Verdinaso (''Verbond van Dietsche Nationaal-Solidaristen'', ), sometimes rendered as Dinaso, was a small

authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...

and

fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...

active in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and, to a lesser extent, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

between 1931 to 1941. Verdinaso was founded by

Joris Van Severen Joris Van Severen (19 July 1894 – 20 May 1940) was a Belgian politician and ideologue of the Flemish Movement as well as a Pan-Netherlander. A leading figure of pre-World War II Flemish nationalism, he co-founded the extreme-right group V ...

Jef François Josephus Alphonsus Marie François (22 May 1901 – 1996) was a Belgian Flemish far right politician and Nazi collaborator. A native of Ghent, he first came to politics as a member of the ''Frontpartij'', along with the likes of Ward Hermans ...

Wies Moens Wies Moens (28 January 1898 – 5 February 1982) was a literary historian, poet and ''Flamingant'' activist from Flanders. He was also a founding member of the Verdinaso, but left the movement after its change of course in 1934. He was born ...

, and

Emiel Thiers Emiel is a Dutch cognate of the masculine given name '' Emil''. People with the name include: * Emiel Boersma ((born 1980), Dutch beach volleyball player * Emiel Christensen (1895–1988), American architect from Nebraska * (1909–1995), Belgian B ...

on 6 October 1931 at a meeting in the Hôtel Richelieu in

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...

. It emerged from the Flemish Movement although, under Van Severen's leadership, it moved towards a novel

political ideology which he referred to as National Solidarism. The organisation had initially called for the reunification of

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

with the

in a Greater Netherlands (''Dietschland'') but discarded this ideal in 1934 in favour of a wider

corporatist Corporatism is a collectivist political ideology which advocates the organization of society by corporate groups, such as agricultural, labour, military, business, scientific, or guild associations, on the basis of their common interests. The ...

ideology calling for the establishment of a federated authoritarian polity on the model of the Burgundian Netherlands which would incorporate the whole of Belgium and possibly

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

. The party remained small but succeeded in attracting a number of young students and intellectuals inspired by Italian Fascism and Portugal's ''Estado Novo''. It established a

paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

wing in 1937, identified by its members' green shirts, known as the DINASO Militant Order (''DINASO Militanten Orde''). Although Verdinaso never gained a mass following, its role in diminishing support for the established Flemish Front (''Vlaamsche Front'') at the 1929 elections led to the latter's decision to substantially reorganise itself in 1931 into the

Flemish National League The (Dutch language, Dutch for "Flemish National Union" or "Flemish National League"), widely known by its acronym VNV, was a Flemish Movement, Flemish nationalist political party active in Belgium between 1933 and 1945.pacificism towards right-wing authoritarianism.

Character and history

The party was against the

parliamentary democracy A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...

and eventually advocated a corporative society ruled by the Belgian King. As such it never participated in elections, and never became a strong political pressure group. The Verdinaso originally advocated Flemish and Dutch

nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...

. It proposed the union of Belgium with the Netherlands and Luxembourg to form a ''Dietsland'' or ''Diets Rijk'' ("Dietsch Empire"), justifying this on the basis of a common history of the three lands under the

Burgundians The Burgundians ( la, Burgundes, Burgundiōnes, Burgundī; on, Burgundar; ang, Burgendas; grc-gre, Βούργουνδοι) were an early Germanic tribe or group of tribes. They appeared in the middle Rhine region, near the Roman Empire, and ...

, and the emblematic rule of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

. In 1932, two of its leaders, François and Van Severen, were elected to the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

; the same year, the party was joined by

Victor Leemans Victor Leemans (21 July 1901 – 3 March 1971) was a Belgian sociologist, politician and prominent ideologist of the radical Flemish movement in the 1930s. A member of the militant organisation Verdinaso, he is seen by some as the main Flemish ex ...

, who wrote the work ''Het nationaal-socialisme'', an apology for

National Socialism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

. After 1934, Verdinaso shifted its focus towards a Belgian identity circa 1939, becoming a bilingual (

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

- Dutch) party, believing that the Belgian state should be founded on

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

corporatism – an economic model interpreted by Verdinaso from the

Catholic social teaching Catholic social teaching, commonly abbreviated CST, is an area of Catholic doctrine concerning matters of human dignity and the common good in society. The ideas address oppression, the role of the state (polity), state, subsidiarity, social o ...

, and akin to Integralism and the '' Action Française'' (an influence on Van Severen). The party virulently opposed

Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

on the

left Left may refer to: Music * ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006 * ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016 * "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album ''Curb'', 1996 Direction * Left (direction), the relative direction opposite of right * L ...

and

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for Profit (economics), profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, pric ...

on the

right Rights are law, legal, social, or ethics, ethical principles of Liberty, freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convent ...

; it was also somewhat

antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

, occasionally venting the opinion that

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, as well as

Freemasons Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

constituted a hidden power working against the interests of ''Dietsland''. In the elections of May 24, 1936, Verdinaso ran on a common list with other Flemish nationalists under the common denominator Vlaams Nationaal Block, gaining 13% of the vote and 16 deputy seats; in 1939, it peaked at 15% of the vote and 17 seats. The ''DINASO Militanten Orde'' had around 3,000 members, grouped under the leadership of François, and edited the newspapers ''Recht en Trouw'' and ''De Vlag'' (placed under the leadership of Moens). When

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

broke out Van Severen was killed in Abbeville,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, suspected of being an agent of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, and as part of some executions of

Rexists The Rexist Party (french: Parti Rexiste), or simply Rex, was a far-right Catholic, nationalist, authoritarian and corporatist political party active in Belgium from 1935 until 1945. The party was founded by a journalist, Léon Degrelle,

and Belgian communists (both groups were suspected of pro-German activism, justified by the

Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact , long_name = Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H27337, Moskau, Stalin und Ribbentrop im Kreml.jpg , image_width = 200 , caption = Stalin and Ribbentrop shaking ...

in the case of the latter). As a consequence, the Verdinaso lost a clear direction (despite Van Severen's replacement with François), and was eventually forced to join the

Flemish National Union The (Dutch for "Flemish National Union" or "Flemish National League"), widely known by its acronym VNV, was a Flemish nationalist political party active in Belgium between 1933 and 1945.

on May 5, 1941. Some of Verdinaso's members, who were advocating a strong Belgian

authoritarian regime Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...

around King Leopold III, however joined the resistance against the German occupation.

Ideology

Verdinaso was based around the ideology of "National-Solidarism", which was a social doctrine that was strongly anti-Marxist and

anti-capitalist Anti-capitalism is a political ideology and Political movement, movement encompassing a variety of attitudes and ideas that oppose capitalism. In this sense, anti-capitalists are those who wish to replace capitalism with another type of economi ...

. The party wished to reform society in an

organic Organic may refer to: * Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity * Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ Chemistry * Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...

sense, that is to say, growing in a gradual, natural way with respect for its own nature, history and tradition. Verdinaso opposed both liberalism and parliamentary democracy. With the Verdinaso, Van Severen wanted to form a leading elite that would conquer power in the state through its style and action, rather than overthrow it. The Verdinaso leaned to the Conservative Revolution, more specifically with the Young Conservatives. There was also the influence of

Charles Maurras Charles-Marie-Photius Maurras (; ; 20 April 1868 – 16 November 1952) was a French author, politician, poet, and critic. He was an organizer and principal philosopher of ''Action Française'', a political movement that is monarchist, anti-parl ...

's nationalist Action Française.

Notable members

Ward Hermans Cornelius Eduardus Hermans (6 February 1897 – 23 November 1992) was a Belgium, Belgian Flemish Movement, Flemish nationalist politician and writer. Hermans saw service with the Belgian Army during the First World War before becoming involved ...

* Luc Versteylen *

Jef Van Bilsen Anton Arnold Jozef "Jef" Van Bilsen (13 June 1913, in Diest – 22 July 1996, in Kraainem), usually cited as A. A. J. Van Bilsen in his academic publications, was a Belgian professor who, in December 1955, proposed a 30-year scheme (known as the "V ...

References

External links

*
''L'Extrême droite en Flandre hier''
- Belgian fascists that some streets were still named after in 1999 (short biographies). {{Authority control Defunct political parties in Belgium Political parties established in 1931 Political parties disestablished in 1941 Fascist parties in Belgium 1931 establishments in Belgium 1941 disestablishments in Belgium Anti-communist parties Fascist parties Flemish Movement Belgian nationalism

Character and history

Ideology

Notable members

References

Further reading

External links