De Francism

"To save the borders, the best saints are the cannons."

File:DeFran.png José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia

De Francism is an File:Sec.png Authoritarian, File:Econal.png Economically left-wing, and File:Ultraprogressivism.png Extremely culturally progressive ideology inhabiting the File:Authleft.png top left corner of the political compass. He believes in a File:Utsoc.png utopian society based around the teachings in File:Rousseau.png Rousseau's The Social Contract. He is selectively File:Elitesoc.png elitist, File:Anti-Colonial.png Anti-Colonial, and File:CapAnti Clerical.png Anti-Clerical. This manifests in somewhat needlessly authoritarian decrees. For instance, he forbade the File:CriolloNationalism.png elite from marrying within their own race, so they were forced to marry File:Native.png common folk. Some draw comparisons between De Francism and Jacobinism because of their mutual radical dislike of elites and shared authoritarian tendencies. Though De Francism took away many individual freedoms and squashed dissent, it was still beloved by the people of Paraguay. De Francist foreign policy is mostly File:Isolationist.png isolationist, though he will make alliances with neighbors to protect himself. He also really likes hats for some reason.

Compared to most South American File:Auto.png autocratic ideologies, De Francism was the most File:CultLib.png culturally liberal, and incorporated File:Pop.png populist policies. Though the right wing parties despised De Francism, it was praised by the left wing parties. After the death of José de Francia, De Francism mostly died off. Though most remember De Francism for it's isolationist foreign policy, it helped solidify Paraguay's place in the world as a legitimate nation and helped bring File:Prog-u.png progressive ideals and values to South America.

History

De Francian Rule of Paraguay

Upon its independence, Paraguay was underdeveloped in comparison with its neighbors. Most residents of Asunción and virtually all File:Rural.png rural inhabitants were File:Kak.png illiterate. University education was limited to the File:Plutocrat.png few who could afford studies at Argentina. Very few people had any experience in government, finance, or diplomacy. The country was surrounded by hostile neighbors, from the File:Native.png indigenous tribes in the Chaco to the File:Cball-Argentine Confederation.png Argentine Confederation and the File:Cball-Brazil.png Empire of Brazil. Strong measures were needed to save the country from disintegration. José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia served from 1811 until his death in 1840 and built a strong, prosperous, secure nation. Francia was popular with the File:Lpop.png lower classes and File:Native.png indigenous peoples. Despite his popularity, Francia's dictatorship File:Anti-Rights.png trampled on human rights and imposed a File:PolState.png police state based on espionage, threats and use of force. Under Francia, Paraguay underwent a social upheaval that overthrew the colonial elites. After the uprising of 14–15 May 1811 which brought independence, Francia became a member of the ruling junta. Although the military had the real power, Francia attracted support from the File:Farm.png nation's farmers. Francia built his power base on his organizational abilities and his forceful personality. By outwitting File:ArgentinaUnitarian.png porteño diplomats in the negotiations that produced the treaty of 11 October 1811 (in which Argentina implicitly recognized Paraguayan independence in return for vague promises of a military alliance).

Francia detested the political culture of the old regime and considered himself a revolutionary. He admired and emulated the most radical elements of the File:FrenchJacobin.png French Revolution. Although some commentators have compared him to the Jacobin File:Robespierre.png Maximilien de Robespierre, Francia's policies and ideas perhaps were closest to those of File:Babeuf.png François-Noël Babeuf, the French File:Utsoc.png utopian who wanted to abolish File:Property.png private property and to File:Agsoc.png communalize land as a prelude to founding a File:Equality.png "republic of equals". The government of Karaí Guazú ("Great Señor", as the poor Guaranís called Francia) was a File:Dictatorship.png dictatorship that destroyed the power of the File:Colonial.png colonial elite and advanced the interests of common Paraguayans. In contrast to other states in the region, Paraguay was efficiently and honestly administered, stable, and secure. The justice system treated criminals leniently. Murderers, for example, were put to work on public projects. Asylum to political refugees from other countries was granted, as in the notable case of Uruguayan patriot File:Artigas.png José Gervasio Artigas.

Targeting the Church

One of Francia's special targets was the File:Catheo.png Roman Catholic Church, which had provided an essential support to File:Cball-Spanish Empire.png Spanish rule by spreading the doctrine of the File:Autotheism.png "divine right of kings" and inculcating the native masses with a resigned fatalism about their social status and economic prospects. In 1824 Francia banned all religious orders, closed the only seminary, File:Secular Clergy.png "secularized" monks and priests by forcing them to swear loyalty to the state, abolished the File:Fuero.png fuero eclesiástico (the privilege of clerical immunity from civil courts), confiscated Church property, and subordinated its File:Statecap.png finances to state control.

Beliefs

Francia aimed to found a society on the principles of Rousseau's Social Contract and was also inspired by File:Robespierre.png Robespierre and File:Bonaparte.png Napoleon. To create such a File:Utsoc.png utopia, he imposed a ruthless File:Isolationist.png isolation upon Paraguay, interdicting all external trade, and he File:Protect.png fostered File:EconNat.png national industries.

Francia in some ways resembles the File:Caudillo.png caudillos of the post-colonial era, but he deviated from the elitist tendencies of most of his contemporaries. Instead, he attempted to reorganize Paraguay in accordance with the wishes of the File:Lpop.png lower classes and other File:Native.png marginalized groups. He greatly limited the power of the File:CapAnti Clerical.png Church and the landed elites in favor of giving File:Agsoc.png peasants a way to make a living on File:Dirigisme.png state-run estancias. He is criticized by some scholars for being entirely against the Church, he wanted only to diminish the institution's all-encompassing political control. He actually built new churches and supported religious festivals using state funds. Francia's government also took over services usually under church supervision, such as orphanages, hospitals, and homeless shelters, to manage them more efficiently. Francia and his policies were in fact very well received by the majority of Paraguayans, excluding the small ruling classes, and his neutrality in foreign affairs kept peace in a period of turmoil.

Francia's File:Socauth.png authoritarian regime built the foundations of a strong and File:Dirigisme.png dirigiste state in order to undertake the economic modernization of the country. Paraguay thus instituted rigorous File:Protect.png protectionism at a time when most other countries were adopting the free-trade system promoted by the United Kingdom while entrusting their national bourgeoisie with the task of piloting wealth creation. This model, continued after Francia's death by his successors File:AntonioLópez.png Carlos Antonio López and File:Solano López.png Francisco Solano López, made Paraguay one of the most modern and File:Authprog.png socially advanced countries in Latin America: the redistribution of wealth was so great that many foreign travelers reported that the country had no begging, hunger or conflict. The File:LandReform.png agrarian reform has allowed for a fairly equitable distribution of land. Asunción was one of the first capitals on the continent to inaugurate a railroad network. The country had a growing industry and a merchant fleet made up of ships built in national shipyards, had a trade surplus and was debt-free.

Variants

File:Solano López.png Lópezismo

After Francia's death on 20 September 1840, a political File:Kak.pngconfusion erupted, because File:Caudillo.pngEl Supremo, now El Difunto (the Dead One), had left no successor. After a few days, a File:Strato.pngjunta led by Manuel Antonio Ortiz emerged, freed some political prisoners, arrested Francia's secretary Polycarpo Patiño, and soon proved itself ineffectual at governing. On 22 January 1841, Ortiz was overthrown by Juan José Medina, who in turn was overthrown on 9 February in a coup led by Mariano Roque Alonzo.

Alonzo lacked the authority to rule, and on 14 March 1841, the File:Diarchy.pngtwo-man consulate of the early Independence era was recreated. Besides, Alonzo now ruled Carlos Antonio López as co-consul. This Second Consulate lasted until March 13, 1844, when Congress named Lopez the File:Prez.pngPresident of the Republic, a post he held until he died in 1862.

Although López's government was similar to Francia's system, his appearance, style, and policies were different. Francia had pictured himself as the first citizen of a revolutionary state, whereas López used the all-powerful state to enrich himself and his family. López was a despot who sought to establish a dynasty and governed Paraguay as a personal fiefdom. López soon became the largest landowner and cattle rancher in the country, amassing a fortune, which he augmented with profits from the state's monopoly on the yerba maté trade.

Despite his greed, Paraguay prospered under El Excelentísimo (the Most Excellent One), as López was known; the population increased from approximately 220,000 in 1840 to around 400,000 in 1860.

During his term of office, López improved national defense, abolished the remnants of the reducciones, File:Statecap.png stimulated economic development, and tried to strengthen relations with foreign countries. He also tried to reduce the threat from the marauding native tribes in the Chaco.

When López took office, Asunción had only one primary school. During López's reign, more than 400 schools were built to accommodate 25,000 primary students, and the state reestablished secondary education. López's educational development plans progressed with difficulty because Francia had purged the country of the educated elite, which included teachers. López loosened restrictions on foreign relations, boosted exports, invited foreign physicians, engineers, and investors to settle in Paraguay, and paid for students to study abroad. In 1853, he sent his son Francisco Solano to Europe to purchase guns. López was concerned about the possibility of war with Brazil or Argentina, so he established an army of 18,000 soldiers with a reserve of 46,000, at the time the largest army in South America.

File:RafaelFranco.png Rafael Franquismo/Febrerismo

The File:RevSocDem.png revolution of February 1936 overthrew File:AuthenticRadLib.png Liberal Party politicians who had won the war. The soldiers, veterans, students, and others who revolted actually felt that victory had come despite the Liberal government. Promising a national and File:Ultraprogressivism.png social revolution, they occupied Asunción and brought Colonel File:RafaelFranco.png Rafael Franco to power.

During its 18 months of existence, the Franco government showed that it was serious about social justice by carrying out one of the largest File:LandReform.png agrarian reforms in the history of Paraguay. In addition, the new government guaranteed File:Labourism.png workers the right to strike and established an eight-hour work day.

Perhaps the government's most lasting contribution affected national consciousness. In a gesture calculated to rewrite history and erase seven decades of national shame, Franco declared File:Solano López.png Francisco Solano López a national hero and proclaimed File:DeFran.png Jose Gaspar Rodriguez de Francia and File:AntonioLópez.png Carlos Antonio Lopez as Benefactors of the Nation.

From a doctrinal perspective, Franco maintained an independent stance from the File:Totalitarian.png totalitarian regimes of his time, rejecting both File:Fash.png fascism and communism. In his inaugural address as president, he defined his political vision in the following terms:

“We will not copy any of the existing constitutions, but we will draw upon the essence of all of them and give the new national organization [...] the core substance of our people and our race. The Paraguayan State will be neither communist nor fascist nor racist, and it will not adopt the aforementioned political forms”

File:RafaelFranco.png Rafael Franco

On August 15, 1937, following increasing political and military pressure, Franco was deposed and sent into exile. File:NatConLib.png Félix Paiva assumed the presidency in his place, governing until 1939 under a File:Conservative.png conservative administration that reversed several of Franco's policies.

Personality

De Francism is violently opposed to File:Monarch.png Monarchism and File:Imp.png Imperialism. He is often angry, especially at File:Authright.png Authoritarian Right ideologies, though is somewhat tolerant of most other ones. Has no problem with being called a dictator. He is also extremely defensive of José de Francia, and likes to rant about Monarchy and File:Prog-u.png Progressivism.

How to Draw

File:Defrancia flag.svg

Flag of De Francism

Drawing De Francism is easy.

1. Draw a ball
2. Fill with light blue
3. Draw a white hexagram in the top-right section of the ball (try to make it somewhat pointy)
4. Draw the eyes, and then you're done!

Color Name		HEX	RGB
	Light Blue	#75AADB	rgb(117, 170, 219)
	White	#FFFFFF	rgb(255, 255, 255)

Relationships

Friends

• File:Leftnat.png Nacionalismo de Izquierda - Amazing!
• Jacobinismo - You had really great ideas, father.
• File:Intercult.png Interculturalism - I will destroy the excluded social castes!
• File:Utsoc.png Socialismo Utópico - I will create a utopia!
• File:Agsoc.png Socialismo Agrario - Land reform policies were implemented under my rule.
• File:Hoxha.png Hoxhaismo - You are perhaps the best Marxist approximation of my ideas.
• File:Babouvism.png Babouvismo - I was very much inspired by your ideas.
• File:Native.png Indigenismo - You called me Karaí Guazú for a reason.
• File:Protect.png Proteccionismo - Protectionist policies gave Paraguay a trade surplus and fostered local industries.
• File:Statecap.png Capitalismo de Estado - Practically my economic policies after De Francia.
• File:Ultraprogressivism.png Progresismo Revolucionario - Basically me but economically corporatist.
• File:Ingsocf.png Ingsoc - Haha, the Chamber of Truth is based.

Frenemies

• File:Prog-u.png Progresismo - You're cool, but you don't take things far enough.
• Socialismo - You're okay, but I don't know about all this "internationalism".
• File:Ormarxf.png Marxismo - Same as the above. Though I do wish you were born a little earlier - we could've teamed up!
• Marxismo-Leninismo - My modern followers are you, but I disagree on the class struggle.
• Anarcocomunismo - You are technically my brother, but you are nonetheless a cringe anarchist.
• File:Bonaparte.png Bonapartismo - Too moderate economically and socially, but you are nonetheless an inspiration.
• File:Bolivarism.png Bolivarianismo - Your contribution to South America's liberation is beyond reproach, but I will not forget that you once tried to violate Paraguay, which had already gained its independence.
• File:Cameralism.png Cameralismo - I am personally no monarchy fan, but apparently Solano López implemented you.
• File:Jingoism.png Jingoísmo - Isolationism rules! Solano López takes over DEATH TO ARGENTINA, BRAZIL AND URUGUAY!!!
• File:Mansphere.png Manosfera - You’re not right in the head. Even if you admire me, I want nothing to do with you, you hear!?
• File:Flang.png Falangismo - The mandatory race-mixing is good, but you still have cringe social policy.
• File:Kak.png Kakistocracia - My policies were good in retrospect, but most people argue that Solano Lopez’s campaigns destroyed Paraguay.

Enemies

• File:ColoradoParty-Stroessner.png Stronismo - The one who ruined everything.
• File:Cfash.png Fascismo Clerical - The worst ideology.
• File:Ancon.png Anarcoconservadurismo - Actually the worst ideology.
• Anarcomonarquismo - No, wait actually this is the worst.
• File:Charles Darwin.png Darwinismo - What’s your deal, man??
• File:Nietzsche.png Nietzscheanismo - That "slave morality" stuff you hate sounds a lot like me! and let's not talk about whatever File:ElisabethNietzsche.png YOUR SISTER File:PanGerman.png TRIED ON MY LAND! well, at least we both hate File:Christy.png Christanity.
• File:Catheo.png Teocracia Católica - "If the Holy Father himself should come to Paraguay I would make him my private chaplain."
• File:Imp.png Imperialismo - Paraguay is not Spanish nor Argentinian!
• File:Racism.png Racismo - Race mixing is good actually.
• File:Nazcapf.png Nacionalcapitalismo - Words cannot describe how much I hate you.
• File:Cball-BrazilianEmpire.png Monarquismo Brasileño - British puppet!
• File:Nacionalismo.png Nacionalismo - Shit ideology, you want to restore the racial caste system and further the social divide between the blancos and the indigenous people!
  • File:Nacionalismo.png - SHUT YOUR MOUTH, BOLIGUAYO, I WILL NEVER WRECK MY File:Cball-Germany.png EUROPEAN File:Cball-Croatia.pngFile:Cball-Spain.png HERITAGE WITH THOSE File:Savage.png SAVAGES.

Further Information

Literature

• Letters on Paraguay by John Parish Robertson
• Paraguayan Isolation under Dr. Francia: A Re-evaluation by John Hoyt Williams
• From Paraguay, a history lesson on racial equality by Juan Manuel Casal
• Dr. Francia by File:Carlyle.png Thomas Carlyle

Wikipedia

• José Gaspar Roderíguez de Francia
• De Francian Rule of Paraguay

Gallery

• File:Conservative de Francism.png
• File:Defrancism-staswalle.png
• File:Mega Compass.png