Understanding Fascism and Authoritarian Regimes: Origins, Rise, and Characteristics

Posted on Nov 25, 2024 in History

Derex Fascism and its Authoritarian Features:

  1. Rejection of the Bourgeois World: After the war, many claimed a community spirit, camaraderie, heroism, and solidarity. There was nostalgia for past hierarchical societies.
  2. Disdain for Liberal Politics: They rejected parliamentary democracy and considered it a weak political system, unable to stop social revolution and ineffective in establishing an economic and social alternative. They held liberalism and democracy responsible for national defeat and decline. They rejected the values of equality and liberty, drawing inspiration from pre-liberal ideologies.
  3. Repression of Marxism: Left-wing militants, unions, or groups considered extremist and subversive were persecuted, imprisoned, and eliminated.
  4. Strong Nationalism and Xenophobia, often including Racism: They persecuted those who threatened national and cultural unity.
  5. Militarism and Repression of Minorities: The state’s armed forces, under the law, could inflict physical violence. Many soldiers led or supported these movements. They imposed military values on civil society. Many activists were veterans of the Great War. They used their own uniforms and trained militias to intimidate.

Peculiarities of Fascism:

  1. Mobilization of the Masses: They easily adapted to democratic systems.
  2. Propaganda and Demagoguery: They used propaganda and demagoguery to attract the masses, offering people what they wanted to hear in speeches. They used symbols (e.g., the swastika).
  3. Charismatic Leadership: They were led by a charismatic fascist leader. They were often indifferent to religion and were politically opposed to the free market.
  4. Irrational Myths and Legends: Their ideas were guided by an almost religious faith.

Authoritarian and Fascist Regimes:

First Wave (1920s):

Eastern and Southern European countries: Salazar (Portugal), Primo de Rivera (Spain), Benito Mussolini (Italy).

Second Wave (1930s):

Hitler spread fascism and dictatorships around the world. They succeeded easily and with little opposition. Spain resisted an attempted coup that led to civil war and Franco’s dictatorship.

Factors in the Ascension of Fascism:

  1. Desire to Revise Peace Accords: The Italians felt unrewarded by the Peace of Paris. They wanted Fiume, an unredeemed territory. Mussolini, a former socialist, founded the Fasci Italiani di Combattimento (combining rabid nationalism, revolutionary syndicalism, and anticlericalism).
  2. Economic Crisis and Fear of Social Revolution: The Italian economy was badly damaged after the war. Workers were very active, but not enough for a fascist revolution. Fascists began attacking unions and workers with support from landowners and the National Fascist Party (PNF), aiming to eliminate capitalists.
  3. Fragmentation of Parliament: King Victor Emmanuel III intervened to entrust the government to political leaders. Unstable and powerless governments allowed fascists to thrive. Mussolini organized the March on Rome. The King, instead of stopping it, gave Mussolini full powers to form a government.

Development Factors of Fascism in Germany:

  1. Post-War Defeat: Many German political forces rejected the new regime and sought to overturn the Treaty of Versailles. Hitler, a former German socialist worker, emerged in post-war Munich.
  2. Economic Disorder: Reparations and debts burdened Germany. Money devalued. Jews were scapegoated.
  3. Weakness of the Regime and Social Unrest: The revolutionary attempts of the Communist Party led to the Weimar Republic becoming more repressive towards the labor movement while tolerating coups and street violence by paramilitary militias (e.g., SA – Sturmabteilung, brown-shirted assault troops; SS – Schutzstaffel, militarized police, Hitler’s personal guard).
  4. Parliamentary Division: Unstable coalition governments (SPD, Zentrum) and right-wing parties. Hitler rose to power by exploiting anti-Marxism and frightening Communists and trade unionists.
  5. The Great Depression (1929): Unemployment and social unrest threatened to ruin the German middle class. The Nazis and Communists benefited, becoming the most voted parties. Hitler was invited to lead a right-wing coalition government.

Hitler in Power:

Hitler dismantled democracy by dissolving political parties and the Reichstag. He called elections, banned associations, and declared himself Führer. During the Night of the Long Knives, the SS and Gestapo killed SA leaders and conservatives who opposed him. Hitler seized absolute power.

Democratic Alternatives:

  • Great Britain: Strong parliamentary tradition, established electoral system, accepted political parties, a mature and experienced labor union movement, and a vast empire that liberalism allowed to maintain economically.
  • France: Jacobin republican tradition, mixed electoral system, a union of the left, and attempts to leverage purchasing power.
  • United States: Isolation from European issues, Republican Party dominance, and the development of a consumer society that fostered a very stable political system.

The New Deal:

A set of economic and social policies implemented by Democrat President Roosevelt to address the Great Depression. The state actively intervened in the economy, strengthened demand to drive growth, and combatted unemployment and the social consequences of the crisis.