# Boden Garrison

Boden Garrison (Swedish: Bodens garnison) is a major garrison in Sweden, located in and around Boden in Norrbotten County. The garrison has during the 20th century been, and still is, the largest garrison in Sweden, consisting of several units of the Swedish Armed Forces as well as Boden Fortress.

## History

Before the decision to construct Boden Fortress, there was no permanently stationed military unit in Boden. The main military presence were the four tenement soldiers of Bodens kompani (Boden Company)—part of Norrbotten Regiment (I 19)—that lived in the locality. To provide men for the fortress, several units were either created in, or moved to the newly built garrison. The first unit garrisoned in Boden was Boden Engineer Corps, and engineering battalion, in 1905 (even though the official move was not made until in 1908). Soon to follow were infantry and artillery units that had wartime stationing in and around the fortress, and other supporting units.
From 1910 and on, the garrison was developed from a pure fortress garrison to a training centre for troops serving in the whole of upper Norrland. More than 60 percent of Norrbotten Regiment were to be used for the field army in case of mobilisation right before the First World War. On 1 January 1914, 709 permanently employed soldiers and officers were stationed in Boden, and 4,710 conscripts were trained in the garrison during the year, this in a locality with a population of 4,952.
During the Second World War, the mission of Norrbotten Regiment changed from manning the fortress to guarding the northern borders, and the infantry unit supposed to protect the fortress was instead Värmland Regiment that would be transported from southwestern Sweden up to Boden in case of mobilisation. A further move from fortress garrison was taken in 1957 when the armoured unit Norrbotten Armoured Battalion was created. The first air unit was stationed in Boden already in 1916, when a small detachment of three aircraft and 29 personnel was moved there from the army air force station in Malmslätt. During the years, further detachments were located in Boden garrison from time to time, but it was not until 1959 that Boden got its own flying unit, through the helicopter unit Arméns helikopterskola.
The massive cutdowns of the Swedish Armed Forces in the 1990s and 2000s saw several old regiments disband, merge, or move, which affected Boden as well. Several independent regiments and battalions stationed in the garrison were reduced in size and merged into Norrbotten Regiment. Even after the cutdowns, Boden Garrison retained the position as the largest garrison in Sweden and the main training centre for conscripts. The garrison houses the only remaining artillery regiment of the armed forces and is the only remaining garrison housing more than one Swedish Army regiment.
Conscripts and personnel of Boden Garrison 1920–2007 :
| Year | Personnel | Conscripts |
| 1920 | 931 | 5,047 |
| 1930 | 772 | 6,191 |
| 1939 | — | 5,669 |
| 1940 | 889 | — |
| 1950 | 981 | 1,810 |
| 1960 | 768 | 2,407 |
| 1970 | 899 | 3,250 |
| 1980 | 1,480 | 2,000 |
| 2006/07 | — | 1,800 |

## Units

| Name | Designation | Type | From | To |
| Northern Military Region | MR N | Command | 2013-01-01 | |
| Artillery Regiment | A 9 | Artillery regiment | 2006-01-01 | |
| Norrbottensgruppen | G 63 | Command | 2000-07-01 | |
| Norrbotten Regiment | I 19 | Armoured regiment | 2000-07-01 | |
| Norrbotten Armoured Battalion | Pbat/I 19 | Armoured battalion | 2000-07-01 | |
| Norrland Engineer Company | Ingkomp/I 19 | Engineer company | 2006-01-01 | 2011-06-21 |
| Norrland Artillery Battalion | Artbat/I 19 | Artillery battalion | 2000-07-01 | 2005-12-31 |
| Norrland Engineer Battalion | Ingbat/I 19 | Engineer battalion | 2000-07-01 | 2005-12-31 |
| Norrland Signal Battalion | Signbat/I 19 | Communications regiment | 2000-07-01 | 2005-12-31 |
| Norrland Anti-Aircraft Battalion | Lvbat/I 19 | Air defence battalion | 2000-07-01 | 2005-06-30 |
| Norrlands helikopterskvadron | 1. hkpskv | Helicopter squadron | 2000-07-01 | 2005-06-30 |
| Norrbottens försvarsområde | Fo 63 | Command | 1998-01-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Norrland Artillery Regiment | A 8 | Artillery regiment | 1998-01-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Norrlands helikopterbataljon | 1. hkpbat | Helicopter battalion | 1998-07-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Norrland Engineer Corps | Ing 3 | Engineer battalion | 1994-07-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Norrland Anti-Aircraft Corps | Lv 7 | Air defence battalion | 1994-07-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Norrbotten Regiment and Norrbotten Brigade | MekB 19 | Mechanised regiment/brigade | 1994-10-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Norrland Signal Corps | S 3 | Communications regiment | 1994-07-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Norrbottens arméflygbataljon | AF 1 | Helicopter battalion | 1980-01-01 | 1998-06-30 |
| Bodens försvarsområde | Fo 63 | Command | 1994-07-01 | 1997-12-31 |
| Boden Artillery Regiment | A 8 | Artillery regiment | 1994-07-01 | 1997-12-31 |
| Luleå Anti-Aircraft Regiment | Lv 7 | Air defence regiment | 1992-05-01 | 1994-06-30 |
| Norrland Signal Regiment | S 3 | Communications regiment | 1987-07-01 | 1994-06-30 |
| Norrbotten Regiment and Norrbotten Armoured Battalion | I 19/P 5 | Infantry/armoured battalion | 1975-07-01 | 1994-06-30 |
| Boden Artillery Regiment | A 8/Fo 63 | Artillery regiment | 1975-07-01 | 1994-06-30 |
| Boden Engineer Regiment | Ing 3 | Engineer regiment | 1975-07-01 | 1994-06-30 |
| Norrland Signal Battalion | S 3 | Communications battalion | 1957-04-01 | 1987-06-30 |
| Arméns helikopterskola | HkpS | Helicopter school | 1959-11-01 | 1979-12-31 |
| Norrbotten Armoured Battalion | P 5 | Armoured battalion | 1957-04-01 | 1975-06-30 |
| Bodens försvarsområde | Fo 63 | Command | 1942-10-01 | 1975-06-30 |
| Boden Engineer Corps | Ing 3 | Engineer battalion | 1937-07-01 | 1975-06-30 |
| Boden Artillery Regiment | A 8 | Artillery regiment | 1919-09-10 | 1975-06-30 |
| Norrbotten Regiment | I 19 | Infantry regiment | 1907-10-01 | 1975-06-30 |
| Signal Battalion in Boden | S 3 | Communications battalion | 1955-12-07 | 1957-03-31 |
| Signal Battalion in Boden | S 1 B | Communications battalion | 1954-07-01 | 1955-12-06 |
| Signal Regiment's Company in Boden | S 1 B | Communications company | 1942-12-04 | 1954-06-30 |
| Norrbotten Artillery Corps | A 5 | Artillery battalion | 1928-01-01 | 1951-06-30 |
| Tredje intendenturkompaniet | Int 3 | Support company | 1928-01-01 | 1950-12-31 |
| Boden Signal Company | S 1 B | Communications company | 1937-07-01 | 1942-12-03 |
| Boden Engineer Corps | Ing 4 | Engineer battalion | 1905-04-01 | 1937-06-30 |
| Intendenturkompaniet i Boden | Int 3 | Support company | 1915-10-29 | 1927-12-31 |
| III. division/Norrland Artillery Regiment | A 4 B | Artillery battalion | 1910-04-01 | 1927-12-31 |
| Field Telegraph Corps' Detachment in Boden | Ing 4 det | Communications detachment | 1915-01-01 | 1925-10-31 |
| Boden Artillery Battalion | A 8 B | Artillery battalion | 1912-11-01 | 1919-09-09 |
| 2nd Battalion/Boden-Karlsborg Artillery Regiment | A 8 B | Artillery battalion | 1906-10-24 | 1912-10-31 |

## Commanders

As the garrison only became an actual organisation in the armed forces in 1975, there was no official garrison commander until then, however the commandants of Boden Fortress had extended powers over the military units stationed in the garrison. The position Commander Boden Garrison (Chef Bodens garnison) has since been occupied by:
| Name | From | To |
| Sven Skeppstedt | 1975-07-01 | 1980-03-31 |
| Reinhold Lahti | 1980-04-01 | 1983-03-31 |
| Thure Wadenholt | 1983-04-01 | 1992-12-31 |
| Göran Honkamaa | 1993-01-01 | 1999-09-30 |
| Ulf Nordlander | 1999-10-01 | 2000-06-30 |
| Per Lodin | 2000 | 2003 |
| Ola Hansson | 2003 | 2004 |
| Frank Westman | 2004 | 2006 |
| Jan Mörtberg | 2006 | 2010 |
| Olof Granander | 2010 | |

## Citations

* ↑ Högberg & Ohlsson 2006, p. 222.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, p. 194.
* ↑ Holmberg 1993, p. 38.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, p. 197.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, p. 206.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, p. 199.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, pp. 205–206.
* ↑ Folkmängden inom administrativa områden 1915, p. 35.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, p. 207.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, pp. 210–211.
* ↑ Andersson 2004.
* 1 2 Försvarsmuseum Boden.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, pp. 223–224.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, p. 190.
* ↑ Nyström & Skeppstedt 1990, p. 14.
* ↑ Sköld 2001, pp. 45–48.