Tens of thousands of Italians make the trip to Mussolini’s hometown in Predappio, Italy, every year, where he’s buried in a crypt maintained by his family.
Interesting essay Lucas some thoughts regarding Mussolini. He did indeed make some genuine accomplishments during his 21 year rule. Including building up the 4th largest navy of the era. However I do believe that despite his posturiing on the balcony of Fascist HQ in Rome he was in fact a very insecure man. Who felt inferior and saw Italy the same compared to the great powers at the time and he wanted to place Italy in their orbit. Italy as you pointed out didn't have the industiral base to engage in a protracted moden war. Regarding Ethiopia it could be said it was Italian payback for the Battle of Adowa in 1896. Italy's version of Custer's last stand. I did a major paper in grad school on the Hoare-Laval Plan regarding the invasion of 1935. Mussolini also didn't understand Hitler's visions and plans and erroneously thought he'd better grab territory before Europe become a German Empire something Hitler had no interest in as recent scholarship clearly demonstrates. The Roman Empire out of business since 476 AD or 1453 if you include Eastern Rome/Byzantium is gone. It's never coming back. This was again the fantasies that led to the terrible fate Italy would face in the war.
Regarding the Jews yes there were Jews in the Fascist Party including Aldo Finzi, Guido Jung, Mauricio Ravva, Etore Ovazza and as you mentioned Scarfatti. Mussolini's views changed before 1938. In 1935 there was a Zionist conference held in Rome and Italian Jews flocked to it, gave money and pledged support this outraged Mussolini. He beagn to think were Italian Jews Italians who by birth were born Jewish, or were they truly aliens that adopt the culture and language of their host country. But in reality feel no alligence to it. I think a similar situation happened in the former USSR. Where by 1948 Stalin had come to the conclusion that Jews were never truly believing Marxists as he definately was, but were rather using Marxism and communist revolution, as a way of gaining Jewish world power and amass wealth from the plundered countries around the world. Hence his removing them from powerful positions.
Back to Mussolini I personally have serious issues with him. His idiotic spur of the moment attack on Hellas my birth country dragged us into WWII. True my people kicked the shit out of his military and this combined with Italian defeats in France, North Africa, Somailand and in the Mediterranean sea made Italy tragcially the laughing stock of the war. (BTW way I too am a veteran and jumped with the Folgore and I earned Italian jump wings.) Regardless this triggered the German and Bulgarian offensives and the occupation which lead to a terrible civil war post WWII. So I'm not a big fan of as the UK called him "sawdust Ceasar".
Regarding Hitler, he showed the world that a defeated nation could rise, build a great economy and quailty of life for it's people, separate from the international banksters. Mostly in the control of Jews as in Weimar Germany. He fought the Jewish supremacy that you for quite a while have written and spoken about on X. Unless of course you've had a change of heart. That's why he had to be defeated and Germany crushed. Was Hitler a war criminal? By the definition of the term sure he was, as were Churchill, FDR, Stalin, Mao, Chaing Kai-shek, Emperor Hirohito and Tojo. Nothing new here. War is about as you know killing people and breaking things. The side that can kill and break the most wins and more importantly get to write the history. Hence the reason for the demand of "unconditional surrender" to enable the "allies" to write the hisotry of WWII as they saw fit and to benefit them.
"Our problems with Germany were never political or ideological they were always economic." - Winston Churchill
Interesting essay Lucas some thoughts regarding Mussolini. He did indeed make some genuine accomplishments during his 21 year rule. Including building up the 4th largest navy of the era. However I do believe that despite his posturiing on the balcony of Fascist HQ in Rome he was in fact a very insecure man. Who felt inferior and saw Italy the same compared to the great powers at the time and he wanted to place Italy in their orbit. Italy as you pointed out didn't have the industiral base to engage in a protracted moden war. Regarding Ethiopia it could be said it was Italian payback for the Battle of Adowa in 1896. Italy's version of Custer's last stand. I did a major paper in grad school on the Hoare-Laval Plan regarding the invasion of 1935. Mussolini also didn't understand Hitler's visions and plans and erroneously thought he'd better grab territory before Europe become a German Empire something Hitler had no interest in as recent scholarship clearly demonstrates. The Roman Empire out of business since 476 AD or 1453 if you include Eastern Rome/Byzantium is gone. It's never coming back. This was again the fantasies that led to the terrible fate Italy would face in the war.
Regarding the Jews yes there were Jews in the Fascist Party including Aldo Finzi, Guido Jung, Mauricio Ravva, Etore Ovazza and as you mentioned Scarfatti. Mussolini's views changed before 1938. In 1935 there was a Zionist conference held in Rome and Italian Jews flocked to it, gave money and pledged support this outraged Mussolini. He beagn to think were Italian Jews Italians who by birth were born Jewish, or were they truly aliens that adopt the culture and language of their host country. But in reality feel no alligence to it. I think a similar situation happened in the former USSR. Where by 1948 Stalin had come to the conclusion that Jews were never truly believing Marxists as he definately was, but were rather using Marxism and communist revolution, as a way of gaining Jewish world power and amass wealth from the plundered countries around the world. Hence his removing them from powerful positions.
Back to Mussolini I personally have serious issues with him. His idiotic spur of the moment attack on Hellas my birth country dragged us into WWII. True my people kicked the shit out of his military and this combined with Italian defeats in France, North Africa, Somailand and in the Mediterranean sea made Italy tragcially the laughing stock of the war. (BTW way I too am a veteran and jumped with the Folgore and I earned Italian jump wings.) Regardless this triggered the German and Bulgarian offensives and the occupation which lead to a terrible civil war post WWII. So I'm not a big fan of as the UK called him "sawdust Ceasar".
Regarding Hitler, he showed the world that a defeated nation could rise, build a great economy and quailty of life for it's people, separate from the international banksters. Mostly in the control of Jews as in Weimar Germany. He fought the Jewish supremacy that you for quite a while have written and spoken about on X. Unless of course you've had a change of heart. That's why he had to be defeated and Germany crushed. Was Hitler a war criminal? By the definition of the term sure he was, as were Churchill, FDR, Stalin, Mao, Chaing Kai-shek, Emperor Hirohito and Tojo. Nothing new here. War is about as you know killing people and breaking things. The side that can kill and break the most wins and more importantly get to write the history. Hence the reason for the demand of "unconditional surrender" to enable the "allies" to write the hisotry of WWII as they saw fit and to benefit them.
"Our problems with Germany were never political or ideological they were always economic." - Winston Churchill
ai wrote this
Very interesting. Thanks Lucas.