Post-war Challenges to the Liberal State Flashcards
1
Q
List 3 social problems Italy had after WW1.
A
- Returning soldiers pushed for the land reform they had been promised
- Demobilised soldiers in the south forcefully occupied hundreds of thousands of hectares
- In the north there was a split between those who had fought and those who had stayed, who were seen as shirkers who had also become richer as a result
2
Q
When and where were the peace negotiations after WW1?
A
- Paris Peace Conference (at Versailles)
- January 1919
3
Q
What happened at the peace negotiations? Why?
A
- Vittorio Orlando (the new PM) said that Italy should be given all land promised in the Treaty of London as well as Fiume (a port on the Croatian coast)
- Wilson, George and Clemenceau did not see Italy as a ‘great power’ and had a condescending attitude; not only did they refuse Italy’s extra requests, but refused to give all of the lands promised in the Treaty of London, such as the Dodecanese Islands and colonies
- They did not believe Italy’s contribution was proportional to its demands
4
Q
Why did Italy feel that it had the right to Fiume, and how valid was this claim?
A
- They claimed the people living there were Italian
- However, the majority of Fiume was not Italian
5
Q
What did Orlando do in response to the peace terms? Give 4 details.
A
- He walked out of the conference in April
- This improved his popularity in Italy, but did not help his situation in Versailles
- He tried to return in May, but anything he said was ignored
- He resigned in June
6
Q
What had Italy gained from the Paris Peace Conference? Give 3 details.
A
- Lands promised such as Trieste, Trentino and Istria
- Lands that hadn’t been promised such as part of Dalmatia
- 14,500 square km of land; more than any other European country
7
Q
What were 2 clear losses Italy experienced at the Paris Peace Conference?
A
- Fiume became a free city under the protection of the League of Nations
- The rest of Dalmatia became part of the newly formed Yugoslavia
8
Q
What were attitudes towards the peace treaty like in Italy? Give 3 reasons why.
A
- Gabriele d’Annunzio called Italy’s victory the ‘mutilated victory’
- Italy had been hoping to get more out of the war, but it didn’t, so it was seen as a waste of the lives of the 650,000 dead soldiers
- It demonstrated the weakness of the liberal government
- It showed how lowly Italy was compared to other European powers
9
Q
What did nationalists do when it became clear that Italy would not get Fiume?
A
- They occupied it
10
Q
Describe 4 aspects of the occupation of Fiume.
A
- Gabriele D’Annunzio seized Fiume with the help of 2000 men
- These men were ex-soldiers, students, patriots and Futurists (the most prominent right-wing nationalist group at the time)
- No-one stopped them during and after the seizure of Fiume
- It lasted from September 1919 to December 1920
11
Q
How did the Italian government respond to the occupation of Fiume, and why?
A
- They originally did nothing as they were afraid of D’Annunzio’s popularity
- Eventually Giolitti’s government sent the Italian army and navy in December 1920 to end the occupation
12
Q
List 3 impacts of the occupation of Fiume.
A
- D’Annunzio had demonstrated how weak the government was; they had accepted the Treaty of Versailles, while his actions were overcoming some of the shame caused by this
- It showed decisive action and violence led to success
- Aspects of D’Annunzio’s leadership later influenced Mussolini
13
Q
List 6 aspects of D’Annunzio’s leadership that influenced Mussolini.
A
- The militia
- The Roman salute
- The title ‘Duce’ (leader)
- Black shirts for those who supported the movement
- Flamboyant public speeches
- The castor oil punishment
14
Q
After the war, what happened to businesses that had been successful (mainly) due to it? What did this cause?
A
- The government ended war loans and military contracts, so major companies selling munitions and vehicles (such as Fiat) struggled to survive
- Ansaldo and Ilva, two major munition companies, went bankrupt in 1921, and this caused a banking crisis
15
Q
What were 4 other economic problems that had been caused by the war?
A
- The lira had collapsed in value
- State employees’ wages and pensions therefore declined rapidly
- Inflation hugely impacted the cost of living, particularly in urban areas (the average family in Milan needed 75 lira daily, but earned about 7)
- This also wiped out middle-class savings
16
Q
What did the combination of these economic issues at the end of war cause? Along with what other factor?
A
- The demobilisation of millions of soldiers contributed to unemployment reaching 2 million by November 1919
17
Q
In what 2 ways did the war impact land ownership in the countryside? Give figures.
A
- Soldiers (in the south in particular) seized the land of large estates
- Peasants were able to buy land due to the profits they had made in the war from the increase in food prices
- The number of peasant land owners therefore rose to 3.5 million
18
Q
How did the government respond to land seizures?
A
- Giolitti ordered prefects to legalise them
19
Q
In what 2 ways did life change for rural labourers?
A
- They became poorer
- Many joined rural trade unions that aimed to create a collective farm
20
Q
In what 2 ways did socialists affect the situation in the countryside?
A
- In areas where they controlled the local government, they set local wage rates and working conditions
- In some areas, rural socialist unions had so much power that they controlled employment, but this meant that some did exclude labourers who hadn’t joined the union
21
Q
List 3 reasons why the traditional landowners were displeased by the political situation after the war.
A
- They felt threatened by militant peasants and trade unions
- The local government was not under their control
- The central government was weak and did not protect their interests
22
Q
Give 5 reasons why there was increased militancy among urban workers after WW1.
A
- The existing economic problems
- Promises of greater freedom were made during the war
- Trade unions and socialist party activities were no longer restricted
- Soldiers expected material reward after the war
- They were inspired after seeing the Russian Revolution
23
Q
When was the ‘Biennio Rosso’, and what were they?
A
- The ‘Two Red Years’
- 1919 and 1920
- It was a time when socialist and communist organisations were at their peak
24
Q
List 4 things the Biennio Rosso were characterised by.
A
- Strikes
- The ‘occupation of the factories’
- Dramatic growth in the membership of workers’ organisations
- Food riots and rioting
25
Give 5 figures on strikes during the 'Biennio Rosso'.
- 1919:
- 1663 industrial strikes
- 208 strikes in agriculture
- 1920:
- 1881 industrial strikes
- 189 strikes in agriculture
- In July army troops went on strike
26
What was the occupation of the factories? Give 4 details.
- Largest strike during the Biennio Rosso
- In September 1920 over 400,000 workers took over factories
- They flew the red flag of communism and the black flag of anarchism over the buildings for nearly 4 weeks
- The government eventually ended the strike
27
How did the number of Italians in worker organisations change?
- 1919:
- Urban: 1,050,000
- Rural: 505,000
- 1920:
- Urban: 1,250,000+
- Rural: 1,050,000
28
What caused food riots and rioting?
- There was a sharp increase in food prices in June 1919
29
What change was there in how the government responded to food riots?
- Before, they would have shot the rioters
- Instead, they halved the price of food
30
List 4 concessions the government made towards the working-class, and what other factor influenced them to do this?
- Minimum wage
- 8 hour working day
- Welfare initiatives such as for the disabled and elderly
- Compulsory employment insurance
- Some socialists called for a communist revolution after witnessing the Russian Revolution
31
What were 2 political reforms made after WW1, and why?
- Universal male suffrage (any who had served at the front/ were over 21) was implemented in 1918
- It was meant to be both a reward for the soldiers as well as a method for the liberals to gain more votes
- In 1919, proportional representation was introduced, which the liberals had hoped would weaken support for extreme parties
32
What was the PPI?
- 'Partito Popolare Italiano'- the Italian Popular Party, which was a Catholic party
33
When was the PPI founded, and by who?
- It was founded in 1919 and led by a priest, Luigi Sturzo
34
Whose support did the PPI have?
- While it did not have official ties with the Vatican, it did have Pope Benedict XV's support
35
List 2 of the PPI's policies. What did their manifesto surprisingly not mention?
- It pushed for Catholic interests and values
- It supported land reform and campaigned for peasants to be given more land
- It did not mention the Roman Question in its manifesto
36
How well did the PPI and liberals work together?
- The PPI would enter coalitions with the liberals as long as they were granted concessions
37
How well were the socialists doing after WW1? Give 4 details.
- They were increasing in popularity
- However, they were divided into 3 groups that didn't always agree and work together effectively: the PSI, socialist trade unions and socialist councils
- They therefore tended to gain support due to issues such as economic discontent, rather than because of their own appeal
- However, they did gain support through improving conditions for workers
38
How well did the PSI work with the liberals, and why?
- Not very well anymore, as they had started to become more radical after the Russian Revolution
39
What were the results of the November 1919 elections?
- PSI 156 seats
- PPI 100 seats
- Liberals 91 seats
- Fascists 0
40
What was significant about the results of the 1919 elections?
- For the first time, the PSI had won the most seats
- They had won 3 times as many seats as they had won in the last elections (in 1913)
41
What did the 1919 elections mean for the new government, and why?
- The PSI and PPI would not work together
- The liberals therefore took control again as part of a coalition with Giolitti in charge (after Nitti's government collapsed in 1920), which was a dangerous failure for democracy
