Overview

This book deals with the transnational activities and political agitation of a Nordic social movement that was created to fight the junta, which seized power in a military coup in Greece in 1967. The main focus is on the anti-fascist aspects of the opposition movement. It is shown that the individual committees, which were created in all the Nordic countries, framed their acts of resisting the military regime as a continuation of past resistance against fascism. Thus, despite the centrality of the ideological clash between two empires—the Soviet Union and the United States—Nordic politicians and activists also transcended political dogmas during the Cold War. While spanning a broad political spectrum, the Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish Committees, in particular, were dominated by social democratic members. It is shown, however, that despite close links with social democratic governments, these anti-fascist activists were prepared to go beyond legal means as part of their covert efforts to unite the Greek democratic opposition, calling for the assassination of Junta members and for engaging in direct resistance activities in Greece. This book argues that the Nordic Committees on Spain and Greece formed a collective anti-fascist identity. By labeling these regimes as fascist, the activists sought to resume the historical struggle against fascism in a post-war setting. This transnational social movement garnered support for its cause by summoning memories of this past, especially of the Spanish Civil War and the Nazi occupation of Denmark and Norway. The military coup in Greece was seen as an “event of critical juncture,” which unsettled the existing democratic order, and which raised the specter of fascism in Europe. This book will be of interest to scholars of anti-fascism, social movements, memory studies, and the far right.

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9781041126904

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Reviews

“Järvstad explores Nordic solidarity with Greece after the 1967 coup, linking it to antifascist memories from earlier conflicts. He reveals how historical remembrance shaped political activism. This original work offers valuable insights into Cold War debates. It made him an obvious choice for the 2024 Prize for Labor Movement History.” Director for Center for Cold War Studies Thomas Wegener Friis, University of Southern Denmark “This is a truly new contribution to our knowledge of a crucial period in European history when the Scandinavian countries took the lead fighting the Greek military regime. It analyses how this unfolded from street to the intergovernmental level tracing its roots back to the anti-fascist struggle of the 1930s.” Associate Professor Mogens Pelt, University of Copenhagen, Denmark “An important contribution to the history of transnational solidarity, public diplomacy and memory studies in 20th century Europe. Järvstad succeeds in untangling a relevant and complicated story that reads like a political thriller.” Associate Professor Hugo García, Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain

Author Information

Pontus Järvstad is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Humanities, University of Iceland.

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