Western Civilization II / Unit 16 WC2 1507 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Blackshirts and the March on Rome, 1922
Captions available
The idea
The Blackshirts, squads of veterans, broke strikes, beat communists, wrecked newspapers and intimidated voters while police looked away and business paid. In October nineteen twenty-two Victor Emmanuel III, fearing bloodshed, appointed Mussolini prime minister; the March on Rome that followed was staged theater.
In practice
Mussolini arrived by train after the appointment.
Where people slip
The king "weak-willed" is the anchor's verdict.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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