Origins of Fascism

Quick Summary

The history of the 1800s can be viewed as a competition between a Conservative, monarchist, tradition and a new Liberal, constitutionalist, force. This competition ended when the Conservative European powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia were all destroyed and rebuilt under either Liberalism or Communism. The destruction of the Conservative order forced right-wing Europeans to consider new approaches to their ideology. Meanwhile, left-leaning movements disilusioned with Communism, such as Syndicalists, also searched for new political grounds. Many of the people searching for new belief systems were also veterans of the Great War, and the violence and mass-dehumanization of the conflict influenced how those veterans saw the world. The specific historic circumstances in Italy in the 1920s then created an atmosphere where various anti-Socialist, anti-Liberal politicians from across the political spectrum formed the first Fascist party.

Article length: ~1200 words.

Liberals & Conservatives

In the late 1700s an idea which had been brewing in revolutionary circles across European societies - Liberalism - broke on to the world stage with the American and French revolutions1. Liberals in the 18th century defined themselves against their enemies, Conservatives. The old Conservative powers were mainly ruled by kings without any formal separation of power in government - the king ruled over all. Liberals were the opposite. They believed that countries needed constitutions to limit the power of their leaders and guaruntee freedoms of speech and religion to their people2. Over the course of the 1800s various European states adopted Liberal positions. These included two of the most powerful nations in the world, Britain and France. Italy also adopted a Liberal-leaning constitution when it united in the later 1800s. Against Liberalism stood the forces of Conservative monarchies, the most powerful being in Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia.

A map showing European borders in 1914. The monarchies, shown in red, are: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, and Spain. The Constitutional Monarchies (liberal governments), shown in purple, are: Great Britain and Italy. The only Liberal Republic on the map is France, shown in blue.
Map of major European governments in 1914

Destruction of the Conservative Order

Classical Conservatives of the 1800s believed that God himself had created society to be ruled by kings over their lands. By 1900, it was clear that belief system was no longer tenable. The western-European colonial empires grew rich while operating under Liberalism, at least in their home territories. Additionally, Liberal values had become widespread in Germany and parts of the Austro-Hungarian empire. In Russia, Liberals - and Communists - destabilized the imperial regime. The final breaking point for Conservatism came with World War One3. The Treaty of Versailles, signed in the summer of 1919, forced Germany and the new states created out of the Austrian empire to become Liberal republics. The other bastion of Conservatism, Russia, fell to Communist revolution in 1917. The Conservative order was left without any major European power to support it, and the right wing in general was forced adapt to a changed world.

A map showing European borders in 1920. The Liberal Republics, shown in blue, are: Germany, Austria, and France. The Constitutional Monarchies (liberal governments), shown in purple, are: Great Britain and Italy. The Soviet Union is highlighted pink, indicating Communist, and Spain is highlighted red, indicating monarchy.
Map of major European governments from 1919-1922

The New Right-Wing

The Conservative order needed to find new justifications and methods for preserving the status-quo. Beginning in the 19th century, but especially after World War One, nationalism had a major influence on the development of the right4. At its most basic form, nationalism is simply the idea that a group of people who share similar traits should be able to form a nation. The similar traits can be almost anything: culture, religion, ethnicity, political beliefs, etc. Conservatives found nationalism to be a useful tool for justifying their policies by framing their traditional values as inherent to the people of the nation. A right-wing justification of policy on the grounds of nationalism could sound something like: "The place of a king in society is a tradition that goes as far back as the Roman Caesars. If the people of Italy are to succeed as a nation, we need a monarchy!" Nationalism was traditionally a non-partisan political issue; it was used by Liberals, Conservatives, and even some Socialists to justify their aspirations. Especially in Italy, which only unified some 50 years before World War One, nationalism had been a key belief across the political spectrum.

The development of the new right was also heavily influenced by the experience of the Great War. A huge number of Fascists in the 1920s and '30s - including Mussolini and Hitler - were World War One veterans. Military experience and the culture of war held huge influence over the development of Fascism5. The turn towards collective and authoritarian thought was reflective of military training and structures. Dehumanizing those considered to be the "enemy" to justify violence was reflective of military and nationalistic propaganda. The cultural idea that violence and warfare are a means to improve society was inherent both to pro-war beliefs during World War One and Fascist beliefs immediately afterwards. Nationalism and war experience combined into a general belief that violent struggle, external and internal, was the best way to rapidly improve a nation.

A photograph taken in 1918. It shows Italian soldiers marching together with horse-drawn wagons past the ruins of a house.
Italian Soldiers in 1918

Nationalization of the Left

Many of the original members of the first Fascist party were initially left leaning. One of these left leaning groups were the Futurists, who believed that industry, science, and warfare could bring about a utopian world. Futurists advocated for nationalism, secular education and marriage, the redistribution of land and wealth, participation in WW1, and the vote for women6. Futurists believed that the old institutions of Conservative Europe could only be destroyed by war, which was a necessary price for a better, more democratic world7. Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, one of the most prominent Futurists, would go on to join the Italian Fascist Party in 1919.

The influence of left-leaning non-Marxists on Fascism is undeniable. One major ideology that influenced Fascism was Syndicalism. Syndicalists, importantly, were more nationalist compared to their Socialist and Communist counterparts8. During World War One, many Syndicalists supported Italy's entry into the war, while most Socialists did not. Many of the original Fascists were Syndicalists, which was reflected in the first official program of the Italian Fascists of 1919, which called for democratic and syndicalist reforms9. Mussolini himself was an ex-Socialist, having been the director of the Socialist newspaper Avanti! from 1912 to 1914. Another prominent Fascist, Enrico Ferri, was director of Avanti! from 1903 to 190810. Most of the original members of the Facsi in Italy were some form nationalist-leftists who supported participation in World War One.

Italy, Specifically

Fascism first arose in Italy, making it impossible to consider the origins of Fascism without the specific circumstances Italy went through in the 1910s and 20s. Italy joined World War One late - in 1915 - at least partially due to an organized anti-war sentiment in its population. The anti-war movement were called the "neutralists", while the pro-war movement were called the "interventionists"11. Many interventionists who viewed the war through a Liberal, more democratic lens, were generally satisfied with the Treaty of Versailles. Nationalist-interventionists, who the Fascists would draw from, saw the Treaty of Versailles as too weak.12. The first political meeting in Italy that called themselves "Fasci" was a group of 200 interventionists, including Mussolini, in 1919. It was primarily a gathering of nationalist-interventionists, who held a wide range of views, including Futurism and and Syndicalism. An important common belief throughout the whole group was anti-Socialism13. The Fascists interpreted World War One as Italy's violent crusade against it's external enemies - the Austrians - and hoped to bring the fight to Italy's internal enemies - Socialists14. The inconsistent, moderately left-nationalist views of the original Fasci had no political success. Their commitment to anti-Socialist violence, however, did bring it success.

An old photograph of a Fascist blackshirt (left) standing in front of burning books (center) next to a concerned-looking crowd (right).
Fascist Blackshirt burning Communist books, 1922

Large-scale Socialist action during 1920 created a "red scare" which brought a huge influx of funding and membership to the Fascists15. While before the red-scare most recruits to Fascism had been urban syndicalists, afterwards most Fascists were middle-class nationalists from small towns and the countryside16. Funding and membership in the Fascist party grew rapidly, but now mainly from the reactionary right rather than the left. One influence on Fascism from the right was the increasing hatred displayed not only towards Communism but also against Liberalism. In the Italian countryside, Fascists regularly overturned Liberal elections by staging riots until politicians resigned17. By 1921 the Fascist party was openly calling for a right-wing dictatorship as the only way to save Italy from evil Communists and inept Liberals. Of the four men who coordinated the 1922 coup which put the Italian Fascists in power, two were monarchists, one was a former Liberal, and one was a former Syndicalist18. From the experiences of the Great War the veterans of Italy forged a new violent and nationlist ideology out of various anti-Liberal and anti-Socialist ideologies.

Citations

  1. Vivarelli, Interpretations of the Origins of Fascism pages 38
  2. Ryan, The Making of Modern Liberalism, pages 38-39
  3. Vivarelli, Interpretations of the Origins of Fascism pages 38-39.
  4. Payne, Fascism: Comparison and Definition page 27.
  5. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, page 67.
  6. Rainy et. al, Futurism: An Anthology, pages 247-252.
  7. Payne, Fascism: Comparison and Definition, pages 44-45.
  8. Payne, Fascism: Comparison and Definition, page 43.
  9. Payne, Fascism: Comparison and Definition, page 45.
  10. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, page 35.
  11. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, page 5-6.
  12. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, page 9.
  13. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, page 8.
  14. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, page 17.
  15. Payne, Fascism: Comparison and Definition, page 45-6.
  16. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, page 18-19 & Payne, page 46-47.
  17. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, pages 11-12
  18. Baldoli, Italian Fascism, 1914-1945, pages 12-13

Bibliography

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