The point of this page is to provide, for people of my generation or later, some increasingly-needed context for reading and understanding the Don Camillo stories. Now, I already hear you asking, "Does one really need to know much about 20th-century Italian history in order to enjoy Guareschi's writing?" And the answer is, on one level, "of course not." It is precisely the transcendent, universal quality of the stories and their message that make the Little World stories so attractive all these years after their original publication.

On the other hand, the Don Camillo stories are not set in a fantasy world merely analogous to this one. Post-war Italy was a real place in a real time, Communism was and is an actual ideology, and Soviet domination was a genuine threat for a European country with a strong Communist party in the 1950's... and, of course, the Christianity at the heart of the stories is a faith that claims to be rooted in historical events. When Don Camillo was written, he was "current events," and therefore I think it can add something to one's appreciation of the stories when one knows a little about the circumstances in which they were written and set.

And if you have to read the stories in English, chances are you didn't get much of this in school.

So, then, here's a quick summary of what I've managed to find out about Northern Italy in the years just before and after WWII. Those who know more and who notice errors or important omissions in what follows should contact me so I can correct them.

Foundation: Italy did not become a united political entity (i.e., a single country occupying that whole boot-shaped peninsula, more or less as we think of it today) until late 1870. A discussion of exactly how that happened is beyond the scope of this page, but if you look up the names Giuseppe Mazzini, Giuseppe Garibaldi, Camillo Cavour, and Victor Emmanuel II (or the term Risorgimento) you will pick up the important bits (this page contains a decent summary). For us, it will suffice to begin with the observation that in 1871 almost all Italians were living under the government of an Italian king with his capital in Rome. This was a constitutional monarchy with a Parliament-style legislature.

Fascism: Now fast-forward 50 years, to the period immediately following WWI. Italy fought with the Allies in that war; however, to the disappointment of many, being on the winning side did not seem to have gained the country many benefits. Taking advantage of the political instability in those few years after the war, ex-Socialist Benito Mussolini and his newly formed Fascist Party arose, gained some seats in Parliament, and finally made a great show of strength on October 28, 1922 by assembling 40,000 members and Marching on Rome. Two days later, King Victor Emmanuel III, perceiving himself as having little other choice, named Mussolini Prime Minister of Italy.
     Over the next four years, Mussolini consolidated his power. When his own party obtained a majority in Parliament, he abolished the other political parties. Civil liberties were squashed and the Fascists governed as a totalitarian regime. There was strict censorship and a "police state" mentality with respect to any who opposed the government. Despite this, the Fascists enjoyed widespread support in Italy, and an eventual agreement with the Catholic Church (the Lateran Treaty of 1929) increased the consensus among the general public. Programs of social and economic reform were undertaken at home, while to increase Italy's prestige abroad there was an attempt at colonial expansion (into Ethiopia, for instance, in the mid-30's). Italy supported Franco in the Spanish Civil War, and was the first nation to formally recognize the Soviet Union. Gradually, however, relations with other European countries deteriorated and links with Hitler's Germany increased.

War and Resistance: In 1936, Hitler and Mussolini formed the Rome-Berlin Axis; a further pact in 1939 insured Italy's participation in WWII. It was an unsuccessful war for Italy from the outset, and in September 1943 Mussolini was ousted by his own party and replaced with Marshall Pietro Badoglio, who immediately signed a cease-fire with the Allies. The Nazis, however, formed an opposition government under Mussolini in Salò in the north, the so-called Repubblica Sociale Italiana. This meant civil war-- so that Italy, though withdrawn from WWII, was once again engulfed in strife. Resistance groups (some rivals to each other but all in opposition to Fascism) were formed, and a combination of the efforts of these partisans and the intervention of the Allies was finally effective against the Germans and their puppet regime. Mussolini was brought down in the North, the War in Europe ended as the Nazis themselves were defeated, and a new beginning was possible for Italy.

After the War: Immediately following the War, a temporary coalition government was formed, involving all of the Parties which had opposed Mussolini. A 1946 referendum dealt a formal end to the monarchy (Victor Emmanuel III had already abdicated in favor of his son, Umberto II, who was the last king of Italy). The Republic of Italy was established, and its first proper elections held in 1948. The victorious Christian Democrat party, under Alcide de Gasperi, headed the first freely elected parliamentary government, and was in fact helped to power by Guareschi's work as a propagandist. The task of the new government-- the reconstruction of a devastated Italy after the War-- was a daunting one, but US aid under the Marshall Plan made a difference (as it did in other European countries, even Germany). Perceived as a threat by many were the Socialist and Communist parties, which though ostensibly "Italian" were closely tied to the Soviet Union (at this time headed by Stalin). Communism, however, enjoyed much popular support in Italy, particularly in the north, where many local governments were Communist. Still, the Christian Democrats remained in national power during the first two decades after the War, in the early 1960's inviting the Socialist Party (after it separated itself from the Communist Party) to share power.