Modern Italy's Founding Fathers

Reviews / Votes

Modern Italy's Founding Fathers reads the rebirth of Italian Democracy through the three major figures acting in the postwar rebuilding: De Gasperi, Nenni, and Togliatti. In doing so, White investigates this melting pot of a political system with a comprehensive and detailed interpretation that goes beyond the old ideological approaches of partisan historiography. * Paolo Pombeni, Emeritus Professor of the History of Political Systems, University of Bologna, Italy * Steven F. White offers a valuable new contribution to the scholarship on Modern Italy by refocusing attention on individual historical actors in shaping the course of events. His book, in particular, illuminates the decisive role played by a trio of ideologically diverse political leaders in guiding their country during the extremely difficult transition from Fascist dictatorship, military defeat, and insipient civil war to Italy's current democratic republic in the first years after World War II. * Anthony L. Cardoza, Professor of Modern European History, Loyola University Chicago, USA * In an unusual "group biography," Steven F. White analyzes the thinking and compromises of three ideological antagonists who fashioned Italy into a democratic republic following twenty years of Fascist dictatorship and wartime defeat. A detailed description of Italian postwar development, White's book will appeal to academics and students unfamiliar with this period in the country's history. * Spencer M. Di Scala, Professor of History Emeritus, University of Massachusetts Boston, USA * More than a collective biography of the Italian Republic's key figures, White's book illuminates the political friendships, and rivalries, that shaped the recreation of democracy in this formerly Fascist country. Deftly balancing the interplay between individual choices and larger historical forces, White's portrayal of the Republic's early years as a personal-political drama will captivate students and specialists alike. * Rhiannon Evangelista, Assistant Professor of History, Georgia State University Perimeter College, USA *