Fascisti, Roma

Henry Rushbury

British printmaker Henry Rushbury documents an event that occurred in Rome in late October, 1922. He depicts a contingent of Blackshirts and fascists from Naples entering Rome, joining the fascists from other cities throughout Italy.

According to Wikipedia and other sites:

"The March on Rome (Italian: Marcia su Roma) was an organized mass demonstration in October 1922, which resulted in Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party (Partito Nazionale Fascista, or PNF) acceding to power in the Kingdom of Italy (Regno d'Italia).

In late October, 1922, Fascist Party leaders planned an insurrection, to take place on 28 October. When fascist troops entered Rome, Prime Minister Luigi Facta wished to declare a state of siege, but this was overruled by King Victor Emmanuel III. On the following day, 29 October 1922, the King appointed Mussolini as Prime Minister, thereby transferring political power to the fascists without armed conflict."

The March on Rome was not the conquest of power that Mussolini later called it but rather a transfer of power within the framework of the constitution, a transfer made possible by the surrender of public authorities in the face of fascist intimidation.