Summary notes exploring Mussolini's journey from PM to dictator. Features the methods he used to increase his power and the troubles he faced by doing so...
Mussolini: from prime minister to dictator 1922-8
Mussolini’s increasing power 1922-4
On 30 October 1922, Mussolini arrived in Rome and was appointed PM of Italy.
Although many of his blackshirts believed that a Fascist revolution was about to begin, their
leader showed caution. Mussolini had a more realistic appreciation of the limits of Fascist
power and was aware that a completely Fascist government was not yet possible.
Mussolini’s first government contained fourteen senior ministers, of whom only four were
Fascists, the majority being Liberals and PPI.
Many thought that since fascism lacked a coherent ideology and a clear set of policies it was
unlikely to last for long.
Mussolini’s strategy
Mussolini also held the powerful position of minister of the interior, which gave him control
of the police. He was also minister of foreign affairs.
Mussolini was determined to not lose the momentum build up by the ‘March on Rome’. He
continued to use the threat of Fascist violence to intimidate parliament.
At the same time, he attempted to persuade MPs that, if they granted him near-dictatorial
powers, they would be acting both in their own interest and in the interests of Italy itself.
Mussolini tried to convince MPs that the breakdown of law and order was so serious and the
threat of a Socialist revolution so great that extraordinary measures were needed to deal
with the situation.
He argued that once the condition of the country had been stabilised, he would give up his
special powers and revert to normal parliamentary rule.
The Socialist threat, however, was virtually non-existent, and the collapse of law and order
was largely the result of Fascist violence, but conservatives and Liberals remained
mesmerised by the supposed danger from the left. They also genuinely believed Mussolini’s
assurances that any new powers they granted him would only be temporary.
Most MPs would remain convinced, until at least late 1924, that Mussolini could be
‘transformed’ into a respectable, even traditional, PM and that the movement could be
found a place in the regime- a fateful miscalculation.
Rule by decree
Mussolini demanded that parliament grant him the right to rule by decree for twelve
months. This would mean that he could effectively create new laws without consulting
parliament.
The MPs gave Mussolini a massive vote of confidence and granted him emergency powers
for the twelve-month period.
Only the Socialists and Communists opposed the motion; prominent Liberals including
Giolitti, Salandra and Facta proclaimed their support for this decisive new PM.
Grand council of Fascism
In December he tried to increase his authority over his own party by establishing the Grand
Council of Fascism.
Mussolini gave himself the right to make all appointments to the Grand Council to ensure
that he alone controlled Fascist policy.
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