Christian Social Party (Belgium, 1945)
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The Christian Social Party (French: Parti Social Chrétien, or PSC; Dutch: Christelijke Volkspartij, CVP) was a major centre-right political party in Belgium which existed from 1945 until 1968.
Christian Social Party—Christian People's Party Christelijke Volkspartij Parti Social Chrétien | |
|---|---|
Francophone logo, used c.1958 | |
| Historical leaders | Jean Duvieusart (first) Jean-Charles Snoy et d'Oppuers (last) |
| Founded | August 18, 1945 |
| Dissolved | 1968 |
| Preceded by | Catholic Block |
| Succeeded by | Christelijke Volkspartij (CVP), Parti social chrétien (PSC) |
| Headquarters | Brussels, Belgium |
| Ideology | Christian democracy Pro-Europeanism |
| Political position | Centre[1][2] |
| European affiliation | Christian Democrat group |
| International affiliation | Christian Democrat International |
| Colours | Orange Black |
Established as the successor to the pre-war Catholic Block, the PSC-CVP was established after the Liberation of Belgium with an explicitly "deconfessionalised" orientation in the Christian Democratic tradition.[3] It remained the largest party in Belgian politics throughout much of its existence and was the last party in Belgian history to gain an outright majority in the 1950 elections. It provided a number of influential prime ministers and participated in most coalition governments in combination with the Belgian Socialist Party and the Liberal Party or its successor the Party for Freedom and Progress.
Amid rising regionalist tensiions, the PSC-CVP's regional parties split along linguistic lines in 1968 to form the Francophone Christian Social Party (Parti Social Chrétien, PSC) and Flemish Christian People's Party (Christelijke Volkspartij, CVP).
History edit
At the end of World War II, on 18–19 August 1945 the Parti Social Chrétien-Christelijke Volkspartij (CVP-PSC) was founded under the presidency of August de Schryver as the successor to the Catholic Party.
In 1968, the party divided along linguistic lines, forming the Francophone Christian Social Party (Parti Social Chrétien) in Wallonia and the Flemish Christian People's Party (Christelijke Volkspartij) in Flanders.[4][5]
Election results edit
Chamber of Representatives edit
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Position | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | 1,006,293 | 42.5 | 92 / 202 | 19 | 1st | Opposition |
| 1949 | 2,190,895 | 43.6 | 105 / 212 | 13 | 1st | Christian Social-Liberal coalition |
| 1950 | 2,356,608 | 47.7 | 108 / 212 | 3 | 1st | Majority government |
| 1954 | 2,123,408 | 41.2 | 95 / 212 | 13 | 1st | Opposition |
| 1958 | 2,465,549 | 46.5 | 104 / 212 | 9 | 1st | Minority government until November 1958, later Christian Social-Liberal coalition |
| 1961 | 2,182,642 | 41.5 | 96 / 212 | 8 | 1st | Christian Social-Socialist coalition |
| 1965 | 1,785,211 | 34.5 | 77 / 212 | 19 | 1st | Christian Social-Socialist coalition until March 1966, later Christian Social-Liberal coalition |
| 1968 | 1,643,785 | 31.8 | 69 / 212 | 8 | 1st | Christian Social-Socialist coalition |
Notable members edit
See also edit
References edit
- ^ Keefe, Eugene K.; et al. (1974). Area Handbook for Belgium (1st ed.). U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 141.
- ^ Cerulus, Laurens (4 January 2017). "The party that's pulling the Belgian left to the left". Politico.
…centrist Christian-Democrats all split into Flemish and French-speaking parties in the late 1960s and 70s.
- ^ Kees van Kersbergen; Philip Manow (6 April 2009). Religion, Class Coalitions, and Welfare States. Cambridge University Press. pp. 21–. ISBN 978-0-521-89791-4. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
- ^ Emiel Lamberts (1 January 1997). Christian Democracy in the European Union, 1945/1995: Proceedings of the Leuven Colloquium, 15-18 November 1995. Leuven University Press. pp. 65–. ISBN 978-90-6186-808-8. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
- ^ Daniele Caramani (29 March 2004). The Nationalization of Politics: The Formation of National Electorates and Party Systems in Western Europe. Cambridge University Press. pp. 308–. ISBN 978-0-521-53520-5. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
Further reading edit
- Lamberts, Emiel (2004). "The Zenith of Christian Democracy: The Christelijke Volkspartij/Parti Social Chrétien in Belgium". In Michael Gehler; Wolfram Kaiser (eds.). Christian Democracy in Europe since 1945. Routledge. pp. 59–73. ISBN 0-7146-5662-3.
- Beke, Wouter (2005). De ziel van een zuil. De Christelijke Volkspartij 1945-1968. Leuven: Leuven University Press. ISBN 9789058674982.
- Conway, Martin (1996). "Belgium". In Buchanan, Tom; Conway, Martin (eds.). Political Catholicism in Europe, 1918–1965. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 187–218. ISBN 9780198203193.
External links edit
- Archives of Christian Social Party in ODIS - Online Database for Intermediary Structures 2016-04-28 at the Wayback Machine