Benito Mussolini was born in Predappio, Romagna on July 29, 1883 to Alessandro and Rosa Mussolini. He grew up to try to become a schoolteacher. After becoming qualified in 1901, Mussolini left Italy for Switzerland. He was arrested and deported for vagrancy, since he couldn’t find a job. Benito Mussolini found an opening in the Trento newspaper in Austria, and was accepted in 1908.
Two years later, Benito Mussolini joined the local socialist party, where he became the secretary. In 1911, Mussolini was arrested for spreading anti-patriot propaganda. He became the editor of another socialist newspaper in Milan after being released.
At the beginning of World War I, Mussolini agreed that Italy shouldn’t enter the war, but in November 1914, Mussolini formed a fascist group and a newspaper. When Italy entered the war, Benito Mussolini entered and was wounded during grenade practice and returns to his newspapers. In October 1922, Mussolini was allowed to form a government.
Three years after the government is formed, Mussolini became a dictator and dissolved all political parties. Italy became a police state, with him as the head of the militia as well as the Fascist regime. People couldn’t practice journalism without a license, and teachers had to swear allegiance to the Fascist party. In 1932, the Vatican recognized the Italian state as a Roman Catholic region.
Shortly afterwards, the government also integrated the businesses into a corporate system that was mainly controlled by Mussolini himself. In 1933, Mussolini ordered the shelling of Corfa, starting the Italian age of imperialism. He tried to maintain Austrian independence by setting up an anti-Hitler front, but was forced to ally with him or face a war alone against the League of Nations.
In 1938, Austria was annexed by Hitler. In May of 1939, Benito Mussolini signed the Pact of Steel with Germany. After the signing of the pact, Mussolini followed the Nazi ideals, causing Jewish persecution in Italy as well.
Italian forces were unprepared for World War II, but declared war on June 1940. One year later, Mussolini and Hitler declared war on Russia, followed by the United States in December, after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
On July 25, 1943, Benito Mussolini was arrested after losing much of the land that had been gained in the war. The German Wehrmacht rescued him a few months later. The former Italian dictator was placed in charge of a puppet government, which he used as revenge when Mussolini executed the Fascist leaders that had abandoned him, including his own son-in-law. The blame for the losing war fell on the Italian people, but Mussolini wouldn’t see the end of World War II. Before Benito Mussolini could flee to Switzerland, the Italian people caught and executed him in April 1945.
Benito Mussolini set up one of the most feared dictatorships in Italy’s history. After his death, Mussolini’s wife, two sons, and a daughter were all left to take care of themselves.
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