Chapter IV. March on Rome

Speaking about the sizing the power, the Italian fascists were the first ones, who created the myth of the "heroic fascist revolution", which the Nazis would later adopt for their own legends, but it is about their seizure of power. However, both the Italian fascists and their German counterparts received their power, in fact, without any resistance. Contrary to the fascist mythmaking, the so-called "March on Rome" and the subsequent Mussolini raise to power cannot be called a revolution. This does not even look like a coup d'etat. It does not even look like a colored revolution.

The result of the Blackshirts march on the Italian capital had nothing to do with any special power of the fascist party. It was related with a direct interest in the establishment of fascism of all, as they said, "outstanding people of the country" - industrialists, large landowners, leaders of the Liberal Party, the highest clergy of the Catholic Church, army generals and, finally, King Victor Emmanuel III himself. With such support, any fool can size to power.

However, let us return to the moment of the creation of the fascist movement. In 1919, against the backdrop of a severe political and economic crisis, Mussolini appears with his project of the union front-line patriot’s intent on putting an end to the misfortunes of their homeland. It is noteworthy that even the founding congress "Fasci italiani di combattimento" took place not without the help of businessmen. The fascist movement was founded on March 23, 1919, in Milan in a rented for a penny office of the Milan Industrial Association.

But the first steps of fascism were a failure: despite widespread advertising, only 200 people joined them. At that time, all "real" patriots preferred the nationalist party. It was founded in 1910 and until 1923 competed with the fascists for the attention of the national patriots.

To his credit Mussolini being a former socialist immediately understood how he could earn extra points in a confrontation with a competitor. Therefore, the fascists are adopting social demagogy. This is clearly seen in the first program of the fascists from 1919, in which you can find a whole arsenal of social demands:

- the establishment of an 8-hour working day;

- minimal salary;

- participation of workers in the management of the production process.

- reduction of the retirement age from 65 to 55;

- a progressive scale of taxation.

- and even confiscation of 85% of military profits.

 

 

In pursuit of a political rating, the party of the Italian national patriots became, nothing short of the party of classical national-socialism.

But this did not help either - the media did not notice the appearance of fascism, and the voters - even more so. In addition, even on the eve of the parliamentary elections in 1919, the first rumors began to circulate about the relations between the fascists and big businessmen. Mussolini even had to make excuses:

We do not want to be considered the "bodyguards" of the bourgeoisie, which, especially the nouveau riche which are distinguished by cowardice and meanness. If these people do not know how to protect themselves, let them not hope to protect themselves with our help.

Under normal circumstances, fascism was fated to perish. However, further events of the "Biennio rosso" became a springboard on the way to power. In March 1920, Italy's largest business union, the Confederation of Italian Industrialists, or Confindustria for short, makes a statement demanding from the government:

abandon old methods, old weaknesses, old tolerance, so that strong people can take the steering of the state, using new methods, capable of clipping the wings of illusions about the coming communist paradise, so tragically performed in other countries.

Obviously, as in the case of the agrarians, it was not Mussolini who moved towards the big industrialists, but the industrialists themselves saw in fascism that force that could ensure a return to the old life.

By 1921, the big entrepreneurs were already convinced of the reality of the "red threat": the massive seizure of factories in the fall of 1920 scared businessmen to death. But most of all they were amazed by the reaction of the government: instead of tough measures against the rebels, the political leadership did nothing, hoping that it might be carried over. The government has lost its authority not only in the eyes of the working people, but also in the eyes of entrepreneurs. And then the money flowed into the cashier of the fascist party.

In 1921, the fascist business finally started: the press was actively developing, the infantry was completely switched to professional, i.e. paid basis, a serious party machine is being built. Private media trumpet with might and main about the exploits of the fascists, they are called the only force capable of curbing the chaos and anarchy taking place in the country, and so on.

That was a year of agrarian and industrial reaction against leftist parties and organizations, a year of rampant blackshirts funded by capitalists. In what scale they financed the fascist party, its press, its militia, its leaders, it will never

be possible to know for sure, because such grants hardly appear on the balance sheets of banks and joint-stock companies: the fact is that since this year, fascism has had so many funds that their source could only be very thick wallets.

Having proved their reliability in practice, on the streets, fascism was literally taken by the hand and led into big politics. And it was not done by anyone, but by the liberals. In May 1921, parliamentary elections were held, the fascists were not elected directly, but from the so-called "National Bloc", created at the initiative of the head of government, liberal Giovanni Giolitti. Such a coalition meant: voting for a liberal = voting for a fascist.

I consider this a good move, because fascism already represented a real force in our national life, and, according to my old principle that every political force in the country should express itself in parliament, it was preferable that fascism also has parliamentary representation.

No comments. Deputies-terrorists. Excellent move. By the time social demagogy of Mussolini steps away. In favor of his investors and political allies fascists became liberals:

Regarding to Economy we are pure antisocialists. I never regret that fact, that I was a socialist, but I broke with that past. I am not affected with nostalgia. Now we are not talking about getting closer to socialism, but about getting further from it. In economic matters, we are liberals because we believe that the national economy cannot be trusted by collective or bureaucratic authorities. One Russian experiment is enough. I will return the railways and telegraphs to private hands because the current state of affairs is outrageous and, in all respects, bad.

In the end of 1921, the program of National fascist party was published in «Il Popolo d’Italia». Previous social slogans were disappeared or became more modest or were blended with demagogy in a way it couldn’t be literally understood what they wanted. For example, they were not longer interested in establishing of minimal salary and decreasing the retirement age. Social welfare, as per fascists, had to be respected to actual needs. But it wasn’t written to who’s those needs belonged to – businessmen or proletariat, also it wasn’t written what the “actual needs” were.

On the other hand, it was written clearly about the inalienable right of private property, about the need to privatize telephone networks and railways, about the abolition of

 

the state monopoly on the post and telegraph office and, eventually, about the return to individuals of those industries that the state "poorly manages". Well, you already know how it works.

It can be seen the first nonsense statements about fascist’s corporativism:

The emergens of corporations is the historical fact, which fascism can’t resist. Fascism aims to coordinate the corporative development for the achievement of national goals.

You don’t understand? It’s all right. That’s the point. Such a program of fascists looked like more preferable for private investors: all sharp corners have been smoothed out, all promises to people were unclear and full of demagogy but according to the private property it was really concrete.

Rich classes – industrialists and agrarians, as well as political power, first of all the liberals, were interested in such fascists. Even church, which didn’t keen on Mussolini, actually, favorably spectated the rise and evolution of fascist beast. As the saying goes, anyone as long as they are not communists.

* * *

At the beginning the fascists did not plan to come to power by force. But by the fall of 1922, the situation had dramatically changed. Uncontrolled death squads turn into a real army with their field commanders, who have their own interests and ambitions. The fascist movement has become too large and uncontrollable. If nothing was changed, then the fascists could reach the decay and anarchy.

Another factor that influenced the decision to seize power was the endless paralysis of the current government. During the period from the summer of 1919 to the autumn of 1922, at least 8 government offices were replaced. The Italian oligarchs are tired of all this. At the same time, the confrontation between fascists and anti-fascists further sharped the situation. For example, in August 1922, a nationwide strike took place demanding that the government stop standing on the sidelines and launch a large-scale struggle against fascism. But the government was still inactive. The strike was broken by the methods traditional for the fascists. In such a situation, when power could be simply taken, it made no sense to participate in the elections.

The Italian oligarchs came to the same conclusions. Two weeks before the March on Rome, the head of government receives a letter from Confindustria. The letter said that industrialists are concerned about the financial situation of the state, as well as the fact that they want to see a government of "strong people capable of raising the nation from a state of insanity." Among the addressees of the letter were:

 

 

- textile king Raimondo Targetti;

- the current president of Confindustria and its founder, Gino Olivetti;

- the future president of Confindustria Antonio Stefano Benny, who is also a business partner of Fiat and the future minister of communications of fascist Italy;

- and, finally, Alberto Pirelli, the owner of the famous Pirelli company, and also the future president of Confindustria.

To understand the seriousness of all these people, try, for comparison, to open the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs and see who sits there in the leadership.

In fact, the so-called "March on Rome" is simply performance behind the scenes of which the fascists were guaranteed success. On October 24, in Naples, Mussolini openly called on his fascists to go to Rome to seize power.

I gloriously declare to you that the demand of the moment is as follows: either we will be given power, or we will take it by moving to Rome. From now on, we are talking about days, and maybe even hours: it is necessary, through simultaneous actions in all parts of Italy, to take the weak ruling circles by the throat.

In ordinary life, for calls for a violent seizure of power, people are sent to prison for 15-20 years. But if the most influential people in the country are behind you, then your life can hardly be called ordinary.

Having declared his intentions, Mussolini went, however, not to Rome, but to the near-border city Milan. So, just in case.

Finally, on October 27, the March to Rome began. Someone walked, someone went by trucks, someone by train. In truth, this campaign was not at all the same as in the legends of the fascists: in the absence of discipline, communication between the columns and an excessive amount of spontaneity, the campaign looked more like a great migration than a military march.

However, 30 kilometers from Rome, a regular army suddenly stands in the way of the blackshirts, raised by alarm. The fascists had not dare to enter into battle with them, moreover, many of them were unarmed. After a short thought, they decided to settle right in the fields in the way of gypsy camps, waiting for the moment when it would be possible to go to Rome. I must say that this reaction of the government was very unexpected for the fascists. Many thought it was a failure.

Meanwhile, intensive negotiations were going on behind the scenes:

 

Active conversations were going on between Mussolini, the prefect of Lusignoli and the leadership of Confindustria, deputies Stefano Benni and Gino Olivetti. The leaders of the banking association, who had allocated 20 million to finance the March on Rome, as well as the leaders of Confindustria and Confagroculture, telegraphed to Rome to warn Salandra that there was no other way out but to establish Mussolini's government. Senator Conti, the great electricity tycoon, and Senator Albertini, editor Corriere della Sera... telegraphed Fact for his part to ask the king to instruct Mussolini to form a ministry.

In the end, this is how it happened. The current government of Luigi Fact, following the mobilization of the Roman garrisons, issues a decree on the state of siege. The point was to introduce the so-called state of emergency and finally disperse the fascists with the help of the army. It was impossible to do this without the introduction of a state of siege. However, government decrees come into force only when they are signed by King Victor Emmanuel III. And the king, on the advice of the right people, took and refused to sign the decree on the state of siege.

On the morning of October 28, the completely demoralized government of Luigi Fact removed the army cordons on the suburbs of Rome and resigned. And thousands of fascists, tired of sitting in an open field, filled the streets of the capital.

It should be noted that Mussolini did not want to leave the border regions of Italy for a very long time. The most senior people in the country called and telegraphed him, persuaded him personally, but still could not get him from Milan. And only after receiving a telegram from the king with the official appointment of Mussolini to the post of prime minister, he agreed to leave Milan. In the evening of October 29, 1922, the heroic Duce sat in the heroic compartment of a comfortable carriage and the next day no less heroically arrived in Rome.

A couple of weeks later, both the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate voted in favor of the new government. The heroic fascist revolution finally happend.