Description:

Mussolini Benito

Single page ALS on Head of Government letterhead, 8" x 10".Dated "20 November 1927", and boldly signed by Benito Mussolini as "Mussolini". Penned by Mussolini with a small illegible handwritten note by Volpe. Small 1/2" intact tear to right edge, with tiny 1mm hole to upper left, light toning, else near fine. Accompanied by a full English translation of the letter.

A fantastic boldly scripted ALS entirely in the hand of Benito Mussolini penned during the economic slump of 1926-1927, written to Giuseppe Volpi, who at the time was Italy's Minister of Finance and who successfully negotiated Italy's WWI debt repayment with the United States. During Mussolini's reign, aside from his political agenda, he had managed to build a financial empire. Mussolini makes reference in his letter to Volpi about his concerns in the "construction sector" . In the 1920s, Mussolini had already been receiving financial support from a few wealthy admirers, and that support increased substantially, mainly from industrialists and landowners. In addition, Mussolini was in the midst of a push to increase the Italian population which began as his infamous ascension speech which ultimately  enforced taxation against single, non-married men.

This letter focused on the economic crisis, and states in full:

"Dear Volpi

I call to your attention the enclosed article, which makes proposals about the crisis in the construction sector. The measure on the subject needs to be ready for the Council of Ministers that will be held in the first ten days of December.

Rome, 20 November 1927 - Year VI."


Mussolini's regime was in the midst of major economic decline crisis in the construction sector, along with his concerns about the future of the Italian race. His "out there" ascension speech given just months prior was being implemented during the end of the fiscal year at the time of this ALS is shown below:

"Speech of the Ascension," May 26, 1927

It is therefore necessary to take great care of the future of the race, starting with measures to look after the health of mothers and infants.This is the purpose of the National Organization for the Protection of Mothers and children. Throughout the country there exist 5,700 branches…for which there still is not enough money.Hence the tax on bachelors and perhaps in the future there will be a tax on childless marriages.This tax brings in between 40 and 50 million lire: but do you really believe that this is why I introduced the tax?I have used the tax to give a demographic prod to the nation.This may surprise you and someone will ask: "But why? Is it really necessary?"Yes, it is really necessary … I tell you that the most fundamental, essential element in the political, and therefore economic, and moral, influence of a nation lies in its demographic strength.Let us be quite clear: what are 40 million Italians compared to 90 million Germans and 200 million Slavs? What are 40 million Italians compared to 40 million Frenchmen, plus 90 million inhabitants of their colonies, or 46 million Englishmen plus 450 million people who live in their colonies? Gentlemen! Italy, if she is to count for anything in the world, must have a population of not less than 60 million inhabitants by the middle of this century."

Source: Il Popolo d'Italia, 26 May 1927

By December 1927, a punitive tax on male celibacy passed with Royal decree number 2132. Musselini's odd regimes had an insidious purpose, much of which was not fully understood until the turn of the 21st century. He was known to have obtained vast wealth and wielded it to obtain power. Information has come to light that Mussolini was known to have paid the Vatican large sums of cash in return for papal recognition of the Italian fascist regime in the late 1920s, so much so that a disguised offshore company structure was created on behalf of the church. The Mussolini money was dramatically important to the Vatican's finances. John Pollard, a Cambridge historian, says in Money and the Rise of the Modern Papacy: "The papacy was now financially secure. It would never be poor again." By today's recent estimates the value of Mussolini's nest egg has mounted until it now exceeds £600m (about $1 billion dollars) and consists of Vatican investments in high-end real estate in Paris, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. The surprising aspect for some will be the lengths to which the Vatican has gone to preserve secrecy about the Mussolini millions, perhaps to avoid criticism.

As elusive as Mussolini's letter to Volpi may be, what we do know is what was only recently discovered regarding Mussolini's hidden wealth, his funding of the Vatican in return for papal recognition, and that his letter was written to his head of finance. We also know the two men were known to have manipulated the Italian financial system, the Italian social system (the ascension speech), and the Italian currency. One can only wager a guess about the true context of his cryptic message to Volpi, but it certainly leaves much to the imagination.

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