Raoul Nordling

Who was Raoul Nordling?

Raoul Nordling was a Swedish businessman and diplomat. He was born in Paris and spent most of his life there.

Nordling's father, Carl Gustav Nordling, arrived in Paris from Sweden at the end of the 1870s, and established the paper-paste firm "Gustav Nordling". Raoul studied at the lycée Janson-de-Sailly, and then joined his father's company, eventually succeeding him at its helm. He was appointed as Swedish vice-consul in Paris in 1905 at the age of 24, becoming consul in 1917 and consul-general in 1926, on the death of his father.

Although Nordling was Swedish by nationality, he felt himself to be above all a "citizen of Paris". He spoke French much more often than Swedish, having to virtually learn his national language when he went to Sweden as a young man to complete his military service.

Throughout his working life, Nordling played an important role in mediating between Sweden and France, but he is best remembered for his efforts to mediate between French and German forces during the occupation and Liberation of Paris during the Second World War.