National Socialist Movement of Chile Movimiento Nacional Socialista de Chile | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Leader | Jorge González von Marées |
| Founded | 5 April 1932 |
| Dissolved | 1938 |
| Succeeded by | Popular Socialist Vanguard |
| Membership | 20,000 (c. 1930s) |
| Ideology | Chilean nationalism Fascism[1] Portalesism Populism Corporatism[1] |
| Political position | Far-right[2] |
| Anthem | "Chilenos a la Acción" ("Chilean's in Action") |
| Party flag | |
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TheNational Socialist Movement of Chile (Spanish:Movimiento Nacional Socialista de Chile) was a political movement inChile during thePresidential Republic Era with an associated National Socialist party. It initially supported the ideas ofAdolf Hitler, although it later moved towards a more local form offascism. It is important to note that the NSMC did not holdhierarchical racial beliefs, as seen in German National Socialism, and that the association was more akin to that ofLatin fascism. They were commonly known asNacistas.[3]
The movement was formed in April 1932 by General Diaz Valderrama,Carlos Keller (the main ideologue of the group) andJorge González von Marées, who became leader. The party initially followed the ideas ofNazism closely, stressingantisemitism. It received financial support from theGerman population of Chile and soon built up a membership of 20,000 people. The movement stressed what it saw as the need forone-party rule,corporatism and solidarity between classes, and soon set up its own paramilitary wing, the Tropas Nacistas de Asalto.[4]
However support for Hitler was later abandoned, with González von Marées claiming by the late 1930s that the use of the name 'National Socialist' had been an error on his part. Antisemitism was also scaled back, with a more domestic form of fascism being offered instead.[4] Indeed, the main ideological inspiration claimed by the group wasDiego Portales and the choice of name had to an extent been inspired by the success the Nazis were enjoying in Europe and a desire to tap into their, at the time, high reputation.[3] Initial contact with theNSDAP/AO eventually ended when that group criticised theNacistas for their lack of commitment to antisemitism.[3] Individual members (most notably,Miguel Serrano) continued to look toAdolf Hitler.
The party obtained three deputies (3.5% of the votes) during the1937 parliamentary elections.[5] It then merged in 1938 with theUnión Socialista (Socialist Union) to create theAlianza Popular Libertadora (APL)[6] which supported GeneralCarlos Ibáñez del Campo's candidacy for the1938 presidential election. However, fascist elements attempted a coup in September 1938, which was ruthlessly put down at theSeguro Obrero massacre, and led Ibáñez to oppose the National Socialists' choice of Gustavo Ross, leading to indirect support of theRadical Party's candidate,Pedro Aguirre Cerda, who narrowly won the election.[7]
In 1939, some members of the APL created an offshoot, the fascistVanguardia Popular Socialista, which failed to have any impact, and it was disbanded in 1941 whilst González von Marées was interned. On the other hand, the APL merged in 1945 with theAgrarian Party to form thePartido Agrario Laborista (PAL).[citation needed]
Of the former members of the party onlyJorge Prat gained much influence. Publishing a weekly paper,Estanquero, between 1949 and 1954, he served as a cabinet minister inCarlos Ibáñez del Campo's government and attempted to run forPresident of Chile in 1964.[8]
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