Mutilated Victory Flashcards
(18 cards)
Who did Italy borrow money from?
Britain and USA
By 1919, how much was Italy in debt?
85 billion lire
What did the government still have to do and what did it lead to?
- Still had to print money and this lead to inflation
- Prices quadrupled and inflation destroyed savings
What did the purchasing power of wages of industrial workers fall by?
25%
Why did industrial disputes increase?
workers resented long hours and fall in wages `
How many took part in strikes in 1919?
over a million
What did membership of socialist trade unions go up by in 1920?
2 million
Who largely made up unemployment in 1919?
- returning soldiers
- unemployment had risen by 2 million
What did the PSI membership rise to by 1919?
200,000
How many seats had the PSI won in Nov 1919 election?
156 seats - this was now the single most largest party in Italy
Who was scared by the growing influence of the PSI?
the middle class, they were also disgusted by the lack of action liberals took against the socialist threat
What had peasants started doing in the countryside?
occupying unfarmed land claiming it for themselves and joining socialist trade unions
What happened at the Paris Peace Conference at Versailles in 1919?
- Orlando argued that they should be given all the territory Italy had been promised in the Treaty of London (Trentino, southern tyrol)
- USA, Britain and France did not see Italy as deserving “great power status”
- Italy’s claim for Fiume and much of treaty was rejected as Italy’s contributions to the war were limited
- Orlando walked out of conference so Italy gained little in final treaty
What did the Paris Peace Conference show?
- Weakness of liberal government
- It’s lack of “great power”
- 650,000 Italians died for no reason
Why did nationalists want Fiume?
it had 50% of Italian speaking population
What happened on September 12 1919?
- D’Annunzio took 2000 men, made up of ex-soldiers, students, patriots and seized port of Fiume
How did the government react to the occupation of Fiume?
failed to react for 15 months and removed the occupying forces on Christmas day 1920
What could have Mussolini learnt from the occupation of Fiume?
- success could be achieved through violent and destructive action
- Power and popularity of assertive nationalism
