Mussolini Reader Part 2 (2025) - PDF

Nomen: Recitatio: Benito Mussolini and the Fascist Regime of 1922-1945 Part 2: Consolidation of Power Section 1: Coercion - Legal Meth...

Nomen: Recitatio: Benito Mussolini and the Fascist Regime of 1922-1945 Part 2: Consolidation of Power Section 1: Coercion - Legal Methods Source 1: An excerpt from Mussolini’s first speech as Prime MInister to the Chamber of Deputies, 16 November 1922, recorded in the official Parliamentary records and adapted. Gentlemen, I perform today in this hall an act of formal deference towards you for which I do not expect any special gratitude. The seven years of which I speak lie between the May of 1915 and the October of 1922. I shall leave to the gloomy zealots of super-Constitutionalism the task of discoursing, more or less plaintively, about all this. I maintain that the Revolution has its rights; and I may add, so that everyone may know, that I am here to defend and give the greatest value to the Revolution of the "Black Shirts," inserting it intrinsically in the history of the Nation as an active force in development, progress and the restoration of equilibrium. I could have carried our victory much further, and I refused to do so. I imposed limits upon my action and told myself that the truest wisdom is that which does not forsake one after victory. With 300,000 young men, armed to the teeth, ready for anything and almost mystically prompt to obey any order of mine, I could have punished all those who have slandered and thrown mud at Fascism. I could have made a bivouac of this gloomy grey hall; I could have shut up Parliament and formed a Government exclusively of Fascists; I could have done so, but I did not wish to do so, at least not at this moment. Our adversaries remained in their shelters and then quietly issued forth and obtained their freedom, of which they are already taking advantage to set traps for us and slander us, as at Carate, Bergamo, Udine and Muggia. I have formed a Coalition Government, not with the intention of obtaining a Parliamentary majority, with which at the moment I can perfectly well do without, but in order to gather together in support of the suffering Nation all those who, over and above questions of party and section, wish to save her. From the bottom of my heart I thank all those who have worked with me, both Ministers and Under-Secretaries; I thank my colleagues in the Government, who wished to share with me the heavy responsibilities of this hour; and I cannot remember without pleasure the attitude of the Italian working classes, who indirectly encouraged and strengthened the Fascists by their solidarity, active or passive. I believe also that I shall be giving expression to the thoughts of a large part of this assembly, and certainly of the majority of the Italian people, if I pay a warm tribute to our Sovereign, who, by refusing to permit the useless reactionary attempts made at the eleventh hour to proclaim martial law, has avoided civil war and allowed the fresh and ardent Fascist current, newly arisen out of the war and exalted by victory, to pour itself into the worn-out arteries of the parliamentary State. Before arriving here we were asked on all sides for a programme. It is not, alas, programmes that are wanting in Italy, but men with the will to carry them out. All the problems of Italian life—all, I say—have long since been solved 1 on paper; but the will to put these solutions into practice has been lacking. The Government today represents that firm and decisive will. Source 2: A Cartoon from the Fascist newspaper Il Popolo d’Italia by Sironi, inspired by Mussolini’s first speech to Parliament, 16 November 1922. Source 3: Corfu Incident Source 4: The Acerbo Law, Giuseppe Lupo, 2015. The Acerbo Law was an Italian electoral law proposed by Baron Giacomo Acerbo and passed by the Italian Parliament in November1923. The purpose of it was to give Mussolini's fascist party a majority of deputies. The law was used only in the 1924 general election, which was the last competitive election held in Italy until 1946. In 1922, Benito Mussolini became the prime minister of Italy as a result of the March on Rome. However, he still only had 35 deputies in Parliament and 10 Nationalist allies. He was in a weak position and relied on the coalition with other parties that could easily unravel and force King Victor Emmanuel III to dismiss him. The idea was to change the voting system 2 from proportional representation to a system which would allow Mussolini to have a clear majority. The Acerbo Law stated that the party gaining the largest share of the votes – provided they had gained at least 25 percent of the votes – gained two-thirds of the seats in parliament. The remaining third was shared amongst the other parties proportionally. Source 5: Postcard promoted by the Fascist propaganda, showing their view of the conflict between fascists and socialists Election of 1924, Acerbo Law Source 6: Pope Pius XI to the French ambassador Beyens Mussolini alone has a proper understanding of what is necessary for his country in order to rid it of the anarchy to which it has been reduced by an impotent parliamentarianism and three years of war. You see that he has carried the nation with him. May he be able to regenerate Italy. Source 7: Former Liberal Prime Minister Giolitti, November 1922. Mussolini’s is the only government that can restore social peace… The Cabinet must be supported. The Country needs a strong government that looks beyond living from day to day. Italian political life needs new blood, new energies. 3 Source 8: Newspaper owner Conservative-Liberal Albertini, in public and private comments He has saved Italy from the Socialist danger which had been poisoning our life for 20 years. Once he is in Rome, he will be more subject to influence. Source 9: Senator Frassati, the Liberal Editor of La Stampa, identified positive signs in an article in May 1923 The incorporation of the squadristi into the national militia, the punishment of the awkward, the elimination of men who were very well known in the party, the clear assertion that they authority of the state resides in the prefects and not in the representatives of the party, the recognition of the statute [constitution] and the authority of the King… Source 10: The Times reviews the first year of Fascism, 31 October 1923 Italy has never been so united as she is today… Fascismo has abolished the game of parliamentary chess; it has also simplified the taxation system and reduced the deficit to manageable proportions; it has vastly improved the public services, particularly the railways; it has reduced a superfluously large bureaucracy without any very bad results in the way of hardships or unemployment; it has pursued a vigorous and fairly successful colonial policy. All this represents hard and useful work, but the chief boons it has conferred upon Italy are national security and national self-respect… Fascismo has had a great deal of courage, very considerable wisdom and immense luck… it has deserved the sincere birthday greetings of the world. 4 Section 2: Coercion - Use of Force Source 11: Front page of Il Popolo, 14 June 1924. Headline Translation: “The Honorable Matteotti is the victim of a horrendous political crime” Source 12: Matteotti crisis, Giuseppe Lupo, 2015. On 30 May 1924, Giacomo Matteotti rose to his feet in the Italian Chamber of Deputies. Outraged by the Fascist violence in the recent elections, the Socialist leader had prepared a 30-minute speech denouncing the violence and calling for the annulment of the election results. He began to speak but within moments the interruptions began. Fascist Deputies were determined to stop Matteotti. Again and again they disrupted his speech but Matteotti struggled on. It took him two hours to complete his speech. Matteotti knew the likely cost of opposing the Fascists. As he left the Chamber of Deputies he turned to colleagues saying, 'Now you can prepare my funeral oration.' Matteotti was right. He had predicted his own death and his prediction came true. Eleven days later, Matteotti (for once not under surveillance by the police) found his way to the Chamber blocked by a gang of ex-squadristi. They bundled him, desperately resisting, into a car. 'You may kill me,' he shouted, 'you will not kill the ideal. The workers will bless my dead body.' As the car screeched off, his abductors, armed with guns and knives, repeatedly stabbed him. It was two months before Matteotti's death was confirmed. Dogs found his naked body, lying in a shallow grave 23 kilometers from Rome. A file was still sticking in his chest. An investigation was set up. The initial incident had been seen by a passer-by who noted clown the car's license plate registration. The car was found to belong to Filipelli, a leading Fascist. From this lead, many people linked to the government were implicated. The murder was traced to Dumini. He was a member of a secret hit squad called the Ceka (named after Lenin's secret police) that Mussolini had set up. Deservedly nicknamed 'nine homicides', Dumini 5 was the personal assistant to Mussolini's press secretary and confidant, Cesare Rossi. Mussolini now faced a crisis that threatened to topple him from power. There was a widespread belief that Mussolini was personally involved in the murder of his chief political opponent. Fierce criticism came from many sections of the press. Large crowds gathered in the streets to protest. People tore up Fascist membership cards. Communists called for a general strike. The murder of Matteotti raised, in a stark form, the question of the nature of the new Fascist government, which had not been clarified during the previous two years. Was it a terrorist regime where opponents were at the mercy of Fascist thugs, or was it merely a strengthened form of parliamentary government that operated within the law? Mussolini had wavered between the two approaches. Now he had to make a decision between one approach or the other, or face removal from power. Mussolini was initially unsure what to do: 'My position is untenable. It is impossible to remain in power with a dead man at one's feet,' he said. For a time he was paralysed by depression, partly caused by severe ulcers. Most opposition Deputies walked out of Parliament, in a move known as the Aventine Secession named after a group of ancient Roman politicians who had set up a rival assembly on the Aventine Hills above Rome. They met elsewhere and declared themselves to be the true representatives of the Italian people. They expected the King to dismiss Mussolini. King Victor Emmanuel, however, wanted others to take the lead and, fortunately for Mussolini, his opponents were divided. Despite most Deputies' opinions, many in the elite still considered a Mussolini government the best option, and thought that as he was in trouble he would be easier to control. While the opposition hesitated the Fascist radicals demanded that Mussolini seize the initiative, abandoning his conciliatory approach and setting up a full Fascist dictatorship Mussolini's first response was a policy which combined repression and concession. The militia was mobilised and tighter controls were imposed on the press, but there were concessions when the militia was integrated into the armed forces, with a new loyalty oath to the King. The suspects Rossi and Chief of Police de Bono were sacked, and the conservative Federzoni replaced Mussolini as Interior Minister. ​However, this was not enough to take the pressure off Mussolini. Criticism from his opponents mounted as new evidence emerged implicating him in Fascist violence. On 27 December a newspaper published Rossi's testimony, directly implicating Mussolini in Fascist murder. However, the King refused to read the incriminating report, let alone act. Mussolini was also under pressure from his own party. The Fascist radicals were equally critical, fearing that if Mussolini lost power their chances of a Fascist revolution would disappear. The ras pressured Mussolini to act, culminating in a tense meeting on 31 December 1924. Finally Mussolini took the plunge. On 3 January 1925 he addressed the Chamber of Deputies. He took responsibility for Fascism (though not for the actual murder of Matteotti), and announced he would act within 48 hours to set up a 6 dictatorship. The speech was followed by a wave of arrests, and measures against opponents. Over the following year a series of increasingly repressive decrees and laws were issued. Mussolini was given the power to issue decrees, which he used to increase government controls. In January 1926 alone, over two thousand decrees were issued, and tl1e powers of the government to act against critics were vastly extended. A new secret police, the OVRA, was established. Other parties were banned, and elected councils were replaced by appointed officials. The government ceased to be a mere ministry, and became a regime, as Musolini established his dictatorship. However, contrary to the wishes of the ras, it was a personal dictatorship, rather than a fully Fascist one. Although Mussolini appointed the radical ras Farinacci as Party Secretary in February 1925, he cleverly used him to centralise the party, and then dismissed him in March 1926. Thus Mussolini survived the Matteotti crisis due both to the actions he took, and the limitations of his opponents. In the end he gained considerably from a potentially fatal setback. Source 13: A 1924 cartoon from the Italian underground newspaper BeccoGiallo Source 14: Mussolini’s Italy, M. Gallo, 1974, pp. 189-91 The Aventine was undermined by its own contradictions. For the members of the opposition, genuine democrats who had not understood that Fascism represented a radically new element in political life, there was no choice but to await the constitutional monarch's pleasure and to continue making broad statements. Therefore, and as much in order to avoid frightening the I(ing as out of fear of revolution, they rejected the call for a general strike and the proclamation of the Aventine as the sole legal Parliament of the country. Thereupon the anti-Fascist tide receded... Turati [the Socialist] noted: 'We feel that it is essential to do something, but we cannot decide on anything positive. We feel that with the passage of time the enemy is catching his breath and that without doubt the Matteotti affair has now been drained of its possibilities.' [After the Rossi memorandum was published] The Liberals of the Aventine thought that this indictment] would be read by at least one person, the King. They hoped to bring about a Cabinet crisis and 7 the dismissal of Mussolini. It was now December, seven months after the murder of Matteotti, and the Aventine moderates had not yet learned that on the parliamentary battleground Mussolini was bound to win because the King was determined to uphold him and a comfortable majority in the Chamber supported him. Furthermore, the battle was already lost because disillusion had swept the Italian masses once roused by hope and rebellion. In addition, the Fascists everywhere were arming themselves and reinforcing the militia. Source 15: Fascism, a History, R. Eatwell, 1995, p. 52. Visitors to Mussolini at this time found him red-eyed and unshaven; he clearly feared his days were numbered. Yet the I(ing declined to act... He had quickly come to value Mussolini... Mussolini was under considerable pressure, but he was far from resigning. He countered by making changes in the government to reassure moderates … Damage limitation was helped bJ the Vatican... Many leading members of the clergy were grateful to Fascism for breaking the Left... Industrialists too stayed largely faithful, reflecting their basic satisfaction with government policy … Other prominent figures rallied to Mussolini... many clearly believed that Mussolini deserved a further chance to show he could provide firm government. Mussolini too played his part, shrewdly exploiting the fear that if he resigned the result would be further political chaos, and a squadristi wave of violence. Source 16: Mussolini’s speech in the Chamber, 3 January 1925 Gentlemen! The speech I am going to make before you might not be classed as a parliamentary speech. I declare here before this assembly, before all the Italian people, that I assume, I alone, the political, moral, historical responsibility for everything that has happened. If sentences, more or less maimed, are enough to hang a man, out with the noose! If Fascism has only been castor oil or a club, and not a proud passion of the best Italian youth, the blame is on me! If Fascism has been a criminal association, if all the violence has been the result of a determined historical, political, moral delinquency, the responsibility for this is on me, because I have created it with my propaganda from the time of our intervention in the War up to this moment. When two irreducible elements are in conflict, the solution is force... In history there never has been any other solution, and there never will be... You thought Fascism was finished because I was restraining it, that it was dead because I was punishing it and because I had the audacity to say so. But if I were to employ the hundredth part of the energy in unleashing it that I have used in restraining it, you would understand then (vigorous applause). But there will be no need for this, because the government is strong enough to break the Aventine's sedition completely and definitely (vigorous, prolonged applause). 8 Gentlemen, Italy wants peace and quiet, work and calm. I will give these things with love if possible and with force if necessary (lively applause). You may be sure that within the next 48 hours after this speech, the situation will be clarified in every field (vigorous, prolonged applause). Everyone must realise that what I am planning to do is not the result of personal whim, of a lust for power, or of an ignoble passion, but solely the expression of my unlimited and mighty love for the fatherland (vigorous, prolonged and reiterated applause and repeated cries of ‘Long live Mussolini!'). Section 3: Persuasion - Censorship, Charismatic Leadership, Propaganda Censorship: In July 1925 anti-Fascist newspapers were shut down and other newspapers were only allowed to print articles favourable to the government. From December 1925, all journalists were required to be on an approved register drawn up by the Fascist Party. It is important to note that in contrast to Hitler’s Germany, non-Fascist newspapers and radio stations were allowed to continue publishing and broadcasting, especially those run by the Catholic Church. In the 1930s control over radio was also less effective in Italy, partly because Italians owned far fewer radios than the Germans. Propaganda: Romanita movement: 1. Mussolini reviving the ancient glories of Rome, he is viewing a statue of Julius Caesar installed in the recently excavated forum. 2. The fasces emblem was taken from ancient Rome; it consisted of a bundle of rods and an axe. It symbolized authority, discipline, and punishment. 3. Benito Mussolini reviewing military parade beside a statue of the emperor Nerva, Via dei Fori Imperiali, Rome, 1943 (newsreel still) 9 LUCE newsreels: Mussolini was slow to realize the potential of film, but in 1924, a government agency, L'Unione Cinematografica Educativa = LUCE) was established to produce documentaries and newsreels. Soon, Mussolini was making full use of them. He insisted that the -state-sponsored.newsreel films (from 1926, these had to be played in all cinemas as part of the programme) showed him addressing large crowds of enthusiastic supporters, and that he was filmed from below, in order to disguise his lack of height. Charismatic Leadership (In this famous image, Mussolini has had the horse handler removed from the original image to the right). Always shot from below to detract from his lack of height, Mussolini took great care to project an image of masculinity and vitality. Images of Mussolini appeared everywhere in public buildings, along with such Fascist slogans as Credere, Obbedere, Combattere (Believe, Obey, Fight). 10 Speech in Bari, September 6, 1934 To the People of Bari By Benito Mussolini Blackshirts of Bari! At the end of this ardent and sunny day—therefore a Fascist day—you certainly do not want to hear a political speech in the traditional sense of the word. I came to visit you in order to keep my promise (prolonged applause) and I am truly happy for this day, which has put me in touch with the generous people of Puglia (very loud applause), a people of strong farmers and enterprising sailors—two types of Italians which are particularly dear to my heart. (Very loud cheers). The Fiera del Levante is a superb achievement of Fascist Bari, it is a magnificent example of a tenacious will and a spirit of organization. (Prolonged applause). Some thought that such traits did not exist in the Italian people. That was a mistaken claim made by those who do not know us very well. (Very loud applause). In its three-thousand-year history, the Italian people have given formidable examples of legal, political and social organization. (Very loud cheers). The Mediterranean is certainly a southern sea. It was on the shores of the Mediterranean that the great philosophies, the great religions, the great poets and an empire that left indelible traces in the history of all civilized peoples, were born. (Very loud applause). Thirty centuries of history allow us to look with supreme pity upon certain doctrines beyond the Alps, supported by the progeny of people who could not write, and therefore could not document their own existence, at a time when Rome already had Caesar, Virgil and Augustus. (Very loud cheers). [...] I say to everyone and especially to the peoples of the East, who are so close to us and with whom we have had contact for many centuries, I say: believe in the collaborative will of Fascist Italy, work with us, let us exchange goods and ideas, let us see—with the joint effort of all, near and far—if it is possible to climb out of this depression that grips the spirits and mortifies life. What was Puglia before the Revolution? A region in which a glorious past had left monuments of incomparable beauty. That is the past. But we Fascists are striving for the future, which we feel as a creation of our will, fixed on the goal of victory. (Applause). [...] Puglia today, with Bari at its head, is a deeply Fascist land, which has given magnificent action squads, which has given Martyrs, whose memory lives perennially in our hearts. Today you feel like an intimate part of the body of the Italian people. (The crowd unanimously responds: "Yes! Yes!"). I would like to point out this fact: it is not without significance that a caravan came to Bari from Turin. With this Turin has once again demonstrated that patriotic and national sensibility which, in the times of the Risorgimento, made it the bulwark of the Fatherland. (Applause). It will also be worth mentioning that one of Camillo Cavour's closest friends and collaborators was from Bari: Giuseppe Massari (applause), who left a diary in which, day by day, he shows how Cavour lived and fought for the independence and future of the Fatherland. Blackshirts! The Fascist Revolution has gone very far in the political sector. But there is still more work to do. It is not for nothing that we have introduced into your spirits the concept of the Revolution as a perennial mode of conquest. (Cheers). In the economic sector we have laid the foundations since 1926: the premises are there. Now we will march. Some may ask me: what is the goal? I respond: the goal of our march in the economic field is the realization of a higher social justice for the Italian people. (Very intense and insistent applause). Blackshirts of Bari! Under the sign of the Fasces, we have won. Under the sign of the same Fasces, we will win tomorrow. Are you convinced? (The crowd breaks out in a very loud cry: "Yes! Yes!").  A tow the and ach sec1 BATTLES AND.CORPORATIONS: the1 1 ECONOMIC POLICIES wht mw OUt] As you know, Italy was a poor country. One of wm Mussolini's great ambitions was to make it rich. This pro' meant tackling all sorts of major economic problems 1 which no previous government had been able to solve. arec Pon Imp Economic battles extr 1 Mussolini liked to tackle· economic problems by the declaring war on them. The worst economic problem the facing him when he came to power was the terrible 1931 poverty of southern Italy and Sicily. He therefore launched the 'battle over the Southern Problem' in 1924 and went in person to Sicily where he laid the Tl foundation stone of a new village named Mussolinia. It Mu was to be the first of thousands of new villages which not] would transform the lives of the poor. crec In 1925 he started the 'battle for wheat'. His aim beg, was to get farmers to grow more wheat so that Italy uni< would not have to spend money on importing it from eve1 abroad. The farmers who grew most wheat each year desj were awarded gold, silver or bronze medals in special s1m ceremonies. Mussolini regularly appeared on farms, usually stripped to the waist, helping to bring in the harvest. Newspapers had to give massive coverage of such events. In 1926 war was declared on waste land. The 'battle for land' meant draining marshes and swamps, ploughing bare hillsides and clearing woodlands so as Above: Mussolini encouraging farmers to work harder in to increase the amount of farming land. The greatest the 'battle for wheat' effort was put into draining the Pontine Marshes, a / huge mosquito-infested swamp near Rome. Below: Mussolini and his wife Rachele set an example in Mussolini fought hardest to increase the size of the 'battle for births': their children Anna Maria, Italy's population. The 'battle for births' was an Romana, Edda, Bruno and Vittorio attempt to increase the number of Italian·s from 40 to 60 million by 1950. More people meant more soldiers. Mothers were therefore given generous maternity benefits. Couples with six children or more did not have to pay any tax while bachelors had to pay supplementary taxes which were especially high for those between the ages of 35 and SO. Newly married couples were given cheap railway tickets so that they could go on honeymoon. Every Christmas Eve the 93 mothers (one from each province of Italy) who had borne most children during their lives were given prizes. In the record year of 1934 the 93 award-winning mothers had borne a total of 1300 children between them! Mussolini had a battle plan for just about every kind of economic problem. When the value of the Italian currency dropped in 1926 he began the 'battle for the lira' to restore its value. There were even battles against sparows, mice and flies. 24  Mussolini never really won any of his 'battles'. The example, included everybody who made a living by - town of Mussolinia was never heard of again, none of working with wood - carpenters, tree fellers, joiners, the thousands of villages planned for Sicily was built, timber merchants, match makers, and so on. and the South remained very poor. His only real Each of the twenty-two Corporations was headed by achievement there was to put many of the Mafia, a representatives of the workers and the bosses - plus secret criminal organisation, in prison after trying three members of the Fascist Party to keep an eye on them in the special courts he set up in 1926. them. They then sent delegates to the General The 'battle for wheat' was more successful, for Assembly of Corporations which was headed by wheat production nearly doubled by 1939. But so Mussolini himself, for he had made himself Minister much extra land was used for growing it that the of Corporations. This Assembly was supposed to make output of fruit, olives and other crops went down. In important decisions about the country's economic winning one battle Mussolini simply created another policy and about wages and prices. In this way problem. Mussolini hoped to get rid of class differences and The 'battle for land' was mostly a failure. Only one make every Italian into a willing servant of the state, area of waste land was properly reclaimed - the working hard to make Italy rich and strong. Pontine Marshes - ~nd this was done in order to It never worked. Mussolini usually ignored the impress tourists visiting Rome as much as to create Assembly's advice and took the important decisions extra-farming land. himself. The bosses in each Corporation always had a The 'battle for births' failed disastrously. Despite bigger say than the workers because experienced trade the prizes and the propaganda and the tax incentives, unionists who knew how to argue with them were the number of births each year fell steadily during the mostly in prison or in hiding. And the system was 1930s. corrupt. Friends and relatives of Mussolini and high-up Party officials got all the best jobs in the Corporations, and used their positions to line their The Corporate State own pockets. Mussolini's favourite economic achievement had Mussolini tried to make the Corporate State more nothing to do with battles, however. It was the meaningful in 1938. He abolished parliament and creation of what he called the Corporate State. He replaced it with a 'Chamber of Fasci and began building it in 1925 when he abolished trade Corporations'. This was a new kind of parliament unions and employers' organisations. In their place he which represented people according to the type of eventually set up twenty-two 'Corporations'. Each was work they did rather than according to where they designed to bring together workers and bosses in lived. But like everything else in the Corporate State it similar types of work. The Timber Corporation, for was dominated by the Fascists and had no real power. Work section A. Study these figures of the growth of population in Italy. n Population Average number of births each year in 1920 37 million 1912 - 21 10,065,000 1930 40. 3 million 1921 - 31 10,829,000 1940 43.8 million 1932 - 41 9,864,000 1. How can you explain the fact that the population of Italy rose while the number of births fell during the 1930s? 2. Mussolini's aim in 'the battle for births' was to increase the population. The figures above show that the population did increase: why do you think he was not pleased by this result? 3. Look back at the ways in which Mussolini tried to encourage people to have more babies. Suggest reasons why these methods did not succeed. B. List all the different kinds of people who you think belonged to each of the following Corporations: the Mining Corporation; the Sugar and Beet Corporation; the Professional Classes and Artists Corporation. C. Oswald Mosley, a British Fascist, described the Corporate State in these words: 'A society working with the precision and harmony of a human body. Every interest and every individual is subordinate to [less important than] the over-riding purpose of the nation.' 1. What, in your opinion, is the main reason why Mussolini's Corporate State never succeeded in creating a society like this? 2. Do you think it would be possible, in any country, to create a society like this? Explain your answer. 25 r~--- 0 yout four.C ONTROLLING. PEOPLE'S MINDS Wol JOIIlt Bal1 at a1 The whic was trair Fasc G: then and Co Adu Fasc plas1 Ifth wou The: took A group ofBalillos parading through Rome enth £1 'MUSSOLINI IS ALWAYS RIGHT.' This slogan could be written for eight-year-olds: calle seen and heard everywhere in Fascist Italy. To make acti\ "'Teacher", said Bruno to the mistress-·as she sure that Italians really believed that Mussolini could entered the class, "yesterday Daddy bought L never be wrong, the Fascist Party had to control the new flag.... Tomorrow we are going to put it way in which people thought and acted. This meant on the balcony so that everybody in the street will controlling all aspects of their lives. be able to see it." "I'm sure you will! But tomorrow all the.A balconies and all the windows will have flags. Controlling the young And do you know why?" ' The minds of young people were particularly "Yes teacher!" cried the children, jumping to E important. If Fascism was to last, the young must their feet. · grow up loyal to Mussolini and to the Party. So schools "Good all of you! But let only Bruno speak. taught them Fascist ideas from a very early age. What is it tomorrow?" Cl Infants began their school day by saying this prayer: "THE TWENTY-EIGHTH OF OCTOBER". "And what is the twenty-eighth of October?" 'I believe in the genius of Mussolini... "It is the anniversary of the March on Rome. in the conversion of Italians and in The Fascists.i n their Black Shirts enter Rome the resurrection of the Empire. Amen.' and put everything in order. Then the Duce Older children learned about Fascism from specially arrives and says 'Go away all nasty Italians who written textbooks. This story is from the textbook do not know how to do things for the good. Now 26  I will see to putting everything right. Long live holidays. Minculpop (Ministry of Popular Culture) Italy!"' - made sure that films, plays, radio programmes and "Good!" said the mistress... ' books glorified Mussolini and Fascism. The Party Out of school, young ,people were expected to join tried especially hard to control sport, for victory in youth organisations run by the Party. At the age of international matches would show the strength of four a boy joined the group ca.iled Sons of the She Fascism. Football was therefore brought under Party Wolf, and was given his first black shirt. At eight, he control and a Chief Referee with a gold whistle was joined the most important of the youth groups, the appointed. Tennis players had to play in black shirts Balilla, named after an Italian boy who threw a rock and give the Fascist salute at the end of matches at an Austrian policeman in the eighteenth century. instead of shaking hands. The Balilla was similar to the Boy Scout movement, The Fascist Party controlled time itself. A new which Mussolini abolished in 1927, but the difference calendar was introduced in 1933. New Year's Day was was that the boys carried guns and did military to be on 29 October each year and Year One began in training. The Balilla code described the ideal young 1922, making 1933 the eleventh Fascist Year. Fascist like this: Religion 'He tempers all enthusiasm with iron __discipline... despises fear, loves the hard life Only one area of the life of Italians remained outside and serves with faith, passion and happiness the Party control, and that was religion. Mussolini needed cause of Fascism.' and wanted the support of the Pope for his dictatorship so, although he did not believe in Girls joined similar organisations which trained Christianity, he set about improving relations with the them to believe that the ideal woman stayed at home Roman Catholic church. He had his children baptised and brought up the children. in church and then married their mother in church. He made swearing in public a crime, shut down many Controlling adults wine shops and night clubs, and allowed the cross to be hung up in school rooms and in government offices. Adults as well as the young were bombarded with Then he began secret talks with Cardinal Gasparri, a Fascist propaganda. Everywhere the walls were leading Vatican official. plastered with slogans like these: In 1929 Mussolini and Gasparri signed a treaty in 'BELIEVE! OBEY! FIGHT!' the Lateran, the Pope's cathedral in Rome. The 'BETTER TO LIVE ONE DAY LIKE A LION THAN A Lateran Treaty gave the Pope 1,750,000 lire in HUNDRED YEARS LIKE A SHEEP!' compensation for the land taken from him when Italy 'NOTHING HAS EVER BEEN WON IN HISTORY was united. It made the Vatican City where he lived WITHOUT BLOODSHED!' into an independent state with its own small army, 'WAR IS TO THE MALE WHAT CHILDBEARING IS police force, law courts, post office and railway TO THE FEMALE!' station. It made religious education compulsory in all schools and allowed the 'Italian Catholic Action', an If they went to the cinema or opened a newspaper they organisation for spreading Catholic ideas, to carry on would often see long reports of Mussolini's speeches. its work. These always appeared to be exciting occasions, for he Mussolini thought of the Lateran Treaty as his took 'applause squads' with him to whip up finest achievement. He had healed the split between enthusiasm in his audiences. church and state which had lasted for over sixty years. Even leisure was firmly controlled. An organisation This delighted Italian Catholics and made them more called Dopolavoro (After work) arranged sporting loyal to Fascism. It also meant that Mussolini could activities and provided workers with cheap package count on the Pope's support. ill Work section A. Test your understanding by giving short definitions of the following words used in this chapter: propaganda, Balilla, Dopolavoro, Vatican, Lateran Treaty. B. Suggest as many reasons as you can to explain why Mussolini did not try to put the religious life of Italians under Party control. C. Study the photograph of Balilla boys on the opposite page, then answer these questions: 1. In what way are they similar to Boy Scouts and in what way are they unlike Boy Scouts? 2. Why do you think Mussolini abolished the Boy Scout movement in Italy and created the Balilla instead? D. Either write an imaginary extract from a school textbook like the one on page 26, teaching children Fascist ideas, or design a Fascist propaganda poster and make up a slogan to put on it. ¥ 27  Fri~ Mus~ the f and inter: want THE ROAD TO WAR, Fueh dicta 1935-1939 futur Berli Many centuries ago, Rome was the capital of a great history. Using tanks, bombers and poison gas, Fri empire which stretched from Britain to the Middle burning down villages as they went, half a million 1937 East. Mussolini dreamed of re-building the mighty Italian soldiers found that they were often fighting Anti- Roman Empire by conquering land around the bare-footed tribesmen armed only with spears. betw Mediterranean Sea, especially in Africa. ·He said that Haile Selassie, Emperor of Abyssinia, went to had~ his aim was to make the Mediterranean 'an Italian lake'. Geneva to ask the League of Nations for help. The In League did what it could by ordering countries to stop Aus ti trading with Italy. But these 'sanctions' did not halt often War in Abyssinia and Spain the invasion: no one stopped Italian ships from using he dt Mussolini began what he called his 'imperial journey' the Suez Canal, a vital supply route, and no one stop on 2 October 1935. Sirens wailed and church bells stopped supplying Italy with oil. All rang in town squares up and down the country. As As a result, Italian troops and supplies poured into inflw some 27 million Italians came out of their homes to Abyssinia and in May 1936 they captured the capital, 'Cha: find out what was going on, Mussolini's voice blared Addis Ababa. Mussolini was triumphant. He had race. out from huge loudspeakers, telling them that the conquered a large country · and he had defied the over Italian army had invaded Abyssinia. League of Nations. And he had got away with it. It quan As you can see from the map opposite, Abyssinia seemed that nothing could interfere with his dream of from was sandwiched between two Italian colonies in making a New Roman Empire. Italia Africa, Eritrea and Somaliland. Mussolini wanted to He took his next step very quickly, in-June 1936, by Fo join them together to make a super-colony which he sending soldiers to fight in Spain where a civil war had Mus~ would call Italian East Africa. This meant swallowing begun. Eventually there were 70,000 Italians in Spain Hide up the Kingdom of Abyssinia. So while his voice fighting on the side of the pro-Fascist General Franco. Czecl echoed round Italy's town squares, the Italian armed They achieved little, however, except to capture the were forces were beginning the biggest colonial invasion in islands of Majorca and Minorca off the Spanish coast. Euro conta Mussolini leads the Bersaglieri Regiment in its famous running march, 1938 mvas coulc and : city c At that · B  Friendship with Hitler - Mussolini's aggression in Abyssinia and Spain lost him the friendship of many countries, especially France and Britain. They began to see him as a ruthless , G~~~t-t..Af~Y I.....:::>->-< CZECHOSLOVAKIA ·~~e international gangster. Only one European leader wanted to do business with him ~ Adolf Hitler, the Fuehrer, or ruler of Germany. In October 1936 the two dictators made an agreement to work together in future. Mussolini called their agreement the 'Rome - Berlin Axis'. gas, From then on he was under Hitler's influence. In lion 1937, for example, Hitler persuaded him to join the ting Anti-Comintem Pact, an anti-communist alliance between Germany and Japan, even though Mussolini : to had always opposed Japan until then. The In March 1938 Hitler's armies marched into ;top Austria, Italy's northern neighbour. Mussolini had halt often promised to protect Austria in the past, but now 0 km 1000 smg he denied ever saying such a thing and did nothing to one stop the German invasion. D Another sign that Mussolini was under Hitler's British possessions into influence came in July 1938 when he issued the ital, 'Charter of Race', saying that Jews were an inferior had race. Hitler had been persecuting Jews in Germany for where many of the population spoke German. This the over five years, but Mussolini had never had any was accepted by all the leaders and so war was t. It quarrel with the Jews in Italy. Now they were banned avoided. Mussolini went home to a hero's welcome, n of from the Party and from the army, forbidden to marry people kneeling by the railway track as his train went Italians, and prevented from going to school. by. 'I have saved Europe', he said. 'by For a brief moment, in October 1938, it seemed that But Mussolini was far from controlling the affairs of had Mussolini was not under Hitler's influence after all. Europe. In May 1939 he made a military alliance, Jam Hitler now had his armies on the border of which he called the 'Pact of Steel', with Germany: if lCO. Czechoslovakia, ready to invade. Britain and France war broke out, Italy would fight on the side of the were mobilising their armed forces, ready to stop him. Germany. Although he warned Hitler before signing ast. Europe was on the brink. of a major war. Mussolini the Pact that he would need three years of peace to contacted Hitler and persuaded him to hold off the prepare for war, Hitler went ahead with secret plans to invasion so that a meeting with the British and French invade yet another country. On 1 September 1939, could be held. Hitler agreed and the leaders of Britain without consulting Mussolini, he sent his armies into and France met him with Mussolini in the German Poland. Two days later Britain and France declared city of Munich. war on Germany. This time, Mussolini could only At the Munich Conference Mussolini proposed watch helplessly as Europe slithered over the brink that Hitler should be given a part of Czechoslovakia· into a second world war. Work section A. Study the map above, then answer these questions. 1. a) What did Mussolini mean when he said he wanted to make the Mediterranean Sea into 'an Italian lake'? b) What would he have to do to achieve this aim? 2. Suggest as many reasons as you can to explain why Britain and France ended their friendship with Italy after the occupation of Abyssinia in 1936. B. Test your understanding ofthis chapter by making a time chart like the one below. Put the following dates into column 1: Oct 1935, May 1936, June 1936, Oct 1936, 1937, March 1938, July 1938, Oct 1938, May 1939. Write the events which took place at these times in column 2. Then write a sentence about each event in column 3, explaining why it was important. The first entry has been done for you. Mussolini's foreign policy, 1935-9 Date Event Importance Oct 1935 Invasion of Abyssinia The first step in trying to create an Italian empire overseas 29  The Diary of Galeazzo Ciano, Fascist Foreign Minister under Mussolini, 1936 - 1943. December 23, 1943, Cell 27 of the Verona Jail. [Part of Final Entry] If these notes of mine one day see the light, it will be because I took precautions to put them in safety before the Germans, through base trickery, made me a prisoner. If Providence had granted me a quiet old age, what excellent material for my autobiography! I declare that not a single word of what I have written in my diaries is false. BACK IN TIME →[April 7, 1939 Italian troops invade and occupy Albania] May 22 1939 [German and Italian Foreign Ministers Von Ribbentrop and Galeazzo Ciano sign the “Pact of Steel Alliance,” with Nazi German Adolf Hitler present. Hitler led the fascist Nazi Party, which had established one-party rule over Germany in the 1930s.] August 9, 1939 [German diplomat] Von Ribbentrop has approved the idea of our meeting [to discuss German preparations to invade Poland]. The Duce is anxious that I prove to the Germans that the outbreak of war at this time would be folly. Our preparation is not such as to allow us to believe that victory will be certain. The probabilities are 50 percent; at least so the Duce thinks. On the other hand, within three years the probabilities will be 80 percent. August 18, 1939 A conversation with the Duce in the morning; his usual shifting feelings. He still thinks it possible that the democracies will not march [if Germany invades Poland], and that Germany might do good business cheaply, from which business he does not want to be excluded. Then, too, he fears Hitler’s rage. He believes that a denunciation of the pact or something like it might induce Hitler to abandon the Polish question in order to square accounts with Italy. All this makes him nervous and disturbed. [September 1, 1939, Germany invades Poland] September 1, 1939 The Duce is calm. He has already decided not to intervene [in the war]. September 3 - September 8, 1939 At eleven o’clock [September 1, 1939) the news arrives that Great Britain has declared war on Germany. France does the same at 5 p.m. But how can they fight this war? The German advance in Poland is overwhelming. In what way can France and England bring help to Poland? And when Poland is liquidated, will they want to continue a conflict for which there is no longer any reason? The Duce does not believe so. The Germans occupy [the Polish capital] Warsaw. The Duce is very much excited over the news. [MAY 10, 1940, Germany Invades France] May 11, 1940 Today Mussolini is less bellicose than he was yesterday, and more disposed to wait [on entering the war]. It seems that the Italian General Staff has thrown most timely cold water on our present military prospects. Even Balbo has told me that we cannot go into the field before two months, and before having received a definite quantity of arms and materiel. [May 13, 1940 - German forces bypass French armies moving into Belgium, and the French defensive line on the French-German border known as the Maginot Line, by invading France through the weakly defended Ardennes Forest. As German forces move deeper into the Ardennes, French defenses begin to collapse. Paris fell to the Germans on June 14, 1940, with French surrender shortly after] May 13, 1940 Mussolini began to talk as follows: “Some months ago I said that the Allies had lost the victory. Today I tell you that they have lost the war. We Italians are already sufficiently dishonored. Any delay is inconceivable. We have no time to lose. Within a month I shall declare war. I shall attack France and England in the air and on the sea. Unfortunately, I can do nothing now to hold the Duce back. He has decided to act, and act he will. He believes in German success and in the rapidity of this success. Only a new turn in military events can induce him to revise his decision, but for the time being things are going so badly for the Allies that there is no hope. May 14, 1940 Letter from Hitler to the Duce. It is an assured note: victories on land, and, above all, victories in the air, over which at this time the Germans have an uncontested dominion. Naturally, all this cannot but influence the mind of the Duce to intervene. May 16 - May 18, 1940 The breaching of the Maginot Line has become a break-through. News from the French front speaks of an overwhelming German advance. Paris is directly threatened. News of the conflict is increasingly favorable to the Germans. Mussolini orders me to give a definite intimation of our approaching intervention, as well as to indicate clearly that he will also be “the only head” of the nation while at war — the civil as well as military head. May 30, 1940 The decision has been taken. The die is cast. Today Mussolini gave me his communication sent to Hitler about our entry into the war. The date chosen is the fifth of June, unless Hitler himself considers it con-venient to postpone it for some days. June 10, 1940 Declaration of war [by Italy against France and Britain]. First I received [French Ambassador] Poncet, who tried not to betray his emotion. I told him, “You probably understood the reason for your being called.” He answered, with a fleeting smile, “Although I am not very intelligent, I have understood this time.” After having listened to the declaration of war, he replied, “It is a dagger blow to a man who has already fallen.” He continued, saying that he had foreseen all this for two years, and that he had no longer hoped that he could avoid it after the signing of the Pact of Steel. “The Germans are hard masters. You, too, will learn this.” I did not answer. This did not seem to me the time for discussion. Mussolini speaks from the balcony of the Palazzo Venezia. The news of the war does not surprise anyone and does not arouse very much enthusiasm. I am sad, very sad. The adventure begins. May God help Italy! July 26, I940 Our air losses during the first month of the war amount to two hundred and fifty planes; we are producing the same amount. The question of pilots is more difficult. Their losses cannot be too easily replaced. July 27, 1940 Invectives by the Duce against “the Italians,” which take place whenever he meets opposition to his projects. The principal points he made were: decrease in the birth rate, the tendency toward alcoholism, and complacency. He said that the principal reason for the reforestation of the Apennine regions is to make the climate of Italy more rigorous. This will bring about an elimination of the weaker stock and an improvement of the Italian race. August 19, 1940 The Duce reads me a telegram he has sent to Graziani. He orders him to march on [British-controlled] Egypt as soon as a German patrol lands in England. Mussolini himself assumes responsibility for the order, knowing full well the objections that Graziani will make. September 4 - 9, 1940 The Americans lend fifty destroyers to Great Britain. In Berlin a great deal of excitement and indignation. The Duce, on the other hand, says that he is indifferent. What is happening in London under German bombing? From here it is difficult to judge. The blow must be hard. Decisive? I don’t believe it. [September 9, 1940, Italy invades British Egypt from bases in its North African colony of Libya, see black arrow in map on right] September 14, 1940 The attack on Egypt has begun. At the moment the British are withdrawing without fighting. They wish to draw us away from our base and lengthen our lines of communication. September 19 - 22 , 1940 Arrival of German Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop. In the car Ribbentrop speaks at once of the surprise in his bag: a military alliance with Japan, to be signed within the next few days at Berlin. Von Ribbentrop alludes to the possibility of the Axis taking the initiative in breaking diplomatic relations with the United States. Mussolini is inclined to agree. I do not, first of all because I believe we must avoid a conflict with America at all costs. September 24, 1940 The final text of the Tripartite Pact [an alliance between Germany, Italy and Japan] is agreed upon. The signature can now take place in a few days. October 4, 1940 Hitler put at least some of his cards on the table, and talked to us about his plans for the future( 1) there is no longer any talk about a landing in the British Isles and preparations already made remain where they are (3) Hitler was energetic and again extremely anti-Bolshevist. “Bolshevism,” he said, “is the doctrine of people who are lowest in the scale of civilization.” October 14 - 28, 1940 Mussolini speaks to me again about … Greece, and fixes the date [to attack Greece] for October 26. [Italy invades Greece from positions in Italian-occupied Albania]. We attack [Greece]. Notwithstanding the bad weather, the troops are moving fast, even if air support is lacking. November 3 1940 I made a report of my conversations with [German diplomat] Ribbentrop. Last night, while Ribbentrop talked to his guests, repeating his favorite motto that the war was already won, a German Army major turned to me and said in his labored French: “This phrase was given to us in 1914, in 1915, in 1916, and in 1917. I believed it. In 1918 I wished I were dead.” His calm sincerity and sadness impressed me. Mussolini is dissatisfied over the way things are going in Greece. The enemy has made some progress and it is a fact that on the eighth day of operations the initiative is in their hands. November 12, 1940 A black day. The British, without warning, have attacked the Italian fleet at anchor in Taranto, and have sunk the dreadnought Cavour and seriously damaged the battleships Littorio and Duilio. The British bombardment also did serious damage to Durazzo. The Agijo [oil refinery] is burning. Fortunately the port is intact. November 15, 1940 It seems that the Greeks have resumed their attack all along the front, and with considerable forces. Pressure continues, and resistance is more difficult. And then we lack guns, while the Greek artillery is modern and well handled. December 4 , 1940 We have lost Pogradec and the Greeks have broken through our lines. Mussolini calls me to the Palazzo Venezia. I find him discouraged as never before. He says: “There is nothing else to do. This is grotesque and absurd, but it is a fact. We have to ask for a truce [with Greece] through Hitler.” I would rather put a bullet through my head than telephone Ribbentrop. Is it possible that we are defeated? December 6, 1940 News from [the war with Greece near] Albania unchanged. Mussolini, who passes on to … internal matters. “If, when I was a Socialist,” he said, “I had had a knowledge of the work of the Italian middle class, not purely theoretical as learned by the reading of Karl Marx, but practical, based on experience such as I have now, I would have launched a revolution so pitiless that, by comparison, the revolution of Comrade Lenin would have been child’s play.” December 11, 1940 Things are really going badly in Libya [and Egypt]. Four divisions can be considered destroyed. He still hopes that Graziani can and will stop the English advance. Something is the matter with our Army if five divisions allow themselves to be pulverized in two days. December 24, 1940 It is snowing. The Duce looks out of the window and is glad that it is snowing. “This snow and cold are very good,” he says. “In this way our good-for-nothing men and this mediocre race will be improved. One of the principal reasons I have desired the reforestation of the Apennines has been to make Italy colder and more snowy.” January 22 1941 Tobruk [in Libya] has fallen [to the British]. The Duce is allowing himself to be lulled by his illusions. I have given the Duce a serious and harsh letter from Professor Faccini of Leghorn, whose eighteen-year-old son, mobilized on the seventeenth of January, was sent to Albania on the same day, without knowing what a firearm was. This explains so many things. The newspapers of the GUF [Fascist University Group] have abused a certain freedom of discussion which is granted them, and are inveighing against the party heads. They exaggerate — so much so that their arguments are influenced by the absurd and irresponsible grumblings of the mob. Although these youngsters were in the wrong, it must be admitted that the regime has also made a mistake; for twenty years it has neglected these young men, and has had them in mind only to deck them out in uniforms, hats, and capes, and herd them against their will into the squares to make a lot of noise. [April 6, 1941, Germany rescues Italy from defeat against Greece, invades and conquers Greece]. June 21, I941 Many signs give the impression that operations against Russia (the Soviet Union) [by Germany] are about to begin. The Germans believe that it will all be over in eight weeks. But what if this should not be the case? [June 22, 1941, Germany launches a surprise invasion of the Soviet Union] June 23, 1941 From Russia the first news of German successes begin to arrive. They talk about seventeen hundred Russian planes destroyed in one night. According to Bismarck, in German military circles they expect to take five million prisoners, “five million slaves,” as [German Diplomat] Otto says. British Prime Minister Churchill has made a speech which, it must be objectively recognized, carries the mark of the great orator. July 1 , 1941 It seems that at Minsk the Germans are now meeting with stronger Russian resistance, which is very much to the liking of the Duce. He says, “I hope for only one thing, that in this war in the East the Germans will lose a lot of feathers. It is false to speak of an anti-Bolshevik struggle. Hitler knows that Bolshevism has been non-existent for some time. July 14, 1941 The Duce is furious with the military who “mislead him.” They had assured him that the Galileo Factory of Florence would produce eight anti-aircraft searchlights a month, and instead he learned that the first thirteen of them, in two types, would be ready only at the end of December. The war is harder than the Germans had foreseen. Colonel Ame and General Squero, who made a report on the military situation today, believe that the Russians will succeed in maintaining a front even during the winter. If this is true, Germany has started a hemorrhage that will have incalculable consequences. July 22, 1941 False air alarms continue at Rome. It was the Duce who, personally, ordered an alarm in the capital every time there is an alarm at Naples. He does this because he wants to give the country the impression that a war is on. He has also ordered that at the first opportunity the anti- aircraft should fire in order to make it more exciting. Is all this worthwhile? If we listen to comments on the street, I should say not at all. October 13, 1941 Mussolini said, “I believe it. In Germany there exist certain phonograph records. Hitler makes them; the others play them. [In one recording Hitler states] that of the victories, that Europe would be dominated by Germany. The conquered states will be colonies. The associated states will be confederated provinces of Germany. Among these the most important is Italy. We have to accept these conditions because any attempt to rebel would result in our being reduced from the position of a confederated province to the worse one of a colony.” October 18, 1941 According to some sources of information the Germans are beginning to slow down before Moscow. Isn’t this a case of their having sung their hymn of victory too soon? October 28 1941 [Visit to Germany]. My general impression of Germany is good; the country is in fine shape. The sight of prisoners of war [in Germany] is a sad spectacle. They can be found everywhere in the open country, and serve in farming families where men are lacking. Domberg says, “Every German has his Frenchman,” which is equivalent to saying that he has his cow or his horse. They are bound to the soil — slaves. If they touch a woman they are shot. And yet they have the blood of Voltaire and of Pasteur. December 2, 1941 Another of our ships has been sunk … loaded with seven thousand tons of gasoline. It cannot be denied that the blow is a hard one. Iit is clear that time is working against us. The Duce is concerned about the food problem. He is now convinced that we lack five hundred thousand tons of grain for our needs. We must borrow it from Germany. We might be able to pay it back in July, since our harvest, on account of climatic conditions, comes two months before theirs. But Mussolini cannot make up his mind to write to the Fuhrer (Hitler) making the request, and I can understand this. December 3, 1941 A stunning move by the Japanese. The Ambassador asks to be re-ceived by the Duce, to whom he reads a long declaration on the progress of their negotiations with America, concluding that they have arrived at a dead end. Then, invoking the pertinent clause of the Tripartite Pact, he asks that Italy declare war on the United States as soon as the conflict begins. The Duce gave general assurances. Hitler’s armies continue to fall back under the pressure of an unexpected Soviet offensive. December 4, 1941 I receive a message from [General] Gambara [in Libya]. “Our men die gloriously,” he concludes, “which does not change the fact that they die.” [December 7, 1941. Surprise attack by Italy and Germany’s ally Japan on the United States] December 8 , 1941 A night telephone call from [German Foreign Minister] Ribbentrop; he is joyful over the Japanese attack on the United States. He is so happy, in fact, that I can’t but congratulate him, even though I am not so sure about the advan-tage. One thing is now certain: America will enter the conflict, and the conflict itself will be long enough to permit her to put into action all her potential strength. December 13, 1941 The usual naval woes. Tonight we have lost two cruisers and also two large ships,, loaded with tanks for Libya. The fact is that our naval losses become more serious every day, and I wonder whether the war won’t outlast our Navy. The Minister from Cuba came to declare war. He was very emotional, and was disappointed that I did not share his emotion. But, after having had the good fortune, or is it the misfortune, to declare war on France, on Great Britain, on Russia, and on the United States, could the good man really think that I would turn pale on learning that Sergeant Batista was mobilizing against us the forces of Cuba on land and sea and in the air? December 20 , 1942 Mussolini is satisfied with the way the war is going [badly for Germany] in Russia. He talks about it openly. The failure of the German troops cheers him. “As long as this doesn’t go too far,” I suggested. Mussolini … criticizes my Fascist salute, which was not according to regulations. Is there nothing really better to think about? Vidussoni comes to see me. After having spoken about a few casual things, he makes some political allusions and announces savage plans against the Slovenes. He wants to kill them all. I take the liberty of observing that there are a million of them. “That does not matter,” he answers firmly. January 13, 1942 From the military point of view attention has turned toward the Russian front, where difficulties continue for the Germans. The [German] retreat continues under the growing pressure of the enemy. The Duce does not seem to be excessively worried, but considers the situation very serious. He criticizes Hitler for the entire Russian campaign. February 24 , 1942 Mussolini expounds one of his new theories on war. Wars are necessary in order to see and appraise the true internal composition of a people, because during a war the various classes are revealed: the heroes, the profiteers, the indolent. I objected that in any case war is a selection in reverse, because the best die. February 26 , 1942 The Duce has issued a decree for the mobilization of civilians. For the time being it will include men between eighteen and fifty-five; later it will be the women’s turn. However, there is a certain uneasiness because people do not understand what it is all about. In fact, they are afraid that it will be an imitation of the forced-labor decree imposed upon the Germans. March 1942 The Duce, who is dissatisfied with the way things are going, said, “This war is not for the Italian people. The Italian people do not have the maturity or the consistency for a test so grave and decisive. This war is for the Germans and the Japanese, not for us.” March 19 , 1942 This morning Mussolini discussed the Italian internal situation, and had to admit that the Italian people are not in the least for the war. He explains it by saying that immediate incentives are lacking, such as can be easily understood by the common people. He believes, therefore, that our line of propaganda should simply be to flaunt the banner of defeat as a threat. No generosity would be shown by our enemies, and we should be reduced to slavery for a century. But the people aren’t even convinced of this. March 28 , 1942 In Venice we have had the first popular demonstrations caused by the bread shortage. Many people who had used all their ration stamps before they became due are protesting because the bakers refuse to sell. The Duce was resentful and sad; he gave orders that the crowds be scattered by violence. But this is an ugly occurrence which proves that many calculations in the matter of food were wrong and the coming weeks may hold some ugly surprises in store. March 29, 1942 Today there have been bread riots at Matera [in the province of Potenza], where groups of women broke into the Littorio Club [Fascist party headquarters] and were dispersed by the carabinieri, who were forced to fire in the air. These are serious symptoms, especially as the harvest is far away and the available food supply scarcer and scarcer. At a meeting of the directors of the party yesterday Mussolini was violently critical of the youth and an apologist for the older members of the party. Is he beginning to realize the deep and engrossing crisis within the party? April 5, 1942 Mussolini does not want to take from Hungary the thirteen thousand tons of wheat which Pareschi got Hungary to promise him. He considers this a pittance and believes that we can produce enough food without a further reduction in the ration. Today I went to mass. The church was filled by a devout crowd. I do not at all believe, as some would like to have it, that Italy is not a fundamentally Catholic country. April 8, 1942 Somebody was talking about illiteracy in certain Italian regions, when Mussolini said : “Even if this were true, what is the difference? In the fourteenth century Italy was populated by nothing but illiterates, and this did not prevent the flowering of Dante Alighieri. Today, when everybody knows how to read and write, we have instead the poet Govoni, who, while not exactly insignificant, is certainly less than Dante.” April 18, 1942 The Americans have bombed Tokyo and other Japanese cities. This is their first offensive action since the beginning of the war. I do not think that, for the moment, they can do great things, their preparation being far behind; but as time passes they will make their weight felt more and more — especially in the air. June 9, 1942 On the order of Mussolini the newspapers have for some days tried to show that during World War I the food situation in the country was worse than it is today. It is a sort of propaganda that produces an effect contrary to what was intended. We were all living then, and our memories are too fresh to accept these statements. Pavolini has, in fact, told me that the Duce complains that the newspapermen do not know how to carry on this campaign efficiently. June 10, 1942 A ceremony at the monument to the unknown soldier. However, the public showed little enthusiasm. No applause all along the line of march. September 22, 1942 [Air Force General] Fougier describes our airplane production in dark colors. Between us and Germany we produce less than one fifth or one sixth of what the Allies produce. The enlistment of pilots is also short and falling off. During the summer of 1943 the Allies will definitely have control of the skies. D’Aieta reports to me a very confidential conversation with [German diplomat] Otto, who now is sure that Germany will be defeated but will go on to the “bitter end.” Italy will find a way out; and to this end may contribute the measured policy that I have always maintained toward England and America. November 1- 6 1942 The Libyan front [in Africa] collapses. A sense of irrepressible pessimism has taken possession of the Italians. The Libyan retreat is assuming more and more the character of a rout. We know nothing of our 10 th Army Corps, cut off by the English forces. Even the Duce thinks that as matters stand Libya will probably be lost. Mussolini asked me if I was keeping my diary up to date. When I answered affirmatively, he said that it will serve to prove how the Germans, both in military and political fields, have always acted without his knowledge. But what does his strange question really hide? November 8 , 1942 At five-thirty in the morning [German Foreign Minister] von Ribbentrop telephoned to inform me of American landings in Algerian and Moroccan ports. He was rather nervous, and wanted to know what we intended to do. I must confess that, having been caught unawares, I was too sleepy to give a very satisfactory answer. November I2 1942 Churchill has made a great speech in the House. It is clear from what he said that all the British and American forces will hurl themselves on Italy for the purpose of putting us out of the fight. November 26, 1942 Information from Africa is, in general, worse. Last night forty American tanks arrived at the gates of Tunis. Fougier, who is a realist and an honest man, thinks that we shall be driven, within a month, from all of Africa. January 5, 1943 I see the Duce after two days. I find him tired. Edda says that the pains in his stomach have increased though he takes only liquid food. He is depressed about the situation in Libya. January 6, 1943 The fact is that military forces are scarce. In Africa, Russia, and the Balkans, the occupied countries, everywhere new and greater forces are needed. At times I have the impression that the Axis is like a man who is trying to cover himself with a bedspread that is too small. His head is cold if he warms his feet, and his feet freeze if he wants to keep his head warm. January 19, 1943 News from all sectors is bad. The [German] retreat in Russia continues and seems to have become a rout. January 20 1943 A long and interesting conversation with [Generals] Ambrosio and Vercellino. These two generals, both worthy and honest men, and of patriotic integrity, are very anxious about what is happening. Convinced as they are that Germany will lose the war, and that there is nothing left for us but destruction, death, and disorder, they ask how far we intend to go. I told the Duce what I thought. The Duce began by replying that “he was sure that the Germans would hold tenaciously. Physically he is the same as three weeks ago. He seemed a little thinner but looks well. Mentally he is depressed. February 5 - 8, 1943 At four-thirty in the afternoon the Duce calls me. “What are you going to do now?” he begins, and then adds in a low voice that he is changing his entire Cabinet. I hand over my office at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Our leave- taking was cordial, for which I am very glad, because I like Mussolini, like him very much, and what I shall miss most will be my contact with him. [July 9, 1943, After driving the Germans and Italians from Libya in Africa, American and British armies invaded Italy, using bases in Africa as a springboard.] [July 24, 1943, The 28 member Fascist Grancil met, and the council voted to remove Mussolini from power, and transfer authority back to the King and Parliament. Former Foreign Minister Ciano, a member of the council, voted “yes” to remove Mussolini from power.] “The Grand Council of Fascism … having examined the internal and international situation and the war's political and military leadership, declares … the immediate restoration of all state functions is necessary, assigning to the Crown, to the Grand Council, to the government, to the Parliament, the duties and responsibility established by our constitutional laws.” - July 24, Motion of the Fascist Grand Council [Mussolini thought nothing of the vote, but the next day, was arrested by the King after being asked to attend a meeting. The fascist party was officially dissolved. On September 12, 1943, however, a German commando raid freed Mussolini from prison, where he set up a new regime in northern Italy under German protection. Ciano, afraid for his life in the new Italy, fled to Germany, but Germany arrested him and turned him over to Mussolni’s northern Italian regime. On October 13, 1943, Italy officially switched sides and declared war on Nazi Germany. On June 8, 1944, Italy agreed with the Allies to appoint Ivanoe Bonomi, a Socialist, as Prime Minister. Mussolini continued to rule a separate regime under German protection in northern Italy] December 23, 1943, Cell 27 of the Verona Jail. [Part of Final Entry] Within a few days a sham tribunal will make public a sentence which has already been decided by Mussolini under the influence of that circle of prostitutes and white slavers which for some years have plagued Italian political life and brought our country to the brink of the abyss. I accept calmly what is to be my infamous destiny. [January 11, 1944 - Galeazzo Ciano executed by firing squad on orders of Mussolini.] On April 25, 1945, Allied soldiers advanced into Northern Italy. Mussolini attempted to flee the country, but was stopped by Italian Communist rebel fighters on the road. Mussolini was executed, and his body hung, along with those of other fascists in the plaza in Milan from the roof of a gas station. Crowds cheered, and approached and stoned the bodies.] Letter to His Wife Rachele Mussolini, April, 26 1945 Dear Rachele, I am at the last phase of my life, at the last page of my book. We two may never meet again, and that is why I am writing and sending you this letter. I ask your forgiveness for all the harm I have unwittingly done you. But you know that you are the only woman whom I have ever really loved. I swear it before God, Take the children with you and try to get to the Swiss frontier. There you can build up a new life. I do not think that they will refuse to let you in for I have always been helpful to them and you have had nothing to do with politics. Should they refuse, surrender to the Allies who may be more generous than the Italians. My dearest love to you and the children. Yours, Benito.