How Did Fascist Gain Power

Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany, and Imperial Japan all shared a global concept of fascism where the willingness to create a collective conscious of nationhood was justified through imperialism. Indeed, the importance of nationalism within Fascist culture would greatly affect the foreign policies of Italy, Germany, and Japan during the 1930s and 1940s. World War one had brought about revolutionary changes in the nature of war, society, and technology, where the advent of total war and mass mobilization showed the potential of a unified community run by the state. Fascists saw World War One as symbolizing the beginning of a new era where totalitarian governments sought to unify their nations by mobilizing the national community. In Italy, Benito Mussolini and his Fascist regime created one national community by eliminating the boundaries between the public and private sphere where the Nation would come before the Individual. In Germany, Hitler used nationalism to call for the unification of all German speaking peoples into a single empire known as the Volk. In Japan, the success of imperialism and the emphasis on collective belonging and shared past led to a nationalistic movement known as Pan Asianism where the Japanese aimed to unify all Asians. The respect of the state, a devotion to a strong leader, and the emphasis on militarism were all common features of the totalitarian states of Italy, Japan, and Germany but nationalism served as a pivotal feature in creating a

The Common Factors that Led to the Establishment of Totalitarian Regimes in Italy and Germany in the Inter-War Period

The rise of Fascism in Italy contributed to World War II because of it’s militaristic and nationalistic

Fascism admitted strong totalitarian overtones until it became interested in wars of colonial conquest. It had come to power because of the decaying social, economic and political conditions of post-World War I Italy. It had brought order out of chaos. Indeed, order was its strong selling point when, after a series of crippling strikes sponsored by the socialists, it had managed when the liberal democratic state could not manage.

After WW II, Fascism, “Instituted in Germany by Hitler” (America a Concise History 695) created an authoritative government. Hitler was controlling the government and making people do what he said and wanted. They believed that they were the superior race. Fascism came about in Italy in the years of 1920, but developed in the countries Germany, Spain, and France (America a Concise History 695). WW I caused the rise of fascism because Italy was destroyed and took an economic downfall so Mussolini decided to take it upon himself along with Adolf Hitler to get their countries back again. As stated in Chapter 24, “fascists leaders worldwide disparaged parliamentary

The goals of these two leaders were also very alike because of their fascist ideas. The keystone of the fascist political system was the leader: every person and every group, every lobby, lay beneath him on the same level. The Italian and German fascist movements tried to build a different kind of national unity, based not on the "common good" but on other principles knowing that their countries were internally fragmented.

After the war, Mussolini resumed his political activities, criticizing the Italian government for weakness at the Treaty of Versailles. He organized several right-wing groups into a single force and, in March 1919, formed the Fascist Party—the movement proclaimed opposition to social class discrimination and supported nationalist sentiments, hoping to raise Italy to levels of its great Roman

One of the dictators that came to power between WWI and WWII was the infamous Benito Mussolini. He once said, “We become strong, I feel, when we have no friends whom to lean, or to look to for moral guidance.” He was an Italian politician, journalist, and leader of the Fascist Party. He ruled the country as Prime Minister from the year 1922 to 1943. He was also known as II Duce and Iron Perfect.

Are there “checks and balances?” Is there a separation of power? What role do citizens have in the political process?

While both Italian and German fascism in the interwar years were very similar, they were ultimately more different due to their political ideologies, foreign policies and the structure of their respective parties. Fascism, while not having a concrete definition can be defined by multiple attributes. Fascism usually consist of a ultra right wing, oppressive and authoritarian government that places a heavy emphasis on national identity. As such, fascist governments promote violence and the expansion through wars with the intent of imperialism.

It became the foundation of the fascist movement in Italy following World War I. Mussolini used the newspaper to spread his ideas of fascism. On June 6, 1919, an issue of Il Popolo d’Italia listed and described the goals of fascism. However, fascism did not begin to take off until October of 1922.

Fundamentally, both Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler had the same burning desire to each make their nation a respected and economically impregnable Great Power. Mussolini wanted to return Italy to its glory days of the ancient Roman Empire, a domestic policy amongst others which was used as propaganda and to ultimately consolidate his power. A strong economy and a united state were vital for both countries in case of the outbreak of yet another catastrophic war. "Everything in the state, nothing outside the state, nothing against the state", stated Mussolini in need of desperate backup at home. Post WWI left both Germany and Italy with grave problems economically, which further repelled into social problems such as high unemployment and

Fascism was first detected after World War I in Italy. After the war, the people of Italy were ready for a new political aspect. Benito Mussolini was the man who brought this fascist ideology to Italy. Mussolini has been looking for the perfect opportunity to take complete control of a country and now was the time to do so. “In 1919 Mussolini and his followers, mostly war veterans, were organized along paramilitary lines and wore black shirts and uniforms.”(Halsall pg.2) After defeats at the polls Mussolini used his new financial backing to clothe a gang of thugs who

The fascists had support anywhere that either feared socialism or was nationalistic. The original support came from war veterans and the Italian army which was in general sympathetic to the cause. However as Mussolini changed the party agenda making it less extreme and right wing the backbone of fascist support arrived in the form of the petty bourgeoisie. Fascism also gained the support of the elite in Italy meaning that the party now had funding from big industrialists which it could use to secure its power. Fascism now had a strong appeal throughout Italy as it was now a respectable party not a political movement which had the support of powerful people that would enable it to crush the threat of socialism and restore the nation to its former (roman) glory. The actions of the fascists up to 1922 were the reason why Mussolini came to power or was able to seize it.

As a result of how Italy was created but not fully unified, the new Italian state suffered from a variety of weaknesses which the new liberal state was unable to tackle these. This made Italy susceptible to the appeal of fascism, and therefore aided Mussolini’s rise to power.