Case Study in the Rise of Fascism: Mussolini

Overview

• The disintegration of order in Italian society made possible the rise of the fascist party.

• These conditions were similar to those conditions present in Germany, Portugal, Greece and Spain during the rise of their respective dictatorial movements– Italy: Mussolini– Germany: Hitler– Spain: Franco– Greece: Metaxas– Portugal: Salazar

Economic Backdrop• Large-scale post-war inflation• Post-war land seizure by

peasants and agricultural reorganization

• Agricultural prices rose from rural confusion and drop in production

• War debts encouraged government to devalue lire

• Prices rose for industrial products, but wages remained unchanged

• Strikes in industry and transportation

– 1914: 300,000 strikers in Italy– 1919: 1,500,000 strikers in Italy

Rise of Italian Socialism• Success of Bolshevik Revolution• The “Communist International"

unified European radical socialists• Italian Socialist Party (PSI) offered

industrial working class hope and power

– 1914: 50,000 PSI members– 1919: 200,000 PSI members– 1919: PSI controlled 26/69 provinces

• PSI controlled 156 seats in parliament

• Largest political party in Italy

• Socialist rise frightened upper classes

• Socialist rise frightened conservative middle and lower class members

• Socialist party seen as encouraging strikes

Public Disillusionment with WW1

• Italy failed to receive all of expected land from WWI, especially Fiume on Adriatic

• Sense of betrayal of Treaty of London (secret 1915 treaty: Italy to join Allies in exchange for land)

• Massive war debt incurred

• Large war death toll

Class Antagonism

• Blue-collar wage stagnation bred hatred of upper class

• Upper-class feared national paralysis from strikes

• Unemployed youths blamed situation on upper classes and socialists

Weak Government

• Government unable to curtail strikes through politics

• Government unable to maintain stable currency

• Government unable to curtail independent political groups

– 1919: D'Annunzio occupation of Fiume (and actually declared an independent Fiume!)

– 1919-1922: Mussolini's organization of Black Shirts

Rise of Mussolini• Originally a socialist

newspaper writer, he switched to oppose socialists

• Offered stability and order to those who feared chaos

• Offered "approved" outlet for discontented youths: “The Black Shirts” paramilitary organization

• Offered working class alternative to economic collapse (scapegoat: socialists and weak government)

• Offered upper classes an alternative to socialism (scapegoat: strikers and socialists)

Rise of Mussolini• Victor Emmanuel III had power

to name prime minister• Mussolini offered solution to

chaos (and threatened to take power by force)

• Offered nation direction for growth in self-worth: return to glory of ancient Rome

• Used Black Shirts to gain power "leverage“ through intimidation, murder

• Used social disapproval of socialists to excuse brutal attacks upon his opposition

• October 1922 “March on Rome” led VE to name Mussolini prime minister