Helge Palmcrantz

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Helge Palmcrantz
Carl Helge Julius Palmcrantz.jpg
Born
Carl Helge Julius Palmcrantz

(1842-07-07)July 7, 1842
Hammerdal, Sweden
DiedNovember 22, 1880(1880-11-22) (aged 38)
Stockholm, Sweden
Nationality Sweden
OccupationInventor, Firearms designer
Spouse(s)Susanna Josephina Winborg

Helge Palmcrantz (July 7, 1842–November 22, 1880) was a Swedish inventor and industrialist. [1]

Biography[]

Palmcrantz was born at Hammerdal in Jämtland, Sweden. He was the son of Per Gustaf Palmcrantz (1806–1905) and Lovisa Ulrika Nordenmark His father was a captain in the Jämtland Ranger Regiment. He was enlisted as a cadet in his father's regiment, where he worked on land survey. After a couple of years he left the regiment to study at the Technological Institute of Stockholm, later known as KTH Royal Institute of Technology.

In partnership with his brother-in-law, Theodor Winborg (1832-1918), Palmcrantz founded a small workshop on Vollmar Yxkullsgatan 25, Södermalm, Stockholm. As number of employees increased along with the production volume, he moved to a new factory on Kungsholmen, Stockholm, where they manufactured firearms, reaping machines, mowers and other agricultural equipment of their own design.[2] Later on there would be Palmcrantz factory, Palmcrantzska Fabriken, on Lövholmen, Stockholm.[3] [4]

In 1868, the first version of his machine-gun was finished and a demonstration of its capacity was held on Ladugårdsgärdet, Stockholm in front of the Swedish Defense Minister; G.R. Abel. After a couple of modifications and improvements, he patented the multi-barrel, lever-actuated, machine gun and it was bought into the Swedish army. Same year, the machine-gun was shown on the 1873 Vienna World's Fair.

To reach international success, Palmcrantz met industrialist Thorsten Nordenfelt (1842-1920) in 1875 and the latter's company became his British agent. They agreed to market the machine-gun under the then well known Nordenfelt brand and his second model would later be known as the Nordenfelt machine-gun after his financial backer. It was Nordenfelt who convinced Palmcrantz to increase the caliber of his gun to one inch, making it a suitable weapon for use against the growing threat of torpedo boats.[5]

Palmcrantz succumbed to an early death from a bleeding ulcer. He was buried at Norra Begravningsplatsen in Stockholm.

Helge Palmcrantz has a former school named after him; Palmcrantzskolan in Östersund. The block names "Kulsprutan" and "Lavetten" on Kungsholmen is named after his factories at Hantverkargatan.

References[]

  1. ^ "C Helge J Palmcrantz". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  2. ^ "patent 2309". The Commissioners of patents' journal. Great Britain. Patent Office. 1876. p. 2153.
  3. ^ "Aktiebolaget Palmcrantz & C:o". Sveriges industri - dess stormän och befrämjare. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  4. ^ "Carl Helge Julius Palmcrantz". Technical Museum. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  5. ^ Smith, Anthony (2004). Machine Gun: The Story of the Men and the Weapon That Changed the Face of War. Macmillan. p. 69. ISBN 978-0-312-93477-4.

External links[]

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