Giacomo Acerbo
Encyclopedia
Giacomo Acerbo, Baron
of Aterno (July 25, 1888 – January 9, 1969) was an Italian
economist and Fascist
politician that drafted the Acerbo Law
which solidified Benito Mussolini
's position once in power.
(province of Pescara
), and was educated in Pisa
, graduating in agricultural sciences from the University of Pisa
in 1912. Acerbo's affiliation with the Freemasons
led him to become an advocate of irredentism
and Italy's entry to World War I
. When war exploded upon the continent, he volunteered for military service. By the end of the war, he was decorated with three silver medals for military valor and promoted to the rank of captain.
Acerbo resumed his work as an assistant professor in the faculty of economics, and planned for a university career. At the same time, he promoted the Association of Servicemen of Teramo
and Chieti
(l'Associazione dei combattenti di Teramo e Chieti), which broke away from the national association after the election of 1919 and became the Provincial Combat Group (il Fascio
di combattimento provinciale).
in 1921 with the "national bloc", he acted as a mediator between local conservative
forces and the Blackshirts
; on a national level, Acerbo ensured peace in the open conflict between the Italian Socialist Party
and Fascists, and was elected to a leadership position inside the National Fascist Party
(PNF). During the March on Rome
, Acerbo presided the Chamber as the coup d'état
unfolded, and acted as the link between the PNF and King Victor Emmanuel III
. He then accompanied Mussolini as he was designated Prime Minister
, and became his undersecretary.
He made the Acerbo Law pass in November 1923; he was again deputy in 1924, winning his nobiliar title. Acerbo was marginally involved in the inquiry over Giacomo Matteotti
's killing, and left his position in the government. In 1924 he instituted the Coppa Acerbo
in memory of his brother Tito Acerbo (a war hero). Giacomo Acerbo was elected vice-president of the Chamber in 1926, and was Agriculture and Forestry Minister from 1929, dedicating himself to projects for universally-extended drainage
. Together with Gabriele D'Annunzio
, he contributed to the creation of Pescara Province
in January 1927.
Acerbo became head of the Economics and Commerce Faculty at the University of Rome
in 1934, and, from 1935 to 1943, president of the International Agricultural Institute. A member of the Grand Council of Fascism
, he was a spokesman for the project that torned the Chamber into a representative of Fasci and Corporazioni
.
When World War II
began and Italy joined the Nazi German
offensive, Acerbo served as member of the Italian Army
General Staff
during the marginal Italian maneuver in the Battle of France
, and the Greek campaign
. He was also Minister of Finance from February 1943.
when the latter attempted to topple Mussolini and take Italy out of the war. He voted in favor of the law that stripped Il Duce
of his powers, and took refuge in his homeregion, the Allied
-occupied Abruzzo
- after Mussolini regained some standing with help from the Nazis, establishing the Italian Social Republic
, one that proscribed
all opponents (including Acerbo) during the Verona trial. Captured by the Resistance
, he was sentenced to death
by the High Court of Justice, a verdict lessened to 48 years in prison. This sentence too was overturned, and Acerbo's name was cleared in 1951, enabling him to resume his teaching career. He received numerous distinctions and titles in academia
, and was awarded a gold medal (in Education, Culture, and Arts) by President Antonio Segni
.
In the elections of 1953 and 1958, Acerbo was an unsuccessful candidate of the Partito Nazionale Monarchico to the Italian Parliament
.
Acerbo died in Rome in 1969.
He is also remembered for his passion as a collector of ancient pottery, and created a Gallery dedicated to ceramics of the Abruzzo.
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
of Aterno (July 25, 1888 – January 9, 1969) 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...
economist and 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...
politician that drafted the Acerbo Law
Acerbo Law
The Acerbo Law was an Italian electoral law proposed by Baron Giacomo Acerbo and passed by the Italian Parliament in 1924. The purpose of it was to give Mussolini's fascist party a majority of deputies.-Background:...
which solidified 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 position once in power.
Early life
He was born to an old family of the local nobility of Loreto AprutinoLoreto Aprutino
Loreto Aprutino is a comune and town in the Province of Pescara in the Abruzzo region of central Italy.-History:The Roman town on this site was called Laurentum, because of the many bay laurels that grew in the area. The modern town grew up around a castle and Benedictine abbey in the 11th century...
(province of Pescara
Province of Pescara
The Province of Pescara is a province in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pescara.It has an area of 1,225 km², and a total population of 295,463 . There are 46 comunes in the province. At May 31, 2005, the main communes by population are:For a complete list, see Comunes of...
), and was educated in Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
, graduating in agricultural sciences from the University of Pisa
University of Pisa
The University of Pisa , located in Pisa, Tuscany, is one of the oldest universities in Italy. It was formally founded on September 3, 1343 by an edict of Pope Clement VI, although there had been lectures on law in Pisa since the 11th century...
in 1912. Acerbo's affiliation with the Freemasons
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...
led him to become an advocate of irredentism
Italia irredenta
Italian irredentism was an Italian Irredentist movement that aimed at the unification of all ethnically Italian peoples....
and Italy's entry to 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...
. When war exploded upon the continent, he volunteered for military service. By the end of the war, he was decorated with three silver medals for military valor and promoted to the rank of captain.
Acerbo resumed his work as an assistant professor in the faculty of economics, and planned for a university career. At the same time, he promoted the Association of Servicemen of Teramo
Teramo
Teramo is a city and comune in the central Italian region of Abruzzo, the capital of the province of Teramo.The city, from Rome, is situated between the highest mountains of the Apennines and the Adriatic coast...
and Chieti
Chieti
Chieti is a city and comune in Central Italy, 200 km northeast of Rome. It is the capital of the Province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region...
(l'Associazione dei combattenti di Teramo e Chieti), which broke away from the national association after the election of 1919 and became the Provincial Combat Group (il Fascio
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...
di combattimento provinciale).
Fascism
Elected to the Italian Chamber of DeputiesItalian Chamber of Deputies
The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...
in 1921 with the "national bloc", he acted as a mediator between local conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
forces and the Blackshirts
Blackshirts
The Blackshirts were Fascist paramilitary groups in Italy during the period immediately following World War I and until the end of World War II...
; on a national level, Acerbo ensured peace in the open conflict between the Italian Socialist Party
Italian Socialist Party
The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...
and Fascists, and was elected to a leadership position inside the National Fascist Party
National Fascist Party
The National Fascist Party was an Italian political party, created by Benito Mussolini as the political expression of fascism...
(PNF). During 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...
, Acerbo presided the Chamber as the coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
unfolded, and acted as the link between the PNF and King Victor Emmanuel III
Victor Emmanuel III of Italy
Victor Emmanuel III was a member of the House of Savoy and King of Italy . In addition, he claimed the crowns of Ethiopia and Albania and claimed the titles Emperor of Ethiopia and King of Albania , which were unrecognised by the Great Powers...
. He then accompanied Mussolini as he was designated Prime Minister
Prime minister of Italy
The Prime Minister of Italy is the head of government of the Italian Republic...
, and became his undersecretary.
He made the Acerbo Law pass in November 1923; he was again deputy in 1924, winning his nobiliar title. Acerbo was marginally involved in the inquiry over Giacomo Matteotti
Giacomo Matteotti
Giacomo Matteotti was an Italian socialist politician. On 30 May 1924, he openly spoke in the Italian Parliament alleging the Fascists committed fraud in the recently held elections, and denounced the violence they used to gain votes...
's killing, and left his position in the government. In 1924 he instituted the Coppa Acerbo
Coppa Acerbo
The Coppa Acerbo was an automobile race held in Italy, named after Tito Acerbo, the brother of Giacomo Acerbo, a prominent fascist politician. Following Italy's defeat in World War II, and the consequent demise of fascism, the race was renamed the Circuito di Pescara, and in some years was also...
in memory of his brother Tito Acerbo (a war hero). Giacomo Acerbo was elected vice-president of the Chamber in 1926, and was Agriculture and Forestry Minister from 1929, dedicating himself to projects for universally-extended drainage
Drainage
Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of surface and sub-surface water from an area. Many agricultural soils need drainage to improve production or to manage water supplies.-Early history:...
. Together with Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele D'Annunzio or d'Annunzio was an Italian poet, journalist, novelist, and dramatist...
, he contributed to the creation of Pescara Province
Province of Pescara
The Province of Pescara is a province in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pescara.It has an area of 1,225 km², and a total population of 295,463 . There are 46 comunes in the province. At May 31, 2005, the main communes by population are:For a complete list, see Comunes of...
in January 1927.
Acerbo became head of the Economics and Commerce Faculty at the University of Rome
University of Rome La Sapienza
The Sapienza University of Rome, officially Sapienza – Università di Roma, formerly known as Università degli studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a coeducational, autonomous state university in Rome, Italy...
in 1934, and, from 1935 to 1943, president of the International Agricultural Institute. A member of the Grand Council of Fascism
Grand Council of Fascism
The Grand Council of Fascism was the main body of Mussolini's Fascist government in Italy. A body which held and applied great power to control the institutions of government, it was created as a party body in 1923 and became a state body on 9 December 1928....
, he was a spokesman for the project that torned the Chamber into a representative of Fasci and 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...
.
When 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...
began and Italy joined 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...
offensive, Acerbo served as member of the Italian Army
Italian Army
The Italian Army is the ground defence force of the Italian Armed Forces. It is all-volunteer force of active-duty personnel, numbering 108,355 in 2010. Its best-known combat vehicles are the Dardo infantry fighting vehicle, the Centauro tank destroyer and the Ariete tank, and among its aircraft...
General Staff
General Staff
A military staff, often referred to as General Staff, Army Staff, Navy Staff or Air Staff within the individual services, is a group of officers and enlisted personnel that provides a bi-directional flow of information between a commanding officer and subordinate military units...
during the marginal Italian maneuver in the Battle of France
Italian invasion of France
The Italian invasion of France in June 1940 was a small-scale invasion that started near the end of the Battle of France during World War II. The goal of the Italian offensive was to take control of the Alps mountain range and the region around Nice, and to win the colonies in North Africa...
, and the Greek campaign
Greco-Italian War
The Greco-Italian War was a conflict between Italy and Greece which lasted from 28 October 1940 to 23 April 1941. It marked the beginning of the Balkans Campaign of World War II...
. He was also Minister of Finance from February 1943.
The split with Mussolini and later life
On July 25, Acerbo sided with Dino GrandiDino Grandi
Dino Grandi , Conte di Mordano, was an Italian Fascist politician, minister of justice, minister of foreign affairs and president of parliament.- Early life :...
when the latter attempted to topple Mussolini and take Italy out of the war. He voted in favor of the law that stripped Il Duce
Duce
Duce is an Italian title, derived from the Latin word dux, and cognate with duke. National Fascist Party leader Benito Mussolini was identified by Fascists as Il Duce of the movement and became a reference to the dictator position of Head of Government and Duce of Fascism of Italy was established...
of his powers, and took refuge in his homeregion, the Allied
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...
-occupied Abruzzo
Abruzzo
Abruzzo is a region in Italy, its western border lying less than due east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east...
- after Mussolini regained some standing with help from the Nazis, establishing the 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...
, one that proscribed
Proscription
Proscription is a term used for the public identification and official condemnation of enemies of the state. It is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as a "decree of condemnation to death or banishment" and is a heavily politically charged word, frequently used to refer to state-approved...
all opponents (including Acerbo) during the Verona trial. Captured by the Resistance
Italian resistance movement
The Italian resistance is the umbrella term for the various partisan forces formed by pro-Allied Italians during World War II...
, he was sentenced to death
Death Sentence
Death Sentence is a short story by the American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the November 1943 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.-Plot summary:...
by the High Court of Justice, a verdict lessened to 48 years in prison. This sentence too was overturned, and Acerbo's name was cleared in 1951, enabling him to resume his teaching career. He received numerous distinctions and titles in 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...
, and was awarded a gold medal (in Education, Culture, and Arts) by President Antonio Segni
Antonio Segni
Antonio Segni was an Italian politician who was the 35th Prime Minister of Italy , and the fourth President of the Italian Republic from 1962 to 1964...
.
In the elections of 1953 and 1958, Acerbo was an unsuccessful candidate of the Partito Nazionale Monarchico to the Italian Parliament
Parliament of Italy
The Parliament of Italy is the national parliament of Italy. It is a bicameral legislature with 945 elected members . The Chamber of Deputies, with 630 members is the lower house. The Senate of the Republic is the upper house and has 315 members .Since 2005, a party list electoral law is being...
.
Acerbo died in Rome in 1969.
He is also remembered for his passion as a collector of ancient pottery, and created a Gallery dedicated to ceramics of the Abruzzo.