Mussolini in his early life was a son of a socialist blacksmith with a mother of a schoolmistress. He was a very unrolling child with a very violent bullying nature. In school we was expelled for stabbing a fellow classmate in the eye with a penknife. As a young man, Mussolini became a revolutionary socialist and spent most of his time in Switzerland avoiding Swiss police and hard labor.
Mussolini & WW1
In 1912, being at the age of 29, Mussolini became the editor of 'Socialist daily' Avanti, but later down the road was expelled from the socialist party for urging Italy to join the war against their old enemy, Austria II Popolo d'Italia, Mussolini's own socialist paper, called for Italy to enter the war. Big businesses and allied governments who were anxious to get Italy in the war, paid Mussolini money. The end of the war made Mussolini more determined then ever to make a name for himself, he hated Italy parliamentary politicians and its democratic government and his mood became even more violent.! Mussolini, quick to release his anger of this nationalism could help him to take power if he could control it, in September 1919 a poet/war hero D'Annuzio, showed the way when he and his 2600 'legionaries' seized the town. Not all Italians were concerned about the fact that Italy had been 'cheated'of what she had considered was rightfully theirs. The socialists seemed about to launch a Bolshevik style Communist take over of the country. Big firms like Fiat and Pirelli desperately looked for someone to crush this threat. The peasants started seizing land and the land owners in the south, the governments couldn't do anything. Italy's proportional representation system meant that no single party could even govern on its own.
Mussolini's Facists Party
Between 1919 and 1922, Italy had 5 different coalition governments, none of which was able to make a firm declension. Mussolini had saw his chance, abandoning the last of his old socialist ideas he promised the bosses and the landowners to smash the socialist-organised land and factory seizures, he would provide disciplined law and order. in 1919 he had set up his own Fasicst party, which had consisted of many angry former soldiers, spoiling for a fight. These 'combat squads' clubbed their victims - often to death - or forced them to drink castor oil which made them faintly ill. Liberal prime minister, Giolitti, was very impressed and in 1921, he had asked Mussolini to join the governments election group which had made the fascists even more respectable among the wealthy and those anxious for law and order at any price.
Blackshirts
Mussonlinis party had a membership of 320,000 but about 50,000 of them were members of his gang well known as the Blackshirts. August had provided another opportunity to exercise their so called 'talents' when the socialists and the newly-formed communist party called a general strike, and what a disastrous failure it was. In Milan the fascists had taken over the public services and made sure everything had carried on as it normally should. Mussolini now knew it was time to strike, he demanded to be made prime minister and had assembled 50,000 blackshirts in Florence, ready to march on Rome.
March On Rome
The March on Rome had been a glorious and revolutionary act of violence to take power. Mussolini was now in control. Mussolini had built a party and had inspired a large part of the nation with his stirring speeches of the return to old glories of the Romain Empire. Facta, (new prime minister) had asked the king for powers to deal with Mussolini's threat to March on Rome. Victor Emmanuel, although weak, knew that Mussolini's army could be stopped. there were reports saying that the Fascists had taken control of several cities. Duke of Aosta, had refused to give authority to Facta to use Rome's 12,000 regular troops against the black shirts. On October 29, 2922, Facta asked Mussolini to become Italy's new Prime Minister.
Acerbo Law
Foreign Policy
Like everything else Mussolini had done, his foreign policy lacked consistency. Sure at first he was strongly anti-German but from 1936 onwards he came more and more under the influence of Hitler's domination. his obsession to make Italy feared and respected abroad, in his view only an aggressive Italy would earn this respect.
Italy didn't become a dictatorship as soon as possible, cautiously, Mussolini had moved. In 1923 the Acerbo Law had been passed, this allowed the party with the most votes (more then 25%) to take 66% of the seats in the parliament. New elections had been called for April, 1924. The black shirts had set their acts of brutality against their opponents and Mussolini had kept his promise of strong but non-extreme government which had won over moderate middle class people. The fascists had won 65% of the votes anyways, so therefore the Acerbo law wasn't necessarily needed.
OVRA
There was 2 features that the old democrat's in Italy that were to disappear before the end of 1925, Free press and political parties (some offices were burnt down and presses destroyed) others were told what to write by Mussolini. Political parties were hostile to the Fascism, were abolished and a new 'Secret police' the OVRA. The OVRA set up to harass political opponents (a few were beaten to death, others forced to leave country, 400 imprisoned)
In June things began to seriously go wrong for the 'Duce' or the leader, as Mussolini now liked to be known, in the month the socialist leader, Mattcotti, a vigorous opponent of Mussolini had been kidnapped and murdered. There was a big protest, a huge outburst against the murder but if he condemned it he risked losing the respect of his own more violent supporters. Mussolini had found himself rather overthrown, if he had taken responsibility for the assassination and refused to punish the murderers then he would make it clear what Fascism really stood for: Thuggery and dictatorship.
There was 2 features that the old democrat's in Italy that were to disappear before the end of 1925, Free press and political parties (some offices were burnt down and presses destroyed) others were told what to write by Mussolini. Political parties were hostile to the Fascism, were abolished and a new 'Secret police' the OVRA. The OVRA set up to harass political opponents (a few were beaten to death, others forced to leave country, 400 imprisoned)
In June things began to seriously go wrong for the 'Duce' or the leader, as Mussolini now liked to be known, in the month the socialist leader, Mattcotti, a vigorous opponent of Mussolini had been kidnapped and murdered. There was a big protest, a huge outburst against the murder but if he condemned it he risked losing the respect of his own more violent supporters. Mussolini had found himself rather overthrown, if he had taken responsibility for the assassination and refused to punish the murderers then he would make it clear what Fascism really stood for: Thuggery and dictatorship.
Foreign PolicyLike everything else Mussolini had done, his foreign policy lacked consistency. Sure at first he was strongly anti-German but from 1936 onwards he came more and more under the influence of Hitler's domination. his obsession to make Italy feared and respected abroad, in his view only an aggressive Italy would earn this respect.
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