Ståhlberg kidnapping

On October 14, 1930, at approximately 9:00 am EET, former and first President of Finland, Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg, and his wife, Ester Ståhlberg, were abducted near their home in Helsinki, Finland, by members of the far-right Lapua Movement.^[1][2]

K.J. and Ester Ståhlberg at Joensuu railway station on October 15, 1930, one day after their kidnapping

The plan was spearheaded by ex-White Guard general Kurt Martti Wallenius. The kidnappers threatened to execute both hostages if their demands were not met, but were ultimately hesitant to carry out the threat.^[2] The pair were taken by car to Joensuu in Eastern Finland, where they were abruptly set free after the kidnappers failed to meet up with other accomplices.^[3]

In December 1930, Wallenius and Eero Kuussaari were found guilty of the kidnapping and sentenced to 3 years of penal servitude and dismissal from the army.^[4]

The incident greatly eroded the already dwindling popular support for the Lapua Movement.^[2] The kidnapping was also considered decisive in the victory of Pehr Evind Svinhufvud against Ståhlberg in the 1931 presidential election.^[1] After the kidnapping, the Lapuans again threatened to assassinate Ståhlberg.^[5]

Reaction

The abduction was widely covered in foreign newspapers.

In Sweden, the news caused a diplomatic incident when Dagens Nyheter wrote that "such news should come from Mexico or one of the 'Banana republics' and not from a Western European state", to which the Mexican ambassador in Stockholm protested vehemently. ^[6]