The BRUTAL Execution Of Mussolini's Son In Law - Count Galeazzo Ciano

[@johnpritchard5410]

"Success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan," he said....

[@SK-lt1so]

Ciano's diary is a big source for Shirer's "Rise and Fall of the Third Reich".

[@lucaschiantodipepe2015]

I'm Italian and so I'm familiar with this issue. It's possible that Ciano diarys were manipulated (by whom?). People that analyzed them found same cronologycal contradictions, expecially on the dates (important) of the campaign in Greece (27 October 1940).

[@locusta4662]

@@lucaschiantodipepe2015 i'm also italian and no they aren't fake . There are many sources that confirm what is written there . Many in the army knew that Italy couldn't compete with The CCCP or the USA but Mussolini was too ambitious (he wanted the spoils of war ) and basically condamned italy to a brutal defeat

[@billh230]

Funny how his end parallels that of Fegelein, who was married to Eva Braun's sister.

[@discoverynorthcarolina9824]

Good point

[@Random_Dude4486]

FEGELEIN!

[@warrenkimble4578]

Brilliant shows keep it mate👍😃😃

[@albertseabra9226]

Ciano tried to prevent Mussolini 's idiotic ambitions. As stated in the Video, having fought in Ethiopia, he was aware of the lack of substance of the Italian Armed Forces. His attempts to change the state of affairs were doomed from the outset. The situation in Italy was extremely volatile. In a Dictatorship like the Soviet Union, it took 10 or 15 years to have Khrushchev removed from power. Things had to be done slowly, smoothly, behind-the-Courtain. -- after all, their necks were at stake. In Italy, facing terrible war defaats, a comparable situation was not possible -- as Ciano sadly end-up learning...

[@baronedipiemonte3990]

Galeazzo Ciano was a pimp of the first order, and a whore chaser, and tried only towards the end when he realized that the lives of his children, wife, and himself were in grave danger (just like Albert Speer did - quashed Hitler's "scorched earth degree"). Ciano was arrested, imprisoned, and later executed, shot in the back by firing squad. Mussolini could have interviened, but he didn't. There was nothing brutal about his execution. Mussolini and Hitler used unspeakable techniques to execute people. You will forgive me if I have nothing but contempt for for any Mussolini... he had my great grandparents murdered in the street for speaking against him, and my grandparents and father (age 14) barely escaped Italy with the clothes on their backs. Our property confiscated by the "state", and it's forever gone, just like that of the Jews in Germany...

[@albertseabra9226]

@@baronedipiemonte3990 Analysing Ciano's private Life was not the issue at stake. And rumors regarding private affairs of powerful historical figures should be taken with a grain of salt -- often times, with tons of salt. Unfortunately, even in Classical Greece, private lives were semeared and smudged in ordet to damage reputations. It's well established that Ciano -- even before Poland' s Invasion -- was against Italy's participation in any Wars. He was a Veteran in the Conflict between Italy and Ethiopia -- and Fully Conscientious of the terrible, primitive shape of the Italian Armed Forces. Facts are facts! I'm not implying that he was a good, moral person, a good husband, etc. He was adamantly against the War for several reasons. Namely, due to his contacts as a diplomat he knew that Hitler' s judgement was not to be trusted. And above all, as stated before having fought in the War between Italy and Ethiopia he was fully aware of the terrible shape of the Italian Armed Forces. In sum, he advocated that Italy shouldn't participate in an eventual Conflict between France, Germany and the U.K. Accordingly, he believed that Italy would be better of as a NEUTRAL COUNTRY -- as Portugal, Switzerland, Portugal and Spain wisely choose to remain during WW II. And those countries managed to harvest substantial financial rewards during the War , "collecting from both sides" Thank you for your comment, Warm regards, Albert

[@dennisroyhall121]

@@baronedipiemonte3990: Ciano to be shot in the back (like his fellow executed) but didn’t he turn round in his chair, to face his executioners…? That said, and perhaps to his credit for courage of a kind, also his diary etc and personal intelligence to realise ultimately the way things were going, I think he (i) was foolish enough to « join the bandwagon of triumphalism» in Ethiopia ( shortsighted to say the least!) and (ii) wasn’t he Ambassador to Japan in the late 1930s and if so what was his record there? Perhaps a fair bet it was nothing but futile junketing! In early 1941 there were actually newspaper reports of the possibility that the Axis partner that Japan was, might intervene in Ethiopia to help the Duke of Savoy stave off his failing defence of the East African Empire after the six week battle of Keren in March to the eventual and ultimate surrender with full honours at end November and just one week before the aggression of that Axis partner Japan against the USA - and the declaration of war by the other Axis partner Nazi Germany against the USA, Mussolini allowing himself to be dragged along by his pseudo soul mate to sign the same declaration of war by Italy against the USA. Japan could with an effort have managed to assist in Ethiopia, it showed enough interest to come close to Vichy Madagascar to raise concern in South Africa and with some connivance of Vichy Djibouti could have worried General Wavell C.in C of the whole Middle Eastern Command a hell of a lot. But I suspect Ciano wasn’t really upto the job, and no more than Mussolini himself who barely showed any interest in defending it or even making something of the occupation of British Somaliland which it held fir no more than eight months, and left no defence force at all when a British task force from Aden came to take it back in March 1941. Fully empathise with your personal comments, family…

[@Charlesputnam-bn9zy]

@@albertseabra9226 Signor Albert Seabra, first thing first , Ciano was no Herman Fegelein, a worthless brothel-addict who got what he looked for. He was aghast at Mussolini irresponsible recklessness in trying to ride on bad 'dolf's coattails to victory, and stood up to insane 'dolf in the weeks before the fateful September 1st. Worthy of mention too was His Excellency Signore Attolico, Italy's Ambassador in Berlin, who did all he could to sabotage the deadly relations between Italy and the predatory & hell-bent Hitlerian regime. His demand of Ribbentrop for a ''subito'' delivery of the raw materials Italy needed as Mussolini's condition for Italy's entrence into war, was made up on his own authority, while Mussolini only asked for a gradual delivery. Of course that Ribbentrop refused. The courageous Italian Ambassador incurred a big risk because the nazis knew every message between Berlin's Italian Embassy & Rome. But he detested Hitler & Mussolini equally, he saw as murderously nefarious for Italy. By doing so, he gained a reprieve for Italy. That Benito squandered for Italy's woes.

[@albertseabra9226]

@@Charlesputnam-bn9zy Corrupt and poorly oriented policies, based on blind context evaluations normally lead to disasters. People endowed with a clear perception of the shortcomings of a Regime (As Ciano's Vision since the War against Ethiopia) , face à Major Dilema: Either they face the Tsunami sweeping the Country-- and are destroyed in the process. Or they attempt to Surf the tidal-wave, in order to minimize the destrucyion -- and even in Italy, an authocratic regime less virulent than Hitler's or Stalin's -- that was not possible. Hermano Fegelein was a thug ! Neverthless, if he were in a different political and social context -- for instantes, living in the UK or the USA, há could be a totally different person. Perhaps a ruthless businessman, or a Politician, but within a totally different framework. His love for horses and sports and a democratic context would have prevented his behaviour as war criminal and a thug . As Ortega Y Yasser, stated "We are what we are, plus the context". More disturbing yet, way decente, good people assume reporchable, criminal behaviour?

[@stevefox8605]

Every day is a lesson 👏🏻 Very interesting, thank you 👍🏻👍🏻

[@John.McMillan]

He was against the Fascists, because of this the Monarchists took power again. So he ran to the Fascists because he thought the Monarchists would prosecute him, And the Fascists captured and executed him. The irony would be apparent but honestly this is pretty par for the course with Fascist Italy in WW2.

[@athelstan927]

No Italt full stop..

[@BHuang92]

In other words, a complicated man.

[@jamesong.a.7695]

This was interesting… He obviously expected the Monarchists to be accepting of him when they took back power. It is strange that they weren’t since he openly betrayed Mussolini in their favor. Maybe they feared he had aspirations to be the next Mussolini and could actually pull it off… In any case, I’m sure he regretted that decision since he had no way of knowing it would turn bad for him either way.

[@John.McMillan]

@@jamesong.a.7695 I am not positive of the story as I havent looked a lot in to it, but as far as I remember he got wind the Monarchists were threatening to take anyone in Mussolini's cabinet into custody for possible charges of treason. Some were later pardoned and alot of lower ranking members were, but he probably thought "Oh shit I am legally Mussolini's son, and they want to kill him, so they will definately kill me" which is honestly probable. Generally when things like that go down everyone related to the previous ruler is either executed or put in to exile.

[@emintey]

Ciano was not against the fascists, he was against Mussolini because he rightly surmised that he was leading Italy to ruin. He turned towards the Fascist Grand Council and the King to remove Mussolini from power as the only authority with the ability to do so.

[@vpowerization]

A very ambitious and capable man , trapped between his ambitions and the wrong doing of more powerful people.

[@Jhonatan5]

You mean the his wrong doing as well right? Or do you think he was a good man as well?

[@johnmn3500]

I don't consider death by firing squad brutal as long as they're decent marksmen.

[@loisreese2692]

As we just leant, they weren't.

[@oldedwardian1778]

@@loisreese2692 You win some, you lose some ehhh!

[@shahrulamar5358]

@Will Leary Watched the corpse of Nicolae Ceausescu after he was executed in December 1989. 😬😬

[@webstercat]

Alex Baldwin firing squad wanna be.

[@shahrulamar5358]

@@webstercat If Baldwin live in that era he probably will face the firing squad for his mistake. 😃😃

[@slandgsmith]

I learn more from this channel than I did in World History class in high school!

[@loisreese2692]

I think I blocked out the remaining memories of history class after Paul Liebergot decided to heckle the reel-to-reels of the Auschwitz camp liberation.

[@WeareCustomerService]

Exactly. Same for me.

[@adam7565]

Im Italian and I've learned more about Mussolini in this Channel than at school when i was a kid , they never ever mention Mussolini son in law or show us videos like this.

[@WeareCustomerService]

@@adam7565 Wow! Really????

[@TES-vk3he]

You should’ve paid more attention at School.

[@nonamegame9857]

It sounds to me like he was simply an opportunist that wanted money and power.

[@loisreese2692]

I believe that would make him a politician. 😝

[@tonygumbrell22]

@@loisreese2692 or social climber.

[@baronedipiemonte3990]

That's exactly what he was. Anything he did that appeared to be for the public benefit was in attempt to save his own ass, and his wife and children !

[@skrayraja]

Had Mussolini listed to Ciano, they botb might have escaped death. Ciano was more intelligent and could see the way things were going. It's also said that the Germans didn't allow Mussolini to save Ciano's life. I think that to be very likely

[@dennisroyhall121]

If that truly was the case then all the more damning for Musso’s moral standing [ if it wasn’t enough for him to heed his own daughter’s pleading] he couldn’t/wouldn’t face upto Shitegrubber’s evil…a repeat posture of his empty soul seen over Schussnig’s dilemma in 1938, and one of full bluff and blather. Not to overlook either his attitude as regards his first wife and poor son, meting out to her abominable treatment. As to his « rescue » from his mountain confinement, sometimes I wonder from the impression he gave as to whether he really welcomed his « relative freedom regained » ie that he would have preferred the occasion and opportunity to get out of Hitler’s grasp and take the consequences which might have spared him a lot less than what would await his fate with the German Lucifer…But his mindful intelligence was in free fall and just could not keep up and he was sacrificing all without even realising it or what a fool he had been

[@Veronica_Boer]

Thank god he didn’t listen. Happy that monsters are dead. A proud Italian.

[@lorenzoriva202]

Yes and no, most of Ciano's positions were due to his careerism, you also have to keep in mind that Mussolini had already put Italy in a bad position overestimating or overplaying our strenght. We were absolutely not prepared to take part on germany's side but at the same time if he would have kept the neutrality, germany would have invaded italy (in ww1 we decided not to follow germany and austro-ungary when they started the conflict and later we took the triple entente's side, they would have quite surely prevented something like that from happening again). It was a mix of mistakes, some made by Mussolini and before, the post ww1 italian politics that allowed him to rise, other made by the US, UK and France at the end of ww1, when they excluded Italy from most of the territorial gains, also humiliating Germany with too harsh peace terms, making It impossible for the newborn Weimar republic to build an alternative to the nationalism and revanchism, creating the enviroment for the fascists movements in both Italy and germany. I'm quite sure that by 1939 It was already too late, Germany was poisoned by the nazism, and ready to start the war, Italy poisoned by the fascism, deluded by Its propaganda and megalomania and with two options: start a war 3/4 years before being ready to, or suffer the nazi's revenge (thing that happened anyway from '43 but something suggest me that in this scenario It would have been way more ruthless). The role of most of the western Powers in the rise of fascism and nazism Is too often overlooked, this two cancers were not only tollerated but often fed by them as they thought they were the perfect weapons to fight the communist threat, and expected them to fade away once the threat was over.

[@onewotldgovernmentonlywhen9044]

They were are evil monster

[@BHuang92]

Fun Fact: Italy did not declare war on Poland and refused Poland's declaration of war on the Axis. Out of the Axis powers, Italy was the most lenient to Polish POWs.

[@oldedwardian1778]

Well isn’t that SPECIAL, the Italians were lenient to Polish POWs. What on Earth does “refused Polands declaration of war on the Axis” actually mean. In truth Italy stood to one side to see which way the war would go, in the early years Germany swept all before it and seemed UNSTOPPABLE. So Mussolini decided to get in on the act he saw rewards of land and treasure by joining in with Hitler. But then things didn’t turn out as he expected, OH DEAR. When the Italian people realized that Il Duce was just a gigantic BAG OF WIND and had led the nation down a path of utter destruction, they turned on him before Italy was turned into a mountain of DUST. Hitler realized TOO LATE what a disaster it was to have Italy as an ally, virtually EVERYTHING Italy did collapsed into disaster and the Italian armed forces had to be RESCUED BY GERMAN REINFORCEMENTS at every turn. Rather than an ally Italy turned into a gigantic liability. The SMARTEST guy in that ODIOUS BUNCH was the Generalissimo Franco. Although he protected Spain by staying out of the war his refusal to join Adolf and the Pompous Italian Prick virtually guaranteed that the Axis forces would lose. If Spain had joined the Axis the odds were that the Axis would have won WWII.

[@Charlesputnam-bn9zy]

@@oldedwardian1778 The icing on Italy's cake of defeat was the Tunisian campaign to which Italy contributed even more troops after its losses in Libya & Egypt(many of them left behind at Alamein by the nazis who fled in empty trucks with full fuel tanks) Rommel wanted only to get the hell out of there & go home. But 'dolf still believed he could beat both the Americans & the British, & sent a new army called on paper the 5th panzer army to Tunisia. The apparent sluggishness of Monty's pursuit & his apparent failure in trapping the Afrika Korps whetted 'dolf's appetite for more victories, to compensate for Stalingrad. In fact Monty was in no hurry to prevent Rommel from spending himself on the Americans. Why should he ? Americans need their training. The result was that German Luftwaffe historian Cajus Bekker called Tunis a second Stalingrad. Thanks Benito. For his part Franco thought that the 3-year long uncivil war was more than enough death & destruction for Spain. So he wisely decided to stay out lest he got the Mussolini treatment. Thanks Francisco.

[@imedi]

@@oldedwardian1778 Dont think Spain entering the war would have made a difference to the outcome might have extended the war however

[@oldedwardian1778]

@@imedi On what evidence do you base that? Spain had an adequate Navy that could have caused the British a HUGE PROBLEM with access to the Mediterranean. That would have been catastrophic remember that Britain fought ALONE against the Axis forces before the USA entered the war. The Mediterranean was VITAL TO THE BRITISH and any attempt by Spain to impede access could have caused UNTOLD PROBLEMS. So please tell me why you think that Spain would not have been a factor? Come on let’s hear your evidence.

[@isaacsilverman5249]

@@oldedwardian1778 America stood on sidelines too. Not sure Spain could changed results. Given hitlers refusal to listen to any sound military advice Germany was doomed before the war even started. Hindsight yes but that is why it is 20/20.

[@MiKeMiDNiTe-77]

Be interesting to know what his letter to Mr Churchill said

[@paulshrew]

I’m sure that is kept safe somewhere within the mod archives, my guess it was a plea for peace and possibly he form a new government under the allies, someone must know it’s whereabouts or content.

[@jimredd652]

It's a shame European history is so poorly taught in the USA I'm sure you would find it interesting

[@jimredd652]

@N Gonzales do you mean the eastern European Nations behind the iron curtain (Stalinist backed)

[@jimredd652]

@N Gonzales ah yes from operation Barbarrossa June 1941 until the fall of Berlin. The biggest and most significant battles of WW2 were fought in the USSR a truly fascinating struggle

[@jimredd652]

@pekkerwrekker if that's true, it's a great shame,, the history of your nation should be taught at every level, it is in England, we are taught Kings and Queens of England as a nursery rhyme, you never forget who the wives of Henry VIII were lol

[@trj1442]

Another excellent episode. Thankyou.

[@oneshotme]

Enjoyed the video and I gave it a Thumbs Up

[@zacharymoye7272]

I'm always here! Love this channel

[@Veronica_Boer]

I’m Italian and my father was a Partisan in WWII. He, his family and my mother’s endured the most horrendous times of their lives. Even if Galeazzo Ciano was not directly involved, he did nothing to protect the people his father in law tortured and domineered. Nothing was more right than killing these monsters just like they tortured those against this dictatorship. Fu@k them all and let them burn forever in hell!

[@claudiotavares9580]

I don't think he would be able to do anithing for political prisioners even if he whishes to do.

[@badrulalam4077]

@@claudiotavares9580 still, he was a stakeholder and benefited from such a regime. Many people were oppressed during that time, and his death was a direct consequence of his actions.

[@claudiotavares9580]

@@badrulalam4077 Yes. But at least he did it the best that he could to change the situation for the better. Unfortunately for him this isn't enough.

[@yvonnefernando6504]

Thank you somuch sharing this worthy information,watching fm Srilanka.

[@terrystephens1102]

Many thanks for another excellent presentation.😃👌👏👏👏

[@MrReeceBrennan]

Love this channel, always interesting! 👍

[@michaelwalsh1035]

The first couple of paragraphs of Malcolm Muggeridge’s introduction to Ciano’s diaries are worth reproducing. ‘Of all the documents which have come out of the 1939-1945 war and the events which led up to it, Ciano’s Diary is the most interesting, and will probably prove in the end the most useful to historians. I can imagine some future Gibbon, or even Lytton Strachey, coming upon it with a gasp of delight. This is because Ciano, like Boswell, was too vain to hide the true workings of his mind and the true character of his aspirations, and too foolish to be aware of how completely he was giving himself and those about whom he wrote away. If he had been cleverer his Diary would have been less revealing; if he had been better, his Diary would have been worse. Day by day he recorded his thoughts, hopes, conversations, all that had happened to him, against the background of his inordinate vanity, and in the end, waiting in a prison cell at Verona to be taken out and shot, engineered the publication of what he had written in the fond hope that thereby he would revenge himself on his father-in-law and former patron Mussolini. What he achieved actually was to provide the world with one more record, incomparable in its naiveté, of how futile a pursuit is power, and how certainly those who pursue it become enmeshed in their own deceits and stratagems. For this at least he deserves gratitude. In exposing Mussolini he perforce exposed himself, and all who take the path they followed. Without knowing it, he presented Mussolini as Macbeth, with Hider for the Horrid Sisters. Duce he was, but the promise of yet greater things to come proved irresistible. Like Macbeth, he struggled sometimes against its seduction, but in the end succumbed, as many others did, to the Führer’s fearful certainty. The actual events that Ciano recounts are too near, and their tragic consequences too present, to require his confirmation. It is not his account of the play which makes his Diary so valuable, but his revelation of the character of the players and of their relationships with one another.’

[@Kitiwake]

Too vain? Like Churchill so.

[@michaelwalsh1035]

@@Kitiwake the author is writing about Ciano’s limitations in reporting events he was involved in. Muggeridge edited Ciano’s diaries, not Churchill's. Muggeridge's views regarding Churchill got him in trouble in Britain from the 40s to the early 60s. That's an entirely different story.

[@roybennett9284]

If you sit in a barbers chair, your going to get a haircut...

[@jimmylight4866]

If you take the bus, you will get there.

[@jasonthatjason1912]

Capitalizes "BRUTAL" and describes a relatively tame execution by the standards of the time. Never trust the headlines.

[@baronedipiemonte3990]

VERY TAME. What's not widely known is that much of Hitler's dirt was learned from Mussolini. I won't describe them here, you'd be vomiting on your keyboard ! These channels are infamous for the Click bait titles.

[@darlenewells3309]

And "Once Again" ty for bringing us another great little unknown story!

[@dennisroyhall121]

Well done indeed very well done and impressive by your concise, fairly put objectivity. No wasted words, each item of reference addressed fully relevant. I thought I knew most of what was considered important and worth knowing: how wrong I was!

[@peteredwards338]

We never do!

[@talex7473]

This is a good VIDEO; however you like to over emphasize the last word in each SENTENCE. I look forward to your future CONTENT.

[@sheilastockdale6715]

Another great job! 👏👏👏👏

[@bradleybriscoe2608]

SS commando Otto Skorzeny and troops of the Fallschirmjäger (paratroopers) rescued Mussolini in the Gran Sasso mission in 1943 called 'Operation Oak'.

[@etubrutus3501]

I thought he actually looked like Mussolini

[@loisreese2692]

Same. Gian looked more like Mussolini than Edda did, and that's saying something.

[@Charlesputnam-bn9zy]

& eerily so.

[@anitakoch3895]

Me too

[@lucaschiantodipepe2015]

@@loisreese2692 Gian Vs Ciano.

[@windwoman3549]

I saw a video of an execution a few years back. Very old, probably WWII era. Similar to the executions show here. The condemned was tied to a straight-backed chair backwards. The firing squad did not aim for the man’s chest, however. They targeted his head. At the command, the upper left, rear portion of his skull was obliterated. Horrifying to watch, but upon reflection, I thought maybe it was more merciful than body shots. No ‘oops’, no mistakes resulting in pain or suffering. The person is alive and cognizant, and in the next split-second? Instantaneous brain death.

[@dannybeun948]

Fantastic like always fully agree 👌

[@michaelwalsh1035]

The British writer Malcolm Muggeridge edited and wrote interesting analyses of Ciano's diaries.

[@oldedwardian1778]

William F Buckley modeled himself after Malcom Muggeridge, the difference was that Muggeridge was a brilliant and gifted writer and commentator. You know EVERYTHING THAT BUCKLEY WAS NOT.

[@darkx391]

Nice video

[@donreed]

Was this narrated with the speaker at the bottom of a well?

[@rebelusa6585]

Mussolini son in law say, dad i am going to hell. Mussolini say, soon i will be joining you down there.

[@jensenwilliam5434]

Thank you!!

[@dalea1691]

He knew Italy could have lost the whole country. But more people were on his side in the long run.

[@arlosmith2784]

Count Ciano saw war was lost and wanted to avoid Italy being destroyed by war. Because Mussolini was not removed almost all of Italy ended up being a war zone. Mussolini should have done like Franco and kept Italy neutral.

[@MarkHarrison733]

Franco was never neutral.

[@arlosmith2784]

@@MarkHarrison733 Franco was smart and Michiavellian. He had foresight that Axis could lose, so he never joined Axis. He never sent Spanish troops to Russia, though he allowed Spanish "volunteers" to serve against Russia. He sheltered some lower level war criminals but not the "big fish". As a result Spain was never invaded by the Allies. After WW2, Franco took a firmly anti-Soviet position and the US put bases in Spain. Portugal's Salazar acted similarly but leaned more to Allies - and was rewarded by Portugal becoming a UN and NATO member

[@MarkHarrison733]

@@arlosmith2784 Franco invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, and allowed the Germans and Italians to use Spanish harbours. The UN and NATO are worthless.

[@MarkHarrison733]

@@arlosmith2784 Franco still expected the Axis to win in 1944.

[@arlosmith2784]

@@MarkHarrison733 Franco was a realist. He carefully considered all consequences of major actions. He and Salazar both agreed during war to maintain official neutrality. Though he was personally a monarchist he carefully did not name Juan Carlos as future king until late 1960s. When he built a Spanish Civil War monument he honored both Nationalist and Republican fallen. None of this is a justification of the dictatorship, only an observation that this dictator was more astute than Hitler or many African and Latin American dictators. Michiavelli would have considered Franco a wise Prince but would have judged Hitler an idiot

[@Patrickrooney1962]

He was an ambitious man who was out for himself. He tried at playing both sides and ultimately lost. Let's hope his poor children didn't suffer for his crimes. An amazing video. Thank you for sharing...👏👏👏👏..P

[@DarkLink-hj7py]

Why someone hasn't made a movie is beyond me

[@jade7602]

Great video!

[@martinmarsola6477]

A great video on this subject.

[@TheUntoldPast]

Thanks Martin!

[@samsum3738]

An interesting character . An absolute chancer of course , but i think he redeemed himself at the very end . I think his diaries must be a bit of a read as well .

[@camillaallegrucci1311]

They absolutely are!

[@triumphbobberbiker]

Mussolini never had any "last laugh" as described in the introduction. Enough with these KZbin "documentaries" that are unable to offer the viewers anything but an over-simplified and caricatured version of the past! Mussolini was de facto forced to agree to Ciano being executed because Germany did absolutely want him to appear merciless on "traitors", each and every of them.

[@John.McMillan]

Mussolini is a great example of "Dont stop winning the war." There are plenty of examples but Mussolini is a great modern representation of how quickly your entire nation can turn on your the moment the war starts going against your favour. Quite popular and loved until the war started to turn against the Axis, from that point on it was just constant down hill. Needed someone to blame for everything so they put it on Mussolini and his family. (Granted his public opinion was going down at the height, so also a example of why war fatigue is a thing you should be worried about, probably didnt help Italy was absurdly incompetent in WW2)

[@chrissheppard5068]

Brandon take note!

[@jdewitt77]

Not so much incompetent as badly prepared with mostly substandard weapons, insufficent resources, limited industrial capacity, and not the best leadership. There were many examples of competence and courage displayed but this was not enough.

[@John.McMillan]

@@jdewitt77 "Not so much incompetent as-" proceeds to describe incompetence on multiple levels of the Italian war machine.

[@donaldshotts4429]

From everything I've ever read the Italian public wanted nothing to do with WW2 from the start

[@MarkHarrison733]

Mussolini was widely popular in Italy. He was murdered by Communists who supported Stalin.

[@imaginenation3280]

Brutal and DESERVED should read ...

[@LBG-cf8gu]

Thanks for the upload. His life might be an interesting biography.

[@simonworman7898]

great footage,clear and concise narration but Oh my! the delivery is flat and without any style.!

[@marcomambretti5922]

Ciano is a interesting part of the raise and collapse of fashism. He belonged to the part if fashists who fought in WW1 against Austria and Germany. He never supported this unnatural alliance which wasn't so strongly supported from the italians. Marco

[@LadyFairChildVideo]

for those of you saying it was not BRUTAL, it was within the context of the word. it was brutal, because he was shot almost as a common thief, humiliated, and removed from power. all brutal to the soul and ego. it is usually thought that higher up people are just removed from power. but Ciano was indeed brutally executed , in the sense that he was shown no remorse.

[@thomasvangeel1594]

he didn’t turn around tho, seems to me to be a bit overdramatised to say it in the video

[@margaretcaldarone1005]

Count Ciano Yauct is In Galveston, Texas. ( used for Parties, a B&B or Restaurant.) It was open for toursism yrs ago. I was on the yacht, the wood of the boat was like glass. An old world jewel, something you dont see here.

[@nicholasbarber3644]

benito mussolini was not a dictator he was a prime minister like churchill just because he was fascist does not make him a dictator

[@munteanuvirgil669]

Great stories with subtile i love it

[@johnthomson6507]

Isn't Mussolini granddaughter in Italian politics the descendants of his fascist party?

[@richardokehoe4336]

Yes !!!!!!!!!

[@CB-ck9dg]

@@richardokehoe4336 Not really. She does not mean business that hard. You must keep in mind that gaining a seat in Italy's Parliament means you are comfortably settled in life from then on. You draw a very handsome salary, and you even gain the right to a hefty pension upon completing just one mandate. Very handy, should you have the misfortune of growing old. Her small constituency is probably a mix of nostalgic of the Fascist regime and people looking for small favors, as happens with any Italian politicians. Very few Italians would now be prepared to fight for fascist ideals, and I think she knows very well, because the King, the Italian military, the Italian bureaucracy, all the way down to common people, all failed her grandfather in the 1940s, with precious few exceptions. Most of them really had no idea what embarking in a war against the British and the Americans would entail. I know, because my father's generation grew up during he fascist regime, and I heard many first-hand stories about living during Mussolini's years. Most of them were peasants or small farmers who - on a very short notice and with very little training - found themselves in the icy steppes of the USSR or in the very middle of the the Sahara desert, to fight an enemy they had no idea it existed just a few days before. Go figure.

[@dimitriosvlissides5781]

@@CB-ck9dg you forgot the fighting of these people in Greece....

[@dimitriosvlissides5781]

@@CB-ck9dg the beginning of the downfall of Mussolini...

[@itadrummer1]

Mussolini was the greatest political leader of the Twentieth Century , an no ambitious yet brilliant man of action who invented a political AND social movement called Fascism that turned a backwards and rural country of illiterate people into a world power , at least for those years ! He modernized Italy with roads and railways . He introduced in 1936 the world’s first electric “ bullet trains” capable to speed in excess of 200km/h ( hence the name ETR 200), he introduced the pension for workers, public housing for low- income people , kindergartens for little kids free of charge , free summer retreats for young boys and girls where they could spend a month at the beach or mountain. All these things and much more are well known to us Italians . Mussolini major fault was to link Italy to Germany with the pact of Steel which proved to be fatal !!! Ciano himself was very wary of the Nazis and openly against entering the war. Mussolini’s capital sin was ultimately that of standing up against the Anglo-Saxon plutocracies and displaying a powerful military navy fleet in the Mediterranean which was openly against the British interests . They considered the Mediterranean as their own sea whereas it was just the opposite . In 1942 we taught them a hard lesson by sinking in an absolutely brilliant way a number of ships harbored in Alexandria in Egypt !!!!

[@phillippatterson9484]

Spin it any way you want. Should have dumped Hitler and asked for American help way earlier. He would have been murdered but would have been famous in a good way..

[@MarkHarrison733]

@@phillippatterson9484 Churchill made Europe a satellite of the United States.

[@robertchubb1518]

One can not deny this man (whether you like it/him or not) went to the post like a man

[@oldedwardian1778]

He had little choice, even at the end it was his gigantic EGO that was controlling him. His EGO was probably bigger than DUMPS.

[@barrybrevik9178]

I have just discovered this channel, and have watched 3 excellent and interesting videos! The only negative view I have, is that the video titles seem to be a bit over-blown. For example, this title states ". . . brutal execution . . .", but I am still waiting for the brutal. Execution by firing squad was pretty normal in 1948, amongst military organizations. A small quibble perhaps, for videos with such great content! However, upon review, I guess it is a big enough deal to me to deserve mention. But still, great videos!

[@nickhanlon9331]

Mussolini coulave ruled util the 1960's if had stayed out of the war.

[@alexcholagh8330]

Mussolini has at least 3 grandchildren in politics including Alessandra Mussolini.

[@larkmurry7808]

Merci! Delicious...

[@tintindb]

What happened to Edda? Thanks for the will presented history lesson.

[@camillaallegrucci1311]

She managed to cross into Switzerland and was admitted to an hospital (she was - understatement alert - pretty distressed and had a nervous breakdown). After the war and Mussolini's execution she came back to Italy and was exiled for a short while (I can't remember how long) to Lipari for her part in the regime. While in Lipari she befriended a communist politician, it has been speculated they were actually in a relationship but I don't remember how substantiated the claim is so don't take my word for it. After that she lived a fairly private life. The only exception is a very long interview she gave a friend of hers in the 80es, which formed the basis for several documentaries and a book. I read the book and I don't think she's ever got over what happened to her immediate family during ww2. I remember vividly that she told her friend that after the war she worked hard to ensure her younger siblings, Romano and Anna Maria, had a good relationship with her children, Fernanda e Raimondo, who were about the same age, because "It's not easy for my children to grow up knowing their grandpa had their father shot, they might resent Romano and Anna Maria". Not a literal quote, but the part about "grandpa had dad shot" is very close to what she actually said, and her resentment and pain were plain to see, 40 years or so after the facts. All in all, a truly tragic story. I know a lot of people (in Italy and abroad) will say they brought it upon themselves, and in a way I completely agree - sometimes when I read about the Axis and the war and what we inflicted on other people, and what we had to suffer later - I feel a white hot rage that I cannot shake (and that despite coming from a family that was, luckily, less affected than many others by the war). But even though I despite Mussolini's politics, I can still appreciate how tragic this particular events have been for all those involved.

[@tintindb]

@@camillaallegrucci1311 Signora. It is one thing to merely Google a question and quite another to get a response from a person who has had to live through and with such difficult times. I thank you for taking the time to make an answer. It seems strange but we are all sharing a common fate and if we could take time to see that perhaps history and our lives could be different. Again I say thank you and stay safe.

[@--Skip--]

He was a member of the Axis powers (Germany, Italy, Japan), not Allies (United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Free French, Free Poland, Free Czechoslovakia, Free Belgium, Free Denmark, Free Norway, Free Netherlands, Australia, New Zealand, Later Russia, etc.

[@austint7533]

They were on the allied side at the end of the war

[@proarte4081]

@@austint7533 This is wrong, in the WW2 Italy fought against Germany in the last 19 months of the war because the Germans still occupied a part of the Italian territory after italian capitulation ... but Italy was considered a co-belligerent country and not an ally! After the war, Italy was considered as a defeated country, and had to sign a very tough peace treaty.

[@davidfryer9359]

Absolutely power corrupts absolutely. Power to the people called "WE".

[@Deadassbruhfrfr]

Cringe

[@marciecorda5209]

Power to GOD only and His Law and order.

[@arnarninson4413]

Shocking or Deserving??? the image of Mussolini and his mistress

[@robertlevine2827]

It was certainly deserved, but "shocking" because I doubt anyone expected him to end up hanged by his heels at a gas station w/a crowd mutilating him.

[@edwardmoyna3469]

He should have known he was in danger.

[@ReapWhatYaSow]

I don't feel one bit sorry for this guy. You hang around with the devil, you just might get burned.

[@carbonara2144]

It seems Ciano was on the right side of history.

[@giuliom7428]

INCORRECT. Mussolini didn't rise to power as a result of the March to Rome. The march to Rome was little more than a parade (with few incidents, yes) which took place under the non-intervening monitoring of the Army (who could have easily stopped it). It took place knowing that Mussolini (who at the same time was travelling to Rome by train) was already asked by the King to go to Rome and form the new government. As pointed out by prominent italian historians. Of course, Mussolini's propaganda always pictured the March as the eroic moment where the power was taken. This confirms the saying that 'italians don't do revolutions'

[@ericdahlstrom1598]

Mussolini always reminded me of an evil cartoon character

[@traveller8867]

Yes.

[@willholmes7032]

When you are worried the back quarterback is going to take your job.

[@letoubib21]

But Fegelein was just a yellow-belly, Conte Ciano wasn't *. . .*

[@weilandiv8310]

I have heard of Hitler, but this Mussolini fella seems like someone I should steer clear of...

[@coldblue9mm]

You want to know who's most like Mussolini? The Orange Man. He's about as ignorant as Mussolini.

[@RobertJonesWightpaint]

Best avoided, yes. Choose your friends with care.

[@reddawgrup1779]

@@coldblue9mm let's go brandon!!!!

[@coldblue9mm]

@@reddawgrup1779 I like the power point for over throwing our government your boy came up with. He couldn't run for dog catcher when the dust settles. He's toast.

[@reddawgrup1779]

@@coldblue9mm keep believing the bs 👍

[@voltfields3900]

The curse of the hand of St. Teresa of Avila. Mussolini' son in law is responsible in stilling the relic hand of St. Teresa of Avila. He gifted the said hand to Benito Mussolini.

[@tomkellycartoons]

“Give that man a hand!”

[@giuliom7428]

Not only him. That execution squad also killed others, i believe aldo one of the Quadrumviri of the 1922 march to Rome, Emilio De Bono who must have been of very old age

[@dukadarodear2176]

Ciano was made Ambassador to the Vatican which ment he didn't have far to travel. I wonder did he take part in negotiating the new arrangement between the Vatican and the Italian state led by Mussilini his father-in-law. Anyone know?

[@tonygumbrell22]

I don't believe there was a new arrangement that late in the game. Mussolini wanted to maintain close relations with the Vatican and keep tabs on them at the same time, so that the Pope didn't jump ship. Sending an important family member was probably a way of making a statement to the Papacy.

[@RobertJonesWightpaint]

I think the concordat with the Vatican happened before his time as ambassador - but that's an 'I think', not an 'I know'.

[@tonygumbrell22]

@@RobertJonesWightpaint The Lateran Treaty between the Italian Government and the Holy See (Vatican) was signed 11 Feb 1929. Count Ciano was made ambassador to the Vatican 1 March 1943. Mussolini was deposed by a vote of the Fascist Grand Council 24 July 1943.

[@dukadarodear2176]

@@tonygumbrell22 Thanks for your informative replies.

[@colindant3410]

The narrator sounds like Neil McCoy-Ward.

[@TheLeadSled]

I was in Italy in 2019 and I went to visit the spot where Mussolini was executed by his own countrymen, if you were to blink you would miss it.

[@wuppas]

@A Publick Domain Why would anybody miss a criminal bastard and his criminal fascist party made up of stooges and lackey at the service of the land owners and the capitalists industrialists of that time in Italy, who without the consent and approval of the people, took the country into a self destructive war with catastrophic consequences for the italian people.

[@baronedipiemonte3990]

And did you visit Mussolini's tomb and shrine ? ALL in gross violation of post WW2 Anti Fascism law ! The only way I'll ever go to Italy is if the government restores our property, and every Mussolini is dead or exiled

[@wuppas]

@@baronedipiemonte3990 Now you talk sense.

[@63bplumb]

Sounds as though he tried to stand up for Italy and his beliefs but was too vocal about it and paid the price.

[@marciecorda5209]

Sometimes we need to be vocal and have courage to stand AGAINST EVIL.

[@andresinsurriaga876]

It is my understanding that Mussolini was strong armed by the Germans into having his son-in-law executed. There wasn't much he could do. There is a book written by Mussolini's widow Rachele which is very interesting.

[@sdkfz2519]

You made up the story about execution of Ciano. There are videos of his execution available on KZbin! Ciano did Not turn back to face his executioners right before getting shot at. He was shot in the back side of his head (not the chest). Just for the sake of historical accuracy.

[@actonman7291]

You are right this guy made up the account of the execution.

[@queencerseilannister3519]

Wow she looked like her father!

[@simonf8902]

A bit like dumb and dumber.

[@kindnessfirst9670]

Winston Churchill said that executing his son in law was the one thing he envied about Mussolini.

[@robertopesenti1173]

0.52... Livorno in English Is Leghorn...

[@bostjanklemencic]

Literally reading from the English Wikipedia page on his bio...

[@beverlybalius9303]

So both monsters Stahlin and Mussolini both had sons that met brutal deaths. Stalins son was a good person I read and did not deserve a brutal death.

[@robertlaube574]

Shocking? No.

[@actonman7291]

It dissapoint me you description of the final moments of Ciano because it footage of his execution and you narration of these event dont match at all with what it seen there.

[@derekking7738]

Very good docs but the cadence of the narrator is tiresome.

[@daveanderson3805]

To be honest,by the standards of fascist regimes,a firing squad isn't particular brutal On a sidenote,I think that the man was an opportunist,who rolled the dice once too often

[@ronbonora7872]

I agree!

[@grassic]

I think he started out as an opportunist but realized that Mussolinis alliance with Germany was going to be disastrous and when he was proved right tried to limit the damage. I believe that fascism was a laugh and way to power and wealth for him but somewhere along the way he discovered a sense of responsibility. He was not alone among fascists in this, Italo Balbo and Dino Grandi similarly had benefitted from the regime but saw the alliance darken their horizons and were only half hearted about the war. It might be too much to call Ciano a hero but he had a conscience and a grasp of reality that mussolini had lost years before.

[@emintey]

@@grassic hmmm. He was certainly an Italian nationalist, an oppurtunist..an authoritarian, vain, he proudly wore his fascist uniform, was all for Italian expansion and aggressive warfare within it's limitations as he was more realistic than Mussolini. To say he had a conscience may be a step too far.

[@grassic]

@@emintey Yes, I suppose it depends what one means by conscience. He certainly, to my knowledge, never renounced fascism and its works, even at his trial he pronounced himself a convinced fascist, though from his diaries one might see he was always a cynical one. According to his diaries he genuinely loathed Hitler and Nazism on the other hand he didn't seem to have many qualms about the anti-semitic legislation of 1938, racism for him was a question of degree but then you could say the same of Churchill (especially in relation to Indians). I think he had a kind of conscience, he seemed to know dimly what was going too far even if he was responsible in some part for it getting there. I find him an interesting character, he was more intelligent and clear sighted than many other fascists but fatally flawed and tainted.

[@donniegombel370]

We're his dairies ever published?

[@clarkhull7546]

A war hero for waging war against Ethiopia?

[@gegwen7440]

Is that not Key, and not She when you pronounce his name ?

[@RobertJonesWightpaint]

I THINK it would only be 'key' if the C were followed by an 'h'. My late uncle spoke good Italian - unfortunately, what with his being a bit dead, I can't consult him. I believe Ciano's name was pronounced (something) like CheeAno - should be interested to be corrected, because that's the way I've always pronounced it.

[@edwardwilson7858]

It's an exaggeration to say Mussolini and Hitler were "friends". They were political allies but different men. From some accounts, Hitler disliked Il Duce's family.

[@proarte4081]

Surely Hitler considered Mussolini as a great friend, on the other hand historians argue whether Mussolini considered Hitler in the same way ... probably Mussolini had admiration and gratitude towards Hitler, even if the Mussolini's family member who most loved Hitler and Nazism was precisely his daughter Edda ... the Ciano's wife!

[@joannbowden6220]

He had a purty mouf! 😂

[@otiscarter1356]

Fredo

[@thomasvangeel1594]

he didn’t turned around just before got shots. there’s footage. don’t try to dramatise your video, try to educate

[@thomasvangeel1594]

adding “BRUTAL” in the title.. djeees

[@blackrose474]

Well said Greg Smith: same is with me...I am professor of history and studied lot of books on the subject...But this vedio has more impact on me than the books...

[@madasahatter5514]

2:01 Sound familiar? #itwasaworkevent

[@datman3416]

Mussolini always looks like he’s dirty

[@friendofcoal]

What became of his diaries?

[@j3lny425]

It has been published