Today, 80 years later after World War II and over a hundred years later since its first political usage, the fascist or Nazi salute still provokes major controversy and is considered offensive by many. This is what recently happened when Elon Musk struck a similar gesture, which some interpreted as the Nazi salute, causing grave criticism and debate. However, the salute was not invented by Nazis. In fact, it was once a symbol of opposition to tyranny and associated with a form of democratic rule. So how did this change?
The
Roman Salute
“‘Go,’
he cried, in bitter reproach, ‘go to your betrothed with your ill-timed love,
forgetful as you are of your dead brothers, of the one who still lives and of
your country! So perish every Roman woman who mourns for an enemy!’”
(Titus
Livius (Livy) The History of Rome. Book 1, Chapter 26, 27–9 BC)
This
is an excerpt from the book History of Rome, also known as Ab Urbe
Condita, written by Roman historian Livy, where he describes the account of
the legendary battle between Rome and Alba Longa. During the battle, two of the
Horatii brothers, Marcus and Lucius, were killed, leaving only Publius to
defend Rome. He alone defeated the Curiatii brothers, killing each of them one
by one.
Publius
came home as a hero. He was met by a hailing mass and a sister who cried when
she saw her dead lover’s cloak adorning his shoulders, one she had sewn herself.
Enraged by this public demonstration of personal grief and dishonor of the
state—behaviors condemned in Roman patriotic values—Publius drew his sword and
killed his only sister, Camilla.
According
to legend, the conflict between Rome and Alba Longa (an ancient city in Latium,
central Italy, in the Alban Hills) was primarily driven by competition for
resources and power. War was sparked by mutual allegations of cattle theft. To
secure more resources and power, the third king of Rome, Tullus Hostilius, sought
to expand Rome's influence over neighboring cities. The war was settled through
a duel between two sets of triplet brothers: the Roman Horatii and the Alban
Curiatii.
 |
| The Oath of the Horatii by Jacques-Louis David (1784 and 1785) |
This
account of the history of Rome inspired the famous painting "The Oath of
the Horatii", by French artist, Jacques-Louis David (1784 and 1785). David's
painting dramatized the moment when the Horatii brothers took an oath of
loyalty to the state—by lifting their right arms with their hands spread openly
before their father—to fight to the death for Rome. This gesture became known
as the legendary “Roman salute”.
Loyalty
to the State
Legend
has it that the two cities, Rome and Alba Longa, were closely related as Rome's
founders, Romulus and Remus, were descendants of the royal family of Alba
Longa. As conflict emerged between the two cities, marriages have been arranged
to unite the people and solidify political stability. This narrative is also
depicted in the "The Oath of the Horatii" painting.
Seen
on the right corner of the painting are three women and two children. The
younger women are interpreted as Sabina, the Curiatii’s sister and wife of one
of the Horatii brothers, and Camilla, the Horatii brothers' sister engaged to
one of the Curiatii brothers. The elderly woman with the children (presumably
Sabina’s) is the Horatii brothers’ mother. An expression of devastation can be
seen on the faces of the women and even their body postures. This is because Rome’s
victory or loss meant that they would lose loved ones.
The painting,
which David initially began in 1784, was commissioned by the French government
to promote loyalty to the state and, by extension, the monarchy. However, the painting’s
message of sacrifice for the common good and patriotic values resonated with
the tensions emerging during the pre-French revolution period. David himself
later “betrayed” his commissioner by publicly supporting the revolution.
The Fascist
Salute
"The
Oath of the Horatii" depicts a scene inspired by the legend of ancient
Rome from the Roman Kingdom period (753–509 BCE). However, the Roman salute
depicted in the painting was created from the imagination of the artist. There
is no historical evidence that this salute was ever used in ancient Rome. The
salute became mostly associated with Roman republicanism due to the influence
of neoclassical art and political movements which sought to evoke Roman ideals
of unity and strength.
The painting, with the famed salute, became iconic for capturing the spirit of what would lead to the French Revolution, the executions of King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette, and the abolishment of the French monarchy. The salute was further popularized in the late 19th and early 20th centuries through plays, films, and other artworks.
Ironically, the Roman salute—which resonated with the revolutionary ideas of equality, liberty, fraternity, and opposition to monarchy—would, in the 20th century, become the symbol of tyranny with the emergence of fascism.
 |
| Gabriele d'Annunzio (The collector.com) |
It was
in the 20th century that the Roman salute became a political brand. Italian
fascist groups used the salute to symbolize loyalty and sacrifice for the good
of the greater state as well as invoke an idealized Roman past. The salute was first
popularized by the Italian nationalist poet turned political leader, Gabriele
d'Annunzio, who—influenced by Italian films recounting a re-imagined and
romanticized Roman era—used this salute during his occupation of Fiume in 1919.
Since 1921, the Italian National Fascist Party gradually adopted the Roman
salute until in 1923, it became the official salute of the Mussolini regime. The
salute would then be typically referred to as the “fascist salute”.
The
Nazi party also began using it in 1921 and officially adopted it in 1926. Initially
used by Italian nationalists and fascists, the salute became widely associated
with the Nazi regime, especially after World War II, where it was subsequently referred
to as the "Nazi salute".
Women,
Honor, and the Nation
Let’s
go back to the painting to understand the oppressive political nature of
“loyalty to the state”. It is important to note that the murder of Camilla
Horatii on the premises of loyalty and honor, of which her brother upheld, reflects
how women are positioned in a nation. Because of women’s capacity to reproduce,
they ensure the continuity of the nation and therefore hold the role of
safeguarding its “purity”. Relationships with foreign men, especially from
rival nations or groups, are seen as threats to the nation’s identity which
could create a crisis of loyalty. Women, therefore, become the boundary between
nations or groups. They symbolize the honor of the nation; thus, they must show
unquestionable loyalty to the state and its men.
That
is why, in some of the countries liberated during World War II, women who
married or had sexual relationships with enemy men were scorned, stigmatized, and
even had their heads shaved to be paraded through the streets. They were shamed
for disrupting honor and loyalty. For Camilla, her love for and devotion to the
enemy man, her fiancé, cost her her life.
"Rulers strengthen their power through loyalty, while the people, in return, are rewarded with the delusion of pride and honor.
Another
example, under fascist regimes, men are obligated to defend and expand the
nation. To secure a nation with an army of strong men, women were idealized as
symbols of purity and national pride, serving the state through motherhood as a
patriotic duty.
Within
this framework, women maintain the identity of the nation, especially through the
children they bore. Thus, in wars, the rape of enemy women parallels the
invasion of enemy territory—women become spoils of war, tainting the nation’s
identity with alien offspring, disgracing the men, and paralyzing communities.
The
death of Camilla Horatii at the hands of her own brother, as told in the legend
of ancient Roman history, illustrates how women serve as the boundary and
identity of a nation. This tale seeks to promote patriotism—loyalty to and
sacrifice for the state. Rulers strengthen their power through loyalty, while the
people, in return, are rewarded with the delusion of pride and honor. This
propaganda is used throughout history and founds the modern state.
The
Fascist Salute Was Once a Symbol of Democratic Rule
The
Roman salute in Jacques-Louis David’s "The Oath of the Horatii" was inspired
by the legend of the Roman kingdom. Based on this legend, the painting was
initially commissioned to promote loyalty to the French monarchy. However, amid
France’s political tensions, shifting patriotic values transformed the narrative,
and the painting became a symbol of loyalty to the republic (state). The salute
itself was subsequently associated with Roman republicanism which overthrew the
monarchy.
Interestingly,
however, the salute had been further adapted to fit other political contexts as
needed, including its association with the imperial rule of the Roman Empire
that destroyed the republic. This, for example, aligned with Mussolini’s dream
of building a re-imagined powerful Roman empire under fascism.
After
World War I, fascist rulers in Rome and Germany co-opted the Roman salute,
solidifying its association with fascism. The meaning of what the salute stood
for completely shifted from what was the spirit of the French revolution to an
extreme ideology of state power—from liberty to tyranny. Yet, whether under
liberty or tyranny, the guise of defending patriotism and nationalism has
consistently justified the stigmatization—or in Camilla’s case, murder—of women
because of their personal ties to the enemy.
It is also
interesting to observe how the political contexts associated with the salute
coincide with the cycles of political change experienced by many nations. These
changes reflect the cycle from autocratic rule (monarchy, dictatorship) to
democracies, and then a regression to authoritarianism, if not an autocracy
similar to fascism. The latter may be combined with an oligarchic male-elitist-type
of rule, as what we are seeing in some countries today.
Indeed,
the history of the Roman salute, renowned as the fascist salute, is quite
interesting. Who would have imagined that it once symbolized a form of
democratic rule?
Read my other blog for topics on history and countercultures
Images: All pictures of The Oath of the Horatii are from smarthistory.org.
Sources:
Bird, Danny (2025) “The History of the Hitler Salute,
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https://www.historyextra.com/period/20th-century/hitler-salute-roman-origins
[26 January 2025]
Heß, Johannes and Tobias Klee (2021) ‘Masculine
Nations, Female Personifications – The Gendered Imagery of Nationalism.’ Scripts.
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[1 March 2025].
McCoy, Claire Black (2025) 'Jacques-Louis
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[27 January 2025]
Nagel, Joane (1998) 'Masculinity and
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[22 March 2025].
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D’Annunzio?’ The Collector.
https://www.thecollector.com/who-was-gabriele-d-annunzio/ [26 January 2025].
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