Characteristic of the means the Fascists had employed to come to power, Blackshirt squad violence helped to reduce the influence of parliamentary opposition without outlawing it altogether. From the start of , a fascist parliamentary majority elected in April partly thanks to fascist intimidation was able to pass a series of laws which dismantled the institutions of liberal democracy.
Denoting a decline in squad power, the regular police forces together with the OVRA secret police created in were now entrusted with the task of rooting out political opposition and controlling the population, with the assistance of Fascist Party organizations including the Militia. From , the police benefited from enhanced powers which made them less accountable for their actions.
Italian citizens were monitored more frequently than in the past, and could easily fall victim to spies and informers - to the extent that most began to be careful about what they said in public. However, the main targets of police oppression belonged to the working classes or underground opposition parties.
Many had been subject to police action under the previous Liberal state because of their involvement in union militancy or left-wing politics. Nevertheless, they suffered considerably worse under fascist rule, with large numbers being sentenced to imprisonment or confino exile in a remote part of the country or penal colony. Government-supporting middle class citizens were less likely to fall foul of the fascist police state.
When relatively harmless criticism of the regime on the part of such individuals reached the authorities, their good social standing, and clean criminal and political records, could count in their favour. He fought on the front lines and obtained the rank of corporal before being discharged for a war wound. Mussolini returned to newspapers and by called for a dictator to seize control of Italy. Pressure from Mussolini and his followers forced the government to order the internment of foreigners they considered enemies.
After the Treaty of Versailles in —and his dissatisfaction with it—Mussolini gathered the various fascist groups into a national organization called Fasci Italiani di Combattimento. The Italian Fascists courted war veterans and encouraged violence against socialists. Mussolini stockpiled weapons and explosives in his newspaper offices.
By the end of the year, Mussolini stood in a general election as the Fascist candidate but lost in a Socialist sweep. Two days later, Mussolini was arrested for allegedly collecting arms to overthrow the government.
He was released without charges the next day. Elections brought a huge win for the Fascists, with Mussolini taking a seat as a deputy in Parliament. The party changed its name to Partito Nazionale Fascista.
In , Fascists were instructed to wear uniforms, including black shirts, when in squads that were modeled after Roman army groups. All party members were considered squad members. Soon after, several Italian cities were seized by Fascist squads, who also burned down Communist and Socialist offices.
In October , Mussolini threatened to march on Rome to take control of the government through violent force if it was not handed over. The government was slow to act, eventually dispatching troops, though Fascists had already seized control of some local governments.
He dissolved the government and asked Mussolini to form a new one. Mussolini did not become a dictator overnight, but a speech he gave to the Italian parliament on January 3, asserting his right to supreme power is generally seen as the effective date that Mussolini declared himself dictator of Italy. Soon after, the Italian parliament made suspicion of being anti-Fascist punishable by imprisonment without trial. The next year police rounded-up Socialists, and the government restricted their publishing activities.
In March , Mussolini formed the Fascist Party, galvanising the support of many unemployed war veterans. He organised them into armed squads known as Black Shirts, who terrorised their political opponents. In , the Fascist Party was invited to join the coalition government.
By October , Italy seemed to be slipping into political chaos. The Black Shirts marched on Rome and Mussolini presented himself as the only man capable of restoring order. King Victor Emmanuel invited Mussolini to form a government. Mussolini gradually dismantled the institutions of democratic government and in made himself dictator, taking the title 'Il Duce'. He set about attempting to re-establish Italy as a great European power. His body was displayed publicly to prove he was dead. Blacksmith Alessandro Mussolini was a devoted socialist who named his son after Benito Juarez, the leftist Mexican revolutionary.
His politics began to change, however, when World War I broke out across Europe. During the war, Mussolini split with the socialists over his support for Italian military participation. He became an ardent Italian nationalist, believing in a national struggle that transcended class lines, rather than a class struggle.
By , Mussolini was a committed fascist. By , Mussolini had won election to the Italian Chamber of Deputies. Despite this success, Mussolini and his supporters, known as the blackshirts, were frustrated with the electoral process. Rather than work through the parliamentary system, Mussolini decided to seize power by force. The March on Rome was staged on the night of October 27—28, Instead, the King invited Mussolini to Rome to form a new government.
While Mussolini became the Prime Minister in , he was still dependent on a coalition government to remain in power.
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