Mussolini and the Relationship with the Catholic Church Flashcards
What were the views of the Fasci di Combattimento towards the church in 1919? 1920?
- They called for the confiscation of all church property in 1919
- However, by 1920, Mussolini had realised that anticlericalism wasn’t conducive to taking power in a majority Catholic country like Italy
- He therefore presented the Catholic Church positively at the fascist party congress in 1920
List 3 reasons why having the Church’s support was important to Mussolini.
- It would help him win the support of conservative elites, as he would come across as less radical
- The Church influenced public life
- The Church was in charge of a large network of welfare, financial and educational institutions
How did some fascists react to the move away from anticlericalism?
- Original fascists in particular were angered by Mussolini’s change in attitude towards the Church
Who was the Pope when Mussolini rose to power, and how did he feel about fascism?
- Pope Pius XI (from 1922)
- He viewed fascism positively as he saw it as the only way of protecting Italy from left-wing revolution
List 5 early policies Mussolini had to improve his standing with the Church.
- In 1923 Mussolini used a lot of state funds to save the Bank of Rome (where the Vatican had stored its assets) from bankruptcy
- The salary of the clergy was increased
- Religious education was reintroduced into state secondary schools
- Crucifixes were restored in public buildings
- Freemasonry was banned
What were 2 changes Mussolini himself made in order to have a better relationship with the Church?
- He had his children baptised
- He married his wife again in a Church (they had been married in a civil ceremony)
What 2 benefits did Mussoliniʼs initial policies to please the Church have?
- In 1923 the Pope told Luigi Sturzo, the leader of the PPI, to resign, and for the party to support the PNF
- Pius XI strongly backed Mussolini during the Matteotti crisis
What were the Lateran Pacts? Give 2 details about them.
- A treaty between the Catholic Church and the Italian government
- They were signed in 1929, after 3 years of negotiations
- They included a treaty, financial convention and a Concordat
What did the treaty stipulate? Give 3 details.
- Vatican City would become its own state
- The Pope would be the head of this state
- Catholicism would become the official religion of Italy
What financial agreement had been reached?
- To compensate for the loss of the Papal States in 1870, the Church was paid 750 million lire, and a further 1 billion in state bonds
What is a Concordat?
- An agreement between the Catholic Church and a country that sets out the rights of the Catholic Church in that country
Give 6 aspects of the Concordat.
- Church institutions would stay separate from those of the state
- It confirmed that religious education was compulsory in primary and secondary schools
- Church marriages now counted as legal marriages
- Catholic youth groups were allowed to continue as long as they did not carry out any political activities (these were the only non-fascist youth groups allowed to survive)
- The Pope had the power to appoint all bishops, but Mussolini had the power to veto any who were enemies of fascism
- The Pope agreed that the clergy would not join political parties
List 3 benefits of the Lateran Pacts for Mussolini.
- He gained more support from the population
- It reduced Catholic anti-fascist activity
- It gained Mussolini prestige
Give an example of the support given to Mussolini by the Vatican after the Lateran Pacts.
- They encouraged the population to vote in favour of the fascist list of deputies in the 1929 plebiscite
What were relations like between the Church and the Vatican in the 1930s? Give an example.
- Tensions grew as Mussolini tried to make the population more fascist
- In 1931, the government tried to suppress Catholic Actionʼs youth organisations
- The Pope criticised this in his encyclical ʼWe have no needʼ
How did the Vatican and Mussolini compromise over the issue of youth groups?
- They agreed that these youth groups could continue to exist, but they could not organise sports and PPI members could not lead the groups
What other issue did Mussolini and the Church clash over?
- Mussolini’s introduction of anti-Semitic decrees
When did Mussolini introduce anti-Semitic decrees?
- 1938
Give 4 examples of anti-Semitic decrees that were introduced, and what limits were there to them?
- Jewish people were banned from state schools
- Jewish people weren’t allowed to own large companies or estates
- Jewish people weren’t allowed to marry non-Jewish people
- Foreign Jewish people were expelled
- There were exemptions for Jews who had served Italy in WW1
Had Italy had a history of anti-Semitism? Give 3 pieces of evidence.
- While some people were anti-Semitic (such as Farinacci), this wasn’t the norm
- In 1939 there were 10,000 Jewish members of the PNF
- Mussolini had a Jewish mistress, Margherita Sarfatti
- In 1937, the government had even allowed 3000 German Jews to come to Italy as refugees from the Nazi regime
What is thought of by historians as not being a reason why Mussolini introduced anti-Semitic decrees?
- Influence from Hitler
What were 2 reasons why Mussolini introduced these decrees?
- Mussolini hoped that by creating both external and internal enemies (in this case Jews) he would create a more radical and military society through giving Italians a sense of racial superiority
- Many of Mussolini’s vocal critics were Jewish (the French prime minister, vocal critics of the attack on Abyssinia)
How popular were the decrees? Give 3 details.
- Most Italians resented them and were concerned by how radical the regime was becoming
- Mussolini lost support from elites within the Church, business and the judiciary
- Government officials didn’t always apply the laws as they disagreed with them
What were the 2 most concerning aspects of the anti-Semitic decrees for the Catholic Church?
- The racism
- It went against the Concordat; for example, it was agreed that Jews could become Catholic upon marriage to a Catholic
What did the pope do in response to the anti-Semitic decrees, and how successful was this?
- He wrote an letter against racism and the persecution of Jews, but he died in February 1939, before it could be published
- His successor, Pius XII, decided to not publish the letter
Describe 2 aspects of Pius XII’s attitude to antisemitism.
- He did less than Pius XI when it came to criticising the anti-Semitic policies
- He didn’t openly criticise the deportation of Italian Jews during WW2
