Johan Wilhelm Rangell
Johan Wilhelm Rangell | |
|---|---|
| Born | Johan Wilhelm Rangell Template:Birth date Hämeenlinna, Finland |
| Died | March 12, 1982 (aged 87) |
| Other names | Jukka Rangell |
| Occupation(s) | Lawyer, politician, banker |
| Years active | 1941–1943 (Prime Minister), 1943–1944 (Governor of Bank of Finland), later IOC member until 1967 |
| Known for | Prime Minister of Finland during World War II |
Johan Wilhelm (Jukka) Rangell (25 October 1894 – 12 March 1982) held the position of Prime Minister of Finland between 1941 and 1943.
Trained as a lawyer, Rangell maintained a close association with President Risto Ryti and initially worked at the Bank of Finland. He was involved in the initiative to relocate the 1940 Summer Olympics to Helsinki after Tokyo lost hosting rights. When President Kyösti Kallio stepped down during the Interim Peace, Ryti was chosen as president in December 1940, and Rangell assumed the office of Prime Minister. His responsibilities primarily encompassed economic affairs, whereas foreign policy decisions were largely influenced by Commander-in-Chief Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, President Ryti, and Foreign Minister Rolf Witting. Due to his connections with the IOC and the Berlin Olympics, he was often viewed as having a pro-German inclination.
Throughout the Continuation War, Rangell’s government enjoyed parliamentary backing for its military campaigns. He supported the occupation of East Karelia and the recovery of territories ceded in the Peace of Moscow. In August 1942, when Heinrich Himmler visited Finland, Rangell dismissed concerns regarding the Jewish population by declaring: "Wir haben keine Judenfrage" ("We do not have a Jewish question").
From 1943 until 1944, Rangell served as governor of the Bank of Finland. During the postwar war-responsibility trials in Finland, he received a six-year sentence for alleged crimes against peace, but was granted a pardon in 1949. Subsequently, he withdrew from political life and dedicated himself to roles within the Finnish Olympic Committee and the IOC until 1967, while also holding a board position at Kansallis-Osake-Pankki bank.
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External links
- 1894 births
- 1982 deaths
- People from Hämeenlinna
- National Progressive Party (Finland) politicians
- Prime ministers of Finland
- Finnish bankers
- Governors of the Bank of Finland
- Finnish International Olympic Committee members
- Finnish people of World War II
- Finnish people convicted of the international crime of aggression
- Recipients of Finnish presidential pardons
- University of Helsinki alumni
- Heads of government who were later imprisoned
- World War II political leaders