“Fascisterne” is a Danish word meaning “the fascists.” It is not the name of a party, a movement, or an organisation, although it is sometimes treated that way in search results.
Readers usually arrive at the word in one of two ways: through a Danish text they are trying to understand, or through a search that mixes language and history. This piece covers both. It explains the word, outlines where the idea of fascism came from, and looks at the form it took in Denmark, where it stayed small.
What Does “Fascisterne” Mean?
The word is a grammatical form. Den Danske Ordbog, the standard Danish dictionary, treats it as an inflection of fascist, a term for a supporter of fascism. The ending carries the meaning: “fascist” is the singular, “fascister” the plural, and “fascisterne” the definite plural, so the whole word translates as “the fascists.”
That makes it a general noun rather than a proper name. Several English-language explainers use the Danish word as a headline for broad histories of fascism, which can give the impression that it refers to one specific group. It does not.
Where Does the Word Come From?
The word fascist traces back to the Italian fascio, meaning a bundle or a group, which in turn echoes the Latin fasces, the bundle of rods that served as a symbol of authority in ancient Rome.
Fascism as a political movement began in Italy. Benito Mussolini founded his movement in 1919, and he took office as prime minister in October 1922. The fascist government that followed ruled Italy until 1943. The term was later applied, with varying degrees of agreement among historians, to movements in other countries.
What Is Fascism, in Brief?
Scholars do not all agree on a single definition, and the word is also used loosely as an insult in everyday argument, which is one reason historians stress precision.
The features most often cited include extreme nationalism, a single ruling party, a leader presented as embodying the nation, the suppression of opposition, and a celebration of force and discipline. Most accounts also stress that these movements rejected liberal democracy. How closely Nazism fits within the category remains a subject of debate, since its racial ideology set it apart in important ways.
Was There Fascism in Denmark?
There was, though it never came close to power. The main organisation was the National Socialist Workers’ Party of Denmark, known by its Danish initials DNSAP. It was founded on 16 November 1930 and is described as the largest Nazi party in the country. Frits Clausen led it from 1933 until 1945.
The party’s electoral record is modest. It won around 1.8 percent of the vote and three parliamentary seats in 1939. In the March 1943 election, held during the German occupation, it received 43,309 votes, about 2.1 percent, and three seats out of 149. It was not included in the wartime coalition government of 1940 to 1943.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1930 | The DNSAP is founded |
| 1939 | The party wins three seats with roughly 1.8 percent of the vote |
| 1940 | Germany occupies Denmark in April |
| 1943 | The party wins three seats and about 2.1 percent of the vote |
| 1945 | The occupation ends and the party’s activity ends with it |
What Happened in the 1943 Election?
The 1943 election is the clearest measure of how little support the movement had. Germany permitted the vote to go ahead and reportedly provided substantial financial backing to the DNSAP. Germany also hoped Clausen might take power by legal means.
He did not. Turnout on the Danish mainland reached 89 percent, the highest of any Danish parliamentary election, and has been described as a demonstration against the occupation. Some commentators read the result as evidence of broad support for democratic institutions and for the cooperative line taken by the government at the time.
The German plenipotentiary, Werner Best, reportedly abandoned plans to form a government under Clausen because of his lack of public support. The day after the election, Clausen is recorded as renouncing German financial support in favour of a more purely Danish nationalist line. King Christian X had also opposed giving Clausen and his followers roles in government.
Why Does a Small Movement Still Matter?
A party that won roughly two percent of the vote might seem a minor footnote. It has attracted historical attention for other reasons. The DNSAP is recorded as having organised recruitment for the Waffen-SS and for Frikorps Danmark, which marks the point where a political fringe became directly involved in the occupation’s machinery.
Its failure at the ballot box is equally instructive. A movement that depended on a foreign power for money and expectations could not turn that backing into popular support. Clausen himself, a Danish far-right politician and collaborator, died in December 1947.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does fascisterne mean?
It is Danish for “the fascists,” the definite plural of fascist.
Is Fascisterne a political party or organisation?
No. It is a grammatical form of a general noun. It does not name any specific group.
Were there fascists in Denmark?
Yes. The best-known organisation was the DNSAP, a small party that won about 2.1 percent of the vote in 1943.
What is the difference between fascists and Nazis?
Nazism is often treated as a form of fascism, but historians debate how closely the two overlap. Racial ideology was central to Nazism in a way it was not in Italian fascism.
Where can I read more?
The Danish encyclopedia Lex.dk has an entry on fascism, and Wikipedia carries detailed pages on the DNSAP and the 1943 Danish election.
A Final Note
The word is simple, but the history behind it is not. Understanding “fascisterne” starts with the grammar, moves to the Italian origins of the term, and ends with the specific, and quite limited, story of how it played out in Denmark. Treating it as a general noun, rather than as the name of a single movement, is the first step toward reading any text that uses it accurately.
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