February 1946,
the beginning of the end
The winter weather in Malmö is presenting itself at its worst. A temperature just above zero and plenty of downpour the kind of winter weather, which is wet cold and an unpleasant mix of rain and snow. Winter in the south of Sweden in February 1946 is cold and wet. If you are familiar with this particular weather, you know it eats through your clothing numbing your soul. It is the weather of mistrust not of hope.
She is late, the young woman is running up the long winding stairs of the Malmö Stadsteater. Finding the way has taken far longer than anticipated and she really should not have been this late. Traffic a nightmare and just parking that car. In fact, life had been a bit messy recently, her reviews for the performance in Eurydike in Gothenburg had been far from complimentary. Staccato, that was what the critic had written! A monotone intonation, critics can really be mean. Maybe she was working too much, work was everything now. Today was really important. This could be an important step in her career. Being on stage with the two shooting stars in Swedish theatre – George Fant and Irma Christensson and in a play by John van Druten. He was a recognized playwright, perhaps not as famous as Clifford Odets who had written her first big role in Rocket to the Moon, but that now seemed a million years ago, although it was only just three years. And, it did not matter, she wanted progress, she wanted to move on.
The young man standing at the top of the stairs is going to direct ‘the Voice of the Turtle’ (Turturduvan). It is one of the first plays that he will manage on his own. He is tall, dark haired with a friendly yet curious gaze. The first thing he noticed was her eyes. They were truly special, large and full of expression. Her red hair clearly had lost the battle for attention, even though it, usually, was quite apt at grabbing the attention. She was also what an American would call petite – short, slim and fit – a trained dancer really, but her acting talent had shone through as she danced in Karl Gerhard’s variety show a few years back.
Surely, he must have had her comical talent in mind for this comedy, she would fit just fine for her part. But did he notice her slim body? Her well-trained appearance, the result of years of hard physical training and the pitch perfect body control that it resulted in. All that dancing and training of bodily control not to mention how to use choreography and your body to tell a story. We do not know, and we cannot, Gösta Folke is dead and so is Agneta. They both passed away in 2008, Agneta suffering a severe dementia.
At this point neither of them knew they would spend most, if not every day for the rest of their lives together. For the next several decades they will both be well-known members of the Swedish theatre community. They will be in the movies, on the stages, and in the media much more than either of them has been to this point.
Being a public person means that you leave traces, which become your legacy regardless of if you like it or not. Without any reference to correctness. These traces will represent who you were perceived to be. A trail of paper clippings, photos, interviews, reviews, radio and TV performances. Therefore, we know the ‘official’ story, which is that the story of Agneta and Gösta began on this day. More or less out of nowhere by chance as so often in life. However, when you look at what is written about Agneta there is something that appears out of order. There is a strange gap in Agneta’s history from late spring 1943 to late 1945. It is as if a piece in the puzzle is missing. The steady trickling of newspaper clippings stops and there is just silence for nearly two years.
30 years of analytical work has taught me many things. That human beings are really bad at being rational and they are to a very high degree controlled by their emotions. That complexity makes predictions of the future very inaccurate. That the greatest strength of the human psyche is its ability to adapt. But at the same time, that no activity is more trying or painful for human beings than to change. It requires an enormous effort. Moreover, that the first mover on any matter has a huge advantage relative to its opponents, because they will have to confront the first mover’s arguments or presentation before they can bring their own ideas into the discussion. Finally, that we are as a species, suckers for confirmation. Our confirmation bias is striking and if you are in doubt as to what I am arguing consider marketing. We love to see what we are looking for but fail only to often to see reality for what it is.
This brings us to a learning which is even more important in the context of this history – the questions we do not ask. We are frequently unable to see what we are not expecting, and this blinds us from strikingly obvious observations. Here is a practical example.
In 1993 one of my best friends from university was getting married. Not only was he a very good friend, but he was also an exceptionally bright intellectual a real straight ‘A’ student if ever there were one. Not long before their marriage my friend and his wife-to-be had bought a small farm in the south of Sweden and started renovating it. Naturally they wanted as wedding presents things that could help them complete their project.
Me and some of his friends from university were invited for the wedding and thought it a good idea to support them in their effort. We decided to give them some paint to paint the large barn that was part of the estate. But second thoughts, made us rethink and we decided to not just give them the paint, but to also put it in place. However, to ensure full surprise we had to do this at night and before the wedding, which was taking place on Midsummers Eve. Thanks to the Nordic nights, which are short and not very dark, we succeeded in painting the barn and before dawn go to bed in our sleeping bags inside it. Now the barn was bright red (Falu-röd). By chance I woke up early and happen to see my friend stepping out on his porch. He had to walk some 50 meters form the house to the barn to let some chickens out. He notices nothing! Not until he stands literary 50 centimetres from the wall, does he notice paint droppings on the ground and then he realizes – everything has changed! No one had told him that the barn should change colour during the night!
The question we do not ask, the things we do not expect blinds us from seeing what is fully visible in front of us. The question that we do not ask is the most important.
So, if we look at available sources it appears as if the life story of Agneta Prytz really took off in February 1946, that it all began in Malmö. She had just resumed her stage career a few months earlier and he had started getting his first bigger engagements as a theatre director. So here is where the story of Agneta Prytz and Gösta Folke began.
In my somewhat illustrious family, Agneta and Gösta belong to the category that those of us far less interesting would be watching from afar. You knew about them, they for all intent and purpose may have had no idea you even existed. In particular, following the dissolution of the family trust that took place in 1970, which removed the occasional large scale family gatherings that had happened for many years in the past. There was a book though, printed in 1964, which detailed all the members of the Mellgren family in great detail. It clearly states that Agneta was married to Gösta Folke, the director and that was it – no other husband. Yet we now know that there was a lot more than was publicly known. This unknown or forgotten history I intend to reconstruct. Bottom-up with as many details as can be added.
Where should we begin our reconstruction? Dear reader, as you may already have guessed you may begin telling a story at any point or rather history has many beginnings. There is no official starting point, there may though, be points that give some logic to the events that follow. 1916 is such a year, it is a node where logic provides some structure.
1916
1916 was an annus horribilis if ever there were one. The Great War had been going on for more than 17 months and on the Western Front a stalemate had developed that had turned ideas of courageous charges into slaughter as machine guns mowed down men; and already the war had added both the rolling barrage and poison gas as obvious features. An old world-order was well underway to commit suicide.
When the year begins Björn Prytz’s younger brother Frank is already injured out of the 2nd 20th Battalion of the County of London Regiment (Blackheath and Woolwich) that he volunteered for on August 6, 1914, amongst a wave of young men eager to join in the fight. He had attended St. Dunstan College and also been a member of its Officer’s Training Corps so there was clear military ambition. However, he was only 17 years old, and his application had to signed by his mother Theresa. Today the thought of signing one’s child’s voluntary admission to the armed forces appears strange to put it mildly, but during the Great War more than one young man volunteered under-age. Certainly in 1914 there were many that saw the war as an exciting adventure.
Basic training was undertaken in the South of England, and finally Frank and his comrades were shipped to France on March 9, 1915. Frank survived the Battle of Festubert in May 1915, but was injured in the shoulder on the first day of the Battle of Loos on September 25, 1915, when the Battalion as part of the 47th Division attacked the southern flank of the front. Frank was one of 171 casualties in the Battalion, the lowest loss rate of any of the attacking battalions of the 47th division. You could argue he was lucky thereby as other parts of the division fared much worse. In its totality the Battle of Loos was a near complete failure where the British lost 59,247 casualties for no gain in the terrain. It was the result of insufficient artillery fire, insufficient reserves, and failed logistics that prevented the exploitation of early gains. For the first time the British were using chemical weapons (chlorine gas), which proved about as lethal for British troops as for the Germans.
There are many songs that captures historic events but few are in my view better at capturing the madness of war, the pain of loss and the grieving for a loved one than this:
A Swede in German service
At the same time a young Swedish engineer is working long shifts at the Hansa Brandenburgische Flugzeugbau in Brandenburg am Havel just north of Berlin. His name is Carl Lignell the oldest son of Karl Lignell, banker, entrepreneur, supporter of the arts and wannabe architect. Carl had dreamt of becoming a pilot ever since the Baron Carl Cederschiöld flew his Blériot over his home town Östersund in 1911, but his father, the Banker Karl Lignell, who himself dreamt of being an architect rather than a banker, obviously wanted his son to become just that. Luckily for Carl, he succeeded in convincing his father to let him study engineering in Germany instead and in 1912 he moved to Mittweida in Eastern Germany to enrol at Technicum Mittweida, at that point Europe’s largest private technical institute to study mechanical engineering. Following his final exams in 1914 he returned briefly to Sweden to do his military service at the nascent Royal Flying Corp (Kungliga Flygkåren) at Malmslätt before returning to Germany where the outbreak of war had set the development of aviation into high gear. In May 1916 Carl succeeded in getting a job in Camillo Castiglioni’s1 fast growing aviation empire – Die Hansa Brandenburgische Fluzeugbau AG in Brandenburg am Havel just north of Berlin.
New models entered service continuously and either side could only retain the upper hand until the opponent was able to field its next model. Aviation was the industry to be in, for a young engineer. This new weapon was undergoing a very fast development. At the outset of the war, it was unclear what the aeroplane could be used for. By 1916 the aeroplane has already found several distinct roles. The fighter plane, the bomber, the reconnaissance plane and the float plane that may land on water. Hansa Brandenburg is by now known for its larger float planes used for long-range reconnaissance. Karl’s manager, the chief designer Dr. Ernst Heinkel2 has already begun building a reputation that will make him one of Germany’s most important aircraft designers.
The work is taxing though, and Karl could not expect much in the way of rest or holidays. In fact, the work is more like being in the army. War has changed society fundamentally. I have copies of his passports from both 1912 and 1916. The pre-war version reminds you of a modern European passport, because there are no stamps. Borders in pre-war Europe were open, controls limited. The latter one, on the contrary, is littered with stamps saying ‘Militär Politzei’ (Military Police). Europe closed in 1914 and would really only reopen when the Schengen agreement was introduced in 1995. There is a certificate preserved dated March 8, 1918, where Carl is granted four weeks leave by his manager Ernst Heinkel, for medical reasons. If he is allowed to go back to Sweden to visit his family for a few weeks was left to the military authorities to decide. He was after all in the know of all the latest designs and therefore a walking security risk.. Appreciated for his hard work and keen interest in everything aircraft he has started a long and very successful career, which will cross our story on several occasions.
At the same time in France
For Léon and Louise Tainturier, the year began with a positive expectation as Louise was pregnant with their second child. On February 12 at 3am their second son is born at No.9 Rue de Nantes in Fougères, Ile et Vilane. Mother and child are well. At the age of 42 Léon had already a long career as a public official and he was now the Sous-Prefét3 in the Departement Ile et Vilaine. His life had taken a few turns already as he became a father already in 1901 when Marie Gougelat gave birth to their son Pierre. However, they were not married, which appears very unusual in its day. A woman giving birth out of wedlock was socially stigmatised, in this case particularly so since the Gougelat family was relative well off and Lucien a public official, being the Chef de la Cabinet du Préfet de la Côte d’Or at the time. Unfortunately, I have not found any explanation as to why this happened, but it appears out of the ordinary. A few years later in 1904 Lucien and Marie marries and Pierre is featured in their marriage act as legitimised, i.e. Lucien accepting the fatherhood of the boy. Unfortunately, his first marriage is short-lived, Marie Tainturier dies in 1912 only 32 years old.
Léon does not remain a widower for long. On April 14, 1914, Léon marries his second wife Louise Tainturier (née Vasseux) and on November 11, 1914, she gives birth to their first child, Henri Tainturier. With the arrival of Robert, the family now consists of three sons. Two of which have been born to the rumblings of war.
Louise is happy that Léon is a bit older and therefore not called up. Although the extra work put on public officials due to the war results in him being away for most of the time. Despite all he is still alive, and she does not have to carry the aguish that all mothers and wives with sons and husbands at the front will have to endure.
On February 21, 1916, at 07.15 in the morning ‘Unternehmen Gericht’ the Battle of Verdun begins with a massive German barrage. The Germans have been delayed, though, as their initial plan had called for the offensive to begin on February 12 at 05.00 in the morning. For 10 hours 808 artillery pieces fires 1,000,000 shells to make up for the delay. Over the following nine months, three weeks and six days more than 300,000 men will die and 450,000 will be injured in one of the bloodiest battles in human history. The psychological injuries are not accounted for in these numbers, but modern wars’ effects on the human psyche are gradually not possible to deny as thousands of men go insane due to their experiences in the trenches. They prove that while you may technically be alive, you may still be dead.
This short movie may provide some insight into what it means to be shell shocked.
This is a battle that will define history both in the short term and for decades to come as its consequences are so far reaching. The German strategic rationale for the attack was to bleed the French army to death by attacking where it was forced to employ its reserves. This idea has come signify the slaughter of the Great War and the industrialisation of the killing in modern warfare. The battle of Verdun is also a symbol of France’s successful defence against the attacking Germans, and it made Maréchal Phillippe Pétain into ‘le lion de Verdun’. The battlefield itself remains a scare on the face of the earth till this day.
A better deal
If Frank Prytz narrowly escaped death at Loos his elder brother Björn escaped war entirely. Both brothers had a Swedish father – Gustav Prytz and an English mother Theresa née White Ward. Initially the family had lived in Gothenburg, but due to the depression in the 1890s and Gustav’s financial problems they had moved to London in 1893. In 1905 Gustav and all his children were granted English citizenship. In all, there were eight Prytz children and Björn was the second oldest born 1888.
Björn spent most of his childhood in England and attended the Dulwich College from 1900 to 1903. While the classical programme would focus on Greek and Latin, Björn chose to follow the new Modern programme, which offered studies in mathematics, French and German. Following his exam from Dulwich College in 1903 Björn spent time in Gothenburg before pursuing his luck in Berlin, working in insurance while also doubling as a language teacher for the Berlitz Language School. In 1905 he is employed by AB Separator’s German subsidiary, which meant that he was selling in the German and Belgian markets.
Thereafter he spends a brief period in Algeria trading in Swedish industrial products, before he again became an employee in AB Separator, this time in the marketing department in Stockholm. He stayed with AB Separator until 1913. His close friend Raoul Nordling who at the time was the deputy Consul for Sweden in Paris claims it was he who directed Björn to work for SKF, the ball-bearing manufacturer, which brought him to Gothenburg. However, before that he met Ingrid Prytz, the daughter of the wealthy Tobacco manufacturer Erik Mellgren4 and his wife Elisabeth.
In 1912 the Erik Mellgren Tobaksfabrik was still ranking as a top tier producer of tobacco, cigarettes, cigars and snuff in Sweden although rumblings of nationalisation were being heard. The government needed money to pay for pensions and defense and the tobacco industry was seen as a stable source of revenue for the government. Health concerns were not part of the equation, such considerations are of a much later date.
In Gothenburg everyone knew Erik Mellgrens Tobaksfabrik located at Vallgatan 40. Erik had inherited the company together with his brother Anders, and they jointly managed operations. Their nine sisters were not included in the ownership, despite the fact that it was the matriarch Hulda that had managed the company for many years following the early death of her husband.
Erik and Elisabeth had five children and Ingrid, also known as Pim was the oldest born in 1888. Life had been fortunate for the Mellgren family and quality of life therefore high. In 1912 the family altered between their apartment on Haga Kyrkogata 14 in central Gothenburg and a summer residence in the archipelago at Bovallstrand north of the city.
Artistic talent and musicality were common amongst Hulda’s 12 children and remain common amongst descendants. Erik was a good singer, but not close to his sister Anna that had real star talent, and he had during his law studies at Uppsala university been a member of the Orphei Drängar male quire. The Mellgren family was also engaged in philanthropy providing support for the local symphony orchestra and the Gothenburg opera. Erik was deputy chairman for Göteborgs Orkesterförening, the local symphonic orchestra from 1908 to 1934 and at times Erik himself also participated on stage as a singer.
Since Elisabeth’s sister Gerda had married the painter Richard Bergh5 in 1890 there was not just music available to family members. Also, painting was enjoyed and some had the opportunity to tap into Richard’s expertise. This also explain the many portraits of Mellgren family members by Richard Bergh, including the one below of Ingrid painted circa 1913.
She spent her childhood in Gothenburg and got her education at Göteborgs Högre Samskola, but not passing the baccalaureate. Her younger sister Hervor was more fortunate in that regard since Erik and Elisabeth were active in founding the Göteborgs Högre Samskola, which was a private non-confessional school and the first to provide the possibility for girls to pass the baccalaureate. Hervor was in the first group passing the exam in 1908.
Politically this was a liberally minded family and Erik Mellgren was an active politician representing the liberal party in Gothenburg being elected as a member of the city council (Stadsfullmäktige) from 1905 to 1930. In addition, he was a member of the Financial Committee (Drätselkammaren) that took care of the city’s finances from 1909 to 1913 and again from 1918 to 1928. He was also on the School Board (folkskolestyrelsen) 1896 to 1911 (chairman from 1905 to 1911). This meant participation in many important processes and influence on the management of Sweden second largest city and a key industrial hub.
The combination of financial wealth, a good position in society and an open mind to the world and the evolution of human thought meant that Erik and Eliabeth viewed their children’s ambitions in a comparatively modern way. Apart from the broad cultural interests that were part of the family interest growing up in the Mellgren family in the beginning of the 20th century taught you opportunity and ambition over tradition and custom. If you were a Mellgren in Gothenburg in the first decades of the 20th century you were well-known and well-connected. Therefore, Björn and Pim marrying was a step upwards on the social ladder for a young aspiring man of not too many means. However, Björns decision to accept an offer from AB Svenska Kullagerfabriken (SKF) would soon propel his professional career to new highs.
SKF was the brainchild of Swedish inventor Sven Wingquist6, who in 1907 invented the multi-row self-aligning radial ball-bearing an invention that allowed anything movable to move more easily and better than ever before. Critically, the new ball-bearing was able to adjust for imperfection in axle machining, vibrations and movement, which made it more reliable than previous products. Machinery. trains, ships, cars and aircraft were all completely dependent on ball-bearings. Consequently, the SKF franchise grew quickly into a multi-national company. In 1912 SKF was represented in 32 countries and had production facilities in 12 countries its staff totalled 21,000.
Björn is employed in one of Sweden many international manufacturing successes as innovative and transformative in its day as tech companies are seen to be in this day. His international marketing experience and broad language skills are valuable for a company such as SKF. So, in spite of his young age (Björn is 26 years old) he is quickly promoted to head of marketing. The competition in the ball-bearing industry is obviously fierce, domestically as well as internationally. The answer is expansion and in-market consolidation, you either eat or you are eaten. In October 1914, Björn is sent to the US to investigate the opportunities to expand the SKF franchise. War and the growth of the automobile industry are promising options. In 1915 SKF acquires the American manufacturer The Hess-Bright Manufacturing Co. in Philadelphia, an investment that opens the American auto industry to SKF-products. Since the Hess-Bright Manufacturing Co. had been producing the ‘Conrad’-ball bearing under license from its owner the Deutsche Waffen Fabrik the idea was floated to launch the SKF products under a unique brand name. Björn then came up with the idea to call the new brand Volvo, Latin for ‘I am rolling’. A Swedish Limited liability company is registered May 5, 1915, but in the end, products were still labelled SKF also in the US.
It is Björn that manages the acquisition. In spite of the ongoing world war and the ever more intense U-boat war Björn is sent to the US to conclude the deal and manage the US operations. The Ellis Island registry show that Björn leaves Christiania7 aboard the Skandinavien-Amerika Linjens (SAL) liner SS Hellig Olav on June 4 and arrives in New York June 18, 1915. Surprisingly Ingrid is there to greet him welcome having sailed ahead of him on April 26 with the same ship arriving in New York on May 6, 19158. There are no documents that show Björn’s and Ingrid’s children accompanying them on this trip. Kenneth is 2 years old and Theresa only 1. They should have been registered together with Ingrid if they travelled together but leaving them behind in Sweden is almost an impossible thought for a mother in this day. May they have been omitted in the registration? Dear reader it may be that records are incomplete but the registry for Ingrid Prytz is at the top of a short list of only six foreigners aboard.
The day before SS Hellig Olavs arrival in New York harbour the German submarine U-20 under command of Kapitänleutnant Walther Schwieger sinks the RMS Lusitania off the Irish coast with a loss of 1197 lives. The sinking of the Lusitania marks a turning point in the Great War since public opinion in the US begins to swing in favour of joining the Entente in the war against Germany and her allies. The strong reactions to the sinking of the Lusitania forces the German High Command to halt the unlimited U-boat war. The ruthlessness that characterised the German attack and the German decision to commence using poison gas are acts that further de-humanises the war. The irony is that ships of other nationalities were temporarily spared but that would change when the German High Command again altered course.
In the beginning of 1916 Björn and Ingrid Prytz have been married since 1912, in February 1913 they can welcome their first child, Kenneth, in 1914 their first daughter Theresa9. In 1915 they both travel to the US and in 1916 they are back in Sweden again. So far it is not known when they returned and why.
In early 1916 Björn is required to return again to the US. A letter dated March 18, 1916, from Elisabeth to her daughter Hervor Wickman in Paris indicates that Björn is travelling to the US. We can also conclude that when Björn leaves Gothenburg, Pim is pregnant again. As time will tell it must have been a parting gift.
Apparently Björn’s return to the US requires that he passes via England. Now his British passport becomes a liability. On arrival in England, he is banned from leaving for 6 days. If he gets through, he will send a telegram with the text ‘All right’ if he is taken and thereby drafted into the Army, he will instead send a telegram with the text ‘Congratulations’. This journey is a bit of a mystery, thought since there are no records of him entering to the US in 1916. The Skandinavien-Amerika Linjen has its route from Copenhagen to Christiania and then to New York, there is no stop-over in England. It may have been the case that Björn decided to travel from Norway to England to visit his family and then to continue to the US. While this is possible it was also much riskier, since British ships were still targeted by German submarines and because of the risk posed by Björn’s citizenship.
From preserved letters it is possible to glean into the thoughts of, in particular, Elisabeth Mellgren. She is appalled by the senseless brutality of the war and in her active social life there are many that expresses similar opinions. There is in the Gothenburg social elite resentment toward the war parties in all countries. It is also clear that despite the conflict there is not one party being more responsible for the conflict, so a negotiated peace is at this stage and in these circles not seen as one party’s unconditional surrender. However, peace negotiations, while being discussed lead to nothing.
The peace initiative arranged by Henry Ford in 1915 the Peace Ship had squandered. The initiative was mocked by the press both in the US and in Britain. The subsequent peace conferences in Stockholm and the Hague where Europe’s women jointly had called for an ending of hostilities had also come to naught. The forces in favour of peace could not defeat the forces that believed there was meaning and benefit from pushing on until the defeat of opponent.
As 1916 turns from early spring to summer it is evident that Pim is pregnant again. On December 4 their second daughter is born. She is named Ingrid Agneta Prytz. Ingrid and her children spend Christmas together with Elisabeth and Erik. They have just moved from their apartment on Haga Kyrkogata 14 to the family’s brand-new townhouse Villa Mellgren on Bengt Lidnersgatan 5. This is situated in Lorensbergs villastad a development for the well-situated. More or less all villas have names form their owners. There is the Villa Ekman for the famous trading house dynasty, Carlanderska Villan for the chairman and co-founder of SKF, the ball-bearing manufacturer and Broströmska Villan for the famous shipping merchant, just to mention a few10. To live her is a strong signal of a family’s social status. Construction of new luxury homes continues in Sweden in spite of the ongoing war. Inflation is on the rise while interest rates remain low, the inflationary bubble is fast expanding thanks to unlimited exports of all war related materials to in particular Germany but also Russia. Credit is cheap and asset prices are soaring.
These economic conditions create a group of people that are known as Gulasch Barons (Gulaschbaroner), who continue living very comfortable lives while an growing part of the working classes have significant difficulties to make ends meet. The uneven distribution of gains and losses, where those indebted are freed of their debt by the rise in inflation, while those with low incomes or a bit of money in the bank are hit hard is a recipe for disaster. Social dissent is on the rise and soon the demand for workers to unite will be heard across the globe. But in 1916 dissent is still not as visible as it soon will be. Erik and Elisabeth are in this context old money, but none-the-less able to finance the construction of a roomy villa.
A war-weary world is increasingly questioning the madness of the industrial killings. However, the fighting is still to reach its ultimate crescendo. In January 1917 the German High Command resumes the unlimited U-boat war. Björn is still in the US and Pim is about to return to him with the children, this time they are going to stay indefinitely.
In Brussels a three-year-old boy is orphaned and placed with foster parents. He is far away from opportunities that will open to the newborn Agneta and Robert. His name is Georges Delfanne.
Footnotes
- Camillo Castiglioni is no longer the headline grabber he was in the early part of the 20th century. In many ways he is not unlike some of the tech billionaires of today. Born in Trieste in 1879 the son of the chief rabbi, his legacy remains visible to this day not the least in the brand Bayerische Motoren Werke AG or BMW, but also in Bayerische Flugzeugwerke or Bf an abbreviation that is forever associated with Willi Messerschmitts many aircraft. Find out more here: Camillo Castiglioni – Wikipedia. There is also interesting material on Youtube in particular if you command Italian. ↩︎
- Dr. Ernst Heinkel was a pioneer in Aviation already before 1914 and became the chief designer at Hansa Brandenburguische Flugzeugbau during the Great War. His career was only in its infancy, and he continued being a key person in German aviation into the Second World War. For more about him please visit Ernst Heinkel – Wikipedia. ↩︎
- In French administration the Préfet is the central government representative in a department with important powers ensuring the precise exécution of policy or “Cette magistrature était l’une des institutions les plus monarchiques que l’on ait jamais pu imaginer” as count Vaublanc expressed it in his memoires Mémoires de M. le comte de Vaublanc, Vincent-Marie Viénot de Vaublanc, éditions Barrière, p.407, 1857. ↩︎
- Following the nationalisation of tobacco manufacturing in 1914 Erik Mellgren was a member of the Board of Directors for AB Svenska Tobaksmonopolet from 1914—18. Han var förlikningsman i arbetstvister inom västra distriktet 1920 — 26, ledamot av styrelsen for Handelshögskolan i Gbg 1921 — 35, överförmyndare 1924—32 och inspektor för Filip Holmqvists handelsinstitut. ↩︎
- Richard Bergh was a prominent painter in Sweden around 1900. Born in 1858 he was educated first in Stockholm and later in Paris. His debut was the Paris Salon in 1883. He belonged to the group ‘Opponenterna’ (the opponents) together with painters Carl Larsson, Per Hasselborg, Ernst Josephson and August Hagborg. You can read more about him here in Swedish (Richard Bergh – Wikipedia) in English (Richard Bergh – Wikipedia) and in French (Richard Bergh — Wikipédia (wikipedia.org)). ↩︎
- Sven Gustaf Wingqvist was a Swedish engineer and inventor that first worked in the textile industry for AB Gamlestadens Fabriker and when doing that realize how to improve on the low-quality ball-bearings available at the time. His ideas came to revolutionise how we may move things. For more about this extraordinary man please follow this link. Sven Gustaf Wingqvist – Wikipedia. ↩︎
- Christiania was the name of the capital of Norway until January 1, 1925, when a decision was made to retake its ancient name. The meaning of the name is debated but it may mean the plain by the ridge or the plain of the gods. ↩︎
- In Ingrid’s customs documents her address is City Club Hotel on 55 West 44th Street in New York. There is no information indicating that she was accompanied by any children. Interestingly she is stated as of British nationality, while Björn is stated to be Swedish when he arrives in the US a few weeks later. The truth was the opposite. ↩︎
- At this point a structure begins to appear. It is evident that the acquisition of the Hess-Bright required Björn’s active management on-site it is also clear that crossing the Atlantic in the midst of a ranging war was completely normal. We may also conclude that Björn and Ingrid planned for a longer stay in the US, but for now there is no information on when either of them returned to Sweden. However a letter dated March 18 1916 from Elisabeth Mellgren to her daughter Hervor living in Paris is stated that they had both in Sweden, but that Björn was enroute to the US. ↩︎
- For more details on this interesting part of Gothenburg, which is a good illustration of the closely-knit elite that is one characteristic of the industrial centre please follow this link (requires knowledge of Swedish) Lorensbergs villastad – Wikipedia. ↩︎