Italian Empire (Kingdom of Italy)
The Italian Empire (Italian: Impero Italiano or simply "Impero") is the Italy-led association of semi-autonomous states, created after the Kingdom of Italy joined other European powers in establishing colonies overseas during the "Scramble for Africa". By the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Italy had annexed Eritrea, Somalia, Libya and the Dodecanese Islands; it was also one of the European concession holders in Tientsin. Italy was defeated in its first attempt to conquer Ethiopia in the First Italo-Ethiopian War of 1895–1896 with Ethiopia receiving modern weapons and support from Russia and France, but succeeded in occupying it in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War of 1935–1936. After 1963, when Italy granted to its colonies the status of "Special Government Regions", the legal status of the Italian Empire and of the "Imperial" lands changed many times.
Members
By 2012, the members of the Italian Empire are as follows:
- The Italian Social Republic. All the inhabitants are Italian citizens. It includes the Italian Peninsula, Dalmatia, Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, Malta and Lampedusa;
- Rhodes and Dodecanesus: their administration and legislation is in principle those of Italy, but each of them could receive an individual constitution.
- The Autonomous Republics: they have their own individual organisation with a territorial assembly; the assembly appoints a governing Cabinet, its Chief being the President appointed by the central power:
- Montenegro;
- Albania;
- Libya;
- Ethiopia;
- Eritrea;
- Somalia.
The Imperial’s jurisdiction as a whole is limited to foreign policy, defence, currency, a common economic and financial policy and policy on strategic matters, control of justice, higher education, external and public transport and telecommunications. However, because all Republics are Fascist states, the Fascist party is able to actually unify the governance of all matters.
Institutions
The Imperial Institutions are as follows:
- The Duce of the Empire is the Duce of the Italian Social Republic. He is represented in each Autonomous Republic by a High Commissioner (Alto Commissario).
- The Executive Cabinet of the Empire meets several times a year, in Rome, on the summons of the Duce, who assumes the chair. It is composed of the chiefs of the governments of the different states and the ministers responsible for common affairs.
- A Court of Compensation, composed of seven judges appointed by the Duce, gives decisions in disputes between member states.
Colonial citizenship
The fascist colonial legal policy is essentially characterized by the objective of isolating the native in its statutes. The colonial citizenship is primarily a mean to hierarchize the various groups in the colonies. Most Italianised peoples are the most deserving and this affects their political rights at the imperial and internal level. Both the colonial and the metropolitan citizenship are acquired through the jus sanguins criterion; all colonial citizens have certain political rights:
- right to be subject to the relevant legal system, especially for what regards personal matters;
- right to compete to civil and military offices in the Autonomous Republics;
- right to bear arms in accordance with the rules for military conscription;
- right to be registered with the relevant Fascist Party;
- right to have managerial duties in trade union organizations in the Autonomous Republic.
Additional political rights are granted on an ethnic basis: each Autonomous Republic has a place within the hierarchy and its autonomy degree, as well as rights granted to its citizens, vary according such a place. Within each Autonomous Republic, furthermore, each ethnic/religious group enjoys of its own rights. However, all colonial citizens (of any Autonomous Republic they are citizens) may require Italian citizenship under certain conditions:
- being 21 years old;
- not being a polygamist;
- having served in the army beyond the conscription;
- having earned a decoration without additional serving;
- having no criminal record.
In addition, the applicant must take the Italian language as a language of use and give the guarantee to contribute to the maintenance of Italian good name and prestige. The Chief of the Republic may grant citizenship, after the opinion of the members of a commission that he appoints. Italian citizenship, if ever granted, does not entitle the transfer in Italy, but the new Metropolitan Italian citizen can enjoy the Italian additional political rights in its own country of origin.
