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11 Facts About Elof Eriksson

1.

Elof Eriksson was a Swedish antisemitic political writer.

2.

Elof Eriksson was recognised as the main exponent of antisemitism in inter-war Sweden along with Einar Aberg.

3.

Elof Eriksson began his political career in 1914 in the agrarian movements connected to the Jordbrukarnas Riksforbund, leading a highly reactionary faction that was suspicious of democracy and was supportive of eugenics.

4.

Elof Eriksson wrote a series for articles for Nya Dagligt Allehanda condemning liberalism and the Swedish party system, which he blamed for the problems facing Swedish agriculture and took part in the Farmers' March, a mass rally held on 6 February 1914.

5.

Elof Eriksson left active politics when the group as a whole merged with the Centre Party and became a writer and publisher, taking over the editing of the highly conservative Sodertalje Tidning in 1923.

6.

Elof Eriksson was fired in 1925 for his extremist views and set up his own paper, the Nationen, which became the main outlet for his increasingly hard-line beliefs.

7.

Elof Eriksson continued to promote his antisemitic and racial purity goals in the post-war era, but had little influence in Sweden.

8.

Elof Eriksson predicted the rise of a new form of Nordic Christianity that would rid the faith of the influence of Judaism but argued that for this to happen a spiritual rebirth of the Nordic people was necessary.

9.

Elof Eriksson outlined much of his conspiracy theories in Semi-Gotha, a 1941 two-volume work on the history of Judaism in Sweden.

10.

Elof Eriksson's final written work, the 1962 book Varldskulturer, provided a full discussion of his religio-philosophical approach to antisemitism.

11.

Virulently anti-communist, Elof Eriksson was strongly critical of what he dubbed "cosmopolitanism" and rich capitalists, with his written work frequently focusing attacks on the Bonnier and Wallenberg families, both leading industrial and banking families of Jewish origin.