The Rise of Benito Mussolini i'm the artistic director! Jared Milfred, Francesca Frattaroli, Sam Kowash, Martha Brown

Early Life Born in a small town in the Emilia-Romagnia region in 1883.   Raised in a Catholic household. His father was an active socialist. Named Benito after Mexican Socialist President Benito Pablo Juárez García.  Expelled from boarding school for violent behavior (throwing rocks at monks and a wee bit o' stabbing). Before being involved in politics, Mussolini was a newspaper editor (where he learned all his propaganda skills) and elementary school teacher. 

Ideology Mussolini was initially a member of Italy's socialist party. However, he was thrown out because of his view that Italy should join WWI.  He created a new ideology called Fascism out of a combination of much out of Nationalist and Socialist views.    Fascism is a system where one leader has complete power over a nation, with a goal of making it completely independent of other nations. Fascism also states that the goals of the nation being more important than anything else, including citizens. Fascism is thus an example of a totalitarian ideology. "All within the state, nothing outside the state, nothing against the state."  - Benito Mussolini

"War is to man what motherhood is to a woman" - Benito Mussolini Rise to Power In 1922, he took power over Italy by having a large group of his supporters known as "Black Shirts" march on Rome and threaten to take over the government. Kind Vittorio Emanuele III gave in, allowed him to form a government, and made him prime minister. In the following five years, he gained power, and in 1927 created the OVRA (Organization for Vigilance and Repression of Anti-Fascism), his personal secret police force. Using the agency to arrest, scare, or murder people against his regime, Mussolini was dictator of Italy by the end of 1927. "War is to man what motherhood is to a woman" - Benito Mussolini

"Peace is absurd: fascism does not believe in it." - Benito Mussolini Reign over Italy Mussolini wanted Italy to become a new Roman Empire.    In 1923, he attacked the island of Corfu, and in 1924, he occupied the city state of Fiume.  In 1935, he attacked the African country Abyssinia (now called Ethiopia). His forces occupied it in 1936.  Italy was thrown out of the League of Nations because of this aggression.   In 1939, he occupied the country Albania. In 1936, Mussolini signed an alliance with Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Germany. "Peace is absurd: fascism does not believe in it." - Benito Mussolini

World War II In 1940, Mussolini sent Italy into the Second World War on the side of the Axis countries. Mussolini attacked Greece, but he failed to conquer it.  In 1943, the Allies landed in Southern Italy. The Fascist party and King Vittorio Emanuel III deposed Mussolini and put him in jail, but he was set free by the Germans, who made him ruler of the Italian Social Republic puppet state.

This man mercilessly slaughtered millions upon millions of people.   This man mercilessly slaughtered millions upon millions of people.

Including that little girl.   Including that little girl.

  Like 5 seconds later.

Seriously. Just look at that face.   Seriously. Just look at that face.

  He's a monster.

Downfall and Death When the war was almost over, Mussolini tried to escape to Switzerland with his mistress, Clara Petacci, but he was captured and shot by partisans.  Mussolini's dead body was hanged upside-down, together with some of Mussolini's helpers, on a pole at a gas station in the village of Mezzegra, which is near the border between Italy and Switzerland.