Allegiance in Exchange for Benefits: The Romanian First World War Veterans’ Movement between Democracy and Authoritarianism, 1930–1937

Abstract

This article proposes that, between the two World Wars, the political loyalties of numerous Romanian First World War veterans were significantly affected by these ex-servicemen's sense of entitlement from military service. Having fought to protect their nation in the course of the conflict, many ex-combatants believed they deserved to be granted a variety of economic and symbolic rewards by the Romanian kingdom, in many cases allying themselves with political forces which promised to award them these benefits. To see their rights recognized, they also created a social movement, through which they lobbied state institutions. As, in the early 1930s, state veterans' policies experienced several shortcomings as the result of the Great Depression, sizeable segments of the former soldiers' movement began supporting a plethora of far-right movements and associations. Importantly, these extremist organizations secured the backing of various ex-servicemen mainly by promising to protect and increase the latter's benefits. Notably, in developing ties to discontented ex-combatants, the right was inspired in some instances by foreign authoritarian political models. However, in the middle of the decade, as governments managed to some extent to restore and even improve the ex-servicemen's special economic status, fascist and radical-right groups ceased to expand their reach within the ex-combatants' movement. Consequently, old soldiers did not play a significant role in the eventual collapse of Romanian democracy. By indicating that the former fighters’ sense of entitlement acted as a prominent radicalizing influence over many of them, this article provides an innovative perspective on the extremist political trends which affected numerous ex-servicemen in interwar Europe. Furthermore, by highlighting that Romanian radical veterans were at times inspired by developments occurring beyond their country's borders, the article helps confirm that transnational factors played a role in the anti-parliamentary activism of European former soldiers.