The Ideology of the Extreme Right

' There is no other work which competes seriously with this .... There has been a major revival of interest in political parties during the 1990s, and Mudde makes a notable contribution to the study of the extreme right. '
Professor Roger Eatwell, Department of European Studies, University of Bath

Though the extreme right was not particularly successful in the 1999 European elections, it continues to be a major factor in the politics of Western Europe.

This book, newly available in paperback, provides a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the extreme right in the Netherlands (Centrumdemocraten, Centrumpartij'86), Belgium (Vlaams Blok) and Germany (Die Republikaner, Deutsche Volksunion). On the basis of original research - using party literature - the author concludes that though individual parties might stress different issues, the extreme right party family does share a core ideology of nationalism, xenophobia, welfare chauvinism, and law and order.

The author's research and conclusions clearly have broader implications for the study of the extreme right phenomenon and party ideology in general, and the book should be of interest to anyone studying or researching in the areas of European politics, political ideologies, political parties, extremism, racism or nationalism.

CONTENTS
Preface


1. The extreme right party family
Part I: The extreme right in Germany, 1945-80

2. Die Republikaner
3. Die Deutsche Volksunion
Part II: The extreme right in Flanders, 1917-80

4. Vlaams Blok
Part III: The extreme right in the Netherlands, 1945-84

5. Centrumdemocraten
6. Centrumpartij'86
7. Comparative perspectives
Appendix A: List of extreme right parties in Western Europe
Appendix B: Ideological features and themes
Bibliography