Continental conservatism

Continental conservatism, also known as Latin Conservatism is a political ideology in southern Europe expressed by noted Savoyard thinker Joseph de Maistre and which reached its peak in Spain under Francisco Franco, though many elements of continental conservatism were already advocated in the 17th century by Padre Antonio Vieira and some principles undoubtedly reach back to antiquity (cf. Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics.)

Maistre versus Burke

In contrast to Burkean Conservatism, which originated at about the same time, continental onservatism is uncompromising in its belief in the need for order. While Burke supported constitutionalism and some degree of democracy, Maistre, like Thomas Hobbes before him, though with a more religious tone, supported authoritarianism as the only means of avoiding violent disorder. Burkean gradualism would seem to allow for the incrementalism of Fabian Socialism, whereas continental conservatism , with its insistence on the inexorability of the natural and supernatural orders and the superiority of the supernatural over the natural, would not.

Maistre, a diplomat who had to flee for his life during the French Revolution, became convinced that ultra-liberal ideas, particularly Rousseau's theory of a "general will", had led to the horrors of the French Revolution and the bloodshed of the Napoleonic Wars. In forceful terms he compared the situation of his day to the Book of Genesis.

"Order" was the divine will, "chaos" the devil's will and "revolution" was original sin. But Maistre also objected to the quasi-secularism and self-indulgence of some late 18th century monarchies, and believed that state and church must remain inseparable.

He summed up how moral order, in his opinion, had to be maintained in what became the unofficial motto of Latin Conservatism, "the pope and the executioner". Maistre's dislike of leftist intellectuals also influenced later conservatives in southern Europe.

Maistre's political beliefs seemed to triumph for a time after the Bourbon Restoration of 1815, but the revolutions that swept Europe in 1830 and 1848 allowed the liberal and sometimes the radical left to predominate through much of the continent. That Spain remained a monarchy through the 19th century can in part be attributed to Maistre's influence.

The next major figures of Latin Conservatism to arise were the Catalunyan priest Jaime Balmes and Spanish nobleman Juan Donoso Cortés. The latter, in particular, examined Liberalism and its variants in light of the Catholic understanding of the doctrine of Original Sin. His masterwork "An Essay on Catholicism, Liberalism, and Socialism" developed this analysis at length; in summary form, written as a letter to Cardinal Fornari, his work was influential in shaping the Syllabus of Errors of Pope Pius IX. His influence is also clearly evident in the encyclical "Libertas præstantissimum" of Pope Leo XIII. Balmes and Donoso both died relatively young, and their influence diminished. It was to take the upsurge of anarchism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to revive Latin Conservatism.

Felix Sarda y Salvany was a Spanish Catholic priest and writer, famous for his book El Liberalismo es Pecado, which was reprinted countless times. He believed that liberalism is the "radical and absolute negation of the sovereignty of God", all the more dangerous since it became an official error, introduced into the government of princes by powerful figures.

Anarchism and Francoist Spain

The most noted 20th century example of continental conservatism occurred in Spain, following 19th century events. In the late 19th century, some strains of anarchist thought became increasingly violent, with new generations becoming increasingly nihilistic in their beliefs and using terrorism to promote their ideas. Some attribute this development to the influence of Mikhail Bakunin, though this is disputed – see his article for details. Notably, Tsar Alexander II of Russia and President William McKinley in the United States were both assassinated by anarchists, and anarchists in Spain launched a series of fatal attacks on Roman Catholic churches in 1909. In Spain, where the Catholic influence was very strong, Maistre's ideas had renewed appeal.

The extreme violence of the left set the stage for perhaps the greatest triumph of continental conservatism. Violence between the left and right culminated in the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), and the right, under Francisco Franco, emerged victorious.

Franco, a devout Catholic and advocate of nationalcatolicismo often considered to be a fascist, was intent on destroying violent anarchism and immorality and restoring Catholicism as the state religion and was willing to resort to extreme measures to achieve his goals, as were the leftists. Each side murdered about 80,000 political opponents during the war, and Franco executed some 10,000 more left-wingers after the war.

During Franco's rule as dictator (1939–1975), the principles of Maistre's continental conservatism were fully instituted in Spain. Many theaters, which in pre-Franco Spain had were regarded as leftist and amoral, were shut down, and theatre and cinema were heavily censored.

Catholic faith was required to hold a government post. Political dissent was not allowed. Even as Europe became increasingly liberal in the 1950s and 1960s, Franco held firm to his ideas.

He died in 1975 believing that he had chosen a successor more akin to his ideas, however Juan Carlos, while giving tribute to Franco after his death, led the Spanish transition to democracy and Franco's death essentially ended continental conservatism as a major political force. In the United States, however, ideas of a similar nature developed independently with some influence from continental conservatism, and are currently held by paleoconservatives like Pat Buchanan and members of the Constitution Party.

Influence and legacy

In Europe, its influence is apparent in the ideas of Jean-Marie Le Pen and his party, Front National, in France, as well as marginal, insignificant groups in other European countries.

Like all political ideologies, continental conservatism is the source of much controversy. To conservatives and to many Roman Catholics, it was the only way to prevent the extreme anarchism and violence prevalent at many times in history.

To liberals, however, continental conservatism was an inexcusable and overbearing infringement on personal rights. Even its bitterest opponents, however, would concede that under Franco, continental conservatism did achieve its goal of maintaining order.

Read further

• Antonio Salazar, Portuguese dictator 1932-1968, also adopted many tenets of Latin Conservatism
• Charles Maurras, founder of the Action Française, was an atheist but embraced much of Latin Conservatism
• Philippe Pétain, head of Vichy France, Maurras' "divine surprise"
• Léon Degrelle, head of the Belgian Catholic Rexist movement
• Engelbert Dollfuß, Catholic anti-Nazi Austrofascist
• Clerical fascism