Culture Benito Mussolini

benito mussolini , fascist blackshirt youth in 1935

nationalists in years after world war thought of combating both liberal , domineering institutions created cabinets—such of giovanni giolitti, including traditional schooling. futurism, revolutionary cultural movement serve catalyst fascism, argued school physical courage , patriotism , expressed filippo tommaso marinetti in 1919. marinetti expressed disdain prehistoric , troglodyte ancient greek , latin courses , arguing replacement exercise modelled on of arditi soldiers ( [learning] advance on hands , knees in front of razing machine gun fire; wait open-eyed crossbeam move sideways on heads etc. ). in years first fascist youth wings formed: avanguardia giovanile fascista (fascist youth vanguards) in 1919, , gruppi universitari fascisti (fascist university groups) in 1922.

after march on rome brought mussolini power, fascists started considering ways politicize italian society, accent on education. mussolini assigned former ardito , deputy-secretary education renato ricci task of reorganizing youth moral , physical point of view. ricci sought inspiration robert baden-powell, founder of scouting, meeting him in england, bauhaus artists in germany. opera nazionale balilla created through mussolini s decree of 3 april 1926, , led ricci following eleven years. included children between ages of 8 , 18, grouped balilla , avanguardisti.

according mussolini: fascist education moral, physical, social, , military: aims create complete , harmoniously developed human, fascist 1 according our views . mussolini structured process taking in view emotional side of childhood: childhood , adolescence alike ... cannot fed solely concerts, theories, , abstract teaching. truth aim teach them should appeal foremost fantasy, hearts, , minds .

the educational value set through action , example replace established approaches. fascism opposed version of idealism prevalent rationalism, , used opera nazionale balilla circumvent educational tradition imposing collective , hierarchy, mussolini s own personality cult.

another important constituent of fascist cultural policy roman catholicism. in 1929, concordat vatican signed, ending decades of struggle between italian state , papacy dated 1870 takeover of papal states house of savoy during unification of italy. lateran treaties, italian state @ last recognized roman catholic church, , independence of vatican city recognized italian state, appreciated ecclesiastic hierarchy pope pius xi acclaimed mussolini man of providence .

the 1929 treaty included legal provision whereby italian government protect honor , dignity of pope prosecuting offenders. in 1927, mussolini re-baptized roman catholic priest. after 1929, mussolini, anti-communist doctrines, convinced many catholics actively support him.