ABSTRACT
In the Netherlands’ pillarised society, dividing most of the population into Catholic, Protestant, and socialist camps, the Nationaal-Socialistische Beweging (NSB) advocated cross-class and cross-confessional unity around the idea of maintaining a strong empire and uniting all Dutch peoples in one kingdom. The NSB maintained a high degree of ideological heterogeneity throughout its existence, which Anton Mussert at times struggled to navigate. By 1935 the NSB was one of the largest parties in the Netherlands by membership, and acquired 7.94 percent of the vote in regional elections, an unheard-of achievement given the country’s rigid and conformist voting habits. An aspect of NSB ideology which waxed and waned in importance over the years was Dietsland, the idea of a Greater Netherlands territory that would incorporate all Dutch-speaking ethnic groups. The NSB acquired a reputation as the traitors’ party, and, with the return of the Dutch government in 1945, was dissolved.
