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History - Italy > ***(2) The creation of a fascist dictatorship, 1922-26 > Flashcards

***(2) The creation of a fascist dictatorship, 1922-26 Flashcards

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1
Q

Despite being prime minster, how few fascist deputies were there in parliament in November 1922?

A

Only 35

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2
Q

Who dominated parliament in November 1922? How many seats did they have?

A

The PSI (Mussolini’s hated rivals) with 123 seats.

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3
Q

What was Mussolini’s main aim when he became prime minister in November 1922?

A

To placate the old ruling classes.

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4
Q

What move helped Mussolini gain the support of the conservative industrialists?

A

He appointed the orthodox economist, Alberto De’Stefani as minister of finance - this reassured them that M’s appointment would not lead to radical economic changes.

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5
Q

How did Mussolini gain the trust of the powerful Catholic Church?

A

He increased clerical pay and reinstated crucifixes in schools.

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6
Q

What did Mussolini announced on 28 October 1922?

A

A compromise had been reached between the ANI and PNF.

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7
Q

When were the ANI officially absorbed into the PNF?

A

In February 1923

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8
Q

Why was absorbing the ANI into the PNF an important move?

A

Took away a powerful rival and clearly designated the PNF as the only party representing Italian nationalism.

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9
Q

Who did Mussolini appoint as Minister of work and welfare?

A

Stefano Cavazzoni, a PPI member

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10
Q

What did Cavazzoni promote?

A

Collaboration between the PNF and PPI.

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11
Q

Why did Luigi Sturzo, the leader of the PPI, resign in July 1923?

A

He was concerned that the PPI was being too absorbed into the PNF.

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12
Q

What happened as a result of Mussolini’s pro-Catholic policies?

A

The Vatican supported the PNF at the expense of the PPI. Without this crucial endorsement and the leadership of Sturzo, the once powerful PPI began to decline.

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13
Q

When did Mussolini give his maiden speech?

A

16 November 1922

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14
Q

What did Mussolini say in his maiden speech?

A

He intimidated antifascist politicians and caused them to comply with the PNF (threat of violence).

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15
Q

What did parliament approve after Mussolini’s maiden speech?

A

They approved year-long emergency powers.

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16
Q

What did these year-long emergency powers mean for Mussolini?

A

He could not be removed by parliament and had full power to govern and raise taxes without seeking parliamentary approval for at least a year.

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17
Q

What did Mussolini do in December 1922?

A

He created a rival organisation to the cabinet, called the Fascist Grand Council.

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18
Q

Who did Mussolini appoint to his Fascist Grand Council?

A

Key fascists such as Italo Balbo, Michele Bianchi and Emilio De Bono.

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19
Q

Why was Mussolini’s creation of the Fascist Grand Council an important move?

A
  1. It helped M to overcome his weak position in the cabinet and undermined the liberal institutions by essentially bypassing them.
  2. Mussolini centralised his power over the PNF as he was the leader of the FSC with the sole ability to appoint its members.
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20
Q

What did the Fascist Grand Council help Mussolini to consolidate his control over?

A

Both the PNF and parliament.

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21
Q

What did Mussolini do in January 1923?

A

He created the Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza National (MVSN)

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22
Q

What did the creation of the MVSN do?

A

It absorbed all the squadristi and formalised their role as a party-based paramilitary force.

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23
Q

What was the role of the MVSN?

A

Support the army and police in defending the fascist revolution.

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24
Q

How many members were there in the MVSN when it was formed?

A

300,000

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25
Q

What did the members of the MVSN pledge?

A

Allegiance to Italy and their commander-in-chief, Mussolini.

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26
Q

What did the MVSN pledge allow for Mussolini to do?

A

Strengthened his control over the blackshirts at the expense of the ras.

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27
Q

By creating the MVSN what had Mussolini hoped to end?

A

Fascist violence

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28
Q

By Jan 1923, how did Mussolini feel about fascist violence?

A

He now felt it was detrimental to his support among the liberal elite and the middle classes.

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29
Q

Who supported the move away from ras-controlled fascist violence?

A

The king, the army and the liberal elite.

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30
Q

What had happened to the membership of the PNF since the March on Rome to January 1923?

A

The party had doubled in size to 783,000 members.

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31
Q

How was the power of the ras and squadristi being diluted by the increasing membership of the PNF?

A

The vast majority of new members were from the middle classes, they were not revolutionary fascists like the ras.

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32
Q

What law did Mussolini introduce to overcome the problem of proportional representation?

A

The Acerbo Law

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33
Q

What did the Acerbo Law propose?

A

2/3 of parliamentary seats would go to the party that won more than 25% of the vote.

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34
Q

Who opposed the Acerbo Law?

A

The PCI and PSI

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35
Q

Who supported the Acerbo Law? What was the result of this?

A

Liberal elites such as Giolitti, the king and the Vatican. This put pressure on the PPI to abstain from voting.

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36
Q

How did the fascists use the threat of violence to ensure that the Acerbo Law was passed?

A

The fascists staged massive demonstrations in Tuscany and Umbria which applied pressure. They threatened violence is the bill did not pass.

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37
Q

What did Mussolini do on the day that the Acerbo Law was to be debated?

A

Wore a black shirt to parliament, which encouraged using the threat of violence.

38
Q

When was the election in 1924?

A

April 6

39
Q

What was the election campaign marred by?

A

Violence and intimidation as fascist blackshirts destroyed hundreds of opposition clubs and offices.

40
Q

Who did fascist blackshirts murder during the election campaign?

A

PSI candidate Antonio Piccinini

41
Q

What did the violence occur despite?

A

Mussolini having tried to suppress the violence, believing that he required a legitimate victory to cement his power.

42
Q

What did several prominent liberals do which helped the PNF’s electoral victory?

A

These liberals, such as Orlando and Salandra, chose to have themselves included on the government electoral list alongside the fascists.

43
Q

What did the opposition to fascism fail to do?

A

Come to an agreement which could have led to a united opposition against the PNF and its allies. Instead, opposition forces remained divided between the PCI, PSI, PPI and liberals who refused to work with the fascist e..g. Giolitti.

44
Q

What was the electoral turnout in the April 1924 election?

A

64%

45
Q

What percentage of the vote did the fascist electoral list gain?

A

66.3% - Mussolini won a resounding victory and the Acerbo Law became irrelevant.

46
Q

How many deputies did the Fascists now have after winning the April 1924 election?

A

275 fascist deputies, in comparison to just 35 before.

47
Q

What was the PNF’s electoral victory in April 1924 mainly due to?

A

The weakness of the opposition, the electoral support of prominent liberals and a genuine belief that Mussolini could provide the strong leadership Italy needed to overcome its numerous problems.

48
Q

Who was Giacomo Matteotti?

A

The leader of the PCI

49
Q

When did Matteotti give a speech?

A

When the new parliament re-opened on 30 May 1924.

50
Q

What did Matteotti assert in his speech?

A
  1. That the fascists had only won the election due to violence.
  2. The fascists were determined to establish a dictatorship no matter what the electoral results were.
51
Q

What rumours about Matteotti concerned Mussolini?

A

That Matteotti had amassed a large file on fascist party corruption and was about to make it public.

52
Q

What happened on 10 June 1924?

A

Matteotti was kidnapped as he walked towards government. His body was eventually found 2 months later in a shallow grave just outside Rome.

53
Q

Whose car was Matteotti dragged into?

A

Cesare Rossi - Mussolini’s press secretary

54
Q

Who led the kidnapping of Matteotti?

A

Amerigo Dumini

55
Q

Who was Dumini?

A

The head of a fascist terror squad that had direct links to key fascist figures.

56
Q

What was the response of the old, established elite in the Matteotti crisis?

A

They were concerned about backing a prime minister associated with murder.

57
Q

What was the response of the PSI, PCI and other antifascist parties in the Matteotti crisis?

A

They were calling for the dismissal of Mussolini and the overthrow of the fascist government.

58
Q

Why was Mussolini facing pressure from the ras during the Matteotti crisis?

A

They saw Matteotti’s murder as the first step in a fascist revolution that would violently establish a dictatorship.

59
Q

What happened on 13 June 1924?

A

The Aventine Secession: Around 100 antifascist deputies left parliament and established their own parliament on the Aventine hill outside Rome.

60
Q

Who did Mussolini have the support of in June 1924?

A

The king, the pope, the army and business and political elites.

61
Q

Why did Mussolini’s government appeal to key figures of the Italian political system?

A

His government was strong, right-wing, conservative and anti-communist - the right-wing bodies had no interest in another change of leader, particularly if it would help the PCI and PSI.

62
Q

What did the departure of 100 antifascist deputies mean for Mussolini?

A

It was easier for M to pass legislation through parliament.

63
Q

Why could the Aventine Secession not agree on what to do to threaten Mussolini’s rule?

A

There were considerable ideological differences between members. As a result they offered no threat to M’s rule.

64
Q

What did Mussolini do to reassure Italy’s political elites after the Secession?

A

He handed the positions of interior and justice minister to the nationalists, Luigi Federzoni and Alfredo Rocco.

65
Q

What did Mussolini do in November 1924?

A

Under pressure from the army, Mussolini ordered the PNF to cease all forms of violence and remove members who were undisciplined and unwilling to follow his directives.

66
Q

When did Mussolini meet with a delegation of squad leaders?

A

31 December 1924

67
Q

What did squad leaders demand for Mussolini to do in December 1924?

A

They demanded that he act to defend the fascist revolution or they would remove him as leader of the PNF.

68
Q

What did the influential liberal politician Salandra declare on 29 December 1924?

A

His opposition to Mussolini (M was worried Salandra might be able to influence the king).

69
Q

When did Mussolini make a speech announcing the establishment of a fascist dictatorship?

A

3 January 1925

70
Q

What did Mussolini do on 12 January 1925?

A

Mussolini formed a new cabinet without most of the liberals. Mussolini took on the roles of prime minister and minister to foreign affairs, war, navy and aviation.

71
Q

Who did Mussolini appoint as the PNF secretary in February 1925?

A

Farinacci

72
Q

What was Farinacci’s main role?

A

To purge the party of those radicals who would not accept Mussolini’s political direction.

73
Q

What happened as a result of Farinacci’s appointment?

A
  1. Fascist membership increased from 600,000 to 938,000.
  2. Diluted the power of the squadristi.
  3. New members were not interested in fascist revolution.
74
Q

What did the Fascist Grand Council do in October 1925?

A

They approved a motion that forced all ras to disband any squads still in existence and enlist in the militia/MVSN.

75
Q

How did Mussolini gain military support for the dictatorship?

A
  1. Increased officer and generals’ pay.
  2. Appointed the conservative monarchist, Pietro Badoglio, to the role of chief of general staff (instead of a radical fascist which the army had feared).
76
Q

What pact did Mussolini announced on 2 October 1925?

A

The Palazzo Vidoni Pact

77
Q

What did the Palazzo Vidoni Pact do?

A

Established the official fascist unions as the only representatives of Italy’s workers, thereby taking power from the socialist and Catholic unions.

78
Q

How did Mussolini gain the support of industrialists for the dictatorship?

A

After the Vidoni Pact fascist unions were much more subservient to industrialists than other unions.

79
Q

What happened after it was found out that Zanzibari had been plotting to assassinate Mussolini?

A
  1. Zaniboni was arrested in August 1925.
  2. Zaniboni’s party, the PSU, was banned.
  3. A new press law was introduced which meant all journalism had to be supervised and approved by the state.
  4. A law was introduced which gave the gov the power to sack any public employee whose actions were hostile to the PNF.
80
Q

What was the title of Prime Minister changed to in December 1925?

A

Head of Government and Duce of Fascism

81
Q

What ability of parliament was removed in December 1925?

A

The ability to remove the prime minister through a vote of no confidence.

82
Q

What was Mussolini granted in January 1926?

A

The ability to rule by decree, allowing him to make laws without discussion, consultation or a vote in parliament.

83
Q

When were all parties but the PNF banned?

A

31 October 1926 - following an assassination attempt against Mussolini.

84
Q

What was set up in October 1926?

A

A Special Tribunal for the Defence of the State - for the prosecution of antifascists who ultimately would have no right of appeal.

85
Q

What happened to the Aventine deputies in Oct 1926?

A

They were permanently excluded from parliament

86
Q

What happened to communist parliamentarians in Oct 1926?

A

They were banned.

87
Q

What happened to the leader of the communist parliamentarians?

A

Gramsci was arrested

88
Q

What had happened to most opposition leaders by Oct 1926?

A

They had fled into exile in France and elsewhere overseas. Their Italian citizenship was withdrawn and their property confiscated.

89
Q

Around how many antifascists had left Italy by Oct 1926?

A

Around 10,000

90
Q

What did Mussolini replace mayors in local government with?

A

A new position called the podestá, who would be appointed by local prefects. These prefects were appointed by Mussolini. This undercut ras authority.

91
Q

Who became the new PNF secretary in March 1926?

A

Turati

92
Q

What did Turati state about the ras?

A

That the prefects would take precedence in any conflict with the ras.

History - Italy (15 decks)

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