Alle origini del neofascismo. La questione della collaborazione con gli Alleati e dell’azione eversiva delle formazioni clandestine (1943-1947): una rilettura critica

The Origins of Neo-Fascism. The question of collaboration with the Allies and subversive action by clandestine fascism (1943-1947): a critical survey In the introduction, the author reviews the recent historiography on clandestine neo-fascism, a phenomenon that arose immediately after the fall of the fascist regime in July 1943 in order to organize a “fascist resistance” in the territory occupied by the Allies. He detects a trivialising trend which interprets it as a marginal and negligible phenomenon, and an opposite one, largely prevailing, which overdramatizes it. According to the latter, clandestine fascism was the main tool of the anti-communist battle fought in Italy starting from the war years, in a sort of foreshadowing of the “strategy of tension” of the seventies. In this kind of account, a relevant role is played by the hidden relationships between neo-fascists and the allied secret services, especially the American Office of Strategic Services. On the basis of archival documents, the author reconstructs the history of clandestine fascism, assessing its actual organizational structure, operational effectiveness, and political strategy. He also addresses the question of continuity between the clandestine fascism of the Repubblica sociale italiana (Italian Social Republic) and that of the post-war period. In his conclusions, the author argues that the thesis of a «common plan» between the clandestine fascists and the American secret services is not based on a critical survey of the sources and does not take into account the operational patterns of the OSS and its strategic aims in Italy. The organizational problems faced by the clandestine fascists testify to the lack of any external support. In the period observed, the actions of the clandestine fascists, far from representing a menace for the new-born Republic, were an attempt to cope with their existential and political crisis and to find a place in the new political framework.