Describe the motives and methods which lead to Mussolini's appointment as Prime minister in October 1922
Describe the motives and methods which lead to Mussolini’s appointment as Prime minister in October 1922
In October 1922, Benito Mussolini was on the verge of become the prime minister of Italy. In this essay I will examine and describe the motives and methods, he used to take the reins of a country near political breaking point. There were five main groups involved with the appointment, some for Mussolini being in power, others against. There were a range of motives and methods, and involved were the ras, Mussolini, the King, the Liberals, and the elite.
Firstly I will examine Mussolini’s motives and methods to gain control.
Mussolini was born in Predappio, near Forli, in Romagna, on July 29, 1883. His father, Alessandro, was a blacksmith, and his mother, Rosa, was a schoolteacher. Like his father, Benito became a fervent socialist. When World War I broke out in 1914, Mussolini agreed with the other Socialists that Italy should not join it. Only a class war was acceptable to him, and he threatened to lead a proletarian revolution if the government decided to fight. But several months later he unexpectedly changed his position on the war, leaving the Socialist party and his editorial chair. These were the first signs of motives inside Mussolini. When World War I broke out in 1914, Mussolini agreed with the other Socialists that Italy should not join it. Only a class war was acceptable to him, and he threatened to lead a proletarian revolution if the government decided to fight. But several months later he unexpectedly changed his position on the war, leaving the Socialist party and his editorial chair. Fascism became an organized political movement in March 1919 when Mussolini founded the Fasci de Combatimento. After failing in the 1919 elections, Mussolini at last entered parliament in 1921 as a right-wing member. The Fascisti formed armed squads to terrorize Mussolini's former Socialist colleagues. The government seldom interfered. In return for the support of a group of industrialists and agrarians, Mussolini gave his approval to strikebreaking, and he abandoned revolutionary agitation. When the liberal governments of Giolitti, and Facta failed to stop the spread of anarchy, Mussolini was invited by the king in October 1922 to form a government. So the methods used by Mussolini weren’t as evident by himself, as compared to the methods of the RAS. However Mussolini’s motives were definitely a deciding factor on his appointment as prime minister.