Nazism in Chile

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Nazism in Chile: A Particular Type of Fascism in South AmericaSTOR ®

Jaime Antonio Etchepare; Hamish I. Stewart

Journal o f Contemporary History, Vol. 30, No.4. (Oct., 1995), pp. 577-605.

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Jaime Antonio Etchepare and Hamish I. Stewart

Nazism in Chile: A Particular Type of Fascismin South America

Due to the special conditions and characteristics that have always

existed in Chile, its political development has usually differed

from that of its neighbours. An interesting example of this is the

development of nazism in Chile.

After the successful congressional revolution of 1891 and the

suicide of President Jose Manuel Balmaceda, a parliamentary

government, Parlamentarismo a LaChilena,Iwas established with

attributes very different from that of Britain, with which it has

often been compared. This system proved to be incapable of

solving the serious socio-economic problems that emerged during

its existence (1891-1924).2 During the 1920s, therefore, there was

an eager search for modernization through the establishment ofnew institutions, a process in which the armed forces played an

active role. After Arturo Alessandri Palma's' failed attempt to

introduce reforms, the Chilean political system collapsed due

to the revolutionary military movements of 1924 and 1925.4

Under rather unorthodox legal conditions,' a presidential system

of government was established with the promulgation of the con-

stitution of 1924. Even though the president was given greatly

increased powers, an attempt was made to achieve a balancebetween the different powers of the state and also to guarantee

effective protection of human rights. However, its debut was not

very promising and the new system only managed to establish

itself after 1932.

The first president elected under this constitution was Emiliano

Figueroa. He was forced to resigns because of disagreements with

the 'strong man' of his government, Colonel Carlos Ibanez del

Campo,' who, in 1927, was elected president. His opponents could

find no one willing to run against him in the elections." Ibanez

Journal of Contemporary History (SAGE, London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New

Delhi), Vol. 30 (1995), 577--605.



578 Journal of Contemporary History

established a personalized authoritarian government without any

particular doctrinaire orientation, in which the only link amonghis followers was their unconditional support of their leader." His

opponents considered that he ruled in a 'dictatorial' way and after

his fall accused him of having no respect for civic liberties and of

having ignored the constitutional guarantees.

Chile was hard hit by the economic crisis of 1929, which affected

the production system, incomes and public finances and therefore

produced high unemployment. This immediate crisis and the later

depression sparked a political crisis that resulted, in 1931, in the

resignation of Ibanez. His resignation led to a period of political

effervescence that produced inordinate constitutional instability.

The fall of President Ibanez, the crisis of authority after the

disappearance of the 'dictator's iron hand', the terrible economic

situation and the mushrooming of extremist ideologies produced

what has been called the 'second anarchy' (26 July 1931-30 Octo-

ber 1932).10

This threw the traditional parties into a state of crisis," and

their decay reflected a general crisis in the country's democratic

system. Furthermore, during this period, liberalism was subjected

to severe criticism while the benefits of liberal democracy as a

system of government were questioned not only in Chile, but

worldwide. Certainly, the difficult circumstances in Chile can be

clearly linked with the European situation, where the conditions

present after the Great War had led to the spread of ultra-national-

ist political movements, usually referred to under the generic name

of fascism.

This European example spread throughout Spanish America

between 1930 and 1940, during which time numerous movements

and parties of fascist inspiration appeared. These groups all

showed the programmatic characteristics so well summarized by

Professor Sergio Miranda Carrington:

The social demands made by the Hispano-American nationalist movements

coincide basically with those of the European fascist movements. In all of them

there existed the same exaltation of the state; the cult of the Spanish tradition

(in Spanish America it was impossible to think of a nationalism that did not

affirm its Spanish roots); respect for the common religion; the desire for an

international unity that would save them from the comical role of international

satellites; the principle of the leader and anti-communism. In all of them, youth

groups added their quota of fearlessness and audacity.'>



Etchepare and Stewart:Nazism in Chile 579

Therefore, their ideological principles were:

- Hispanidad, emphasis placed on the cultural inheritance andtraditions derived from Spain.

- Rejection of liberal democracy, a search for strong

governments.

- Anti-communism, which they rejected because of its material-

ism, atheism and foreign ideas.

- State control of the economy.

- Anti-imperialism, based on a third position as regards inter-

national affairs.- Catholicism, more as an historical inheritance than as a

religion; more as a source of a rich tradition than as a religious

dogma.

- Support for the idea of Latin American unity.

During 1932, many of the conditions that had made the birth

and later success of other fascist movements possible existed in

Chile. There were strong fears about the expansion of communism,

especially because of its involvement in revolutionary activities."This instability produced great anxiety about the country's future.

People wanted to see the re-establishment of traditional good

government and assurances of public peace so that they could

carryon with their normal private activities. They were afraid of

the rebirth of Ibanez's militarism, so they looked for a civilian

force that would be able to set the state functioning again.

In this wider context and given these expectations, and under

what was undoubtedly European influence, the National Socialist

Movement of Chile, the MNSCH or 'el nacismo', as it was most

commonly called, was founded on 5 April 1932. Its originator was

Jorge Gonzalez von Marees, a lawyer who was almost unknown,

both publicly and professionally=

From 1931, Jorge Gonzalez von Marees had been trying to organ-

ize this movement, but it was not until April 1932 that he suc-

ceeded in doing so. The other founders were Carlos Keller Rueff,Juan de Dios Valenzuela and Gustavo Vargas Molinare.

The MNSCH's organizational structure took the form of a pyra-

mid based on discipline and hierarchy. At the top of it we find the

leader or Jete, the movement's maximum authority who possessed

absolute power. There were several auxiliary organisms which




advised the leader." The leader had the power to nominate the

Provincial Commissioners and the right to dissolve at any timethe Provincial, Departmental or Communal Councils. At the

executive level, below him was the movement's Secretary-General

on whom the leader relied. Finally, there were Provincial, Depart-

mental and Communal Commissioners."

The MNSCH's advisory organs were the National Council, the

Provincial Councils and the Departmental Councils. The National

Council, established at the beginning of 1933, was made up of

a delegate from each of the provincial groups. Initially it only

had advisory powers, but afterwards it was given the power toboth nominate and remove the leader'? and to reorganize the

movement.

Below these were the so-called agrupaciones (groups). All of

these were in direct contact with the community, so were intended

to be the 'bases' of 'el nacismo'. The territorial groupings were

divided into provincial, departmental and communal, followed by

the professional nuclei, the guilds and the cells.IS The professional

nuclei were divided into the following areas: public administration,agriculture, handicrafts, banking, trade, construction, education,

industry, mining, transport and the intellectual professions."

Responsibility for discipline and security affairs lay with the

storm troops (TNA) and disciplinary committees. The TNA, led

by a commander, had as its main goals the protection of party

meetings and fighting the party's enemies in the streets. The disci-

plinary committees maintained discipline inside the movement.

Finally, parallel to this organizational system, were the Nazi Youth

with its own leader; the University Nazi Group, GNU; the Work

Service Camps" and the Human Solidarity Service."

As regards the method by which the leader was to be nominated,

the requisites to hold that position and the method by which he

could be removed, there existed the following rules and pro-

cedures. The leader's nomination would be made by the National

Council. In order to become the leader, the candidate must have

previously held this position or that of a Provincial Commissioner.

The leader was designated for an indefinite period, but could bereplaced if three-quarters of the members of the National Council

agreed. The procedure did not end there, however, as the leader

had further powers."Anyone who joined the MNSCH would automatically belong

to the departmental grouping that corresponded to his place of




residence. Inside the departmental grouping, the new member had

to join the appropriate professional nucleus, in accordance with

his normal activity." Finally, the new member would join a cell

within his place of work.

As regards its social and economic composition, employees

formed the largest part of the membership of Chilean nazism -

individuals from the minor professions: tailors, mechanics, elec-

tricians, and so on; students and persons who were economically

independent - manufacturers, farmers and, above all, shop-

keepers. The participation of people belonging to the two extremes

of the economic and social structure, the liberal professions andindustrial workers, was minimal. The membership of the MNSCH

was drawn principally from the lower bourgeoisie.

From an ideological point of view, the basic inspiration of Chi-

lean nazism was no different from that which inspired other fascist

movements - the irrational conception of man, the concept of

life, military values, the idea of the will, the emphasis on action,

the role of select minorities, the elitism, discipline, hierarchy and

sense of predestination. Man was conceived of as a bad and selfishbeing by nature, even though it was possible to improve him by

means of moral and spiritual salvation. This was undoubtedly

inspired by social catholicism with its idea of 'integral humanism'.

In racial matters, unlike nazism, the MNSCH did not assume a

militant stand, as this was not a matter of importance in Chile and

it was felt that it was not in accordance with the national tradition.

Also, it was afraid of causing dissension in the future society it

wished to create."

When we analyse the doctrines of 'el nacismo', it is important

to make clear that even though national socialism formed its

central nucleus, there were other influences, especially those

coming from socialist and traditionalist tendencies. Besides, a clear

dichotomy between the leader and the movement's intellectuals

can be perceived. For the Jete, what was important was verbal

violence and acts of revolutionary violence - 'actions before

programmes'.

In concrete terms, it is clear that the Chilean National SocialistMovement's doctrinaire tendencies were totalitarian. For it, all

activities, as well as the individual, must be under state tuition.

The movement's objective was a revolutionary and profound

transformation of the economic, social and political order which

would be replaced by a 'functional and organic' democracy based




on work and discipline.This new systemwas intended to produce a

political organization supposedly free from the defects of universal

suffrage and its consequences - bribery and the inefficient system

of assemblies.

Imbued with a profound nationalism, the MNSCH wanted the

best for Chile in the concert of nations. Chilean nationalism was

inserted within the Chilean nationalist tradition, falling within the

current represented by the ideas of Francisco Antonio Encina and

Nicolas Palacios. The MNSCH's conception of the state was a

spiritual supreme and absolute one, which was very close to the

concept of the state maintained by the Italian fascists.This concept

was the result of the movement's attempt to emphasize its spiritual

position in contrast with the materialistic tendencies of the left

and the right. The individual must be at the service of the nation,

forming part of a higher organism, and would consequently put

aside his own particular interest for the benefit of the national

community. Consequently, society was seen, in opposition to the

view held by fascism, as a determinant of the state; an anarchic

society could only create a fragile and disorganized state. Thisdetermined the importance of the society; for this reason, first and

foremost it was necessary to organize it.

In the outline given above, the nazi concept of the state is

implicit. For the MNSCH, the state was the product of a society

whose principal aim was self-preservation. In addition to this, the

state must be totalitarian and indivisible," as can be seen clearly

in its programme. Once the unity of the state had been reached,

it would be possible to unify the national will and as a result allindividuals would act in accordance with a common plan. The

state would have complete tuition over all national activities -

the citizens would be mere servants of it:

The state is to be no longer a battlefield in which people fight for their selfish

material interests. The state will take charge of serving the community as a

whole, as an organic harmonious whole .... The state does not recognize the

interests of circles, gangs and classes, rather it will concern itself with society as

a whole."

In this concept of the state, popular sovereignty was not import-

ant, because it also was to be claimed by the state. Sovereignty

was now to belong to the state; the attributions and faculties

which this gave only involved the state. In virtue of its sovereign



Etchepare and Stewart: Nazism in Chile 583

authority, the state would be the supreme authority in society,

individuals and groups were to be stripped of their rights and that

portion of sovereignty which belonged to them. They were to have

no possibility of influencing the direction and orientation which

would be imposed on life in society, neither would they be able

to choose or change their government authorities.

Citizens were to participate through the corporative organi-

zation of the state. They proposed what they called 'unified syndi-

calism', that is to say, the organization of all national activities,

those of both the employers as well as the employees in state

organisms. There would be independent employers' unions andemployees' unions, which would later be unified in Corporations.

Finally, the Corporation would produce a Chamber, which was to

be in charge of legislation.

In the economic field, the MNSCH wanted to establish the

primacy of politics over economics. The latter must not be allowed

to impose its will on the state, but rather must be subordinated to

the state's aims. Economic management occupied a central place.

The state would not be a mere guardian; rather it would regulate

private interests and activities, within the limits of what was con-

venient for the nation. Private property must be transformed into

a social function of first importance. All of this was aimed at

avoiding Marxist collectivism and the excesses of liberal capi-

talism.

In synthesis, it was intended that society should be an organic

unit in which there were to be no opposing interests and where

conflict and disagreements were considered to be artificial.

Because of this, the political parties received the strongest attacks,because they were regarded as agents that existed to divide society,

as they represented paltry interests and were artificial organiza-

tions of an unnatural nature. Right from the beginning the

MNSCH declared emphatically that it was not a political party,"

As regards its rejection of or attack on political conceptions or

positions, the MNSCH emphasized its anti-liberalism, anti-Marx-

ism, anti-conservatism, anti-oligarchism and anti-imperialism.

The MNSCH declared itself to be anti-liberal in economicsand anti-democratic in politics. It claimed that both liberalism and

Marxism were international and anti-patriotic. In addition, it

rejected liberal democracy as being based on an inorganic uni-

versal suffrage, which permitted the tyranny of the unconscious

masses. For the Jete,




... it is not a democracy, the regime which confuses the will of the nation with

that of the agents of the plutocratic groups, that exploits it and gets rich from

it, nor is a government which unconditionally submits its sovereign authority to

the will of the great potentates of universal capitalism."

Finally, elections were catalogued as a vulgar farce, where the

winner was the one who paid the most for votes.

In contrast with the democratic system, an 'elite' system was

proposed, in which government would be exercised by those who

were the most capable, under the supervision of a leader and in

a state where discipline and service would predominate. In thisway,the political professional and the demagoguery characteristics

of the liberal democracies would be eliminated.

Marxism was accused of being materialistic and a doctrine that

went against the basis of Western civilization. On 27 August 1933,

a proclamation was issued in which the movement's position was

clearly stated." For it, in Chile, Marxism was only justified due to

the absence of any other movement that looked after the people's

interests. Furthermore, it said it admired the Marxists for their

methods, their discipline and for having the intention of carrying

out ideals as revolutionary as its own.

As regards the conservative parties, the Chilean nazis criticized

them for their alliance with international capitalism, to the detri-

ment of the people and the nation. They accused them of using

religion for their party interests and for being defenders of class,

plutocratic and landowner interests. In the beginning, the con-

servative sectors assisted 'el nacismo' and tried to win it over to

their side. They applauded only those aspects of national socialistdoctrine that might benefit their interests. Nevertheless, they soon

realized that the MNSCH was not interested in political support

but rather wanted total adhesion to its principles.

A central point in their political analysis was anti-oligarchism.

From their point of view, Chilean politics were dominated by an

anti-patriotic oligarchy which had turned liberal democracy to its

benefit. Itwas a group integrated by exploiters of the people and

international speculators. For them, a typical representative ofthis sector was Arturo Alessandri's Minister of Finance and later

presidential candidate in the 1938 elections, Gustavo Ross Santa

Maria.

The anti-imperialism of the MNSCH concentrated principally

on the economic field and its central objective was the United



Etchepareand Stewart:Nazism in Chile 585

States. This tendency was demonstrated in parliament when the

nazi deputies presented a bill designed to establish a progressive

tax on exports of copper. At the same time, accusations were

made as regards the manner in which the copper mines were being

managed; in the words of the nazi leader, the north of Chile was

'a factory that belonged to foreign imperialists'.

Religion and the role of the Church were seen by the MNSCH

as elements which brought society together and not as a reaction-

ary force, as they conceived conservatism to be. On the other hand,

the Church not only tolerated this situation but also consciously

favoured it, transforming it into a tendency absolutely contrary to

the true national interests, 'to such an extreme that the people

have convinced themselves that religion exists to favour the

interests of landowners, capitalism and economic imperialism'J?

Therefore, with its ultramontanism neutralized, the Church would

retain its unquestioned position in the religious field, but it

would not be allowed to intervene in the political arena."

As regards the methods of political action advocated by the

MNSCH, and especially its leader, violence was important as ameans to lead to the founding of the proposed new society.With

this objective in mind, no one could be opposed to violence. In

the words of the Jete:

We admit that violence is a necessity in the revolutionary movements that

sometimes shake nations .... Therefore, in order to liquidate the venal govern-

ment that oppresses us today, we will use all types of weapons and if it is

necessary to let blood run in torrents through the streets, I assure you that this

will not be a barrier that will be able to stop our advance."

For one of the party's ideologists: 'The problems of state are not

intellectual problems, but rather problems which are decided by

force.'>

This tendency towards the use of violent methods became ever

more frequent until it ended in the revolutionary attempt of 5

September 1938. Previously, the movement had already given

demonstrations of its violent methods, both in the Chamber ofDeputies and in street battles against other political groupings,

especially the communists and the socialists, in which people had

even been killed.

These nazi methods were debated in the Chamber of Deputies,

where fierce attacks were made against the MNSCH by the radical




deputy and future President of the Republic, Gabriel Gonzalez

Videla. For him,

... 'el nacismo' had transformed itself from a doctrine 'into an organization of

force in which the national socialists take to the streets with weapons in their

hands and try to provoke public disorders; after which they immediately launch

public proclamations in which, energetically, and up to a certain point - it must

be admitted - with audacity and bravery, they defy the political parties and

threaten to do away with Parliament."

The political activities of the nazis fall between two landmarks:

the anarchy of the years 1931-2 and the triumph of the PopularFront in 1938. Before presenting the historical evolution of the

MNSCH, it is necessary to define certain ideas. Since Chilean

nazism did not attain power, many situations cannot be analysed

that would have become clear if it had. Also, the doctrinaire ideals

of the MNSCH underwent certain transformations due to changes

brought about by new circumstances or because of the sole fact

of coming into contact with reality. In this sense, the increasing

anti-rightist tendencies that it assumed as time passed are funda-mental. Moreover, Chilean national socialism always emphasized

its intermediate position between liberalism and Marxism,present-

ing itself as an alternative to both. In spite of this, and due to its

leader, it gradually assumed a more leftist tone. In the MNSCH,

this socialist progression became fully evident during the second

nazi period, after 1938, when the nationalist postulates disap-

peared, to be replaced by a strong doctrinaire socialismthat recog-

nized the class struggle. It is also important to note that between

1932 and 1938 the MNSCH was the only political movement of a

nationalist nature that was capable of developing an organization

that covered the entire nation, and which had its own electoral

strength. Finally,it is important to understand that even if the nazi

movement presented itself as the only existing alternative, there

were other groups (with similar or different characteristics) that

had similar points of view, particularly the incipient Falange

Nacional (later to become the Christian Democrat Party).

Let us now return to the subject under discussion. A few daysafter the MNSCH's first appearance in public, it was invited to

co-operate with the Carlos Davila government (17 June to 13

September 1932). It refused, arguing that it did not intend to

become just another political party. Also, Jorge Gonzalez said that

the movement must not be contaminated by association with a




government that had emerged from a movement not of nazi

origins.

In the same year, it had to face parliamentary elections which

had been called in order to replace the Congress dissolved by the

'Socialist Republic' during the second anarchy. This produced

the first serious internal conflict within the movement, between

two different currents of thought, one supporting and the other

opposing the idea of presenting candidates for deputies. Finally,

the party ended up presenting a list of candidates for deputies

for the Santiago First Electoral District, in which the name of the

Jete did not appear, which obtained the grand total of 961 votes.The MNSCH's performance was much better during the 1935

municipal elections in which it received 6,000votes (1.8 per cent)

and elected two regidores (town councillors).

Thus a precedent was established in the development of 'el

nacismo', as it had always emphasized the dishonesty that existed

in political life and had bitterly attacked the political manipulation

it felt was characteristic of it. For this reason, in order to partici-

pate in the many elections that took place, the nazis made a pointof making very clear that the movement's candidates were honest

citizens who were conscious of their duties and were not subject

to political manipulation.

All this occurred during the initial stages of the movement.

However, the party reached its point of greatest influence during

the second government of Arturo Alessandri Palma (1932-8). It

is fair to say that during this period the entire existence of 'el

nacismo' was marked by a continuous struggle with the president.

In order to explain this, it isnecessary to remember that Alessandri

was trying to rebuild the constitutional system together with the

democratic regime. For this reason, any attempt to disturb public

order was repressed. Therefore, if we take into account the move-

ment's violent character - it was always on the offensive - it is

easy to see why very soon it was in trouble with the government."

In addition, in 1937 the movement allied itselfwith Carlos Ibanez,

Arturo Alessandri's greatest public enemy. Apart from the con-

tinuous struggle mentioned above, there was also open confron-tation with the communists and socialists. However, the most

important events in its evolution occurred during the years 1937and 1938.

In 1937, parliamentary elections took place, prompting the

movement to decide to sponsor candidates. These elections had a




special meaning for the nazis, as this was the first time they would

be able to test their strength and find out how deeply their ideas

had taken root among the people. They managed to elect three

deputies: Jorge Gonzalez von Marees for the First Electoral Dis-

trict of Santiago, Fernando Guarello Fitz-Henry for Valparaiso and

Quillota and Gustavo Vargas Molinare for Cautin. They received

14,235votes, 14 times more than in 1932.36

While preparations for the next national elections were under

way, the municipal elections of 1938 took place, in which the

MNSCH elected 14 regidores and received 22,500votes (4.63 per

cent of the total). In this election they reached the peak of theirsuccess as a political party.

The movement's next major activity revolved around the 1938

presidential election. The initial candidates were Pedro Aguirre

Cerda, representing the leftist Popular Front, and Gustavo Ross

Santa Maria, representing the forces of the right. In order to

surpass its previous voting record, the MNSCH decided to support

the candidature of General Carlos Ibanez del Campo, resulting

in the creation in June 1938 of the Alianza Popular Libertadora(APL). Together with the nazis, the Union Socialists," indepen-

dent sectors and the many Ibanez groups made up this electoral

alliance. The officialproclamation took place on 4 September 1936

during what was later called the 'Victory March'. None of these

preparations led anyone to expect the savage events that were to

take place the next day.

Before we refer to the events that took place on 5 September

1938, it is important to emphasize that the National Socialist

Movement had never promised to respect the electoral process if

it were administered by the Alessandri government. Even more, it

had demanded that the president resign, and that a new national

government be established, not linked with the political parties,

which it claimed would be the only wayan atmosphere of confi-

dence and tranquillity could be created.

Given these conditions, on 5 September the country was shaken

by a violent nazi attempt to seize power. A few minutes after

midday, two groups of young nazis went into action; one groupoccupied the main building of the University of Chile and the

other attacked the building of the Workers' Obligatory Insurance

Fund, located in front of the presidential palace, during which a

policeman stationed in the area was murdered. Once they had

consolidated their occupation, they barricaded themselves on the




seventh floor and opened fire, waiting for the military assistance

that the Jete had promised them.

The first reaction of the public was to think that General Ibanez

was carrying out a revolution. The government believed the same,

which was why, fearing possible military support for the revol-

utionaries, it acted rapidly and drastically. With military help,

artillery was used to blow open the main door of the University

of Chile building and capture it, with total casualties of 7 nazis

dead and 37 wounded. The prisoners were then marched to the

Workers' Insurance building to persuade their comrades there to

surrender. To this day, the details of what happened next are still

uncertain. What is clear is that, once the surrender had taken place,

all the prisoners were taken inside the building and executed. By

4.30p.m, the putsch had been defeated with 63 nazis and 1 police-

man dead.

The principal consequences of this event were the withdrawal

of Ibanez from the electoral race and the triumph of the Popular

Front candidate, Pedro Aguirre Cerda, to whom all the nazi and

APL electoral support was given."The election took place on 25 October 1938with the following

results: Pedro Aguirre Cerda, 222,720;Gustavo Ross Santa Maria,

218,609 votes. Aguirre Cerda won by a narrow margin of 4,111

votes and it is estimated that approximately 30,000 of the votes

that gave him victory had come from the nazi movement.

The motives for the nazi actions are today still not very well

understood. One hypothesis is that they intended to put Ibanez

in power, thus avoiding the electoral process, which they feltoffered them few guarantees. However, Jorge Gonzalez said later

that the only objective of the revolutionary movement had been

to install a government that would give ample guarantees that the

elections had been carried out correctly.

One conclusion that can be drawn is that if 'el nacismo', unlike

its inspirers in Europe, did not achieve power or manage to trans-

form itself into a more powerful group, it was for very concrete

reasons.InChile, unlike in Europe, there was no support fromthe triad comprising the conservative parties, the army and the

government. The conservative parties supported Alessandri, who

offered them sufficientguarantees; the army had lost suchprestige,

lacking the moral force either to engage in revolutionary adven-

tures or to support a group intending to do so, and, finally, the




government was capable of solving by itself the problems with

which it was faced.

The movement's lack of originality, in addition to its dictatorial

and violent tendencies, sapped its support and caused it to fail.

Additionally, in Chile the conditions did not exist that had made

German nazism into an all-powerful movement. Chile as a country

had not been territorially divided nor had it been economically

suffocated; it did not have serious frontier problems, nor did the

population harbour imperialistic sentiments of an expansionist

nature.

Mr Rafael Luis Gamucio (an outstanding conservative leader)has said that in Chile 'what was lacking was the man' to enable

nazism to triumph. However, that man did exist; what was lacking

were the external conditions to transform him into a real Fuhrer;

that is, a sufficiently chaotic situation, such as that in Italy and

Germany, to make the people support his ideas and accept his

totalitarian methods. Chile has never proved to be fertile ground

for exacerbated and aggressive nationalism.

After its irrational performance in September 1938, 'el nacismo'disappeared as a valid force on the Chilean political scene. With

its transformation into the Vanguardia Popular Socialista (VPS),

'el nacismo' lost many of its supporters as well as, more signifi-

cantly, its initial 'mysticism' and 'spirit'. Rather, it became a politi-

cal hybrid which nobody took seriously."

When Pedro Aguirre Cerda was elected and began to draw up

his new government, Gonzalez von Marees decided to ask for two

ministries for the VPS, the post of director of the Agricultural

Credit Bank and of the School of Fine Arts and other sinecures

in the public administration as a reward for nazi support of his

candidature. The refusal of the Popular Front government to give

any ministerial responsibilities to the VPS, and the quarrels

between 'vanguardistas' and radicals and socialists, meant that by

1940 they had moved into open opposition to the government.

After its transformation into the VPS, 'el nacismo' tried to

elaborate a political doctrine with democratic tendencies that

included a great deal of the leftist phraseology, an aspect that hadbeen clearly evident since 1937. In accordance with its new ideals,

it now recognized the class struggle, declared itself to be a protec-

tor of the 'exploited' against capitalism and every other manifes-

tation of totalitarian imperialism, and, finally,rejected all theories

of racial superiority. All of this was in marked contrast to the




political positions and ideas that had been sustained by the

National Socialist Movement of Chile."Many nazis did not accept this change of course and later joined

other groups of a nationalist character, such as the Movimiento

Nacionalista de Chile, Frente Chileno, and so on, all non-party

groups which acted outside parliament.

Electorally, the transformation of 'el nacismo' into the VPS had

its logical consequences. In the parliamentary elections of March1941, the Vanguardia ran in an alliance with the liberal and con-

servative parties in open contradiction not only of its new political

platform but also of what it had proclaimed before 1938. In theseelections it obtained 11,175 votes (2.4 per cent), electing two

deputies, Jorge Gonzalez von Marees for the First Electoral Dis-

trict of Santiago and Gustavo Vargas Molinare for Cautin, and

losing the seat in Valparaiso and Quillota which had been held by

Guarello Fitz-Henry.

A month later, on 5 April, regidores were elected for the 235

municipalities of the country. In these elections the MNSCH-VPSonly managed to elect one regidor, Mauricio Mena, for the First

District of Santiago, a situation which reflects the low receptivity

that the 'new position' of the VPS version of nazism had achieved

in Chile. As a result of a serious incident between radicals and

vanguardistas (May 1941), the Minister of the Interior, Arturo

Olavarria Bravo, declared the VPS to be a public danger and

maintained that its leader was mentally ill."

After the failure of Ibanez's candidature, the dispersed and

diminished nationalist groups united during 1943 in the Union

Nacionalista. This new organization did not attract great support

and was torn by strong internal disagreements." The decline of

the Axis internationally and the party's own incompetence were

chiefly responsible for its decline and eventual extinction. Accord-

ing to one of its most outstanding leaders:

The Uni6n Nacionalista was just another party, it was a cold nationalism and it

did not have the acceptance that we expected. The Union did not possess the

characteristics of the two previous movements: it lacked the warmth that both

the MNSCH and the MNCH had had, whose members had gone out into the

streets to fight in uniform. And each day it got colder."

In 1945, as the Union Nacionalista had not managed to elect




anyone either at congressional or municipal level during its brief

existence, Juan G6mez Millas, its leader, decided to dissolve it.

In the 1945 parliamentary elections, the ex-nazis were com-

pletely disunited and campaigned under a number of different

political banners. Thus, the Jete, Jorge Gonzalez, presented himself

as an independent candidate for deputy for the First Electoral

District of Santiago; Fernando Guarello campaigned as a democrat

in Valparaeso, and Gustavo Vargas Molinare presented himself as

a member of a liberal-conservative list for the Lower Chamber

for Cautin. Nothing reflected better the disintegration of the

MNSCH than the divergent attitudes of its three deputies. All ofthem were defeated, with the result that a parliamentary platform

remained well out of reach of the ex-nazis.

Jorge Gonzalez von Marees eventually joined the Liberal Party,

in whose ranks he reached the position of Secretary-General. This

was an inexplicable volte face on the part of the great enemy of

the rightist government of Alessandri and the implacable enemy

of the so-called 'economic right' and of 'materialistic liberalism'.

In the spring of 1945, a new political party was formed. Thiswas the 'Partido Agrario Laborista' (PAL), the result of the fusion

of the Partido Agrario, the remnants of the dissolved Acci6n

Republicana, a number of supporters of Ibanez's Alianza Popular

Libertadora and, probably the greatest number, from the Movimi-

ento Nacionalista de Chile. Numerous ex-nacistas joined the new

party, in which they obtained high positions.

Nevertheless, the PAL did not manage to absorb all the

nationalists and ex-nacistas. For example, in the period 1945-52,

there were numerous failed attempts to form parties along the

lines of the extinguished MNSCH.44

The Partido Agrario Laborista adopted many of the concepts

of 'el nacismo'. For example:

Chile is one of the few nations in the world which has two political chambers

which are elected in the same way. The errors of a political majority in the

Chamber of Deputies are not corrected, but rather, on the contrary, are approved

by the same majority in the Senate .... If the Senate had a functional extraction

in all or in part, it would be possible to manage to correct the laws of an

economic nature which are dictated by the Chamber of Deputies, on a technical

basis and inspired directly by the possibilities of carrying them out .... The

state, as it is conceived by the Partido Agrario Laborista, is above all a living

organism, efficient, constructive, of great probity and with a profound national

sentiment, or rather, the opposite of our present bureaucratic state."




The PAL grew rapidly. In the municipal elections of 1947 it

managed to elect 66 councillors with 24,755 votes, 4.5 per cent of

the total cast." In March 1949 parliamentary elections took place.

The PAL decided to support the senatorial candidacy for Santiago

of the ex-President of the Republic, Carlos Ibanez del Campo.

This secured for the party an enormous number of voters who

were unconditional supporters of Ibanez. But, at the same time,

it meant that the party lost its ideological uniformity, as these new

members did not completely share its doctrines.

The Ibafiist support and the growing unpopularity of the govern-

ment helped the PAL to expand rapidly. It elected three senators:Jaime Larrain, Carlos Ibanez and Alberto del Pedregal, and 14

deputies, winning 38,742 votes, 8.3 per cent of the votes cast. At

least 3 of the 14 deputies belonging to the PAL were former

members of the MNSCH.47

At the time of the presidential elections of 1952, the supporters

of Jaime Larrain left the Partido Agrario Laborista to support the

candidate of the right. A majority of the party, however, decided

to support Carlos Ibanez, who would be the victorious candidate.As a result, the PAL became the majority party in national politics

after the elections of March 1953, in which it won seats for 3

senators and 26 deputies - 117,185 votes, 15.43 per cent of the

total cast."

In addition to these party manifestations associated with unar-

ticulated Chilean nazism, there were certain publications which

followed the same ideological tendencies as the former MNSCH,

of which the most important was La Nueva Edad, edited byMiguel

Serrano, who publicly supported German nazism."

The management of the PAL was strongly influenced by

elements that had previously belonged to the MNSCH. Among

these were figures such as the Deputies Javier Lira Merino, Sergio

Recabarren Valenzuela, Jose Foncea Aedo and Alfredo Leo-Plaza

Saenz and the party officials Carlos Montero S.,Orlando Latorre

G. and Pedro Foncea Aedo, among others. The pro-nazi sector

of the PAL called itself the 'Bandera Negra' (Black Flag) in

remembrance of the MNSCH, and had the intention of bringingup to date the mystical nationalism of the years 1932-8. Neverthe-

less, the party began to lose strength and influence, first gradually

and then more rapidly, the result of the heterogeneity of its compo-

nents. Its excessive appetite for government jobs and the corrosive

action of the personality cult associated with Ibanez would ulti-




mately divide the party into antagonistic factions. The campaign

before the 1958 presidential elections sparked the party's crisis, as

party militants participated in the four rival presidential candi-

datures," In a final attempt to keep the party alive, the greater

part of these groups reunited in the Partido Nacional Popular at

the end of 1958.

During the 1960s there occurred the most serious and pictur-

esque attempts to organize a 'nazi' party. In 1964, a language

teacher, Franz Pfeiffer, organized the Partido Nacional Socialista

Obrero de Chile (PNSOCH), of which he proclaimed himself

commander. This party would merely be a servile imitation of theGerman original: symbols, programmes, uniforms and ceremonies

were copied exactly from the German NSDAP. It attracted pub-

licity by its uniforms," drawing graffiti on walls, or by such pictur-

esque actions as the organization of a beauty contest to choose

'Miss Nazi." The extravagance of this group even reached the

extreme of trying to organize a Chilean branch of the Ku Klux

Klan.

The electoral participation of the PNSOCH was limited to themunicipal elections of 1963 and the presidential elections of 1964.

In the former, its candidate for the first district of Santiago in the

list of the Partido Dernocratico Nacional was Renan Valdes Von

Benewitz, ex-nacista, who received few votes. In the presidential

elections, Pfeiffer nominated as his candidate the ex-general Hora-

cio Gamboa Nunez, who accepted." This party was disbanded in

1970, when Franz Pfeiffer resigned as its president, explaining in a

public declaration his motives for doing SO.S4

In the last few years a number of groups have appeared whichhave tried to revive 'el nacismo', especially that represented by

the MNSCH. Having few adherents and carrying little weight

among the different social classes, their actions are limited to

drawing graffiti on walls and nostalgic ceremonies. 55

The most important of these groups is under the influence of the

writer and ex-diplomat Miguel Serrano Fernandez, who describes

himself as the 'mentor' of the Chilean national socialists. The

postulates of Serrano, of 'Hitlerism', as he defines it,56and whichhe terms a 'religion', are a mixture of idealism and philosophical

fantasy. Among his ideas we can identify anti-capitalism, anti-

communism, opposition to liberal democracy, racism, anti-semi-

tism? and a totalitarian conception of society and the state.

As regards the Chilean military government, the nazis criticized




its management of the country, and even accused it of acting

against their interests. They claimed that it introduced 'confusion'

among possible sympathizers of their movement, since it might

make possible supporters think that the nazis represented the

same ideas as the military government, a situation they maintained

was not true.

The most virulent national socialist criticism was directed

against the economic policy of General Pinochet and the team

which advised him in these matters.58 In the institutional area, the

nazis termed the eighth article of the constitution of 1980,which

outlawed totalitarian doctrines, a 'very bad joke'. According tothem, this could be arbitrarily directed against those who were

considered to be political enemies at any particular moment. For

Serrano, it was difficult to understand that nazism could be

included in the group of political ideologieswhichmade up fascism

and communism, which were excluded from the political system

after they were considered totalitarian." In this sense, the Chilean

nazis declare themselves to be anti-democratic, although they

accept elections when they involve selecting the best from amongthose who make up a 'unitary party'.

Due to the eighth article and as a result of a pamphlet which

falsified the names of supporters and in which 'a reorganization

of the Partido Nacional Socialista Obrero de Chile' was called

for, ex-commander Franz Pfeiffer was placed under preventive

detention in January 1984.

According to the version given by the ex-Jefe, various national

socialist sympathizers who recognized his leadership, during a

congress of the Nazi Youth of Chile in the southern city of Concep-

cion between 26 and 30 December 1983, issued a joint com-

munique, calling for the reorganization of the PNSOCH.60

Pfeiffer's manoeuvre was intended to take advantage of the con-

gress of young nazis and to capitalize on the moment of political

confusion that existed after the first protests against the military

government since its establishment ten years before.

We have presented an outline of the Chilean national socialist

phenomenon as embodied in the Movimiento Nacional Socialista

de Chile. From what has been said, we can draw certain con-

clusions, which will help us to explain the characteristics of this

native-born version of nazism.




The Movimiento Nacional Socialista was created in 1932under

the influence of two stimuli: the example of the German model

whichwas at the zenith of its popularity and on the point of taking

power, it also formed part of the civilian reaction of the period.

The MNSCH questioned the weakness of the government of Mon-

tero Rodriguez and the uncontrolled anarchism of the leftists and

those groups which supported individual leaders. Itpostulated, on

the other hand, the creation of an authoritarian state, strong and

integral which would restore to Chile its historical role."

Despite this, both Jorge Gonzalez and certain scholars who are

sympathetic to his actions emphasize the Chilean character of 'elnacismo', denying that it was influenced by the NSDAP. It should

be pointed out that General Francisco Javier Diaz, who had

received advanced military training in Germany, knowing of the

political interests of Jorge Gonzalez, invited himand Carlos Keller

to tea at his house in order to encourage them to create in Chile

a national socialistmovement similar to the German one, based on

the party programme of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party. Jorge Gonzalez

informed General Diaz that there was already in formation amovement that, although 'it was inspired by the nazi and fascist

currents fashionable at the moment', was intended to be com-

pletely Chilean, with a nationalistic programme based on the con-

cepts of government of Diego Portales.'?

Whenever the topic was mentioned, the 'nacistas' roundly

denied their relationship with fascism and especially with nazism,

even managing to deny the influence that these groups had on

their movement. When organizing the movement, Jorge Gonzalez

had affirmed exactly the opposite, assuming a much more credible

and true position.v' It is evident that fascism and principally

nazism, after it took power, had a strong influence on the MNSCH.

This starts with the name nacismo, identical to the German

'nazism' and its leadership by a Fuhrer - Jete, both words having

the same meaning in their respective languages. Then there were

the uniform of brown shirts with cap, tie, diagonal sash and belt,

the displaying of flags - although in Chile there was not such a

wide variety - emblazoning a red bolt of lightning (a symbolused by the SS); the Roman salute, with the arm held upright at

an angle of 45° and the difficult salute of the Jete with the arm

doubled at an angle and the palm of the hand facing forward

which was copied directly from that of the Fuhrer. Many of the

entities that made up the organization were the same as or similar




to those of its homonym: the nacista assault troops, the TNA,

whose role was to protect the Jete, nacista meetings and the sale

of publications, and to spread nacista propaganda. In German

nazism, this organization was known as the SA (Sturmabteilung

= storm troops). The Chilean equivalent eventually even had the

same anthem as Hitler's SA, the Horst Wessel song."

As regards anti-semitism, although Gonzalez von Marees denied

its existence, except in relation to those Jews who supposedly had

plans of racial imperialism, we only need to mention an old poster

of the MNSCH which said 'Nacismo means the liberation of Chile

from the economic yoke of international Judaism'; also, on 23March 1936, Jorge Gonzalez von Marees signed an editorial in the

newspaper Trabajo entitled 'At the mercy of Jewish imperialism'.

Finally, we can define the MNSCH as a particular type of fascism

inserted within this influential movement that was characteristic

of the period between the two world wars, but was influenced

by national realities. As the spokesman of the movement, Jorge

Gonzalez said: 'It is my duty to act in accordance with our previous

activities. We have said many times that we have the fascist spirit.Nevertheless, within the Chilean reality, within the evolution of

the events.'" In effect, for the MNSCH there existed a universal

fascist spirit and the realization of that spirit was something essen-

tially national, which concerned each country where it appeared.

When the constitution of 1925 was reactivated with the so-called

'Civil Restoration' of Arturo Alessandri Palma," the possibilities

of the growth and triumph of nazism weakened; it became a

brawling and isolated political force, whose principal source of

recruits came from the young members of the urban lower-middle

class, without any possibility of reaching power through electoral

means."

The MNSCH, from its beginnings, always displayed a marked

hostility towards the liberal and conservative parties of the right;

in addition, it showed itself to be a strong critic of the aristocratic

and plutocratic groups, which, according to the nazis, controlled

national life and to which it attributed responsibility for the misery

of the lower classes and the decadence of the country. This virulentantagonism towards the conservative forces, together with the lack

of any considerable support in the Catholic church and the army,

would be one of the decisive causes of the failure of Chileannational socialism."

The right-wing sectors felt they had a sufficient guarantee in




President Arturo Alessandri, the basis of whose government was

formed by the Liberal and Conservative parties. As a complement

to the 'iron hand' which Alessandri used between 1932 and 1936,

the right also relied on the support of the Milicia Republicana,

whose armed strength and incontestable support of the govern-

ment assured them an efficient response to any attempt to repeat

the instability of the years 1931-2. In this context, 'el nacismo'

appeared as a disturbing element in the institutional model that

these dominant sectors were interested in developing, especially

from 1937 on. This was the date when the MNSCH, under the

absolute control of Jorge Gonzalez von Marees, began to identify

itself with the Chilean left in the lower chamber of the parliament.

Finally, 'el nacismo' would come into conflict again with the right

when it rejected the monopoly of the Conservative Party over the

Catholic vote.

Its evolution towards the left and its later transformation into

the Vanguardia Popular Socialista (VPS) would mark the start

of the decadence and disintegration of nazism. An important

sector, in which was found the ideologist of the party, CarlosKeller Rueff, rejected this transformation and tried to create other

nationalist organizations, which would preserve the essential

characteristics of the movement.

- The VPS did not have the military mysticism or the purely

revolutionary aims of nazism. Rather, it was a political movement

with purely opportunistic aims'" that rapidly lost strength until its

demise in 1942. To a great extent, the final collapse of the VPS

was due to the preposterous and picturesque political conduct of

the Jete, Jorge Gonzalez von Marees."

Despite its extinction as a party, the ideals of the MNSCH were

partially incorporated into the programme of later parties which

suffered different fates. Among these were the Movimiento

Nacionalista de Chile, the Partido Agrario Laborista, the Partido

Nacional Agrario, the Acci6n Nacional and the Partido Nacional,

which later had an influence on the development of home-grown

nationalism.

The leaders and members of the MNSCH dispersed in all direc-tions within national politics. The ex-nazis reached distinguished

positions in the various parties and groups in which they later

participated. We need only mention Jorge Gonzalez von Marees,

Secretary-General of the Liberal Party, afterwards a supporter of

the candidature of Eduardo Frei Montalva in 1958; Jorge Jimenez




Pinochet, Minister of Health in the Unidad Popular Government;

Rene Silva Espejo, director of the EI Mercurio newspaper ofSantiago; Luis Undurraga Correa, a liberal, then a national deputy;

Jose Foncea Aedo, a Christian Democrat senator; Javier Lira

Merino, a Christian Democrat ambassador."

Of the MNSCH, no traces remain today. Many attempts in the

decades after 1941 to revive it under different labels all failed.

Today there are only small romantic groups of an esoteric charac-

ter such as that led by the writer and ex-ambassador to India,

Miguel Serrano, whose importance is minimal. It is necessary to

emphasize that these small groups are inspired by Germannational socialism and not by its vanished Chilean version.

Notes

1. For the differences from the classic British systemwhich inspired it, see JaimeEtchepare and Victor Garcia, 'EI parlamentarismo a la chilena', Revista Atenea,

457, 1 (1988), 192-203.

2. For example, the situation of the working classes and the deterioration of the

public finances due to the nitrate crisis after the first world war.

3. Arturo Alessandri's reformist government (1920-5) did not manage to fulfil

the expectations that it had aroused when it came to power. This was due princi-

pally to a lack of discipline in the political parties that made up the Alianza

Liberal, and the nitrate crisis.

4. On 5 September 1924, young army officers in Santiago carried out a coup

d'etat, demanding political reforms. Again, on 23 January 1925, a new militarymovement seized power because of the move to the right of the government that

had emerged from the previous military coup.

5. The results of the plebiscite called by the government to approve its proposed

constitution were the following: registered voters: 303,608 (only literate men, over

21 years old, who were registered in the electoral roll, could vote); in favour:

127,483; against: 5,448; blank votes: 6,690; absentions: 171,687.

6. The Minister of the Interior, Carlos Ibanez del Campo, demanded that the

President of the Supreme Court, Javier Angel Figueroa Larrain, the brother of

the President of the Republic, be dismissed from office.

7. Since 1924, Carlos Ibanez del Campo had become a leader among the youngofficers of the army. He led the so-called Military Committee. He wasAlessandri's

Minister of War and forced him to resign. He had a great influence in politics from

then on until his government fell on 26 July 1931.

8. The results were as follows:Carlos Ibanez del Campo, 223,441 (98.0 per cent);

blank and void, 4,631 (2.9 per cent); voters, 228,372 (100 per cent); abstentions,

73,770 (24.0 per cent); voters registered, 302,142.




9. Examples: radicals: Juan Antonio Rios, Pablo Ramirez, Enrique Oyarzun;

conservatives: Arturo Lyon Pefia, Francisco Urrejola Menchaca, Joaquin Ech-

enique; democrats: Humberto Martinez, Fidel Munoz, Fidel Estay, and so on.10. Itwas characterized by instability in its governments-coups d'etat, cuartela-

zos (forcible occupations of military installations), and the appearance of new

political tendencies. This process was similar to that which took place between

1827 and 1829,from which it drew its name.

11. The 'historical parties' are those political movements that emerged during

the nineteenth century: the Liberal, Conservative, National, Radical and Demo-

cratic parties.

12. SergioMiranda Carrington, Homenaje a los veinte anos del Nacismo chileno,

5 de Septiembre 1938,5 de Septiembre de 1958 (Santiago 1958).

13. E.g., the attack on the 'Esmeralda' Regiment in Copiapo, a rebelIiion inVallenar and the mutiny of the fleet which was anchored off Coquimbo.

14. Jorge Gonzalez, leader of el nacismo, was responsible for the course of the

movement, as it was indissolubly linked with his person. He organized it in 1932,

moved it to the left in 1937,was mainly responsible for the failed coup d'etat of 5

September 1938, supported the Popular Front candidate in October of that year,

was responsible for its later transformation into the Vanguardia Popular Socialista,

and was an important cause of its extinction due to his violent, erratic and irrespon-

sible behaviour.

15. They were: (a) the Secretary-General; (b) the Finance and Treasury Section;

(c) the Press and Propaganda Section; (d) the Studies and Research Section; (e)the Social Services; (f) the Electoral Commission.

16. The Provincial Commissioners nominated the Departmental Commissioners

who nominated the Communal Commissioners; they were appointed for an indefi-

nite period, but could be removed from office by the authority which had nomi-

nated them.

17. This authority was very similar to the one that the Fascist Grand Council

finally used to remove the 'Duce '. Its first members were Ramon Valdivieso,

Roberto Vergara, Francisco Infante Casanueva, Eduardo Undurraga Alemparte,

Fernanado Ortuzar Vial and Baeza Gofii,

18. In their respective centres of economic activity, the nazis were grouped incells.

19. The professional nuclei were supposed to: (a) study the problems of regional

and national interest, give conferences and publish papers on them; (b) organize

public meetings to make known the ideals of the movement; (c) maintain libraries

and popular schools, dispensaries, sports centres, and so on; (d) maintain co-

operative and friendly societies.

20. This was made up of nazis who carried out voluntary work and physical

exercises, preparing themselves for the society of the future.

21. This group had a peculiar name: the blood-donors.

22. 'Once the Council had made that decision (three-quarters of the members

of the Council had to vote in favour of it), the Leader could then dismiss the

Council and immediately call for the nomination of new members to it. If the

new Council confirmed his removal, the Leader had to obey and the Council

would then appoint the new Leader.' El Imparcial, 2 November 1932.

23. The Guilds would be determined by the Leader of each Professional Nucleus.

24. 'According to what has been said by the Leader, el nacismo does not accept




that racial conflicts should be brought to Chile, as these would cause irreparable

harm to our nationality. Both as a principle as well as for convenience sake, the

access to our territory should be wide open to all foreigners who wish to establish

themselves here, with the only condition that they should be honourable elements,

willingto co-operate honourably and efficiently in the process of national progress.'

Editorial, 'Posicion del Nacismo en materia racial', Trabajo, 27 January 1938.

25. 'The present division of the state into three independent powers is fictitious

and weakens the working of the public authority to the point that it is paralyzed.

The constitutional conflict came from the claim to conciliate the activity of two

different powers both claiming to represent the popular will. The MNSCH will

add the legislative faculty to the president's powers, which he would exercise

through a council representing the different national activities. The judicial power

is also under the control of the President of the Republic, as regards the functionalconduct of its members.'

26. Acci6n Chilena, 11,7 (August 1934), 248.

27. 'Our movement is not a political party. We abominate political parties and

declare their existence to be pernicious ... , we will destroy and eliminate the

political parties which are, in general, groups of petty politicians, industrialists of

the constitution, merchants of liberty and commercial exploiters of the purest and

most noble ideals of the citizenry.'

28. Trabajo, 15 January 1937. Radio broadcast of Jorge Gonzalez von Marees

commenting on the Senate's approval of the proposed Internal State Security Law.

29. 'Annihilate Marxism, which is extending itself harmfully throughout theworking masses now left to their miseries. this is another slogan of ours which we

are determined to carry out without hesitation. Our country will once again feel

flowing through its veins the noble throbbing of its glorious Chilean blood instead

of the tendentious international communist propaganda, which intends to destroy

the primordial bases of our Western culture. It will know how to recognize and

take its place in the army of peace, discipline, work and social solidarity that will

bring about the greatness of Chile.'

30. Carlos Keller, La eterna crisis chilena (Santiago 1931),40.

31. 'What nazism intends is that religion should abandon active politics com-

pletely. The role of the Church is essentially spiritual. a field within which theState should permit it ample liberty.'

32. 'Jorge Gonzalez', Revista Que Pasa, no. 115, 28 June 1973,42.

33. Jose Sanchez, 'Mision del fascismo en Chile', Acci6n Chilena, 29 March

1934.

34. Chamber of Deputies. Boletin de Sesiones Ordinarias, I (1938), 108.

35. 'If they close the legal routes to us, we will not hesitate to use any means

available no matter how hard they may be, so as to obtain the triumph of our

ideals. In that case, we willnot be held responsible for what may happen.' Editorial,

'Advertencia necesaria', Trabajo, 9 January 1937.

36. Contrary to the figure given by Jean Pierre Blancpain in Les allemands auChili 1816--1945,the MNSCH obtained 14,235 votes and not 18,150. Also, its

electoral peak was reached in April 1938 and not in March 1937.The latter was

only its peak in the parliamentary elections.

37. The Union Socialista, whose most important leader was Ricardo Latcham

Alfaro, had withdrawn from the Partido Socialista so as to be able to support the

presidential candidature of General Ibanez.




38. Carlos Ibanez withdrew his candidature and informed his supporters that

they were free to act as they saw fit, while the nazi leader, from jail, called on his

followers to support Pedro Aguirre Cerda.

39. In order to obtain a complete picture of the transformation of the MNSCH

into the VPS, see the work of Mario Valdes Urrutia, 'La transformaci6n del

Movimiento Nacional Socialista de Chile en Vanguardia Popular Socialista y su

accionar politico durante el Gobierno del Frente Popular, 1938-1941', a paper

presented at the VII Jornadas de Historia de Chile, Universidad de Talca, Talca,

November 1987.

40. This transformation was made official during the Second General Congress

of the Nascismo, which took place in January 1939.Those who supported the idea

that the old nationalist and anti-Marxist positions should bemaintained confronted

the supporters of the new positions which the Jete now held.41. The Minister of the Interior obtained from the Director of the Medical

Service an arrest order which ordered Jorge Gonzalez to undergo a psychiatric

examination, in accordance with the Public Health Code. After an exchange of

shots, he was taken to the psychiatric hosptial. The Supreme Court later ordered

him to be freed and ruled that the psychiatric examination should not take place.

42. Notable was the controversy about the compatibility or incompatibility of

being a mason and a member of the party. See Anuario Departamento de Historia,

Universidad Metropolitana de Ciencias de la Educaci6n, Santiago, 1986.Interview

with Guillermo Izquierdo Araya.

43. Guillermo Izquierdo Araya, op. cit.44. Uni6n Nacional Revolucionaria Corporativista, UNARCO, directed byHed-

ilberto Bizama Merino. Partido Nacionalista de Chile. Also led by Bizama. Legion

Nacional Funcionalista of Jose Valdes, and so on.

45. Speech by Jaime Larrain, president of the PAL. El Mercurio de Santiago, 10

October 1949,45 and 47.

46. The figures are those of the electoral registry.

47. Javier Lira Merino, Santiago, Ist electoral district; Arnaldo Rodriguez Lazo,

Santiago, 2nd electoral district; Alfred Leo-Plaza Saez, Valdivia.

48. Results provided by the national electoral registry.

49. This journal was published for slightlymore than two years, and containedarticles that were aggressive and mystical-fantastical.

50. A majority of the party, its leaders and parliamentarians supported Eduardo

Frei. A large sector calling itself the 'Partido Agrario Laborista Recuperacionista',

led by Senator Jose Garcia Gonzalez, 9th provincial district, and the deputies

Miranda M. Carlos, O'Higgins, and Hardy Momberg Roa, Cautin, were with

Arturo Alessandri. Supporting Salvador Allende Gossens were the senator for the

6th electoral district, Rafael Tarud, and the deputy, Alfonso David Lab6n. Luis

Bossey Leiva was supported by the deputy for Valparaiso and Quillota, Joaquin

Muraro. The ex-Jete, Jorge Gonzalez, now the Director-General of the Liberal

Party, backed Eduardo Frei.51. At the beginning of the movement, its members marched in uniform, with

swastika armbands, through the streets of the port city of Valparaiso, causing

incidents with counter-demonstrators.

52. The contest was evidently organized for publicity purposes. The winner was

Delia Wahn who posed in a bikini and a swastika for well-known magazines of

the period.




53. Horacio Gamboa Nunez had been the martial law commander in Santiago

in April 1957 during the government of Carlos Ibanez when there were demon-

strations in which a number of demonstrators were killed. During the governmentof Eduardo Frei he was arrested as a conspirator, when an attempted coup d'etat

was discovered.

54. In it he indicated: 'During five years I suffered persecution, insults and

misery because I had devoted myself completely to the national socialist ideal. I

was ignored by my comrades in the struggle at the time of our great successes,

and blamed and insulted for our defeats. This ended in tricks and open betrayal

originating in the fatal personal ambitions of individuals suffering from complexes

due to their absolute insignificancein the society of today, and inpolitical adventur-

ism in the case of others .... As there are some persons who intend to make

use of the dissolved organization and my personal ascendancy over innumerablecomrades, I have considered it necessary to make the present declaration, so that

nobody will be drawn into political adventures in which they will suffer easily

foreseeable consequences' (El Mercurio, 20 January 1970, 7).

55. Among their most important public ceremonies we can mention the homage

rendered to Walter Rauff during his funeral and a tribute paid to Rudolf Hess at

the time of his death which took place in the General Cemetery of Santiago. 'In

this demonstration around 150 persons dressed in black uniforms and arm bands

with swastikas gathered around the obelisk which commemorates the young Chi-

lean national socialists who died on 5 September 1938 in the Workers' Insurance

Building. German veterans of the second world war, a few young men and women,effectively gave the nazi salute various times in front of a stage with the imperial

eagle of the Third Reich, and three flags: one with the swastika, another with the

symbol of the German secret police, and another with the Chilean national symbol'

iRevista Andlisis, no. 202,November 1987,32).

56. 'The concept of the world represented by "Hitlerism" can be synthesized as

"national socialism". We are neither international socialists, nor Marxists, nor are

we capitalists.We are neither with the bourgeoisie or with the economic liberalism,

nor are we with international socialism, that is,Marxism' (Revista Analisis, no. 202,

November 1987, 32).

57. The principal enemy of Chile, according to Serrano, continues to be theJews,who control communism and world economic imperialism. Thus he accuses

international Judaism of trying to establish in the Argentine-Chilean Patagonia a

great Jewish state, with its capital at Viedma.

58. 'The true Chilean national socialists cannot support the system of super-

capitalism which has been established in Chile during the last fourteen years.'

59. 'All ideologies, every philosophical system is totalitarian. Is not Catholicism

totalitarian, because it tries to deliver a total and global vision of the world?'

60. .... due to the grave crisis which hangs over the nation, due to the failure

of the economic policy, the increase in terrorism and the demagogy of the oppo-

sition, we have decided to proceed with the unification of national socialism inone great movement'.

61. These ideas were clearly expressed in the page dedicated to nazism of El

Imparcial, 1932.

62. Rodrigo Allende Gonzalez, 'El Jefe' (Santiago 1990),48-9.

63. 'I do not deny it. We consider that fascism, in its fundamental ideas, is not

only an Italian movement but a world one. It represents the spontaneous and




natural reaction of the peoples against the political decomposition produced by

the liberal-democratic state. It represents the triumph of the "Great Politics", that

is, of politics directed by the few superior men of each generation over themediocrity,which constitutes the characteristic feature of liberalism. It also signifies

the predominance of the blood and the race over economic materialism and

internationalism. In this sense we are fascists, without this meaning, in any way,

that we intend to copy Italian fascism or German Hitlerism. Our movement is

characterized by its essentially nationalistic tendency.' Cited by Julio Cesar Jobet,

Ensayo Critico del Desarollo Econ6mico-social de Chile (Santiago 1951), 187.

64. Alliende Gonzalez, op.cit., 55"'{).

65. 'EI nacionalsocialismo ante el fascismo universal', Trabajo, 25 November

1938.

66. The second government ofArturo Alessandri Palma (1932-8) re-establishedinstitutional normality, which had been non-existent since the overthrow of the

constitutional government of Juan Esteban Montero (4 June 1932) by the socialist

and other groups supporting individual leaders.

67. The MNSCH never managed to elect representatives in the rural areas. The

only three deputies that it ever had were for the three departments of the country

which elected the largest number of deputies: Valparaiso and Quillota, the First

District of Santiago and Cautin.

68. Italy and Germany provide a clear example of how important the support

of these groups was for the victory of fascist movements.

69. The VPS initially supported the Popular Front government, then it joinedthe right in the parliamentary elections of 1941.

70. Jorge Gonzalez von Marees joined the Liberal Party, eventually becoming

its Secretary-General, and an assiduous mingIer socially with Arturo Alessandri

Palma, the man who was responsible for the executions carried out in the Workers'

Insurance Building.

71. There are few doubts that the greater part of the ex-nazis who were politi-

cally active joined the Christian Democrats. According to certain commentators,

the tactics and methods used by this party were influenced by the nazi-fascist

methods: the spectacularity of its meetings and parades, its youth organization,

and so forth. Conceptually, its ideas of popular promotion, the party hegemony andits monopoly on power when in government and the idea of the 'new era' are all

closely linked with those movements. This was emphasized by Hugo Rosende

Subiare, a Conservative Party candidate for the Senate, during the 1965 elections.




Jaime Antonio Etchepare

is a Professor of History at the Universityof Concepcion, Chile. He is the author of

numerous articles and books on Chilean

and European political history.

Hamish I. Stewart

is an Associate Professor at the University

of Playa Ancha, Valparaiso. He has

published widely in the areas of

international history, especially the

period 1919-45, and British and North

American Studies, and Voyages of

Exploration.

Documents

Nazism in Chile