For a long time, historians showed limited interest in studying the history of the extreme right after 1945. In recent years, however, there has been a significant upsurge in the research on this topic. The rise of extreme-right movements and political parties has spurred numerous research projects, especially in Germany. These projects explore not only the aftermath of National Socialism, but also the emergence of a so-called New Right within the framework of democratic societies. Similar research initiatives have also gained momentum in countries such as France, Italy, Austria, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland, reflecting the growing influence of the extreme right across Europe. Despite these shared research interests, collaboration between German-speaking scholars and their European colleagues remains sporadic and limited to occasional projects. Against this background, the international conference “The Extreme Right Transnational. Towards a New Post-War History” aims to provide a new impetus for fostering closer cooperation and exchange between researchers and projects in Europe and beyond.

The conference will examine the transnational dimensions and dynamics of the extreme right after 1945 by adopting an actor-centred perspective. It will explore cross-border networks and contacts, the circulation of media products, and the exchange of ideas and thoughts, aesthetics and lifestyles, mobilisation strategies and organisational forms. Notable historical examples include the 1951 Malmö Conference that was organised by the European Social Movement and sought to unite the extreme right at the European level, or the efforts of rightwing media such as Nation Europa to promote extreme-right visions of Europe. Moreover, ideological entrepreneurs, such as the U.S. neo-Nazi George Lincoln Rockwell, worked hard to revive transatlantic extreme-right exchanges. From the 1970s onwards, new projects and initiatives emerged, including the French Nouvelle Droite, which fostered intellectual networks through meetings organised by the Groupement de Recherche et d’Études pour la Civilisation Européenne (GRECE), by the right-wing ecological World Union for Protection of Life, which organised protests against nuclear power plants, and the very active transnational Holocaustdenial movement. During this period, extreme-right activists also travelled to South Africa, Spain and Portugal to demonstrate their support for authoritarian regimes.

The dynamics of transnational exchange developed further with the rise of extreme rightwing youth subcultures such as skinheads, autonomous nationalists, and certain music scenes. The advent of the internet in the 1990s brought a new level of global connectivity, exemplified by platforms such as Stormfront or Thule-Netz, which facilitated real-time networking and accelerated the spread of extreme-right ideologies. With the emergence of social media, this connectivity has only deepened, transforming how extreme-right actors organise and communicate on a global scale. By analysing these transnational connections and exchanges, we not only gain deeper insights into the formation of the extreme right after 1945, but also seek to develop a new approach to post-war history – one that views the extreme right in Europe and North America not as an exception, but from the outset, as a significant actor.