Thursday, March 4, 2010

Anti-Catholic Fascist Architecture

The whole beast was an affront to Church.  As the photo illustrates, the idea was that the Fascists hold the fasces and so they hold the authority, not Church or bishop. 

In many big cities and towns in Italy for centuries there was always the palace of the curia vescovile where the bishop lived, often prominent in the central square.  On the front of the palace there was often a balcony where the bishop in theory would or could address the crowds.  The balcony had symbolism, like the fasces.

The Fascists would often construct a similar curia with balcony in cities and towns all over the peninsula and most of them can still be seen today.  This photo was taken in Pomezia, near Rome.

1 comment:

  1. Mussolini was only 39 when he came to power in 1922 and constructed for over 20 yrs.

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