Italy Booklet 8: The Fall of the Fascist State, 1940-1946 Flashcards
When did Italy join WW1?
10/06/40
What happened in France in 1940, much to Mussolini’s embarrassment?
Italian forces invaded France when it was on its knees, about to be taken by German and yet were pushed back by the French
What happened in Greece during WW2?
On October 28th 1940, Italy launched an attack on Greece from its base in Albania. Mussolini had assumed that Greece only had 30,000 men so only sent in 60,000. However, it turned out that Greece had 300,000 men so the Italians were thoroughly beaten. The Greeks even took a quarter of Albania before Mussolini had to call in the Germans who beat the Greeks within weeks
What were the military reasons for Italy’s lack of success during the war?
using techniques and strategies from the 19th century, weapons were old (WW1) and sparse, with only 35 out of the 75 divisions being fully armed. Rations were low and there was a language barrier between the conscripts and the commanders, resulting in a lack of morale.
What were the main economic reasons for Italy’s lack of success during WW2?
lacked natural resources needed to build weapons and other military equipment, as well as meet domestic needs. in 1942, the industry achieved in the USA is a week was equal to that of Italy in a year. Italy didn’t have the money to fund an army after the Albanian war, the Abyssinian war and the intervention in the Spanish civil war.
What were the three main political tensions in 1943?
Anti-fascist groups began to act
strikes were organised
conservative elites began to turn against Mussolini
Why was the loss of the support of the conservative elites such a big blow for Mussolini?
They were his main area of support, without them he was left isolated and they have influence in Italy separate from him so could actually be a large threat to his power.
What was revolutionary about the opposition that arose in 1943?
It was the first time in Italian history that the communists, socialists and Catholics worked together
What did Gaudi do?
He drafted the resolution that called for the removal of Mussolini and for the government to be put in the hands of the king. He also canvassed support from the fascists and made sure that the military/ police wouldn’t support Mussolini
What happened at the fascist grand council meeting on 20th July 1943?
Mussolini spoke for 2 hours about military developments, then the fascists spend 9 hours discussing the resolution and eventually it was passed 19 votes to 7.
What did the king do in terms of Mussolini’s removal?
He informed Mussolini that he was going to be dismissed and replaced by Admiral Franco Maugery, who arrested Mussolini and took him to prison in the back of an ambulance.
Why were the King’s actions a surprise to Mussolini?
The king had supported Mussolini for 20 years and Mussolini had always been the one with the power in their relationship.
What was established in the south of Italy after Mussolini’s rescue by the germans?
The King established the royal government of the kingdom of the south - they were allied with the allies and sent 50,000 troops to help take the rest of Italy.
What evidence was there that the Salo republic was ruled toughly?
5 fascists were sentenced to death for treason on 11th January 1944
For every german soldier killed, 10 Italian would be executed - March 1944 33 german soldiers were killed so 330 Italians were executed
7,500 Jews were taken from italy and sent to concentration camps
What happened in the north of Italy after Mussolini was freed my the Germans?
Mussolini was sent back to Italy on 25th September 1943 to rule the Salo republic ( Hitler was really in charge). He attempted to revert back to the socialist fascist ideas of 1919, but Hitler didn’t allow many of the changes. There was a civil war between the state and the partisans (citizens were terrorised)
