This year's Hugo Raab Prize goes to Maria Gussarsson

Maria Gussarsson, Associate Professor of Military History, receives the Hugo Raab Award for 2023, the Swedish Defense University's award for scientific work of exceptional quality.

Maria Gussarsson works at the Department of War Studies and Military History at the Swedish Defence University. She receives the prize for her book Kartans makt i krig och fred. Fältmätarna, det nya kriget och samhällelig utveckling 1805–1831 (The Power of the Map in War and Peace. Field surveyors, the New War and Social Development 1805-1831).

Reasons for the award

Associate Professor Maria Gussarsson's excellent book on the Field Survey Corps analyzes the role of the map and how it has had an impact on the technological development of warfare and its consequences for the armed forces. The need for accurate maps was crucial to the ability to conduct military operations. Her impressive empirical contribution and well-written study enhance the understanding of social developments in the early 19th century. The well-constructed work also offers an in-depth insight into the organization and importance of field surveyors for both military and civilian mapping. Maria Gussarsson's important work therefore helps to explain the relationship between technological, scientific, and social change in the formative years of the 19th century.

The importance of the Field Survey Corps for the development of the armed forces and society

The book is based on many years of research and is the first to take a broader view of the importance of the Field Survey Corps for the development of society.

"I am incredibly honored. This book is the result of eight years of work that began when I received a grant from the National Archives to go through the archives of the Field Survey Corps. The more I got into it, the more exciting I realized it was. It became increasingly clear how broad the field surveyors' efforts were, how driving, competent, and committed they were, and that they played such a significant role for both the armed forces and for the development of society in general, although the Field Survey Corps was quite small in terms of the number of officers", says Maria Gussarsson.

High-quality research

"I am very pleased that Maria Gussarson has been awarded this year's Hugo Raab Award! All this year's nominees received excellent reviews from the experts, so winning the award is a well-deserved recognition of Maria Gussarson's work. On behalf of the Swedish Defence University, I am proud that the Hugo Raab Prize has once again highlighted the high quality of research at the university", says Malena Britz, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of Research at the Swedish Defence University.