This essay compares the paths Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini took to seize power in Germany and Italy, respectively. It examines how each leader exploited post-World War One political instability, manipulated democratic institutions, and concentrated authority into dictatorial rule. The paper highlights key differences — notably Mussolini's open declaration of dictatorial intent versus Hitler's more deceptive approach — while identifying shared tactics such as intimidation, revolutionary rhetoric, and opposition to the post-war peace treaties. The role of the Great Depression in accelerating Hitler's rise, and its relative irrelevance to Mussolini's earlier consolidation of power, is also discussed.
The rises of Adolf Hitler in Germany and Benito Mussolini in Italy represent two of the most studied examples of fascism's emergence in the twentieth century. While both men exploited post-World War One instability to dismantle democratic norms and concentrate power, the methods, timing, and transparency of their ascents differed in important ways.
Hitler essentially seized power in Germany. The National Socialist Party was losing support among the people, and the German political system in general was in shambles. There were frequent elections, with no party able to establish a majority. Hitler made a deal with the 85-year-old President von Hindenburg to form a coalition. Hitler would serve as Chancellor under this arrangement. The coalition was formed on January 30, 1933. One of the key characteristics of this coalition was that von Hindenburg was among many in Germany who were distrustful of democracy — the people were largely unused to it at the time (Hawley, 2008).
There was an election later that year in Germany, with the Nazis taking 43.9% of the vote. By the time parliament was called into session following that election, however, the Nazi Party had jailed, exiled, or otherwise intimidated 107 representatives of the other major parties — the Social Democrats and the Communists (Hawley, 2008). The Nazis opted not to recognize the 81 Communist seats, and by this point they had effective control of the parliamentary session. The Nazis promptly stripped parliament of its power, concentrating authority in Hitler's hands (Hawley, 2008); this occurred on March 23, 1933. Hitler made the concentration of his power official in the summer of 1934 when he abolished the presidency and created the position of Führer (Hawley, 2008).
Mussolini's approach was somewhat different. When he returned after World War One, he called for a dictator to rule over Italy, which was politically fractured. Mussolini felt that a dictatorship would allow for a more unified form of governance. He began immediately with a campaign of terror in 1919, directing physical beatings against socialists and communists in Milan. He declared his intention to rule Italy personally in public speeches — something Hitler was hesitant to do in Germany. In 1924, Mussolini called an election and intimidated his way to a majority mandate. He openly embraced his fascist doctrine and even adopted the term totalitarian — originally used by his opponents to describe his rule — as his own (CRF, 2010).
For the most part, there were significant differences between how these men rose to power. Mussolini was relatively transparent about his desire for absolute power over Italy, repeatedly and publicly making his case for dictatorship. In the end, he worked hard to consolidate power, manifesting the mandate he had always spoken about. Hitler was more deceptive, not revealing his intentions for dictatorship until he had already concentrated power. Hawley (2008) argues that a vote for the Nazi Party in the early 1930s was essentially a protest vote against the establishment parties, rather than a firm endorsement of Hitler's agenda. There were frequent elections, and no real evidence that Hitler campaigned as Mussolini did on an explicit policy of dictatorship.
"Shared revolutionary origins and anti-treaty politics"
"Depression fueled Hitler's rise; irrelevant to Mussolini"
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