Italy in the early twentieth century

Question 1

what did the new government constitution guarantee

Answer 1

-equality before the law
-rights of free assembly
-a free press
-king was head of state, had executive power
-king could appoint and dismiss ministers and prime minister, could control foreign policy and was the face of the regime during crisis
-PM ran everyday affairs

Question 2

what was the voting system called

Answer 2

first past the post

Question 3

describe what powers the king had in government

Answer 3

-appoints PM
-blocks bills by parliament
-can pass laws
-can declare war

Question 4

why was the catholic church hostile to the government

Answer 4

lost land and schools due to the government wanting to unite italians more, lost their influence, pope influenced catholics not to vote which included much of the south

Question 5

what did the political system consist of

Answer 5

the senate- appointed by king
chamber of deputies- elected every 5 years, more politically powerful

Question 6

what were political weaknesses at the time

Answer 6

Limited franchise- 500,000 out of 32 mill of italians could vote, less than 2% of people had a say, italians felt alienated and political corruption was widespread
Political Parties- parties were weak so government was formed of factions to make coalitions, transformismo was a system of bargaining so parties could get what they wanted which led to corruption, coalitions were weak and led to short term governments, MPs were serving local interests instead of national ones so were open to switching parties causing disunity

Question 7

when was the franchise extended

Answer 7

1882- extended from 2% to 25% of males
wasnt till 1912 it was extended to most men (3 mill to 8mill)

Question 8

between 1870 and 1915 how many governments were there

Answer 8

20

Question 9

what were the main political groupings

Answer 9

liberals, radicals, socialists, catholics, nationalists

Question 10

what did the radicals want

Answer 10

-reform of the political system
-deputies to be paid
-guarantee of free speech, free assembly, free press
-autonomy for local government
-compulsory and free education
-abolition of king’s power to declare war
-pensions and tighter rules on child labour
-democracy

Question 11

what did the socialists want

Answer 11

-votes for all men
-8 hr working day
-womens rights

Question 12

how many votes did the socialists get in 1900

Answer 12

200,000 votes, 32 seats

Question 13

when was the PSI established

Answer 13

1895
-Avanti! helped spread popularity
-led by middle class who wanted to address concerns of working people

Question 14

what did catholics do as a result of the Papal States being taken away

Answer 14

-vatican was reduced to small part in rome
-Pope Pius protested by shutting himself away and forbade catholics from voting which was a large amount of people
-none of the popes acknowledged the liberal state till 1929 (roman question)
-hostility of catholics paved the way for liberals to remain in control

Question 15

who did the nationalists support

Answer 15

business men and producers

Question 16

Why did granting the vote to more people create instability in Italian politics?

Answer 16

Voting opened up to those who did not support the new electoral changes and its policies therefore made it difficult for the politicians to manage. It was harder to form coalitions and to maintain them.

Question 17

Why did Italian unification not create a united nation?

Answer 17

It was only the completion of territory and didn’t take in consideration the social and economical differences between north and south Italy. For example, language was a huge difference. In 1861 between 2.5-10% of Italians could speak Italian, not all supported the unification.

Question 18

In what ways was the Italian constitution democratic?

Answer 18

The Chamber of Deputies were democratically elected every 5 years. In 1860s only 500,000 out of 32 million Italians could vote (2%), but by 1882 this was increased to 25%. By 1912 the amount of men who could vote rose from 3 million to 8 million.

Question 19

Why did Italian governments tend to be short-lived?

Answer 19

Because political parties were so weak, there were many coalition governments that caused great instability. Between 1870 and 1915 there were over 20 different governments.

Question 20

6. Who did the Liberals in Italy tend to represent?

Answer 20

They represented middle class educated men who thought supporting them would gain influence, and those who thought there should be a more centralised government.

Question 21

11. Why and how was Italian industrial development limited?

Answer 21

Grew hugely in the beginning of 1900s but limited by Italian geography and size. Italy may have grown alot but it was still significantly far behind economically in comparison to other European countries. Industry was restricted to northern Italy e.g. Turin, Milan and Genoa, with them making 55% of industrial income in 1911.
It was also limited due to lack of key resources like iron and coal meaning they would have to import them from other countries. The labour force was large but unskilled, they would have to spend time educating them. Industrial machinery also had to be imported. Communications, transport and energy sources very under developed.

Question 22

12. Why was there a north-south divide?

Answer 22

Industrialisation only affected the north, increasing the divide further as there was more poverty and illiteracy in the south due to it being more underdeveloped. The south had less schools, worse healthcare and were overall way behind in all factors compared to other states and the north of Italy.
For example, in terms of agriculture, this was more rich in the north due to more fertile land and better weather for crops. They had drainage systems which made it less likely that crops were destroyed with floods, therefore subsistence farming decreased in northern areas. However in the south, their goods were not as high value, more natural disasters were likely to occur and deforestation was common which reduced soil quality.

Question 23

13. What was the extent of poverty in Italy?

Answer 23

An increase in landless labourers meant there was more people vulnerable to extreme poverty- if a labourer didnt get work this meant less money earned to support their family. Poverty also increases the spread of diseases such as typhus, pellagra and cholera which were more prevalent in Italy than in other countries due to underdeveloped health care. There was also unsanitary and cramped living conditions particularly in the south along side contaminated water and poor nutrition.
Poverty was also linked with literacy as more wealthy people could afford the costs of education. Illiteracy was higher in the south with 80% of the population being illiterate. In the north in Piedmont there was 26 schools for 10,000 citizens, but only 6 in Sicily for the same amount of people contributing to the illiteracy rates and therefore poverty.

Question 24

14. How much progress was made in tackling the problems of poverty?

Answer 24

Once Giolotti came to power, he put efforts in place to improve poverty in Italy. For example, sickness/ accident/pension schemes, raising minimum working age to 12 yrs, maximum working hrs, government control of education to improve literacy, food taxes reduced, laws passed to enforce public holidays, free treatment for malaria. Healthcare also improved which increased amount of people being cured by 50% between 1885 and 1902. Life expectancy increased to 47 yrs and infant mortality decreased to 138 per 1000. By 1914 Italy had the same life expectancy as other European countries showing huge improvements. It was also compulsory to attend school with an increase of amounts of schools per area in an attempt to improve literacy.

Question 25

15. How many Italians had emigrated to the Americas by 1914 and what effect did this have?

Answer 25

After 1890s, 200,000 Italians emigrated every year. 5 million emigrated to the Americas by 1915, most people coming from the south creating a large feeling of loss as their skills could have been used to strengthen the economy. Many did this in an attempt to earn more money and improve their quality of life for them and their families.

Question 26

16. What were Italy’s foreign policy aims?

Answer 26

One of their main policy aims was to gain equal status and power in comparison to other European countries such as Britain and France in hopes that this would bring more pride and unity in Italy

Question 27

17. Why was Italy a member of the Triple Alliance?

Answer 27

Joined the triple alliance in 1882 along side Germany and Austria-Hungary in hopes of making its way on the world stage and expanding economically. The government thought it would protect the country from French attacks, allowing Italy to grow it’s empire.

Question 28

18. Why was Italy an unreliable member of the Triple Alliance?

Answer 28

The country’s relations with Britain, France and Russia grew and Italy made it clear that they would not support the triple alliance if there was war with Britain, making the alliance meaningless. Agreements were also made with France in 1902 stating that they wouldn’t support Germany if France were to attack them.