Vida de Corso/ Vida de Estado

were impressed by the Northern Riflemen's Legion when Raamot put on a display, Raamot, M dlestused, vol. 2 (Stockholm, 1991), p. 95. Raamot also notes that Sirk and Seiman while they were still members of the Settlers' Party had organized the Talurite Liit (Farmers' League), a paramilitary and youth group affiliated with the Settlers' Party, Raamot, M dlestused, vol. 1, pp. 267-8.

Members of the Veterans' League identified themselves by wearing a white and black armband. Though it was similar to the blue and black armbands of the Lapua movement, it was more likely inspired by the white and blue of Finnish veterans' league, the VRL.^2 On the armband w as the Veterans' logo: a hand clutching a sword within a stylized cross reminiscent of the design of the Liberty Cross, the War of Independence decoration. Inside the cross were the letters 'V' and 'L', the initials of the Veterans' League (Vahadussojalaste Liit) and the dates 1918-1920, the years of the War of Independence. The most distinctive symbol of the League, adopted by chance in mid-1932, was the black beret.^ The black beret, more than any other external attribute, came to represent the movement. In addition, the Veterans developed a military style uniform consisting of a green shirt, breeches, and boots. However, uniforms were worn by very few members, foremost by those in the security units, not by the general membership. The most obvious borrowing from fascist trends was the use of a raised arm salute at rallies.^^ The popular symbol for the Veterans w as the club or cudgel (kaigas) and they were often popularly referred to as

kaikamehed (cudgel-men). The nickname stuck after Tallinn Veterans' League member Boris Farm appeared at an audience with Riigivanem Pats carrying a w ooden club, a symbol of peasant protest, to demand the

fulfillment of the govemmenFs pledges to the war veterans.

An important means of identification w as the Veterans' battle-song or anthem, Mehemeel (Manly Spirit), the final verse of the well-known 19th century patriotic song Eestimaa, mu isamaa (Estonia, my

Fatherland).56

Estonia, your manly spirit is not dead yet.

Though death reaps a rich harvest in the din of war

w e remain faithful to the fatherland till our last drop of blood,

till our last drop of blood.^^ Marandi, M u st valge-lipu all, p. 492.

Ibid., p . 1 2 4 .

^ Voitlus preposterously claimed that ancient Estonian warriors had used a raised arm as a ^ e e tin g , 3 June 1933.

The League disassociated itself from Farm's actions, Voitlus, 29 January 1932. Marandi, M u st valge-lipu all, pp. 28-9, 124.

Eestimaa, su mehe meel pole m itte surnud veel. Peab surm ka rohket loikust suure sojakaraga.

In a country known for mass song festivals, the League's anthem w as of great importance. In fact, it could be described as one of the chief weapons in their arsenal. The exceptionally tumultuous election

campaign of 1934 superficially resembled a singing contest rather than the "wave of terror" described by Pats. The disruption and break up of

Socialist meetings by the Veterans was accomplished more often by singing Mehemeel and drowning out the Socialists' "International", instead of by violent physical force.

Membership and support

The Veterans' portrayal of themselves as political outsiders was

misleading. A number of their leaders had been actively involved with political parties before. What they did have in common was that they had all been unsuccessful in their political activity, measured in terms of securing a seat in the Riigikogu. The only exception was Rouk, who

though not belonging to any party, had served briefly as minister of justice in 1924. The background of the Veterans' leadership was not the right- w ing of the political spectrum as might be expected, but rather the centre, especially the Settlers and the Centre Party. Sirk and Seiman had been members of the Settlers' P a r t y S i r k had even been elected to the Settlers' Tallinn executive committee and had wanted to stand as a candidate in the 1929 Riigikogu elections, but he would have been too far dow n the party list to be elected and he did not have the patience to wait for his turn to rise higher up.^^ The failure of Sirk's bid to become a candidate underlines the importance of the Veterans' demand for British style individual

mandates to replace the system of proportional representation.^^ Mae had a similar experience: he had been a member of the Centre Party's Harju county executive and a candidate in the 1932 Riigikogu elections.^! He claimed that his defection was a principled stand protesting at the Centre Party's stance on constitutional amendment, but it is obvious that as an unsuccessful candidate he saw the League as a quicker way to a position of political power. Some other leading Veterans also came from the Centre

truuks jaame isamaale viim se veretilgani, viim se veretilgani.

ERA, f. 1, n. 7, s. 90; Raamot, Malestused, vol. 1, pp. 267-8. Raamot, Malestused, vol. 1, pp. 267-9; vol. 2, p. 17. Marandi, "Riigivôimude tasakaalu otsingul," p. 25. Mae, Kuidas koik teostus, p. 84.

Party: Oskar Liiiga belonged to the Centre Party executive in Rakvere; Dr. Harry Rütman, the auditor of the League's central executive, was an active figure in the Centre Party; and through most of the year 1932, Colonel Dr. Hans Leesment, was simultaneously the League's deputy chairman and a member of the Centre Party's central committee.^^

After the League was re-established in October 1933, individual chapters were re-registered and the founding of new chapters quickly mushroomed. By the banning of the League in March 1934 nearly five hundred chapters had been registered.^^ The League even had one chapter outside Estonia in New York.^^ Many of these, however, existed only on paper and had not yet begun to function. Judging from the number of League chapters that the police closed down, it appears that 386 chapters were active.^^

No statistics exist or were ever compiled giving an overall profile of the membership of the League. The leaders of the League themselves evidently did not know the exact membership figures. When questioned by the political police they gave conflicting answers.^^ Marandi estimates a figure of more than 60 000 for the total m e m b e r s h i p . ^ 7 Kuuli gives a

much more cautious estimate of 10 000.^® Both numbers, however, are

u n s a t i s f a c t o r y .6 9 Marandi errs by relying on a statement by Sirk that was

surely an exaggeration, while Kuuli underestimates the number of

Veterans outside Tallinn in the rural chapters. A more satisfactory rough estimate of between 20 000 and 25 000 members is arrived at by proceeding from the assumption that between one-third and one-quarter of the

League's membership belonged to the Tallinn chapter which was, at its maximum, no more than 7 000 strong.

62 Raamot, Malestused, vol. 2, p. 38; Voitlus, 3 December 1932; Marandi, M ust-valge lipu all, p. 150, footnote 36.

63 Political police reports give differing figures: 493 chapters in ERA, f. 14, n. 2, s. 73, Uc. 3 and 495 chapters in ERA, f. 1, n. 7, s. 74, Ik. 172.

64 e r a, f. 1, n. 7, s. 91, Ik. 647. 65 ERA, f. 1, n. 7, s. 129.

66 The membership figures for the Tallinn League chapter given at their political police