Coming from a modest middle-class family who had gone all the way to the harsh dictator of Italy, Benito Mussolini literally raised his followers from scratch. His campaign was driven by the discontent at the time with the Italian economy and political situation. Many considered the outcome of World War I unfair for the country. Socialists and communists fought for their vision of the future of Italy. There were many reasons that led to Mussolini's power. On the whole, people wanted radical and substantial changes, and in it they saw a solution.
The campaign against Rome is an uprising thanks to which Benito Mussolini came to power in Italy at the end of October 1922. It marked the beginning of fascist rule and the death of previous parliamentary regimes of socialists and liberals.
The beginning of political activity
In 1912, Mussolini became a socialist who actively participated in political life. In the same year, he began working as an editor in the famous socialist newspaper “Forward!” (Avanti!). Mussolini opposed the participation of Italy in the First World War, which began in 1914. However, after some time, he radically changed his views and began to support the entry of Italy into the war in Europe. In these events, the politician saw an opportunity to realize his own ambitions. Two years later, Mussolini left the socialist party and formed his own movement.
Having left politics for a while, he volunteered and served with distinction on the Italian front in 1915. Two years later, he was seriously injured and was forced to leave the army.
Change of mind
After returning to politics in 1917, Mussolini promoted nationalism, militarism, and the restoration of the bourgeois state. He was not satisfied with the foreign and domestic policies of the country at that time. He believed that Italy needed to regain the greatness of the Roman Empire. In addition, he himself wanted to become modern Julius Caesar.
Mussolini began to promote his ideas in his own newspaper Il Popolo d'Italia. In 1919, he began to gather his supporters, among whom were General Emilio De Bono, Italo Balbo, Cesare de Vecchi and Michele Bianchi. The number of followers grew, and he was able to create his own political party. His supporters at the rallies began to wear black shirts.
Creation of the party and preparation of the uprising
On March 23, 1919, four months after the ceasefire that ended the Great War, a hundred former Italian army veterans, socialist politicians and journalists gathered at Piazza San Sepolro in Milan to form a new political party. By the fall of 1922, the fascist organization numbered more than 300,000 members.
At this time, Mussolini became actively involved in politics. Volunteers in black shirts crushed the strike called for by the unions. During this process, his party began to receive the support of many Italians, mainly the middle class, who found Mussolini's nationalism attractive. He was also supported by veterans, industrialists and bankers. He urged his supporters to join him in a campaign against Rome , as the great Giuseppe Garibaldi did after the unification of Italy in the nineteenth century. The politician said that either his party, that is, the Nazis, will receive power, or she herself will take it.
In the months preceding the campaign against Rome, Mussolini began to act actively. Bianchi was responsible for political issues, and the rest were to take responsibility for military operations. The first goal of the black shirts was to capture the cities around the capital. After the goal was achieved, the columns of his supporters planned to go on a campaign in Rome. Everything was officially discussed on October 24, 1922 at a rally of the fascist party in Naples. Leaders outlined general mobilization at 27, and the uprising on October 28. The plans included a campaign of Italian fascists in Rome and the capture of strategic places throughout the country.
Mussolini's victory
In anticipation of this event, Luigi Facta, Italian Prime Minister, was increasingly worried about maintaining his own position. In a final attempt to defend his position, he ordered martial law to be imposed. In this case, the army would be between the government and the Nazis. The order was to be signed by King Victor Emmanuel III. However, he doubted the loyalty of his army and was afraid of an uprising that would jeopardize his power. For this reason, he did not sign the order. This meant that the army, which could stop the rebellion and the Nazi campaign against Rome, was never attracted, which in fact led to the removal of the prime minister.
Mussolini, now confident in his control of the events, was determined to gain leadership of the government, and on October 29, the king asked him to form an office. The politician became the new prime minister of Italy. Traveling from Milan by train, Mussolini arrived in Rome on October 30 - before the actual entry of fascist troops. As prime minister, he organized a triumphal parade for his followers to show fascist support for his rule.
Mussolini’s campaign in Rome was not a conquest of power, as he later called it, but a transfer of power under the constitution, which was made possible by the surrender of state power in the face of intimidation by the Nazis.