Slovak People's Party

A far-right, fascist-nationalist political party with strong Catholic and authoritarian ideology formed under the leadership of the priest Andrej Hlinka in 1918. Its primary objective was Slovakian autonomy, initially within the Austro-Hungarian empire and, during the interwar years, within the Czechoslovakian state. With the establishment of the nominally independent Slovak Republic in 1939, essentially as a client state of Nazi Germany, the HSLS assumed control of the government under the leadership of Jozef Tiso, who succeeded Hlinka after his death in 1938. The party’s primary objective during the war years shifted towards anchoring authoritarian control and addressing the “Jewish Question” in Slovakia, as the party was closely aligned with Nazi policy and ideology.