Czech National Social Party

Czech National Social Party Česká strana národně sociální
President	Michal Klusáček
Founder	Václav Klofáč
Founded	April 4, 1898 (1898-04-04)
Headquarters	Kotorská 1572/18, Prague
Newspaper	The Czech Word (1898-1998)
Ideology	Civic nationalism Left-wing nationalism Euroscepticism
Political position	Centre
International affiliation	None
Colours	Red
Website
www.csns.cz
Politics of Czech Republic Political parties Elections

Czech National Social Party (Czech: Česká strana národně sociální, ČSNS) is a civic nationalist political party established in 1898 within the Young Czech Party (National Liberal Party) as a nominally socialist group with a stress on achieving Czech independence from Austria–Hungary (as opposed to the international revolution of the Social Democratic Party, which was the largest Czech socialist group at that time). It gradually evolved into a social liberal party. Its best-known member was Edvard Beneš, a cofounder of Czechoslovakia and the country's second President.

Despite the similar name, the ČSNS was not affiliated with the German Nazi Party and was never antisemitic; the Nazis formally suppressed the party.

History

Leadership of the Czech National Social Party was soon assumed by Václav Klofáč. An important role was played by Jiří Stříbrný and Emil Franke as well. The party platform rested on the recalled social traditions of Hussitism and Taboritism, but it was also a programme of "collectivizing by means of development, surmounting of class struggle by national discipline, moral rebirth and democracy as the conditions of socialism, a powerful popular army, etc."

In 1918 the party changed its name from Czech National Social Party to the Czech Socialist Party, in 1919 to Czechoslovak Socialist Party and then in 1926 to the Czechoslovak National Socialist Party. Edvard Beneš took actual party leadership, although nominally it was his ally Václav Klofáč. Jiří Stříbrný and his supporters were expelled for disagreement with Václav Klofáč and Edvard Beneš. Later they cooperated with fascist movement and National Democratic Party.

From 1921, the party was part of most Czechoslovak government coalitions. Its newspaper was the České slovo. In 1938, a part of the Czech membership entered into the Party of National Unity led by Rudolf Beran, while few of its Slovak members joined the Hlinka Slovak People's Party led by Josef Tiso.

Under German occupation, the Czechoslovak National Socialist Party functioned in exile and most of its members were active in the resistance movement. After 1945, the party resurfaced, under the leadership of Petr Zenkl, as one of the parties in the National Front. When Czechoslovakia became a Communist state in 1948, the party was again renamed the Czechoslovak Socialist Party, and anti-communist elements were expelled for alleged fascist sympathies.

After the return to democracy in 1989, the National Front was abolished. The party renamed itself the Liberal National Social Party (Liberální strana národně sociální), but failed to gather any significant support and was reduced to minor party status. It was shut out of the federal parliament in both elections held before the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, but did manage to enter the Czech National Council in the 1992 elections. With its support hovering below the five-percent threshold, it merged with the Free Democrats, to form the Free Democrats – Liberal National Social Party. However, in the 1996 elections, its support tumbled to 2.1 percent and it was shut out of the legislature, never to return.

After the 1996 elections, the party split and was renamed again in 1997 to the Czech National Social Party. Having fallen well short of returning to parliament and crippled by financial debts, the party has almost disappeared.

Name Changes

Election results

• 1920 National Assembly: 8.1% - 27 seats
• 1925 National Assembly: 8.6% - 28 seats
• 1929 National Assembly: 10.4% - 32 seats
• 1935 National Assembly: 9.2% - 28 seats
• 1946 National Assembly: 18.3% (23.7%) - 55 seats

since 1990

• 1990 Czech National Council: 2.7% - no seat
• 1992 Czech National Council: (as a part of Liberal-Social Union 6.5% - 16 seats)
• 1996 Chamber of Deputies: (with Free Democrats 2.1% - no seat)
• 1996 Senate: no seat
• 1998 Chamber of Deputies: 0.3% - no seat
• 1998 Senate: no seat
• 2000 Senate: no seat
• 2002 Chamber of Deputies: 0.8% - no seat
• 2002 Senate: no seat
• 2006 Chamber of Deputies: 1.3% - no seat
• 2006 Senate: no seat

References

1. Karel Hoch: The Political Parties of Czechoslovakia.
2. T. Mills Kelly: Without Remorse: Czech National Socialism in Late-Habsburg Austria, (Boulder: East European Monographs, 2006)
3. Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn: Leftism Revisited, Regnery Gateway, Washington D.C., 1990, pp. 145–146.
4. Malá encyklopédia Slovenska, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava 1987

Notes

See also

• Timeline of liberal parties in the Czech lands
• Czech National Socialist Party

External links

• Czech National Social Party Official website