Public Cheers, Confidential Showdown
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chapter 5 Public Cheers, Confidential Showdown 5.1 ‘Hit the Pope and You Die’ On 9 January 1938 over sixty archbishops and bishops of Italian dioceses, together with some two thousand parish priests and other clergy, gathered in Rome to be received by Mussolini.1 They were the ecclesiastics who had re- ceived prizes in the almost decade-long activity of the national grain competi- tion, held by the periodical Italia e Fede, under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forests and the standing committee for grain.2 Gathered in the Aula Magna of the Collegio Romano, they approved an order of the day express- ing gratitude and devotion to the Duce, ‘founder of the Empire’. They then pro- cessed to the Victor Emanuel II Monument to pay homage to the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, to the altar of those who had fallen for the Revolution, and to the memorial of Arnaldo Mussolini on the Campidoglio. At the end of these rites, held in an atmosphere of devotion and prayer, the ecclesiastics entered the Palazzo Venezia (Mussolini’s headquarters) from its main entrance on the Via del Plebiscito, where they were received by a guard of honor, and escorted to the audience hall in the Sala Regia. It was just short of midday: Mussolini – we read in La Stampa – had left them the time, “with delicate thoughtfulness”, to recite a prayer before his arrival.3 When the head of the government finally made his entrance, they greeted him with a standing ovation and, with arms raised in the Roman salute, hailed him with the acclamation: “Duce! Duce! Duce!”. A speech given by the Archbishop of Udine, Monsignor Giuseppe Nogara, followed. He reminded everyone of the importance and success of the Battle for Grain, the great contribution made by priests in the autarchic movement,4 the many merits of Mussolini for having finally re-established im- perial Italy and for having placed the Catholic religion at the center of civil life: 1 “L’udienza ai sessanta Vescovi e ai duemila Parroci”, La Stampa (10 January 1938). 2 On the Battle for Grain see supra, Chapter 4, 170–171. A contemporary report of the imposing gathering of Italian bishops and priests can also be found in G. de’ Rossi dell’Arno, Pio xi e Mus- solini, Roma: Corso, 1954, 138–145, and in S. Maggi, “Nazione Cattolica”, L’Italia (11 January 1938). 3 L’udienza ai sessanta Vescovi e ai duemila Parroci, cit. 4 The autarchic movement in agriculture was aimed at food self-sufficiency. Introduced in 1934, autarchy, or the pursuit of self-sufficiency, was one of the seven pillars of the Fascist political economy. © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, ���7 | doi �0.��63/97890043�879�_007 <UN> Public Cheers, Confidential Showdown 207 You, Your Excellency, have understood that Religion is of capital impor- tance in the life of a people: that the Church of Christ possesses a divine virtue, whose beneficent effects are felt in every branch of human activ- ity. Therefore, now that outdated and pernicious prejudices have been overcome, you have, ever since the start of your government, given due importance to spiritual values with perspicacity of view and firmness of intent; you have forged amicable relations with the Holy See and with the Papacy; you have shown consideration and respect for Religion and the Church. In this way you have secured the admiration of all men of good will. You have won the devotion of Catholics. You have ensured their collaboration.5 Nogara then recalled the “many proofs” offered by this collaboration in the six- teen years of the Fascist Era: from “victory in the battle for grain” to the autar- chic movement and the conquest of the Empire. Referring in conclusion to the war in Spain, he prayed that the Lord might grant to Mussolini a victory in all his battles “for the prosperity, greatness and glory of Christian Italy, and of this Rome which is the center of Christianity and capital of Imperial Italy”. Even more energetic was the following blessing invoked by don Menossi on behalf of the “priests of Italy”: Your Excellency, the priests of Italy invoke, and shall continue to invoke, the Lord’s blessing and a personal aureole of Roman wisdom and virtue on your person, on your work as the restorer of Italy and Founder of the Empire, and on the Fascist Government. Duce! The ministers of Christ and fathers of the rural population de- voutly pay tribute to you. They bless you. They swear fidelity to you. With spiritual enthusiasm, with the voice and heart of the people, we cry: Hail to the Duce!6 The ecclesiastics gathered in the Sala Regia could not contain their jubila- tion. They shouted out the Fascist slogan “A noi!”.7 Their applause culminated in the acclamation “Duce! Duce!” when Mussolini began to speak. The head of the government thanked his audience and emphasized that what was taking place was “an extremely important meeting and one that was unprecedented 5 “I sacerdoti a Palazzo Venezia”, La Stampa (10 January 1938). 6 Ibid. 7 “A noi!”: abbreviation of the rhetorical question: “Whose is the victory? Whose is the glory? Ours!”. <UN>.