Why did Mussolini establish a dictatorship in 1925?
Mussolini had several reasons for establishing a dictatorship. Even though he was Prime Minster, he still did not have complete control and his position was insecure due to pressure on him from outside and inside the party.
There were long-term reasons to which Mussolini needed to establish a dictatorship. Firstly, there was the RAS. They had independent power and were completely out of control. Often they would set out to destroy opposition groups and set up power for themselves. Mussolini needed the Ras as they were invaluable in keeping him in power. Also, they could easily overthrow him and so he needed to appease them and control them. They too needed Mussolini as a way of representing themselves in the system. The RAS forced Mussolini to establish his dictatorship as they caused many problems and a dictatorship would allow them to be put under control. Mussolini however tried to regain control by establishing the Fascist Militia however this caused more problems as the army didn’t like the militia and saw them as potential rivals. The Ras were also pressuring Mussolini to proceed with a full fascist takeover and so by establishing a dictatorship he would be able to appease the pressure from within his party.