Rappe was commissioned as an officer in 1859 and was appointed
underlöjtnant and was assigned to
Uppland Regiment (I 8) the same year. He became a general staff officer in 1865. Rappe served in the
French Army during the
Franco-Prussian War from 1870 to 1871 and then in the French Army in
Algeria from 1871 to 1872. Back in Sweden, Rappe became captain in the
Swedish Army in 1870 and of the
General Staff in 1873. He was promoted to major in 1874 and major of the General Staff in 1876 and served as Chief of Staff of the 4th Military District (
Fjärde militärdistriktet) from 1878 to 1879. Rappe was promoted to lieutenant colonel in the
Bohuslän Regiment (I 17) in 1879 and was promoted to colonel in the army in 1881. He was appointed commanding officer of Bohuslän Regiment in 1882 and
Acting Chief of the General Staff the same year. In 1885, Rappe was promoted to major general and was appointed
Chief of the General Staff. He served as such until 1892 when he was promoted to lieutenant general and appointed
Minister of War and head of the
Ministry of Land Defence. In 1899 he resumed his duty as Chief of the General Staff and served as such until 1905. Rappe was promoted to general in 1903. He has been called the spiritual father of
Boden Fortress. ==Personal life==