Relationship with Political/Economic Elites Flashcards
How did M try to get more power?
eroding that of the elites
Whose support did M need in order to construct compromises with the elites?
the monarchy
What would monarch support gain Mussolini?
legitimacy
Why didn’t the King object to Fascism?
it gave him titles e.g 1938 = Emperor of Ethiopia, 1939 = King of ALbania
Examples of King supporting M?
signed his decrees and supported his wars
How did the facsists encroach upon royal prerogative?
- were able to fix the line of succession
- commanded the army
how often did M visit the king? why?
2x a week, to update him, not to ask for advice
how did the king generally react to M?
- accepted his decisions publicly, privately complained abt encroachment
in what ways did the king resist fascism?
- did not allow the army to carry out the fascist salute
- did not allow fasces on the italian flag
- criticised anti-sem decrees of 1938
by when did the king retire from public life?
1930
when did the king order m’s arrest?
1943
how did m influence the judiciary?
- non-fascist judges were removed
- mussolini had influence over trial outcomes
- more cases of imprisonment without trial occurred
- the Special Tribunal was created
- judges only kept jobs if joined PNF
what did m promise to do to the civil service?
CUT IT!
examples of mussolini cutting the civil service?
- 1922-24, ministries decreased from 15 to 11
- 50k railway workers were sacked
post- 1925 civil service?
as of 1925, the size of the civil service was maintained
- as of 1927, 15% of civil service were PNF mems
- by 1930, expanding
- as of 1933, pnf membership was compulsory for civil servants
what did Mussolini use the civil service to do?
give pnf mems jobs as rewards for their loyalty
during what period did the nationalists play a key role in foreign policy? what is this shown by?
1922-1924
- the corfu incident
- the annexation of fiume
what was the foreign policy focus of 1924-30? how so?
less on territory, more on prestige as a European power
- Locarno Pact
- Kellogg-Briand Pact
- Lateran Treaty
What war in particular was popular with nationalists? why?
the 1930s Abyssinian War
- it made up for the shame following Adowa
- STood up to the LoN
WHat did the fascists create to emphasis Italian glory and culture? when?
1925 - ‘Manifesto of Fascist Intellectuals’
When was the invasion of ALbania?
1939
WHat provoked the armed forces to support M?
shared values
- m wanted to expand armed forces
- aggressive foreign policy
- promoted senior generals
why was there no need for major purge/reorganisation of the armed forces?
- members of the armed forces generally supported mussolini
- fascist generals were appointed
- support was cemented
When were plans introduced to reduce the size of the armed forces? what happened to them?
1925 - unpopular and dismissed
what attitude did the fascist government have towards intervention within the military? consequences?
lack of intervention
- popular with senior generals
- long-term mistake - DISORGANISED
Examples of Mussolini centralsiing power upon himself?
he headed foreign affairs, min of the interior, minister of the armed forces etc…
when and what powers did parliament lose in Mussolini’s attempts to centralise power?
1926 - parliament lost power to discuss policy, debate, and amend proposed legislation
When was parliament replaced? what with?
January 1939 - Chamber of Fasces + Corporations
what did Mussolini do to local government in 1928?
abolition - mayors replaced w/ podestas - fascist prefectss had their powers extended
How did M cater to tory views?
- developed policies they would be fond of
- rewarded their loyalty
how did Mussolini prevent the rise of a rival?
exploited rivalries
encouraged undermining
why was Mussolini’s system of centralisation inefficient?
m craved adulation, thus was not amenable to good advice
by 1933, he had dismissed talented fs such as Rocco to replace them with less questioning and threatening figures
What did Mussolini demand at the Fascist Congress? when? what followed?
June 1925 - demands end to arguments over policy
- demands all obey the orders of Il Duce
- congress then closed and held no further meetings
When did purges of the PNF OCCUR?
1928
What was the PNF mainly used for?
propaganda as opposed to policy-making
How did Mussolini appoint PNF members to powerful positions? example?
according to loyalty rather than ability
- Achille Starace - party secretary 1931-39 - ineffective yet loyal
What were effective members given? why? example?
- ‘safe’ posts away from the centre of power
- to prevent the devlopment of a rival
- Balbo sent to govern in Libya
How did Mussolini obtain the support of economic interest groups?
- the economic recovery of the mid-20s
- businessmen and industrialists were comforted by the termination of the socialist threat - therefore people became more willing to invest, and the economy grew
How did Mussolini attempt to appeal to rural landowners?
- gov contacted landowners and undermined the possibilities of agrarian reform
- ban of strikes,
-self-imposed wage control banned - allowance of land reclamation
these policies had no radical impacts
What finance minister aided Mussolini in winning over industrialists? how? examples?
ALberto de Stefani (1922-25)
pro-business policies
privatisation of telephone companies, reintroduction of private life insurance, allowing large farms to expand
When was the Palazzo Vidoni Pact? what did it entail?
October 2nd 1925
- banned cath and soc TUs
- banned striking
- Fascist TUs had monopoly on labour representation (agreed by Confindustria)
Following the Palazzo Vidoni Pact, why were strikes sometimes permitted?
to teach industrialists a lesson
During TGD, what did the gov do to cement industrialist support?
support wage cuts
support price fixing
