Popular support and opposition Flashcards
What was the consequence of M’s control over the party and the great institutions of state?
It made open opposition both difficult and extremely dangerous
What does the death of Matteoti prove about M?
That he had no compunction about using violence and even murder to silence his critics
Give a statistic to show the violence of fascist squads
By 1926 it is probable that they had murdered around 2000 opponents
What two things denied opponents a platform for their views?
The ban on political activity outside of the party and the imposition of press censorship
What was the OVRA?
The fascist secret police
What did it do?
Spied on dissidents
How many informers did they have?
Thousands
What might happen to suspects?
They might be severely beaten up or brought before the OVRA court
Give some statistics to show how important this was?
By 1943 they had tried around 4500 defendants and ordered the executions of 31
What was the consequence of this array of repressive measures?
Opposition in Italy was disorganised and ineffective, with only a small number of sizeable networks of anti fascists existing in the country
What did the communists try and do?
Maintain an underground party organisation within Italy, published their own newspaper and distributed anti fascists propaganda leaflets
What was the name of this newspaper?
L’Unita
Give a statistic to show the weakness of communism in Italy at this time?
It is estimated that they could count on no more than 7000 constantly harried active supporters
Who was the founder of L’Unita
Prominent Marxist writer Antonio Gramsci
What happened to him?
He was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment in 1927. His health destroyed, he died in 1937
What was the name of group founded by Carlo Roselli?
Justice and Liberty
Give his background
He escaped from fascist prison in 1929 and settled in Paris
What did he want to create?
An alliance between socialists and liberals opposed to the regime
What did Justice and Liberty to from Paris?
Kept the international press informed about the repression and injustice within Italy, and smuggled leaflets to its supporters within the country
What did these supporters within the country then do?
Tried to spread this anti fascist propaganda within the Italian cities
What was the main weakness of the group?
They only had a few thousand supporters
What did the movement still attract despite its small scale?
The full attention of the fascist state
What was the consequence of this attention from the state?
Roselli was murdered in 1937 by Fascists acting on instructions from the government in Rome
What was a significant reason for the limited impact of opposition groups?
They squabbled amongst themselves instead of forming a proper anti-fascist front
Give an example of this
Socialist Pietro Nenni formed the concentrazione antifascista in Paris in 1927. They produced a weekly newspaper called La Liberta. However, internal disputes and the refusal of the communist anti fascists to cooperate led to its dissolution in 1934
What two things does the lack of effective opposition prove?
The strength of the regime’s repressive machinery and that M knew how to manipulate his subjects
What happened to the liberals and popolari who had become disillusioned with the regime?
They were mostly left alone as long as they did not openly criticise the regime
Why would a few of them be assaulted by the OVRA or militia from time to time?
To remind others that conformity was the safest option
Why was it strange that journalists and intellectuals were encouraged to join the system?
Because the might have been expected to strongly oppose a system that so enthusiastically suppressed individual freedoms
What did loyal journalists receive?nn
Extra pay in the form of government grants
What two things did most journalists either do?
Settled for the role of party hack or quit journalists altogether
Why was this?
Given the easy rewards and apparent impossibility of publishing critical material
Give some examples of inducements he offered to academics and intellectuals
- Marconi, the inventor of radio, was awarded the title of marquis, while D’Annunzio received a generous pension and a palacial villa for his services to fascism
What did M use the newly created Fascist Academy to do?
Offer plum jobs and fat salaries to leading professors
What made it especially hard to resist these temptations?
Because they were all well aware that any sign of dissent would lead to their immediate dismissal
How were teachers regulated by the regime?
They had to join a Fascist Teacher’s Association to keep their jobs
What were musicians required to join?
the National Fascist Union of Musicians
What did a small number of musicians do?
Resist and refuse to join
Give an example of this
The famous conductor, Toscanini, went into exile in 1929
What else did the regime use these tactics of fear and self interest for?
Deterring opposition from the general public
What did party membership become increasingly necessary for?
Those seeking work or promotion in the public sector
What did dissent mean?
Dismissal
What would happen to persistent offenders?
They would be sent to some poor remote southern hill-town to serve a sentence of internal exile
What was the regime determined to do as well as deterring opposition?
Build up popular support
What was its principal weapon here?
Extreme propaganda
What was the most important part of this propaganda?
The cult of the duce
What three main points did this propaganda stress?
The genius of M, the impossibility of opposition and the supposed achievements of fascism
What type of success did propaganda mainly focus on?
Foreign policy successes
Give an example of one of these foreign policy successes
Yugoslavia’s cession of Fiume to Italy
What were Italians told about foreigners?
That they were loud in their admiration for M and his policies
What were they promised?
That under fascist rule Italy would regain the greatness it had known under ancient Rome and during the Renaissance
What did M hope to do with this propaganda?
Capture the imagination of the public and win their commitment to the transformation of Italians into an energetic, disciplined, obedient and warlike people
What were parades, processions, the press and education used to do?
Convey the idea that the present was one of the great moments in Italian history and that Italians had a duty to participate in this adventure
What is the question about this incessant propaganda?
How many Italians were actually convinced by it
What is the probable answer to this question?
Very few
Why did this not matter for M?
Because he was still personally very popular
What was the reason for this popularity?
For most Italians, at least until the late 1930s, he was producing stability at home and success abroad. His regime was providing moderate prosperity without intruding too far into private lives and without making excessive demands on the public, while foreign adventures, like in Ethiopia, excited patriotic interest
What did there seem little need for as a result of this record?
Opposition
What were Italians aware of even if they didn’t support the regime?
That opposition was likely to prove highly dangerous
Compare M’s concentration camps with that of the Nazi’s
They were on a much smaller scale
Where were these prison camps for political dissidents set up?
On remote, inhospitable islands such as Lipari and Lampedusa, off the Italian mainland
Give a statistic to show how M’s concentration camps were on a much smaller scale than the Nazi’s
While several hundred thousand opponents of the Nazi’s were imprisoned, Italian camps probably held fewer than 5000 prisoners
Why were things still bad for these prisoners?
Conditions were tough, and there was torture
Why were things not as bad as in the Nazi concentration camps?
The brutality was not as systematic or numerous
What were a further 12,000 opponents sent to aside from concentration camps?
They were sentenced to confino
What is confino
A period of detention or house arrest in an isolated southern village far from their home town
What did Italian fascism prefer to do instead of viciously punishing its opponents, even though it would still do this?
It preferred to cajole its subjects into outward conformity, rather than ruthlessly rooting out potential dissenters
