The (

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

for "Flemish National Union" or "Flemish National League"), widely known by its acronym VNV, was a

Flemish nationalist The Flemish Movement ( nl, Vlaamse Beweging) is an umbrella term which encompasses various political groups in the Belgian region of Flanders and, less commonly, in French Flanders. Ideologically, it encompasses groups which have sought to prom ...

political party 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 ...

between 1933 and 1945.Kinderen van de collaboratie. Ervaringen en getuigenissen van nakomelingen van collaborateurs in de Tweede Wereldoorlog
University of Ghent, 2010, Master thesis history It became the leading force of political collaboration in

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 cultu ...

during the German occupation of Belgium in

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

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 vot ...

by inclination, the party advocated the creation of a "

Greater Netherlands Greater Netherlands () is an irredentist concept which unites the Netherlands, Flanders, and sometimes including Brussels. Additionally, a Greater Netherlands state may include the annexation of the French Westhoek, Suriname, formerly Dutch-spea ...

" (''Dietsland'') combining Flanders and 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 ...

Origins

The (VNV) was founded on 8 October 1933. Its origins were in the long-established

Frontpartij The ''Frontpartij'' (Dutch; "Front Party") was a Belgian political party that campaigned for increasing recognition for the Flemish people and their language. Originating from the earlier ''Frontbeweging'' ("Front Movement"), the ''Frontpartij'' ...

, a moderate Flemish patriotic party which was taken over by Staf De Clercq and moved to the right in 1932. From the start, the VNV was clearly authoritarian and anti-democratic, being influenced by

fascist Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and the ...

ideas from elsewhere in Europe.B. De Wever
Vlaams Nationaal Verbond (VNV)
at Belgium-WWII However, it initially included both moderate and radical wings and was not a genuinely fascist organisation ''per se''. Ideologically, the party rejected Belgium and supported the creation of a new polity known as the

(''Dietsland''), through the fusion of Belgian Flanders and the Netherlands, which would be linguistically and ethnically homogeneous. The party's slogan was: "Authority, discipline, ''Dietsland''". It shared many ideological elements with Verdinaso, a rival party which had been founded two years earlier, but was slightly less radical. Unlike Verdinaso, the VNV took part in elections and also included a relatively moderate wing. Initially, it also differed from Verdinaso in not being an

anti-Semitic 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 ...

movement, but it increasingly embraced anti-Semitic elements after 1935, out of political calculation rather than ideological conviction. In the

1936 Belgian general election General elections were held in Belgium on 24 May 1936. The result was a victory for the Belgian Labour Party, which won 70 of the 202 seats in the Chamber of Representatives and 39 of the 101 seats in the Senate. Voter turnout was 94.7%. Desp ...

the VNV received 13.6% of the Flemish vote, corresponding to 7.1% nationwide. After the election, in which the far-right nationalist and Catholic

Rexist Party 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,

also performed strongly, the two parties concluded an alliance, intended to create a

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 ...

Belgian state with great autonomy for Flanders. The VNV revoked this agreement after just one year. In the 1939 elections, the VNV moderately increased its share of the Flemish vote to 15% (8.4% nationally) while the Rexist vote collapsed. Despite cooperating with the Flemish section of the mainstream centre-right Catholic Party on the local level, De Clercq realised that his movement would not be able to take power by democratic means. Instead, he initiated contacts with

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 ...

, hoping that his project could be realised with German help. He contacted the

Abwehr The ''Abwehr'' ( German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the '' Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. ...

, Germany's military intelligence service, informing them that a part of the Belgian military supported his movement and could be controlled by him in case of Germany declaring war. The Belgian state security gained knowledge of these contacts and arrested some VNV supporters.

Collaboration

When Nazi Germany invaded Belgium in 1940, De Clercq immediately chose to orient the VNV towards

collaborationism Wartime collaboration is cooperation with the enemy against one's country of citizenship in wartime, and in the words of historian Gerhard Hirschfeld, "is as old as war and the occupation of foreign territory". The term ''collaborator'' dates to ...

, despite his previous declarations that he would not do so.

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

did not install a civilian government (as in the Netherlands), but instead installed a

military administration Military administration identifies both the techniques and systems used by military departments, agencies, and armed services involved in managing the armed forces. It describes the processes that take place within military organisations outsi ...

headed by General Alexander von Falkenhausen of the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

. This, along with the departure of

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

and René Lagrou to form the Algemeene-SS Vlaanderen, led the VNV out of focus, forcing it to intensify its collaboration in order to gain influence. Hitler and SS-leader

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

made profit from the situation, and increased competition between various groups by founding some more extreme collaborationist groups like the

6th SS Volunteer Sturmbrigade Langemarck 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second ...

and DeVlag ("German-Flemish Working Group"). Nevertheless, VNV politicians were given the mayor's office in several Flemish towns. VNV-led local administrations participated in the organisation of the deportation of

Belgian Jews The history of the Jews in Belgium goes back to the 1st century CE until today. The Jewish community numbered 66,000 on the eve of the Second World War but, after the war and The Holocaust, is now less than half that number. Today, Belgium ...

to Eastern Europe as part of

the Holocaust in Belgium The Holocaust in Belgium was the systematic dispossession, deportation, and murder of Jews and Roma in German-occupied Belgium during World War II. Out of about 66,000 Jews in the country in May 1940, around 28,000 were murdered during the Ho ...

. They willingly implemented Nazi policies like the obligation of Jews to wear the

yellow badge Yellow badges (or yellow patches), also referred to as Jewish badges (german: Judenstern, lit=Jew's star), are badges that Jews were ordered to wear at various times during the Middle Ages by some caliphates, at various times during the Medieva ...

. VNV activists played a leading role in the anti-Jewish Antwerp pogrom of April 1941. De Clercq died suddenly in October 1942, and was succeeded by Hendrik Elias, a member of the more moderate side. Elias continued collaborating with the Nazis, but tried to come to terms with the military government to prevent the installation of a civilian government, which would be composed of Nazis. Elias failed, as Hitler installed the new body and declared the annexation of Flanders by Germany in 1944; seven weeks later, Belgium was liberated by the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

. The VNV was outlawed after the liberation of Belgium. Elias fled to Germany, but was tried after the war and imprisoned until 1959.

Electoral performance

Footnotes

References

* * * *

External links

Footage of the first four VNV party congresses
{{Authority control Political parties established in 1933 Political parties disestablished in 1945 Fascist parties in Belgium Flemish Movement 1933 establishments in Belgium 1945 disestablishments in Belgium Belgian collaboration during World War II Defunct political parties in Belgium The Holocaust in Belgium Fascist parties Collaboration with the Axis Powers Anti-communist parties Banned far-right parties