THIS DAY IN WW2 - Death of a Dictator

On this day, April 28th, 1945, Fascist Italian Dictator Benito Mussolini was executed by Italian Communists in the town of Mezzegra.

A rain-soaked and very haggard Mussolini on the left.

Benito Mussolini, the dictator who had led Italy's government since 1922, was facing dire straits by 1943; The Italian War Machine had been embarrassed and defeated at the end of their lackluster campaigns in the Balkans and North Africa, and all gains made on foreign soil had been conceded by this time, pushing the Italians completely back into their homeland. This concentration of forces was not enough to protect them from the Allied Invasion of Sicily, which ended in a costly but resounding victory for the Allied forces.

Under the crushing weight of these compounding defeats, The Grand Council of Fascism in Italy finally decided they'd had enough. In July 1943, Benito Mussolini was officially ousted by his Grand Council, and subsequently put under arrest by reigning Italian monarch King Emmanuel. However, Mussolini was rescued by Nazi Special Forces less than 2 months later, and was quickly re-instated by Adolf Hitler as the dictator of the Italian Social Republic, mainly consisting of what Italian lands were not yet occupied by the Allies. For the next 2 years, Mussolini would continue to wage what he knew was a hopeless and bleak battle against the encroaching Allies.

The flag of the short lived Repubblica Sociale Italiana.

Come April 27th, 1945, Mussolini himself decided he'd had it with, er... dictating. Knowing full well that the Axis' defeat was imminent, Mussolini and his entourage set out in a secret attempt to escape to Francoist Spain. Mussolini even wore a Nazi military uniform, in an attempt to mask his identity; this proved an impotent measure, however, as a roving band of Italian Communists (of whom Mussolini had spent years violently repressing) recognized the disguised dictator instantly. The Communists seized Mussolini and his entourage, and absconded with them to the nearby village of Mezzegra.

The communist National Liberation Committee of Italy debated for an evening on what to do with their new found trophy, before settling on good ol' execution. The next day, April 28th, communist Walter Audisio drove Mussolini and his lover Clara Petacci to a secluded area, where he promptly shot and killed Petacci after she tightly hugged Mussolini and refused to move away. In a bold final act of dictatorial control, Mussolini ripped open his jacket and screamed, "Shoot me in the chest!" Audisio wasted no time in pulling the trigger, planting lead into Mussolini's chest but not killing him. Audisio approached Mussolini to nearly point-blank range and shot him again, this time fatally, before turning and remarking to his driver, "Look at his face, the emotions on his face don't suit him."

Afterwards, Mussolini's body was ritually disgraced by the Italian communists, being spat upon, kicked, and dragged through the city. To prove to the world that Mussolini had indeed been deposed and that the end of the Fascist era was upon them, the communists hung Mussolini upside-down from a nearby Esso Gas Station. For the next few days, passers-by were encouraged to closely examine the body for verification purposes and to take photographs for all the world to see.

Mussolini dangling from the Petrol Station, 2nd from the left.