Fascism in Canada (french: Fascisme au Canada) consists of a variety of movements and political parties in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

during the 20th century. Largely a fringe ideology,

fascism Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy an ...

has never commanded a large following amongst the Canadian people, and it was most popular during the Great Depression. At the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, most Canadian fascist leaders were interned under the

Defence of Canada Regulations The ''Defence of Canada Regulations'' were a set of emergency measures implemented under the ''War Measures Act'' on 3 September 1939, a week before Canada's entry into World War II. The extreme security measures permitted by the regulations ...

and in the post-war period, fascism never recovered its former small influence. During the 1930s, the

Canadian Union of Fascists The Canadian Fascist Party was a fascist political party based in the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada in the 1930s. The formative core of the party was a splinter group from the Canadian Nationalist Party that found the principles of corpor ...

was founded. Based in

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

, it was led by

Chuck Crate Charles Brandle Crate (1916–1992) was a Canadian fascist who was the leader of the Canadian Union of Fascists. He later served in the Royal Canadian Navy and eventually became a teacher. Early years Crate was born and grew up in northern Onta ...

and modeled on

Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a member ...

's British Union of Fascists. Around the same time, in February 1934 in Quebec, the ''Parti national social chrétien'' () was founded by journalist and self-proclaimed "Canadian

Führer ( ; , spelled or ''Fuhrer'' when the umlaut is not available) is a German word meaning "leader" or " guide". As a political title, it is strongly associated with the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler. Nazi Germany cultivated the ("leader princip ...

Adrien Arcand Adrien Arcand (October 3, 1899 – August 1, 1967) was a Canadian journalist who promoted a series of fascist political activities between 1929 and his death in 1967. During his political career, he proclaimed himself the Canadian Führer. He wa ...

. It later merged with the Canadian Nationalist Party in October of that same year. In June 1938, it merged with other fascist groups based in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

and

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

(many of whom were known as " swastika clubs"), to form the National Unity Party of Canada."Fascist Meet"
''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'', 18 July 1938. At the outbreak of World War II, most openly fascist organizations and political parties were banned under the

. Arcand would spend the war under guard at the

Petawawa Petawawa is a town located in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario. Situated in the Ottawa Valley, with a population of 18,160 (2021 Census), Petawawa is the most populous municipality in Renfrew County. Geography The town lies on the west ...

military base alongside other 'enemy organization' leaders, while other members of the movement would be similarly interred in areas of New Brunswick.

References

External links

* {{Hate in Canada

Far-right politics in Canada Canadian far-right political movements Political movements in Canada Political history of Canada

See also

References

Further reading

External links