Mussolini: — Son Of The Century Series |verified|

Dumini calls Mussolini on a field telephone. “The red flag is down.”

He pauses. A fly buzzes against a broken window. mussolini: son of the century series

“Burn it,” says Mussolini. “And leave a note: ‘The century belongs to us.’” Dumini calls Mussolini on a field telephone

The fog is a wet shroud over the cobblestones. Benito Mussolini, 35, stands alone before a locked wooden door. He wears a black shirt, unbuttoned at the collar, a French army helmet from the 12th Bersaglieri regiment, and a face that has not slept in three days. “Burn it,” says Mussolini

“Fascism was not an idea. It was an emotion—the emotion of a generation that had seen the abyss and decided to become it.” — Benito Mussolini, The Doctrine of Fascism (1932)

That night, the squadristi force-feed the socialist mayor castor oil, strip him naked, and march him through the village. The peasants watch in silence. Then a child laughs. Then an old woman spits on the mayor’s back.

“Forgive me, my wound,” he whispers. “You are the only father I ever had.”