| Fatherland League Fedrelandslaget |
|
|---|---|
| Chairman |
1925-1938 J. Lehmkuhl |
| Founded | 25 January 1925 |
| Dissolved | 25 September 1940 |
| Succeeded by | None; Banned by Nasjonal Samling |
| Newspaper | ABC |
| Ideology | Conservatism National conservatism Nationalism Monarchism |
| Political position | Right-wing |
| Official colors | blue, white, red (Norwegian colors) |
| Politics of Norway Political parties Elections |
|
The Fatherland League (Norwegian: Fedrelandslaget) was a political organisation in Norway, which was founded on 25 January 1925. By the initiative of young industrialist Joakim Lehmkuhl, the organisation was co-founded with polar explorer Fridtjof Nansen and former Prime Minister Christian Michelsen.[1] The goal of the organisation was to lay the groundwork for a national coalition policy, in opposition to the emerging marxist and socialist Labour movement.[1][2] In 1930, the organisation had about 100,000 members and more than 400 local chapters.[3][2] The organisation was forcibly dissolved by Reichskommissar Josef Terboven on 25 September 1940, during the Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany.[1][2]
From 1932, the main organ of the organisation was the weekly magazine ABC. The party gained particular support from the Liberal Left Party (later Liberal People's Party) and the Farmers' Party, while it was met with scepticism by the Conservative Party and rejection by the Liberal Party. The Labour movement in turn claimed that the organisation functioned as a seeding ground for a more right-wing centered movement.[1] The organisation was highly active during the 1930 and 1933 parliamentary elections.[1][2] For the 1936 parliamentary election the organisation ran lists in a few districts, both independently and together with the Liberal People's Party. The organisation declined in the late 1930s, partly due to a moderation in the ideology of the Labour Party.[1]