Essay Database

Were the Third Reich and Italy totalitarian states? First of all it is important to define what a totalitarian state is. The Concise Oxford Dictionary describes a totalitarian state as, "relating to a form of government that permits no rival loyalties or parties, demanding entire subservience of the individual to the state". Therefore I will explore whether the Third Reich under Adolf Hitler and Fascist Italy under Benito Mussolini fit the description above. What is …

…of control over many aspects of the Italian state, there were certain areas where he did not have control such as education where the Church had considerable influence and in the South where powerful landowners, the Mafia, and the Church also had the majority of influence. So in my opinion Germany was definitely a totalitarian state under Adolf Hitler but the claim that Italy was a totalitarian state under Benito Mussolini is very questionable. Bibliography