Italian Socialist Republic

**Italian Socialist Republic** (Italian: Repubblica Socialista Italiana), commonly known as Italy, is a socialist republic located in southern Europe. Its capital is Rome.

## **History**

### **The Italian Socialist Party and Great War**

When Great War broke out, Italy initially declared neutrality. The Socialist Party also initially advocated against the war, but Mussolini's faction, driven by ideas of nationalism, anti-clericalism, and the transformation of the war into a revolution, supported starting a war with Austria. This led to a split in the Socialist Party, but to avoid weakening the party through the expulsion of reformists, Mussolini himself was not expelled.

Subsequently, Italy entered the war, signing a secret agreement with France in exchange for territorial concessions known as the "unredeemed Italy." However, this unplanned entry into the war exposed problems such as inadequate administration, infrastructure, and agricultural investment. Severe shortages of goods led to a decline in the standard of living for the populace and a decrease in military morale. As a result, Italy suffered a major defeat in the Battle of Caporetto against Austria, which expanded support for revolution and anti-war movements. This led to the emergence of Triati as a popular figure tasked with the party's restructuring.

After Great War, during the peace conference, Italy gained territorial acquisitions in South Tyrol and the Istrian Peninsula. However, due to Russia's insistence on returning Illyria to Serbia from a pan-Slavic perspective, Fiume and Dalmatia were not obtained.

### **The Italian Revolution**

The people of Italy, who had suffered significant losses during Great War, lost faith in the liberal monarchy government, and labor strikes became common, especially in the industrialized northern regions. In the 1919 elections, the Socialist Party made significant gains and became the leading party. However, conservative and centrist factions with influence in politics isolated the Socialist Party, preventing it from taking power. As a result, voices advocating for an armed revolutionary path within the party grew, and even Mussolini's faction, which had been in conflict with the party, supported this path, leading to the unification of the Socialist Party around the maximalist agenda.

In 1922, when the government decided to use military force to suppress a large-scale strike demanding the formation of a Socialist Party-led cabinet, rebellion spread nationwide. Gramsci secured support from Germany, and some factions within the dissatisfied military defected, resulting in the occupation of key government facilities. As a result, the monarchy government fled to Sardinia, and Gramsci declared the establishment of the Italian Socialist Republic.

### **The Gramsci Government**

The Gramsci government worked on consolidating and dismantling government institutions, public infrastructure development, unemployment relief through public investment, education reforms to improve educational standards and spread revolutionary ideas. In terms of foreign policy, it sought closer ties with the Rhete Germany and signed a trade agreement with Germany.

Regaining domestic stability and expanding support, the Gramsci government reached its peak by promoting industrialization policies and strengthening its power base. However, these policies faced criticism. Industrialization policies exacerbated the north-south divide, and Gramsci's power consolidation led to discord among the various factions that had shared the goal of revolution.

The Bordiga faction advocated for party discipline, victory in the class struggle against the southern bourgeoisie through a centralized party, and demanded strong leadership based on orthodox Marxism, leading to a confrontation with Gramsci. On the other hand, the Mussolini faction, from the perspective of national syndicalism, advocated for corporatism and criticized Gramsci's policies for causing domestic division.

To avoid Catholic resentment, the republican government struggled with its response, and the presence of the Mafia remained a concern, leaving Italy with lingering sources of unrest.