Section 3
Chp. 17
• How did conditions in Italy favor the rise of
Mussolini?
• How did Mussolini reshape Italy?
• What were the values and goals of fascist
ideology?
Setting the Scene
• “I hated politics and politicians,” said
Italo Balbo. Like many Italian
veterans of World War I , he had
come home to a land of economic
chaos and political corruption. Italy’s
constitutional government, he felt
“had betrayed the hopes of soldiers,
reducing Italy to a shameful peace.”
Disgusted and angry, Balbo rallied
behind a fierce nationalist, Benito
Mussolini
•Mussolini’s rise to power in the 1920’s served as a
model for ambitious strongmen elsewhere in
Europe
Rise of Mussolini
• Italians were upset after the Peace of Paris, they
had been promised land to join the allies and
now that land became the country of Yugoslavia
• Peasants seized land, workers went on strike or
seized factories, the country was in chaos
• Veterans had no jobs after defending their
country at war
• Trade declined and taxes rose
• The government broke into factions, small
groups, and was unable to come to any
agreement on how to solve the problems.
A Leader Emerges
• Benito Mussolini who was the son of a
socialist blacksmith and a teacher had
been a socialist him self but rejected
those beliefs for intense nationalism, he
became the new voice of the Italians
• He organized the Fascist party in 1919,
made up of veterans and discontented
citizens
• Fascist comes from the Latin word fasces or
a bundle of sticks wrapped around an ax, a
symbol of authority in ancient Rome.
•A fiery speaker he promised to end corruption and replace turmoil
with order
•Spoke of reviving Roman greatness pledging to turn the
Mediterranean into a “Roman Lake” once again
Seizing Power
• Mussolini’s supporters were called Black
Shirts they were organized into “combat
squads” which broke up socialist rallies,
smashed leftist presses, and attacked
farmers’ cooperatives
• By intimidation and terror these gangs
ousted officials in Northern Italy
• Most citizens accepted these thug groups
because they had lost all faith in the
government
In 1922 at a rally in Naples the Fascists called for a “March on Rome” to
demand changes, 10’s of thousands answered the call and King Victor
Emmanuel III fearing Civil War asked Mussolini to form a new government
Benito Mussolini becomes Prime Minister
Without a shot fired Mussolini had achieved an appointment from the king
and went around any constitution the country currently had
Mussolini’s Italy
• By 1925 Mussolini had taken the title of
IL DUCE “the leader”
–
–
–
–
He suppressed rival political parties
Censored the press
Rigged Elections
Replaced elected officials with Fascists
Italy supposedly remained a constitutional
monarchy but it was really a dictatorship controlled
by terror
Critics were thrown in jail, forced into exile, or even
murdered
Secret police and propaganda strengthened the
hold Mussolini had on Italy
Mussolini’s Italy
POLITICAL
STRUCTURE
ECONOMIC
POLICY
By 1925, Mussolini had assumed the
title Il Duce,
“The Leader.”
Mussolini brought the economy under state
control.
In theory, Italy remained a
parliamentary monarchy. In fact, it
became a dictatorship upheld by terror.
Unlike socialists, Mussolini preserved
capitalism.
The Fascists relied on secret police and
propaganda.
Workers received poor wages and were
forbidden to strike.
SOCIAL
POLICIES
The individual was unimportant except
as a member of the state.
Men were urged to be ruthless warriors.
Women were called on to produce more
children.
Fascist youth groups toughened children
and taught them to obey strict military
discipline.
What Is Fascism?
In the 1920s and 1930s, fascism meant different
things in different countries. All forms of fascism,
however, shared some basic features:
• extreme nationalism
• glorification of action, violence, discipline, and, above
all, blind loyalty to the state
• rejection of Enlightenment faith in reason and the
concepts of equality and liberty
• rejection of democratic ideas
– Believed democracy led to corruption and weakness
– Emphasized emotion and the need to the citizen to serve the
state
• pursuit of aggressive foreign expansion
• glorification of warfare as a necessary and noble
struggle for survival
Compared to Communism
• Fascists were sworn enemies of socialists and
communists
• Communists wanted internal changes, Fascists
wanted more land and a stronger homeland
• Communists were supported by the working
class and poor Fascists by the rich and middle
class
• Similarities between the two groups were the
idea of new social programs, Dictators imposed
totalitarian governments, and in both the leaders
claimed to rule out of national interests
Totalitarian Rule
• Italy was the first Totalitarian state, which became a
model for other states, even though rule by Mussolini
was not as absolute or as brutal as by Stalin in the
USSR and Hitler in Germany
•There were 6 basic features of totalitarian rule
•Single party dictatorship
•State control of economy
•Use of police spies and terror to enforce rules
•Strict censorship of media
•Use of schools and media to indoctrinate
and mobilize citizens
•Unquestioning obedience to a single leader
Appeal
• Why did FASCISM appeal to Italians?
–
–
–
–
It promised a strong, stable government
An end to political feuding
Revival of National pride
Mussolini showed power and confidence in a time of
disorder and despair
• At first IL DUCE was respected by foreign countries
“he got the trains running of time” made chaos into
an ordered, disciplined society
• After Mussolini started to call for military action, and
the increasing of the size of Italy, world powers saw
Mussolini for what he was!!!!
Looking Ahead
• After World War I three systems of government
competed for influence in Europe
– Democracy like in Britain and France
– Communism in Russia
– Fascism in Italy
• Fascism with its chest-pumping calls for action,
national unity, and dedication to the state ignited
patriotic feelings, as the Great Depression
spread other nations looked to leaders that
preached fascism