22 - History: Background and 19th-century roots. cover art

22 - History: Background and 19th-century roots.

22 - History: Background and 19th-century roots.

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 History: Background and 19th-century roots.
Early influences that shaped the ideology of fascism have been dated back to ancient Greece. Mussolini had a strong attachment to the works of the Greek philosopher Plato. In October 1943, Mussolini was reported to have kept Plato's work Republic on his desk at home, and he claimed to consult it from time to time before beginning his work each day. The political culture of ancient Greece and specifically the ancient Greek city state of Sparta under Lycurgus, with its emphasis on militarism and racial purity, were admired by the Nazis. Hitler emphasized that Germany should adhere to Hellenic values and culture – particularly that of ancient Sparta.
Plato supported many similar political positions to fascism. In his work Republic (c. 380 BC), he emphasized the need for a philosopher king in an ideal state. He believed the ideal state would be ruled by an elite class of rulers known as "Guardians" and rejected the idea of social equality. He believed in an authoritarian state. He held Athenian democracy in contempt by saying: "The laws of democracy remain a dead letter, its freedom is anarchy, its equality the equality of unequals". Like fascism, he emphasized that individuals must adhere to laws and perform duties while declining to grant individuals rights to limit or reject state interference in their lives. He claimed that an ideal state would have education that was designed to promote able rulers and warriors. However, there are also significant differences between Plato's ideals and fascism. Unlike fascism, he never promoted expansionism and he was opposed to offensive war.
Georges Valois, founder of the first non-Italian fascist party Faisceau, claimed the roots of fascism stemmed from the late 18th century Jacobin movement, seeing in its totalitarian nature a foreshadowing of the fascist state. Historian George Mosse similarly analyzed fascism as an inheritor of the mass ideology and civil religion of the French Revolution, as well as a result of the brutalization of societies in 1914–1918.
Historians such as Irene Collins and Howard C. Payne see Napoleon III, who ran a 'police state' and suppressed the media, as a forerunner of fascism. According to David Thomson, the Italian Risorgimento of 1871 led to the 'nemesis of fascism'. William L Shirer sees a continuity from the views of Fichte and Hegel, through Bismarck, to Hitler; Robert Gerwarth speaks of a 'direct line' from Bismarck to Hitler. Julian Dierkes sees fascism as a 'particularly violent form of imperialism'.
Marcus Garvey, founder and leader of the Universal Negro Improvement Association, had described the organisation as "the first fascists". In 1938, C. L. R. James wrote "all the things that Hitler was to do so well later, Marcus Garvey was doing in 1920 and 1921".


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