One of the most important outcomes of the economic crisis in terms of its consequences was the coming to power of the Nazis in Germany.
The very word fascism is of Italian origin. As we know, the organization created by B. Mussolini was called "Fasho di Combapgimento", which means "Union of Struggle". Members of this organization began to be called fascists, and the movement itself - fascism. Initially, this word was used only in relation to the Italian reality of the 20s, later they began to refer to similar political movements in other countries. However, it must be borne in mind that, for example, the German fascists called themselves "Nazis", "Nazis", since their party was called the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP).
Fascism has a number of characteristic features. First of all, it is nationalism and racism. Fascism absorbed the wave of nationalism raised on the eve and during the First World War. Moreover, the greatest scope of this movement in Germany and Italy is largely due to the woundedness of the national feelings of the peoples of these countries, who completed national unification later than others and emerged from the First World War not only weakened, but also humiliated: Germany - under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, Italy - "defeated among victors" - the fact that its interests were neglected at the Paris Peace Conference.
Nationalism in Europe was not a novelty, as we remember, national movements arose in Europe after the Napoleonic wars at the beginning of the 19th century. At that time, a nation was understood as a cultural and historical community of people living in a certain territory and aware of this community. For the Nazis, a nation is, first of all, a relationship of origin, blood. For them, the nation is not so much a social community as a biological one. And they understood the whole history as the struggle of nations for existence, transferring biological laws into it. In this struggle, they believed, the strongest nation survives, and only it has the right to a full-fledged existence. These simple considerations justified, firstly, the domination of the "higher" races, nations over the "lower", and, secondly, the need to preserve the "purity" of the race.
The fascists considered the state to be the center of national will and national spirit. It, according to their ideas, should have been not just strong, but "totalitarian", absorbing society. "Everything for the state, nothing against the state, no one outside the state" - these words of Mussolini express the essence of the fascist idea of a totalitarian state. The interests of the individual, of course, had to be sacrificed to the national, state ones. It was in this sense that the German fascists called themselves "National Socialists". The state, they believed, should be rebuilt on the basis of leaderism. The leader (in German - the Fuhrer, in Italian - Duce) is the spokesman of the national spirit, therefore it is he who must govern the country indefinitely. Elections, limitation of the term of office - all this was rejected by the Nazis.
Considering all world history as a struggle for existence, they considered violence natural, bowed before force. On violence, the Nazis wanted to build the future world order, through it they went to power, creating armed detachments (assault - SA and security - SS - in Germany, "black shirts" - in Italy) to fight their political opponents.
Finally, fascism is a mass movement that has absorbed the fear of unexpected and turbulent changes in numerous groups of the population: artisans, small traders and entrepreneurs, peasants, bureaucrats, war veterans. It was people from these strata who formed the fascist ruling elite. Neither Hitler, nor Mussolini, nor their associates came from the aristocracy, their parents were not wealthy people.
Fascism is a new phenomenon in social thought and political life. He is related to conservatism by nationalism and the idea of a strong state, but in both the fascists went much further than him. It is related to communism by admiration for violence and recognition of the priority of common interests over individual ones, but the Nazis categorically did not accept the Marxist idea of class struggle, which, in their opinion, undermined national unity. The Communists, moreover, they considered their competitors in the struggle for influence over the workers; both of them called themselves workers' parties. But the main target of the Nazis were liberal values with their focus on human freedom, democracy and the limitation of state power.
Fascist parties and movements arose immediately after the First World War, but their rise began in the 1930s. In France, they were represented by the "Battle Crosses", in Hungary - by the "Arrow Cross", in Spain - by the Phalanx, in England - by the British Union of Fascists.
Features of German fascism
In different countries, the fascist movement acquired specific features. German fascism or Nazism also had a number of features. Nationalism acquired in him extreme, racist forms. The Nazis considered the “Aryan”, “Nordic” race to be the most viable race, to which, naturally, they attributed, first of all, the Germans. The Nazis were characterized by extreme anti-Semitism. They saw in the Jews the main danger to the Aryan race, they opposed mixed marriages and sought to deprive the German Jews of all rights. They saw the historical mission of the "Aryans", "supermen" in the conquest of world domination. The Nazis wanted to cancel the Treaty of Versailles, create a powerful army, unite all Germans in one state and win "living space" for Germany in the East, so that it would never be threatened by blockade, as during the First World War. From that moment, Germany, from their point of view, will be ready for a decisive battle for world domination. Extreme nationalism gave rise to extreme aggressiveness, so characteristic of German fascism.
Rise of fascism in Germany
The Nazi movement in Germany arose immediately after the end of the First World War. The National Socialist German Workers' Party, which became the center of attraction for all fascists, was created in 1919. Relatively quickly, Adolf Hitler became the leader of this party. In the 1920s, the Nazis eked out a rather miserable existence. The rapid growth of their influence began during the economic crisis of 1929-1933.
Crisis of the Weimar Republic
The economic crisis also became the crisis of the Weimar Republic. Unprecedented unemployment, the mass ruin of peasants and artisans urgently demanded urgent measures from the authorities to alleviate the situation of the people. However, successive governments have become enslaved by outdated schemes, pursuing a policy of austerity, cutting back on already meager social spending. Such a policy could not but cause disappointment and gave rise to criticism not only of those who were in power, but of democracy in general. One way or another, during the years of the crisis, parties that opposed democracy began to gain strength, and among them, first of all, the Nazis, who promised to establish firm power and lead the country out of the crisis. The influence of the parties that supported the democratic foundations of the Weimar Republic fell, and in 1932 they already represented a minority of citizens. The Nazis became the largest political party in Germany.
The Nazis were supported by influential circles of big business in Germany. The working class was less influenced by the Nazis, but a significant part of it also opposed the Weimar Republic, supporting the communists - supporters of the socialist revolution. The bitter struggle between the communists and the social democrats made it impossible for the left forces to take unified anti-fascist actions. The Nazis managed to win over young people who were disillusioned with democracy: 1/3 of the NSDAP members were people under the age of 30.
The electoral tactics used by the Nazis also affected the behavior of voters. Stormtroopers and SS men attacked rallies of political opponents, beat activists of other parties, and intimidated the population of entire districts. Their actions, in turn, demonstrated the weakness of the legitimate government, which proved unable to maintain elementary order and ensure the safety of citizens.
The rise of the Nazis to power
Representatives of the German military-bureaucratic elite played a fatal role in the fate of the Weimar Republic. In 1933 the crisis was close to an end. Supporters of Nazism lost faith in the possibility of coming to power, Hitler's influence began to decline. It was at this moment that the military-bureaucratic elite used their influence on President Hindenburg to hand over the mandate to form a government to Adolf Hitler. On January 20, 1933, he became Reich Chancellor - head of government.
Liquidation of democracy
Having gained access to executive power, the Nazis began the gradual elimination of democracy in Germany. As a pretext, the Reichstag fire was used, committed by a lone maniac, but who had a Communist Party membership card with him at the time of his arrest. The Nazis unleashed open terror against their political opponents. Then Hitler achieved the signing by Hindenburg of a special decree "On the Protection of the People and the State", which eliminated the basic rights of citizens and granted unlimited powers to punitive bodies. The principle of separation of powers that underlay the constitution of the Weimar Republic was abandoned. Legislative functions were transferred to the government. After the death of Hindenburg in 1934, the powers of the president were transferred to Hitler. Thus, all power in Germany was in the hands of Hitler, who became the "leader", "Führer" of Germany.
An administrative reform was also carried out, as a result of which local self-government bodies were liquidated. Power at all levels passed into the hands of officials appointed from above. In 1933, all political parties, except for the NSDAP, were formally banned. Such a radical breakdown of the state system and public life could not but be accompanied by violence and gave rise to the strengthening of the role of the punitive organs of the state. Assault and security detachments became part of this apparatus of violence. The secret police (Gestapo) was created in the country. Since 1933, concentration camps began to be created throughout Germany to contain all persons objectionable to the regime. The basic political rights of citizens were eliminated - freedom of speech, assembly, inviolability of the home, privacy of correspondence.
New economic system
Important changes have also taken place in the German economy. In order to get out of the crisis, the Hitler government went to the expansion state regulation economic life. The construction of a nationwide network of high-speed roads (autobahns) was launched at the expense of the state, which made it possible to drastically reduce the number of unemployed. Later, the focus was on the accelerated development of the military industry. Military spending in 1933-1938 increased from 620 million to 15.5 billion marks. Growth public spending led to a permanent budget deficit, which was covered by printing money. In order to prevent their depreciation and price increases, the government introduced price and wage controls and began a gradual transition to a card distribution system. This further increased the scale of state regulation of the economy.
A feature of the economy of Nazi Germany was the direct administrative regulation of the economy. To do this, all entrepreneurs were united by industry into special organizations - cartels - and subordinate to the Minister of Economy. In 1936, a four-year plan for the development of the military industry was announced. Hermann Goering was appointed commissioner for the implementation of this plan. The department he created took control of the entire economy of the country. The state became the direct owner of many enterprises, in most cases confiscated from the Jews in the course of the "Aryanization" of industry. The factories of the state concern Hermann Goering employed 600,000 people and smelted 7.29 million tons of steel per year.
The fascist state also established control over the labor market and labor relations. Here, too, the Nazis tried to introduce their idea of the supremacy of national interests over class interests. They promoted the idea of achieving harmony between labor and capital. Therefore, trade unions were liquidated in Nazi Germany, and the German Labor Front was created in their place, which included both workers and employers. The leaders of the enterprise became "leaders of the labor collective." Control over labor relations and wages passed to special "labor trustees" who were appointed by the government. It was soon supplemented by the introduction of universal labor service; now the state began to determine where the German should work.
The results of the transformation of the German economy
By the beginning of the Second World War, the German economy was radically transformed. While maintaining private property, the freedom of enterprise was significantly limited. The market for labor, goods and services has been replaced by state regulation. The market economy has practically ceased to function. It seemed that all these measures hastened Germany's exit from the crisis. In 1935, it reached the pre-crisis level of production, and by 1939 it had significantly surpassed it. Accordingly, unemployment decreased: in 1933 it amounted to 6 million people, in 1938 - 429.5 thousand. But there was nothing phenomenal in the revival of the German economy itself; since 1933, all Western countries entered a period of economic revival. Moreover, it must be borne in mind that the pace of economic recovery in Germany was largely predetermined by its militarization. The price of a faster way out of the crisis than in other countries was, ultimately, the complete elimination of the rights and freedoms of citizens. The price of these successes was the national tragedy of the Germans in 1945.
Life in Germany
Life in fascist Germany was far from the idyllic scenes created by the skillful propaganda of the Nazis. Violence has become widespread. By the beginning of 1935 alone, more than 4.2 thousand opponents of Nazism were killed, 517 thousand people were arrested. By the beginning of 1939, more than 300,000 people were imprisoned for political reasons. Hundreds of thousands of Germans emigrated, including literally the entire color of the creative intelligentsia - physicist Albert Einstein, writers Thomas and Heinrich Mann, Lion Feuchtwanger, Bertolt Brecht, composers Hans Eisner, Otto Klemperer, Paul Hindemith.
antisemitism
Anti-Semitism became the official policy of the fascist state. Already in the spring of 1933, a boycott of all Jewish-owned institutions, organized by the authorities, began. In 1935, a series of laws were passed that deprived Jews of German citizenship and forbade them from holding positions in the state apparatus. Mixed marriages were prohibited. Since 1939, Jews began to be evicted to specially designated houses and quarters - ghettos. They were forbidden to appear in public places, to engage in many activities. They were required to wear a yellow star sewn on their clothes at all times. On the night of November 9-10, 1938, the authorities organized a Jewish pogrom, the victims of which were tens of thousands of people. Thus, the ground was prepared for the extermination of the Jews, which began during the Second World War.
Control over people
Fascism sought to establish control over the minds of the people. The mass media - print, radio - were directly subordinate to the Minister of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels. Art was also put at the service of Nazism: artists, poets, composers had to glorify Hitler, sing the virtues of the Aryan race and the new order. The greatness of Germany was personified by huge, cyclopean architectural structures. Control over the population was also carried out through the coverage of Nazi organizations, drawing people into endless political campaigns. The German Labor Front consisted of 23 million people, the youth organization "Hitler Youth" ("Hitler Youth") - more than 8 million. Membership was almost mandatory. In addition, there were various National Socialist unions that united people according to professions, hobbies, etc. All Germans had to attend rallies and meetings, participate in public events.
Totalitarianism
The limitation of democracy in the 20th century took place in different forms. Any restriction of democracy is called authoritarianism. But the restrictions are different. When describing the regime established in Hungary by M. Horthy, we called it authoritarian, but a multi-party system was preserved there, and a parliament operated. The Nazis completely eliminated democracy. Such a regime is called totalitarian. Fascism in power is totalitarianism. Totalitarianism is an extreme form of authoritarianism. The signs of totalitarianism are a comprehensive ideology imposed on society (in Germany - National Socialism), the presence of one mass party, the use of terror as a means of governing the state, the use of the media as a propaganda tool, control by the party over the army, state control over the economy. A regime of this type was also created in the USSR.
Preparing for war
The coming of the Nazis to power in Germany changed the situation in Europe. The Versailles-Washington system was threatened. The Nazi program was originally aimed at revising the Treaty of Versailles. The diplomacy of the Weimar Republic also achieved the same, and succeeded in this. By the time the Nazis came to power, Germany was no longer paying reparations and was a member of the League of Nations. But these successes were achieved within the framework of the Versailles-Washington system itself. Germany's diplomats convinced everyone of the unfairness of its post-war status, skillfully playing on the contradictions between the great powers. Hitler's goal was the forcible establishment of world domination. He openly prepared for war, flouting the terms of the Treaty of Versailles along the way.
By 1939, universal conscription had already been restored in Germany, military aviation and tank troops had been created. Hitler annexed Austria to Germany and dismembered Czechoslovakia. Germany has become the strongest European power. Together with the annexed territories, it gave 15% of world industrial production, ahead of England and France. At the beginning of 1939, Germany had, undoubtedly, the strongest army in foreign Europe, numbering 2.75 million people with 10 thousand guns, 3.2 thousand tanks and more than 4 thousand aircraft. Nazi Germany was ready to start a big war. And she started.
Kreder A.A. Recent history of foreign countries. 1914-1997
Now in our media, in connection with the events in Ukraine, the word FASCISM has become the most popular and most used word (indiscriminately).
If we don’t want our head to be a garbage can into which rotten ideological products are poured in an uninterrupted stream, and if we want to be at least a little more independent in our judgments, I will conduct a small historical educational program. I am sure that most of you will be surprised by many things that I will write about below.
Have you ever wondered how in enlightened Europe the people of Germany (yes, not Guinea), this, perhaps the most educated people in the world in the first third of the last century, believed Hitler and followed him?! How could millions of descendants of Beethoven and Bach, Schiller and Goethe be fooled in such a short time ... how could it be "driven" (without a "zomboy") into their heads such that they began to build Auschwitz furnaces?! Where did the ideology of fascism come from, how was it able to saturate the souls and minds of entire nations?
How can we in the modern world protect ourselves from the revival of fascist ideology, how can we prevent a repetition of the horrors that the world experienced when faced with this plague?
I decided to write this article because I feel that the fascisization of our country is already beginning. You can read the signs of an impending disaster at the very end of this article.
One cannot do without prohibitions on fascist (Nazi) symbols and literature. And sometimes some prohibitions (already legalized) look completely idiotic - how can you ban photographs depicting the actor Vyacheslav Tikhonov in the image of Stirlitz? Or now what, should we throw the famous military posters of the Kukryniksy into the landfill? Marasmus!
The point is not at all whether the swastika is visible in the image or not, but what is the purpose of the author (or the one who makes the repost) of the picture or drawing, in what context it is presented. And the point here is not at all in external symbols and paraphernalia ...., you can do evil hiding behind various stars and crescents, and hammers and sickles.
I believe that, first of all, people should have KNOWLEDGE - how this evil arose, how to protect themselves from it, how to recognize its first steps.
Only by understanding the whole mechanism of the process, it is possible to prevent the seeds of fascism (and even more so Nazism) from falling onto fertile ground.
So, if you are reading these words, then it is already good - it means you are interested ... I will try not to disappoint you.
We almost always associate the word "fascism" with Nazi Germany, but not everything here is so simple and unambiguous. In our minds, the concepts of Italian FASCISM and German NAZISM MIXED. They have a lot of similar external paraphernalia (including the Roman greeting), similar rituals. But there are also many differences.
Italian fascism was the first experience of the power of a "new type party" of a non-communist orientation, and in this sense it was indeed the forerunner of NAZISM (National Socialism). In this article, I will not consider it, but only briefly characterize it. So, NAZISM is an ideology that combines elements of FASCISM, SOCIALISM, NATIONALISM, RACISM, ANTISEMITISM and TOTALITARISM.
By the way, one of the ideologists of German National Socialism was a native of Russian Empire- Rosenberg (Alfred Ernst Voldemarovich, 1893 - 1946). He is the author of the "racial theory" and the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question". Alfred lived in Moscow for some time - during the First World War, the Riga Polytechnic University, where he studied as an architect, was evacuated and was located within the walls of the modern Moscow State Technical University. Bauman. After graduation, Rosenberg moved to Germany, where he became close to Adolf Hitler and had a huge influence on him with his "theoretical developments". Rosenberg was the only one who refused the "last word" before his execution by the verdict of the Nuremberg Tribunal.
And now, without fuss, without any associations and hints, let's understand the essence of the issue - in the origin of the first component of Nazism - FASCISM, in this word (concept), in its definition and in its main features and features.
The word FASCISM comes from the Italian fascio (fascio) - UNION. This word, in turn, goes back to the Latin fascis - "bundle, bundle."
This word (fascis), in particular, denoted the symbols of magisterial power - FASCIA. This is a bandaged bundle of rods (rods) with an ax stuck in it. Fasces were worn by LICTORS - the honor guard of the highest MAGISTRATS (an official elected by the population for 1 year, for the gratuitous performance of state functions) of the Roman people. Fasces symbolized the right to use force on behalf of the people - up to and including the death penalty.
Here is an image of a Roman lictor with fasces:
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/Mdvp/YkaWtvyrK
And here these fascias have already become the main symbol on the flag of fascist Italy.
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/KGxz/cZ7uBck3K
Benito Mussolini (1883 - 1945), driven by the idea of restoring the Roman Empire, chose the fascia as a symbol of his party after the First World War, hence its name - fascist.
Now the image of the fascia can also be seen on the coats of arms of France, Ecuador, Cameroon.
In Russia, in modern heraldry, fascias are depicted on the emblem " Federal Service bailiffs of the Russian Federation", as well as the Federal Penitentiary Service (Federal Service for the Execution of Punishments):
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/AvTf/JFLn2SpjH
Well, everything is clear with these organizations - the very concept of PUNISHMENT lies at the heart of their activities, but why the fasciae were "stuck" into the emblem of the "Federal Service for Supervision in Education and Science" (Rosobrnadzor) - one can only guess:
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/6DWh/LgfoQqqDE
In urban design, fascias also have their place of honor. This is how the fence on Baumanskaya Street and around the Alexander Garden in Moscow, the fence of the Summer Garden from the side of the Moika in St. Petersburg are stylized under them:
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/M22K/3fS91fboa
So, in a narrow historical sense, fascism is understood as a mass political movement that existed in Italy in 1920-40 under the leadership of Benito Mussolini, who was the permanent leader (Duce) of the National Fascist Party (FFP). Here is his photo:
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/7pAQ/vbo5hPcEP
Any ideology does not arise from scratch. She NEED SOIL. Let's figure it out together - what was the soil for the emergence of Italian fascism.
In the middle of the 19th century, as a result of numerous wars and revolutions, the unification of Italy took place. Who wants to know more about this period of Italian history - it will be enough to get acquainted with the biography of Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807 - 1882), a direct participant in all these events.
After the unification, Italy did its best to join the ranks of the great powers, and for this it pursued an active foreign policy, including colonial policy. This activity prevented Italy from remaining neutral in the European conflicts that preceded the First World War. Forced to make a decision, Italy initially joined the Triple Alliance in 1882 (to the military-political bloc of Germany and Austria-Hungary), hoping for a colonial redistribution of the world. However, already at the very beginning of the First World War, the Italian government did not support its allies and, not risking getting involved in a European war, declared neutrality.
But already in 1915, after the failure of the German war plan became obvious, seduced by the promises of the Entente (the British and French promised her mountains of gold in the form of Trieste, Tyrol, territories in Dalmatia, Albania, that is, a fair amount of Alpine and Balkan lands) Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary. This adventure ended sadly: two German divisions transferred to the south broke through the front near the Caporetto River, which turned the Italian army into a three-hundred-kilometer panic flight, which ended naturally - the Germans stopped the offensive.
After this catastrophe, which ended active hostilities on the Italian front, the Entente ceased to perceive Italy as a REAL force. Therefore, at the Paris Peace Conference (January 18, 1919 - January 21, 1920), convened by the victorious powers to develop and sign peace treaties with the states defeated in the First World War, Italy was simply "beaten". Although the Italian Prime Minister Orlando was one of the "Big Four" (together with Clemenceau, Lloyd George and Wilson), the Entente did not even think of fulfilling its promises (except for the transfer of South Tyrol, which remained ownerless after the collapse of Austria-Hungary to Italy - Trentino and Istria with Trieste).
This outcome of the peace conference was perceived in Italy as a "diplomatic Caporetto". National feelings, especially acute in the newly united country, were again OFFENDED. This "insult" was superimposed on the most severe post-war economic and social crisis, especially acute in underdeveloped Italy.
The post-war crisis was expressed in a full bouquet of economic and social problems. The war dealt a BIG blow to financial system. The country's foreign debt by the end of the war amounted to 19 billion lire. Military spending in 1918 absorbed up to 80% of the budget (46 billion lire). The gold and foreign exchange reserves were practically exhausted due to the purchase of strategic materials and weapons during the war. This led to uncontrolled inflation. Just to support the largest banks (their bankruptcy would have led to a complete economic catastrophe), the government was forced to allocate 4 billion lire in 1920-21.
After the termination of military orders and due to the impossibility of further supporting production due to the emptiness in the treasury, an avalanche-like series of bankruptcies of enterprises begins. In 1919, 500 enterprises were declared bankrupt, in 1920. - 700, in 1921. - 1800, in 1922. - 3600, and in 1923. already 5700 enterprises. The extraction of all minerals falls by one and a half to two times, the area under crops is reduced, which leads to the mass impoverishment of the peasantry in a still predominantly agrarian country.
This economic crisis was accompanied by a rapid increase in unemployment, exacerbated by the mass demobilization of soldiers. In 1920, there were 150,000 unemployed in Italy, and two years later there were 407,000.
All this has become the most fertile soil for the process of activating mass MENTALITY. This activation manifested itself both in spontaneous mass actions (pogroms of food stores - the merchants or the government were "to blame" for raising prices, unauthorized seizures of land in the countryside, etc.), and in the activities of organizations that manipulate the masses, primarily the radical wing of the socialists oriented to the Comintern (their center was the editorial office of the Turin newspaper with the characteristic name "Ordine Nuovo" - " New order". Taking advantage of the growth in the conditions of the crisis of the strike movement (in 1919 there was an 1871 strike with more than one and a half million participants), these socialists gave a number of strikes a political character.
The activation of the masses inevitably led to the escalation of the economic crisis into a political one.
The spectrum of political forces in Italy looked at this time as follows. On the left flank was the socialist party, in which the moderate wing remained (in 1921, the radical socialists finally entered the Comintern, taking shape as a communist party). To the right were: the People's Party, focused mainly on the peasantry, the liberals, and, finally, the Nationalist Party, which came out with chauvinist slogans. The slogans of the nationalists competed in popularity with those of the communists. Most of the peasants, workers, and intelligentsia, by virtue of the NATIONAL ELIGIBILITY HURT after the war, responded to calls to "RETURN" Italy to "originally Italian" Dalmatia, Albania and North Africa. The most radical wing demanded that Nice, Savoy and Corsica be taken away from France (!) Most of all, the nationalists were worried about the fate of the Adriatic port of Fiume (Rijeka).
The famous Italian writer Gabriele d'Annunzio even left his literary stage in order to, with a detachment of the "legionnaires" he had recruited, without further ado, capture Fiume and establish a republic there headed by himself as a dictator on the ancient Roman model (I don’t want to pronounce the names of modern Russian writers, but the same is seen now in our country). The funny thing is that he succeeded, and the Republic of d'Annunzio lasted for 16 months (from September 1919 to January 1921, when the Italian troops, under pressure from the Entente, were forced to expel him from there). This episode, on the one hand, well shows the extent to which the government controlled the state of affairs in the country, and on the other, it points to a very revealing symptom: the mass mentality is very contagious and covers not only the poorly educated part of the population, but also the refined intelligentsia; later d'Annunzio would be the most active supporter of fascism.
In 1919, a new political force appeared that did not recognize the rules of the parliamentary game, relying on weapons, military discipline and unbridled demagoguery. These were the famous Fashi di combattimento - battle groups. Formed as local organizations in order to emphasize the connection with the local population and regional problems, which initially did not have a single formal center, they were united by the figure of a charismatic leader - Benito Mussolini, "Duce" - "great".
The main activity of the "fascists" was propaganda and armed struggle against the socialists, who were declared the main enemies of Italy. "Fashi" published their own newspaper, which was, of course, "a collective propagandist, agitator and organizer" - "Polo d'Italia" - "Italian people".
The ideology propagated by the newspaper was not anything coherent and thoughtful and was designed for the masses. It boiled down to this:
First, the GREATEST of Italy. Fascist ideology is primarily a nationalist, chauvinistic and imperialist ideology. She supported and fanned the political hysteria of the masses, directing them towards rather senseless but flashy goals, such as the RESTORATION of the Roman Empire and the transformation of the Mediterranean Sea into "mare nostrum" - "OUR SEA". Quite frankly, the Nazis declared that this could only be achieved by a war with the former allies in the Entente, who "spoiled" Italy's victory in the First World War. "Only blood makes the ringing wheel of history run," said Mussolini. The closest enemies were Greece, Albania and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes - proteges of the Entente, threatening Italy.
Secondly, the hatred of the former allies was explained by the decay of democracy in these countries. Accordingly, the "rotten" democratic system was despised and had to be DESTROYED in Italy as well. "Incapable and corrupt parliamentary talkers and demagogues" were to blame for all the Italian troubles. At the same time, the "fascists" who quickly formed a completely legal fascist party did not disdain participation in the "rotten" parliamentary elections (a new type of party!). The formal program requirements of the Nazis in these elections were: the establishment of a republic, elections to the Constituent Assembly, the confiscation of "unproductive capital" (hatred of the rich and the desire for "social justice" is characteristic of all manifestations of mass psychology, regardless of their political design). The program is purely populist.
Thirdly, the hatred of the "Reds" was especially emphasized, in which the Nazis saw dangerous political competitors. Mussolini declared himself as the national alternative to communism.
Let me remind you, however, that the main slogan of the new party was - "GREAT ITALY!".
Talking about the social base of the Nazis is meaningless. They were supported by representatives of completely different segments of the population - entrepreneurs and workers, peasants and clergy, students and soldiers, the unemployed and housewives.
The attractiveness of the fascists for the mass man was that you could feel great simply because you were Italian (in Germany later - an Aryan, in the USSR - a worker). Such frank flattery was complemented by a simple and understandable reference to the enemy, who is to blame for all the troubles of everyone, promises to make everyone happy the next day after coming to power, an appeal to the "great past" and "national traditions", as well as a peculiar, accurately calculated aesthetics that impressed the masses, aesthetics of patent leather boots. I was attracted by the beautiful uniform, black shirts, military bearing, the Roman salute (I mentioned it earlier) - the famous gesture borrowed later by Hitler, the theatrical nature of all mass actions, etc.
A large role in strengthening the prestige of the fascists was played by the mass organizations they created, called upon to play the role of "transmission belts" of the party, connecting it with the population into one whole. These are the children's organization "Ballila", the teenage organization - "Vanguard", the youth organization - "Young Fascists". This is the National Security Volunteer Militia, which, having the experience of "fascist", in a number of regions of the country, without much resistance, even disarmed the police and actually seized power. Finally, this is the party itself, which was rapidly becoming MASS, and ordinary party organizations were separated from the leadership (as it were, "internal" and "external" parties).
The Italian government has not taken any serious measures to contain the fascists, which are clearly beyond the scope of any normal law. Considering the communists the main enemies of democracy, the ruling parties even counted on using the fascists in the anti-communist struggle. The police remained neutral during the pogroms of socialist newspapers. Such pogroms have become a "good tradition", and the first such act occurred in April 1919, when the militants defeated the editorial office of the Avanti newspaper, the editor-in-chief of which shortly before that was Mussolini himself. In a number of cases, during skirmishes with the communists, the police supported the fascists, the courts often JUSTIFIED the fascist militants, the army clearly sympathized with Mussolini, many officers joined the party (and brought military discipline and methodical cruelty to it).
The danger of "fascisization" was understood very late. In 1921, the government tried to regulate the situation in the country by signing a "pacification pact" with the leaders of the fascists and communists. But, of course, the pact was not respected. The more desperate the economic situation became, the faster the old democratic parties lost their authority, the stronger the fascists became.
On October 17, 1922, the head of the army security service wrote: “Mussolini is so sure of victory and that he is the master of the situation that he even foresees the first steps of his government. It seems that he intends to make a coup from November 4 to November 11.” The officer made a mistake, the coup took place on 28 October.
The event called "March on Rome" was not a campaign in the military sense of the word. Behind these big words is nothing more than a very magnificent demonstration, which met with practically no resistance. The magnificent black uniforms of the Nazis favorably distinguished the Duce's modest civilian suit in the center (ostentatious personal modesty is a necessary quality for a charismatic leader). This well-orchestrated performance ended in spectacular fashion with the resignation of the government of Luigi Fact and the appointment of Benito Mussolini as prime minister. Here is a photo of the "March on Rome"
https://cloud.mail.ru/public/FBCP/t8JVLur5a
Thus, the semblance of LEGITIMACY was maintained, which was very important for the traditionalist-minded large part of the population, and even for the fascist elite itself, closely associated with the former social and political elites.
Mussolini received power from the hands of the head of state - the king, that is, we are not dealing with a revolution (for which, apart from an illegal nature, violence and the participation of a large part of the population are necessary). But we are not dealing here with a legitimate state procedure, because the "March on Rome" was organized contrary to the laws in force, and the king simply had no choice but to legitimize the actual seizure of power by the "new type party", especially since the latter had there are high hopes for political, economic and social stabilization in the country.
The similar nature of the seizure of power, in contrast to the revolutionary events in Russia, somewhat limited at first the longed-for political monopoly of the Nazis. Mussolini's first government was not one-party. The appearance of legitimacy and stronger than in Russia, liberal traditions, and mainly incomplete self-confidence forced to endure the "non-fascist" majority in the government (the fascists received only 4 portfolios in the government cabinet), which definitely nullified the effect of the "March on Rome" ".
Thus, Mussolini turned out to be prime minister within the framework of the old, "rotten" state system. The conclusion from this was very simple: this system should be rebuilt. The restructuring of the state apparatus began almost immediately, but continued for a very long time. First of all, already in December 1922, the Great Fascist Council was formed, which assumed many functions of state power. It included fascist ministers and the leadership of the party. He was appointed personally by Mussolini, who became its permanent chairman.
The Great Fascist Council controlled (!) the activities of the government and considered bills before they entered the parliament. Thus, the hatefully liberal principle of the separation of powers was becoming a thing of the past, moreover, the JOINING of the party leadership with the state apparatus clearly began - a pledge of POLITICAL MONOPOLY. Another act of political restructuring was a royal decree that legalized the National Security Volunteer Militia on an equal footing with the police; Mussolini thus received a completely legal personal guard, ready for anything for the Duce.
But before the creation of a totalitarian regime was still far away. The fascists did not yet enjoy the support of the masses necessary for this, the opposition was still very strong, the army inspired some doubts, finally, the economic problems of Italy, contrary to the promises of the Duce, were not resolved in a mystical way after coming to power, but on the contrary, continued to deepen.
And although the fascists won the 1924 parliamentary elections, the opposition received quite a lot of votes - the socialists, the People's Party and even the communists. Under these conditions, the fascists made the mistake of trying with one blow to cut the Gordian knot of political relations, a mistake that led to a most serious crisis in the party.
"Parties of a new type" usually do not disdain frankly bandit methods of political struggle, usually this works very successfully, shocking opponents, but this time the mafia methods of the fascists turned against them.
One of the leaders of the opposition, who especially often pestered the Duce in Parliament - Giacomo Matteotti was kidnapped and killed by the Nazis. The explosion of indignation that followed almost brought the party to collapse. The mass exit from the party and the confusion of the leadership forced Mussolini to even talk about a possible resignation. The opposition, taking advantage of the confusion of the enemies, created the first anti-fascist front in the west - the Aventine block (according to one of the versions, it was on the Aventine Hill that the Roman plebeians retired during the fight against the patricians, which brought the first victory). The bloc recalled the deputies from the parliament and launched a broad anti-fascist propaganda, hoping for the collapse of the fascist organizations due to internal contradictions and loss of authority.
However, the rather passive tactics of the Aventine bloc, the irreconcilable hostility within the anti-fascist camp (the communists never entered the bloc), and most importantly, the growing influence of the Duce's supporters, despite everything, allowed him to revive and strengthen his power.
In 1925, discarding liberal overtures, Mussolini bluntly declared his intentions - "We want to fascist the nation. There must be Italians of the era of fascism, as were, for example, the Italians of the Renaissance."
A more specific program was the intention to curb all opposition and restore the Roman Empire: "For fascism, the desire for empire, that is, for NATIONAL DISTRIBUTION, is a vital manifestation. The opposite, that is, sitting at home, is a sign of decline."
It was in this spirit that the further policy of the Nazis was built. In 1926, after an unsuccessful assassination attempt on Mussolini, "emergency laws" came into force. First of all, all "anti-national" parties were dissolved by a special law, that is, the desired, in fact, ONE-PARTY regime was created. To consider political cases related to the activities of the now banned opposition, a Special Tribunal was created.
But in this way, Mussolini received nothing more than a banal military or party dictatorship, and this was not enough. The task was to create a non-communist, but totalitarian regime, the essence of which the Duce formulated with a chased formulation: "Everything is in the state, nothing is outside the state." Power should be "nationwide", and for this it was necessary to firmly tie the population (quite ready for this due to massification, and the fascists knew and took this into account) to the fascist state. The system of "drive belts" was built in Italy in a peculiar way. We are talking about the CORPORATE system. The law, called the "Charter of Labor", banned all non-fascist trade unions that were a clear threat to general unification under the leadership of the party, and created CORPORATIONS in their place.
These new organizations were not trade unions. They were the main "drive belt" of the fascist state.
Firstly, they were supposed to include (and in 1930 they included by special decree) the entire population of Italy, which greatly facilitated control over the masses and the conservation of their political activity, directed in the right direction.
Secondly, corporations have become an indispensable buffer for the political activity of the still living opposition - the fact is that only corporations could nominate candidates for the Italian parliament, and the Great Fascist Council, which actually completely replaced the government, approved or disapproved of these candidates; elections in this way, although formally preserved, have lost all meaning.
Thirdly, corporations solved the most important problem for the totalitarian regime of control over the economy, which, unlike Soviet Russia, was not nationalized. Corporations included not only workers, but also entrepreneurs who were forced to observe some discipline and thus deprived of economic freedom, and in general all working industries.
By 1932, there were 22 corporations in Italy by industry. This allowed the state not only to control, but also directly manage the economy, which formally remained non-state, it made it possible to mobilize the population, for example, in "battles for bread", it made it possible to solve economic problems by strong-willed methods, nullifying market laws. This managed to somewhat stabilize the financial situation, limit inflation, raise production, and reduce unemployment; however, the Great Depression of 1929 greatly prevented this - Italy, unlike other totalitarian regimes, remained included in world trade.
In addition to corporations, there were other "transmission belts": the "external" party, the school, the army, youth, women's, sports and other organizations.
Thus, in Italy, the first experience of creating a totalitarian society of a non-communist type took place. However, this experience was not entirely successful. Although Mussolini most actively used the term "totalitarian state", if one compares fascism with Soviet communism or German National Socialism, one can doubt the truly totalitarian essence of the former.
Indeed, Italy did not know terror on such a scale as Germany or the Soviet Union: from 1926 to 1932, the Special Tribunals issued only 7 death sentences to political "criminals"! 12,000 people were found not guilty after being arrested, is it possible to imagine this in Germany or the USSR?
A very common method of political repression was the forced feeding of the victim with castor oil, followed by "liberation" with a large crowd of people, which had a very positive effect on health, clearing the stomach, although it greatly undermined the authority of the oppositionist. When Mussolini was asked why thieves, prostitutes, vagabonds, etc., are not shot on the spot in Italy, he replied: "We are not in Russia." For all the years of fascist rule, therefore, it was not possible to suppress the opposition.
Italian totalitarianism, contrary to the essence of this phenomenon, quite peacefully coexisted with such quite traditional institutions as the aristocracy, the monarchy (Mussolini always remained only the prime minister), the Catholic Church - it was Mussolini who concluded the Lateran Concordat (agreement) with Pope Pius XI in 1929, according to which the pope was granted secular power in the newly created state of the Vatican. Fascism was superimposed on the centuries-old forms of life of small Italian towns and villages, very little or not at all affected by industrialization, not destroying them, as Bolshevism did in the USSR, but trying to adapt them to a new ideology (appealing to traditions) and methods of social organization.
All this made the Nazis flawed even in the eyes of their allies - the German National Socialists. Goebbels wrote that the Duce is "not a revolutionary, like Hitler and Stalin ... he lacks the breadth of a world revolutionary and rebel." Hitler himself made it clear many times that Stalin was much closer in spirit to him than Mussolini. And only the impetuous imperialism of the Duce made Hitler his ally in the war against the old democracies of the West.
As for the essence of the totalitarian regime of the non-communist type, a much more "pure model" of it was created in Germany, but under completely different conditions.
Now you already imagine the SOIL (conditions) on which Italian fascism grew.
So, returning to its origins, I want to mention official documents related to the emergence of fascism.
In the POLITICAL section, such goals and objectives were identified as:
Universal suffrage;
Proportional representation at the regional level;
Female suffrage;
Establishment of national councils for economic affairs;
Dissolution of the Italian Senate;
Formation of National Councils (ministries) of labor, industry, transport, communications, health ....
In the SOCIAL POLICY section:
Introduction of an 8-hour working day;
Setting the size of the minimum wages;
Participation of workers in production management;
Strengthening the influence of trade unions;
Repair and reconstruction of railways, as well as construction of new ones;
Revision of the Disability Insurance Bill;
Reduction of the retirement age from 65 to 55 years.
In the MILITARY section:
Creation of a short-term service in the national militia ("blackshirts"): with special defensive duties (look at their photo here at the link https://cloud.mail.ru/public/DFct/HwC4S1GR3 do the sticks in their hands remind you of anything?)
Nationalization of military factories;
Peaceful but competitive foreign policy;
In the FINANCE section:
Strong progressive capital tax;
The seizure of all church property and the abolition of all dioceses, which bear a huge responsibility for the nation and the privileges of the poor;
Review of all contracts for military provisions;
Revision of all military contracts and the capture of 85% of the profits in them.
Thus, the manifesto combined the ideas of class cooperation, corporatism and democracy.
It seems to me that when reading all this, the dear reader's brain has already begun to "swim". Yes, yes, just such ATTRACTIVE (at least on paper) were the goals and objectives of Italian fascism. And it is no coincidence that these ideas spread very quickly (with varying degrees of success) around the world in different versions (Germany, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Brazil, Russia...).
But let's go back to Italy again and try to formulate - what was ITALIAN FASCISM like and what were its individual characteristics?
In short, it is the totalitarian nationalist policy of state capitalism. The main ideas of Italian fascism were outlined in the book "The Doctrine of Fascism" (1932). This book, authored by Mussolini (although Giovanni Gentile also had a hand in it) was included in the federal list of extremist materials in 2010.
So, in his work, Mussolini wrote that he was disillusioned with the doctrines of the past, including socialism, of which he had been an active promoter for many years. New ideas must be sought, as political doctrines come and go, but peoples remain. He was convinced that if the 19th century was the century of individualism, then the 20th century would be the century of collectivism and, therefore, the state.
If we abstract from the specific Italian fascism and go over to consider this phenomenon in a broader historical sense, then the definition of fascism can be given as follows:
FASCISM is a religion, ideology, policy and practice based on the concept of the superiority of a certain set of people, an elite, united, united by a great idea, over all other people, and justifying or realizing the suppression or destruction of these "others".
Fascism is characterized by a cruel, uncompromising attitude towards any attempt to discuss, criticize or identify it; in particular, any form of protest is suppressed. Usually fascism is associated with lies, violence, torture and murder. Typical of fascism is the leader's personality cult and belief in his good will and infallibility. As a rule, fascism does not identify itself as fascism, but there is an exception - these are the Italian fascists (I wrote about them above), who called themselves that.
I want to list the MAIN SIGNS OF FASCISM (in peacetime), which were formulated in the spring of 2003 by the English political scientist Lawrence Britt. These are 14 signs ... and if you observe at least 5 of them in your own country, then you need to start sounding the alarm before it's too late! And if you identify 10, then consider that you have already "sailed" ... if these signs appear en masse.
1. STRONG AND PERMANENT NATIONALISM. Fascist regimes tend to make heavy use of phrases, slogans, symbols, songs, and other patriotic art. The image of the national flag is constantly found, as a background, a decorative element on clothes and the flags themselves, hung everywhere you can imagine.
2. LOVE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS. The fascist state is constantly surrounded by enemies and enemy intrigues, therefore, in such states, the population is constantly convinced that human rights can be abolished or ignored, sometimes "forced". The people are beginning to be tolerant of legal arbitrariness, torture, harsh and capital punishment, long prison terms, and so on.
3. SEARCH FOR ENEMIES AND "Scapegoats" AS A COMMON BUSINESS. The people en masse are infected with patriotic fever based on the need to identify and destroy the danger hanging over the country, perceived in the form of an enemy, whether they be racial, ethnic or religious minorities, liberals, communists, socialists, human rights activists, terrorists, etc.
4. MILITARISM AND MILITARISTIC DISCOURSE. Although the country has a huge number of problems, disproportionate funds are allocated for military needs, the military is glorified, the image of an armed soldier is presented as attractive.
5. RAMPANT SEXISM. The governments of fascist states are almost entirely in the hands of men. Gender stereotypes become of great importance, gender roles become very rigid. Domestic politics is characterized by strong opposition to the right to abortion and homophobia (including in the laws being passed).
6. CONTROL OVER THE MEDIA. The media are controlled by the government either directly or through a system of legislative restrictions, through "feeding" journalists, and through censorship and surveillance of editors and producers.
7. OBSESSION WITH NATIONAL SECURITY. Fear of an external enemy is used by the government as a motivational tool to control the people.
8. MIXING RELIGION AND GOVERNMENT. The governments of fascist nations use the prevailing form of religion in the country as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric is used by the government even when religious leaders oppose the official political course.
9. PROTECTION OF THE POWER OF CORPORATIONS. The industrial and financial oligarchy of fascist nations usually bring their henchmen to power. A regime of mutually beneficial relations is established between the government/authorities and the economic oligarchy.
10. SUPPRESSION OF WORKERS' ORGANIZATIONS. Since the solidarity of workers is the only real threat to the fascist state, trade unions and workers' associations are eliminated.
11. CONTEMPT FOR INTELLIGENCE AND ART. Fascist states openly show contempt and fuel the hostility of the population towards the institution of higher education and towards academia. Cultural figures are often subject to censorship and harassment. Free art is attacked directly, public funding the sphere of culture is reduced to nothing.
12. OBSESSION WITH THE IDEA OF REVENGE FOR CRIMES. Fascist regimes endow the internal affairs bodies, the repressive police system, with virtually unlimited power. The population is forced to "look the other way" due to police brutality and lack of civil liberties.
13. RAMPANT CORRUPTION AND CREATIVITY. From the point of view of the composition of the government, fascist regimes are "groups of friends" who nominate each other to key positions and use their positions to ensure their own impunity and the impunity of their "friends". business as usual is the plundering of the national treasure by such government groups.
14. ELECTION FRAUD. In fascist states, elections can be openly fraudulent or the electoral process can be manipulated to discredit or intimidate opposition representatives (including physical elimination). With the help of legislative measures, the number and procedure for casting votes, counting commissions, and courts are controlled. Manipulation of public opinion through the media and manipulation of the local voting process through the local government are used.
Finishing this article, I want to say that in the end (in the long-term historical period) GOOD ALWAYS CONQUERS EVIL.
And I really don’t want to find myself (live) in a short-term period when evil is stronger ...
Introduction… 3
reasons for the birth of fascism… 4
Cradle of Fascism - Italy… 6
The rise of fascism in Germany… 11
Fascism in other countries… 17
Modern fascism… 20
CONCLUSION… 27
With the establishment of fascism, there is no change in the class essence of state power, and the nature of the socio-economic system does not change either. With the establishment of fascism, the most reactionary part of the bourgeoisie comes to power, which establishes a regime of direct arbitrariness and lawlessness. Being a product of the era of the general crisis of capitalism, fascism is an openly terrorist dictatorship of the most reactionary and chauvinistic elements of financial capital.
reasons for the rise of fascism
The social base of fascist movements is primarily the petty bourgeoisie. It is joined by various kinds of declassed elements, as well as a significant part of the unemployed. But this does not mean at all that when fascism is established, the petty bourgeoisie comes to power. This Austro-Marxist theory was at one time widespread. Modern bourgeois scientists also often turn to it. In reality, however, the petty bourgeoisie, by virtue of the dual nature of its political psychology and its position in the system of social production, cannot itself exercise state power. The petty-bourgeois origin of many fascist leaders (Mussolini is the son of a blacksmith, Hitler is the son of a shoemaker who later became a customs official), the presence of people from this environment in important positions in the mechanism of the fascist dictatorship does not change its essence in any way. In fact, power is in the hands of the most reactionary elements of monopoly capital. Fascism is not established immediately. Before replacing the political regime, the bourgeoisie carries out a series of preparatory measures. G. M. Dimitrov said at the 7th Congress of the Comintern: “Before the establishment of a fascist dictatorship, bourgeois governments usually go through a number of preparatory stages and carry out a number of reactionary measures that help fascism directly come to power.”
Fascization of the political regime is usually carried out in the following main directions: open violation and trampling of bourgeois-democratic rights and freedoms; persecution and prohibition of communist and workers' parties, as well as progressive trade unions and public organizations; the merger of the state apparatus with the monopolies; militarization of the state apparatus; the decline of the role of central and local representative institutions; the growth of discretionary powers of the executive bodies of state power; merging parties and trade unions with the state apparatus; consolidation of previously disparate fascist and reactionary-extremist parties and organizations; the emergence of various kinds of right-wing extremist movements (“National Front in France, the Italian Social Movement, etc.).
In the conditions of the general crisis of capitalism, and especially at its present stage, elements of fascisization of one degree or another take place in all bourgeois countries that have reached the stage of state-monopoly capitalism.
Fascism as a special kind of bourgeois political regime has a number of features that distinguish it from other authoritarian regimes.
Fascism not only completely destroys bourgeois democracy, but also theoretically "substantiates" the necessity of establishing totalitarianism. Instead of the liberal-democratic concept of individualism, fascism puts forward the concept of the nation, the people, whose interests always, everywhere and in everything prevail over the interests of individuals.
Fascism has broken in theory and practice with all the political and legal principles of bourgeois democracy, such as popular sovereignty, the supremacy of parliament, the separation of powers, electivity, local self-government, guarantees of individual rights, the rule of law.
The establishment of an openly terrorist regime under fascism is accompanied by the most rabid social demagogy, which is elevated to the rank of official ideology. Speculating on demagogic criticism of the most flagrant vices of capitalism, fascism always puts forward pseudo-socialist slogans, juggles with one or another variety of "national socialism". Fascism theoretically "substantiates" the absence of antagonistic classes in bourgeois society. Instead of classes, he introduces the concept of corporations. Corporatism proclaims "cooperation of labor and capital", in which the entrepreneur is no longer an exploiter, but acts as a "captain of industry", a leader who carries out the most important social function. Corporations allegedly cooperate with each other and are in a certain subordination. According to fascist ideology, each corporation that occupies its proper place in the hierarchical system performs its own “social function”. Corporativist theories preach the unity and solidity of the nation. Thus, Mussolini's Charter of Labor (April 1927) stated: “The Italian nation is an organism whose goals, life and means of action exceed the strength and duration of the goals, life and means of action that make up this organism. individuals and groups of them. It represents a moral, political and economic unity and is carried out entirely in a fascist state.” In fact, under the conditions of fascist “moral-political unity”, the caste system is being revived on an imperialist basis, under which all citizens are distributed among corporations subordinate to the fascist state, and class struggle and trade union activity are prohibited and declared a state crime.
It is social demagogy and, above all, the preaching of “national socialism” that distinguish fascism from other authoritarian regimes, under which bourgeois democracy is also liquidated, but this is done without “theoretical justification” and not under “socialist” slogans.
At present, fascism in its "classical" form does not exist anywhere. However, various kinds of tyrannical regimes have become quite widespread, under which all institutions of bourgeois democracy are completely destroyed. "Where the usual forms of suppression of the working people fail, imperialism implants and supports tyrannical regimes for direct military reprisal against progressive forces" "".
The cradle of fascism is Italy.
Earlier than in other European countries, fascism established itself in Italy. Here he was born.
Among the great European victorious powers, Italy was the most exhausted by the First World War. Industry, finance, agriculture were in a desperate situation. Nowhere was there such unemployment and poverty. Nowhere was there such an upsurge in the strike struggle.
Everything spoke of a revolutionary situation: the rapid growth of trade unions, the extraordinary victory of the socialists in the parliamentary elections of 1919 (31% of the vote), the seizure of plants and factories by workers, landowners' land by peasants and farm laborers.
After World War I, many disillusioned front-line soldiers were inclined to blame parliament and democracy for all troubles, sought to militarize civilian life and created detachments of “arditi” (dared men). On this wave, Mussolini in March 1919 formed the "Union of Struggle" - "Fashio di Compattimento", the main goal of which he proclaimed the struggle for the interests of the nation. deputies. I am sure that parliament is a bubonic plague that poisons the blood of the nation. It must be exterminated."
The seizures of factories and factories were a response to the onset of entrepreneurs (lockouts; suspension of production). The movement reaches its greatest scope at the end of the summer of 1920. Dozens of enterprises (in Milan, Turin and other cities) came under the control of workers (managers chosen by them). Industrial output increased. There was a strict order. Equipment, buildings, raw materials, etc. were carefully guarded
In Turin, where the workers were most organized, the enterprises remained under their control for three weeks.
The revolutionary situation forced the bourgeois governments of Italy to important reforms. Among them, we note: a law on social insurance of unemployment, a decree on the admissibility of unauthorized seizure of uncultivated land.
In 1921, the Italian Communist Party was founded.
At the congress of the Socialist Party in Livorno, the party split into centrists (the Serrati group) and communists. The latter spoke in favor of joining the Third International.
Soon, after the end of the World War, the first fascist organizations arose in Italy. Composed of various elements, they initially came up with a program designed to win the working people away from the socialist movement.
The program was so false that later, when the Nazis came to power, it was not allowed to mention it. They talked about the 8-hour working day, about universal, direct and equal suffrage for men and women, about freedom of the press and even the equality of nations
The very word "fascio", from which "fascism" comes, was borrowed from the peasant organizations of Sicily, who used it in the sense of "unity"
The revolutionary events of 1920 forced the fascists to take the class position that corresponded to their real goals.
Fighting groups of fascists, led by demobilized and embittered army officers, sacked and destroyed people's houses created with the money of workers, workers' clubs, printing houses belonging to the progressive press, etc. Italy has never known anything like it.
The government not only did not interfere with the Nazis, but even encouraged them. Fascism receives powerful patrons in the form of the General Confederation of Industrialists and landowners' unions. Along with patronage, money flows. The number of fascist organizations is increasing.
In 1922, taking advantage of the weakness of the government (and even more of a split in the labor movement), the fascist leadership creates a committee to seize power and sends 40,000 of its "black shirts" to march on Rome.
The government had every opportunity to quickly and finally stop the putsch: it was enough to open fire "for a quarter of an hour" "as General Badoglio suggested to the king.
But the king and his camarilla made a different decision: the head of the Jackal party, Mussolini, was appointed Prime Minister of Italy.
The new government began with the abolition of the decree on the right of the peasants to seize uncultivated land, with reactionary changes in labor legislation, with the establishment of cruelty against trade unions, with the persecution of democratic organizations. Fascist combat detachments became part of the repressive government apparatus.
Still not daring to disperse Parliament. Mussolini and his clique passed a law according to which automatically receives two-thirds of the deputy mandates of the party for which one-fourth of the voters will vote. This act, surprising in its cynicism, made it possible to foresee what Italy would become after the elections.
Election results ( 1924 ) suspiciously exactly coincided with the plans of Mussolini: from 12 million votes 4 million were considered pro-fascist. Fascist militia - the main culprit of the "victory" - triumphed.
But democracy was not killed. In the person of the socialist Mateotti, a deputy, orator, a courageous man, she exposed the comedy of elections and at the same time the venality and corruption of the leaders of the new regime, especially Mussolini himself.
The Nazis killed Mateotti. The country was swept by a wave of indignation. The working masses were ready to sweep away fascism. I had to seize the moment. But the position that had influence was the socialists, the republicans. "Polari" (Catholic Party) - chose a tactically erroneous withdrawal from parliament, a boycott of the latter.
Having dealt with the opposition and strengthened in power, Mussolini's government goes on the offensive against democracy. By the January Law of 1926, it arrogates to itself the right to issue decrees in addition to Parliament. Following this, the fascist regime unfolds in all its glory.
"Extraordinary laws" followed one after the other. They banned trade unions (with the exception of state fascist ones) and political parties (with the exception of one fascist one); they reintroduced the death penalty for “political crimes”; they introduced emergency justice (tribunals) and administrative (out of home) expulsion; the communist party was outlawed; local self-government bodies were abolished: they were replaced by government-appointed officials (podestas).
Democratic freedoms were abandoned. The opposition press is closed. Thousands of democrats were killed with or without trial, thrown into concentration camps, where the same death awaited them, only slow and painful.
Any new intensification of terror was usually provoked by some kind of "assassination attempt", "conspiracy", etc. In November 1926, a 15-year-old boy was killed on the spot for an attempt on Mussolini's life. A wave of arrests, death sentences, etc. immediately followed.
Rice. 1. (Mussolini), [Amilcare Andrea] (1883-1945), founder of Italian fascism, head of the Italian fascist party and government of Italy in 1922-43 and the puppet government of the so-called. Republic of Salo in 1943-45.
The political regime of Italian fascism was determined faster than its political system took shape.
The Piedmont Statute known to us was not repealed, but there was no correspondence between it and what became under fascism. The monarchy was preserved, but in such a pitiful form that no one took it into account. It was believed that Mussolini was responsible to the king, it was even written in the laws, but no one believed, least of all the king. Any mention of the Duce's responsibility was not recommended. This was followed by the gendarmerie.
Before others, the tendency of "leaderism", a one-man dictatorship, was determined.
Already the law of 1925 “On the powers of the head of government” made the prime minister irresponsible, independent of parliament. His colleagues in the ministry, his ministers, have become mere assistants, responsible to their head; they were appointed and removed at the will of the latter.
For several years, Mussolini did not dare to act openly only by violence, but in 1926 he finally destroyed the remnants of the opposition in the country. He issued emergency laws, according to which all political parties, except for the fascist, were banned and dissolved, and their deputies were expelled from parliament. At the same time, Mussolini created a fascist tribunal that condemned from 1927 to 1937 about 3 thousand anti-fascists. The Grand Fascist Council became the highest legislative body in the country. The activities of free trade unions, all democratic organizations were banned, open terror began to be carried out, denunciations were encouraged, citizens were kindled suspicion of each other. The old morality was declared a bourgeois relic, and the new one consisted in the complete subordination of the interests of the individual to the fascist state.
Hitler's coming to power in Germany in 1933 provided Mussolini with a worthy ally. Confident in his support, Mussolini launched a war with Ethiopia. Based on an alliance with Hitler and the signed Rome agreements, Mussolini proceeded to implement his aggressive plans in Europe - in 1936 he organized a military-fascist rebellion against republican Spain, as a result of which the regime of General Francisco Franco was established there.
Signed May 22, 1939 in Berlin "Pact of Friendship and Alliance between Germany and Italy." The preamble to the pact contained allegations that both parties were allegedly united by the desire to cooperate "in the field of ensuring peace in Europe", that they continue to be determined to jointly "advocate for the preservation of their living space and the maintenance of peace", to fight for "preservation of the foundations European culture".
A large performance given by the National Socialist dictator for the fascist Duce in Berlin at the Olympic Stadium, September 29, 1937. In the light of the spotlights, the emblems of both dictators are a swastika and mentor beams. Between them is Mussolini speaking to the masses. The state visit of the Italian dictator became a triumphal celebration of the German-Italian brotherhood. Axis Berlin - Rome was finally established.
Rise of fascism in germany
Fascism appeared in Germany immediately after the end of the First World War as one of the varieties of reactionary militaristic nationalist currents, when anti-liberal, anti-democratic movements acquired a pan-European character. In 1920, Hitler came up with a program of "25 points", which later became the program of the National Socialist German Workers' Party. Permeated with nationalistic, chauvinistic ideas of the superiority of the German nation, the program demanded revenge in order to restore "justice trampled on by Versailles."
In 1921, the organizational foundations of the fascist party were formed, based on the so-called Fuhrer principle, the unlimited power of the "leader" (Fuhrer). main goal the creation of the party becomes the spread of fascist ideology, the preparation of a special terrorist apparatus to suppress democratic, anti-fascist forces and, ultimately, to seize power. In 1923, following the general strike of the German proletariat, the Nazis made a direct attempt to seize state power (the "beer putsch"). The failure of the coup forces the fascist leaders to change the tactics of the struggle for power. Since 1925, the "battle for the Reichstag" begins by creating a mass base of the fascist party. Already in 1928, this tactic was bearing its first fruits, the Nazis received 12 seats in the Reichstag. In 1932, in terms of the number of mandates, the Fascist Party receives more seats than any other party represented in the Reichstag.
January 30, 1933 Hitler, by order of Hindenburg, takes the post of Chancellor of Germany. He comes to power as the head of a coalition government, since his party, even with a few allies, did not have a majority in the Reichstag. This circumstance did not matter, however, since Hitler's cabinet was the "president's office" and Hitler was the "presidential chancellor." At the same time, the results of the 1932 elections gave a certain halo of legitimacy to his chancellorship. A variety of social strata and population groups voted for Hitler. Hitler's broad social base was created at the expense of those who, after the defeat of Germany, had the ground cut out from under their feet, that same bewildered aggressive crowd, feeling deceived, having lost their life prospect along with their property, experiencing fear of tomorrow. He managed to use the social, political and psychological disorder of these people, showing them the way to save himself and the humiliated fatherland, promising various circles and groups of the population everything they wanted: monarchists - the restoration of the monarchy, workers - work and bread, industrialists - military orders, the Reichswehr - a new rise in connection with grandiose military plans, etc. The nationalist slogans of the Nazis attracted the Germans more than calls for "reason and patience" of the Social Democrats or for "proletarian solidarity" and the construction of "Soviet Germany" of the Communists.
Hitler came to power, relying on the direct support of the official and unofficial ruling circles and the reactionary socio-political forces behind them, who considered it necessary to establish an authoritarian regime in the country in order to put an end to the hated democracy and republic. Fearing the rising left, revolution and communism, they wanted to establish an authoritarian regime with the help of a "pocket" chancellor. Hindenburg clearly underestimated Hitler, calling him "Bohemian Corporal" behind his back. He was presented to the Germans as a "moderate". At the same time, all the scandalous, extremist activities of the NSNRP were consigned to oblivion. The first sobering up of the Germans came the day after Hitler came to power, when thousands of stormtroopers staged a formidable torchlight procession in front of the Reichstag.
Rice. 2. Adolf Hitler.
The coming to power of the Nazis was not an ordinary change of cabinet. It marked the beginning of the systematic destruction of all institutions of the bourgeois-democratic parliamentary state, all the democratic gains of the German people, the creation of a "new order" - a terrorist anti-people regime.
At first, when open resistance to fascism was not finally suppressed (back in February 1933, anti-fascist demonstrations took place in many places in Germany),
Hitler resorted to "extraordinary measures", which were widely used in Weimar on the basis of emergency presidential powers. He never formally renounced the Weimar constitution. The first repressive decree "for the defense of the German people", signed by President Hindenburg, was adopted on the basis of Art. 48 of the Weimar Constitution and was motivated by the defense of "public peace".
In order to justify the emergency measures, Hitler in 1933 needed the provocative burning of the Reichstag, which was blamed on the German Communist Party. The provocation was followed by two new emergency decrees: "against treason against the German people and against treasonous actions" and "on the protection of the people and the state", adopted, as announced, with the aim of suppressing "communist violent actions harmful to the state." The government was given the right to take over the powers of any land, to issue decrees related to the violation of the secrecy of correspondence, telephone conversations, the inviolability of property, and the rights of trade unions.
From the first days of coming to power, Hitler began to implement his program, according to which Germany was to achieve a new greatness. Its implementation was supposed to be carried out in two stages. On the first one, the task was to rally the Germans into a kind of "national community", on the second - to turn it into a "combat community".
In order to unite the Germans into a single community, it was necessary to cleanse the Aryan race from “foreign blood”, overcome class, confessional, ideological contradictions, which was achieved by eliminating political parties, except for the NSRPG, alien to ideology, public organizations, except for the Nazis, loyal to the “Fuhrer and Reich” , as well as through the "unification of the state apparatus", etc. Having done this "internal work", Germany, according to Hitler's plan, could begin to work "externally", the most important task of which was to conquer the living space, oust the peoples living there, mainly the peoples of Eastern Europe, through a merciless, bloody war. The fascist state and the NSRPG were mainly engaged in solving the tasks of the first stage until 1935. Since that time, total preparations for war began, and then the war itself.
The change of Hitler's "stages" was directly reflected in the legislation and changes in the mechanism of the fascist dictatorship. On March 24, 1933, the Reichstag adopts the Law "On the elimination of the plight of the people and the state", on the basis of which the government receives legislative rights, including on budgetary issues. It was also assumed that the norms of laws adopted by the government could directly deviate from the norms of the Constitution of 1919, which formally continued to operate (with one proviso that was abolished soon - "if they do not have the object of the Reichstag and the Reichsrat"). The law specifically emphasized that contracts with foreign states and their implementation does not need to be approved by Parliament. Formally, the law was adopted as a temporary law until April 1, 1937; in fact, it became the permanent fundamental law of the fascist state. From now on, the office of the National Socialist Party, subordinate to Hitler, took direct part in the preparation of all imperial laws. This was the end of the Weimar Republic with its representative institutions.
After the death of President Hindenburg on August 1, 1934, by a government decree, the office of president was abolished, and all power was concentrated in the hands of Hitler, the “leader” and the Reich Chancellor for life, who was given the right not only to appoint the imperial government, all the highest officials empire, but also his successor. From that time on, Hitler began the systematic destruction of all possible ways opposition, which was a direct embodiment of the Nazis' program guidelines and the main requirement they introduced - fanatical, blind obedience to the will of the "Führer of the German people."
Following the prohibition of the Communist Party in March 1933, all trade unions were dissolved in May of the same year, and in June 1933 the Social Democratic Party was outlawed. Other parties that had been active before Hitler came to power "dissolved themselves." In July 1933, the existence of any political parties, except for the fascist and the organizations led by it, was prohibited by law. "In Germany," the law proclaimed, "there is only one party, the NSRPG, all others are prohibited." Attempts to "support the organizational structures of some other political party" were punishable by up to three years in prison.
By pursuing an "integration policy of the state and the party", the Nazis "unified" not only the parties, but also the press. Press organs, except for the Nazi ones, were either liquidated or included in the system of fascist propaganda. The law of March 24, 1933 "On the protection of the government of national revival from insidious encroachments" criminal liability in the form of imprisonment for up to two years was subject to all persons who allowed "gross distortion of reality, expressed judgments that could cause severe damage to the well-being of the empire or individual German lands , or the authority of the government of the empire or - individual lands and government parties. Penal servitude threatened those who, by their act, caused "heavy damage to the empire."
In December 1933, the Law "On Ensuring the Unity of the Party and the State" was issued, declaring the fascist party "the bearer of German state thought." In accordance with this law, the fascist Reichstag was also personally formed by Hitler (on the basis of lists “approved” by the plebiscite), and only persons from the Nazi party elite were appointed to the posts of ministers and other positions. Moreover, it was subsequently prescribed that any appointment to a public office made without the consent of the relevant body of the Fascist Party would be considered invalid.
The transformation of the Reichstag into a powerless, puppet institution, since its new composition was formed exclusively on a party basis, the liquidation of local governments were closely related to the general bureaucratization of the state apparatus. The state apparatus was purged from “inappropriate persons”, from all those who began working in the apparatus after 1918, from persons of “non-Aryan origin”, marriages of officials with “non-Aryan women”, etc. were prohibited.
Particular attention was paid to the indoctrination in the spirit of militarism, chauvinism and racism of young people, whose mentality was controlled by fascist youth organizations (Jungvolk, Hitler Youth, etc.). The leader of the Hitler Youth was officially called the "Leader of the Youth of the German Reich" and was personally responsible to Hitler as Fuhrer and as Reich Chancellor. After 1937, participation in the Nazi youth organizations became mandatory. These organizations were included in an extensive system of various Nazi organizations covering all aspects of the country's life.
The Nazis created a powerful terrorist apparatus, which began to take shape even before they came to power. In 1920, the first armed detachments arose - the "order service" of the fascists, which was assigned the role of protecting fascist gatherings. However, these detachments were most often used to create unrest at rallies of leftist forces, to attack workers' speakers, etc. In 1921, the "order service" was called "assault detachments" (SA). Declassed elements, soldiers and officers dismissed from the army, bankrupt shopkeepers, who were impressed by Nazi propaganda, were attracted to the SA detachments.
In March 1938, the independent state of Austria was annexed to Germany. Czechoslovakia became the next victim of fascist aggression. As a result of the Munich Agreement concluded in September 1938 by England, France and Nazi Germany, Czechoslovakia lost a significant part of its territory, annexed to the Reich. It was the defeat of an independent state without military action, followed in 1939 by the military occupation of the country. In September 1939 Poland was occupied by the Nazis. In July 1940, German troops occupied Paris, followed by new victories for the aggressor.
By the time of the attack on the USSR, Germany controlled vast territories of Central and Eastern, most of Western and Northern Europe. In her hands was the coast of the Baltic Sea, a significant part of France. The powerful military and economic base of the occupied states was put at the service of Nazi Germany, the purpose of which was proclaimed "to protect civilization from the threat of Bolshevism", and in fact - the destruction of the USSR.
Against the Soviet state, fascist Germany, together with its allies and satellites, fielded an army of 5 million (German, Italian, Romanian and other troops), armed with 3,500 tanks, 4,900 aircraft, etc.
During the Second World War, in which 61 states participated, more than 50 million people were killed, 11 million were destroyed in fascist concentration camps, and 95 million became disabled. The main burden of the war was borne by the Soviet Union, which for 4 years waged the Great Patriotic War, which cost (according to unspecified data) 30 million lives of its citizens. The Soviet Union has a decisive role to play in defeating the fascist military machine, and with it one of the most reactionary and aggressive states in human history that aspire to world domination.
Fascism in other countries
The fascisization of the Japanese state system was developed with the beginning of the Second World War and during it.
In 1940, the Japanese ruling circles, but especially the generals, made Prince Konoe, the former ideologist of the totalitarian military-fascist regime, prime minister. The most important posts in the government were entrusted to representatives of heavy industry concerns.
Following this, the creation of the so-called new political structure begins. In carrying out this plan, the political parties (with the exception, of course, of the communist party) announced their own dissolution. Together they made up the "Association for the Relief of the Throne" - state organization financed by and run by the government.
Local association bodies were the so-called neighborhood communities, a medieval institution revived by reaction. Each such community united 10-12 families. Several communities formed an "association of a street", a village, etc.
The Throne Assistance Association ordered members of the community to monitor the behavior of their neighbors and report everything they saw. One community had to watch over the other.
Instead of the banned trade unions, “societies serving the fatherland through production” were created at factories and factories, where workers were driven by force. Here, in the same way, mutual surveillance and blind obedience were achieved.
The unification of the press, the strictest censorship, and chauvinistic propaganda became an indispensable element of the “new political structure”. There was no question of any "freedoms".
Economic life was controlled by special associations of industrialists and financiers, endowed with administrative powers. This was called the "new economic structure". The Japanese parliament, or rather what was left of it, lost all significance. Its members were appointed by the government or (which is the same thing) were elected from special lists drawn up by the government.
Thus, the main signs of fascism were revealed. But there were also some differences:
a) In Germany and Italy, the fascist parties controlled the army; in Japan, it was the army that played the role of the main hand of the Greatest political force;
b) as in Italy, so in Japan, fascism did not abolish the monarchy; the difference is that the Italian king did not play the slightest role, while the Japanese emperor did not at all lose his absolute power, nor his influence (all the institutions associated with the monarchy, such as the Privy Council, etc., were preserved).
Japanese fascism acted in a specific form of military-monarchist dictatorship.
It must be said here that the model of a strong regime, fascist or semi-fascist, was in great vogue in Europe between the two wars. And in Eastern Europe in particular. Before 1939, moreover, already before 1933 (the date Hitler came to power in Germany), many countries of this part of Europe were already under the rule of openly fascist, semi-fascist or authoritarian regimes, gradually evolving towards fascism. Europe was populated by dictators. The general reader knows that there was Mussolini in Italy, Salazar in Portugal, Franco in Spain, the racist regime of Marshal Paten in France, Hitler in Germany, but also, do not forget, Pilsudski - little Stalin in Poland, Voldemaras in Lithuania, Karlis Ulmanis in Latvia, Cornelius Cordeanu (and later Marshal Antonescu) in Romania, Marshal Mannerheim in Finland, Admiral Horthy (also regent) in Hungary, Ante Pavelic in Croatia, Monsignor Tiso in Slovakia... In Bulgaria, Tsar Boris III himself became the fascist leader.
In December 1934, sixteen (!) European countries were represented at the International Congress of Fascist Parties, convened by Mussolini in Montreau. The Duce, the head of the first fascist state (1922), dreamed of a fascist international and immediately after coming to power began secretly rearming Germany, Bulgaria and the countries that had come into being as a result of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (unwisely and hastily cut out in living meat Europe by Lloyd George and Clemenceau). The Duce supplied weapons to Admiral Horthy's Hungary and Austria (the main recipient was the far-right Heimverehn organization, but not only it). Not limited to the export of weapons and fascism, the Duce also instructed on the spot. From 1926, Hungarian soldiers received military training directly in Italy.
In Romania in 1931 Cornelius Cordeanu created the Fascist Iron Guard.
In 1939, the Slovak fascist state was created, which participated on the side of Hitler in the war against Poland and two years later - against the USSR. In 1940, Hungary officially joined the Tripartite Pact (German-Italian-Japanese). Bulgaria, led by a dynasty of German origin, fought on the side of Germany already in the First World War. In 1919-1923. we see the dictatorship of Stamboliysky in Bulgaria. In 1935, Tsar Boris III himself establishes his dictatorship, as if it was not enough for him that he was a tsar. In 1941 Bulgaria signs an official pact with Germany. The fascist state of Croatia was created in the same year. In 1940, Marshal Antonescu became the dictator ("conductor") of Romania. In 1941, Romania is an ally of Germany ...
Even the positive characters of that era did not escape the influence of fascism. In 1934, the Austrian chancellor Dollfuss (who was assassinated by the pro-German Nazis a few months later) proclaimed the establishment of a one-party regime of the "fascist model" (!) and, resorting to violence, destroyed the socialist opposition in Vienna. The Yugoslav King Alexander (killed in 1934 by the Ustaše Ante Pavelic) today looks like a victim of fascism, but, however, he abolished the constitution of his country in 1929 and ruled alone.
And Czechoslovakia? She gave herself to Germany in 1938 and 1939. (just like later, in 1948 and 1968) without a single shot being fired. Despite the fact that in 1938 it had a well-armed modern army, the Wehrmacht was not yet a victorious Wehrmacht. It is impossible to condemn Czechoslovakia for this. For a state molded from pieces, a soldier does not really want to give his life. Three and a half million Sudeten Germans opened the gates to Hitler themselves. They greeted Hitler in exactly the same way as 97% of the inhabitants of Austria.
When in June 1941 the 5.5 millionth army of Hitler invaded the territory of the USSR, it included 900 thousand soldiers of the allied countries. Subsequently, their number increased. Duce Italians, Spanish division, French and Dutch units. Yes, but Eastern "innocent" Europe was much more widely represented than Western: Romanian, Hungarian, Finnish, Slovak divisions. Czech and Austrian Germans fought in the Wehrmacht. And if the Polish divisions were not part of Hitler's "Great Army", this is just an accident of history - a consequence of the immoderate appetite of the mustachioed nationalist and "socialist" Pilsudski. After all, the Poles gladly participated in Napoleon's campaign against Russia. Like Hitler, Napoleon came to Russia with soldiers from all over Europe.
Modern fascism
"Skinheads" were born in the mid-60s as a reaction of a certain part of the British working class to hippies and motorcycle rockers. Then they liked the traditional work clothes, which were difficult to tear in a fight: black felt jackets and jeans. They cut their hair short so as not to interfere in fights.
By 1972, the fashion for "skinheads" began to wane, but unexpectedly revived 4 years later. A new round of development of this movement was indicated by already shaved heads, army boots and Nazi symbols. English "skinheads" began to fight more often with the police, fans of football clubs, the same "skinheads", students, homosexuals, immigrants. In 1980, the National Front infiltrated their ranks, introducing neo-Nazi theory, ideology, anti-Semitism, racism, and so on into their movement. Crowds of "skinheads" with a tattooed swastika on their faces appeared on the streets, chanting " Zig, heil! »
In 1977, the "skinhead" style penetrated the United States and this organization, in fact, replaced the Ku Klux Klan. First came the Negro, Hispanic, Jewish skinheads, many of whom peacefully coexisted with each other. It was like national associations into certain communities.
This brotherhood cracked in 1986, when the group's record " Scrudriver » ( SCREWDRIVER) promoting white supremacy.
Today, the “skinhead brotherhood”, in its total mass, is represented by football, less often hockey, fans. Since the 70s, the uniform of the “skins” has remained unchanged: black and green jackets, nationalist T-shirts, jeans with suspenders (a kind of harness), an army belt with an iron buckle, heavy army boots (such as “GRINDERS” or “Dr.MARTENS” ).
In almost all countries of the world, "skins" prefer abandoned places. There "skinheads" meet, accept new sympathizers into the ranks of their organization, imbued with nationalist ideas, listen to music. The inscriptions, quite common in their habitats, also speak of the foundations of the teachings of the "skins":
Let's clear the land of colored pigs! World Wide White Power! Russia is for russians! Moscow is for Muscovites! Every nigga got a rope around his neck! Chocks - get out of Russia! Adolf Hitler. Mein Kampf. Let's make Russia more clear.
Skins have a clear hierarchy. There is a "lower" echelon and a "higher" - advanced "skins" with excellent education. "Unadvanced skins" are not much different from the yard punks, their backbone is made up of teenagers 16-19 years old. Even being "100% white", any of the passers-by can be beaten to a pulp by them. You don't need a reason to fight.
The situation is somewhat different with the "advanced skinheads", who are also called "rightists". First of all, this is not just unbridled youth who have nothing to do. This is a kind of "skinhead" elite - people are well-read, educated and adults. The average age of the "right skins" is from 22 to 30 years. In their circles, thoughts about the purity of the Russian nation are constantly exaggerated. In the thirties, Goebbels moved the same ideas from the rostrum, but only it was about the Aryans.
IN Lately among the students of Kant, Nietzsche, and Goebbels, new trends appeared. In discussions about the purity of the nation, we are now talking about the entire white population of the earth, i.e. The skinheads movement is gaining global proportions.
European and world neo-fascist organizations.
Italy. After the end of the 2nd World War, the former Italian fascists did not want to put up with the democratic and socialist movement, they decided to start a new history of Italian fascism, capable of being in power again.
In 1947, one of the major neo-fascist organizations appeared, which did not depend on the mafia, “Movimento Sociale Italiano” or “Party of the Italian Social Movement"(P.I.S.D.). At first it was an organization with no more than 1,000 members, after the amalgamation of several nationalist organizations and parties on the basis of the P.I.S.D. in 1973, became the most influential among the entire national movement in Italy. After the unification, they received another name - "National Right Forces" (N.P.S.), which became the all-Italian recognition of the party.
Until 1973, the Italian Social Movement Party became famous for its terrorist attacks and well-organized agitation. The main clashes took place between P.I.S.D. and communist movements in Italy, terrorist attacks were directed towards immigrants and Jews.
After 1973 N.P.S. tried to run for the Italian parliament, playing on the patriotic feelings of citizens, and scored about 5% of the vote. In the 80s, N.P.S. joined the international association of neo-fascists - the Malmo International.
N.P.S. in 1995 he again changes the name of his organization, and is now called "Allenza Nazionale". These manipulations with the name change are argued with the inconsistency of the parties with the ideas, but this is just a ploy to avoid a ban on the party in Italy.
Germany. The Second World War changed the minds of the Germans. This has become part of the most terrible past, which haunts them even now. But history tends to take a turn and again repeat the past, adjusted for the present.
19 years have passed since the end of the war of 1939-45. and already again in Germany there are followers of Hitler's ideas. In 1964, one of the first on the territory of the F.R.G. neo-fascist organizations, which was called the "National Democratic Party of Germany". Later, on the basis of the organization "Help for Arrested Nazis", which was composed of former fascists, 2 more large nationalist organizations appeared - the "German National Front" ("German Nationalistische Front") and the "German Republican Party" ("German Republicaner Partei" (REP )).
All three of these organizations are semi-terrorist organizations.
The "Freiheitliche Deutche Arbeiterpartei" ("Free German Workers' Party") is the most dangerous Nazi group in Germany, leading a partisan image of resistance to the authorities. One of the largest parties in Germany and Europe. Well known for her processions through the streets of German cities and clashes with the police. He has a great influence in the Malmo International and among the world's neo-fascist organizations.
Sweden. Even in socialist Sweden, parties and organizations have appeared that are among the most dangerous and largest. The most famous and aggressive organization is the "White Aryan Resistance" ("Vitt Ariskt Montstand" (V.A.M.)), under the pressure of which an alliance of all significant neo-fascist, nationalist and racist in Europe appeared - the Malmö International.
V.A.M. consists of large and small units operating in different parts of Sweden, Scandinavia, Germany, Italy, Austria and other European countries.
Another well-known party in Europe - "Democratic Sweden" ("Sverige Democraterna" (SD)) is trying to come to power in Sweden legally, but now it is on the verge of prohibition and collapse.
Austria. A large and practically the only neo-fascist organization is the Volkstreue AusserParlamentarische Opposition (V.A.P.O.). It is an organization that has departed from the general “Skinhead” movement, retaining the symbols and signs of “skinheads” in its symbolism. The recent performances of this organization in some cities of Austria made it necessary to take very seriously the problem of neo-fascism, which is gaining momentum in the country. After several police raids, V.A.P.O. leaders were arrested and their weapons were seized. V.A.P.O. preparing for a violent takeover.
Hungary. After the fall of the Iron Curtain, many nationalist movements appeared in Hungary. Up to a certain point, they were independent of each other and, moreover, of European organizations. With the beginning of the 90s, the situation began to change, and the Hungarian nationalists were under the threat of a ban on their organizations. Then they had to enter into an alliance with other nationalist and neo-fascist Europe, and joined the Malmo International.
The most famous organizations in Hungary are the "National Offensive" ("Nationalr Offensive") and the "Hungarian Prosperity Association" ("Magyar Nepjoleti Szovetseg").
USA."Ku Klux Klan" ("Ku-Klux-Klan") - a covert racist terrorist organization in the United States; It was created in 1865 to fight the Negro movement and progressive organizations.
The Ku Klux Klan was formed in 1865, just after the end of the war between the (capitalist) North and the slave-owning South. The KKK was first heard about in the city of Pulaski, which was in the South before the war. The movement itself originates and is located on the territory of the former slave-owning South, where the large slave owners who remained in the minority are trying to regain their former power. The members of the KKK were former officers of the army of the South, who were not happy with the situation, and continued this war on a local scale.
The name "Ku Klux Klan" comes from the fact that these 3 words resemble the sound of a cock raised.
Usually the Ku Klux Klans held their rites at night in the habitats of blacks. They wear white robes with hoods and slits for the eyes, which are reminiscent of the days of the Holy Inquisition and the frequency of the white race. It is now common for members of the KKK to have tattoos of the KKK cross or a burning Christian cross.
The rituals of "cleansing the white territory from the black stench" are accompanied by the burning of the Christian cross, as a sign of imminent reprisal or "God's punishment."
The KKK movement has experienced its ups and downs, which are inextricably linked with wars and crises. So the revival of a powerful movement falls on the end of the 1st World War (1918), the Great Depression - the largest crisis from 1929 to 1932, the end of the 2nd World War (1945-52), the global fuel crisis of the 70s .
Currently, the KKK is losing its former power and is giving way to other racist and nationalist movements such as SKINHEADS, the John Birch Society, and others.
SOUTH AFRICA. In a country unique in its ethnic composition, a racial movement could not but arise. Whites, having taken all the leading positions in South Africa, decided to completely drive the blacks out of the country, making it a white spot on the map of black Africa.
There are several racial movements active in South Africa, both white and black. The most famous is the Afrikaner Weerstands Beweging (AWB)
Russian National Unity (R.N.E.). The emergence of this organization in Russia in the 90s was due to some factors, the combination of which made it quite feasible.
After the collapse of the USSR, many organizations and associations of a nationalist and pro-fascist nature began to appear in Russia. The emergence of Russian National Unity was not accidental. Memories of the war in Afghanistan, endless conflicts in the North Caucasus, the “Memory” society, liberalism in freedom of thought and other factors influenced people who were informal and immediately stopped perceiving the past, Soviet ideology. A sharp reaction to moods in the interior of the country led A. Barkashov and his associates to create an organization, a military-patriotic youth union, more like a resurrected meeting of the SS division "Adolf Hitler". Having set himself the goal of creating such an organization, A. Barkashov knew that, according to the new democratic laws, this would be just an innocent prank of the unemployed, petushniks and veterans of the war in Afghanistan.
By 1994 R.N.E. opened its unofficial representative offices in many major cities Russia, taking part in local elections and taking seats in local parliaments and governments. Having adopted the ideas, form and symbolism (the symbol of R.N.E. is a stylized right-handed swastika), Alexander Petrovich Barkashov and his associates adopted the form of action and functioning of the party, making it a kind of SS troops and formations. So, for example, in the southern regions of Russia R.N.E. in fact, it has already replaced all previously existing youth organizations such as DOSAAF and VLKSM.
According to the leadership of R.N.E., 32 organizations are officially registered today. Peculiar "branches" exist in Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Estonia.
There is a children's organization in Vladimir where boys from 6 to 16 years old are admitted and taught hand-to-hand combat. There is a youth organization in Samara that teaches parachute jumping, in the Stavropol Territory R.N.E. completely replaced DOSAAF
The authorities themselves and law enforcement agencies are cooperating with the “Barkashovites” (patrolling the streets and trains in Voronezh and the Moscow region). According to some reports, the authorities of Kostroma allocated the premises of the city administration for holding a party conference; in Vladimir, two representatives of R.N.E. are members of the advisory council under the governor, in Tver the city committee on youth affairs partially finances the activities of the local branch.
People's National Party (N.N.P.). N.N.P. appeared as a result of the split of the unified national movement of Moscow and the Moscow region. Many members of the R.N.E., neo-fascists and skinheads formed the N.N.P. It has about 500 members (mainly Moscow) and publishes the newspaper "I am a Russian". The activity is not made public, therefore it has a small number of members and practically does not play a role in the national. movement of Russia.
OB 88. The largest association of "skinheads" in Russia. Appeared in 1994. It unites the skinheads of Moscow, the Moscow region, St. Petersburg, Samara, Vladimir, Petrozavodsk, Yekaterinburg, Tula, etc. The structure of OB 88 resembles the skinheads organization of the whole world. To maintain unity and non-conflict, members of OB 88 are prohibited from joining any football (hockey, etc.) fan groups. The fact of the collision of OB 88 with some fan groups, such as "RED-BLUE WARRIORS" and "BLUE-WHITE DYNOMITE" in Moscow, is known And " NEVSKY FRONT" in St. Petersburg. Also known are their actions directed against McDonald's restaurants, which they consider "bear the complete Americanization of the Russian people."
Russian National Party (R.N.P.) is the twin of the organization Russian National Unity after the ban of R.N.E. in Moscow. Operates mainly on the territory of Moscow. Organized in 1998.
CONCLUSION
Opening the topic “History of fascism”, we can draw the following conclusion: fascism is in power - a terrorist dictatorship has been opened, using extreme forms of violence, against those objectionable to the regime. Ideas are openly preached: racism, chauvinism, command methods of economic regulation. Foreign policy is aggressive, aimed at unleashing wars and seizing the territories of other states, exterminating peoples. In such a state, there is a cult of personality of the leader. Fascism has its origins "role models" in the distant past. We see elements of fascism in the history of the Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire, during the time of Napoleon.
The big problem is racism. The foundations of which are the position on the physical and psychological inequality of human races and on the decisive influence of racial differences on the history of the culture of society, on the division of people into higher and lower races, of which the first are the only creators of civilization, called to dominate, and the second are doomed to exploitation. .
At present, fascism in its classical form does not exist anywhere. However, bursts of fascist ideology can be seen in many countries. Fascist ideologies, with the support of chauvinistic, lumpenized sections of the population, are actively fighting for mastery of the state apparatus, or at least for participation in its work.
Literature
1. Aldanov M. Hitler // Don. -1992. -No. 5/6.
2. Arend H. Sources of totalitarianism. -M.: Center Kom, 1996.
3. Bezymensky L. Solved riddles of the Third Reich. M .: Publishing house of the Press and News Agency, 1984, book 1.
4. Bezymensky L. How many times was Hitler buried // New time. - 1995. - No. 17.
5. Blank A.S. From the history of early fascism. Organization. Ideology. Methods. -M.: Thought, 1978.
6. Blank A.S. Old and new fascism. -M.: Publishing house of political literature., 1982.
7. Bogarov L., Chernyshov I. Servants of the devil. Anti-Christian essence of the Third Reich//Landmark. - 1995. - No. 5.
8. Bullock A. Hitler and Stalin. Life and Power. - Smolensk: Rusich, 1994, vol. 1, 2.
9. Vorobyevsky A. Mysticism of fascism//Russia. - 1995. - No. 9,11,14.
10. Opitu R. Fascism and neo-fascism. - M.: Thought, 1988.
11. Reichshmir P.Yu. Origin of fascism. - M.: Nauka, 1981.
Dimitrov G. M. Report at the VII World Congress of the Communist International. Political report of the Central Committee of the BRP (K) to the 5th Party Congress. M, 1958, p.8.
1933 - The NIRA law on the restoration of industry, securing the most important rights of trade unions. It was declared unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court and overturned.
1935 - Wagner-Connery law. Proclaimed the need for collective protection of workers through trade unions. Installed mandatory conclusion collective agreement. Prohibited discrimination against trade union members.
A few weeks later, a law on social security was passed, according to which pension funds were created, unemployment benefits were paid.
These laws have caused dissatisfaction among business representatives, because. there was no money for their implementation and they were afraid of raising taxes. And so it happened. Especially on windfall profits, citing the unjustified excessive concentration of wealth.
They began to talk about the advent of the era of "Fair Distribution of Income". Business circles were actively campaigning against Roosevelt before the elections, but nothing came of them.
Roosevelt also tried to reform the Supreme Court, fearing that he would overturn the Wagner laws and social security. The reform failed, but the laws remained.
1937 - The Fair Labor Act.
The use of child labor was prohibited;
A minimum wage was set (25 cents per hour, and within 6 years it was increased to 40 cents per hour);
The maximum duration of the working week was set (44 hours, and then within 2 years up to 40 hours);
1937 generally was a crisis in the United States. It seemed that the economy began to recover, and suddenly another crisis, Roosevelt's methods were required.
Since 1937 business resistance weakened and a new stage of Roosevelt's methods (1936-40) became possible. The 2nd stage of NK is influenced by Keynesianism.
In 1938 Roosevelt receives a letter from Keynes, in which he proposes a further expansion of the front of public works and an increase in state. spending to increase demand.
1938 - Roosevelt announces the beginning of the implementation of the plan "Pumping the pump." Its essence was that demand was to increase with the help of the state. injections into the economy (construction of housing, highways, etc.). DGB is noticeably increasing, the number of people receiving benefits is increasing. They deliberately went for it, because. it revived the economy, increased state. revenues, declining DGB.
Under the influence of Keynesianism, Keynes appears - the American economist Hansen.
Economic policy of fascism
The fascists did not create their own direction, and several groups of theorists had a great influence on the formation of fascist ideology, in particular:
1. German economist at the end of the 19th century. Sheet.
2. The policy of solidarism (Frenchman Duguit) had a great influence. Its essence is that the state has a supra-class character and, through its actions, expresses the interests of all strata of society, i.e. solidarity of society.
3. Geopolitical and racial doctrines of fascism.
In outline:
Anti-Marxism;
Economic nationalism;
Social demagogy;
The concept of the corporate state.
There are many varieties of fascism, the most famous being German fascism (National Socialism). Economists-ideologists: Feder, Bakke, Brinkman, Kranchmalg and others.
Character traits for National Socialism:
- “The ideology of the third way”. Its essence is. that this is not capitalism, and not socialism, but some third way, the movement along which is determined by the national idea, the national goal. In Germany, the revision of the Treaty of Versailles.
The thesis that the existence of a nation's goal eliminates social (class) antagonisms, within the framework of economic system, built on a racial principle, and this eliminates representatives of non-Aryan races, there is a propaganda of the corporate state, the unity of interests of entrepreneurs and workers.
Propaganda of the "Führer-Principle". In each entrance there were leiters (leiter) - Fuhrers. Owners of enterprises fell into the role of natural leaders.
The principle of economic nationalism (List), the essence of which was that any nation should strive for economic self-sufficiency, and from abroad you can take only what is not in your own country (the principle of economic autarky).
The concept of large spaces, western economic blocks. Bakke was suggested. The future world economy, according to this theory, should consist of economic blocks that would be created on a racial basis. It was assumed that there would be highly developed blocks and blocks-appendages.
The demagogic struggle against plutocracy, percentage slavery, there was a confiscation of wealth from the Jews, although after that percentage slavery did not disappear.
Italian fascism- corporatism.
The official doctrine is the principle of a corporate state, according to which only a state based on a system of corporations built on an industry basis can realize a nationwide idea. The leadership was carried out by the state, the fascist party. as well as representatives of the Association of Entrepreneurs. The coordination of actions was carried out by the Center of the Corporate Council, which was headed by the DUCE (leader of the nations). Membership was compulsory, i.e. universal. All democratic freedoms have been abolished, and strikes have been declared a criminal offence.
Spanish fascism- phalangism.
The main content of the ideology is national syndicalism, very similar to Italian corporatism. Syndicalism is an intermediate link between the destiny of the nation, the national goal and the economy. If Italian corporatism had a sectoral structure, then Spanish syndicalism was social (association of workers). The syndicates covered the entire production cycle from the procurement of raw materials to the sale. The field of activity of the syndicates was limited to the economic area, the state did not take part in managing them, because. was limited to control over the banking system and foreign economic activity.
Portuguese fascism- Salazarism.
Not much different from Italian corporatism, but there is a strong influence of the Catholic Church. Smaller economic role of the state. A program of long-term planning was carried out.
neo-fascism.
Focused on the principle of economic autarky, the reduction of foreign capital, tax cuts, class class solidarity, the reduction of assistance to developing countries.
Historical and economic characteristics of German fascism
NSNRP - in Russian (National Socialist German Workers' Party).
NSDAP - National Sozialistisihe Deutsche Arbeiterpartei.
Closely associated with the monopolies, but had a massive social base (peasants, workers), but the main support - the monopoly.
1926 - Hitler, who was the German Fuhrer, meets with industrialists.
1927 - New meeting. The close ties of the NSDAP with the leading industrial magnates (Thiessen, Krupp, Flick, etc.), who opened bank accounts for the NSDAP.
In January 1933 Hitler came to power, this was prepared by the instability of state power.
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The economic policy of German fascism
Introduction
Conclusion
Bibliography
Introduction
Fascism in Germany and other countries appeared as a petty-bourgeois political movement. As a rule, poor and poorly educated people adjoined this political movement, who lost their stable position in society due to economic development. The assault detachments of the fascist party consisted mainly of representatives of the petty bourgeoisie. The basic slogans of the party were also addressed to the petty-bourgeois part of society. Thus, in particular, the liquidation of capitalist monopolies, support for artisans and small traders, who were threatened with ruin, and the provision of cheap loans for business development were promised.
The petty bourgeoisie was the stratum of society most affected by the consequences of the First World War. The greatest damage was caused by reparations (compensation for damage caused by military operations to the victorious countries) and inflation. The mass ruin of this part of the German population activated it and allowed the fascist party to attract a large number of supporters. In addition, Hitler's slogans had a great influence on the workers, since the party was called the National Socialist Workers' Party and positioned itself as a force defending the interests of the workers. One of the leading slogans addressed to the workers was the slogan of giving work to all those who lost it after the First World War.
However, Hitler's coming to power was marked by a sharp change in the course of the party, a reorientation from the interests of the petty bourgeoisie to the interests of the monopoly bourgeoisie. Fascism has become a special form of state-monopoly capitalism, state management of the economy, brought to an extreme degree.
The German economy was completely subordinated to the state administration, in which the leaders of the monopoly bourgeoisie occupied the main place, the General Council of the Economy was created, the decisive word in which belonged to the monopolist in the field of military production Krupp, as well as the monopolist in the production of electrical equipment Siemens. The main branches of the economy were headed by special economic groups, which were subordinated to industry, trade and finance, as well as leading industry groups (chemical, aviation, etc.). The entire economy of Germany was entirely subordinated to the military idea, since the main political idea of the fascist party was a new attempt to conquer world domination.
1. The economic crisis of 1929-1933
In 1923-1928. The German economy was booming. Its share in the world industrial production increased from 8 to 12%. There was a growing conviction in society that the problems that had arisen after the First World War were over.
The crash of 1929 on the New York Stock Exchange dealt a devastating blow to the German economy, as the economic growth of the previous five years had been based on attracting foreign loans and developing export-oriented industries. Due to the global crisis, the flow of funds from new loans ceased, the volume of exports decreased (by 60%), and resources for importing food and raw materials were exhausted. As a result, the volume of production from 1929 to 1933 decreased by almost 50%, the unemployment rate reached 6 million people.
The crisis in Germany brought to power an extreme product of reaction - fascism (January 1933). The economic outlook of this political movement in Germany was based on the ideas national economy Friedrich List.
These ideas can be summarized in three main points. The first is the theory of productive forces. Friedrich List believed that the growth of social wealth is achieved not through scattered, but through the coordinated activities of people who must preserve and multiply what was produced by the efforts of previous generations. True wealth lies in the development of the productive forces, and not in the quantity of exchangeable values.
According to List, the task of politics is to unite people, to ensure the economic education of the nation. This will ensure the rise of productive forces. The increase in productive forces begins with an individual factory and then spreads to the national association.
The concept of the nation's economic progress is based on the principle of successively changing stages of production. The stages proposed by Liszt are rather conditional:
wild state,
pastoral life,
agricultural state,
agricultural and handicraft state.
As a result, the nations pass into the final stage, in which agriculture, industry and trade develop harmoniously.
The meaning of the "theory of stages" is, in particular, that each stage must correspond to its inherent economic policy, aimed at raising production, developing the productive forces of the nation. This thesis is directed against the universal recipes of the classics: their preaching of free trade met the interests of England, but contradicted the needs of Germany, which was economically weak and politically fragmented at that time.
List believed that it is impossible to understand the national economy as an organic whole, if we exclude from it state economy. A people's economy becomes a national economy if the state encompasses an entire nation that has independence, the ability to acquire stability and political significance. State power coordinates and directs the efforts of individual links of the national economy in the name of the long-term, fundamental interests of the nation.
In the theories of his followers Feder, Brinkman and others, a significant strengthening of the functions of the corporate state was proposed. Such a state, according to the authors, realizes a national goal without social contradictions of the on-farm system by eliminating economic life non-Aryan races and a sharp increase in the economic functions of the corporate state.
The corporate state and its corresponding corporate economy presuppose a centralization of management based on corporate ownership of the means of production. Such an economy maximizes social income through autarky (economic self-sufficiency), the forced association of workers and entrepreneurs in corporations on a professional basis under the control of the state. Income in this case is distributed by the state through corporations in proportion to capital and labor.
The ideas of the corporate economy, like those of fascism, were not purely German. The first fascist regime was established in Italy in the 1920s, and the ideas of the corporate economy as an alternative to liberal capitalism were integral part social doctrine of the Catholic Church (encyclical Rerum novarum - 1891). Rerum Novarum is an open letter addressed to all the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church, drawing their attention to the condition of the working class. Wilhelm Emmanuel von Ketteler and Cardinal Henry Edward Manning had a significant influence on the content of this epistle. The encyclical dealt with the relationship between government, business, workers and the Church. The Pope spoke out in support of the right of workers to form trade unions, while rejecting socialist ideology and reaffirming the right to private property.
A feature of the German corporate model was the hypertrophy of the principle of autarchy in the economy. The works of the German economist W. Sombart played their role here, who considered the international division of labor to be the product of trading peoples (primarily England), who use it for economic expansion, i.e. enrichment at the expense of others. In such constructions, Germany is assigned the role of an industrial power with neighboring raw material and food zones integrated into its economy under the protection of protectionist barriers.
The concept of the corporate economy served as a theoretical justification for the militarization of the economy with an increase in the military budget, intensified exploitation of the working people and the political expansion of German imperialism, which sought to redistribute the world. New factories for the production of tanks, combat aircraft, guns, etc. were built. The production of submarines and ammunition expanded. Stocks of raw materials and foodstuffs, cash funds of various kinds were transferred into the hands of the military.
The fascists stimulated the growth of monopoly capitalism into state-monopoly capitalism. They united all industrial and financial companies, transport, trade, handicraft enterprises into sectoral and territorial groups, putting leaders from among the big capitalists at the head. The industrialists Krupp, Thyssen, Fegler, the banker Schroeder became members of the General Council of the Economy under the Ministry National economy.
Organizational principles of the new economic system were laid down by the law "On preparation for the organic construction of the German economy" of February 27, 1934. According to this law, the Minister of Economics received the authority to create economic associations. 7 main imperial groups were formed:
industry,
energy,
trade,
banking,
insurance business,
transport .
through which government decisions in the field of economics were carried out. The main emphasis in the management of the economy was invariably placed on methods of direct, administrative diktat. This is a distinctive feature of state-monopoly capitalism in Hitler's Germany.
Further militarization of the economy is carried out according to the four-year plan adopted in 1936 for mobilizing Germany's resources, accumulating scarce materials and expanding the production of military equipment. Tasks were set: in four years, Germany should have a combat-ready army, and the country's economy should be ready for war.
The branches of heavy and military industry were predominantly developed. 3/5 of all investments were directed here. As a result, heavy industry, which reached its pre-crisis level already in 1934, by 1939 exceeded it by 50%. The leading place in German industry was occupied by mechanical engineering, which provided 25% of all industrial output. From 1932 to 1938 military spending increased 25 times. Their share rose from 26% to 76%.
State control over the labor market was established by the Law “On the Organization of National Labor” adopted in 1934. He declared the end of the class struggle, and the workers turned into soldiers of labor. Each entrepreneur was declared their Fuhrer and received all the rights to develop internal regulations that are mandatory for all employees. All collective tariff agreements ceased to exist, and the wage rates and working hours established in them were annulled. All these values were determined by the entrepreneur, who played a leading role in the "social courts of honor" created at the enterprises. They made a decision on the immediate dismissal of the employee, a fine or a warning.
With the approach of war, the institutions of the corporate economy are increasingly being replaced by administrative dictates, the right to accept economic decisions moving from corporations to central government. Uniform wage standards were defined for the whole country.
The problem of employment in the country was achieved through the forced involvement of the unemployed in public works. Skilled workers were forbidden to change jobs. The working day was extended to 10-14 hours.
fascism political germany reparation
2. Characteristics of the economic policy of Nazi Germany
preparation of a military resource base;
the accelerated development of the military industry;
the implementation after the elimination of unemployment of measures to provide the military industry with labor force;
preparation of food base;
improving the regulatory and militarization of the country.
In 1940, the third four-year plan was adopted, according to which the main economic task was the development of military production and the military-industrial potential.
Special measures were taken for the purchase of ores and non-ferrous metals abroad, and the development of our own iron ore deposits was expanded. The production of aluminum and coal mining were stimulated. The production of synthetic petroleum products has increased sharply. For this purpose, significant loans were granted to chemical companies.
The branches of heavy and military industry were predominantly developed. 3/4 of all investments were directed here. Enterprises listed as "militarily important" were primarily supplied with loans, labor, and raw materials.
As a result, by 1939 heavy industry exceeded the level of 1934 by 50%. War production from 1932 to 1938 increased 10 times. By the same amount increased military spending; in 1938-1939 they accounted for 58% of the state budget. In May 1939, the head of the military and economic department, General Thomas, reported: "History knows only a few examples when a country, even in peacetime, directs all its economic resources to meet the needs of the war so purposefully and systematically."
In general, the militarization of the economy contributed to the country's recovery from the crisis and a significant increase in production volumes.
In order to militarize the economy, foreign capital was widely used. German debts abroad in September 1940 amounted to 14.8 billion marks. Fascist Germany was generously funded by American monopolies. US corporations handed over to the Germans the technical secrets of rubber production, radio installations, equipment for diesel engines, etc. The fascists created a complex apparatus for managing the economy.
In June 1933, the General Council of Economy was organized under the Ministry of Economics, designed to develop and direct the economic policy of the state. The General Council played a leading role in guiding the economy. It was here that plans for the economic development of the country were discussed. The economic groups that headed industry, trade, finance were subordinate to the General Council, and, in turn, the industry groups - chemical, aviation and other industries. The Council consisted of 16 members, nine of which represented big business, four - big banks and two - large farmers.
The fascist regime established strict control over foreign exchange settlements and foreign trade. widely used methods tax regulation, issuance of subsidies, loans. But the main emphasis was placed on methods of direct, administrative dictatorship. A distinctive feature of state regulation was the so-called "Führer-principle", enshrined in the law of 1934 on the "Organic construction of the German economy." According to this law, all business associations became subordinate to the Ministry of Economics and were headed by the Fuhrer of the German economy. F. Kessler, the head of the electrical industrialists, was appointed to them. The entire economy was divided into groups that united individual industries and regions. In essence, this law transferred the leadership of the economy to big capital.
The German fascists stimulated the concentration of production. In 1933, the Compulsory Syndication Act was passed, requiring businesses to be part of existing cartels and syndicates. First of all, it was carried out in the metallurgical industry. As a result of forced syndication, 6 banks and 70 largest companies seized control of 2/3 of the industrial potential of the country. At the same time, the Nazis always gave preference to military companies.
During the period of fascist rule, the state sector of the economy significantly expanded due to the confiscated property of persons of non-Aryan origin, persons repressed for various reasons, the seizure of property of democratic organizations (5 billion marks were confiscated in the Workers' Bank alone), as well as enterprises in the occupied by Germany during the Second World War. territory wars.
The widespread use of violent methods in economic life, the implementation of rearmament and military-economic mobilization led to a sharp growth of the fascist state apparatus. The total number of officials and employees increased in 1939 compared to 1933 by 869.5 thousand people.
One of the main products of the Nazi version of the state regulation of capitalism, labor service, also had a militaristic character. It was first established for students in May 1933 and extended to the rest of the youth by the laws on voluntary (1934) and compulsory labor service (1935). All young people under 25 were obliged to serve it in specialized military camps. On June 22, 1938, general forced labor service was introduced. By this law, the imperial administration for the supply of labor was granted the right to send to any work every inhabitant of any profession or age.
The fascist regime almost completely destroyed the system of social protection and social insurance. In 1934, metalworkers were forbidden to change jobs. Later, these restrictions were extended to other categories of skilled workers. The length of the working day was increased to 10-14 hours. Organizations of the working class, primarily trade unions, were liquidated. Their property and funds were confiscated by the fascist state. All workers forcibly united in the "German labor front", which included entrepreneurs. Following the trade unions, the Nazis abolished sickness funds, sports and tourism unions, educational and other societies. Thus, the "class struggle" was eliminated, the workers united in one organization with representatives of capital.
The agrarian policy of fascism was designed to create food reserves, which was associated with preparations for war. To this end, the "Imperial estate for food" was created, which united agricultural workers, peasants, junkers, merchants of agricultural goods, owners of the food industry. It was a cumbersome bureaucratic machine. It consisted of 10 central and 4 economic departments, 20 unions. Each division was led by a Führer of greater or lesser rank.
A system of forced deliveries of agricultural products was introduced, and the trade union of agricultural workers was liquidated. In September 1933, the law "On hereditary yards" was adopted, declaring peasant farms from 7.5 to 125 hectares of land inalienable. They were exempt from land tax, inheritance tax. According to this law, the medieval principle of majorat was introduced - the inheritance of land from the father to the eldest of the sons. The younger sons were supposed to serve the state and win their own "living space".
Thus, the economic policy of fascism is a totalitarian model of regulated capitalism, focused on preparing for a new world war.
3. Ideologists of the economic policy of German fascism
Having become Reich Chancellor in 1933, Hitler on March 17 returned to the post of President of the Reichsbank Hjalmar Schacht, at that time the chief representative of the American financial corporation, J. P. Morgan. Simultaneously, Schacht's predecessor at the Reichsbank (1930-33) and former Chancellor (1925-26) Hans Luther (representing Germany in 1924 when discussing the Dawes plan) was sent as ambassador to the United States.
The former party affiliation of both (Schacht was once a member of the NDP, Luther - PNDP) was not decisive either for the country's economic course, or for organizing external cash flows to provide the German economy with monetary resources. From the consequences of the world economic crisis, both Luther and, at first, Schacht defended the German economy by methods that were later called Keynesian. M. Kalecki and others referred to this variety as "militaristic Keynesianism".
The state went to large-scale construction costs public interest covered by deficit financing from the budget. So, for example, hundreds of kilometers of the famous German autobahns were built. The first Cologne-Bonn autobahn, built by the forces of the former unemployed, was opened even before Hitler, on August 6, 1932. But after 1933, when F. Todt headed the road construction, his organization increased the length of autobahns from 108 km in 1935 to 3736 km in 1940. Unemployment, which reached 30% in early 1933, began to fall sharply.
The implementation of this policy would have been impossible without strict control over the two components of inflation - the rise in prices at the initiative of the capitalists and the rise in wages at the request of the trade unions. The Nazis banned unions and strikes while enforcing strict price controls. In June 1933, the Reinhardt Program was launched, named after Fritz Reinhardt, Secretary of State for the Treasury. It was a vast infrastructure project where indirect incentive measures (tax cuts) were used to stimulate direct investment in publicly significant projects - not only autobahns, but also rail and water routes. Its side result was an increase in the population's demand for cars.
All these measures helped to avoid inflation. Economists see the prerequisites for this, in part, in the introduction of fiduciary (fiat) means of circulation. They were issued by the Treasury without the necessary gold backing from the reserves of the Reichsbank.
Soon J. Shakht was given even more powers, and in August 1934 he headed the Ministry of Economics. Reinhardt's program was followed by a number of other similar initiatives. From 666,000 in 1933, the number of construction workers increased by 1936 to 2 million. In 1936, the share of military spending in Germany's GNP was 10% - higher than in any other country in Europe. But this figure continued to grow and subsequently. Part of the military spending was strategic government purchases of food and manufactured goods.
The year 1936 turned out to be critical for the German economy: prices for raw materials (the main volume of imports) began to grow, and for finished products (the main volume of exports) fell. A trade deficit seemed inevitable. However, here Hitler set a course for the self-sufficiency of the national economy. Among the trading partners, a group of states was singled out, on which Germany made a political bet. In addition to Italy, these were: Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, Greece, Yugoslavia. Trade with them was encouraged (by 1938, more than half of their exports went to Germany), while curtailing with those who were not included in the preferential list - with the exception of England and the USA, the volume and composition of trade with which the Ministry of Economics regulated, focusing on the previously established a system of communications dominated by the interests of the largest I.G. Farben and other German corporations. A differentiated foreign trade policy helped Germany to strengthen its political influence in southern Europe and the Balkans.
IN special zone Attention Schacht singled out the turnover with the United States - a country whose economic interests were oriented by the Americans Dawes, and then Jung, the system of paying reparations, and whose interests as ambassador were carefully guarded in 1933-38 by Hans Luther - Schacht's predecessor in the Reichsbank and Hitler - as Chancellor of the Reich. The shares of the IG Farbenindustry subsidiary were listed in the US throughout the war, and the Americans received income from them. Schacht developed a mechanism for "fine-tuning" the balance of payments with the United States, appointing a number of authorized banks for settlements with them - in particular, J. P. Morgan. These banks were private and corporate accounts in dollars of Germans and German companies. At the same time, American firms exporting to Germany were issued papers representing permission for the counter-purchase of goods in Germany for a specified amount. From the same amounts, travelers' checks were issued to Americans traveling in Nazi Germany.
Organizational not only international trade Germany, but also the internal turnover was tied mainly to cartels, monopolies and oligopolies, whose interests the state protected.
Here, the structure inherited from the time of the military procurement committee of the First World War, which the German militarists recreated under the name "Imperial Union of German Industry" as early as 1919, began to work with new force. On June 19, 1933, it was merged, together with the Federation of Employers' Associations, into a single Imperial Directorate of German Industry, dominated by the largest representatives of the military-industrial complex (MIC) of Germany.
Unlike the communists, Hitler did not fight against private property interests, but encouraged them. However, it was not the middle class that began to benefit from this, ”on whose votes Hitler came to power, but the largest capitalists, to whom a number of high-ranking generals were soon added. The corresponding triangle of economic power (party bosses - big business - generals), according to Schweitzer, had already formed by 1938. The ideas of socialism for the middle class, the author believes, were discarded, collective agreements and trade unions were banned. The interests of the monopolies, which received preferential support from the state in comparison with small entrepreneurs, and which made super profits, increasingly merged with the interests of the fascist government. It is noted that the ideas of nationalization at that time in Germany were less popular than in the West.
With the beginning of the seizure of adjacent territories and the transition to direct hostilities, Germany immediately included the resources of the occupied countries in its economic circulation. At the same time, for their own survival, these territories were often left below the subsistence level. Even before the war, labor camps were created in the system of forced labor, where “undesirable elements” were sent: homosexuals, vagrants, etc. Forced labor was also practiced in the penitentiary system, where, under the Nazis, in addition to criminals, communists, Jews, and some dissenters.
By 1944, between 1/5 and 1/4 of the entire labor force in Germany were foreigners, including civilians and prisoners of war. Hundreds of thousands of Jews, Slavs and representatives of other peoples constituted a resource of practically free, slave labor at the factories of Thyssen, Krupp, IG Farben; Fordwerke, a subsidiary of the Ford Motor Company, was no exception. In fact, there was not a single more or less large industrial or agricultural enterprise where the slave labor of prisoners of war or internees would not be used. If Operation Sea Lion was successful, this contingent was to be replenished by British citizens.
The annexed, occupied territories, as well as countries where the Nazis planted puppet regimes, sold raw materials and agricultural products to Germany at minimal prices. In this regard, the goal of the struggle for living space in the East, put forward by Hitler back in Mein Kampf, gave the German economy tangible results, even despite the partisan movement in the USSR. In the west of Europe, the reduction in the needs of the economies of subject countries was also used in favor of Germany; thus, about 2/3 of the wagon fleet of France in the territory occupied by the Germans was used to transport goods to Germany.
Thus, in the first years of active hostilities, the population of Germany did not feel this in their standard of living. Unlike most countries, Germany practically did not increase the level of taxes, and if in 1941 in Great Britain the income tax reached 23.7%, then in Germany it was only 13.7%. However, after 1942, the share of military spending began to grow, and as the losses of previously occupied territories in the USSR, Germany was forced to restructure its production facilities. Civil production was curtailed; where possible, the production of goods for the army was organized, and military administration was introduced at these enterprises.
Conclusion
Summarizing the data presented in this paper, we can draw the following conclusions:
The crash of 1929 on the New York Stock Exchange dealt a devastating blow to the German economy, as the economic growth of the previous five years had been based on attracting foreign loans and developing export-oriented industries. The crisis in Germany brought to power an extreme product of reaction - fascism (January 1933). The economic outlook of this political movement in Germany was based on the ideas of the national economy of Friedrich List. The construction of the German corporate model began.
A feature of the German corporate model was the hypertrophy of the principle of autarchy in the economy. The works of the German economist W. Sombart played their role here, who considered the international division of labor to be the product of trading peoples (primarily England), who use it for economic expansion, i.e. enrichment at the expense of others.
The main core of the economic policy of fascism was the general militarization of Germany. It was carried out at an accelerated pace and was considered by the fascist government as the main means of overcoming the crisis.
The restructuring of the German economy was carried out in five directions: the preparation of a military raw material base, the accelerated development of the military industry, the implementation of measures to provide the military industry with labor force after the elimination of unemployment, the preparation of a food base, and the improvement of the regulatory and militarization of the country.
The branches of heavy and military industry were predominantly developed. 3/4 of all investments were directed here. Enterprises listed as "militarily important" were primarily supplied with loans, labor, and raw materials.
but military production developed at the expense of non-military industries. The production of consumer goods by 1939 had not even reached the level of 1928.
In general, the militarization of the economy contributed to the country's recovery from the crisis and a significant increase in production volumes. The agrarian policy of fascism was designed to create food reserves, which was associated with preparations for war.
Bibliography
1. Bogaturova A.D. Systemic history of international relations. - M.: Academic project, 2000
2. Voshchanova V.P., Godzina G.S. History of Economics: Textbook. - M.: INFRA-M, 2001
3. Zhelezova V.F., Kolesov V.P. Economy of foreign countries. capitalist and developing countries: Textbook for economic universities. - M.: Higher school, 1990
4. Zhilin P.A. How fascist Germany was preparing an attack on the Soviet Union. - M.: Nauka, 1965.
5. Konotopov M.V., Smetanin S.I. History of the economy. - M.: Academic project, 2001
6. Polyansky F.Ya., Zhamin V.A. Economic history of capitalist countries: Textbook for universities. - M.: MSU, 1986
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