Alessandro Mussolini (11 November 1854 – 19 November 1910) was the father of Italian Fascist founder and leader

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

, the father of Arnaldo and Edvige Mussolini, the father-in-law of

Rachele Mussolini Rachele Guidi (11 April 1890 – 30 October 1979), also known (particularly in Italy) as Donna Rachele (Italian for "Lady Rachael") and incorrectly as Rachele Mussolini in the English-speaking world, was the second wife of Italian dictator and ...

, and the paternal grandfather of

Edda Mussolini Edda Ciano, Countess of Cortellazzo and Buccari (''née'' Mussolini; 1 September 1910 – 9 April 1995) was the daughter of Benito Mussolini, Italy's fascist dictator from 1922 to 1943. Her husband, the fascist propagandist and Foreign Minister ...

, Romano Mussolini,

Vittorio Mussolini Vittorio Mussolini (27 September 1916 – 12 June 1997) was an Italian film critic and producer. He was also the second child of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. However, he was the first officially acknowledged son of Mussolini, with his secon ...

and Bruno Mussolini. He was an Italian

revolutionary socialist Revolutionary socialism is a political philosophy, doctrine, and tradition within socialism that stresses the idea that a social revolution is necessary to bring about structural changes in society. More specifically, it is the view that revoluti ...

activist with

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...

sympathies.Gregor, Anthony James. ''Young Mussolini and the intellectual origins of fascism''. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California, US; London, England, UK: University of California Press, 1979. Pp. 29 Mussolini was a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

by profession.Roberts, Jeremy. ''Benito Mussolini''. A & E; Twenty-First Century Books, 2006. Pp. 10. He was married to

Rosa Maltoni Rosa Maltoni (married Mussolini; 22 April 1858 – 19 February 1905) was the mother of Italian Fascist founder and leader Benito Mussolini, the mother of Arnaldo and Edvige Mussolini, the mother-in-law of Rachele Mussolini and the paternal grand ...

, a schoolteacher, who became the mother of Benito Mussolini, and exercised considerable influence over his son Benito's early political beliefs, even naming his son Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini after three leaders he admired: Benito Juárez, Amilcare Cipriani and Andrea Costa.

Personal life

On 25 January 1882, Mussolini married

, a schoolteacher and Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic.Haugen, Brenda. ''Benito Mussolini: Fascist Italian Dictator''. Minneapolis, Minnesota, US: Compass Point Books, 2007. Pp. 15. Unlike his wife, Mussolini did not believe in God and hated the Roman Catholic Church.Haugen, Brenda. ''Benito Mussolini: Fascist Italian Dictator''. Minneapolis, Minnesota, US: Compass Point Books, 2007. Pp. 16. Maltoni's father looked down upon her decision to marry Mussolini and did not approve of the marriage. In 1883, Maltoni gave birth to their first son,

. Benito helped his father at the forge where Alessandro Mussolini worked as a blacksmith. Mussolini and his son Benito were close. He taught his son about revolutionary leaders he admired such as Karl Marx. Mussolini experienced a number of personal troubles; he had difficulty in finding employment and became an alcoholic.

Political activism and views

Mussolini entered politics in 1873 at the age of nineteen as a revolutionary socialist militant. In 1874, Mussolini took part in political disturbances in Predappio, Italy. Mussolini became a member of local government and was known by authorities for controversy and political violence against opponents. Mussolini was ill-tempered towards his opponents and in 1878, police warned Mussolini to cease threatening his opponents with the destruction of their property. He was arrested in 1878 on the suspicion of taking part in revolutionary activities and remained under house arrest until authorities released him in 1882 so that he could attend his marriage to Rosa Maltoni. Mussolini believed that the government should control the mode of production, that working conditions needed to be improved, and supported the creation of a society run by the working-class. Mussolini held Italian nationalist sentiments and idolized Italian nationalist figures with socialist or Humanism, humanist tendencies such as Carlo Pisacane, Giuseppe Mazzini and Giuseppe Garibaldi. Alessandro Mussolini's political outlook combined the views of Anarchism, anarchist figures like Carlo Cafiero and Mikhail Bakunin, the military authoritarianism of Garibaldi, and the nationalism of Mazzini.Gregor, Anthony James. ''Young Mussolini and the intellectual origins of fascism''. Berkeley and Los Angeles, California, US; London, England, UK: University of California Press, 1979. Pp. 31.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mussolini, Alessandro Italian socialists 1854 births 1910 deaths Italian atheists Italian blacksmiths Mussolini family, Alessandro