Woodrow Wilson, Italian Socialists, and the Self-determination Principle during the Paris Conference

Abstract

ABSTRACT The article explores the reception of Wilsonianism in the Italian Socialist Party (P.S.I.), focusing on the key concept of self-determination – a concept central not only to Wilson’s proposal, but also to the programmatic declaration of the Zimmerwald movement. Accordingly, given its peculiar status compared to the other European socialist parties, the P.S.I. represents a promising prism through which to comprehend Wilsonianism’s reception in socialist discussions. Leninism had been regarded as a relevant way forward for Italian Socialists. However, the P.S.I. considered very seriously the liberal–democratic internationalist perspective propounded by the U.S. president between 1916 and the beginning of 1918. This analyses concentrates on three points. First, it traces the impact of Wilson’s internationalism on Italian Socialism during the final phase of the conflict. Second, it considers whether Wilsonianism represented an alternative source of inspiration to the example of the October Revolution that would be used by Italian Socialists to be critical of colonialism and colonial empires after the war. Finally, it sketches the modalities adopted by the P.S.I. to adopt the principle of the self-determination of peoples and the reaction to the evolution of the Peace Conference, when the mandates plan was preferred over the process of independence for the colonies.