Mussolini's early life

Picture
young Mussolini
        Benito Mussolini was born in 1883. His mother was a dedicated teacher in the school system with strong Roman Catholic values. His father was an anarchist, a socialist, a nationalist and a blacksmith by trade.

        Mussolini gained experience in the blacksmith field while apprenticing with his father but his mother sent him to a boarding school to receive an education. Benito was a natural student and did very well in school. However, The school contributed little to assuage his resentment against society. Mussolini was described as " a boy who did not shed tears and rarely laughed, who spoke little and liked his own company, who preferred reading to playing with others." His studious behavior soon faded and Mussolini was kicked out of school for poor behavior that included stabbing a classmate in the hand. His father then sent him to the Collegio Giosue Carducci in Forlimpopoli. After graduation Mussolini was qualified as an elementary schoolmaster and became a temporary elementary school teacher in Gualtieri near Parma in the Po valley. The job conferred a certain status but it was poorly paid. Before long, Mussolini decided to go to Switzerland where he expected to pursue socialism. In Switzerland, he spent lots of time studying Marx and Machiavelli and became active in the Italian socialist movement in Switzerland, working for the paper L'Avvenire del Lavoratore, organizing meetings, giving speeches to workers and serving as secretary. As a result, he wasn't able to keep a job and ended up being deported back to his home country where he volunteered for two years of service with the military. After serving for two years in the military (from January 1905 until September 1906), he returned to teaching. Benito Mussolini seems to have an ordinary life, but how did he rise to power? Well, we will explore that next.