The Making of the Slovak People’s Party: Religion, Nationalism and the Culture War in Early 20th-Century Europe (International Library of Twentieth Century History)

Winner of the BASEES George Blazyca Prize In 1945, just six years after coming to power, the Slovak People's Party (SLS) was disbanded as a 'criminal organisation' and its leader - Jozef Tiso - hanged for treason. What made it possible for the SLS, initially founded in 1905 by priests to represent the Catholic Slovak minority residing in the north of the Kingdom of Hungary, to form an openly pro-Nazi government in 1939? And what put Slovakia on the path to a 'fascism' that would see more than 45,000 Jews deported to their deaths in 1942? To answer these questions, Thomas Lorman draws on more than a decade's research in archives across the region in Hungarian, Slovak and Latin, and studies the party's formative years in depth for the first time in English. Lorman examines the various strands which fused to form the party and its popularity, including a complex and nebulous nationalism, Catholicism and a resounding mistrust of liberalism and 'modernity'. The Making of the Slovak People's Party is a vital and timely study of the genesis and success of far-right movements that will be essential reading for all scholars working on 20th-century Eastern European history, nationalism and the interplay of religion and politics. Title Page Copyright Page Contents List of Illustrations Acknowledgements Note on Terminology Introduction: In the Name of God Chapter 1: The Liberal Onslaught The historical context Magyar nationalism Centralization The electoral system Anticlericalism Magyarization The economic crisis Emigration Urbanization Alcoholism and the fear of moral collapse Philosemitism Chapter 2: A New Opposition The Independence and Forty-Eighter Party The conservative opposition The SNS The KNP The KNP and Catholic civil society The new civic activism Slovak Catholic activism The Slovak Catholic press Slovak Catholic associations: The Society of Saint Adalbert Slovak sodalities Slovak Catholic clubs Other Slovak associations: Banks Slovak cooperatives Slovak missions The limits of Catholic associationalism Political legacy Chapter 3: The Birth of the Party The new leader The relaunch of the Katolícke noviny The parliamentary crisis of 1905 The break between Skyčák and the KNP The founding impulses of the SĽS The 1906 parliamentary elections Chapter 4: Purging the Party Relations with the SNS The failed alliance with the Social Democrats The failed alliance with the other minorities The failed alliance with the KNP The failed attempt to build up a party organization The failed alliance with the government The relaunch of the party Chapter 5: Turning against Hungary – Turning against Czechoslovakia Czechoslovak liberalism Centralization Anticlericalism Czechification The economic crisis Emigration Urbanization Alcoholism and the fear of moral collapse Philosemitism The first response: The clerical council The second response: A new/old party The cult of the mercurial leader Ideological ambiguity Ambiguous antisemitism Embracing political autonomy Chapter 6: A Path to Fascism? The influence of Tuka The young radicals The cult of youth The fascist influence and the Rodobrana The Nástupists The Hlinka Guard The alienation of progressive Slovak Catholics Moderates into radicals From autonomy to independence Conclusion: The Other Culture War Notes Introduction Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Conclusion Bibliography Archival Sources Official Records Newspapers Books and Journal Articles Index "In 1945, just six years after coming to power, the Slovak People's Party (SLS) was disbanded as a 'criminal organisation' and its leader -- Jozef Tiso -- hanged for treason. What made it possible for the SLS, initially founded in 1905 by priests to represent the Catholic Slovak minority residing in the north of the Kingdom of Hungary, to form an openly pro-Nazi government in 1939? And what put Slovakia on the path to a 'fascism' that would see more than 45,000 Jews deported to their deaths in 1942? To answer these questions, Thomas Lorman draws on more than a decade's research in archives across the region in Hungarian, Slovak and Latin, and studies the party's formative years in depth for the first time in English. Lorman examines the various strands which fused to form the party and its popularity, including a complex and nebulous nationalism, Catholicism and a resounding mistrust of liberalism and 'modernity'. The Making of the Slovak People's Party is a vital and timely study of the genesis and success of far-right movements that will be essential reading for all scholars working on 20th-century Eastern European history, nationalism and the interplay of religion and politics."--Bloomsbury Publishing