The persistence of anti-Protestant policies from the Fascist period in post-World War II Italy: ideologies, practices and legislation

Abstract

ABSTRACT The aim of this article is to examine the continuities between Fascist Italy and the early republican period in terms of anti-Protestant policy. To this end, it analyses three main issues: the ideology behind Catholic anti-Protestantism and the role played by Catholic hierarchies and Holy See itself; Italian legislation and norms in religious matters, with reference to minority denominations; and the concrete attitudes of State organs at central and peripheral levels. Drawing on extensive archival documentation (from Italian, Vatican and international archives), this article shows the profound continuities, but also the differences, in anti-Protestant legislation and practice between Fascist period and the early Republican era, marked by a strong Catholic and Christian-Democrat hegemony. Thanks to this extensive documentation, this article highlights the role played by various State actors (government, central ministerial apparatuses, local administrations, judiciary) in determining the contrasting side-lining of anti-Protestant policies, which took place in the mid-fifties.