Rise of Mussolini (1918–1924)

List rise of Mussolini

• Post war disillusionment

• Economic and social crisis

• Political instability

• Fascist violence

• March on Rome

• Legal path to power

• Electoral breakthrough and repression

• Matteotti Crisis

Describe post war disillusionment

• Italy emerged from WWI with

  • 650,000 dead

  • 1.3 million wounded

  • crippling 93 billion lire debt.

• The Versailles settlement gave Trentino-Alto Adige and South Tyrol but denied Dalmatian coast and Fiume

  • branded a “Mutilated Victory,”

  • fuelling nationalist resentment.

Describe economic and social crisis

• Inflation soared

• unemployment reached 2 million by 1921

• industrial unrest peaked with 1.5 million workers on strike in 1919.

• In the countryside, the Biennio Rosso (1919–20) saw socialist land seizures and occupations

  • alarming landowners and conservatives.

Describe political instability

• The introduction of proportional representation (1919)

  • enabled the PSI (32%) and Catholic PPI to rise

  • fragmenting parliament.

• Liberal governments under Nitti and Giolitti were weak

  • reliant on shifting coalitions

  • unable to contain unrest.

Describe fascist violence

• Mussolini’s Fasci di Combattimento (1919) initially polled just 2%, but gained support as rural elites funded the squadristi (Blackshirts) to smash socialist unions and peasant leagues.

• Violence became a central tool of fascist appeal.

Describe the March on Rome

March on Rome (Oct 1922):

• Around 30,000 Blackshirts converged on the capital.

• King Victor Emmanuel III refused to deploy the army

  • inviting Mussolini to form a government on 30 Oct 1922.

Describe legal path to power

• Despite holding only 35 of 535 deputies, Mussolini entered a coalition with conservatives.

• He reassured elites of moderation while keeping the implicit threat of violence in reserve.

Describe electoral breakthrough and repression

• The Acerbo Law (1923) guaranteed two-thirds of seats to any party with 25%+ of the vote.

• In 1924, the Fascists secured 65%, aided by fraud and intimidation.

Describe Matteotti Crisis

Matteotti Crisis (1924):

• The murder of socialist leader Giacomo Matteotti after he exposed electoral violence nearly toppled Mussolini.

• By Jan 1925, Mussolini openly declared a dictatorship

  • marking Italy’s transition to authoritarian rule.

Evaluate Mussolini’s rise to power

Mussolini’s rise was the product of postwar disillusionment, elite fears, and liberal weakness.

Violence and legality combined in a dual strategy: squadristi terror undermined socialism, while parliamentary manoeuvres reassured elites.

The Matteotti Crisis revealed both regime fragility and Mussolini’s boldness, cementing fascist dictatorship by 1925.