The Nationalist activism was an

elitist Elitism is the belief or notion that individuals who form an elite—a select group of people perceived as having an intrinsic quality, high intellect, wealth, power, notability, special skills, or experience—are more likely to be construc ...

political movement of the early 20th century in Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltic countries. The ''Activists'' advocated in brief a close cooperation with Imperial Germany, and active support of Germany's military aims — primarily directed against

Imperial Russia The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

Bolshevist Russia The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...

and the Soviet Union. The activism was revived in both Finland and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

in connection with the Winter War. This ''activism'' was ideologically related, although distantly, to the thoughts that would result in Fascism in Italy. Activists were often ardent anti-Socialists and deeply suspicious of democracy and parliamentarism. In Scandinavia, activist policies were judged unsuccessful when occasionally (half-ways) implemented, as in the years before the dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway and in Sweden in the first two years of World War I; but in Finland the Activism was seen as successful in establishing the White Guard, the German-trained Jägers, the victory in the Finnish Civil War, and the thereby secured independence. While in Finland the ''activism'' would continue in movements of the interbellum: the

Academic Karelia Society The Academic Karelia Society (''Akateeminen Karjala-Seura'', AKS) was a ethnic Finn, Finnish nationalist and Finno-Ugric countries, Finno-Ugric activist organization aiming at the growth and improvement of newly independent Finland, founded by aca ...

, the Lapua movement and the

Patriotic People's Movement Patriotic People's Movement ( fi, Isänmaallinen kansanliike, IKL, sv, Fosterländska folkrörelsen) was a Finnish nationalist and anti-communist political party. IKL was the successor of the previously banned Lapua Movement. It existed from 1 ...

; in the Baltic countries and Sweden it hardly survived outside some narrow circles of military officers, industrialists and aristocrats with political ambitions. In Latvia Nationalist activism was represent by Pērkonkrusts. In Estonia, it was Nationalistic Vaps Movement.

See also