Italy under Mussolini 1922-1945 KEY PERSONALITY

Learning intentions: WHAT DO WE WANT TO KNOW? Why did democracy's begin to fail in Europe in the 1920s? What was fascism and what were its main policies? How did Mussolini come to power and how did he turn Italy into a dictatorship? What was the role of Italy in World War 2?

Why democracies failed New states had been created in Europe after World War I. The new states were Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Austria, Hungary, the Soviet Union, the Weimar Republic (Germany) and Turkey. Many of these dates were weaker and more unstable than the empires they replaced. All of the new states apart from the Soviet Union became liberal democracies with a written constitution and elected parliament. However many countries were crippled by the cost of World War I and so the 1920s was a period of severe economic difficulty in most European countries. As people struggled to make a living during the 1920s, resentment with their government began to increase. This gave rise to a growth in popularity for more extremist parties. The two main groups were the COMMUNISTS and the FASCISTS. People had seen what had occurred in Russia with the Communist Revolution and so many, particularly Business people, were fearful of similar Communist revolutions in their country. The fascist party were the strongest opponents of communism, and were offering radical solutions to the economic problems of the time. There was also much resentment in countries like Italy and Germany regarding the outcome of World War I, with the Italians and Germans believing that they had been treated unfairly.

Who was afraid of the Communists? As we have already learned in our study of the Soviet Union, Communist gained support from unemployed workers and landless labourers, who stood to gain from the Communist idea of abolishing private property ownership. Therefore, because the fascists claimed to be strongly anti-Communist, those who supported fascism were those who stood to lose most if there was a Communist Revolution, namely rich landlords, bankers, and factory owners. The church also appeared to be more favourable towards fascism because communism appeared to persecute religion. Increasingly, people wanted a “strong leader” to protect them from communism, even if that meant giving up the freedoms that democracy guaranteed.

Why and how did fascism emerge in Italy? DISSATISFACTION WITH RESULTS OF FIRST WORLD WAR At the beginning of the First World War Italy stayed neutral. They joined in on the side of the allies in 1915, after France and Britain promised them Tyrol and Dalmatia, which were parts of the Austro- Hungarian empire. This was known as the Treaty of London. However when World War I ended, the Allies would only give Italy the South Tyrol and the north of Dalmatia. Italian Nationalists resented Italy's limited gains. Some nationalists, led by Gabriele D’Annunzio, took over FIUME (an Italian speaking city in Dalmatia and declared it a republic. The Italian government had to expel them.

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS: 1: inflation was high brackets prices up by 600% since 1914) but wages stayed low and the poor were often hungry. 2: unemployment grew as arms factories closed and millions of demobilised soldiers returned from the war and had no work. 3: Social unrest grew as workers and landlords peasants, inspired by Lenin’s example, joined the Communist Party. They formed “read the guards” and from 1919 to 1922 organise strikes and set up “Soviets” to take over factories. 4: Nationalists and ex-soldiers like Benito Mussolini formed gangs to fight the Communists: Wealthy landowners and businessmen often paid them to break up strikes and take back the factories. Small business men like shopkeepers, and more prosperous farmers joined in to defend themselves against a Communist takeover. Between 1919 and 1922, over 300 people were killed in riots between the red guards and right wing (fascist) gangs. 5: There had been a number of week collation government within four years, none of which could take any hard decisions. This encouraged Italians to look for a “strong leader” who could restore order.

Mussolini's Fascist Party Who was Mussolini? A former socialist two had fought in World War I. Afterwards he gained a reputation as an Italian Nationalist opposed to communism. He organised former soldiers into gangs that he called the “fascio di Combattimento” (combat groups). They had a uniform which earned them the name the BLACKSHIRTS.

Wealthy businessmen backed him as a barrier against communism, and his blackshirts regularly attacked trade unionists and broke up strikes. In 1921 Mussolini linked up with similar groups and set up the Fascist Party.

Characteristics of Fascism Ultra-Nationalist: promotes an ideology of the greatness of one's own country and the inferiority of others. Anti-democratic: A belief that democracy is a weak system and that country should be governed by a strong leader. Cult of personality: The creation of a belief that the success of the country rests solely on one particular person and all propaganda centres around that person. Anti-Communist: fascist strongly opposed the ideas of communism where private property would be seized by the state. Violence: fascist movements used violence and intimidation to gain power and then maintain it.

Growth in popularity of Italian Fascist party To begin with the fascist party in Italy was not very popular. This was largely because they are opposed the Catholic church, however Mussolini quickly realised that this was unpopular with most Italians. He quickly switched to supporting the church and the popular Italian monarchy. In the 1921 election the fascist party won 35 seats. In 1922 when trade unions called a general strike, fascist gangs terrorised the workers and destroyed Communist's and socialists offices and newspapers. This made them popular with Italians who feared communism.