HISTORICAL OVERVIEW.-

Several influences led to the emergence of the National Socialist Movement [M.N.S.]. On the one hand, the aforementioned Nationalist Party set the tone through figures such as Francisco Encina, Alberto Edwards, Guillermo Subercaseaux, and Tancredo Pinochet. But it was not until the publication of Nicolás Palacios’s work, *Raza Chilena*, that a foundational myth was established as the cornerstone of the nationalist ideological spectrum of the 1930s.

Likewise, in the mid-1920s, with the emergence of corporatist, trade unionist, and non-Marxist socialist (or outright anti-communist) political movements, the momentum of the Catholic Church’s social doctrine—based primarily on the encyclical “Rerum Novarum” and expressed through political-social clericalism—would incorporate elements of continental Europe into the nationalist landscape.

However, this would bring with it the categorical stigma of Fascism and Nazism, which, as a propaganda tool for liberals and communists, would establish a semantic discourse that, from that point on, would pose a challenge for those who, as a group, wished to fly the flag of nationalism in Chile.

In March 1932, the M.N.S. was founded. Retired General Francisco Díaz Valderrama gathered at his home Carlos Keller, then a student of Oswald Spengler, and Jorge González von Marées, who was already involved in politics as mayor of Ñuñoa. General Valderrama, a Germanist and fervent admirer of Adolf Hitler, sought to promote a model in Chile similar to German National Socialism, with strong Prussian and German racial elements. Having taken an interest in González von Marées due to his rising political career, and in Carlos Keller after reading the work “The Eternal Chilean Crisis,” he had decided to introduce both men to his political ideology. But González von Marées immediately countered General Díaz Valderrama’s ideas, emphasizing the need to develop a unique national-political model of their own, firmly declaring that“an imitation of the German model would lead nowhere.” Finding common ground, Carlos Keller and Jorge González von Marées would set out on the path to forming the Nazi Movement.

For his part, General Francisco Díaz Valderrama would go his own way; he would found the short-lived “Nationalist Social Legion” alongside other retired military officers, openly collaborate with the NSDAP cell in Chile, spread German doctrine through the “Cruz Swástica” publishing house, and also served as an editor for the magazine “La Nueva Edad,” which was directed by Miguel Serrano during World War II.

Then came April 5, 1932, the day the National Socialist Movement was founded—the anniversary of the Battle of Maipú and the declaration of war against Peru and Bolivia in 1879.

The foundation was established at the office of González von Marées, located on the second floor of a building on Agustinas Street, right in the heart of the capital. In addition to Jorge González von Marées and Carlos Keller, those present at the ceremony included the physician and painter Emilio Aldunate Phillips, the engineer Raúl Valdivieso Delauny, businessman Gustavo Vargas Molinare, dentist Francisco Infante Casanueva, journalist Fernando Ortúzar Vial, attorneys Mauricio Mena Mena, Benjamín Pizarro Espoz, and Luis Felipe Lazo, as well as Fernando Calvo Larraín, Eduardo Undurraga Alemparte, and Alberto Bravo Walter. Shortly thereafter, they would establish the group’s national headquarters on nearby Huérfanos Street.

In their programmatic platform, they advocated for an authoritarian government in the style of Portal, spoke out against any form of national fragmentation—be it Marxist class struggle, Hitlerian racism, or partisan politics—and renounced all forms of individualism in pursuit of a common struggle for national restoration; They also spoke out against usury and the speculative free market represented by capitalism, and renounced all forms of materialism in favor of the idealization of the Chilean “spiritual race,” the latter influenced by Oswald Spengler’s theses as interpreted by Carlos Keller.

Originally, the movement was founded with a clear vision of Catholic traditionalism based directly on the ideology of González von Marées, a concept similar to that of European movements such as Spanish Falangism, Belgian Rexism, or Romanian Legionism; however, this would change under the influence of Vargas Molinare, who argued at the time that such an approach would limit the recruitment of non-Catholic members.

Among its members were Federico Mujica Canales and Adrián Buzzetti; the latter was the founder of *Bandera Negra*, the publication from which the National Syndicalist [Revolutionary] Movement would emerge, and to which both would belong.

Barely two months after the movement’s founding, the Socialist Republic was proclaimed on June 4, 1932, through a coup d’état, which led to one governmental crisis after another, political and social instability became evident, leading within a few days to the uprising of President Carlos Dávila (a socialist with nationalist leanings and a member of the “Nueva Acción Pública”) on June 16, 1932; he, who had once proclaimed the very Socialist Republic, now sought its abolition, In the process, he arrested the Socialist Junta, including Marmaduke Grove and Eugenio Matte (both active members of Freemasonry), and sent them into exile on Easter Island.

After the Socialist Republic of Chile had existed for 12 days, Carlos Dávila declared martial law and reorganized the government apparatus, implementing an authoritarian policy, during which the Republican Militia was formed, founded on July 24, 1932, a “clandestine” civilian infantry unit aimed at maintaining the republic’s institutional framework in the face of the established presence of communists and anarchists dissatisfied with the events.

Finally, Carlos Dávila was removed from office on September 13, 1932, under pressure to return to “democracy,” followed by a series of provisional governments, after which a presidential election was held on October 30, 1932, in which Arturo Alessandri Palma (of the Liberal Party [P.L.] and an active Freemason) was elected.

To safeguard his government against potential coup attempts, Alessandri decided to exert influence over the Republican Militia to secure his hold on power, transforming it from an underground organization into a de facto institution—though not legally recognized—by providing it with weapons and funding until July 1936, when the Militia was dissolved.

During this process, the M.N.S. opposed the Socialist Republic, viewing it as a form of government with Marxist, materialist, and internationalist tendencies. In upholding the role of Carlos Dávila, the M.N.S. was the only movement that opposed“a return to outdated constitutional practices.” It is worth noting that the magazine HOY, founded by Carlos Dávila in 1931, showed particular support for the activities of the M.N.S., even publishing articles written by Carlos Keller and other M.N.S. members; it also openly opposed the Alessandri government, leading to its censorship following the events of September 5, 1938.

During this initial period, they forged a strategic alliance with the Republican Militia; the Nazis who had enlisted in the Militia had no issue with the dual membership that was taking shape. At that time, they shared common goals, including anti-communism, as well as military training and structure. Gustavo Vargas Molinare testifies that the Militia’s arsenal, which was initially supplied by the Dávila government, was of great interest to the Nazis, and that the influence of the M.N.S. within the civilian regiments was growing steadily.

Joaquín Edwards Bello recalls the period when:“The Chilean revolutions—all of them thwarted—gave rise, as a result of their failure, to two parties or forces… the military and Nazism, fruits of the same tree: the hopes of youth and the fear of the audacity of the caudillos and their followers. […] The intellectual youth allied with the workers played their last card with Dávila.”

Once Arturo Alessandri Palma came to power, the two groups began to clash, leading the leadership of both to ban dual membership. The reason for this was largely that the Republican Militia lacked an ideological structure and maintained a clear stance of civil obedience, which led them to align with the incoming government, while the M.N.S. remained opposed to the P.L. government led by Alessandri.

Over the next few years, the M.N.S. found itself embroiled in a struggle on two fronts: the first consisted of the nascent Socialist Party and the Communist Party, which later united under the Popular Front coalition; this struggle would be fought in the streets and lead to the formation of the Nazi Assault Troops [T.N.A.], the distribution of propaganda, the painting of murals, the sale of newspapers; these and other activities resulted in street brawls, reaching the point where three Nazis were killed in combat in 1936 [See: Chronicles.—1936, Nazi Martyrdom in Valparaíso], as well as the deaths of several socialists, including Hector Barreto, a poet and friend of Miguel Serrano.

On the other side were the Alessandri administration and the PL, which sought to discredit the MNS in the press; Congress obstructed its activities; the Investigations Bureau carried out raids and arbitrary arrests; and the party was banned from holding rallies or public events. As a result, amidst all this, the first Nationalist martyr, the young Pablo Acuña, would fall in 1935, and later, the Workers’ Insurance Massacre would occur in 1938.

Despite this, the M.N.S. made its political presence felt; in 1935, the municipal office of Councilman of Santiago was won by Mauricio Mena, and in the parliamentary elections of March 7, 1937, they won three seats: Jorge González Von Mareés for Santiago, and Fernando Guarello Fitz and Gustavo Vargas Molinare for Temuco. Their representation was reflected in initiatives such as the repeal of foreign debt payments, the imposition of a progressive tax on copper exports, the promotion of agrarian reform, and the establishment of compulsory labor service, among many other bills.

The major turning point came during the 1938 presidential elections, when the M.N.S. led the formation of the “Popular Liberation Alliance” [A.P.L.] coalition, alongside the Socialist Union, in support of retired General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo’s candidacy. With a corporatist platform, they emerged as an alternative to the right, represented by Gustavo Ross Santa María—for whom they felt sympathy due to his anti-communism, though they lost that sympathy because of his monetarist and liberal capitalism—and, on the other hand, to the left, represented by Pedro Aguirre Cerda and the Popular Front.

On the morning of September 5, 1938, a revolutionary uprising was carried out by the Nacistas and Ibañistas; which had been brewing for months, with the support and funding of Ibáñez del Campo; however, Ibáñez del Campo failed to fulfill his part of the bargain and surrendered to the authorities under the command of Colonel Guillermo Barros Tirado, claiming that“an Ibáñez-led movement has broken out in Santiago that I cannot control.” He would then leave the Nacistas barricaded in the tower of the Seguro Obrero and the University of Chile, handed over to President Alessandri, who would order the indiscriminate execution of the 60 young men whose role was merely to serve as agitators so that Ibáñez could mobilize the troops loyal to him toward La Moneda. [See: In Memoriam: Martyrs of the Seguro Obrero]

The next day, Jorge González von Marées turned himself in to the authorities and took responsibility for the events; Ibáñez del Campo and his followers remained silent, and for a long time they distanced themselves from the general’s betrayal, leaving the Chief to bear the responsibility for the deaths of the young Nazis in what was made to look like a senseless revolt. [See: Ibáñez on September 5, 1938, by Javier Cox]

Statements by Jorge González von Marées to the Diario Trabajo in 1941:
“The blood of our youth flowed in torrents, and waves of hatred poured down upon our heads. Not only were we showered with the most vile insults, but we were also accused of intending to commit the most heinous crimes. For days and weeks after September 5, newspapers that claim to be serious published the most absurd and chilling lies regarding our intentions had the revolution triumphed. Our dead, who even in their final gasps had murmured the name of the Fatherland, were labeled “underworld criminals.” I, among countless others, was branded a “monster.” The full fury of the government was unleashed against us. Hundreds of our men were imprisoned or exiled. Our premises were occupied by the police and mercilessly ransacked. Our newspaper was shut down and the printing press where it was published was destroyed. We were hunted down in every way and everywhere like rabid dogs, with the determined aim of exterminating us.”

With Ibáñez del Campo’s candidacy having been defeated, both the M.N.S. and the A.P.L. would go on to support the Popular Front’s candidate; by a narrow margin, Pedro Aguirre Cerda would then be elected, and he would pardon Jorge González von Marées and the rest of the Nationalists who were still behind bars.

Over the following months, the M.N.S. underwent a restructuring and became the Popular Socialist Vanguard [V.P.S.]. Following this, a dissident faction emerged from the V.P.S.; some formed the “National Fascist Party,” while others formed the “Nationalist Movement of Chile.”

In terms of activism, symbols, and doctrines, the V.P.S. would follow the same guidelines as the M.N.S., but its rhetoric would be altered to appeal more to the left, more openly highlighting its differences with Italian Fascism and German National Socialism. Among these changes was its flag, no longer featuring the red lightning bolt, but instead dozens of golden stars against a red sea—one star for each Nazi martyr—and the red tinged with the blood that would save Chile.

During this same period, Carlos Keller would abandon his political activism; the truth is that, for Keller, the impact of the Seguro Obrero massacre would mark him for life, as he blamed both himself and the mythos and ethos he had helped develop around the figure of “El Jefe,” leading him to publish the novel in 1949: “La Locura de Juan Bernales,” whose plot is a personal reflection of his memories as a Nazi. The story culminates with the apparent suicide of both Carlos Keller and Jorge González von Marées, as if it were a tacit pact, symbolizing the rift between them, after which Keller would serve in his final position as President of the National Economic Planning Commission in the radical and liberal government of Juan Antonio Ríos.

Jorge González von Marées’s fate was not so different. Words spoken on February 23, 1945:“In my years of political struggle, I have endured the harshest blows of adversity. I have been accused of murder a thousand times and branded a madman. I have felt the hatred and scorn of an entire people unleashed upon me. I have seen the blood of my dearest comrades in ideals flow in torrents. I have spent time in prisons. I have endured the chilling atmosphere of the asylum… I would have, as can be seen, more than enough reasons to withdraw from public life and not persist in pursuing what seems impossible…”

In 1943, the Popular Socialist Vanguard, the National Fascist Party, and the Nationalist Movement of Chile would once again unite under the banner of the “Nationalist Union Party of Chile,” marking the end of one era and the beginning of another.

PUBLICATIONS.-

° JORGE GONZÁLEZ VON MARÉES:

° CARLOS KELLER RUEFF:

° OTHER AUTHORS:

PROPAGANDA.-

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Pamphlets distributed in 1937 during the election campaigns for the position of Deputy, in which Gustavo Vargas Molinare was ultimately elected.

IN MEMORY OF THOSE WHO FELL UNDER THE BANNER OF THE RED LIGHTNING AND THE SEA OF STARS