Benito Mussolini was an Italian fascist. He had an alliance with the Nazis during World War II. The world knew him as one of the most ruthless dictators of all time.
He took control of Italy for a period of almost 21 years. Born in the striving economy of Italy, Mussolini kept Italy under single party dictatorship amid the worldwide political uncertainties.
Let’s learn 40 Benito Mussolini facts and find out a little bit about his life and his activities as a dictator.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 1-5
1. Benito Mussolini was the 27th Prime Minister of Italy. He Served Italy for almost 20 years.
2. He is also known as Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini, Il Duce.
3. Although he was born in Northern Central Italy on July 29, 1883, extreme poverty forced him to move to Switzerland in 1902.
4. In his family, his mother, Rosa Maltoni, was an elementary school teacher and father was a blacksmith. He also had a brother and a sister named Arnaldo and Edvidge.
5. Benito Mussolini was not an easy child. He used to be a disobedient boy with quite a short temper. He used to get agitated easily, which led him to be expelled from school twice. He was found to assault a fellow student with a penknife.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 6-10
6. Luckily after all the hassles, Benito could manage to obtain his diploma and also had a short career as a school teacher.
7. To be very exact, he was a politician, journalist and the leader of the National Fascist Party between 1922 and 1943.
8. Mussolini used to work at various odd day jobs and spend evenings attending parties with the local socialists.
9. He also pursued the career of a writer and editor in numerous socialist newspapers.
10. Mussolini returned to Italy in 1904 and joined the army.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 11-15
11. Although he moved to Austria in 1909 and stayed there for a short time, he was soon thrown out of the country because he violated the laws meant for regulating press freedom. He came back to Italy after the forceful expulsion from Austria.
12. After the WWI, residents of Italy were looking for a change to make Italy strong again and started forming small local groups. Mussolini brought all these groups together and took them under his leadership formally on March 23, 1919. The group was called Fasci di Combattimento, The Fascist Party.
13. After getting majority support from his party, Mussolini was selected for the prime ministerial position of Italy on October 31, 1922. It made him the youngest prime minister of Italy.
14. Under his Governance, Italy tried to invade Ethiopia, which led to a nasty war at the end. Mussolini was able to acquire Ethiopia in 1936.
15. When Mussolini was planning an attack and trying to acquire Ethiopia, Adolf Hitler, the National Socialist German Workers Party leader offered support.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 16-20
16. Mussolini didn’t like Hitler initially. But Hitler’s constant support throughout gradually convinced him for an alliance with the Nazi Germany.
17. Hitler and Mussolini entered into a “Pact of Steel” on 22nd May, 1939.
18. Hitler’s constant success against Poland and France made Mussolini frustrated. He was not happy with the fact that Hitler used to keep all his military plans a secret.
19. Against Hitler’s advice, Mussolini announced an invasion in Greece in 1940.
20. Mussolini became the head of the Italian Social Republic in Northern Italy in 1943 by order of Hitler.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 21-25
21. Benito Mussolini was the Prime Minister of Italy from 1922 till 1943.
22. He married Ida Dalser in 1914. They had a son named Benito Albino Mussolini. But Benito again got married to Rachele Guidi, who was his mistress, in 1915. To save his political career and hide the information about his first marriage, both his first wife and son were persecuted. Mussolini had two daughters with Rachele Guidi.
23. Despite having a very aggressive childhood and not so brilliant educational background, he managed to be in the forefront due to an active involvement with the socialists.
24. Involvement with the socialists helped him get work as a writer and editor in many local socialist newspapers.
25. He was known for taking part in violent activities and calling for strikes to create changes in the system.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 26-30
26. When Benito was trying to come into the power, he used the secret police service and labor strikes to destroy the opposition parties.
27. He was the one who helped Italy come under one party dictatorship.
28. Benito Mussolini declared himself the dictator of Italy on January 3, 1925.
29. After becoming the prime minister of Italy, Benito wanted an empire for himself, which is why he decided to invade Ethiopia. It was the year 1935 when Italy finally attacked Ethiopia under his guidance.
30. Many European countries didn’t support Mussolini’s move during this time as the unexpected attack brought brutal incidences upon the residents. The only European country that supported Mussolini’s attack on Ethiopia was Germany.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 31-35
31. Hitler was a great admirer of Mussolini.
32. Mussolini had an alliance with Hitler, despite the fact that he didn’t like Hitler much.
33. In 1925, a law was passed that altered Mussolini’s formal title to “head of the government”. As per the new law, Mussolini was no longer responsible to Parliament anymore and could only be removed from his position by the king.
34. During his regime, Mussolini formed many constructive programs and took initiatives to help Italy come out of a stagnant economy.
35. Benito Mussolini also initiated the “Battle for Land” policy that was based on land reclamation.
Benito Mussolini Facts: 36-40
36. He tried to fight the economic recession by starting the “Gold for the Fatherland” initiative. This initiative was meant for encouraging the citizens to donate jewelries like necklace and earrings voluntarily to the Government. In exchange for that, they were given a steel wristband engraved with the words “Gold for the Fatherland”.
37. Mussolini was an opportunist. He figured out ways to change foreign policies in favor of the country’s economic development.
38. Mussolini’s strong personality and thirst for success helped Italy emerge as a great European power.
39. Mussolini also tried to have Government control over the businesses. Mussolini claimed to have a control over the three quarters of Italian business by 1935.
40. Benito Mussolini was shot dead by Walter Audisio. Audisio was ordered by the National Liberation Committee to kill Mussolini.
Sources…