Olof Sven Joachim Palme Von Knieriem (1927-1986)
1927-01-30--1986-02-28 (man)
Swedish Politician, Statesman, and Prime Minister.
Link
https://www.familysearch.org/tree/pedigree/landscape/LKDJ-YGP
He was elected Prime Minister of Sweden as a member of the Social Democratic party on two separate occasions, first in 1969 until 1976 and again from 1982 until his death.
He is best remembered for his non-alignment policy towards the world's superpowers, for instituting social reforms in Sweden, his support of Third World liberation movements, and vocal opposition to authoritarian world governments.
Born Sven Olof Joachim Palme in Ostermalm, Stockholm, Sweden, he came from an upper-class conservative family where his father was a businessman and of Dutch ancestry and his mother was of Baltic-German origin, whose family came to Sweden as refugees in 1915.
Because of health issues, he was educated by private tutors as a child and received his high school education at the Sigtuna School of Liberal Arts, after which he entered the military and became a reserve officer with the rank of captain. Upon completing his military service he enrolled at the University of Stockholm.
From 1947 to 1948 he attended Kenyon College at Gambier, Ohio on a scholarship and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. After graduation he travelled throughout the US and Mexico for about a year, sometimes by hitchhiking, and through his experiences he slowly became a socialist. Returning to Stockholm University to study law, he became a member of the Swedish Social Democratic Party in 1949.
In 1951 he became a member of the social democratic student association but did not attend their political meetings at the time and the following year he was elected President of the Swedish National Union of Students and travelled across Europe and concentrated on international affairs.
In 1953 he was asked by Swedish Prime Minister Tage Erlander to work in his secretariat and in 1957 he was elected to the Swedish Parliament as a Social Democratic representative from Jonkoping County. When Social Democratic party leader Elrander stepped down as Prime Minister, he was then elected as the new Social Democratic leader.
Often described as a "revolutionary reformist," he carried out major changes to the Swedish constitution such as orchestrating a switch from a two-parliamentary to a one-parliamentary form of government in 1969 and replacing the standing Instrument of Government with a new one officially establishing parliamentary democracy, in lieu of the monarchic autocracy, in 1975, abolishing the Privy Council of Sweden and stripping Sweden's King of most of his rights.
His reforms on the labor market included establishing new laws increasing job security. Under his leadership the Swedish welfare state was significantly expanded from a position already one of the most far-reaching in the world during his time in office, while tax rates rose from being fairly low even by European standards to the highest levels in the Western world. Among the social issues that received special attention were the establishment of child care centers, social security protection of the elderly, accident safety, revamping the health care system, the restoration of unemployment insurance, and aid to immigrants, the disabled and low-income single parent families. While walking home from a movie in Stockholm with his wife on the night of February 28, 1986, he was shot and killed by an unknown assassin.
He was 59 years old. Although a person was arrested, tried, and convicted of the crime, the conviction was later overturned on appeal. The crime remains unsolved to this day.
Bio by: William Bjornstad
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