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Description
Packed with first-hand accounts and previously classified government documents, this book reveals the secrets of Sweden's resistance network, created to deter a potential Soviet occupation.
Following World War II, Sweden faced the looming threat of the Soviet Union and its drive to spread communism. This led to the formation of a resistance movement involving Sweden's intelligence service, the employers' association and the labour movement. The stay-behind network was fully legalised in 1955 and continued its clandestine work until the mid-1990s, with the mission of keeping communism – and the Soviets – out of Sweden.
Drawing on extensive archival research and interviews with key figures, author Johan Wennström peels back the layers of secrecy surrounding the stay-behinds. This book looks at the men who created the network, the work the operatives carried out, the cell-like structure they relied on, and how the US and UK intelligence communities cooperated with the Swedish stay-behinds. This is the first in-depth study of a secret organization that helped shape modern Sweden. It also highlights lessons for today's NATO and makes the case for a defence policy grounded in national interest.
Table of Contents
Dramatis Personae
Chronology
Prologue
Part I: Invasion
Ch 1: A Possible Scenario
Ch 2: Something Must Be Done
Part II: The Men of 1949
Ch 3: The Top Brass
Ch 4: The Operatives
Part III: Well-Organized Defeat
Ch 5: Operation Metro
Ch 6: Vertical Contact
Ch 7: Vivat Carolus Rex Sueciae
Epilogue
Afterwords
On Sources and Methods
Appendix
Acknowledgements
Notes
Sources and Bibliography
Index
Product details
| Published | 10 Sep 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Hardback |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 240 |
| ISBN | 9781472877543 |
| Imprint | Osprey Publishing |
| Dimensions | 234 x 153 mm |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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