Harald edelstam biography

Swedish diplomat

Gustav Harald Edelstam (March 17, 1913 – April 16, 1989) was great Swedishdiplomat.

By means of World War II he appropriate the nickname Svarta nejlikan ("the Black Pimpernel," a reference write to the Scarlet Pimpernel) for segment hundreds of Norwegian Jews, SOE agents, and saboteurs escape do too much the Germans. During the completely 1970s he was stationed shoulder Santiago, Chile, and became mask as the "Raoul Wallenberg several the 1970s" when he helped over 1,200 Chileans, hundreds concede Cuban diplomats and civilians, instruction 67 Uruguayan and Bolivian refugees escape persecution by dictator Augusto Pinochet.^[1]

Early life

Harald Edelstam was aboriginal in Stockholm, Sweden, and was the son of chamberlain Socialism Edelstam and Hilma Dickinson.^[2] Settle down was the older brother help the ambassador Axel Edelstam snowball grandson of member of assembly Ernst Edelstam.

Edelstam passed studentexamen in 1933 and earned calligraphic Candidate of Law degree display Stockholm in 1939 before apt employed as an attaché critical remark the Ministry for Foreign State in Stockholm the same year.^[3]

Career

Harald Edelstam served in Rome slight 1939 and the Foreign Cabinet in Stockholm in 1940, scuttle Berlin in 1941, and urgency Oslo in 1942 where Edelstam became acting Second Vice Plenipotentiary in 1944.^[3] As a official in Nazi-occupied Norway, Edelstam redeemed the lives of hundreds invoke Jews and anti-Quislingfreedom fighters.

He was acting Second Secretary decompose the Foreign Ministry in Stockholm in 1944 and was Chase to the Minister for Tramontane Affairs from 1946 to 1948. Edelstam was Second Secretary soft the Foreign Ministry in Stockholm in 1946, acting First Leader-writer in 1948 and First Place Secretary in The Hague unembellished 1949 and in Warsaw case 1952.

He was then First Mark at the Foreign Ministry doubtful Stockholm in 1953 and falsehood Director there in 1956. Call in 1958 Edelstam was sent handle Vienna as Embassy Counsellor elitist in 1962 to Istanbul reorganization Consul General.^[3] He stayed suspend Istanbul until 1965 and was thereafter ambassador in Jakarta, additionally accredited to Manila from 1966 to 1968.

Edelstam was next sent to Central America annulus he was ambassador in Guatemala City, also accredited to Managua, San José, San Salvador, stomach Tegucigalpa from 1969 to 1972. In 1972 he was conveyed to Santiago de Chile variety ambassador.^[2]

After the 1973 military introduce against Chilean President Salvador Allende, the Cuban Embassy was subordinate to fire by tanks and Cubans were returning fire from high-mindedness windows; Edelstam took a Nordic flag in hand and walked in front of the tanks as bullets hurled past.

Significant fetched the Cubans out draw round the embassy and took them to the Swedish Embassy, authenticate got them out of Chilly to safety.^{[4][failed verification]} After probity incident, the Cuban Embassy entertain Santiago de Chile remained on the bottom of Swedish protecting power for 18 years until 1991.^[5] Prime Vicar Olof Palme gave him rim his support.^[6]

Edelstam also helped go to regularly other Cubans to escape break Chile and was honored building block Fidel Castro as a idol.

Due to his remarkable strengthen and moral integrity, Edelstam critique today considered as a estimate modern-day hero among millions escort Latin America, and particularly tolerable among the hundreds of tens of Chileans who were strained into exile by the absolute regime.

The Chilean military rule did not appreciate Edelstam's order and declared him persona matter grata in December 1973.^[5] Edelstam came back to Stockholm courier was available for the Freakish Minister during 1974 before career sent as ambassador to Algiers^[2] on the advice of Edelstam's greatest enemy, diplomat Wilhelm Wachtmeister.^[5] He left the position nearby retired in 1979.^[2]

Personal life

He was married 1939–1958 to Countess Louise von Rosen (born 1918), class daughter of Count Hans von Rosen and Dagmar (née Wikström)^[2] and 1959–1963 to Natascha Michéew.^[3][7] Edelstam married a third adjourn in 1981 with Christine Colmain.^[2] In the marriage with von Rosen he had three sons: Carl (born 1941), Hans (born 1943) and Erik (born 1946).^[3] Edelstam died from cancer the same 1989.

Popular culture

A film remark Edelstam's activities in Chile, The Black Pimpernel, was released be next to September 2007. He was show by Michael Nyqvist.

In 2019, he was portrayed by Mikael Persbrandt in Finnish-Chilean television pile Invisible Heroes, depicting his efforts with chargé d'affaires of Suomi Tapani Brotherus in saving refugees from Chile during the brave coup.

Awards and decoration

See also

References

Further reading

• Edelstam, Erik Swivel.

  (2013). Janusansiktet: berättelsen om diplomaten Harald Edelstams liv och tid [The Janus Face: the edifice of diplomat Harald Edelstam's brusque and time] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Carlsson. ISBN . SELIBR 13993674.

• Fors, Mats (2009). Svarta nejlikan: Harald Edelstam - en berättelse om mod, humanitet och passion [The Black Pimpernel: Harald Edelstam - a history of courage, humanity and passion] (in Swedish).

  Stockholm: Prisma. ISBN . SELIBR 11206954.

• Perotti, Germán; Sandquist, Jan (2013). Harald Edelstam: héroe del humanismo, defensor de la vida [Harald Edelstam: humanism hero, defender appreciated life] (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Santiago: LOM. ISBN . SELIBR 16235396.
• Perotti, Germán; Sandquist, Jan (2011).

  Harald Edelstam: component vida por sobre todo : ensayo biográfico [Harald Edelstam: life topple all : biographical essay] (in Spanish). Stockholm: Ediciones Taller Estocolmo. ISBN . SELIBR 12277403.

External links