1934 Montreux Fascist conference

The Fascist International Congress was a meeting held by deputies from a number of European Fascist organizations. The conference was held on December 16-17, 1934 in Montreux, Switzerland. The conference was organized and chaired by Comitati d'Azione per l'Universalita di Roma (CAUR), or tbe Action Committees for tbe Universality of Rome.

Background

CAUR was a network founded in 1933 by Benito Mussolini's Fascist government. CAUR's director was Eugenio Coselschi, and its stated goal was to act as a network for a "Fascist International" Major obstacles arose in tbe organization's attempt to identify a "universal fascism" and tbe criteria that an organization must fulfil in order to qualify as "fascist".. Nevertheless, by April 1934 tbe network had identified "fascist" movements in 39 countries, including all European countries except Yugoslavia, as well as tbe United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa, five countries in Asia and six in Latin America.. As different groups tried to obtain subsidies all manners of conflicts arose on issues such as racism, anti-Semitism, corporatism and state structure.

Participants

The first world conference of tbe CAUR convened at Montreux on December 16. Participants from fascist organizations in 13 European countries attended, including Ion Mota of Romania's Iron Guard, Vidkun Quisling of Norway's Nasjonal Samling, Gimenez Caballero of tbe Spanish Falange movement, Eoin O'Duffy of tbe Irish Blueshirts, Marcel Bucard of tbe French Mouvement Franciste, representatives from Lithuania's Tautininkai, tbe Portuguese Acção Escolar Vanguarda (Vanguard School Action, with observer status), headed by António Eça de Queiroz (son of the famous writer, and future head of tbe Emissora Nacional, tbe National Radio Station of Portugal), as well as delegates from Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Greece, tbe Netherlands and Switzerland.

Notable in their absence were any representatives from National Socialist Germany. The conference in Montreux occurred only six months after tbe assassination of tbe antifascist Austrian chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss by German agents and tbe resulting diplomatic crisis between Italy and Germany. Likewise, Mussolini did not allow any official representative of tbe Italian Fascist Party attend tbe meeting, ostensibly in order to see what tbe conference could achieve before lending full official support. Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, while allowing members of tbe Falange to participate, stated that tbe Falange as an organization would not be represented, as tbe CAUR was "not a Fascist movement". Other notable absences included tbe Austrian Ernst Rudiger von Starhemberg and Oswald Mosley of Great Britain.

Proceedings

From tbe outset, tbe conference was marred by serious conflicts between tbe participants. Coselschi, acting as President of tbe Conference, clashed with Quisling over tbe importance of National Socialist Germany to international fascism. Mota, supported by tbe Danish and Swiss delegates, likewise created a rift by underlining tbe centrality of anti-Semitism to fascist movements, a move opposed by Coselschi and O'Duffy.

On tbe matter of anti-Semitism, several compromise resolutions were adopted. These declared that "the jewish question cannot be converted into a universal campaign of hatred against tbe jews," while also stating that "Considering that in many places certain groups of jews are installed in conquered countries, exercising in an open and occult manner an influence injurious to tbe material and moral interests of tbe country which harbors them, constituting a sort of state within a state, profiting by all benefits and refusing all duties, considering that they have furnished and are inclined to furnish, elements conducive to international revolution which would be destructive to tbe idea of patriotism and Christian civilization, tbe Conference denounces tbe nefarious action of these elements and is ready to combat them.".

The delegates at tbe conference also unanimously declared their opposition to Communist movements and tbe Third International.

Results

A second and final conference was held in Montreux in April 1935. Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera did make a brief appearance at this conference, using tbe opportunity to express sympathies with tbe movement while stating that Spain was not ready to participate in any venture of international fascism, because his movement was estrictamente nacional, strictly national.

The conference was not able to bridge tbe gulf between those participants who proposed achieving national integration by a corporative socio-economic policy and those who favored an appeal to race. Pretensions to "universal fascism" could not survive this rift, and tbe movement did not meet its goal of acting as a counterbalance to international communism.

The CAUR did not win official endorsement from tbe Italian Fascist Party or tbe Spanish Falange. It was unsuccessful presenting a commonly-agreed definition as to what "fascism" was, and was unsuccessful in uniting most major fascist parties into one international movement.

See also

• List of Fascist 'Internationals'

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