Wilhelm Dyrssen

Dyrssen was born on 26 March 1858 at Klagstorps mansion in Hagelberg Parish, Skaraborg County.[1][2] He was the son of the landowner Peder Johan Julius Dyrssen and his wife Gustafva Wilhelmina (née Hagerman).[3] Dyrssen was younger brother to Gerhard Dyrssen (1854–1938) and twin brother of Gustaf Dyrssen (1858–1934).[1]

He and his twin brother Gustaf graduated from the Royal Swedish Naval Academy in autumn 1877.[4] Dyrssen devoted himself as an officer first at the technology of the naval artillery and then to staff duty and advancing to higher positions at sea.[4] He studied at the Artillery and Engineering College from 1880 to 1883, becoming a sub-lieutenant in 1882.[2] From 1883 to 1885, Dyrssen participated in the frigate Vanadis global circumnavigation. After returning home he served at the Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration from 1887 to 1889 and as a teacher at the Royal Swedish Naval Academy from 1886 to 1893 and as a cadet officer from 1892 to 1893.[2] Dyrssen became lieutenant in 1888 and served in the Fleet Staff from 1889 to 1892 and was head of the Artillery Department at the Naval Station in Karlskrona from 1894 to 1899. In 1899, he became head of the Artillery Department at the Royal Swedish Naval Materiel Administration, a position he stayed in until 1904.[5] Dyrssen was promoted to commander of second rank in 1898 and of first rank in 1901[2] and captain in 1903.[3]

In addition to this, he was hired as an expert on various issues relating to the navy, including the 1902 Warships Building Committee. After being Minister for Naval Affairs from 1906 to 1907 in Arvid Lindman's first cabinet, he was called as a member of the committee, which had the task of examining the issue of an adequate coastal defence ship type and whose work resulted in the then under the political feuds much talked-about F-type.[4] He was appointed rear admiral already at 46 years of age in 1904 and became Inspector of the Navy's Exercises at Sea,[4] a position he stayed in until 1916.[3] In 1905, Dyrssen became the Highest Commander (högste befälhavare) of the Coastal Fleet. In this position, he got the opportunity to develop an unshakable calm as well as other solid commander qualities, especially during preparedness along the Swedish west coast in connection with Union crisis in 1905. As inspector he demonstrated an extraordinarily confident glance and an infallible judgment.[4] On his responsible post, he remained even during the first stage of World War I.[4] In 1910, Dyrssen became a military member of the Supreme Court of Sweden and in the year after, he was promoted to vice admiral. He resigned from the position of Highest Commander of the Coastal Fleet in 1916, and was appointed station commander in Stockholm. He left active service in 1923 and thereby received the highest of the three admiralty ranks.

The last years he devoted himself mainly to the management of his property Öråker near Mälarestäket and he also took a leading position as vice chairman in Sweden's Agricultural Employers Central Association (Sveriges lantarbetsgivares centralförening),[4] and chairman of the General Electoral League (Allmänna valmansförbundet) in Uppsala County.[3]

Dyrssen became a member of the Royal Swedish Society of Naval Sciences in 1893 and honorary member in 1904.[5] He became a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences in 1899.[2] Dyrssen was editor of the journal Tidskrift i Sjöväsendet from 1894 to 1898.[3]

In 1888, Dyrssen was married to baroness Lizinka af Ugglas (1866–1952), the daughter of Gustaf af Ugglas and Therese Björnstjerna.[3] He was the father of Gustaf Dyrssen and Magnus Dyrssen.