Right-conservatism

Right-conservatism or right-wing conservatism (German: Rechtskonservatismus) is a term used in German politics, meaning a rightward form of conservatism over centre-right or Christian democracy (especially CDU/CSU). In general, radical and extreme right are not considered to be "right-conservatism". National conservatism (German: Nationalkonservatismus) is sometimes used synonymously with right-conservatism today, but is also understood as a sub-sector of right-conservatism that emphasizes "national interests" (though not in a völkisch-nationalist sense).^[1]

Political usage

Right-conservatism entered the political vocabulary of the Federal Republic of Germany starting in the 1980s, coinciding with the establishment of the the Republicans. The goal of the party's founding at that time was to establish "a right-conservative alternative" to the CDU/CSU. According to Holger Czitrich, the Republicans were initially the expression of an "increasingly independent organizational profiling of right-conservatism".^[2][3]

In political science, the term is used for positions on the right of the conservative spectrum that cannot be classified as either right-radicalism (Rechtsradikalismus) or right-extremism (Rechtsextremismus). However, the assessment and use of the term are subject to significant fluctuation. According to recent standard literature, a characteristic of right-conservative parties is, for example, that "they possess no affinities for völkisch nationalism and are directed neither against the basic principles of democracy nor against the existing constitutional order."^[4]

In addition, skepticism toward modernization and the precedence of the community over the individual are considered characteristic. The transition to the Neue Rechte ("New Right") is fluid.^[5]

Historical science

In a historical context, parties such as the German Conservative Party of the German Empire, as well as the German National People's Party (DNVP) and the Bavarian Middle Party [de] (BMP) during the Weimar Republic, are also described as right-conservative. These period-specific political manifestations include völkisch and antisemitic positions within the term. The same applies to the Conservative Revolution with its anti-democratic worldview.^[6][7]

In connection with actors of the Neue Rechte, who see themselves in the tradition of this Conservative Revolution, Heiko Kauffmann, Helmut Kellershohn, and Jobst Paul report on a diffuse practice of labeling: "One of the reasons for this undoubtedly lies in the emphatically nebulous, strategic handling of terms displayed by actors with völkisch-right-conservative leanings. The fact that they often flirtatiously and demonstratively undermine the scientific arena proves, however, to be only a byproduct of a broader populist vision: by playing with meandering, right-leaning terms, the terrain of the social center can be broken open."^[8]

Self-designation

Affirmations of right-conservatism are found almost consistently among authors and organizations of the Neue Rechte to distance themselves from right-radicalism and right-extremism. This also applied to the party the Republicans, which was monitored by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution from 1992 to 2006; they campaigned in the 2001 Baden-Württemberg state election with the slogan: "The Republicans – right-conservative, democratic, and loyal to the constitution." The newspaper Junge Freiheit also describes itself as right-conservative.^[9]

Other

The term is also used in Germany to refer to non-German hardline conservatives; for example, CitizenGO, an ultra-conservative organization in Spain, was referred to as "right-conservative" (rechtskonservative).^[10]

Right-conservative organizations

• Bibliothek des Konservatismus
• Cicero
• Die Achse des Guten
• Germany Foundation
• Studienzentrum Weikersheim

See also

• Conservatism in Germany
• Paleoconservatism
• Right-wing populism

References

1. Richard Stöss: Der rechte Rand des Parteiensystems. In: Oskar Niedermayer (Hrsg.): Handbuch Parteienforschung. VS Springer, Wiesbaden 2013, S. 563–618, hier S. 578; dem zustimmend: Oskar Niedermayer: Eine neue Konkurrentin im Parteiensystem? Die Alternative für Deutschland. In: ders. (Hrsg.): Die Parteien nach der Bundestagswahl 2013. Springer, Wiesbaden 2014, ISBN 978-3-658-02852-7, S. 175–207, hier: S. 196.
2. Henrik Steglich: Rechtsaußenparteien in Deutschland: Bedingungen ihres Erfolges und Scheiterns. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2010, S. 89.
3. Holger Czitrich: Konservatismus und Nationale Identität in der BRD – Liberalkonservative und Nationalkonservative in den achtziger Jahren. In: Konservatismus-Forschung, Band 12. Wissenschaftliche Beiträge der Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, 1990, S. 76.
4. Richard Stöss: Der rechte Rand des Parteiensystems. In: Oskar Niedermayer (Hrsg.): Handbuch Parteienforschung. VS Springer, Wiesbaden 2013, S. 563–618, hier S. 578.
5. Markus K. Grimm: Die problematische Neuerfindung der italienischen Rechten. Die Alleanza Nazionale und ihr Weg in die Mitte. Springer VS, Gießen 2015, S. 73.
6. Heinrich August Winkler (2003), "Ganz gewöhnliche Antisemiten", Der Spiegel, 7 January, no. 47
7. Elina Kiiskinen (28 February 2011). "Bayerische Mittelpartei (BMP) – Deutschnationale Volkspartei (DNVP), 1918–1932/33". Historisches Lexikon Bayerns ("Historical Lexicon of Bavaria"). Retrieved 16 November 2018.
8. Heiko Kauffmann, Helmut Kellershohn, Jobst Paul (Hrsg.): Völkische Bande. Dekadenz und Wiedergeburt – Analysen rechter Ideologie. Münster.
9. "Die Republikaner – rechtskonservativ, demokratisch und verfassungstreu". Retrieved 29 December 2021.
10. Anne Fromm (5 August 2021), "Online-Petitionen gegen Abtreibung: Angriff der christlichen Fundis", taz, retrieved 7 August 2021