''Défense de l’Occident'' (English: ''Defense of the West'') was a French

neo-fascist Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology which includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, ultraconservatism, racial supremacy, right-wing populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xe ...

magazine founded by

Maurice Bardèche Maurice Bardèche (1 October 1907 – 30 July 1998) was a French art critic and journalist, better known as one of the leading exponents of neo-fascism and Holocaust denial in post–World War II Europe. Bardèche was also the brother-in-law ...

and published from 1952 to 1982. It was the most significant far-right magazine in post-WWII France, providing an arena for the promotion of neo-fascist ideas and

Holocaust denial Historical negationism, Denial of the Holocaust is an antisemitic conspiracy theory that asserts that the genocide of Jews by the Nazi Party, Nazis is a fabrication or exaggeration. It includes making one or more of the following false claims: ...

History

The magazine was established by

and

Jean-Louis Tixier-Vignancour Jean-Louis Tixier-Vignancour (; 12 October 1907 – 29 September 1989) was a French lawyer and Far-right politics, far-right politician. Elected to the National Assembly (France), National Assembly in 1936, he initially collaborated with the Vichy ...

in December 1952. Based in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, its original aim was to diffuse ideas of the neo-fascist European Social Movement in France. Promoting

historical negationism Historical negationism, also called historical denialism, is falsification or distortion of the historical record. This is not the same as '' historical revisionism'', a broader term that extends to newly evidenced, fairly reasoned academic rein ...

and

anti-Zionism Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism. Although anti-Zionism is a heterogeneous phenomenon, all its proponents agree that the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, and the movement to create a sovereign Jewish state in the Palestine (region) ...

, ''Défense de l'Occident'' denounced the '' épuration légale'' (the French purge of Nazi collaborators) as the "revenge of the victors". In an article from November 1954, the magazine refuted the idea of the extermination of the Jews during WWII and proposed to relocate the

state of Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

in December 1955. From the 1960s onward, ''Défense de l’Occident'' developed a "shape-shifting negationism": it rehabilitated the

Vichy regime Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the defeat against ...

as "protector of the Jews", condemned the

Nuremberg trials #REDIRECT Nuremberg trials {{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from move ...

as a symbol of injustice, and denounced Israel as a "land stolen from Arabs and billions f Reichsmark">Reichsmark.html" ;"title="f Reichsmark">f Reichsmarktaken from Germans through the blackmail of 'Nazi war crimes' [quoted in text]".

Organization

The managing editor was Jacques Poillot between 1952 and 1960. Its contributors, mostly unpaid, included Marc Augier, Henry Coston,

Paul Rassinier Paul Rassinier (18 March 1906 – 28 July 1967) was a French political activist and writer who is viewed as "the father of Holocaust denial". Totten, Samuel; Bartrop, Paul Robert; Jacobs, Steven L. "Rassinier, Paul", ''Dictionary of Genoci ...

, or François d'Orcival. ''Défense de l’Occident'' managed to survived over 30 years despite a limited audience due to the ideological consistency of both its leader

and the journal's collaborators, as well as the thematic adaptions of the articles depending on the historical context.

References

1952 establishments in France 1982 disestablishments in France Defunct conservative magazines Defunct political magazines published in France Defunct French-language magazines Magazines established in 1952 Magazines disestablished in 1982 Defunct magazines published in Paris Neo-Nazi publications {{Europe-poli-mag-stub