At age 13 Baltzar entered the Royal Swedish Navy where he served with distinction until resigning in 1800, having attained the rank of captain.
Göta Canal
Following the revolution in 1809 he became a member of the Government and, in the following year, received a promotion to rear admiral. He was also made chairman of the Göta Canal directorate charged with constructing a canal across Sweden. The canal, following a design by Thomas Telford, would only be completed in 1832, after von Platen's death, but during its construction, he did discover two skilled mechanical engineering brothers John Ericsson and Nils Ericson.
One of the early vessels built at Hammarsten shipyard in Norrköping was named after Baltzar von Platen in 1834.[2]
Burial site
He was married to Hedvig Elisabeth Ekman. Baltzar von Platen's grave is at the side of the Göta Canal in Motala, where it is something of a tourist attraction, especially for canal visitors.