Mussolini
May 10, 2023•900 words
Benito Mussolini
Life
- Pre-fascist era: Liberalism
- Small government
- Free market capitalism
- Individual rights
- Democracy
- Great Depression created growing support for extremist illiberal ideas
- Leads to a rise of fascism and communism
- 1917-1945: Crisis of democracy
- Formation of Italy
- Congress of Vienna 1815: Monarchical absolutism
- Italian revolutions: spread from Spain, occur throughout Italy
- Return of the French in 1849: Reinstate pope
- Italy 1861” Victor Emmanuel II is King, Kingdom of Sardinia,
- 1871: Rome becomes capital again, Austrians expelled
- Risorgimento
- Re-rise, hate toward foreign powers (French) and love for own country
- Revolutionary Giuseppe Mazzini became loyal to Sardina, reunification under monarch
- Early life
- born July 29, 1883, Predappio, Italy
- Lived from 1883-1945
- Eldest child of the local blacksmith
- Father was a part-time socialist journalist too and son of a lieutenant in the National Guard
- So, Mussolini grew up with nationalism and socialism
- Mother was a schoolteacher
- Mussolinis were rather poor
- Father spent all his time discussing politics in tavern and spending money on his mistress, neglecting his family
- As a child, Mussolini was disobedient, unruly, aggressive
- Bully at school
- Education
- Sent to board with the strict Salesian order at Faenza, continued to get in trouble like in stabbing a pupil with a penknife and attacking an instructor that tried to beat him
- Expelled and sent to Giosuè Carducci School at Forlimpopoli, from which he was also expelled after assaulting another pupil with a penknife.
- Passed his examination, obtained a teaching degree but soon decided he did not like such work
- At 19, goes to Switzerland and worked various jobs to escape military service
- Studied Nietzsche and Sorel
- Advocated for violent strikes
- Gained a reputation for rhetorical talents
- Formed no coherent philosophy of his own but still impressed his companions as a potential revolutionary
- Arrested add imprisoned several times
Italy
- WWI
- 1915: Joins Entente powers with Treaty of London
- Declares war on Austria-Hungary
- Paris Peace Conference granted very little territorial gains (Vittoria Mutilata)
- Unemployment was high, soldiers did not get promised land from their government (but they got the vote)
- Blamed government
- Unrest
- Red Biennium: increased support for socialist parties
- Others turned to Mussolini’s fascists, many unemployed soldiers joined the blackshirts and fought communists
- PM Giovanni Giolitti called an election, forms a coalition with Mussolini hoping it would keep them in check
- Communist party also gained seats
- 1921: Fascists become a formal political party PNF (Partito Nazionale Fascista)
- Mussolini takes power
- October 28th, 1922 they march on Rome, Mussolini was not there, ready to flee
- King did not allow the army to violently put down the group, made Mussolini the PM
- Changed proportional representation system
- Giacomo Acerbo puts reforms in place so that the winning party gets a clear majority, supported by most parties
- January 3rd, 1925: Dares chamber of deputies to remove him, they do not
- He later becomes head of government rather than PM, Il Duche
- Banned opposition parties
Philosophy
- Nationalism
- Promoted Italy’s joining the Entente in WWI
- Kicked out of his socialist newspaper
- Ultranationalist autocracy: Strong leader (Machismo), national patriotism
- Interest of the country of highest order, self-sufficiency (Autarky) and self-ruling\
- Need for high birth rate for the economic and military manpower needed for war
- Fascismo
- From Italian word fascio, meaning bundle, strength in unity
- Image of the sheath is very old, bundle around an axe
- State creations the nation
- Loyalty to family, state, country, history
- 1915 Establishes Fasci D’Azione Rivoluzionaria
- Anti-socialist, in favor of economic intervention
- Economy exists for the state
- Force as legitimate part of politics (black shirts)
- Anti-democratic, absolute control of state
- Saw democracy as weak and ineffective
- Aggressive foreign policy, cultural superiority
Conclusions
- His Doctrine of Fascism (1932) rejects 19th century facsism
- Fascism was the new ideology of the century
- Imperialist, authoritarian
- Mussolini condemns this work later, shifting position again
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Qualities of totalitarianism
- Collectivism over individualism
- Authoritarian strong leader, image of the leader well-preserved
- Military hierarchy
- Everything within the state
- Economic intervention, centralized/planned economy
- Maintained by violence
- No separation of power and abolition of other parties
- “total” control and uniformity
- Control of art and media
- Use of symbols
- Education controlled by regimes
- Mass movements, workers
- Workers benefits
- Youth movements
- Funded massive projects
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Differences between communism and fascism
- Fascism is national, communism is international
- Communists look to the future, fascists look to their history
- State control: Fascism still had the corporate state and private property
- In communism, everything under the state and no private property
- Organization: society is classless, fascist it is hierarchical
- Mussolini devised division of corporatism, classes by economic activities
- Fascism more militarist
- Communism: history is a struggle between classes
- Fascism: history is a struggle between states and people
- Nazism: history is a struggle between races
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Impact
- Nazi party
- Idolized by Nazis early on
- Adopted fascism from them