The Rise of Fascism, 1919-26 Flashcards
What was the Fasci di Combattimento, and when was it formed?
- The Fasci di Combattimento or Fasci was formed on 23 March 1919 where Mussolini called together representatives of around 20 ex-servicemen’s leagues in Milan to form the Fasci. They hated the Liberal state and had contempt for the socialists.
Who made up the early Fasci di Combattimento?
Ex-servicemen.
What were the key ideas of the Fasci’s early party programme?
Mussolini’s socialist background clearly had an influence on initial ideas:
Anti-clerical (e.g. wanted the confiscation of church property).
Called for an end to the monarchy and wanted a formation of a Republic
Wanted suffrage to be extended to women and younger Italians and establish an 8-hour working day.
Demanded nationalisation of the armaments industry, progressive taxation, and the confiscation of profits from companies who had benefitted greatly from the war
How did Mussolini’s experiences in the trenches affect early Fascist ideology?
- His experiences in the trenches allowed Mussolini to see the power of war in bringing Italians together, with camaraderie felt by those fighting together– this produced a feeling of belonging that Mussolini had not seen anywhere else.
- Described this as Trincerocrazia, the rule of the returning soldiers who had the strength and moral right to destroy the liberal state– they could lead a new Italy that would reproduce the patriotic feeling of togetherness, that he had experienced at war.
What was the emblem and uniform of the Fascist Party?
The emblem of the Facist Party (PNF; Partito Nazionale Fascista) was a fasces, a bundle of rods with a protruding axe blade.
Facist Party uniforms and caps were black with a golden eagle clutching a fasces emblazoned upon them.
How did the Fascists’ view the socialists? How did they believe they should deal with the socialist threat?
The Fascists perceived the socialists and workers on strike as no different from the enemy they had fought in WWI; they were an internal enemy who were seen as much a threat to the Italian state as the Austrians had been.
The Fascists formed themselves into small, military units or squads. This organisation was known as squadrismo and the members, or squadristi, answered the socialist threat through the only mean they knew and believed in: extreme violence.
How were the Fascists organized?
Damiano
What/when was the Biennio Rosso?
A period of strikes where left-wing Socialist and Communist organisations were at their peak and inspired by events in Russia
What did peasants and rural socialist unions do in response to the Liberal government’s failure to deliver the land reform they had promised during WWI?
- Peasants marched on owners’ land seizing it for themselves, raising flags and setting to work.
- In Bologna and Ferrara, rural socialist unions took control of the employment of rural labourer. They carried out violent attacks on workers and farm owners who refused to join the socialist unions.
What was the result of the November 1919 election?
Socialist Part (PSI) - 32%
Italian People’s Party (PPI) - 20%
Fascists - 5000 votes (0 seats)
What happened in September 1920?
Louis
How did the local elections of November 1920 show the strength of the socialists?
Socialists now controlled 26 of Italy’s 69 provinces, mainly in northern and central Italy. In Emilia they controlled 80% of the local councils.
The right wing started to fight back due to the fear of a socialist revolution. Right wing farmers, shopkeepers and landowners began to attack socialist councils and supporters and many of the weapons used were supplied by the local police and army barracks.
Who felt threatened by the apparent threat of the socialists? Why?
The elite, the middle class, Liberal politicians, landowners, the army, business owners / industrialists, property owners, the Catholic Church, nationalists.
Feared a socialist revolution, which would take away their property.
How successful was the Liberal government in responding to the socialist threat? Give an example to support your answer
The Liberal government was unsuccessful, with industrialists, the Catholic Church, landowners, the middle class etc. believing that Giolitti had given in to the demands of the striking workers and socialists. This meant the Liberal government lost further support.
Giolitti adopted a policy of non-violence during the Biennio Rosso strikes, and ended the strikes by encouraging business to give shares in their companies to workers and pressuring Italy’s banks not to provide money for companies who would not negotiate with the striking workforce.
How did the Fascist Party respond to the socialist threat?
Caitlin
What ‘myth’ did Mussolini build about the Fascists’ response to the socialist threat?
Mussolini claimed that the Fascists were the only ones who could defend Italy against the socialists (the internal enemy), and that they had spared Italy from socialist and communist revolution. Mussolini claimed only the Fascists could restore greatness in Italy.
Why were many Italians angry that they didn’t receive all the land they wanted (e.g. Fiume) at the end of the First World War?
- 600,000 soldiers lost their lives during WWI in vain and for nothing.
- They felt they were being robbed of the fruits of their victory.
- Showed limitations to Italy’s strength as an international power.
The Treaty of Versailles was seen by many in Italy as a ‘Mutilated Victory’. What did this seem to show about the Liberal government?
- The ‘Mutilated Victory’ seemed to show that the Liberal government was weak and clearly not respected by foreign countries.
- It also seemed to show that the nationalists were stronger than the liberals as they stood up for what they thought.
- It also made people think that the Liberals had forced their country into a war that they didn’t want to partake in and they had done it all for nothing as none of the things they promised the people were actually granted to them.
Why did the idea of the ‘Mutilated Victory’ increase Mussolini’s popularity? (Think about what he promised).
Support for the Liberals was broken down by Mussolini’s systematic propaganda that the Liberals had allowed a Mutilated Victory to happen and that Italy didn’t recieve the spoils that they deserved.
Following this, Mussolini imposed the idea that only he could ‘make Italy great again’ and promised that in the future they would get the credit they deserved, therefore increasing support for Facism and for Mussolini as their leader.
Why did d’Annunzio’s occupation of Fiume increase the popularity of the Fascist Party?
Thomas
What evidence is there of economic crisis in Italy after the First World War?
Herbie
What action was taken by workers as a result of the economic crisis?
Major strikes (e.g. Biennio Rosso), factory occupations and violent riots.
Why did the post-WWI economic crisis increase the popularity of Mussolini and the Fascist Party?
The economic issues were blamed on the Liberal government which therefore lessened the support for the Liberals. This meant people looked towards an extremist party as an alternative.
Mussolini used propaganda to develop the idea that only he and the Fascists could build Italy’s economic strength.
The economic crisis led to strikes, increasing the fear of the left and encouraging many to support Mussolini and the Fascists, as they seemed to be the only ones willing to take a stand against the socialists and spare Italy from revolution.
What political ideology became more popular after WWI? Why? Why did this benefit Mussolini?
WWI led to the rise of Nationalism in Italy:
- Those who opposed the war (neutralists) were portrayed as having betrayed their country.
- Italy seemed to have been mistreated at the Treaty of Versailles, leading to a belief that Italy needed a nationalist government make Italy a great power.
- Many supported the nationalists’ policy of getting the land they believed Italy deserved and had been promised at the end of WWI.
The rise of nationalism benefitted Mussolini as he made the Fascists an increasingly nationalist party. Because more Italians were nationalist after WWI, this increased the support for the Fascists.
How did Giolitti end the Biennio Rosso strikes in September 1920? Why did this increase the popularity of the Fascist Party?
He made some concessions and cut a deal with the union leader. E.g. encouraging business to give shares in their companies to workers and pressuring Italy’s banks to not provide money for companies who would not negotiate with the striking workforce
This incident showed Giolitti to be weak by bowing to the demands and essentially giving in. This increased the belief that only Mussolini and the Fascists were able to save Italy from socialist revolution.
How did Liberal weakness allow and encourage Fascist violence towards the socialists?
Matylda
