Italian Fascism, 1915-1945

The Making of the Twentieth Century

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By: Philip Morgan

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Published: 10th November 2003

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It is now 80 years since Mussolini's Fascism came to power in Italy, but the political heirs of the original Fascism are part of government in today's Italy. The resurgence of neo-fascist and neo-Nazi extremism all over Europe are a reminder of the continuing place of fascism in contemporary European society, despite its political and military defeat in 1945.
This thoroughly revised, updated and expanded edition provides a critical and comprehensive overview of the origins of Fascism and the movement's taking and consolidation of power. Philip Morgan:
· explains how the experience of the First World War created Fascism
· describes how the unsettled post-war conditions in Italy enabled an initially small group of political adventurers around Mussolini to build a large movement and take power in 1922
· focuses on the workings of the first ever 'totalitarian' system and its impacts on the lives and outlooks of ordinary Italians
· considers the meshing of internal 'fascistisation' and expansionism, which emerged most clearly after 1936 as Italy became more closely aligned with Nazi Germany
· examines the demise of Italian Fascism between 1943 and 1945 as Mussolini and his party became the puppets of Nazism
· provides an explanation and interpretation of Fascism, locating it in contemporary history and taking account of recent debates on the nature of the phenomenon.
Clear and approachable, this essential text is ideal for anyone interested in Italy's turbulent political history in the first half of the twentieth century.

'The best introduction to the subject available.' - Dr Jonathan Morris, University College London Praise for the first edition: '[an] impressive synthesis. Tightly written, it packs an enormous amount of information into 200-odd pages. [Morgan's] account of the links between domestic and foreign policy in Italian Fascism is exemplary.' - Paul Preston, Times Higher Education Supplement

Acknowledgement	p. x
List of Abbreviations	p. xi
Map of Modern Italy	p. xiii
Introduction: Locating Fascism	p. 1
The Conquest of Power, 1915-29	p. 11
The War, the Post-war Crisis and the Rise of Fascism, 1915-22	p. 13
Politics and society in post-unification Italy	p. 13
The war in Italy	p. 20
'1919-ism' and early Fascism	p. 28
The 1919 elections	p. 32
The biennio rosso and Fiume	p. 37
The Fascist reaction	p. 50
Giolitti and Fascism	p. 56
The transition from movement to party	p. 59
The March on Rome	p. 69
Between 'Normalisation' and 'Revolution', 1922-25	p. 76
The various Fascisms	p. 76
Dictatorship by stealth	p. 80
The conquest of the South and the 1924 election	p. 87
The Matteotti crisis	p. 91
The Construction of the 'Totalitarian' State, 1925-29	p. 96
'Totalitarianism'	p. 96
The party and the state	p. 98
Syndicates and corporations	p. 105
The Fascist constitution	p. 109
The conciliation with the Catholic church	p. 112
The revaluation of the lira	p. 115
'Ruralism' and population policy	p. 119
The Fascist Regime, 1929-36	p. 125
The Years of the Great Depression, 1929-34	p. 127
The party and the inquadramento of the nation	p. 127
The organisation of the young, welfare and free time	p. 130
The organisation of culture	p. 137
The impact and limitations of 'totalitarian' control	p. 145
Corporativism and the Great Depression	p. 156
The Creation of the Fascist Empire, 1935-36	p. 162
Imperialism, revisionism and the limits to Fascist foreign policy in the 1920s	p. 162
The 'totalitarian' state: internal policy as foreign policy and vice versa	p. 167
The Depression and Fascism's opportunity	p. 169
The invasion and conquest of Ethiopia	p. 171
Fascist Expansionism at Home and Abroad, 1936-43	p. 177
The Axis Connection and the 'Fascistisation' of Italian Society, 1936-40	p. 179
The Axis with Germany	p. 179
Making something of the empire	p. 187
Forcing the pace of 'fascistisation'	p. 193
Autarky and economic preparation for war	p. 205
'Non-belligerency' and war, 1939-40	p. 209
Fascist Italy at War, 1940-43	p. 213
The collapse of Italy's parallel war	p. 213
The impact of war and the internal crisis of the regime	p. 216
The fall of Mussolini	p. 221
The Italian Social Republic, 1943-45	p. 224
The German occupation of Italy and Mussolini's return	p. 224
'A return to the origins'?	p. 226
The Italian civil war	p. 229
Conclusion	p. 233
Notes	p. 240
Select Bibliography	p. 244
Index	p. 252
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

ISBN: 9781403932518
ISBN-10: 1403932514
Series: The Making of the Twentieth Century
Audience: Tertiary; University or College
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Number Of Pages: 262
Published: 10th November 2003
Publisher: Palgrave USA
Country of Publication: US
Dimensions (cm): 22.3 x 14.1 x 1.9
Weight (kg): 0.44
Edition Number: 2
Edition Type: Revised