"Paxton noted Morès' organization of "a band of anti-Semitic toughs who attacked Jewish shops and offices" in Paris, and flagged his outfitting of them in "cowboy garb and ten-gallon hats" as an idea "predating black and brown shirts (by a modest stretch of the imagination) as the first fascist uniform.""
"A French nobleman, duelist, and antisemite born in Cannes in 1858, the Marquis de Morès first tried to make his fortune in 1880s North Dakota, where he failed as a cattle rancher after becoming neighbors with Teddy Roosevelt. Then he went to Vietnam, where he worked on a railroad project that didn't pan out; then, to Paris, where he threw himself into antisemitic street politics."
The Marquis de Morès, born Antoine de Vallombrosa in 1858, led a tumultuous life marked by failed ventures and violent antisemitism. After unsuccessful attempts at cattle ranching in North Dakota and railroad work in Vietnam, he returned to Paris where he organized antisemitic street gangs that attacked Jewish businesses and offices. These groups wore distinctive cowboy attire and ten-gallon hats, which historian Robert Paxton identified as precursors to fascist uniforms. Historian Sergio Luzzatto's book examines Morès as an early fascist figure, exploring how his combination of aggression, self-promotion, and personal failures fueled his hateful ideology. Morès died mysteriously in Africa in 1896 during an expedition.
Read at Slate Magazine
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]