My Life

My Life - Oswald Mosleycannot use the Soviets in Europe without in turn being used by the Soviets in theOrient. ... If Russia is to join with Britain in the iron ring round Germany and Italy,then Britain must join with Russia in the iron ring round Japan, not only incontravention of her own interests but in jeopardy of world peace.'This long, critical analysis of old party policy has been much abbreviated here, as itwas only a prelude to the development of a constructive policy. I continued that insearching for a solution 'we must return to the fundamental conception of Europeanunion which animated the war generation'. My advice was 'to proceed by theinductive method from the particular to the general rather than by the deductivemethod from the general to the particular which has previously failed—as thegeneralisations of vision without realism invariably fail. For in 1918 and the years thatfollowed, all paid lip-service to the general idea of European and world union, but allignored the fact that such union could only rest upon the particular ability of eachnation to live and to prosper within a European system that rested upon justice andeconomic reality.' I therefore began with 'an enquiry into the factors which divided theindividual nations, and in particular into the factors which inhibit peaceful andfriendly relations between Great Britain and other great nations. Having establishedthe particular of possible friendship between Great Britain and other nations we shallproceed to the general idea of European union built on the firm foundation of justiceand economic reality.'This enquiry began logically with the relations of Britain and Germany whichconstituted the chief potential threat to peace. The difference between Germany underthe Kaiser and under national socialism was considered. The Kaiser's Germany wasconducted by a 'financial democratic imperialism' which operated 'from the basis ofan export capitalist system' and 'expressed itself naturally in terms of a vast colonialEmpire and concomitant navies which clashed at every turn with British Empire'. (Itis a curious omission that in the whole of this essay I made no reference to the navalagreement of 1935, which restricted the German navy to a third of the British; thisgreatly reinforced my argument.) The Germany of national socialism was profoundlydifferent because 'less than any great nation today her philosophy leads her to think interms of limitless colonial Empire which to the Nazi mind suggests loss of vitalenergy, dissipation of wealth and the fear of detrimental admixture of races. Hernational objective lies in the union of the Germanic peoples of Europe in aconsolidated rather than diffused economic system which permits her with security topursue her racial ideals.In fact, in the profound differences of national objective between the British Empireand the new Germany rests the main hope of peace between them. Our world missionis the maintenance and development of the heritage of the Empire, in which our racehas displayed peculiar genius not only without fear of racial detriment but with thesure knowledge that in this arduous duty the finest and toughest characteristics of theEnglish are developed, and that the smallest contribution which an effective BritishEmpire can make is the preservation of peace over one quarter of the earth's surfacefor one quarter of the earth's population. The world mission of Germany in Nazi eyesis the union and development of the German peoples within a European system towhich that union brings a new and durable stability. Thus, so far from the objective ofthe British Empire clashing with the objective of the new Germany, the two objectivesin terms of world stability and peace are complementary.'321 of 424