Fascist San Marino. Dwarf's contribution to the mid-century European trend
Europe is desperately trying to erase its own and from its public memory history. The sign of tolerance blinks in such an unbearably bright light, and equating Stalin with Hitler is so obvious that it seems that Europe has always been and remains just a flower bed of dandelions, despite all the “humanitarian” bombing, trafficking in human organs and exploitation of less prosperous regions, starting from Africa and ending with asia. However, the facts are stubborn things, and no matter how hard the European authorities try to blame the Nazi Chancellor, in reality in Europe 30's and 40's there was virtually no country that did not divide the Nazis to one degree or another views and did not drive alternative political forces underground.
This all-encompassing tendency, which the Soviet soldier has finished, is especially noticeable in the example of states that did not play a big role in world politics and are quite capable of maintaining neutrality in the bloody world massacre precisely because of their insignificance. But they did not. The Republic of San Marino was one of such countries, but it was possible to call it a republic at that time with a stretch of the eye and with closed eyes.
San Marino is considered the oldest republic of Europe with a territory of only 61 square kilometer. On all sides, the country is surrounded by Italy and does not even have, and did not have, its own currency, although the republic minted San Marin lyres for some periods of its existence, but they were of real value only to numismatists. In general, the republic is a kind of tourist cafe, cozy and family-friendly, far from social upheaval and not of major strategic interest.
In the 20-ies of the last century in this "boarding house" in northern Italy, the San Marino Fascist Party. The founder of this party was by no means a marginal person, but a respected participant in the First World War, an officer with an incomplete higher education from the University of Bologna from a noble family Giuliano Gozzi. Gozzi was a native of San Marino, who quit the prestigious university to volunteer to join the San Marino squad of “Italian brothers”. After receiving the lieutenant rank, Giuliano participated in the suppression of anti-war rallies in Turin and Caporeto in Italy. From the front, Gozzi returned the order bearer. He was even awarded the San Marino Silver Medal, but his appetites grew.
Already in April 1917, the under-graduate lawyer was appointed by the General Council of the Republic as the Minister of Foreign Affairs. And after some six years, he was elected one of the two captains regents of San Marino. True, the “vote” at that time was uncontested. According to the old tradition, regent captains should represent two competing political forces, but Gozzi quickly managed to twist this custom into an arc, and soon both regent captains were fascists. Despite the fact that the regents dominate for only six months, and Giuliano had to periodically resign from this post, all power in San Marino belonged to him. In addition, he did not abandon the post of head of the Foreign Ministry, and soon took up the position of Minister of the Interior.
The San Marin Fascist Party (TFP) completely copied the fascist party of Italy, and Mussolini was the idol of Gozzi. Therefore, in the 1926 year, San Marino in fact as a republic ceased to exist. Gozzi and his thugs banned the activities of all other political parties. The first to be banned, of course, was the Socialist Party of San Marino. The persecution of opponents has reached such a scale that the socialists and other representatives of opposition parties to the fascists fled the country.
As expected under the fascist dictatorship, persecution of alternative publications began, and the party newspaper Sammarinsky People took the lead. Gozzi, who came from an old family, placed in all places the natives of his family, who quickly became representatives of the local oligarchy, because their entrepreneurial interests were represented in almost all of Northern Italy. To strengthen its position, the TFP even passed its new electoral law, which vested only San Marino homeowners with suffrage.
The number of discriminatory laws over the twenty-year rule of the Nazis grew from year to year. In the 1928 year, the Nazis were born another bill, according to which a resident of San Marino, who married a foreigner, lost the citizenship of the "republic". At the same time, against the background of an increase in the percentage of votes cast for fascists in formal elections, the number of San Marino citizens themselves was decreasing. They fled from repression.
Giuliano Gozzi, of course, tried in no way to lag behind his idol Mussolini and also revered Hitler, but in the dwarf San Marino a weighty Jewish community could not be found. But this did not calm the anti-Semitic ardor of the miniature duce. Therefore, when the flywheel of the Holocaust was promoted in Italy and the Jews persecuted by the Nazis tried to find salvation, Gozzi refused to provide refugees with any shelter, referring to the decree "On Protection of the Race". True, it is worth noting that by the end of the war San Marino nevertheless began to accept Jewish refugees, but their number, thanks to the cannibalistic activities of the Nazis, became minimal, and the bloody concert was coming to an end.
Of course, according to all the traditions of the fascist dictatorship, Gozzi soon had a competitor. Also a fascist - Ezio Balducci. He organized his own fascist party wing in San Marino and began publishing the Voice of Titano newspaper. But there could be only one Duce, even in this village, so in 1933, using Italian connections and the hands of the Italian police, Gozzi put Balducci in jail. True, he was later released, but the fascist loser did not play a big role, although he retained the post of commander of the company of the fascist police. Meanwhile, the situation in the country was gradually deteriorating. To the safe and quiet "boarding house" all the consequences of the war began to roll - from bread cards to the "black market" with its wild prices.
On 25 of July 1943 of the year, the Italian Duce Mussolini was arrested, and on 27 of July the fascist party of Italy was officially dissolved. A few days later, San Marino was seized by massive anti-fascist rallies by their standards, the backbone of which was socialists. TFP crashed. For the first time in twenty years, a formally non-fascist government was formed in San Marino. In fact, nothing has changed, just the older comrades from Italy lost ground, and it was necessary to maneuver. In fact, despite the fact that the fascist party was “dissolved”, both regent captains, who so vehemently adhered to the principles of friendship with the Italian fascists, remained in place. True, still had to create an interim government until the next election.
On 12 of September, Benito Mussolini was liberated by the Germans, and soon the Duce put together in northern Italy a new fascist quasi-state - the Italian social republic, better known as the Republic of Salo. At the same time, large homeowners and wealthy citizens of San Marino remembered very well who created them privileged conditions, therefore, sensing the wind of change, the government of the "republic" again invited the fascists to the throne.
Already on 4 of January 1944 of the year, Gozzi, at the head of two thousand of his associates, formed a new party - the Fascist Republican Union of San Marino. By the 1 of April, the dictatorial system was completely reconstructed with a ban on the activities of any other party except the Nazi party. And, of course, the next flywheel of repression quickly crushed all the socialist leaders. However, this time the Nazis and those close to them acted more cunningly. They quickly realized that the regime in Italy did not have much time, so they declared the new government "coalition", stuffing the so-called independent members into it.
Soon, German Nazis entered the miniature San Marino, and Italian fascists drove into the light. In part, they used the formal neutral status of the “republic” for a respite, in part, they simply visited the bins of a tiny state. At the same time, Ezio Balducci tried to advance as an informal parliamentarian at the same time between Italians and British, his past did not bother anyone.
June 26, 1944 British aviationit was later reported that it mistakenly bombed San Marino, killing 63 civilians. The Nazis seized on this fact to strengthen their position. And it worked. Until the Allied invasion of San Marino, the Nazis ruled, and the day of the bombing was declared the day of national mourning. Until now, in San Marino, you can easily find a memorial to the victims of the only bombing of the republic during the war.
21 September 1944 year, the Anglo-American troops entered San Marino. The Nazis, according to an old good habit, quickly self-dissolve. And, again, according to an old habit, almost the same people who now became anti-fascists remained at their previous posts. There was no real persecution of the Nazis, except for the deprivation of some of their representatives state awards and official condemnation.
Modern San Marino is again becoming a small guesthouse for a relaxing holiday. Cobbled streets, cozy small cafes and coffee houses, ancient fortified walls with stones, the nobility and age of which are emphasized by moss, and, of course, a respectable zone of the euro. San Marino Army i.e. the whole hundred “fighters” dressed in feathers, most often appear in ceremonial events and entertain tourists.
But the attitude to his past even in this dwarf quiet European corner is very remarkable. So, Giuliano Gozzi is described as an ambiguous figure who truly loved San Marino. Crowds do not line up for his fascist views of repentance, which they suggest we do during the period of Stalin's rule.
Moreover, in 2014 in San Marino, an initiative was born to rename one of the suburbs in honor of Gozzi, but the authorities rejected this proposal under the pressure of socialists. And already in the 2015 year, Giuliano’s great-granddaughter, Paola Barbara Gozzi, presented in the circle of the first citizens of San Marino her book dedicated to her ancestor, entitled “Man of the Motherland”. The presentation was attended by representatives of the "military" circles and the local choir, who supported the gathering with vigorous singing.
San Marino
This all-encompassing tendency, which the Soviet soldier has finished, is especially noticeable in the example of states that did not play a big role in world politics and are quite capable of maintaining neutrality in the bloody world massacre precisely because of their insignificance. But they did not. The Republic of San Marino was one of such countries, but it was possible to call it a republic at that time with a stretch of the eye and with closed eyes.
San Marino - the rise of the fascist dictatorship
San Marino is considered the oldest republic of Europe with a territory of only 61 square kilometer. On all sides, the country is surrounded by Italy and does not even have, and did not have, its own currency, although the republic minted San Marin lyres for some periods of its existence, but they were of real value only to numismatists. In general, the republic is a kind of tourist cafe, cozy and family-friendly, far from social upheaval and not of major strategic interest.
In the 20-ies of the last century in this "boarding house" in northern Italy, the San Marino Fascist Party. The founder of this party was by no means a marginal person, but a respected participant in the First World War, an officer with an incomplete higher education from the University of Bologna from a noble family Giuliano Gozzi. Gozzi was a native of San Marino, who quit the prestigious university to volunteer to join the San Marino squad of “Italian brothers”. After receiving the lieutenant rank, Giuliano participated in the suppression of anti-war rallies in Turin and Caporeto in Italy. From the front, Gozzi returned the order bearer. He was even awarded the San Marino Silver Medal, but his appetites grew.
Giuliano Gozzi (something similar to Duce)
Already in April 1917, the under-graduate lawyer was appointed by the General Council of the Republic as the Minister of Foreign Affairs. And after some six years, he was elected one of the two captains regents of San Marino. True, the “vote” at that time was uncontested. According to the old tradition, regent captains should represent two competing political forces, but Gozzi quickly managed to twist this custom into an arc, and soon both regent captains were fascists. Despite the fact that the regents dominate for only six months, and Giuliano had to periodically resign from this post, all power in San Marino belonged to him. In addition, he did not abandon the post of head of the Foreign Ministry, and soon took up the position of Minister of the Interior.
Fascist puppet
The San Marin Fascist Party (TFP) completely copied the fascist party of Italy, and Mussolini was the idol of Gozzi. Therefore, in the 1926 year, San Marino in fact as a republic ceased to exist. Gozzi and his thugs banned the activities of all other political parties. The first to be banned, of course, was the Socialist Party of San Marino. The persecution of opponents has reached such a scale that the socialists and other representatives of opposition parties to the fascists fled the country.
The emblem of the fascist party of San Marino
As expected under the fascist dictatorship, persecution of alternative publications began, and the party newspaper Sammarinsky People took the lead. Gozzi, who came from an old family, placed in all places the natives of his family, who quickly became representatives of the local oligarchy, because their entrepreneurial interests were represented in almost all of Northern Italy. To strengthen its position, the TFP even passed its new electoral law, which vested only San Marino homeowners with suffrage.
The number of discriminatory laws over the twenty-year rule of the Nazis grew from year to year. In the 1928 year, the Nazis were born another bill, according to which a resident of San Marino, who married a foreigner, lost the citizenship of the "republic". At the same time, against the background of an increase in the percentage of votes cast for fascists in formal elections, the number of San Marino citizens themselves was decreasing. They fled from repression.
Giuliano Gozzi, of course, tried in no way to lag behind his idol Mussolini and also revered Hitler, but in the dwarf San Marino a weighty Jewish community could not be found. But this did not calm the anti-Semitic ardor of the miniature duce. Therefore, when the flywheel of the Holocaust was promoted in Italy and the Jews persecuted by the Nazis tried to find salvation, Gozzi refused to provide refugees with any shelter, referring to the decree "On Protection of the Race". True, it is worth noting that by the end of the war San Marino nevertheless began to accept Jewish refugees, but their number, thanks to the cannibalistic activities of the Nazis, became minimal, and the bloody concert was coming to an end.
Poster Convincing San Marino Neutrality. End of war
Of course, according to all the traditions of the fascist dictatorship, Gozzi soon had a competitor. Also a fascist - Ezio Balducci. He organized his own fascist party wing in San Marino and began publishing the Voice of Titano newspaper. But there could be only one Duce, even in this village, so in 1933, using Italian connections and the hands of the Italian police, Gozzi put Balducci in jail. True, he was later released, but the fascist loser did not play a big role, although he retained the post of commander of the company of the fascist police. Meanwhile, the situation in the country was gradually deteriorating. To the safe and quiet "boarding house" all the consequences of the war began to roll - from bread cards to the "black market" with its wild prices.
Fascism is gone, the fascists are left
On 25 of July 1943 of the year, the Italian Duce Mussolini was arrested, and on 27 of July the fascist party of Italy was officially dissolved. A few days later, San Marino was seized by massive anti-fascist rallies by their standards, the backbone of which was socialists. TFP crashed. For the first time in twenty years, a formally non-fascist government was formed in San Marino. In fact, nothing has changed, just the older comrades from Italy lost ground, and it was necessary to maneuver. In fact, despite the fact that the fascist party was “dissolved”, both regent captains, who so vehemently adhered to the principles of friendship with the Italian fascists, remained in place. True, still had to create an interim government until the next election.
On 12 of September, Benito Mussolini was liberated by the Germans, and soon the Duce put together in northern Italy a new fascist quasi-state - the Italian social republic, better known as the Republic of Salo. At the same time, large homeowners and wealthy citizens of San Marino remembered very well who created them privileged conditions, therefore, sensing the wind of change, the government of the "republic" again invited the fascists to the throne.
Already on 4 of January 1944 of the year, Gozzi, at the head of two thousand of his associates, formed a new party - the Fascist Republican Union of San Marino. By the 1 of April, the dictatorial system was completely reconstructed with a ban on the activities of any other party except the Nazi party. And, of course, the next flywheel of repression quickly crushed all the socialist leaders. However, this time the Nazis and those close to them acted more cunningly. They quickly realized that the regime in Italy did not have much time, so they declared the new government "coalition", stuffing the so-called independent members into it.
Soon, German Nazis entered the miniature San Marino, and Italian fascists drove into the light. In part, they used the formal neutral status of the “republic” for a respite, in part, they simply visited the bins of a tiny state. At the same time, Ezio Balducci tried to advance as an informal parliamentarian at the same time between Italians and British, his past did not bother anyone.
Memorial to the victims of the only bombardment of the 1944 year
June 26, 1944 British aviationit was later reported that it mistakenly bombed San Marino, killing 63 civilians. The Nazis seized on this fact to strengthen their position. And it worked. Until the Allied invasion of San Marino, the Nazis ruled, and the day of the bombing was declared the day of national mourning. Until now, in San Marino, you can easily find a memorial to the victims of the only bombing of the republic during the war.
21 September 1944 year, the Anglo-American troops entered San Marino. The Nazis, according to an old good habit, quickly self-dissolve. And, again, according to an old habit, almost the same people who now became anti-fascists remained at their previous posts. There was no real persecution of the Nazis, except for the deprivation of some of their representatives state awards and official condemnation.
The Ambiguous San Marino
Modern San Marino is again becoming a small guesthouse for a relaxing holiday. Cobbled streets, cozy small cafes and coffee houses, ancient fortified walls with stones, the nobility and age of which are emphasized by moss, and, of course, a respectable zone of the euro. San Marino Army i.e. the whole hundred “fighters” dressed in feathers, most often appear in ceremonial events and entertain tourists.
"Army" San Marino
But the attitude to his past even in this dwarf quiet European corner is very remarkable. So, Giuliano Gozzi is described as an ambiguous figure who truly loved San Marino. Crowds do not line up for his fascist views of repentance, which they suggest we do during the period of Stalin's rule.
Moreover, in 2014 in San Marino, an initiative was born to rename one of the suburbs in honor of Gozzi, but the authorities rejected this proposal under the pressure of socialists. And already in the 2015 year, Giuliano’s great-granddaughter, Paola Barbara Gozzi, presented in the circle of the first citizens of San Marino her book dedicated to her ancestor, entitled “Man of the Motherland”. The presentation was attended by representatives of the "military" circles and the local choir, who supported the gathering with vigorous singing.
Information