In contrast, King Emmanuel was clearly a weak figure, and it was thanks to this that the Fascists managed to get into the government. The king relied in his ministers to govern the country. Lyttleton described his role in the March on Rome “The only man who could do anything was convinced of his impotence.” He feared that the fascist would try a complete revolution and displace him, so instead of using the force against them, he decided to invite Mussolini to form his own government, believing that he could be used. Mussolini used his position to make the Fascist rise into power and control the government.
Mussolini used his “journalistic skills and tricks” (Stephen Lee) to manipulate information and create enough propaganda to win support from the different social groups. The propaganda specially contained anti-communist messages, being the left-wing his mayor enemy. Mussolini emphasized the need of nationalistic revival and created a “sense of power among his followers” (Stephen Lee). For example, he included a war-cry into the party. It was because all this popularity that the King feared to act against him, specially remembering that his mother and brother were Fascist supporters.
In contrast, Liberal Italy was a fragmented society where the government was completely detached from the people. No propaganda was attempted to increase popularity. They just sat down and tried to solve their problems in a table, creating the “classic recipe for social crisis.” Marshal Diaz reported to have said: “Your majesty, the army will do its duty; however, it would be well not to put it to the test.”
“Only maniacs never change. New facts call for new positions” Mussolini was an intuitive person, projecting himself as a flexible pragmatist, which added to his opportunism, aided him to get the help he needed from the various political and social groups. Being a socialist before the war, he discovered that it lacked support in Italy and that he would never get to power. There was too much opposition. So he changed into a pro capitalist, anti-communist supporter. This change brought him more support and acceptance. He also changed from extremist to moderate, depending on the needs. While the "ras" were asking for a complete Fascist revolution, he decided to take a more moderate stance and accept the king’s proposal for him to become the head of the government. He knew which position to take and when to take it, having no real ideology but gaining and maintaining power.
Furthermore, Fascism also adopted some left wing policies in order to gain the support of the groups who had once sympathized with the socialists and communists. Mussolini wanted support from all classes, and was prepared to compromise and keep away from the extremes if needed in order to do this.
On the other hand, the conservative leaders from the liberal parties where corrupted and narrow minded, each fighting for their own ideology, without having a “consistent policy”. It was this indecision and rivalry between the members of the liberal parties that made the parliamentary system fail, making people look for a change, someone who would act differently from the old politicians. Many socialists were gaining power in the parliament: “156 for the socialists” compared to the 91 of the liberal center, and they “refused to enter into government coalitions” (Robert Thurlow), wanting their own revolutionary government. Even the Church and the Italian state were in dispute because “the Vatican refused to recognize” them. It was important dew to the fact that they had 100 seats in the parliament.
In addition, Liberal Italy had ended World War 1 with serious economical problems, like “rapid increase in inflation and unemployment.” (Richard Thurlow) Following the war, the coalition governments were still too weak to make any drastic change in the economy, having problems even arriving to a simple decision. The cost of living increased five times and people were starting to look for alternatives. Many were finding answers in the left, something which created a sense of urgency in the upper classes, who were afraid of this.
Mussolini became a strong anti-communist, something which brought him the support of the businessmen and the land owners, who feared a communist revolution like the one in Russia. They saw in Mussolini a person they could use to eradicate the communist threat. This became specially needed when a wave of strikes broke between 1919 and 1920. Also, there were many smallholders and middle class men who were afraid of the communist ideology, thus supporting Mussolini, who proposed a strong campaign against it.
Furthermore, Mussolini never hesitated in using violence and with the help of his squads, attacked socialists and communists every time they could, and as Roderick Gordon said: “the squads were useful to Mussolini in intimidating opposition”. His harshness and his anti-communist views won him the support of the property owners, businessmen and the Church, who had “fear of a revolution”.
On the other hand, the government “turned a blind eye” (Richard Thurlow) to the left wing upheavals in Milan and Turin. By doing nothing, they left space for the Fascists to act. The government had decided to make a “social appeasement” (Richard Thurlow), thinking that intervention would create more public unrest. This position taken by the government “encouraged the disaffected middle class to turn to the squadristi for adequate protection.” What they really did was give the opportunity to the Fascist to prove themselves more valuable than the government in charge, thus forcing King Emmanuel to invite Mussolini to form his Government.
In conclusion, after analyzing Mussolini’s personality and the failures of Liberal Italy, a sensible consensus can be established between both of the factors. It is clear that the failures of Liberal Italy created a scenario full of social, economical and political problems. But it is also clear that not anyone would have managed to gain power and put the Fascists into the government. The fascists needed both to accomplish their rise to power. Both factors complement each other. They needed the unstable scenario left by Liberal Italy and also needed someone who had the right personality to grab power.
