Mussolini's Rise to Power (1920-1922) Flashcards
List 5 weaknesses of the government in the period 1920-1922.
- Giolitti
- The PSI
- Strikes
- Coalitions
- Giolitti’s successors
List 3 problems that Giolitti caused.
- Giolitti decided to use his old tactics of compromise to end the Biennio Rosso
- Trasformismo no longer worked as ideological splits ran deeper than they previously had, and parties were no longer as likely to be ‘bought off’
- Giolitti included the fascists in his bloc’s electoral list, which increased their legitimacy and gave them a foothold in government
How did Giolitti end the Biennio Rosso? Give 3 examples.
- He put pressure on banks to withdraw funds from companies that would not negotiate with striking workers
- Encouraged businesses to have representatives for workers on management boards
- Refused to use violence against strikers
What issue was there with the way Giolitti resolved the Biennio Rosso? What made this even worse?
- Although his approach was successful, it caused him to prioritise what the workers wanted, which angered the middle classes, industrialists, landowners, nationalists and Catholics
- In comparison, the fascists used violence to stop the socialists/ communists
In what 2 ways did the PSI’s weaknesses help the fascists?
- In 1921, the more radical members of the PSI split from the rest of the party to form the PCI (Partito Comunista Italiano)
- This weakened the left-wing
- It also gave Mussolini propaganda opportunities, as the PCI was even funded by the Bolsheviks
Which strike benefitted the fascists the most? Give 3 ways how.
- The PSI called for a general strike in July 1922
- However, it wasn’t successful as workers were weary of another strike
- Fascist squads used this as an opportunity to attack strikers
- They also took over running trains to break the transport workers’ strike
- The fascists therefore took credit for ending the strike
How did coalitions further weaken the government?
- The PPI and PSI agreed to make an anti-fascist coalition, but Giolitti refused to overlook their differences, and did not support it, so the coalition collapsed
How did Giolitti’s successors help put the fascists in a better situation?
- Bonomi:
- He allowed for the squads to be stopped rather than instructing them to be stopped as he was aware of their popularity
- Many areas therefore let them be
- Facta:
- Either couldn’t stop fascist violence, or wouldn’t, even when the fascists were violently taking control of the areas surrounding Rome
What had Mussolini decided to do after dropping the Pact of Pacification? What were 2 things he did as a result?
- He decided seizing power by force (after consolidating his control over the ras) was probably a better option
- He therefore encouraged squadristi violence
- However, he had to be careful as he knew the Blackshirts were not a match for the army
What did the squads do in 1922? Give 3 details.
- Starting from spring, the Blackshirts attacked areas where socialists controlled the local council
- By September, they had taken control of areas around Rome, which made them the ‘de facto’ government in many areas, and were ready to move on the capital
- In September and October, Mussolini had them attack councils held by conservative liberals
How many members did the PNF have by 1922?
- 320,000
What final play did Mussolini make to be appointed as prime minister democratically? Why did he do this?
- He promised to pursue a moderate conservative policy if the fascists were included in a government coalition
- The ras were in support of a violent takeover, but Mussolini did not want to do this as it would weaken his position
How did the liberals respond to the threat posed by Mussolini?
- Giolitti, Orlando, Salandra, Facta and Nitti all wanted to form a coalition with Mussolini, but on the condition that they were prime minister
What did Mussolini do just before the March on Rome?
- 24th October: Mussolini told fascists that he would either be appointed prime minister or would seize power by force
What happened at the beginning of the March on Rome?
- Night of 27th October:
- fascists began to march on Rome, taking control of telephone exchanges, police stations and government offices
- Facta asked for the king’s permission to stop the fascists
List the events of the March on Rome.
- 28th October: at 2AM the king agrees on martial law and Mussolini’s arrest is ordered
- At 9AM the king changes his mind, so Facta resigns and the king turns to Salandra, but Salandra is unable to form a government
- 29th October: as no other liberal is able to form a government, the king decides to invite Mussolini to become prime minister
- 30th October: Mussolini arrives in Rome and meets the king to be sworn in as prime minister
- 31st October: victory parade held by squadristi in Rome
List 2 actions Victor Emmanuel III took to support Mussolini’s appointment as prime minister.
- In the end, he refused for martial law to be used during the March on Rome
- He supported Mussolini’s appointment as prime minister
What 6 motives did the King have that explained his actions during the March on Rome?
- He couldn’t be sure that the army would stop the fascists as they tended to support them, or were sympathetic to their cause
- He was afraid of creating bloodshed between the army and the fascists
- The king knew the traditional liberal government could not provide stability and was collapsing
- The king’s cousin, the Duke of Aosta saw him as a weak leader and wanted to replace him as king
- Aosta was popular with the military and was a fascist supporter
- Mussolini took advantage of this and played on the king’s insecurities
What did the liberals do during the March on Rome?
- Salandra, Giolitti and Orlando all hated each other so much that they recommended Mussolini to the King rather than each other
How many fascists took part in the march, and who were they organised by?
- 50,000
- The Quadrumvirs
Who were the Quadrumvirs?
- The 4 main leaders of fascism under Mussolini
- They were: Bianchi, De Bono, De Vecchi and Balbo
How was the March on Rome later presented, and how did this differ from reality?
- It was depicted to have been the march of thousands of Blackshirts from across the country on Rome
- In reality, Mussolini had arrived to take the king’s offer before the Blackshirts even arrived
- There was no violent takeover, but rather they were celebrating the achievement of power for the fascists
How many political opponents had the fascists killed in the period from 1920 to 1922?
- 2000
