European states (Italy): Evaluate the successes and failures of Mussolini’s domestic policies between 1922 and 1939. Flashcards
Intro/thesis
-Main aims were to set up the Corporate State, drive the Italian economy into greater productivity and ultimately autarky, establish a Fascist society, and consolidate his personal control
-Generally unsuccessful in all policies, except political policies, but even his political support was largely superficial
Paragraphs
-Economic policies were generally UNsuccessful
-Social policies were generally UNsuccessful
-Political policies were largely Successful (-Aimed to become a dictator (achieved this by 1926), to remove and deter any potential opposition, Mussolini’s cult of the Duce aimed to gain widespread support for his personal dictatorship.)
Economic policies unsuccessful- examples
-Although the Battle for the Lira had some positive political outcomes for Mussolini, the policy caused significant economic problems. The revaluing made Italian exports twice as expensive for buyers, and industries such as textiles went into sharp decline.
-The 1925 Battle for Gain was not very successful, as the land in the southern and central regions was not suitable for the growth of grain.
-Mussolini’s drive for autarky had limited success, and government debt continued to grow in the late 1930s.
Economic policies unsuccessful- explanation & historiography
-Overall, the lives of agricultural workers, as for industrial workers, did not improve under Mussolini.
-Tannenbaum: ‘economically, Fascism was a failure.’ He suggests that the near autarky in grain production was at the expense of other key products and that Italy’s overall performance in the 1930s was worse than that of any other major industrialized country.
-Most historians agree that the Corporate State as a whole failed to transform the economy and trade relations. Martin Blinkhorn argues that in practice, it was merely a disguise for the exploitation and oppression of labor.
Social policies unsuccessful- examples
-Even though Mussolini had gotten the support of the Pope, he had to accept that the influence of the Catholic Church would remain in Italian society. Also, when Mussolini moved to create a more fascist society in the 1930s, tensions reemerged. For example, the Church prevented Fascist interference in Catholic Schools and the Catholic University of Milan.
-The Fascists had a very traditional perspective on the role of women and Mussolini wanted them to increase the population to build the capacity of the army. He launched the Battle for Births, aiming to increase the population, but it ultimately failed, as the birth rate rose only slightly after 1936 and the number of marriages was unchanged by the policies.
-Most young people left school when they were 11 years old, even though Mussolini aimed to encourage education that focused on Fascist ideology.
Social policies unsuccessful- explanation & historiography
-Mussolini never really changed Italian attitudes. He tried to break ‘bourgeois thinking’ in Italian society and promote ‘fascisization’ by, for example, making it compulsory in 1937 to replace the traditional greeting of a handshake with a Fascist salute. However, his dictates were met with apathy and irritation.
-Some historians view Mussolini’s only real achievement in domestic policy as being the agreement with the Church.
-Even though there were some successes with the Church, by 1940, Pope Pius XI was distancing himself from Mussolini, and the alliance between Church and state was over.
Social policies unsuccessful- counterargument
-From April to June 1923, Mussolini worked to gain greater support from the Catholic church to widen the fascists’ political base and to weaken the position of the Populari. Pope Pius XI, already a fascist sympathizer, signaled his willingness to withdraw his support for the Populari. The Concordat with the Church established that religious education would be compuslory in schools, Catholicism was the state religion, and other policies.
Political policies largely successful- examples
-Mussolini’s cult of the Duce aimed to gain widespread support for his personal dictatorship. The success of propaganda is particularly difficult to measure, but it did focus on the great successes of the Duce, particularly in foreign policy. He controlled all images of himself in the media and those printed included him skiing and flying planes.
-After gaining power in 1922, Mussolini established unrivaled personal control over the National Fascist Party (PNF) and destroyed the power of the Ras. By 1928, all party posts were appointed from the party headquarters in Rome. Mussolini had total control over his party.
-Members of the party that attained any fame or notoriety were moved from the center of power to prevent them from becoming a threat to Mussolini, meaning that no rivals emerged in the party before the Second World War.
Political policies largely successful- explanation
-(look at counterarguments) Even though a lot of Mussolini’s political support might have been surface-level and people might not have truly been dedicated to him, this does not take away from the fact that he had gained widespread support for his dictatorship.
-The establishment of the Grand Fascist Council reinforced Mussolini’s personal control.
-The limited opposition, partly due to the lack of cohesion among opponents, indicates his success in deterring potential dissidents. However, it could also be argued that there was not much potential opposition to deter.
Political parties largely successful- counterargument
-Fascist newspapers never achieved more than 10% of total circulation.
-Some estimates have suggested that only 15% of the civil service was Fascist in 1927. Although the number of Fascist Party members increased in the 1930s, as people became aware that this was the only way to get promoted, the reality was that there was no Fascist revolution in government.
-Even though there was limited opposition to Mussolini, as the secret police tracked possible dissidents and Mussolini bribed journalists and academics, the Communists maintained an underground resistance with 7,000 activists.
