Modern Italy: A Political History

Citation

Blanc, M. (1999), "Modern Italy: A Political History", European Business Review, Vol. 99 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/ebr.1999.05499aad.004

Modern Italy: A Political History

There were a number of production-related errors in the book review by Michel Blanc which was published in the last issue of New European (European Business Review, Vol. 98 No. 6). MCB apologises for these.

The review, as originally provided by the author, is republished below.

Modern Italy: A Political History

Denis Mack SmithYale University PressNew Haven and London1997X-534 pp.ISBN 0-300-04342-2£14.95 paperback

This book is an updated version of Italy: A Modern History, published by The University of Michigan Press in 1959, revised 1969. As the early part of the book, 1861-1969, has not been substantially altered, I will concentrate on the new and final chapter (14: Italian democracy in crisis, 1969-1996). In 40 pages the author manages to analyse in a masterly way the intricacies of the contemporary Italian scene. Professor Smith shows how, from 1969-1992, the (first) Italian Republic collapsed under the combined impact of terrorism from the extreme left (the "Red Brigades") and the extreme right (linked to the secret services); of the Mafia (which controlled political votes in the South and therefore controlled the Christian Democrats, including Andreotti for whom the author has nothing but contempt); widespread corruption, especially in high places; and the inability of politicians to reform the system and, above all, to reform themselves. By 1992 the Christian Democratic and Socialist parties had been totally discredited. With the fall of the Berlin Wall the former communists had reformed themselves but split up into a democratic majority and an old-style extreme left. No wonder that new parties arose out of the ashes of the old ones: the anti-mafia Network of the Sicilian Orlando, the separatist Northern league led by the demagogue Bossi who blamed centralisation and the South for Italy's demise; the neo-fascists under the leadership of Fini formed the more moderate right-wing National Alliance; while Berlusconi, the multimillionaire head of Fininvest who also controlled half the media leapt into notoriety by uniting his Forza Italia with the Northern League and the National Alliance and winning the 1994 parliamentary elections. But perhaps more important was the rise of the magistrature who took on corrupt politicians and mafiosi alike, succeeding where the politicians had failed: beginning to clean the state and the nation. They of course made enemies and the outcome of their campaign is still not clear. Berlusconi, abandoned by Bossi, resigned and was replaced by a government of technocrats led by Dini, who began reforming the state and the state economy. This provided a breathing space for the creation of a new alliance of the left and centre under the leadership of Romano Prodi, who has now been Prime Minister since May 1996 in spite of a lack of a stable majority in the Chamber of Deputies. Professor Smith, throwing the historian's prudence to the winds, expresses optimism over the future of this government and Italy. This is a political history, with a few references to economic and social factors. It should be complemented by A History of Contemporary Italy by Paul Ginsborg, which, like Denis Mack Smith's history, reads like a novel.

Michel BlancUmbria, Italy