Domenico Pellegrini Giampietro
Encyclopedia
Domenico Pellegrini Giampietro (August 30, 1899, Brienza
, in Basilicata
—June 18, 1970, Montevideo
) was an Italian
academic, economist, lawyer, politician, and (in his final years) journalist.
As a young man living in Caserta
, Pellegrini Giampietro founded a nationalist
legion named Sempre pronti ("Always Ready"). He was a decorated infantry
lieutenant
in World War I
, and joined the Fascist
movement in 1922, as a member of the Benito Mussolini
's Partito Nazionale Fascista (PNF), and took part in the March on Rome
. In the period, Pellegrini Giampietro became associated with certain clubs of the Freemasonry
.
A major figure of Campania
n-elected fascists (together with Alfredo Rocco
, Bruno Spampanato, and the economist Alberto Beneduce), he received a diploma in Law in 1926, and became lawyer for the next eight years. He was one who took Fascism into academia
, lecturing on Comparative public law and doctrinary history of Fascism at Naples University. He also worked in several credit union
s.
Pellegrini Giampietro was a volunteer infantry captain on Francisco Franco
's side in the Spanish Civil War
, and was twice decorated. Upun his return, he received numerous political appointments - notably, he was a counsellor for the Corporazioni
and the Fasci
, and deputy-secretary in the Ministry of Finance in 1943.
He joined Mussolini in Northern Italy after the latter's ousting and Italy's commitment to the Allies
in World War II
, becoming an official of the Nazi German
-controlled Italian Social Republic
(the "republic of Salò
"). As Finance minister, he also set up, in 1944, its infamous Brigate Nera
paramilitary
force. At the end of the war, Pellegrini Giampietro was arrested and charged with collaborating
with the enemy. He escaped and in 1949, he took refuge in Brazil
, then Argentina
, and finally Uruguay
. He kept on working as a banker, and edited the magazine Sintesi.
Domenico Pellegrini Giampietro wrote on the theory of Fascism: his 1941 volume Aspetti spirituali del fascismo ("Spiritual Aspects of Fascism") dealt with the more mystical
qualities of the dogma, while L'oro di Salò ("The Gold of Salò") attempted to explain his actions as planner
for the Republic's economy (notably, in early 1945 he had printed only 10,881 million although the print of 137,840 million had been authorized), as well as launching accusations at people who would have been responsible for plundering the wealth ammased by Mussolini's government.
Brienza
Brienza is a town and comune in the province of Potenza, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata.-History and Legends from the Castle of Brienza:Caracciolo’s Castle on top of a rocky spurdominates the Melandro valley...
, in Basilicata
Basilicata
Basilicata , also known as Lucania, is a region in the south of Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Apulia to the north and east, and Calabria to the south, having one short southwestern coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea between Campania in the northwest and Calabria in the southwest, and a...
—June 18, 1970, Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
) was an Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
academic, economist, lawyer, politician, and (in his final years) journalist.
As a young man living in Caserta
Caserta
Caserta is the capital of the province of Caserta in the Campania region of Italy. It is an important agricultural, commercial and industrial comune and city. Caserta is located on the edge of the Campanian plain at the foot of the Campanian Subapennine mountain range...
, Pellegrini Giampietro founded a nationalist
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
legion named Sempre pronti ("Always Ready"). He was a decorated infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and joined the Fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
movement in 1922, as a member of the Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
's Partito Nazionale Fascista (PNF), and took part in the March on Rome
March on Rome
The March on Rome was a march by which Italian dictator Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party came to power in the Kingdom of Italy...
. In the period, Pellegrini Giampietro became associated with certain clubs of the Freemasonry
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
.
A major figure of Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
n-elected fascists (together with Alfredo Rocco
Alfredo Rocco
Alfredo Rocco was an Italian politician and jurist.Rocco was born in Naples.He was Professor of Commercial Law at the University of Urbino and in Macerata , then Professor of Civil Procedure in Parma, of Business Law in Padua, and later of Economic Legislation at "La Sapienza" University of Rome,...
, Bruno Spampanato, and the economist Alberto Beneduce), he received a diploma in Law in 1926, and became lawyer for the next eight years. He was one who took Fascism into academia
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
, lecturing on Comparative public law and doctrinary history of Fascism at Naples University. He also worked in several credit union
Credit union
A credit union is a cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by its members and operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit at competitive rates, and providing other financial services to its members...
s.
Pellegrini Giampietro was a volunteer infantry captain on Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...
's side in the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
, and was twice decorated. Upun his return, he received numerous political appointments - notably, he was a counsellor for the Corporazioni
Corporatism
Corporatism, also known as corporativism, is a system of economic, political, or social organization that involves association of the people of society into corporate groups, such as agricultural, business, ethnic, labor, military, patronage, or scientific affiliations, on the basis of common...
and the Fasci
Fascio
Fascio, plural -sci /'faʃʃo, ʃi/ is an Italian word literally meaning "a bundle" or "a sheaf", and figuratively league, and which was used in the late 19th century to refer to political groups of many different orientations...
, and deputy-secretary in the Ministry of Finance in 1943.
He joined Mussolini in Northern Italy after the latter's ousting and Italy's commitment to the Allies
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, becoming an official of the Nazi German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
-controlled Italian Social Republic
Italian Social Republic
The Italian Social Republic was a puppet state of Nazi Germany led by the "Duce of the Nation" and "Minister of Foreign Affairs" Benito Mussolini and his Republican Fascist Party. The RSI exercised nominal sovereignty in northern Italy but was largely dependent on the Wehrmacht to maintain control...
(the "republic of Salò
Salò
Salò is a town and commune in the Province of Brescia in the region of Lombardy on the banks of Lake Garda. The city was the capital of Italian Social Republic from 1943 to 1945, with the ISR often being called the "Republic of Salò" .-History:Salò was founded in the Roman period as Pagus...
"). As Finance minister, he also set up, in 1944, its infamous Brigate Nera
Black Brigades
Black Brigades were one of the Fascist paramilitary groups operating in the Italian Social Republic , during the final years of World War II, and after the signing of the Italian Armistice in 1943...
paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
force. At the end of the war, Pellegrini Giampietro was arrested and charged with collaborating
Collaboration
Collaboration is working together to achieve a goal. It is a recursive process where two or more people or organizations work together to realize shared goals, — for example, an intriguing endeavor that is creative in nature—by sharing...
with the enemy. He escaped and in 1949, he took refuge in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, then Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, and finally Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. He kept on working as a banker, and edited the magazine Sintesi.
Domenico Pellegrini Giampietro wrote on the theory of Fascism: his 1941 volume Aspetti spirituali del fascismo ("Spiritual Aspects of Fascism") dealt with the more mystical
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
qualities of the dogma, while L'oro di Salò ("The Gold of Salò") attempted to explain his actions as planner
Economics of fascism
The economics of fascism refers to the economic policies implemented by fascist governments.Nevertheless, some scholars and analysts argue that there is an identifiable economic system in fascism that is distinct from those advocated by other ideologies, comprising essential characteristics that...
for the Republic's economy (notably, in early 1945 he had printed only 10,881 million although the print of 137,840 million had been authorized), as well as launching accusations at people who would have been responsible for plundering the wealth ammased by Mussolini's government.