Biography Ewy Baroness von Korff-Rosqvist

Born in 1929 in Ystad, southern Sweden, Ewy Rosqvist, the daughter of a farmer, learned to drive at an early age. Her first car was a Mercedes-Benz 170 S, a gift from her father.

Working as a veterinary assistant, she gained extensive driving experience on long stretches of poorly maintained roads. “The driving which I had to carry out each day amounted to between 150 and 200 kilometres, almost all on unpaved roads, gravel paths and farm roads,” Ewy Rosqvist explained in her book Fahrt durch die Hölle [Driving through Hell] (Munich: Copress-Verlag, 1963).

In 1959, Rosqvist won the European Rally Championship for Women for the first time, driving a Volvo. In the spring of 1962, Daimler-Benz AG signed her to the Mercedes-Benz works team.

Midnight Sun Rally 1954

In 1954, Rosqvist experienced her first rally as a passenger in the Midnight Sun Rally, in which her husband and father were competing.

- That was so much fun that I decided to take part in a rally myself, either driving or co-driving, as soon as possible, she recalled.

Two years later, she found herself behind the wheel at the starting line of the same rally.

Picture from the Midnight Sun Rally 1954 with driver father-in-law, Tage Rosqvist.

Image: Pressens Bild. Ewy Rosqvist-von Korff as a veterinary assistant.

VETERINARY ASSISTANT

Ewy studied to be a veterinary assistant in Stockholm.

Then, in the early 1950´s, she returned to Ystad and began working for veterinary Palsson.

The annual badge of the Swedish Royal Automobile Club (KAK)

for the Midnight Sun Rally. Photo: Mats Brunberg

FIRST RALLY YEARS

- I participated in my first rally alongside my father-in-law and my husband. I was the "third man" and it was "The Midnight Sun Rally" in 1954. My father-in-law drove very well.

Team Saab with, among others, Ewy Rosqvist, Greta Molander, Rolf Mellde & Eric Carlsson.

RACING WITH SAAB

Ewy raced with the same vehicle she used in her profession. Between 1957 and 1958, she drove a SAAB. During this time, she began to move closer to leadership positions.

Ewy Rosqvist & Monika Wallraff in Coupe des Alpes 1960

GROWING SUCCESS

Ewy began driving for Volvo in 1959, and her successes steadily grew. She became a champion with her Volvo until 1962, when the Mercedes-Benz rally team signed her to drive for them.

Ursula Wirth & Ewy Rosqvist, an unbeatable female team in Argentina 1962.

MERCEDES-BENZ

From 1962, Ewy was the only female racing driver to race for the Mercedes team at that time. That same year, she, along with Ursula Wirth, won the Gran Premio in Argentina and caused a sensation.

Ewy Rosqvist & Monika Wallraff in Coupe des Alpes 1960

AMBASSADOR

When Ewy married Baron Alexander von Korff in 1965, she ended her racing career. But after that, she became a lifelong loyal ambassador for her former employer, Mercedes-Benz.