Europe a Nation
Encyclopedia
Europe a Nation was a policy developed by British
politician Oswald Mosley
as the cornerstone of his Union Movement
. It called for the integration of Europe
into a single entity.
The idea of a united Europe began to develop in the final days of the Second World War
, where it was felt that the war had been a terrible waste of life and resources. Arguments began to appear claiming that the only way to avoid a repetition would be to tear down the divisions in Europe. These arguments, which initially appeared in Germany
, informed much of Mosley's post-War thinking.
Europe a Nation consisted of the idea that all European states should come together and pool their resources (including their colonies
) to work as one giant superstate under a system of corporatism
. For Mosley, it was the only viable alternative to the prospect of individual European countries carrying on alone, whilst the growing global market continued to make them poorer. Autarky
was, therefore, a central aim of Europe a Nation, with Africa
retained in colonial status to serve the needs of the European people (explaining the occasional use of the term Eurafrika as an alternative name).
Mosley summed up the arguments himself by stating that 'no lesser degree of union than that of an integral nation can give the will and power to act on the great scale.... No lesser space than all Europe, and the overseas possessions of Europe in a common pool, can give the room within which to act effectively'. The notion also had an important geopolitical
dimension as Mosley saw it as the only defence against Europe becoming the scene of the power struggles between the United States
and the Soviet Union
in the Cold War
.
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...
politician 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...
as the cornerstone of his Union Movement
Union Movement
The Union Movement was a right-wing political party founded in Britain by Oswald Mosley. Where Mosley had previously been associated with a peculiarly British form of fascism, the Union Movement attempted to redefine the concept by stressing the importance of developing a European nationalism...
. It called for the integration of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
into a single entity.
The idea of a united Europe began to develop in the final days of the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, where it was felt that the war had been a terrible waste of life and resources. Arguments began to appear claiming that the only way to avoid a repetition would be to tear down the divisions in Europe. These arguments, which initially appeared 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...
, informed much of Mosley's post-War thinking.
Europe a Nation consisted of the idea that all European states should come together and pool their resources (including their colonies
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
) to work as one giant superstate under a system of 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...
. For Mosley, it was the only viable alternative to the prospect of individual European countries carrying on alone, whilst the growing global market continued to make them poorer. Autarky
Autarky
Autarky is the quality of being self-sufficient. Usually the term is applied to political states or their economic policies. Autarky exists whenever an entity can survive or continue its activities without external assistance. Autarky is not necessarily economic. For example, a military autarky...
was, therefore, a central aim of Europe a Nation, with Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
retained in colonial status to serve the needs of the European people (explaining the occasional use of the term Eurafrika as an alternative name).
Mosley summed up the arguments himself by stating that 'no lesser degree of union than that of an integral nation can give the will and power to act on the great scale.... No lesser space than all Europe, and the overseas possessions of Europe in a common pool, can give the room within which to act effectively'. The notion also had an important geopolitical
Geopolitics
Geopolitics, from Greek Γη and Πολιτική in broad terms, is a theory that describes the relation between politics and territory whether on local or international scale....
dimension as Mosley saw it as the only defence against Europe becoming the scene of the power struggles between the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.