| New Guard | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Leader | Eric Campbell |
| Foundation | 16 March 1931 |
| Dates of operation | c. 1931–1935 |
| Dissolved | 1935 |
| Split from | Old Guard |
| Country | Australia |
| Headquarters | Sydney, New South Wales |
| Active regions |  New South Wales |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Far-right |
| Size | c. 50,000 (1931) |
| Opponents | |
| Flag |  |
| Part of a series on |
| Far-right politics in Australia |
|---|
 |
The New Guard was an Australian fascist paramilitary organisation during the Great Depression.[2][3] It was the largest and most successful fascist organisation in Australian history.[2]
The New Guard, known for its violent agitation against NSW Premier Jack Lang, was founded and led by Eric Campbell. At its peak, membership was estimated to be around 50,000. The group's membership was predominantly made up of Anglo-Protestant, monarchist and anti-communist elements.[2]
The organisation attracted great publicity when member Captain Francis de Groot, on horseback and at Campbell's direction, upstaged Lang in cutting the ribbon at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Harbour Bridge in protest at the latter's anti-monarchist ideology.
After Lang's dismissal in 1932, the New Guard's membership declined rapidly. Campbell met with fascists and National Socialists such as Sir Oswald Mosley and Joachim von Ribbentrop and, in 1934, published his manifesto The New Road, signalling an ideological transition towards Italian corporate statism. As the Centre Party, it unsuccessfully contested five seats at the 1935 New South Wales state election. The party failed to win a single seat, polling 0.60 per cent of the vote. Following the election, Campbell withdrew from public life. Both the party and the New Guard disbanded shortly afterwards.
- ^ a b c d e Campbell, Eric (1934). The New Road. Briton Publishing Limited.
- ^ a b c Moore, Andrew (2005). "The New Guard and the Labour Movement, 1931-35". Labour History. 89 (89). Liverpool University Press: 55–72. doi:10.2307/27516075. JSTOR 27516075. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
Though largely confined to one city, Eric Campbell had succeeded in building the most significant fascist organisation in Australia
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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