Liberalism and radicalism in Italy


and radicalism have played a role in the political history of Italy since the country's unification, started in 1861 and largely completed in 1871, and currently influence several leading political parties.
During the first decades of Italy as a united country, the main parliamentary parties included liberals, but it was not until 1877 that the left-wing Radical Party was established as the first organized liberal party. The more centrist Liberals followed in 1913. Most liberal and radical parties were banned in 1926 under Benito Mussolini's Fascist government.
After World War II and the establishment of the Italian Republic there have been frequent changes in the configuration of political parties and, for the most part, the representation of liberal and radical views has been split among a number of parties that may also espouse other views. These parties have often been part of governing coalitions.
During the so-called "First Republic" three minor liberal parties were active: the Italian Liberal Party, the Italian Republican Party and the modern-day Radical Party. More recently, liberals have been split primarily among the centre-right The People of Freedom/Forza Italia and the centre-left Democratic Party.

Overview

In the 19th century both early Italian political groupings, the Historical Right and the Historical Left, were composed of monarchist liberals and functioned mainly as loose parliamentary groups, while radicals organised themselves as the Radical Party, and republicans, who were influenced also by socialism, as the Italian Republican Party. These two parties had in fact been part of The Extreme, which included also the Italian Socialist Party and its predecessors.
In 1913 the liberals around Giovanni Giolitti joined forces in the Liberal Union and in 1922 the Italian Liberal Party is formed. In that period, other liberal parties emerged: the Constitutional Democratic Party, the Democratic Liberal Party, and the Italian Social Democratic Party.
When Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party came to power in 1922, some Liberals and Radicals flirted with Fascism, but, ultimately, a Fascist regime was established and all the parties, notably including the Italian Liberal Party and the Italian Republican Party, were banned.
After the end of World War II, both Liberals and Republicans reorganised themselves, followed by more liberal parties in the upcoming decades, and, despite their modest results in elections, they were often part of the Italian government, in alliance with Christian Democracy. In the 1940s, during the resistance movement and the writing of the republican Constitution, an important role was played by the Action Party, a social-liberal, republican and liberal-socialist outfit, successor of the Justice and Freedom movement. In this phase the Liberals adhered to conservative liberalism and Republicans to social liberalism.
Since 1992–1994, following the Tangentopoli scandals, the subsequent Mani pulite inquiries and the resulting shake-up of the Italian party system, the liberal movement has been strongly divided. As a result, a broad group of parties, not all included here, started to use the "liberal" label.
Italian liberals are basically divided between the centre-right Forza Italia and the centre-left Democratic Party.
Minor liberal parties include, among others, Civic Choice, the Italian Radicals, the aforementioned Italian Republican Party, and Act to Stop the Decline. Also the centrist-populist Italy of Values was a member of the ALDE Party, but it is hardly a liberal party.
From 1994 on, most Liberals and several Republicans joined Forza Italia and the other parties of the House of Freedoms coalition. This is the reason why the term "liberal" is more often used when speaking of the centre-right than the centre-left. A new Italian Liberal Party was launched in 1997, but, as the Italian Republican Party, it survives as a very minor party. The former two, Civic Choice, Act to Stop the Decline and minor groups joined forces in European Choice, with disappointing results, in 2014.

Timeline of parties

The Italian Liberal Party

  • 1848: Camillo Benso di Cavour forms the Moderate Party, a conservative-liberal parliamentary group, within the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia.
  • 1849: The Left, a left-liberal parliamentary group, is formed in the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia.
  • 1861: The Historical Right, a parliamentary group sometimes referred to as Liberal Constitutional Party or Liberals, is formed as the successor of the Moderate Party. The Left starts to be known as Historical Left, while its members are frequently referred to as Democrats.
  • 1913: Giovanni Giolitti's "Liberal Left", heir of the Historical Left, is organised as Liberal Union, while its left wing forms the Constitutional Democratic Party and Democratic Party.
  • 1919: The PDC, the PD and other liberals, in opposition to Giolitti, form an electoral list named Italian Social Democratic Party for the 1919 general election.
  • 1921: Giolitti's Liberals incorporate the National Fasci of Combat in its National Blocs for the 1921 general election.
  • 1922: Giolitti's Liberals, conservative liberals and remnants of the Historical Right form the Italian Liberal Party.
  • 1924: Giolitti's Liberals are integrated in the Fascist-dominated National List in the 1924 general election, while anti-fascist liberals form the National Union.
  • 1926: Both the PLI and the UN are banned by the Fascist government.
  • 1943: Former members of the old PLI re-organise the Italian Liberal Party.
  • 1946: The PLI is part of an electoral list named National Democratic Union in the 1946 general election. A faction opposed to this form the Progressive Liberal Movement which merge into PRI soon after.
  • 1948: The PLI join forces with the Common Man's Front in the National Bloc in the 1948 general election.
  • 1953: A group of PLI splinters form the National Democratic Alliance.
  • 1955: The PLI's left-wing forms the Radical Party.
  • 1993: A fraction of the PLI's right-wing forms the Union of the Centre, while splinters form the Liberal Democratic Union and the Liberal Left.
  • 1994: The PLI is disbanded. Other than aforementioned spin-offs, the Federation of Liberals and the Italian Liberal Right, which is integrated into National Alliance, are formed. Several Liberals join either Forza Italia or the Segni Pact.
  • 1995: The ULD is merged into the FdL.
  • 1996: The FdL joins the Democratic Union.
  • 1997: Some of Forza Italia's Liberals form the Liberal Party.
  • 1998: The UdC is merged into Forza Italia.
  • 2004: Splinters from the FdL form the Association for Liberal Democracy, which would join Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy, whilst the PL, along with members of the DLI and former members of the UdC, re-establishes the Italian Liberal Party.
  • 2007: The Liberal Left joins the Democratic Party.
  • 2011: The DLI joins The People of Freedom.
  • 2014: Splinters from the PLI and other former Liberals form The Liberals, a short-lived experience.
  • 2018: The PLI forms an alliance with the Lega Nord, within the centre-right coalition.
  • 2019: The PLI leaves the alliance with the Lega Nord and the DLI splits from PLI.
  • 2020: The Liberals join forces with Action and More Europe.

    The historical Radical Party

  • 1877: Progressive liberals form the Radical Party within The Extreme parliamentary group.
  • 1904: The PR is officially founded, under the leadership of Ettore Sacchi.
  • 1921: The PR merges with several minor liberal parties to form the Democratic Liberal Party.
  • 1922: Some Radicals join forces with former PDC liberals within the PDSI.
  • 1926: The PR/PLD is banned, but many members remain politically active through the resistance movement.
  • 1943: Former PDSI members, along with former members of the Italian Reformist Socialist Party, form the Labour Democratic Party.
  • 1946: Former Radicals and the PDL join the UDN for the 1946 general election.
  • 1948: The PDL merges into the Italian Democratic Socialist Party.

    The Italian Republican Party

  • 1895: The Italian Republican Party is formed by followers of Giuseppe Mazzini.
  • 1926: The PRI is banned, but continues its activities in exile.
  • 1942: Republicans take part to the foundation of the Action Party.
  • 1943: The PRI is re-organised in Italy.
  • 1946: The PdA's liberal wing forms the Republican Democratic Concentration, which is merged into the PRI, another wing forms the Italian Republican Alliance which vanishes soon after.
  • 1947: The PdA is dissolved and officially joins the Italian Socialist Party.
  • 1952: PRI splinters form Popular Unity.
  • 1964: PRI splinters form the Democratic Union for the New Republic.
  • 1994: The PRI aligns with the Segni Pact, while a splinter group forms the Republican Left.
  • 1996: The PRI joins the Democratic Union, but soon distances from it
  • 1998: The SR is merged into the Democrats of the Left.
  • 2001: The PRI makes an alliance with Forza Italia, provoking the split of the European Republicans Movement.
  • 2004: A group of splinters form the Democratic Republicans.
  • 2011: The MRE and the RD re-join the PRI.
  • 2018: The PRI forms a pact with the Liberal Popular Alliance.
  • 2020: The PRI joins forces with Action and More Europe.
  • 2020: The MRE is re-established as an independent party.
  • 2022: The PRI briefly joins Civic Commitment and later joins Italia Viva, in alliance with Action; the MRE joins the PD-led Democratic and Progressive Italy list.

    From the Radical Party to the Italian Radicals

  • 1955: The PLI's left-wing faction, led by Marco Pannella, forms the Radical Party.
  • 1982: The Radical Federative Movement splits from the PR and would later merge into the PSI.
  • 1988: The PR is transformed into Transnational Radical Party.
  • 1989: The PRT is organised at the Italian-level as Antiprohibitionists on Drugs.
  • 1992: The PRT is organised at the Italian-level as Pannella List.
  • 1994: Pannella List's members are elected with Forza Italia in the 1994 general election.
  • 1999: The PRT is organised at the Italian-level as Bonino List.
  • 2001: The PRT is organised at the Italian-level as Italian Radicals, a full-fledged party.
  • 2005: The party joins forces with the Italian Democratic Socialists in the Rose in the Fist, an electoral coalition. The right-wing libertarian faction leaves to form the Liberal Reformers, which would become an associate party of Forza Italia and finally merge into The People of Freedom.
  • 2007: A splinter group forms Decide!, which would later merge into The People of Freedom.
  • 2008: The party contests the 2008 general election in a joint list with the Democratic Party.
  • 2009: The party contests the 2009 European Parliament election as Bonino-Pannella List.
  • 2013: The party contests the 2013 general election with a list named Amnesty, Justice and Freedom.
  • 2017: The PRT and the RI part ways.
  • 2017: Forza Europa, led by Benedetto Della Vedova is formed.
  • 2018: The RI, Forza Europa and the Democratic Centre join forces in More Europe.
  • 2019: +Eu is transformed into a party, with the Italian Radicals, FE and the CD as its founding associate parties.
  • 2020: +Eu, abandoned by the CD, joins forces with Action, ALI and the Italian Republican Party.
  • 2022: +Eu breaks its alliance with Action; some Radicals, led by Marco Cappato, form the Referendum and Democracy list; the RI joins the PD-led Democratic and Progressive Italy list.