Thunder Cross

Fascist Antisemitism in Twentieth-Century Latvia

Paula A. Oppermann

• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
• Year: 2025
• Print ISBN: 9780299353100
• eBook ISBN: 9780299353131
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: Baltic History
• Index: History

Founded in 1932, Thunder Cross (P?rkonkrusts) was the largest and most prominent right-wing political party in Latvia in the early twentieth century. Its motto—"Latvia for Latvians!"—echoed the ultranationalist rhetoric of similar movements throughout Europe at the time. Unlike the Nazis in Germany or the Fascists in Italy, however, Thunder Cross never succeeded in seizing power. Nevertheless, Holocaust historian Paula A. Oppermann argues, its movement left an indelible mark on the country. The antisemitism at the core of Thunder Cross's ideology remained a driving force for Latvian fascists throughout the twentieth century, persisting despite shifting historical and political contexts. 

Thunder Cross is the most comprehensive study of Latvia's fascist movement in English to date, and the only work that investigates the often neglected continuities of fascist antisemitism after World War II. Formulated as an empirical case study, this book draws on international and interdisciplinary secondary literature and sources in seven languages to broaden our understanding of fascism, antisemitism, and mass violence from Germany and Italy to the larger European context.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• George L. Mosse Series in the History of European Culture, Sexuality, and Ideas
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• contents
• illustrations
• abbreviations
• Introduction
• 1. Roots of Völkisch Antisemitism in Latvia
• 2. Fascists in Full Swing
• 3. Fascists Under Pressure
• 4. Opponents and Supporters
• 5. International Fascism—a “Logical Consequence”
• 6. World War II and the Postwar Period
• Conclusion
• acknowledgments
• notes
• bibliography
• index
• George L. Mosse Series in the History of European Culture, Sexuality, and Ideas