Imperial Fascist League
Encyclopedia
The Imperial Fascist League (IFL) was a British
fascist
political movement founded by Arnold Leese
in 1929.
and indeed had been one of only two members ever to hold elected office for them (as a councillor in Stamford
). However he split from the BF around 1927 and decamped to London
where in 1929 he established both the IFL and their organ The Fascist. The Fascists Legions, a blackshirted paramilitary arm, was soon added under the command of Leslie H. Sherrard. The group initially advocated such policies as corporatism
, monetary reform
and the removal of citizenship from Jews
. They had around 500 members at most and may have had as few as 150. The group was initially led by Brigadier-General Erskine Tulloch although real power lay with Leese, who was ratified as Director-General in 1932. Henry Hamilton Beamish
, head of The Britons
, served as vice-president of the IFL and was a regular speaker at the movement's events.
(they originally used the fasces
as their emblem) after Leese met Nazi Party propagandist Julius Streicher
in Germany
. Soon anti-Semitism
became the central theme of IFL policy and their new programme, the 'Racial Fascist Corporate State', stressed the supremacy of the 'Aryan race
'. The IFL altered its flag so that it featured the Union Flag
superimposed with the swastika
. As a result of this conversion the IFL enjoyed a higher profile than its membership might suggest, in large part due to the funding it received from Nazi Germany paid through the English correspondent of the Völkischer Beobachter
Dr. Hans Wilhelm Thost.
approached the IFL and suggested that they should merge into Oswald Mosley
's British Union of Fascists
but the offer was declined. Leese rejected any overtures from Mosely due to the latter's initial reulctance to make anti-Semitism
a central theme, leading to Leese dismissing Mosley as a "kosher fascist". He even dubbed the BUF the 'British Jewnion of Fascists' over the issue. One of their biggest differences was that the IFL held a biological view of anti-Semitism that the Jews
were inherently inferior as a race in contrast to the BUF, whose eventual adoption of anti-Semitism was framed in ideas about the Jews supposed undue influence at the top echelons of society.
By 1933 the BUF decided to act against the renegade IFL, with Blackshirts attacking a number of meetings culminating in an incident in Great Portland Street
where fifty Blackshirts disguised as communists invaded the stage to attack Leese before causing considerable damage to the hall in an attempt to force a large bill onto the IFL. The BUF even passed fabricated evidence of an IFL plot to attack its headquarters to the Home Office. By 1939, with the IFL's influence diminished, their rivalry had cooled to the point where the BUF bookshop in Canterbury
even stocked IFL pamphlets.
Although rejecting a merger with the BUF the IFL was linked to the Nordic League
through Commander E. H. Cole, a staunch advocate of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion
, who served as chancellor of the League as well as being a leading IFL member. Before long both Leese and P. J. Ridout also took out membership of this group, membership of which encompassed most shades of far right activity.
and although he continued to be politically active after the war the IFL was not reformed. His formation of the National Workers Movement in 1948 meant the final end for the IFL.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
political movement founded by Arnold Leese
Arnold Leese
Arnold Spencer Leese was a British veterinarian and fascist politician. He was born in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire, England and educated at Giggleswick School....
in 1929.
Origins
Leese had originally been a member of the British FascistsBritish Fascists
The British Fascists were the first avowedly fascist organisation in the United Kingdom. William Joyce, Neil Francis Hawkins, Maxwell Knight and Arnold Leese were amongst those to have passed through the movement as members and activists.-Early years:...
and indeed had been one of only two members ever to hold elected office for them (as a councillor in Stamford
Stamford, Lincolnshire
Stamford is a town and civil parish within the South Kesteven district of the county of Lincolnshire, England. It is approximately to the north of London, on the east side of the A1 road to York and Edinburgh and on the River Welland...
). However he split from the BF around 1927 and decamped to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where in 1929 he established both the IFL and their organ The Fascist. The Fascists Legions, a blackshirted paramilitary arm, was soon added under the command of Leslie H. Sherrard. The group initially advocated such policies as corporatism
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
, monetary reform
Monetary reform
Monetary reform describes any movement or theory that proposes a different system of supplying money and financing the economy from the current system.Monetary reformers may advocate any of the following, among other proposals:...
and the removal of citizenship from Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. They had around 500 members at most and may have had as few as 150. The group was initially led by Brigadier-General Erskine Tulloch although real power lay with Leese, who was ratified as Director-General in 1932. Henry Hamilton Beamish
Henry Hamilton Beamish
Henry Hamilton Beamish was a leading British antisemite and the founder of The Britons.The son of an admiral who had served as an A.D.C...
, head of The Britons
The Britons
The Britons was an anti-Semitic and anti-immigration organization founded in July 1919 by Henry Hamilton Beamish. The organization published pamphlets and propaganda under the imprint names of the Judaic Publishing Co. and subsequently the Britons Publishing Society...
, served as vice-president of the IFL and was a regular speaker at the movement's events.
Nazism
The IFL soon shifted away from Italian fascismItalian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
(they originally used the fasces
Fasces
Fasces are a bundle of wooden sticks with an axe blade emerging from the center, which is an image that traditionally symbolizes summary power and jurisdiction, and/or "strength through unity"...
as their emblem) after Leese met Nazi Party propagandist Julius Streicher
Julius Streicher
Julius Streicher was a prominent Nazi prior to World War II. He was the founder and publisher of Der Stürmer newspaper, which became a central element of the Nazi propaganda machine...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Soon anti-Semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
became the central theme of IFL policy and their new programme, the 'Racial Fascist Corporate State', stressed the supremacy of the 'Aryan race
Aryan race
The Aryan race is a concept historically influential in Western culture in the period of the late 19th century and early 20th century. It derives from the idea that the original speakers of the Indo-European languages and their descendants up to the present day constitute a distinctive race or...
'. The IFL altered its flag so that it featured the Union Flag
Union Flag
The Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack, is the flag of the United Kingdom. It retains an official or semi-official status in some Commonwealth Realms; for example, it is known as the Royal Union Flag in Canada. It is also used as an official flag in some of the smaller British overseas...
superimposed with the swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
. As a result of this conversion the IFL enjoyed a higher profile than its membership might suggest, in large part due to the funding it received from Nazi Germany paid through the English correspondent of the Völkischer Beobachter
Völkischer Beobachter
The Völkischer Beobachter was the newspaper of the National Socialist German Workers' Party from 1920. It first appeared weekly, then daily from February 8, 1923...
Dr. Hans Wilhelm Thost.
Arrival of the BUF
In 1932 Robert ForganRobert Forgan
Robert Forgan was a British politician who was a close associate of Oswald Mosley.-Early life and medical career:The Scottish-born Forgan was the son of a Church of Scotland minister...
approached the IFL and suggested that they should merge into Oswald Mosley
Oswald Mosley
Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet, of Ancoats, was an English politician, known principally as the founder of the British Union of Fascists...
's British Union of Fascists
British Union of Fascists
The British Union was a political party in the United Kingdom formed in 1932 by Sir Oswald Mosley as the British Union of Fascists, in 1936 it changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists and then in 1937 to simply the British Union...
but the offer was declined. Leese rejected any overtures from Mosely due to the latter's initial reulctance to make anti-Semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
a central theme, leading to Leese dismissing Mosley as a "kosher fascist". He even dubbed the BUF the 'British Jewnion of Fascists' over the issue. One of their biggest differences was that the IFL held a biological view of anti-Semitism that the Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
were inherently inferior as a race in contrast to the BUF, whose eventual adoption of anti-Semitism was framed in ideas about the Jews supposed undue influence at the top echelons of society.
By 1933 the BUF decided to act against the renegade IFL, with Blackshirts attacking a number of meetings culminating in an incident in Great Portland Street
Great Portland Street
Great Portland Street is a street in the West End of London. Linking Oxford Street with Albany Street and the busy A501 Marylebone Road and Euston Road, the road forms the boundary between Fitzrovia to the east and Marylebone to the west...
where fifty Blackshirts disguised as communists invaded the stage to attack Leese before causing considerable damage to the hall in an attempt to force a large bill onto the IFL. The BUF even passed fabricated evidence of an IFL plot to attack its headquarters to the Home Office. By 1939, with the IFL's influence diminished, their rivalry had cooled to the point where the BUF bookshop in Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
even stocked IFL pamphlets.
Although rejecting a merger with the BUF the IFL was linked to the Nordic League
Nordic League
The Nordic League was a far right organisation in the United Kingdom from 1935 to 1939 that sought to serve as a co-ordinating body for the various extremist movements whilst also seeking to promote Nazism...
through Commander E. H. Cole, a staunch advocate of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion
The Protocols of the Elders of Zion
The Protocols of the Elders of Zion is a fraudulent, antisemitic text purporting to describe a Jewish plan for achieving global domination. It was first published in Russia in 1903, translated into multiple languages, and disseminated internationally in the early part of the twentieth century...
, who served as chancellor of the League as well as being a leading IFL member. Before long both Leese and P. J. Ridout also took out membership of this group, membership of which encompassed most shades of far right activity.
Decline
The outbreak of the Second World War caused the small group to fall apart as Leese declared loyalty to King and country and renamed the group the Angles Circle but this stance was rejected by some pro-German members such as Tony Gittens, Harold Lockwood and Bertie Mills. It proved to be academic however as in 1940 Leese was interned under Defence Regulation 18BDefence Regulation 18B
Defence Regulation 18B, often referred to as simply 18B, was the most famous of the Defence Regulations used by the British Government during World War II. The complete technical reference name for this rule was: Regulation 18B of the Defence Regulations 1939. It allowed for the internment of...
and although he continued to be politically active after the war the IFL was not reformed. His formation of the National Workers Movement in 1948 meant the final end for the IFL.
External links
- The Fascist contains excerpts from a 1934 issue of The Fascist, published by the Imperial Fascist League