how successfully did Mussolini deal with Domestic and Foreign Policies?

Introduction

°       In October 1922, Mussolini came into power and set to work creating a totalitarian state where he was the sole leader (‘Il Duce’).

°       The Acerbo Law (1923) allowed the biggest party in government to take 2/3 of the seats in parliament.

°       This allowed fascists to hold a majority through terror and violence by eliminating opposition using the OVRA.

°       A law allowing Mussolini to Rule by Decree was passed in 1926 to allow him to consolidate his power and take control of domestic and foreign policies.

P1. The Corporate State

°       This idea was the main economic aim of Mussolini to revive the economy. In 1926 living standards were poor and unemployment was high.

°       Corporations were set up to manage different areas of the economy (steel, agricultural, teachers etc.) and trade unions were eliminated.

°       3 members were in each corporation (1 employee, 1 employer, and 1 fascist party member (arbitrator)).

°       The system was very corrupt and often sided with the employers. Working class animosity and discontent rose and it was a failure.

P2. Battle for Grain

°       Fascism promoted self-sufficiency (an autarky) in providing its own food, the Battle for Grain was initiated in 1925 and heavy tariffs were placed on imported cereals/ grains.

°       The climate (especially in the South) wasn’t suited to growing large, industrialised quantities of grain.

°       Output increased but valuable land was wasted (it could have been used for citrus fruits).

°       Mussolini didn’t listen to his advisors and continued with the failure of the scheme.

P3. Battle for Land Reclamation

°       During the late 1920’s this scheme donated large amounts of money to drainage, irrigation, and afforestation, because of this Rome’s Pontine Marshes were drained to cater for the 750,000 poor families in Southern Italy.

°       Mussolini stressed that Italy was a nation “hungry for land”.

°       Other public works included the building of hospitals, motorways (the autostrade) and electric railways. Schemes were also set up to restore historical monuments.

°       This lowered unemployment to 100,000 and it was a huge success.

P4. Battle for Lire

°       In 1926 Mussolini re-valued the lire (the Italian currency).

°       This coupled with the Great Depression saw mass inflation problems in 1932.

°       This was a huge failure and saw unemployment rise to 1 million.

P5. Battle for Births

°       In 1927 Mussolini declared the population should rise to 60 million by 1950.

°       Bachelors were taxed and firms were told to discriminate in favour of family men.

°       The birth rate continued to decline so it was a failure.

P6. The Catholic Church

°       The Church saw fascism as a defence against communism and approved the Battle for Births.

°       The Lateran Treaty (1929) resolved a 59-year rift between the Church and State.

°       It created the Vatican City, Catholicism became the state religion, 750 million lire were given to the Vatican for lands lost and the Vatican recognised the authority of Mussolini.

°       He healed the rift between the Church and state and became even more popular among the people, it is considered Mussolini’s only success.

P7. Corfu and Fiume

°       In 1923 Corfu was occupied after Greece refused to apologise and pay 50 million to Italy after 4 diplomats were killed.

°       The League of Nations demanded Mussolini withdraw. The occupation cost 80 million but Mussolini saw it as a victory for fascism.

°       Later Mussolini sent troops to Fiume (a city bordering Yugoslavia) that had been promised to Italy after WW1 and it became an Italian city in 1924.

°       It was a considerable victory for Italy and the Italian people were instilled with faith in their previously thought hopeless country.

P8. The Invasion of Abyssinia

°       Abyssinia (Ethiopia) was located between the Italian colonies Somaliland and Eritrea and Mussolini wanted revenge for the Italian defeat in 1896.

°       The Abyssinian army was primitive, and the Italians had 40,000 troops with tanks and planes, but the fascists still struggled and needed to resort to poisonous gas to defeat the Abyssinians.

°       The League of Nations condemned this and imposed economic sanctions on Italy who withdrew in 1937.

°       Italy’s international reputation was damaged but gained Hitler’s support.

P9. Foreign Treaties

°       In 1925 the Locarno Pact guaranteed peace in Western Europe (it was signed by Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, and the UK).

°       In 1928 the Kellogg-Briand Pact was an agreement attempting to eliminate war as an instrument of national policy.

°       In 1934 the Stresa Front was formed with France, Britain, and Italy against Germany; however, this fell apart after the invasion of Abyssinia.

°       He portrayed himself as a peacemaker in the Munich Conference of 1938 over the fate of the Sudetenland.

°       In 1936 the Rome-Berlin Axis with Germany allied the two countries and turned into a military alliance (the Pact of Steel) ensuring Italy would help Germany.

°       In 1937 the Anti-Cominterm Pact with Japan, Germany, and Italy promised to fight against communism. 

°       His treaties were popular domestically and turned out to be successful foreign ventures.

Conclusion

°       Mussolini failed in foreign policy during WW2 which blemished his foreign achievements.

°       He lost Abyssinia and was crushed on the battlefield; no amount of propaganda was able to cover up these failings.

°       His domestic policy completely failed leading to him being overthrown in 1943.

°       While he made some minor achievements his regime was a resounding failure.