The Rise of Fascism Due More to the Personality of Mussolini than the Failures of Liberal Italy
In 1922, Mussolini became the prime minister of Italy. This meant the
end of Liberal Italy, and the rise of Fascism. Mussolini managed to do
this because of his incredible personality, one which helped him be an
excellent politician. On the other hand, Liberal Italy failed to
fulfill national expectancy, also helping in the rise of Mussolini.
The question here is which of the two was more important to the rise
of Fascism. The key factors inside Mussolini’s personality are: his
leadership, personal skills, his opportunism and pragmatism,
anti-communism and the use of violence. On the other side of the
argument we have the key factors for the failures of Liberal Italy:
lack of leadership, failure of the parliamentary system, the economic
effects of the war, social unrest dew to economic problems and the
failure to put down the communist threat.
Augusto De Marsanich said: “only the intellect and will of Mussolini
can still control and direct us.” Mussolini was a natural leader and
politician. He organized and structured the fascist party in Italy and
managed to get representation in such a way that soon he had a lot of
support from a large amount of people. He knew how to act and when to
act, and was always prepared to compromise his ideas to gain support.
Hilbbert describes Mussolini: “a physical stance not yet devitalised
by illness, an oratory style, staccato, tautophonic and responsive,
not yet ridiculed by caricature and a personal charm not yet atrophied
by adulation.” The public saw him as a powerful figure that could
bring about chan...
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...adequate protection.” What they really did was give
the opportunity to the Fascist to prove themselves more valuable than
the government in charge, thus forcing King Emmanuel to invite
Mussolini to form his Government.
In conclusion, after analyzing Mussolini’s personality and the
failures of Liberal Italy, a sensible consensus can be established
between both of the factors. It is clear that the failures of Liberal
Italy created a scenario full of social, economical and political
problems. But it is also clear that not anyone would have managed to
gain power and put the Fascists into the government. The fascists
needed both to accomplish their rise to power. Both factors complement
each other. They needed the unstable scenario left by Liberal Italy
and also needed someone who had the right personality to grab power.