Anders Lassen was born to a wealthy family in Denmark in 1920. He had the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth. Heritage had primed Lassen for wealth and success, but the well-to-do Dane seemed to have other plans.
Category: TIDLÖS Heroes
Jan Baalsrud – Commando in the Norwegian resistance.
In 1939 Jan graduated as an instrument-maker but in 1940, he went to Vestfold to fight against the German invasion. The battle was soon lost however and after escaping to Sweden, where he was convicted of espionage and expelled, he travelled to Britain via the USSR, Africa, and USA, eventually arriving in 1941 where he then joined the “Norwegian Independent Company 1”
Raoul Wallenberg – Diplomat, businessman & humanitarian
As a diplomat and businessman, Raoul was appointed legation secretary of the Swedish diplomatic mission in Budapest in June 1944. His job was to launch a rescue operation for Jews, and he became head of a special department.
Algoth ‘The Smuggler King’ Niska
Algoth spent the latter part of the 1930’s in Germany, where he helped more than 150 Jews to escape via various devious routes through the Netherlands and Estonia using forged and stolen passports.
Johan Petter “JP” Johansson
Johan Petter “JP” Johansson, born in Vårgårda, Sweden in 1853, became a prolific inventor and successful industrialist whose creativity and ingenuity can still be felt to this day.
Gunnar “Spökis” Andersson
Gunnar served as a flight mechanic during World War Two at Jämtland’s Air Flotilla F 4. It was his service there that probably game him the nickname “Spökis”, meaning “Ghost”. While there are many ideas on how he got this name, his night missions near the Norwegian border.
Folke Pudas versus Sweden.
In order to create debate and raise awareness about his plight, Folke Pudas went on a hunger strike for 3 months in 1983, lying in a hand-nailed wooden box (now famously referred to as a Puda box) on Sergels torg, in front of the Swedish Parliament.