Italian Fascism: An Interpretation

When the Grand Council of Fascism on July 25, 1943, removed Benito Mussolini from his position as head of government, fascism ended in Italy. Its ending was as surprising as its beginning, when, on October 28, 1922, some 300,000 Blackshirts under Mussolini’s command seized the Italian state. The events between those dates can be chronicled. The explanation of what had transpired is much more elusive. Fascism was touted by Mussolini as a unique combination of thought and action, yet fascism was still seeking an ideology after the Second World War was over.