Victor Matthys
Belgian politician / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Victor Matthys (20 March 1914 – 10 November 1947) was a Belgian politician who served as both deputy and acting leader of the Rexist Party. He was later executed for collaboration with Nazi Germany.
Victor Matthys | |
---|---|
Born | Victor Matthys (1914-03-20)20 March 1914 |
Died | 10 November 1947(1947-11-10) (aged 33) |
Cause of death | Execution by firing squad |
Nationality | Belgian |
Known for | Politician, propagandist |
Title | Acting leader of the Rexist Party |
Predecessor | Léon Degrelle |
Successor | Louis Collard |
An early member of the Rexist movement, Matthys took over the editorship of the party newspaper, Le Pays Réel, in 1936 and in May 1941 was promoted to director of propaganda.[1] He became official leader of Rex that same July after Léon Degrelle left to serve in the Waffen SS.[2] He was nominated for the position as he was a weak character who posed no real threat to Degrelle's position as leader.[3] Matthys was also popular with the Germans as he had a long-standing admiration for Adolf Hitler.[1]
As Rexist leader Matthys proved as weak and ineffective as Degrelle had hoped, although he also demonstrated a propensity towards violence to mask his failings.[1] His position eventually came under scrutiny after he ordered the massacre of 20 people in Courcelles as a reprisal against resistance activity. The move was roundly condemned as being too heavy-handed and Matthys gave up the leadership of the Rexists in favour of Louis Collard.[1] He was sentenced to death for collaborationism and executed.[4]