M2- The creation of a Fascist dictatorship Flashcards
through what way had Mussolini obtained power in Italy?
through his dual policy of seeking constitutional approvement as well as through squad violence
what were the squads pushing for Mussolini to do as PM?
they demanded a further revolution and a greater reward for getting him into power
what two appointments to his cabinet were influential in gaining support of key influential groups?
De Stefani for the industrialists
Cavazzoni for the Catholics
what did the appointment of Alberto De Stefani do for Mussolini’s popularity?
by appointing De Stefani as minister of finance he had won the support of the conservative industrialists
showed that Mussolini was not intending any radical changes to the economy
how had Mussolini managed to convince industrialists to support him?
convinced them that he would not attack tax evasion
persuaded Confindustria to support him
what was Confindustria?
a powerful conservative organisation which represented big business
what did the appointment of Stefano Cavazzoni do for Mussolini’s popularity?
Cavazzoni became his minister for work and welfare
he was a member of the PPI and began to encourage his own party to collaborate with Mussolini
what had Mussolini done to appease the Catholic Church?
increased clerical sales]
banned contraception
introduced religious education in schools
dropped proposals to tax church property
when did the Pope instruct Sturzo to resign?
July 1923
when was the ANI absorbed into the PNF?
February 1923
what was the impact of the ANI being absorbed?
the PNF was now the main nationalist party in Italy
and Mussolini had removed a rival from parliament
for how long was Mussolini given emergency powers for?
1 year
voting for the emergency powers
196 to 16
how had Mussolini convinced deputies to give him emergency powers?
he had threatened them by saying that he had 300,000 fascists who were ready to take violent action towards deputies who did not vote for the law
what did the emergency powers granted to Mussolini allow him to do?
he had full power to govern and raise taxes without consulting parliament and the need for approval
he also could not be removed from parliament
why were many liberals and conservatives prepared to support Mussolini?
many believed he was the man who could bring energy and dynamism to Italian politics
many saw him as a fresh start after years of liberal corruption through transformismo
many believed he could be easily influenced and saw him as a PM who would share his power
many saw the PNF as the ONLY way to stop a socialist revolution and thus saw Mussolini as the man who could destroy the left
when was the Grand Council of Fascism set up?
December 1922
what did Mussolini use the Grand Council of Fascism for?
he used it to centralise his power over the PNF as he was the only one who could appoint members and so gave him complete control of party policy and appointments
also gave him a way to undermine the liberal parliamentary institutions by using the Grand Council to bypass them
who were the Quadramvirs?
De Bono
Bianchi
De Vecchi
Balbo
when was the MVSN formed?
January 1923
what was the MVSN?
national militia
legalisation of the squads
how did Mussolini use the creation of the MVSN to consolidate more power over the PNF?
the formation of the MVSN meant that squads were under PNF control
NOT the ras like it was previously
the squads could no longer play a role of opposition to Mussolini’s power
what happened to the ras?
replaced by ex-army officers who took their positions as leaders of the MVSN squads
how many ras were expelled from the PNF?
200
how many men were in the MVSN?
300,000
a private army at Mussolini’s disposal
what happened to squad violence with the creation of the MVSN?
it massively declined as the squads were no longer under the control of the ras
Mussolini had intended to limit fascist violence as it was seen as detrimental to his support
what was the Cheka?
Mussolini’s personal bodyguard of fascist thugs
how did the Cheka help Mussolini consolidate his power?
were used to terrorise political opponents into submission
who led Mussolini’s Cheka?
Amerigo Dumini
when was the Acerbo Law passed?
July 1923
what was the Acerbo Law?
change to the existing parliamentary system
the party with the most votes in a election (at least 25%) would automatically receive 2/3 of the seats in the Chamber of Deputies
how did Mussolini force the Acerbo Law through parliament?
he had placed armed blackshirts around the chamber to intimidate the deputies to vote for the law
he also claimed that if the law was not passed then he would abolish parliament which led many deputies voting for it
what was the result of the voting for the Acerbo Law?
235 to 139
how can the passing of the Acerbo Law be seen as legal and illegal?
legal
many deputies supported it:
- saw it as the only way to deal with radical left
- saw it as major move away from coalition led governments
illegal
Mussolini had used violence and intimidation to threaten deputies to vote for the law
IMO mostly legal he had valid support for it
why was the Acerbo Law significant in Mussolini consolidating his power?
he had solved his issue of not having a majority in parliament
meant that he could gain a majority and rule constitutionally without the need for emergency decrees
what were the main reasons for Mussolini’s election victory in 1924?
weakness of the opposition
fascist violence
Mussolini himself
how did the liberals play a part in Mussolini’s election victory in 1924?
liberals such as Orlando and Salandra had joined the PNF’s electoral register which brought more support for the PNF
how did the left-wing play a part in Mussolini’s election victory in 1924?
remained divided with the PCI and PSI, there was no concrete opposition to the PNF in the election
neither was willing to work with each other or even others in opposition such as Giolitti
how did fascist violence play a part in Mussolini’s election victory in 1924?
the use of violence across Italy was used to intimidate the voters to vote for the PNF
also violence was concentrated around destroying opposition organisations and offices
Mussolini himself did not want any violence
how much of the vote did the fascist electoral register win?
66%
how many fascist deputies in parliament after the 1924 election?
374
clear majority
who was the most prominent member of the opposition when parliament reopened in 1924?
Giacomo Matteotti
what was Matteotti attempting to do?
he was trying to defame and criminalise the actions of Mussolini and the PNF
he presented evidence of Fascist intimidation to parliament as well speaking out against the violence and corruption
when was Matteotti murdered?
10 June 1924
what was Mussolini’s response to the murder of Matteotti?
he denied any involvement
who put pressure on Mussolini after the murder of Matteotti?
the established elite
the anti-fascists in parliament
from the ras
the established elite
were not looking to associate themselves with a PM associated with murder
the anti-fascists in parliament
called for the dismissal of Mussolini and wanted to overthrow the fascist government
the ras
they wanted Mussolini to push on for a fascist dictatorship
how many ant-fascist deputies walked out of parliament on 13 June 1924?
100
what did the 100 anti-fascists do?
set up their own parliament called the ‘Aventine secession’
who did Mussolini still have the support of, despite the Matteotti crisis?
the King
the Pope
industrialists
the Army
most of the elite
all these groups still saw Mussolini as the only opposition to socialism
they had no intention to help the PCI or PSI’s new government
why was the Aventine Secession a benefit for Mussolini’s consolidation of power?
less opposition in parliament so he could pass legislation more easily
why was the Aventine Secession a failure?
again the opposition were so weakly united and had no intention of working together
the new parliament had very contrasting political opinions
what showed the King’s support for Mussolini?
he had refused to dismiss Mussolini
was too afraid of the left-wing or even a potential civil war if he opposed Mussolini
who did Mussolini appoint to Interior Minister to appease the elite?
Luigi Federzoni
how did Mussolini deal with the opposition created by the Matteotti crisis?
introduction of press censorship in July 1924
banned political meetings by opposition parties in August 1924
why had many Liberals join the opposition in November 1924?
they had opposed the press censorship Mussolini introduced
Salandra was the most influential Liberal to join the opposition- showed potential of liberal opposition to Mussolini
what ultimatum did the fascists give Mussolini in December 1924?
that if he did not end the Matteotti affair immediately and begin setting up a dictatorship, they would withdraw their support
they wanted more radicalism and wanted Mussolini to pursue a revolution
what happened in Mussolini’s speech on 3 January 1925?
Mussolini took full responsibility of all violent fascist actions and promised the Italian people a strong government without the use of violence
what was the reaction to Mussolini’s speech in January 1925?
parliament showed its support for Mussolini
Mussolini had the majority support he needed to establish a dictatorship
what happened to the opposition after January 1925?
became divided and lacked leadership
they ended up compromising with fascist rule
when were the Leggi Fascistissime passed?
December 1925
what did the Leggi Fascistissime do?
banned all opposition parties and organisations
tightened press control
set up the OVRA (secret police)
set up the Special Tribunal for the Defence of the State
what was the Special Tribunal for the Defence of the State?
special court used to deal with anti-fascist behaviour
anti-fascists would be round up by the police, with help from the OVRA, and would be tried in this court
would be banished to remote parts of Italy, called confino
how did Mussolini control immigration of Italians?
all passports were withdrawn
how did Mussolini increase his control over local government?
replaced local mayors and councils with loyal podestas
these men owed their position to Mussolini and were extremely fascist
when was Mussolini given power to rule by decree?
January 1926
parliament no longer had to be consulted
Italy was now a dictatorship
what did the King lose the right to do in 1928?
he could no longer select the PM
instead the Grand Council of Fascism would provide a list of candidates for the King to chose from
who did Mussolini appoint PNF secretary in February 1924?
Farinacci
who would Farinacci go on to do on the orders of Mussolini?
purge the PNF of the radical wing who could not accept Mussolini’s direction for fascism
he had also reduced the power of the squads and brought in more pro-Mussolini fascists
how did Mussolini get the support of the military?
appointed a conservative monarchist in Pietro Badoglio as the Chief of General Staff
appealed to the Army who had feared a radical fascist being in charge
army now under Mussolini’s complete control
how did the Palazzo Vidoni Pact strengthen Mussolini’s relationship with industrialists?
signed in October 1925 it established the fascist unions as the only official trade union in Italy
removed all the power from the socialist trade unions which had caused industrialists major issues in the past
