Compare and contrast Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany as totalitarian states. (1996)

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Compare and contrast Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany as totalitarian states. (1996)

A totalitarian state refers to a country in which the central government exercises total control over all aspects of people's life. Main features include an infallible leader, one-party rule, strict party discipline, elitism, planned economy, an official doctrine, absolute obedience of individuals to the State, nationalism and usually an expansionist foreign policy. Up to these criteria, both Fascist Italy (1922-43) and Nazi Germany (1933-45) could be deemed totalitarian states to a large extent.

Chaotic situation, irrationality and national humiliation often lead to totalitarianism. Both the Fascist and Nazi regimes owed their rise to the people's disillusionment with the Paris Peace Settlement and postwar difficulties. Though being a victorious power in World War One, Italy could not get all she wanted on the Paris Peace Conference. Especially Fiume was given to Yugoslavia, Italy's rival in Adriatic. As the major defeated power, Germany was punished heavily by the Treaty of Versailles. She was to pay a huge indemnity, cede traditional territories, lose all overseas possessions, accept almost total disarmament and the "war-guilt" clause, etc. Both Italy and Germany had unsuccessful democratic experiment. The coalition party governments