, FrankVice Admiral Frank Rosenius (born 1940) | 1 July 1998 | 2000 | 1–2 years |  Navy | Göran Persson | [21][17] |
| 3 |  | Berndtson, HansLieutenant General Hans Berndtson (born 1945) | 1 January 2001[f] | 31 October 2004 | 3 years, 304 days | Army | Göran Persson | [23] |
| - |  | Salestrand, JanLieutenant General Jan Salestrand (born 1954) | 31 January 2013 | 18 March 2013 | 46 days | Air Force | Fredrik Reinfeldt | [24][25] |
