The Collapse Of Liberal Italy 1915-22

Question 1

What is the timeline of this section?

Answer 1

-1909 (Sep); Mussolini begins work as PSI member
-1912 (Sep); Mussolini begins work at PSI Avanti!
(Oct); Mussolini expelled from Fascist party (Nov); Il Popolo d’Italia founded
-1915 (May); Italy signs Treaty of London
-1917 (Nov); Battle of Caporetto defeat: Austria sent entire army & 7 German divisions to Italian front, humiliating defeat (40k dead, 300k prisoner, retreated 150km)
-1918 (Oct); Vittorio Veneto victory, Austria sign armistice
-1919 (Jan); start of Bienno Rosso (Mar); formation of fasci di combattimento (Sep); D’Annunzio seized Fiume
-1920 (Sep); wave of factory occupations: electrical victories for socialists
-1921 (May); electoral alliance: 35 fascists elected incl Mussolini (Aug); Pact of Pacification betw fascists & socialists (Oct); PNF formed (Nov); Mussolini elected leader of PNF
-1922 (Jul-Aug); general strike broken up by fascist violence (Oct); March on Rome, Mussolini becomes PM

Question 2

What were the main problems of the time period?

Answer 2

-Anger; over mutated victory, weak gov, war profiteers, pacifist socialists, etc
-Fear; of socialist revolution
-Expectation; of new & dynamic Italy (reforms promised by Libs after Caporetto, workers’ power, land reform, greater Italy

Question 3

Why was there a ‘mutilated victory’?

Answer 3

-Italy on winning side of war but not rewarded w/ what they’d been promised
-Only got Tyrol & Istria
-Cost of the war were very high

Question 4

Mutilated victory; how many soldiers were conscripted and why were they at a disadvantage?

Answer 4

-5m conscripted
-Fought bravely but were ill equipped/trained & forced to fight war of attrition

Question 5

Mutilated victory; what were the casualties of the war?

Answer 5

-600,000 dead+
-450,000 permanently disabled
-500,000 seriously injured
-More than 2.5m soldiers demobilised

Question 6

Mutilated victory- economic implications; how much did the war cost?

Answer 6

-148m lire over 3 years (2x of unification)
-Gov spent 23b lire more than had collected in taxes

Question 7

Mutilated victory- economic implications; what were the inflation and prices figures due to the war?

Answer 7

-High inflation (400%)
-prices x4

Question 8

Mutilated victory- economic implications; by how much did wages drop due to the war?

Answer 8

25%

Question 9

Mutilated victory- economic implications; whose savings were destroyed as a result of the war?

Answer 9

The middle classes

Question 10

Mutilated victory- economic implications; how was trade impacted due to the war?

Answer 10

Was ruined

Question 11

Mutilated victory- economic implications; what figure did unemployment reach due to the war?

Answer 11

2 million

Question 12

Mutilated victory- economic implications; by how much did the national debate rise and why?

Answer 12

-From 16b to 85b
-Due to heavy loans from GB & USA

Question 13

Mutilated victory; why did Italians believe their suffering would be rewarded?

Answer 13

The government had promised soldiers that their families would get land, jobs, pensions,medical treatment

Question 14

Mutilated victory; what did Catholics think of the war effort?

Answer 14

Supportive, but also remained supportive of Catholic Austria

Question 15

North/South divide worsening due to war; how did the North prosper even still?

Answer 15

-Industries linked to war production like steel, chemicals & motor production did very well before 1918 as guaranteed large state contracts & inflation not issue since could raise prices in correspondence
-Companies like Fiat remained successful to point where it became largest manufacturer in Europe

Question 16

Mutilated victory; how did the North/South divide worsen for the South due to the war?

Answer 16

-Was predominantly agricultural & couldn’t share prosperity
-This was because farming was negatively hit by conscription in large numbers, to prevent spread of Bolshevism, gov promised programme of land reform for after war
-Southerners found it hard to fight at north-eastern border for sake of few Italian speaking towns

Question 17

Mutilated victory; what discredited the parliamentary system?

Answer 17

Unemployment, demobilised soldiers, civil unrest, gov debt, inflation

Question 18

Mutilated victory; why were ex-soldiers drawn to Fascist squads?

Answer 18

They missed comradeship (Trincerismo) of trenches

Question 19

TBC P10