*Tota

litaria

n Italy

*Italy after the war and during the

Depression

*Italians were upset they didn’t get as much as other countries after World War I.

*Italy wanted an answer to the Depression and they blamed their government for the rising inflation and lack of jobs.

*Mussolini and the Fascists

*Benito Mussolini founded the Fascist Party in 1919 while claiming he would end the political and social unrest.

*He started a group called the Black Shirts and had them beat up communists and socialists in Italy.

*Concepts of Fascism

*Fascism was an extreme form of Italian nationalism.

*Named for an ancient Roman symbol – a bundle of rods attached to an axe called a fasces

*Denied people freedom and pushed for an authoritarian leader

*Ways Fascist leaders became popular!

*Fascist dictators did several things to achieve and keep absolute power: *Utilized special salutes (similar to secret handshakes)

*Held big rallies and military parades

*Instituted special military groups/secret police that utilized absolute power and scare tactics

*Il Duce

*Mussolini promised to save the Italian economy. He gained the middle class’s support by ending a strike that paralyzed the country.

*In 1922, he and fascists marched on Rome and forced the king to make Mussolini the leader of Italy.

*Named himself Il Duce, which means “the leader.”

*Once in charge

*Once in charge, he utilized his secret police to crack down on anyone who did not like him.

*He began censoring the press.

*He increased the military of Italy and began looking for places to conquer.

*Mussolini’s Big Move!

*In an attempt to display that Italy was becoming an empire and show dissatisfaction with the Treaty of Versailles, Mussolini used his new military to invade Ethiopia in 1935 and again in 1937.