The Successes and Failures of Mussolini's Domestic Policies in Italy Between 1922 and 1939

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The Successes and Failures of Mussolini's Domestic Policies in Italy Between 1922 and 1939

Similar to those of Hitler, Mussolini’s main goals were to create an

Italian state with a strong identity and role within Europe with a

powerful military force. From the day he became Prime Minister on

October 29th, 1922 of a coalition government, he lacked a certain

skill in organization. It was not quite clear what exactly Mussolini

wanted to do, and it seemed as though he made decissions with no

previous planning, as opposed to Hitler and the Nazis who knew exactly

what they were striving for. Nevertheless, Mussolini knew that he

wanted to have full control over the Italian state and successfully

did as he introduced the ‘Legge Fascistissime’ – allowing Mussolini to

become a controlling dictator. He soon realized he wanted to carve

Italy into an Empire similar to that of the Ancient Romans. New

policies needed to be put in place to transform the Italian society

into a war machine while mainting a prospering economy to ultimately

fulfill the goals of the ‘Duce’.

Amongst Mussolini’s successful policies was the ‘Battle for Grain’.

With this project, Mussolini hoped to boost his prestige while

simultaneously helping Italy to become a self-sufficient state in

times of war. Before this project was applied, Italy had had to import

large ammounts of grain to sufficiently feed the population. In a time

of war, this could lead to starvation if import supplies were ever

stopped from abroad. Mussolini’s campaign was supported by government

grants for farmers to buy proper equipment. Other incentives included

free advice on farming techniques, and hi...

... middle of paper ...

...reate an Italian state

which resembles the Ancient Roman Empires power and role in Europe,

and one that is self-sufficient in a time of war, I think it is safe

to say the the Duce greatly failed to achieve this. At the time the

war broke out, Italy was not near the state of being self-sufficient.

As Mussolini had hoped, Italy did not have a powerful military to

boast about. All in all, Mussolini encountered some successes while

overcoming his obstacles of his primary aims. I think it is fair to

say that Mussolini failed as a leader to accomplish his ideal state.

Bibliography

Robson, Mark. Italy: Liberalism and Fascism 1870-1945. London: Hodder

& Stoughton, 1992

Blinkhorn, Martin. Mussolini and Fascist Italy. England: Routledge,

1884

Mann, Richard. . 2001

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