On October 29, 1922, when Benito Mussolini completed the March on Rome and was appointed prime minister of Italy, the Fascist regime began in triumph. It ended some 22 years later with the execution of Mussolini and the collapse of the German-inspired Italian Social Republic. In this edition the author maintains his disagreement with modern interpretations of the movement and regime as "revolutionary" and "leftist". While not ignoring the importance of ideology, he sees Fascism in Italy as a bourgeois response to the challenge of proletarian revolution and an approach to the problem of conservative control in an era of mass politics. For this edition the author has revised the discussion of culture and ideology, the conclusion, and the bibliography. Incorporating modern interpretations and research, this introduction to Italian Fascism reinterprets an important development in modern history.
Alexander De Grand, a professor of history at North Carolina State University, is the author of The Italian Left in the Twentieth Century: A History of the Socialist and Communist Parties.
CONTENTS: Preface to the Third Edition Preface Part One The Historical Background, 1870-1922 Chapter One: The Origins of Fascism, 1870-1918 Chapter Two: The Postwar Crisis and the Development of Fascism, 1918-22 Part Two The Fascist Regime in Ascendancy, 1922-35 Chapter Three: Between Movement and Regime, 1922-25 Chapter Four: The Creation of the Regime, 1922-25 Chapter Five: The Fascist Regime and the Great Depression, 1929-34 Chapter Six: Fascist Foreign Policy, 1922-35 Part Three The Downward Spiral, 1935-45 Chapter Seven: Fascism at War: Economy and Society, 1935-43 Chapter Eight: The Reorientation of Foreign Policy, 1936-43 Chapter Nine: The Italian Social Republic, 1943-45 Chapter Ten: The Political Culture of Fascism: Ideologies and Intellectuals Chapter Eleven: Conclusion Bibliographic Essay Index
A concise yet rounded account of Italian Fascism
"Read in conjunction with [Italian Fascism/A Primer of Italian Fascism] these two books fulfil a double role. First they provide a balanced survey of the nature and doctrines of Fascism. Yet just as important is the light they throw upon Italian institutions and the working of the Italian mind. Alexander De Grand, who is Professor of History at North Carolina State University, disagrees with some other contemporary scholars in that he sees Fascism as a bourgeois response to the challenge of proletarian revolution. The issues are involved. The material needed to unravel them is provided by "A Primer of Italian Fascism". It makes available, in many cases for the first time in English translation, the key documents on Fascism."--Rivista, Summer 2000 Praise for earlier edition: "[De Grand] must be congratulated on performing so skilfully the difficult task of providing students (and teachers) of twentieth-century history with a concise yet rounded account of Italian Fascism." - History. "...reliable, concise, and readable...This history ... commends itself for its clarity, compactness, and grasp of the subject." - American Historical Review. "An excellent synthesis and a balanced interpretation of the historical background and the evolution of the Italian political system under fascism." - Choice "De Grand's small history is tightly argued and an illuminating exposure of Mussolini's attempt to build imperialist Italy before throwing his lot in with the German Empire."--Morning Star, 3 July, 2000
