Liberalism and radicalism in Italy

Last updated

Liberalism and radicalism have played a role in the political history of Italy since the country's unification, started in 1861 and largely completed in 1871, and currently influence several leading political parties.

Contents

During the first decades of Italy as a united country, the main parliamentary parties included liberals, but it was not until 1877 that the left-wing Radical Party was established as the first organized liberal party. The more centrist Liberal Union followed in 1913. Most liberal and radical parties were banned in 1926 under Benito Mussolini's Fascist government.

After World War II and the establishment of the Italian Republic there have been frequent changes in the configuration of political parties and, for the most part, the representation of liberal and radical views has been split among a number of parties that may also espouse other views. These parties have often been part of governing coalitions.

During the so-called "First Republic" three minor liberal parties were active: the Italian Liberal Party (centre-right), the Italian Republican Party (centre-left) and the modern-day Radical Party (left-wing). More recently, liberals have been split primarily among the centre-right The People of Freedom/Forza Italia and the centre-left Democratic Party.

Overview

In the 19th century both early Italian political groupings, the Historical Right and the Historical Left, were composed of monarchist liberals and functioned mainly as loose parliamentary groups, while radicals organised themselves as the Radical Party, and republicans, who were influenced also by socialism, as the Italian Republican Party. These two parties had in fact been part of The Extreme, which included also the Italian Socialist Party and its predecessors.

In 1913 the liberals around Giovanni Giolitti joined forces in the Liberal Union and in 1922 the Italian Liberal Party is formed. In that period, other liberal parties emerged: the Constitutional Democratic Party, the Democratic Liberal Party (merger of the Radicals with other liberal groups), and the Italian Social Democratic Party.

When Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party came to power in 1922, some Liberals and Radicals flirted with Fascism, but, ultimately, a Fascist regime was established and all the parties, notably including the Italian Liberal Party and the Italian Republican Party, were banned.

After the end of World War II, both Liberals and Republicans reorganised themselves, followed by more liberal parties in the upcoming decades (notably including the new Radical Party), and, despite their modest results in elections, they were often part of the Italian government, in alliance with Christian Democracy. In the 1940s, during the resistance movement and the writing of the republican Constitution, an important role was played by the Action Party, a social-liberal, republican and liberal-socialist outfit, successor of the Justice and Freedom movement. In this phase the Liberals adhered to conservative liberalism and Republicans to social liberalism.

Since 1992–1994, following the Tangentopoli scandals, the subsequent Mani pulite inquiries and the resulting shake-up of the Italian party system, the liberal movement has been strongly divided. As a result, a broad group of parties, not all included here, started to use the "liberal" label. [1]

Italian liberals are basically divided between the centre-right Forza Italia (successor of the former Forza Italia, itself primarily a merger of liberal and Christian-democratic forces, and The People of Freedom, which integrated the more conservative National Alliance) and the centre-left Democratic Party (a merger of social democrats, progressive Christian democrats and social liberals, the latter two mainly organised in Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy in the early 2000s).

Minor liberal parties include, among others, Civic Choice, the Italian Radicals (ALDE Party and Liberal International member), the aforementioned Italian Republican Party (which stretched a long way from the far-left to the centre-right of the political spectrum), and Act to Stop the Decline (a party which is the standard-bearer of a more classical- and libertarian-oriented form of liberalism). Also the centrist-populist Italy of Values was a member of the ALDE Party, but it is hardly a liberal party.

From 1994 on, most Liberals and several Republicans joined Forza Italia and the other parties of the House of Freedoms coalition. This is the reason why the term "liberal" is more often used when speaking of the centre-right than the centre-left. A new Italian Liberal Party was launched in 1997, but, as the Italian Republican Party, it survives as a very minor party. The former two, Civic Choice, Act to Stop the Decline and minor groups joined forces in European Choice, with disappointing results, in 2014.

Timeline of parties

The Italian Liberal Party

The historical Radical Party

The Italian Republican Party

From the Radical Party to the Italian Radicals

Forza Italia, The People of Freedom and back to Forza Italia

From Democratic Alliance to the Democratic Party

Minor liberal, social-liberal and libertarian parties

Liberal leaders

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Democracy (Italy)</span> Christian democratic political party in Italy (1943–1994)

Christian Democracy was a Christian democratic political party in Italy. The DC was founded on 15 December 1943 in the Italian Social Republic as the nominal successor of the Italian People's Party, which had the same symbol, a crusader shield. As a Catholic-inspired, centrist, catch-all party comprising both centre-right and centre-left political factions, the DC played a dominant role in the politics of Italy for fifty years, and had been part of the government from soon after its inception until its final demise on 16 January 1994 amid the Tangentopoli scandals. Christian Democrats led the Italian government continuously from 1946 until 1981. The party was nicknamed the "White Whale" due to its huge organisation and official colour. During its time in government, the Italian Communist Party was the largest opposition party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forza Italia</span> Former Italian political party

Forza Italia was a centre-right liberal-conservative political party in Italy, with Christian-democratic, liberal, social-democratic and populist tendencies. It was founded by Silvio Berlusconi, who served as Prime Minister of Italy four times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union of the Centre (2002)</span> Italian political party

The Union of the Centre, whose complete name is "Union of Christian and Centre Democrats", is a Christian-democratic political party in Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy</span> Former political party in Italy

Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy, commonly known simply as The Daisy, was a centrist political party in Italy. The party was formed from the merger of three parties within the centre-left coalition: the Italian People's Party, The Democrats and Italian Renewal. The party president and leader was Francesco Rutelli, former mayor of Rome and prime ministerial candidate during the 2001 general election for The Olive Tree coalition, within which The Daisy electoral list won 14.5% of the national vote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Republican Party</span> Italian political party

The Italian Republican Party is a political party in Italy established in 1895, which makes it the oldest political party still active in the country. The PRI identifies with 19th-century classical radicalism, as well as Mazzinianism, and its modern incarnation is associated with liberalism, social liberalism, and centrism. The PRI has old roots and a long history that began with a left-wing position, being the heir of the Historical Far Left and claiming descent from the political thought of Giuseppe Mazzini and Giuseppe Garibaldi. With the rise of the Italian Communist Party and the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) to its left, it was associated with centre-left politics. The early PRI was also known for its anti-clerical, anti-monarchist, republican, and later anti-fascist stances. While maintaining those traits, during the second half of the 20th century the party moved towards the centre on the left–right political spectrum, becoming increasingly economically liberal.

Liberalism and radicalism have played a role in the political history of France. The main line of conflict in France in the long nineteenth century was between monarchists and republicans. The Orléanists, who favoured constitutional monarchy and economic liberalism, were opposed to the Republican Radicals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Liberal Party</span> Political party in Italy

The Italian Liberal Party was a liberal political party in Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic Alliance (Italy)</span> Defunct political party in Italy

The Democratic Alliance was a social-liberal political party in Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liberal Reformers</span> Italian political party

Liberal Reformers was a minor liberal, libertarian and liberist political party in Italy led by Benedetto Della Vedova, a former President of the Italian Radicals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union of the Centre (1993)</span> Italian political party

The Union of the Centre was a minor liberal political party in Italy. The party was a successor of the Italian Liberal Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The People of Freedom</span> Italian centre-right political party

The People of Freedom was a centre-right political party in Italy. The PdL launched by Silvio Berlusconi as an electoral list, including Forza Italia and National Alliance, on 27 February for the 2008 Italian general election. The list was later transformed into a party during a party congress on 27–29 March 2009. The party's leading members included Angelino Alfano, Renato Schifani, Renato Brunetta, Roberto Formigoni, Maurizio Sacconi, Maurizio Gasparri, Mariastella Gelmini, Antonio Martino, Giancarlo Galan, Maurizio Lupi, Gaetano Quagliariello, Daniela Santanchè, Sandro Bondi, and Raffaele Fitto.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic Union for the Republic</span> Political party in Italy

The Democratic Union for the Republic was a short-lived Christian-democratic and centrist political party in Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Liberal Party (1997)</span> Italian political party

The Italian Liberal Party is a minor liberal political party in Italy, which considers itself to be the successor of the original Italian Liberal Party (PLI), the Italian main centre-right liberal party that was active in different capacities from 1922 to 1994. Originally named the Liberal Party, the new PLI changed its name in 2004 and is not represented in the Italian Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Segni Pact</span> Political party in Italy

The Segni Pact, officially called Pact of National Rebirth, was a Christian-democratic, centrist and liberal political party in Italy. The party was founded and named after Mario Segni, a former member of the Christian Democrats who was a prominent promoter of referendums.

Republicans, Liberals, Reformers was a federation of parties in Italy.

The Liberal Democratic Foundation was a Christian-democratic and liberal Italian political party.

The centre-right coalition is a political alliance of political parties in Italy active under several forms and names since 1994, when Silvio Berlusconi entered politics and formed the Forza Italia party. It has mostly competed with the centre-left coalition. It is composed of right-leaning parties in the Italian political arena, which generally advocate tax reduction and oppose immigration, and in some cases are eurosceptic.

The centre-left coalition is a political alliance of political parties in Italy active under several forms and names since 1995, when The Olive Tree was formed under the leadership of Romano Prodi. The centre-left coalition has ruled the country for more than fifteen years between 1996 and 2022; to do so, it had mostly to rely on a big tent that went from the more radical left-wing, which had more weight between 1996 and 2008, to the political centre, which had more weight during the 2010s, and its main parties were also part of grand coalitions and national unity governments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Identity and Action</span> Italian political party

Identity and Action is a conservative political party in Italy, whose membership stretches from Christian democracy to liberal conservatism.

Federation of Freedom was a centre-right parliamentary group in the Italian Senate.

References

  1. ↑ Pridham, Geoffrey (1988-11-03), Kirchner, Emil J. (ed.), "Two roads of Italian liberalism: the Partito Repubblicano Italiano (PRI) and the Partito Liberale Italiano (PLI)", Liberal Parties in Western Europe (1 ed.), Cambridge University Press, pp. 29–61, doi:10.1017/cbo9780511521843.006, ISBN   978-0-521-32394-9 , retrieved 2023-08-28
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.