Benito Mussolini – Italian politician, leader of the Fascist movement, author of articles, Prime Minister from 1922-43 He began to engage in politics, becoming a member of the Socialist Party, from where he was subsequently expelled.

In 1919 he organized the Nazi Party. On October 28, 1922, as a result of a coup, he took power into his own hands and headed the government on November 1. He gave himself the powers of a dictator, organized and supported fascist terrorism, was an aggressor in foreign policy, invaded neighboring states. Together with Germany, he entered the 2nd World War. In 1945, he was sentenced to death by Italian partisans.

Benito Mussolini was born on July 29, 1883 in the small Italian village of Varano, near Predappio (his house-museum is now located there, 70 km from). His parents are blacksmith and carpenter Alessandro and school teacher Rosa Maltoni. They lived in 3 small rooms on the 2nd floor of a 3-story building. The mother was reputed to be a believing Catholic, and due to disagreements between her parents on religious grounds, Benito was baptized not in infancy, but at a later age.

My father did not receive an education, but he was always interested in politics and did not recognize theology. He often led rallies, later ending up in prison, and worshiped the revolutionary Bakunin. The father gave the first name to his son in honor of the President of Mexico, Benito Juárez, and the second and third - Andrea and Amilcare - after the names of the leaders of the socialist party - Costa and Cipriyani. The political views of his father left an imprint on the worldview of his son so much that at the age of 17 he became a member of the Socialist Party.

The couple could not even think that their firstborn would become a cruel dictator, leader of the Fascist Party in Italy. The Mussolini regime will establish a terrible totalitarian regulation in the country and a time of repression in politics.

Education and service

The family did not have a surplus of money, however, Benito received an education, despite the difficulties. And it was not even about finances, but about the quick-tempered and unrestrained character of the son, which he inherited from his father. Because of the fights, he was expelled twice from the church school in Faenza (Faenza), where he studied from the age of 9. As soon as he entered school, he quarreled with older students and stabbed one of them with a knife. In 1895, he was transferred to another school, where he did not stop trying to assert his leadership in front of his comrades. His cruelty, anger and frequent fights have repeatedly been the reason for the communication between teachers and Benito's parents. There were also problems at the high school. But the mother went to the directors of educational institutions with tears so that her son could finish his studies. Somehow he defended his diploma as a primary school teacher.

In 1902, the young man was to be taken to the service and, on the advice of Alessandra Mussolini, he left for Geneva, Switzerland. There he tried to work as a bricklayer, but gave up this occupation and began to wander. A big plus for him was the ability to read and speak beautifully, he could explain himself a little in French. In Lausanne, the young man met the scientist Pareto and went to his speeches in the audience. And acquaintance with Angela Balabanova and Vladimir Ulyanov Lenin opened the young man to such political scientists as Marx, Sorel, Nietzsche. Sorel especially impressed Mussolini, his works on the overthrow of liberal democracy by violence without moral framework found a warm response in the heart of the young man.

Foreign policy

The problem that Mussolini solved, consisted in the revival. He organized the expansion of the armed forces into Ethiopia, the Mediterranean and Albania.

Civil War 1939-39 forced the dictator to support the nationalists, preventing the victory of the communists. General Francisco Franco Bahamonde was also supported by Adolf Hitler, who in 1936 began to move closer to Mussolini. 1939 was the year of the signing of the alliance between Germany and Italy, according to which the latter became a participant in the World War from June 10, 1940. The Italian military take part in the capture of France and attack the British colonies in Africa, after which they enter Greece.

Soon the anti-Hitler coalition launched an offensive on all fronts, Italy had to retreat, losing ground. In 1943, Britain entered.

Overthrow of the dictatorship

The people drawn into the war blamed their prime minister for everything. He remembered all the aggressive and illegal actions. As a result, the leader of the Nazis was arrested by his own comrades-in-arms and sent to the mountains into custody. The Germans kidnapped Mussolini and entered Italy. In April 1945, the dictator tried to leave his homeland, but was captured by partisans and shot, along with his mistress Clara Petacci (Clarice Petacci).

Family

Mussolini's first wife was Ida Dalzer in 1914, she gave birth to his first child, Benito Albino. The son and wife died in a mental hospital, the dictator tried not to let anyone know about them. Some time after the birth of his first son, in 1915, Mussolini formalizes his relationship with Rakele Gaudi, his mistress since 1910, who gave him 5 children. Throughout his life, he had many mistresses and fleeting relationships on the side.

• From the age of 4, the boy already read on his own, and from the age of 5 he played the violin.
• There were 6 assassination attempts on the dictator, none of which were successful.
• Duci was engaged in skiing, running, motor sports, swimming, often went to football.
• The parents of the first wife did not give consent to the marriage until Mussolini began to threaten them with a gun.
• Once, a shell that exploded in a trench killed six of Benito's fellow soldiers. He, too, was with them, but remained alive.

↘️🇮🇹 USEFUL ARTICLES AND SITES 🇮🇹↙️ SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS

105 years ago, on February 28, 1912, Clara Petacci, mistress of the Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, was born. In April 1945 lovers were taken prisoner by Italian partisans who decided to shoot Mussolini. They did not initially plan to kill Clara, but she herself went under the bullets, unlike the fascist "Duce", who held on to her dying minute rather pathetically.

On April 27, 1945, Duce was captured by partisans along with his mistress Clara Petacci. The next day, a small detachment led by "Colonel Valerio" (Walter Audisio) takes Mussolini and Clara Petacci from the hands of the partisans. And at 16:10 they were shot on the outskirts of the village of Mezzegra.

2

The dead bodies of the Duce and his mistress, as well as the bodies of six other fascist hierarchs, are transported to Milan, where they are hung by their feet from the ceilings of a gas station in Loreto Square. The face of the former dictator is disfigured beyond recognition. After that, the ropes were cut, and the bodies lay for some time in the gutter.

On May 1, Mussolini and Petacci were buried in Milan's Muzocco Cemetery (Simitero Maggiore), in an unmarked grave on a plot for the poor.

On Easter 1946, Mussolini's body was exhumed and stolen by three neo-fascists led by Domenico Leccisi. The body was found in August of that year, but remained unburied for 10 years due to a lack of political consensus. Currently, Mussolini rests in a family crypt in his hometown of Predappio.

3

Walter Audisio ("Colonel Valerio")

Walter Audisio on Mussolini's last hours:

The successes of the Allied forces at the end of the Second World War did not leave Mussolini the slightest chance to retain power. Duce fled. In April 1945, partisans captured him near the Italo-Swiss border, disguised as a German soldier. It was decided to execute Mussolini. The operation was commanded by "Colonel Valerio" - one of the leaders of the Italian Resistance movement Walter Audisio (1909-1973). His memoirs of Mussolini's last hours were not published until after Audisio's death.

"Colonel Valerio" detained Mussolini by deceit: he told him that he was sent to secretly release him and transport him to a safe place. Duce believed.

In the car that carried Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci, along with Audisio, there were a driver and two partisans - Guido and Pietro. Seeing a place suitable for execution, Audisio ordered the driver of the car to stop. Further "Colonel Valerio" describes as follows:

"... I went along the road, wanting to make sure that no one was going in our direction.

When I came back, Mussolini's expression changed, traces of fear were visible on it. Then Guido told me that he said to the Duce: "The raspberries are over."

And yet, after carefully looking at him, I was convinced that Mussolini had only a suspicion so far. I sent Commissioner Pietro and the driver in different directions about 50-60 meters from the road and ordered them to watch the surroundings. Then I forced Mussolini out of the car and stopped him between the wall and the goal post. He obeyed without the slightest protest. He still did not believe that he must die, did not yet realize what was happening. People like him are afraid of reality. They prefer to ignore it, until the last moment they have enough of their own self-created illusions.

Now he has again turned into a tired, insecure old man. His gait was heavy, walking, he slightly dragged his right leg. At the same time, it was striking that the lightning on one boot dispersed.

Then Petacci got out of the car, who, on her own initiative, hurriedly stood next to Mussolini, who obediently stopped at the indicated place with his back to the wall.

4

A minute passed, and I suddenly began to read the death sentence for the war criminal Mussolini Benito:

"By order of the Freedom Volunteers Corps, I am charged with the administration of popular justice." It seems to me that Mussolini did not even understand the meaning of these words: with bulging eyes full of horror, he looked at the machine gun aimed at him. Petacci wrapped her arms around him. And I said, "Step back if you don't want to die too." The woman immediately understood the meaning of this "too" and moved away from the convict. As for him, he did not utter a word: he did not remember the name of his son, mother, or wife. Not a cry escaped from his chest, nothing. He was trembling, blue with terror, and, stammering, muttered with his greasy lips: "But, but I... Signor Colonel, I... Signor Colonel."

Even to the woman who rushed about beside him, throwing glances at him full of extreme despair, he did not say a word. No, he begged in the most vile way for his overweight, trembling body. Only the mute thought about this body, which was supported by the wall.

I've said before that I checked my machine gun at the De Maria house. And on you - the trigger is pressed, but there are no shots. The machine jammed. I pulled the shutter, pulled the trigger again, but with the same result. Guido raised his pistol, took aim, but - here it is rock! - there was no shot. It seemed that Mussolini did not notice this. He didn't notice anymore.

I picked up the machine gun again, holding it by the barrel to use as a club, because, in spite of everything, I still expected at least some reaction from him. After all, any normal person would have tried to defend himself, but Mussolini was already insane. He continued to stutter and tremble, still motionless, with his mouth half open and his arms limp at his sides.

I loudly called the commissar of the 52nd brigade, who immediately ran up to me with his machine gun in his hands.

In the meantime, several minutes had already passed, which any condemned to death would use to try, however desperate, to escape, would at least try to resist. The one who considered himself a "lion" turned into a heap of trembling rags, incapable of the slightest movement.

In that short period of time that it took Pietro to bring me a machine gun, it seemed to me that I was one on one about Mussolini.

There was Guido, closely watching what was happening. There was Petacci, who stood next to "him", almost touching his elbow, but whom, however, I did not take into account. There were only two of us: me and him. In the air, filled with moisture, there was a tense silence, in which the rapid breathing of the condemned was clearly audible. Outside the gate, among the greenery of the garden, one could see the edge of the white house. And far in the depths - the mountains.

5

Family tomb

If Mussolini had been able to look and see, a strip of lake would have come into view. But he didn't look, he trembled. There was nothing human about him anymore. In this man, the only human traits were haughty arrogance and cold contempt for the weak and defeated, which appeared only in moments of triumph. Now there were no court leaders and marshals next to him. There was only fear on his face, an animal fear of the inevitable.

The misfire of the machine, of course, did not give Mussolini even a glimmer of hope, he already understood that he must die. And he plunged into this feeling, like a sea of ​​insensibility that protected him from pain. He did not even notice the presence of the one who was his woman.

I no longer felt any hatred, understanding only that I had to do justice for the thousands and thousands of dead, for the millions of hungry people who had been betrayed. Standing again in front of him with a machine gun in my hands, I fired five shots into this trembling body. War criminal Mussolini, head down on his chest, slowly slid down the wall.

Petacci, stunned and out of her mind, twitched strangely in his direction and fell prone to the ground, also killed.

Benito Mussolini died on April 28, 1945. He left this world 2 days before Hitler. At the time of his death, the leader of Italian fascism was 61 years old. This man lived a bright life and was familiar with almost all prominent political figures of the first half of the 20th century. They spoke very highly of him, since the Duce (leader) was distinguished by an extraordinary mind, purposefulness and had a strong will. But all these qualities did not help to avoid the well-deserved execution that members of the Italian Resistance performed on the debunked leader.

Brief biography of Mussolini

Benito Mussolini (1883-1945) - a prominent statesman and political figure in Italy. Born in the small village of Varano di Costa near the town of Predappio in northern Italy in the family of a blacksmith and a teacher. My father adhered to socialist views, and took an active position. He spoke at rallies and even went to jail. All this did not pass for Benito without a trace. In 1900 he joined the Italian Socialist Party, but in 1902 he left for Switzerland to avoid military service.

There he first tried himself as an orator, speaking to Italian emigrants. Soon he met Marxists and read the works of Nietzsche, Marx, Stirner, Sorel. He was particularly impressed by the French philosopher Sorel, who called for the overthrow of capitalism through violence.

In 1903, Mussolini was arrested by the Swiss police at the request of the Italians for evading military service. He was deported to Italy, where the young man volunteered for the Italian army. After serving for 2 years, he became a teacher in the elementary grades, as he graduated from the gymnasium at one time. In parallel with his work as a teacher, he was engaged in revolutionary activities and organized a strike of agricultural workers.

I had to leave work and move to the city of Trento, which at that time belonged to Austria-Hungary. It happened in 1909. And from that time on, the young man took up political journalistic activities. He was the editor of the newspaper The People, and a year later, after returning to Italy, he became the editor of the journal Class Struggle. In 1912, he headed the Vperyod newspaper of the Socialist Party and established himself as a bright and talented journalist.

With the outbreak of the First World War, Benito began to advocate for the entry of Italy into the war against Germany. This caused dissatisfaction among the socialists, and the future leader of the country was relieved of his post as editor-in-chief of the Vperyod newspaper. In August 1915, Italy entered the war against Germany and Austria-Hungary, and Mussolini was drafted into the army. He got into the elite infantry (bersaglieri) and proved himself a brave soldier. In February 1916, he was given the military rank of corporal, and a year later he was demobilized due to a leg injury.

A front-line soldier who returned from the war decisively broke with socialism, declaring that this doctrine had become obsolete. In March 1919, he created a new organization - the Italian Union of Wrestling. In November 1921, it was transformed into the National Fascist Party. After that, Benito proclaimed the "Third Way" of the Italian people. Under his leadership, armed fascist detachments (blackshirts) were created, and this new force began to successfully resist the communists, socialists, and anarchists.

At the end of October 1922, detachments of the Nazis moved in masses of many thousands to Rome (a campaign against Rome). This march scared King Victor Emmanuel III. He did not organize resistance to the Nazis, but held a meeting with Mussolini and appointed him Prime Minister of Italy. He created his own cabinet of ministers, and the country's parliament meekly approved it. Thus, in 1922, Benito Mussolini came to power and became the leader (Duce) of the Italian people.

By December 1925, the Duce's power had become absolute. The Blackshirts suppressed any resistance to the new regime, constitutional restrictions on power were eliminated, and the Duce was retrained from prime minister to head of government. He was no longer accountable to parliament, and only the king could remove him from office.

Italy became a one-party state, and all parties except the Fascist were banned. In accordance with this, the parliamentary elections were canceled, and instead of the parliament, the Big Fascist Council began to run everything. Duce formed a personal security service, which began a merciless fight against dissent.

While in power, Mussolini led the company for government control of business. By 1935, 70% of all Italian firms were under the full control of the state. Since 1938, strict price regulation began. The Duce himself in everyday life was completely unassuming. He was absolutely not worried about money and material wealth. The only thing he was interested in was power.

Two Fascist Dictators: Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler

In 1934, the Duce began to improve relations with Nazi Germany. The first meeting with Hitler took place on June 14, 1934 in Venice. And Benito first arrived in Germany in September 1937. The German fascists arranged a magnificent meeting for the Duce and amazed him with parades, mass rallies and military power. As a result, on May 22, 1939, Italy and Germany signed the Steel Pact, an agreement on defensive and offensive alliance.

After that, on September 27, 1940, the Tripartite Pact was signed between Italy, Germany and Japan. From that moment on, the Axis countries (the Nazi bloc or the Hitlerite coalition) appeared, which opposed the anti-Hitler coalition during the Second World War. Italy fought against France and Great Britain in Africa, the southern regions of France, in Belgium, Greece, and Yugoslavia. In June-July 1941, the Duce declared war on the USSR and the USA.

At first, military operations were successful for the Italians, but after the German attack on the USSR, the situation worsened, since the Germans could no longer fully help the Italians in their fight against the opposing coalition. Italian troops began to leave the previously occupied territories, unable to withstand the onslaught of the British and Americans. In May 1943, the Italo-German troops capitulated in Tunisia, and on July 10, the Anglo-Americans landed in Sicily.

The capture of Sicily prompted the leaders of the Fascist Party to think about removing Mussolini and ending the war. On July 24, 1943, the Great Fascist Council was assembled. At it, a decision was made on the resignation of the Duce and on the transfer of all power to the king. The next day, the leader, who had lost popularity, was arrested. A new government was formed in the country, and negotiations began with the Americans and the British. The arrest of Benito caused violent anti-fascist protests in the country, and on July 27 the fascist party was dissolved.

With the British and Americans, the new Italian government concluded a truce on September 3 and pledged to extradite the Duce. The deposed leader himself was kept under guard in the Apennine mountains at the Albergo Rifugio Hotel. The fate of a political criminal awaited him, but on September 12, 1943, a German airborne detachment under the command of Otto Skorzeny freed the dictator and brought him to Germany to Hitler.

The Fuhrer suggested that the Duce create a new state - the Italian Socialist Republic with its capital in the city of Salo. Mussolini agreed to take power back into his own hands, but now he has already become a puppet of Nazi Germany. So in the northern and central parts of Italy, occupied by the Germans, on September 23, 1943, a new state formation arose, completely controlled by Hitler.

However, times have changed. The forces of the Italian Resistance intensified, and the Anglo-American troops began to push the German invaders and the Italians supporting them. In the last ten days of April 1945, the remnants of the German troops capitulated, and the Italian Socialist Republic ceased to exist on April 25, 1945.

Benito Mussolini and Clara Petacci after being shot

Death of Benito Mussolini

The Italian dictator bet on Hitler and lost. And the logical ending was the death of Benito Mussolini. On the eve of the end, the Duce, together with his mistress Clara Petacci (1912-1945), arrived in Milan on April 17, 1945. Here he planned to resist the Anglo-Americans, and if not, then flee to Switzerland. But the plans for resistance were confused by the Germans. They decided to capitulate, and Mussolini had no choice but to flee Italy.

Together with Clara Petacci and several fascist associates, he went along Lake Como to the road that led to Switzerland. On the night of April 26-27, a small detachment of fugitives joined the column of German trucks. However, near a small village, a partisan detachment blocked the way for the column. A gunfight began, but quickly subsided. The partisans agreed to let the Germans through, but on condition that they betray the Italian fascists who were with them.

We must pay tribute to the German military. They gave Mussolini the uniform of a German non-commissioned officer and put him in the back of a truck. But the partisans began to carefully examine each truck and the people sitting in it. One of the Garibaldians recognized the dictator and was immediately arrested. The Germans did not protest and hurriedly left, and the Duce, along with his mistress and associates, was captured.

The detained group was taken to the village of Giulino di Mezegra, placed in a peasant house and placed under heavy guard. However, the news of the arrest of the Duce very quickly reached the allied forces, and they began to demand the transfer of the dictator to them. The Italian communists opposed this and decided to urgently put Benito Mussolini to death.

Executed Benito Mussolini and Clara Petacci were hanged upside down in Milan (Mussolini is third from the left and Clara Petacci is fourth from the left)

On the same day, April 28, 1945, a prominent figure in the Italian anti-fascist resistance, Lieutenant Colonel Valerio (Walter Audisio), left for the village. His people took the Duce out of the peasant house, and Clara Petacci followed, not wanting to part with her beloved man. The couple was taken to Villa Belmonte and placed against the fence. Valerio asked Petacci to step aside, but she clung to Mussolini with a stranglehold and shielded him with her body.

The lieutenant colonel once again asked the woman, distraught with love, to move away. But she didn't want to listen to anyone. What was left for the Italian communists to do, a volley rang out, and two dead bodies fell to the ground. Both corpses were taken to Milan and hung upside down near Piazza Loreto at a gas station. The bodies of several more prominent fascists were hung nearby. A few hours later, the ropes were cut and the bodies fell into the gutter. There they lay until May 1, and then were interred in the Milan cemetery of Cimitero Maggiore. Moreover, the site where the vagrants were buried was chosen for burial.

The grave of Benito Mussolini in the family crypt

However, the shameful death of Benito Mussolini did not leave the Nazis indifferent. In March 1946, they dug up the Duce's body from the grave and stole it. The mortal remains were searched for quite a long time and were found only in August of the same year. After that, they lay for 10 years in the monastery of Certosa de Pavia (a suburb of Milan) in an old large chest and were not interred. Finally, it was decided to bury the former dictator in the family crypt of the Mussolini family in the city of Predappio. His grave was surrounded by marble faces and a bust was erected, thus rendering a posthumous honor to the former Duce.

Benito Mussolini (1883-1943) - Italian politician, publicist, dictator, leader of the Fascist Party and Prime Minister of Italy.

The future Duce, who terrified half of Europe, was born in the small Italian village of Varano di Costa in the family of a blacksmith and carpenter by profession, an illiterate Alessandro Mussolini and a rural primary school teacher Rosa Maltoni. The boy's mother was a zealous Catholic, and his father was a staunch social anarchist, so Benito remained unbaptized, unlike most of his peers.

Alessandro was distinguished by a quick-tempered and stubborn disposition, as well as considerable enthusiasm for politics, therefore it is not surprising that the guy adopted the love of socialist views at an early age. In addition to the desire to change the world for the better by the methods of socialism (in particular, Mussolini Sr. showed special respect for the ideas of Bakunin), the father passed on his obstinate temper and explosive temperament to his son. From his mother, the boy inherited a love of science and a lively mind, which later helped him become a brilliant publicist and orator, enticing the masses of people.

Benito Mussolini was an ambiguous personality, and it is not known who this unbalanced but talented boy could grow up to under other life circumstances. At the age of four, Benito already read freely, and a year later he learned to play the violin. In 1892, the future leader and progenitor of Italian fascism was assigned to a church school in Faenza.

The first year of study was marked by a terrible scandal: little Benito, who did not tolerate ridicule of himself and his small stature (in adulthood, Mussolini's height was only 169 centimeters), stabbed a classmate older than himself. The scandal was hushed up thanks to the tears of his mother and the patronage of the local bishop, but after three years Benito was transferred from a Catholic school with strict discipline to a more loyal gymnasium.

In 1900, not yet graduating from high school, Mussolini joined the Socialist Party of Italy, opening a new page in his biography. At the same time, Benito began to collaborate with socialist newspapers, publishing sharp political articles with flashy headlines.

Politics

After graduating from high school in 1901, Benito Mussolini headed the committee of workers in the village of Pieve Saliceto, where he taught basic subjects in the elementary grades of the village school. According to political views, the young teacher was an opponent of military operations and decided to avoid compulsory military service, having moved to Geneva in 1902.

In Switzerland, the future dictator tried his hand as a public speaker for the first time, speaking to the locals in French, and to his compatriot emigrants in Italian. In Lausanne, Mussolini attended lectures by Professor Pareto, a socialist and economist, and was imbued with his ideas, met Russian Marxists and Balabanova.

With the filing of Angelica Balabanova, young Benito became interested in the works of Sorel, and other philosophers, economists and political scientists. From that moment on, he was set on fire with the ambitious idea of ​​transforming modern Italy through the violent overthrow of capitalism, becoming a staunch Marxist socialist.

In 1903, Mussolini was arrested by the Swiss authorities, and a year later he was deported to his homeland for military service. After serving, the future dictator returned to teaching at the college, where he proved himself to be a talented teacher.

Simultaneously with teaching, the young professor had time to engage in politics, collaborating with the socialist publication La Lima as an editor. Mussolini continued to write and publish sharp political texts, criticizing the government of the Italian kingdom and the Vatican. In 1907, the "supporter of the proletariat" received the nickname "Piccolo Duce" (which translates as "little leader"). Duce with a capital Mussolini became a little later.

In 1908, Benito's incendiary speech made him the main organizer of the workers' strike, and the Duce went to prison for threatening the director of one of the leading companies. Then there was another conclusion and a move to Austria-Hungary, where Mussolini again took up his beloved journalism, writing and propaganda.

At the outbreak of the First World War, Benito Mussolini broke off relations with his former comrades from the Socialist Party and became a staunch supporter of the dictatorship, but not of the proletariat, but of a strong government united by the will of the leader. Mussolini wanted to become this leader, obsessed with the idea of ​​​​reviving the Roman Empire in all its glory.

To abandon the ideas of socialism, he was prompted by life experience and disappointment in the effectiveness of mass protests against the existing regime. Benito advocated participation in the Italian war on the side of France and the Entente, and in 1915 he went to the front. In the war, the Duce showed miracles of courage, was awarded the rank of corporal and the respect of his colleagues, had typhus and received a severe leg injury from an exploding mine.

In 1917, having returned to his homeland, Benito Mussolini continued his social and political activities, declaring in his articles and speeches that socialism, as a political doctrine, had completely outlived itself. The time has come to move on to more radical measures to transform society and power structures.

Fascism

In 1919, Mussolini formed a new party, the Italian Union of Wrestling. In the native language, the first word of the name Fasci italiani combattimento sounded like "fascis" and subsequently gave the name to the ideology of fascism. In the 1921 elections, 35 candidates from Mussolini's party entered the Italian parliament, and soon the "Union of Struggle" was renamed the "National Fascist Party".

The people, like its elected deputies, initially supported their favorite Mussolini, who was considered a symbol of the fight against injustice, against power, a war hero and a skilled orator who knew how to infect the masses with his enthusiasm. In 1921, Benito Mussolini himself was elected to parliament, and more and more Italians joined the ranks of the Fascist Party.

The Nazis managed to be both revolutionaries and supporters of strong power. The streets of Italian cities began to patrol the blackshirt detachments created by Mussolini's ally, consisting of war veterans. They "kept order", engaging in fights with anarchists and socialists, and the police preferred to stay on the sidelines.

Benito Mussolini and the Blackshirts during the March on Rome in 1922

In 1922, Mussolini, at the head of the fascist party and ordinary Italians who joined them, undertook the famous campaign against Rome in order to overthrow the current king Victor Emmanuel. The king could suppress the uprising with the help of government troops, but did not resort to forceful methods, fearing that a civil war would break out in the country or a revolution would break out.

The king met with the leader of the rebels and concluded an agreement with him, as a result of which Mussolini became Prime Minister of Italy, and soon its dictator. The king remained out of work, but retained his life and formal title. Six months later, in April 1923, the Duce met in the Vatican with Cardinal Gasparri. Mussolini promised to expel all communists, atheists and masons from the country, and fascism in Italy enlisted the support of the church.

Dictatorship

In 1923, the Fascist Party won the majority of votes in Parliament as a result of some falsifications. These machinations were made public by the socialist Giacomo Matteotti, for which he was kidnapped and killed by order of Mussolini. This assassination opened the eyes of many to the essence of the fascist regime, but at that moment there were no strong leaders in the country who could make a coup and overthrow the prime minister and his government.

Procrastination and gullibility cost the Italian people dearly: during the Duce's reign, from 1927 to 1943, more than 21,000 people were arrested on political charges. Mussolini created a real totalitarian police state in which there was only one ruling party, the principles of racism and the superiority of Italians over the "lower" peoples were confessed: blacks, Arabs, Slavs, Jews.

Even before the outbreak of World War II, Mussolini's troops captured Albania, Ethiopia and entered Greece, following the leader's idea of ​​restoring the Roman Empire. Unfavorable circumstances at the front soon forced the dictator to enter into a coalition with, although Benito had his own scores with the German fascist. Mussolini for a long time could not forgive Hitler for the murder of a friend, the Austrian dictator Engelbert Dollfuss.

In 1937, Mussolini visited Nazi Germany and was delighted with the military power, German discipline and mob power that Hitler wielded. From that moment on, Italian and German fascism went hand in hand, but World War II ended in failure for both dictatorships.

Personal life

Mussolini first married in 1914 to Ida Dalser. The wife gave birth to the dictator's son, but a year later he left her and legalized relations with his longtime mistress Rakele Guidi. The couple had five children: two daughters and three sons. It is noteworthy that after coming to power, Benito hid the fact of his first marriage and subjected his ex-wife and son to severe repression.

Despite the official marriage, Mussolini did not disdain connections on the side, he especially liked young girls. All this did not prevent him from seducing the Italian aristocrat Clara Petacci, who loved the Duce to unconsciousness and accepted death with him from the bullets of Italian anti-fascists.

Death

In 1943, British troops entered Italy, and the Duce was arrested. On the orders of Hitler, Mussolini was kidnapped by SS paratroopers, and the former dictator lived out his last days in northern Italy, being the head of a puppet state controlled by the Germans.

Mussolini organized the Italian Socialist Republic on the territory subject to him, which he ruled for almost two years, but the ring of anti-fascist forces around it inexorably narrowed. In April 1945, the Duce, with his mistress Clara Petacci, attempted to escape to neighboring Switzerland, but he was detained by partisans.

The former dictator has been identified. The execution followed at dawn the next day, Mussolini and his girlfriend were shot on the outskirts of the village of Metsegra. The shameful death of Benito Mussolini is evidenced by photos that have become history: the bodies of the Duce, Clara Petacci and six other supreme fascists were hung by their feet the next day from a gas station counter in Milan on Piazzale Loreto. The people in every possible way expressed their hatred and contempt for the former idol, whose words once inspired millions of Italians.

Bibliography

• the anti-clerical novel The Cardinal's Mistress;
• an essay on "The Doctrine of Fascism";
• autobiography "My life";

The last two books have been translated in our country and published under the title The Third Way. Without democrats and communists.”

In the small Italian village of Dovia, on July 29, 1883, the first-born was born in the family of the local blacksmith Alessandro Mussolini and the school teacher Rosa Maltoni. He was given the name Benito. Years will pass, and this swarthy boy will become a ruthless dictator, one of the founders of the Fascist Party of Italy, which plunged the country into the most cruel period of a totalitarian regime and

Youth of the future dictator

Alessandro was a conscientious hard worker, and his family had some wealth, which allowed the young Mussolini Benito to be placed in a Catholic school in the city of Faenza. Having received a secondary education, he took up teaching in primary classes, but such a life weighed on him, and in 1902 the young teacher left for Switzerland. At that time, Geneva was overflowing with political exiles, among whom Benito Mussolini constantly revolves. The books of K. Kautsky, P. Kropotkin, K. Marx and F. Engels have a bewitching effect on his consciousness.

But the most impressive is the work of Nietzsche and his concept of the "superman". Having fallen on fertile ground, it resulted in the conviction that it was he - Benito Mussolini - who was destined to fulfill this great destiny. The theory, according to which the people were reduced to the level of a pedestal to elected leaders, was accepted by him without hesitation. The interpretation of war as the highest manifestation of the human spirit did not raise doubts either. Thus was laid the ideological foundation of the future leader of the fascist party.

Return to Italy

Soon the rebel socialist is expelled from Switzerland, and he again finds himself in his homeland. Here he becomes a member of the Socialist Party of Italy and with great success tries his hand at journalism. The small newspaper he publishes, The Class Struggle, publishes mostly his own articles in which he ardently criticizes the institutions of bourgeois society. Among the broad masses, this position of the author meets with approval, and in a short time the circulation of the newspaper doubles. In 1910, Mussolini Benito was elected a deputy of the next congress of the Socialist Party, held in Milan.

It was during this period that Mussolini began to add the prefix "Duce" - leader - to the name. This is extremely flattering to his ego. Two years later, he was assigned to head the central press organ of the socialists, the newspaper Avanti! ("Forward!"). It was a huge career leap. Now he had the opportunity to refer in his articles to all the multi-million dollar And Mussolini brilliantly coped with this. Here his talent as a journalist was fully revealed. Suffice it to say that within a year and a half he managed to increase the circulation of the newspaper five times. She became the most read in the country.

Departure from the socialist camp

His break with former like-minded people soon followed. Since that time, the young Duce has headed the newspaper The People of Italy, which, despite its name, reflects the interests of the big bourgeoisie and the industrial oligarchy. In the same year, the illegitimate son of Benito Mussolini, Benito Albino, was born. He is destined to end his days in a mental hospital, where his mother, the civil wife of the future dictator Ida Dalzer, will also die. After some time, Mussolini marries Rachele Gaudi, with whom he will have five children.

In 1915, Italy, which had remained neutral until that time, entered the war. Mussolini Benito, like many of his fellow citizens, ended up at the front. In February 1917, after serving for seventeen months, the Duce was commissioned for injury and returned to his previous activities. Two months later, the unexpected happened: Italy suffered a crushing defeat from the Austrian troops.

Birth of the Fascist Party

But the national tragedy, which cost hundreds of thousands of lives, served as an impetus for Mussolini on the path to power. From the recent front-line soldiers, people embittered and exhausted by the war, he creates an organization called the "Combat Union". In Italian it sounds "fascio de combattimento". This very "fascio" gave the name to one of the most inhuman movements - fascism.

The first major meeting of the members of the union took place on March 23, 1919. About a hundred people took part in it. For five days there were speeches about the need to revive the former greatness of Italy and numerous demands for the establishment of civil liberties in the country. The members of this new organization, who called themselves fascists, appealed in their speeches to all Italians who were aware of the need for radical changes in the life of the state.

Fascists in power in the country

Such appeals were successful, and soon the Duce was elected to parliament, where thirty-five mandates belonged to the Nazis. Their party was officially registered in November 1921, and Mussolini Benito became its leader. More and more members join the ranks of the Nazis. In October 1927, columns of his adherents make the famous march of many thousands on Rome, as a result of which the Duce becomes prime minister and shares power only with King Victor Emmanuel III. The Cabinet of Ministers is formed exclusively from members of the Fascist Party. Skillfully manipulating, Mussolini managed to enlist the support of the Pope in his actions, and in 1929 the Vatican became an independent state.

Fight against dissent

Benito Mussolini's fascism continued to grow stronger against the backdrop of widespread political repression, an integral feature of all totalitarian regimes. A "Special State Security Tribunal" was created, whose competence included the suppression of any manifestations of dissent. During its existence, from 1927 to 1943, it examined more than 21,000 cases.

Despite the fact that the monarch remained on the throne, all power was concentrated in the hands of the Duce. He simultaneously headed seven ministries, was the prime minister, head of the party and a number of law enforcement agencies. He managed to eliminate almost all constitutional restrictions on his power. A regime was established in Italy. To top it off, a decree was issued banning all other political parties in the country and abolishing direct parliamentary elections.

political propaganda

Like every dictator, Mussolini attached great importance to the organization of propaganda. In this direction, he achieved significant success, since he himself worked for a long time in the press and was fluent in the methods of influencing the consciousness of the masses. The propaganda campaign launched by him and his supporters took on the widest scale. Portraits of the Duce filled the pages of newspapers and magazines, watched from posters and advertising brochures, decorated boxes of chocolates and medicine packages. All of Italy was filled with images of Benito Mussolini. Quotations from his speeches were replicated in huge quantities.

Social programs and the fight against the mafia

But as a smart and far-sighted person, the Duce understood that propaganda alone could not earn lasting authority among the people. In this regard, he developed and implemented an extensive program to boost the country's economy and improve the living standards of Italians. First of all, measures were taken to combat unemployment, which made it possible to effectively increase the employment of the population. As part of his program, more than five thousand farms and five agricultural cities were built in a short time. For this purpose, the Pontic marshes were drained, the vast territory of which for centuries was only a breeding ground for malaria.

Thanks to the reclamation program carried out under the leadership of Mussolini, the country received an additional almost eight million hectares of arable land. Seventy-eight thousand peasants from the poorest regions of the country received fertile plots on them. During the first eight years of his reign, the number of hospitals in Italy quadrupled. Thanks to his social policy, Mussolini gained deep respect not only in his country, but also among the leaders of the leading states of the world. During his reign, the Duce managed to do the impossible - he practically destroyed the famous Sicilian mafia.

Military ties with Germany and entry into the war

In foreign policy, Mussolini hatched plans for the revival of the Great Roman Empire. In practice, this resulted in the armed seizure of Ethiopia, Albania and a number of Mediterranean territories. During the Duce sent significant forces to support General Franco. It was during this period that a fatal rapprochement began for him with Hitler, who also supported the Spanish nationalists. Finally, their union was established in 1937 during Mussolini's visit to Germany.

In 1939, an agreement was signed between Germany and Italy on the conclusion of a defensive-offensive alliance, as a result of which, on June 10, 1940, Italy enters the World War. Mussolini's troops take part in the capture of France and attack the British colonies in East Africa, and in October they invade Greece. But soon the successes of the first days of the war were replaced by the bitterness of defeat. The troops of the anti-Hitler coalition stepped up their operations in all directions, and the Italians retreated, losing the territories they had previously captured and suffering heavy losses. To top it off, on July 10, 1943, British units captured Sicily.

The collapse of the dictator

The former enthusiasm of the masses was replaced by general discontent. The dictator was accused of political myopia, as a result of which the country was drawn into the war. They also remembered the usurpation of power, the suppression of dissent, and all the miscalculations in foreign and domestic policy that Benito Mussolini made before. The Duce was removed from all his posts by his own associates and arrested. Before the trial, he was kept in custody in one of the mountain hotels, but from it he was kidnapped by German paratroopers under the command of the famous Otto Skorzeny. Germany soon occupied Italy.

Fate gave the former Duce the opportunity to head the puppet government of the republic created by Hitler for some time. But the end was near. At the end of April 1945, the former dictator and his mistress were captured by partisans while trying to illegally leave Italy with a group of his associates.

The execution of Benito Mussolini and his girlfriend followed on 28 April. They were shot on the outskirts of the village of Mezzegra. Later, their bodies were taken to Milan and hung by their feet in the town square. So ended his days Benito who in some ways, of course, is unique, but in general is typical of most dictators.