Christian Social Party (Belgium, Defunct)
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The Christian Social Party (, ,; , , ; generally abbreviated to PSC–CVP) was a major centre-right
political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
in
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
which existed from 1945 until 1968. It is sometimes referred to as the unitary Christian Social Party (''PSC unitaire''/''unitaire CVP'') to distinguish it from its two identically named successor parties. Established as the successor to the pre-war Catholic Party, the PSC-CVP was established after Belgium's Liberation in
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
with an explicitly "deconfessionalised" orientation in the
Christian Democratic Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics. Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo-scholasticism, as well ...
tradition. Conservative in outlook, it supported
social welfare Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance p ...
and limited economic redistribution. It remained the largest party in Belgian politics throughout much of its existence and was the last party in Belgian history to gain an outright majority in the 1950 elections. It provided a number of influential prime ministers and participated in most coalition governments in combination with the
Belgian Socialist Party The Belgian Socialist Party (, , PSB; , , BSP) was a social-democratic political party which existed in Belgium from 1945 to 1978. During its time in office, a number of progressive social reforms were introduced. The BSP was founded by activists ...
and the
Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
or its successor the
Party for Freedom and Progress The Party for Freedom and Progress (; ; ; PVV-PLP) was a liberalism, liberal political party in Belgium which existed from 1961 until 1992. The party was the successor of the Liberal Party (Belgium), Liberal Party, which had roots dating back to ...
. Amid rising regionalist tensions, the PSC-CVP's regional parties split along linguistic and regional lines between 1968 and 1972 to form the Francophone Christian Social Party (''Parti Social Chrétien'', PSC) and Flemish Christian People's Party (''Christelijke Volkspartij'', CVP).


Background

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
was a major social and political influence in Belgium even before the
Belgian Revolution The Belgian Revolution (, ) was a conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium. The ...
in 1830. Approximately 98 percent of the country's population were at least nominally Catholics. Although initially able to collaborate, the clash between Catholics and Liberals came to dominate Belgian politics by the 1840s. This culminated in Liberal defeat in the political struggle known as the First School War (1879-84). After 1884, the Catholic Party entered a period of almost unchallenged electoral dominance with a parliamentary majority in every election until
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. The thirty-year period of Catholic political dominance was unparalleled elsewhere in Europe. As the franchise expanded over the late 19th century, the Catholic Party was forced into making limited concessions on the issue of social reform but remained conservative and dominated by "bourgeois interests". The Catholic Party lost its electoral majority after World War I and was obliged to share power in a series of coalition governments. The historian Martin Conway writes that it marked "a period of unprecedented crisis for the party during which it struggled to retain its unity against a combination of social, ideological, and regional divisions". The party's internal organisation was radically reformed in 1921 and again in 1936. Amid the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, it was challenged by a range of authoritarian, working class, and
Flemish nationalist The Flemish Movement (, ) 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 promote Flemish cultu ...
movements which drew heavily on Catholic voters. Although improving its fortunes in the final years before World War II, the party finally collapsed at the time of the German invasion of Belgium in May 1940.


History


Formation, 1944-1946

After the
Liberation of Belgium The Liberation of Belgium from German occupation began on 2 September 1944 when Allied forces entered the province of Hainaut and was completed on 4 February 1945 with the liberation of the village of Krewinkel. The liberation came after fou ...
from German occupation in September 1944, there was little support for resurrecting the pre-war Catholic Party. Martin Conway writes that "although all were agreed on the need to avoid a return to the Catholic Party of the inter-war years, Belgian Catholics emerged from the war with a renewed sense of their common purpose and a heightened optimism that the values of Catholicism did indeed offer a distinctive solution to the problems of a modern democratic society". The Christian Social Party was formally established on 19 August 1945 under the presidency of August de Schryver. The new party's ideology drew heavily from
personalism Personalism is an intellectual stance that emphasizes the importance of human persons. Personalism exists in many different versions, and this makes it somewhat difficult to define as a philosophical and theological movement. Friedrich Schleie ...
and sought to demonstrate its distance from the institutional
Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
by dropping the word "Catholic" in favour of the less
sectarian Sectarianism is a debated concept. Some scholars and journalists define it as pre-existing fixed communal categories in society, and use it to explain political, cultural, or religious conflicts between groups. Others conceive of sectarianism a ...
term "Christian". Participating in the first post-war elections in February 1946, it won nearly 43% of the national vote exceeding the total vote share gained by the Catholic Party at any previous elections since World War I. A separate new party attempting to attract left-leaning Christian Democratic voters called the Belgian Democratic Union (''Union démocratique belge''/''Belgische Democratische Unie'') failed to make an electoral breakthrough at the elections and was soon disbanded. The same elections also saw the re-emergence of liberal and socialist parties which, alongside the Christian Social Party, would dominate Belgian politics over the following two decades.


Christian Social Party in government, 1946-1954 and 1958-1968

In contrast to the conservatism of the Catholic Party, the Christian Social Party (''Parti social chrétien''/''Christelijke Volkspartij'') stood on a democratic platform emphasising social reforms, welfare,
industrial democracy Industrial democracy is an arrangement which involves workers making decisions, sharing responsibility and authority in the workplace. While in participative management organizational designs workers are listened to and take part in the deci ...
, and moderate economic redistribution. It rallied to the monarchist cause during the Royal Question (1949-50) and supported King Leopold III's return to the throne. Standing on this issue, the party won the last bicameral majority in Belgian history in the 1950 general election. Although ultimately successful, Leopold's return proved politically divisive and caused widespread unrest in industrial regions of
Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...
. Seeking to de-escalate the crisis at its peak in Summer 1950, Leopold agreed to abdicate in favour of his son Prince Baudouin the following year. Leopold's abdication caused considerable agitation within the party and it was ultimately forced out of power in 1954. In opposition, the party was revitalised in opposition to the
Second School War The Second School War (, ) was a political crisis in Belgium over the issue of religion in education between 1954 and 1958. The "war" was ended by a cross-party agreement, known as the School Pact, which clarified the role of religion in the stat ...
(1954-58) initiated by the Liberal and Socialist parties which challenged the Church's continuing influence within the Belgian education system. It was eventually ended with a compromise in the form of the "School Pact" and the return of the Christian Social Party to government in the 1958 elections. As a result of the economic fall-out from the independence of the
Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (, ; ) was a Belgian colonial empire, Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960 and became the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville). The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Repu ...
, the government of
Gaston Eyskens Gaston François Marie, Viscount Eyskens (1 April 1905 – 3 January 1988) was a Christian democracy, Christian democratic politician and prime minister of Belgium. He was also an economist and member of the Belgian Christian Social Party (Belg ...
introduced an austerity plan known as the
Unitary Law The Law on Economic Growth, Social Progress and Fiscal Redressment (, ), better known as the Unitary Law (''Loi unique'' or ''Eenheidswet''), was a controversial law in Belgium which was passed on 14 February 1961. It introduced a programme of Aus ...
in 1960. Opposition to the programme led to the 1960-61 general strike but failed to prevent its passage. Alongside increasing
secularism Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...
within Belgian society and growing demands for federalising reforms in both Wallonia and Flanders, the dominance of the Christian Social Party finally came into question in late 1960s.


Linguistic split, 1968-1972

As part of the unrest leading to the
split of the Catholic University of Leuven The Catholic University of Leuven (1835–1968), Catholic University of Leuven was one of Belgium's major universities. It split along linguistic lines after a period of civil unrest in 1967–68 commonly known as the Leuven Affair (''Affaire de ...
, the government of
Paul Vanden Boeynants Paul Emile François Henri Vanden Boeynants (, ; 22 May 1919 – 9 January 2001) was a Belgian politician.
Rulers. Retrieved 30 August 201 ...
refused to intervene to remove Francophone students from the university in accordance with the demands of Flemish student demonstrators. In response, Flemish ministers to withdraw from the government in February 1968. The regionalist '' Volksunie'' made significant inroads into the Christian Democratic vote in Flanders. In the March 1968 general election, the regional Flemish ('' Christelijke Volkspartij'') and Walloon ('' Parti Social Chrétien'') parties stood on different programmes but continued to retain a single national president until 1972. They subsequently stood as entirely separate parties with different programmes and political identities, marking the collapse of the "unitary" Christian Social Party.


Election results


Chamber of Representatives


Notable members

* Jean Duvieusart *
Gaston Eyskens Gaston François Marie, Viscount Eyskens (1 April 1905 – 3 January 1988) was a Christian democracy, Christian democratic politician and prime minister of Belgium. He was also an economist and member of the Belgian Christian Social Party (Belg ...
*
Pierre Harmel Pierre Charles José Marie, Count Harmel (; 16 March 1911 – 15 November 2009) was a Belgian lawyer, Christian Democratic politician and diplomat. Harmel served as the prime minister of Belgium from 1965 to 1966, leading a centre-left cabinet. ...
* Théo Lefèvre * Joseph Pholien *
Paul Vanden Boeynants Paul Emile François Henri Vanden Boeynants (, ; 22 May 1919 – 9 January 2001) was a Belgian politician.
Rulers. Retrieved 30 August 201 ...
* Jean Van Houtte * Count Jean Charles Snoy et d'Oppuers


See also

*
Politics of Belgium The politics of Belgium take place in the framework of a federal, representative democratic, constitutional monarchy. The King of the Belgians is the head of state, and the prime minister of Belgium is the head of government, in a multi-part ...
*
Confederation of Christian Trade Unions The Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (, or ACV; , CSC) is the largest of Belgium's three trade union federations. History The federation was founded in 1904, but can trace its origins to the "Anti-Socialist Cotton Workers' Union" founde ...
* '' Graves de communi re''


References


Bibliography

*


Further reading

* * **


External links


Archives of Christian Social Party
i
ODIS - Online Database for Intermediary Structures
{{Belgian political parties Defunct political parties in Belgium Christian democratic parties in Belgium Defunct Christian political parties 1945 establishments in Belgium 1968 disestablishments in Belgium Political parties established in 1945 Political parties disestablished in 1968