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He helped collect public donations for the building of the coastal defense ship , which the Liberal and anti-militarist government of Karl Staaff had been unwilling to finance.
In early 1914, when the Liberal government enacted cutbacks to the country's defenses, Hedin wrote the Courtyard Speech, in which King Gustaf V promised to strengthen the country's defenses.
The speech led to a political crisis that ended with Staaff and his government resigning and being replaced by a non-party, more conservative government.
He developed a lasting affinity for the German empire, with which he became acquainted during his formal studies.
This is also shown in his admiration for Kaiser Wilhelm II, whom he even visited in exile in the Netherlands.
Influenced by imperial Russian and later the Soviet union's attempts to dominate and control territories outside its borders, especially in Central Asia and Turkestan, Hedin felt that Soviet Russia posed a great threat to the West, which may be part of the reason why he supported Germany during both World Wars.
He viewed World War I as a struggle of the German race (particularly against Russia) and took sides in books like "Ein Volk in Waffen.
Den deutschen Soldaten gewidmet" (A People in Arms.
Dedicated to the German Soldier).
As a consequence, he lost friends in France and England and was expelled from the British Royal Geographical Society, and from the Imperial Russian Geographical Society.
Germany's defeat in World War I and the associated loss of its international reputation affected him deeply.
That Sweden gave asylum to Wolfgang Kapp as a political refugee after the failure of the Kapp Putsch is said to be primarily attributable to his efforts.
Hedin's conservative and pro-German views eventually translated into sympathy for the Third Reich, and this would draw him into increasing controversy towards the end of his life.
Adolf Hitler had been an early admirer of Hedin, who was in turn impressed with Hitler's nationalism.
He saw the German leader's rise to power as a revival of German fortunes, and welcomed its challenge against Soviet Communism.
He was not an entirely uncritical supporter of the Nazis, however.
His own views were shaped by traditionalist, Christian and conservative values, while National Socialism was in part a modern revolutionary-populist movement.
Hedin objected to some aspects of National Socialist rule, and occasionally attempted to convince the German government to relent in its anti-religious and anti-Semitic campaigns.
Hedin met Adolf Hitler and other leading National Socialists repeatedly and was in regular correspondence with them.
The politely-worded correspondence usually concerned scheduling matters, birthday congratulations, Hedin's planned or completed publications, and requests by Hedin for pardons for people condemned to death, and for mercy, release and permission to leave the country for people interned in prisons or concentration camps.
In correspondence with Joseph Goebbels and Hans Dräger, Hedin was able to achieve the printing of the "Daily Watchwords" year after year.
On October 29 1942, Hitler read Hedin's book entitled, America in the Battle of the Continents.
In the book Hedin promoted the view that President Roosevelt was responsible for the outbreak of war in 1939 and that Hitler had done everything in his power to prevent war.
Moreover, Hedin argued that the origins of the Second World War lay not in German belligerence but in the Treaty of Versailles.
this book deeply influence Hitler and reaffirmed his views on the origins of the war and who was responsible for it.
In a letter to Hedin the following day Hilter wrote, "I thank you warmly for the attention you have shown me.
I have already read the book and welcome in particular that you so explicitly detailed the offers I made to Poland at the beginning of the War".
Hilter continued, "without question, the individual guilty of this war, as you correctly state at the end of your book, is exclusively the American President Roosevelt."
The Nazis attempted to achieve a close connection to Hedin by bestowing awards upon him—later scholars have noted that "honors were heaped upon this prominent sympathizer."
They asked him to present an address on "Sport as a Teacher" at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin's Olympic stadium.
They made him an honorary member of the "German-Swedish Union Berlin" () In 1938, they presented him with the City of Berlin's "Badge of Honor" ().
For his 75th birthday on 19 February 1940 they awarded him the Order of the German Eagle; shortly before that date it had been presented to Henry Ford and Charles Lindbergh.
On New Year's Day 1943 they released the Oslo professor of philology and university rector Didrik Arup Seip from the Sachsenhausen concentration camp at Hedin's request in order to obtain Hedin's agreement to accept additional honors during the 470th anniversary of Munich University.
On 15 January 1943, he received the "Gold Medal of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences" (Goldmedaille der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften).
On 16 January 1943 he received an honorary doctorate from the faculty of natural sciences of Munich University.
On the same day, the Nazis founded in his absence the "Sven Hedin Institute for Inner Asian Research" located at Mittersill Castle, which was supposed to serve the long-term advancement of the scientific legacy of Hedin and Wilhelm Filchner as Asian experts.
However, it was instead misused by Heinrich Himmler as an institute of the "Research Association for German Genealogical Inheritance" (Forschungsgemeinschaft Deutsches Ahnenerbe e.V.).
On 21 January 1943, he was requested to sign the "Golden Book of the city of Munich".
Hedin supported the Nazis in his journalistic activities.
After the collapse of Nazi Germany, he did not regret his collaboration with the Nazis because this cooperation had made it possible to rescue numerous Nazi victims from execution, or death in extermination camps.
Senior Jewish German archeologist Werner Scheimberg, sent in the expedition by the Thule Society, "had been one of the companions of the Swedish explorer Sven Hedin on his excursions in the East, with archaeological and to some extent esoteric purposes".
Hedin was trying to discover the mythological place of Agartha and reproached the Jewish Polish explorer and visiting professor Antoni Ossendowski for having been gone where the Swedish explorer wasn't able to come, and thus was personally invited by Adolf Hitler in Berlin and honoured by the Führer during his 75th birthday feast.
Johannes Paul wrote in 1954 about Hedin:
Much of what happened in the early days of Nazi rule had his approval.
However, he did not hesitate to criticize whenever he considered this to be necessary, particularly in cases of Jewish persecution, conflict with the churches and bars to freedom of science.
In 1937 Hedin refused to publish his book "Deutschland und der Weltfrieden" (Germany and World Peace) in Germany because the Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda insisted on the deletion of Nazi-critical passages.
In a letter Hedin wrote to State Secretary Walther Funk dated 16 April 1937, it becomes clear what his criticism of National Socialism was in this time before the establishment of extermination camps:
When we first discussed my plan to write a book, I stated that I only wanted to write objectively, scientifically, possibly critically, according to my conscience, and you considered that to be completely acceptable and natural.
Now I emphasized in a very friendly and mild form that the removal of distinguished Jewish professors who have performed great services for mankind is detrimental to Germany and that this has given rise to many agitators against Germany abroad.
So I took this position only in the interest of Germany.
My worry that the education of German youth, which I otherwise praise and admire everywhere, is deficient in questions of religion and the hereafter comes from my love and sympathy for the German nation, and as a Christian I consider it my duty to state this openly, and, to be sure, in the firm conviction that Luther’s nation, which is religious through and through, will understand me.
So far I have never gone against my conscience and will not do it now either.
Therefore, no deletions will be made.
Hedin later published this book in Sweden.
After he refused to remove his criticism of National Socialism from his book "Deutschland und der Weltfrieden", the Nazis confiscated the passports of Hedin's Jewish friend Alfred Philippson and his family in 1938 in order to prevent their intended departure to American exile and retain them in Germany as a bargaining chip when dealing with Hedin.
The consequence was that Hedin expressed himself more favorably about Nazi Germany in his book "Fünfzig Jahre Deutschland", subjugated himself against his conscience to the censorship of the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, and published the book in Germany.
On 8 June 1942, the Nazis increased the pressure on Hedin by deporting Alfred Philippson and his family to the Theresienstadt concentration camp.
By doing so, they accomplished their goal of forcing Hedin against his conscience to write his book "Amerika im Kampf der Kontinente" in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda and other government agencies and to publish it in Germany in 1942.
In return, the Nazis classified Alfred Philippson as “A-prominent” and granted his family privileges which enabled them to survive.
For a long time Hedin was in correspondence with Alfred Philippson and regularly sent food parcels to him in Theresienstadt concentration camp.
On 29 May 1946, Alfred Philippson wrote to him (translation, abbreviated quotation):
My dear Hedin!
Now that letters can be sent abroad I have the opportunity to write to you….
We frequently think with deep gratitude of our rescuer, who alone is responsible for our being able to survive the horrible period of three years of incarceration and hunger in Theresienstadt concentration camp, at my age a veritable wonder.
You will have learned that we few survivors were finally liberated just a few days before our intended gassing.
We, my wife, daughter and I, were then brought on 9–10 July 1945 in a bus of the city of Bonn here to our home town, almost half of which is now destroyed….
Hedin responded on 19 July 1946 (translation, abbreviated quotation):
…It was wonderful to find out that our efforts were not in vain.
In these difficult years we attempted to rescue over one hundred other unfortunate people who had been deported to Poland, but in most cases without success.
We were however able to help a few Norwegians.
My home in Stockholm was turned into something like an information and assistance office, and I was excellently supported by Dr. Paul Grassmann, press attaché in the German embassy in Stockholm.
He too undertook everything possible to further this humanitarian work.
But almost no case was as fortunate as yours, dear friend!
And how wonderful, that you are back in Bonn….
The names and fates of the over one hundred deported Jews whom Hedin tried to save have not yet been researched.
Hedin supported the cause of the Norwegian author Arnulf Øverland and for the Oslo professor of philology and university director Didrik Arup Seip, who were interned in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
He achieved the release of Didrik Arup Seip, but his efforts to free Arnulf Øverland were unsuccessful.
Nevertheless, Arnulf Øverland survived the concentration camp.
After the third senate of the highest German military court (Reichskriegsgericht) in Berlin condemned to death for alleged espionage the ten Norwegians Sigurd Jakobsen, Gunnar Hellesen, Helge Børseth, Siegmund Brommeland, Peter Andree Hjelmervik, Siegmund Rasmussen, Gunnar Carlsen, Knud Gjerstad, Christian Oftedahl and Frithiof Lund on 24 February 1941, Hedin successfully appealed via Colonel General Nikolaus von Falkenhorst to Adolf Hitler for their reprieve.
Their death penalty was converted on 17 June 1941 by Adolf Hitler to ten years forced labor.
The Norwegians Carl W. Mueller, Knud Naerum, Peder Fagerland, Ottar Ryan, Tor Gerrard Rydland, Hans Bernhard Risanger and Arne Sørvag who had been condemned to forced labor under the same charge received reduced sentences at Hedin's request.
Unfortunately, Hans Bernhard Risanger died in prison just a few days before his release.
Von Falkenhorst was condemned to death, by firing squad, by a British military court on August 2, 1946, because of his responsibility for passing on a "Führerbefehl" called the Commando Order.
Hedin intervened on his behalf, achieving a pardon on December 4, 1946, with the argument that von Falkenhorst had likewise striven to pardon the ten Norwegians condemned to death.
Von Falkenhorst's death penalty was commuted by the British military court to 20 years in prison.
In the end, Nikolaus von Falkenhorst was released early from the Werl war criminals prison on July 13, 1953.
Because of his outstanding services, Hedin was raised to the untitled nobility by King Oskar II in 1902, the last time any Swede was to receive a charter of nobility.
Oskar II suggested that he prefix the name Hedin with one of the two common predicates of nobility in Sweden, "af" or "von", but Hedin abstained from doing so in his written response to the king.
In many noble families in Sweden, it was customary to do without the title of nobility.
The coat of arms of Hedin, together with those of some two thousand noble families, is to be found on a wall of the Great Hall in Riddarhuset, the assembly house of Swedish nobility in Stockholm's inner city, Gamla Stan.
In 1905, Hedin was admitted to membership in the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and in 1909 to the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences.
From 1913 to 1952 he held the sixth of 18 chairs as an elected member of the Swedish Academy.
In this position, he had a vote in the selection of Nobel Prize winners.
He was an honorary member of numerous Swedish and foreign scientific societies and institutions which honored him with some 40 gold medals; 27 of these medals can be viewed in Stockholm in a display case in the Royal Coin Cabinet.
He received honorary doctorates from Oxford (1909), Cambridge (1909), Heidelberg (1928), Uppsala (1935), and Munich (1943) universities and from the Handelshochschule Berlin (1931) (all Dr. phil.
h.c.), from Breslau University (1915, Dr. jur.
h.c.), and from Rostock University (1919, Dr. med.
h.c.).
Numerous countries presented him with medals.
In Sweden he became a Commander 1st Class of the Royal Order of the North Star (KNO1kl) with a brilliant badge and Knight of the Royal Order of Vasa (RVO).