INTRODUCTION TO THE EXHIBIT
Rome: from Fascism to Liberation
"Rome is our point of departure and reference. It is our symbol or, if you wish, our myth. We dream of a Roman Italy, that is to say wise, strong, disciplined, and imperial. Much of that which was the immortal spirit of Rome rises again in Fascism: the Fasces are Roman; our organization of combat is Roman, our pride and our courage is Roman: Civis romanus sum. It is necessary, now, that the history of tomorrow, the history we fervently wish to create, not be a contrast or a parody of the history of yesterday. The Romans were not only warriors, but formidable builders who could challenge, as they did challenge, their time." [1] – Benito Mussolini, 1922
Il Duce Rises to Power
King Victor Emmanuel III appointed Benito Mussolini as the Prime Minister of Italy just six months after the man who would come to be called Il Duce delivered this speech. On October 28, 1922 a crowd of Mussolini's Fascist supporters, clad in their infamous black shirts, assembled on the outskirts of Rome and triumphantly marched into the city in the 'March on Rome.'
This dramatic ascension to power marked the beginning of two decades of Fascist rule in Italy and led to a radical transformation of the city of Rome.
Mussolini's dream initiated a concerted effort to reconstruct the physical landscape of Rome in accordance with Fascist ideology. The goal of this effort was to transform Rome into a mythical city that would both anchor fascism in history and link fascism to the future.
[1] Benito Mussolini, speech delivered April 22, 1922, quoted in Painter, p. 3
PHOTO: A crowd gathers outside of Palazzo Venezia, beneath the iconic balcony from which Il Duce addressed the nation.
PHOTO: A relief commissioned by Mussolini holds a foundational image of him. Located in the EUR district of Rome. Photo credit: Jessica Fisk, 2014.
The Fascist Footprint
Although little of Rome was left untouched during Mussolini's reign, a tourist today would take little notice of the city’s fascist history.
The museums of Rome rarely include space to memorialize the architectural and historical imprint of fascism. Even Villa Torlonia, Mussolini's home from 1925 to 1943, spares only a small corner for recognizing its most famous occupant. In the Museum della Sacra Bandiera, a museum in the Il Vittoriano monument which celebrates Italian military history, the Fascist military interventions in Ethiopia and Spain are skipped, and military actions from 1940-1943 only include one reference to a war with the Soviet Union.
However, the traces of Rome's fascist past still lie scattered throughout the Italian capital. Vestiges of the fascist regime can be found alongside the ancient ruins, Renaissance masterpieces, and modern creations that define Rome's political and cultural heritage. From stylized fasces imprinted in the base of streetlights to the broad Vias crisscrossing the Eternal City – and to still-standing monuments honoring Il Duce himself – fascism's mark on Rome is far from lost. These visible, physical remnants of fascism are reminders of the infamous and influential fascist chapter in Rome's living, breathing history.
Please join us in our quest to document these historical remnants as we embark on this ongoing digital research exhibit.
And now, we would like to present:
Rome: from Fascism to Liberation.
A Changing Capital
The excavation of and rebuilding of Rome that Mussolini inspired led to the destruction of parts of the city, the erection of new monuments, exposure of ancient sites, and the construction of new roads. The quickly changing physical structure of Rome integrated ancient imperial power and the promise of a modern and innovative world. Two objectives, necessity and greatness, drove this reshaping of Rome.
Necessity required Rome to adapt to its new role as a modern capital city "worthy of its glory."[1] Opening up the cityscape created space for modern automobiles to race through the ruins of the ancient empire, linking Rome’s past to the present and future. Apartment buildings of the 19th century were torn down to create the space, but they were replaced by modernized housing on the outskirts of the city.
Greatness, on the other hand, consisted of transforming the city with an eye toward grandeur and spectacle, which united modern, fascist Rome with its ancient imperial past. Together these objectives explain the many architectural changes that occurred under the Fascist regime. [2]
[1] Jan Nelis, “Constructing Fascist Identity: Benito Mussolini and the Myth of ‘Romanità’”. The Classical World 100.4 (2007), 410.
[2] Nelis, “Contructing Fascist Identity”, 410.
PHOTO, LEFT: The DUX obelisk, celebrating Il Duce himself, in the Foro Mussolini, Rome. Today the Foro has been renamed the Foro Italico, but the DUX obelisk still stands as a reminder of the sport complex's original identity. Photo by Avery Enderle Wagner, 2014.