page_title: Boden Fortress
section_title: Fortification of Sweden
hierarchical_section_title: Boden Fortress / Background / Fortification of Sweden
caption_attribution_description: Johan Peter Lefrén, general and military theorist.
context_page_description: Boden Fortress is a modern fortress consisting of several major and minor forts and fortifications surrounding the city of Boden, Norrbotten, in northern Sweden. The fortress was originally intended to stop or delay attacks from the east or coastal assaults, which at the time of construction meant Russian attacks launched from Finland. It was primarily the expansion of the railway net in Norrland, which in turn was a consequence of the rising importance of the northern iron ore fields, that led to the increased strategic value of northern Sweden and the construction of the fortress. Although the main forts were finished in 1908, many of the supporting fortifications were not completed until the start of the First World War. Improvements were also continuously made during, and between, both World Wars.
  Boden Fortress is made up of five primary self-supporting forts excavated out of the bedrock in five of the mountains surrounding Boden: Degerberget, Mjösjöberget, Gammelängsberget, Södra Åberget and Rödberget. Eight fortified secondary artillery positions were constructed between the forts to give flanking support and to cover areas not in range of the main forts' artillery.
context_section_description: Sweden had just lost one third of its population, as Russia had conquered the eastern part and created the Grand Duchy of Finland out of it during the Finnish War in 1808–1809. Shortly after, in 1814, the west flank had been secured by the personal union with Norway, and after the Napoleonic Wars, the former main enemy of Sweden in the south, Denmark, was no longer any threat. The only threat left was Russia, which now stood just across the border in the north, and had possession of the Åland Islands less than 150 km from the Swedish capital Stockholm. The Swedish Navy was considered superior to the Russian in the Gulf of Bothnia, so a seaborne invasion against the coast of Norrland was not likely. And even though the Russians had invaded northern Sweden via Finland in the previous war, the general opinion was that in case of a new war, their main attack would be conducted towards Stockholm and southern Sweden.
  This opinion led to the thought of finding a good rear defence area where the Estates and the Swedish government could move if the capital was in danger. This in turn naturally strengthened the central defence theory. The core land (kärnlandet) would be the place from where the main part of the field army would conduct its operations, supported by a few fortresses. The area between the two large lakes of Vänern and Vättern was the choice for this core land, with approximately the same border as Skaraborg County. Sweden above the province of Dalarna was not even considered to be included in this strategy. The realisation of the middle Sweden central defence system was finally made 5 February 1819 when King Charles XIV John decided that one main fortress, the central fortress, and two smaller "operational fortresses" were to be built. The central fortress became Karlsborg Fortress at Karlsborg, while the two operational fortresses meant to be located at either end of Vättern never were built due to lack of funds.
  While Norrland was not supposed to be included in this main central defence strategy, studies on how to defend this major part of the country were still conducted. However, northern Sweden was generally considered of very limited military interest and unsuitable for larger military operations due to the bad state of most of the roads, the large uninhabited areas, the large rivers and the very limited economical gain that the lands provided. The first of these studies, laid down by the Fortification Committee of 1819 (1819 års befästningskommitté)—which was largely influenced by the committee's secretary Johan Peter Lefrén—led to nothing more than the opinion that the large rivers up north—especially the Ångerman River—would benefit the defence and that no major fortifications were to be built. In another study from 1824, colonel—and much later Swedish Minister for War—Gustaf Oscar Peyron suggested that it would be better to fortify positions just south of Boden—along the more northern Lule River—for example at Sävast or Avan. However no major changes were made, partially due to the limited military interest, but also because of the large amounts of money that was spent on building Karlsborg Fortress and modernizing other older fortifications in southern Sweden.
caption: Johan Peter Lefrén, general, military theorist and secretary of the Swedish Fortification Committee of 1819.
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