Lecture 11

Question 1

why did Mussolini move the PM office to Palazzo Venezia

Answer 1

needed space for a crowd, it had a large piazza and a balcony on the building

Question 2

where was the HQ for the Fascist Party

Answer 2

Palazzo Braschi

Question 3

what did the “si” represent on all of the fascist propaganda

Answer 3

that everyone in Rome voted yes for fascism (they didn’t really have a choice in the election process)

Question 4

what did Pope Pius 11 and Mussolini accomplish

Answer 4

they created the Lateran treaty which most importantly established Vatican city

Question 5

what else did the lateran treaty accomplish

Answer 5

• church could own property again
• catholic education was permitted
• crosses were even permitted in some buildings

Question 6

what was the significance of the lateran treaty

Answer 6

allowed italy to claim that Catholicism was the traditional religion of Italia

Question 7

Mussolini wanted to unite St Peter’s Basilica with the rest of Rome, how did he do this

Answer 7

he tore down the “Spine of Rome” (series of old buildings), to make way for a wide street

Question 8

why did Mussolini tear down the side of Piazza Navona

Answer 8

he wanted to create another vista

Question 9

what was mussolini thoughts regarding the Roman empire

Answer 9

he was a militarist who wanted to restore the Roman empire (as evidenced by those paintings), and he was ashamed that the empire fell

Question 10

after Mussolini took Ethiopia what did he do

Answer 10

began to steal artifacts from Ethiopia, including obelisks

Question 11

what did Mussolini do to construct the via dell’impero

Answer 11

• demolished an entire working class neighborhood on the edge of the old Roman Forum and the Imperial Forum
• he relocated them to newly built towns outside of the city
• the road was between palazzo venezia, colosseo

Question 12

what was the point of the via dell’impero

Answer 12

to create a wide enough road to parade soldiers and military equipment to show off the might of his fascist regime

Question 13

what became of the via dell’impero during the war

Answer 13

became a market garden, specifically to produce wheat

Question 14

what is the via dell’impero now

Answer 14

was renamed to via dei fori imperiali, now is a major roadway through Rome

Question 15

what did Rome do with a lot of the fascist infrastructure

Answer 15

kept it up, even thought it was a blight on their history, they felt it served as an important reminder

Question 16

what services did Mussolini create

Answer 16

built post offices, ensuring access to telegraph services, mail services
- believed that every italian should have access to mail

Question 17

why did Mussolini want to win the World Fair 1942

Answer 17

wanted to showcase fascism to the world

Question 18

when he won the World Fair 1942 hosting, what did Mussolini do

Answer 18

he built an entire new neighborhood with his modern architecture, wide streets, easy communication, grand and functional buildings
- named the neighborhood EUR

Question 19

what was the significance of the building the EUR neighborhood

Answer 19

showcased italian advancement, modernization

Question 20

how would one describe the architecture of the EUR

Answer 20

rationalist, based on ancient Greek and Roman, without their decorative elements are highly defined functional buildings with a lot of light, nice curb appeal

Question 21

what is the nickname for the Fendi HQ

Answer 21

Square Colosseo

Question 22

the EUR also took inspiration from

Answer 22

mythology and tried to connect it with fascism
- specifically castor and pollux

Question 23

what was the church of St Peter and St Paul

Answer 23

• the grand church built on the highest point of the EUR
• mussolini knew that his Augustus shrine wouldn’t be ready before he died, so he built this to house his body until it was ready

Question 24

why was there so many pictures and homages to muscular men

Answer 24

mussolini was obsessed with male physical fitness
- fascism in general was hypermasculine to a toxic extent

Question 25

during the war what happened to St Lorenzo

Answer 25

was accidentally bombed (close to tiburtina), mosaics were destroyed

Question 26

after the war, it was necessary to rebuild the transportation systems

Answer 26

led to the rebuilding of the termini station