It is clear that the liberal government were accountable for Italy's post war difficulties to some extent.
There is evidence to support the idea that they were to some extent to blame for Italy's post-war inflation, social and political unrest as result of their ineffective management of the economic,political and social situation. However, there were other contributing factors to Italy's post-war problems. Firstly, the liberals ineffectively dealt with the post-war economic crisis and by 1919 post war inflation caused the lira to lose half its value.In 1918 the national debt was 85 billion lire so in order to remedy the situation the Liberal government resorted to printing money. However, this solution only worsened the situation and as a consequence, inflation spiralled. As a result of the liberal government's actions both the middle class and the working class suffered.
Inflation destroyed the savings of the middle class and the latter being affected as a result of the purchasing power of their wages falling by around 25 per cent between 1915 and 1918.In addition, inflation provoked food riots which once again the Liberal government dealt ineffectively with by setting up food committees that requisitioned supplies and set prices. Furthermore, the Liberals ineffectively dealt with the situation of demobilised soldiers. The liberal government failed to provide jobs and as a consequence the was a rise in unemployment from 1920 as 2. 5m soldiers returned home.Furthermore, the Liberals failed to recompense the soldiers for their suffering and many felt bitterness and resentment towards the government as a result.
Therefore, it appears that the Liberal government was to blame to a large extent for Italy's post war economic difficulties. A further way in which the Liberal government was to blame for Italy's post war difficulties was as a result of them creating a climate in which Socialism and other extreme political parties could flourish.In an attempt to secure the support of those who had fought in the war in 1919 the Liberal government introduced universal male suffrage. Despite being an attempt by the Liberals to ally themselves with working class men and create a just and stable political system this extension was particularly beneficial to the Socialists.
In the elections of 1919 the first to be held under universal male suffrage, the Socialists swept through northern cities, securing 32. 4% of the national vote and winning 156 seats.Furthermore, as a consequence of the Liberals inability to deal with the economic, political and socials crises of post-war Italy wide spread dissatisfaction with the Liberal regime grew and consequently the appeal of socialism which was promising higher wages and and employment increased. This resulted in a wave of strikes in 1920 of agricultural workers in an attempt to force employers to improve workers' terms. However, the Liberal government cannot be entirely blamed for the rise in socialism and consequent strikes.The 1917 Soviet Revolution helped to inspire many socialists and the 1919 strikes were in solidarity with Soviet Russia.
Furthermore, the Liberal's response to the Socialist threat did little to either stem the unrest or pacify those on the right. Instead of using the power of the state to crush strikes and to harass Socialists, the Liberal government urged industrialists to make concessions to workers. The government were deemed by many on the right to be incompetent at dealing with the situation.Shopkeepers had been alienated in June 1919 as a result of an apparent government surrender to rioters who were protesting against the high price of food.
In addition,the Liberal politicians' solution to defeat the threat of extreme politics was to continue with the old methods of transformismo causing it to become a discredited parliamentary system. In addition, the Liberal government also faced territorial problems after the war which the government were partly accountable for.The failure of the Italian government to gain Dalmatia and Fuime was attributed by the Nationalists and the right as a result of Liberal incompetence. Furthermore, when D'Annunzio seized Fiume the Liberal government did nothing.
Therefore,it appears that the Liberal government were to the great extent to blame for Italy's post war difficulties. Their ineffective management of the post-war economic crisis resulted in inflation and consequent unemployment.In addition, the Liberal's created a climate of political disaffection in which extreme political parties could flourish. However, this cannot be entirely attributed to the Liberal regime as it was also following a general pattern in Europe at the time. Though, once socialism had established itself the Liberal's ineffectively dealt with the threat, instead of offering Liberalism as a credible alternative they alienated both the left and the right and returned to its transformismo politics causing it to become a discredited political party.
