Saturday, September 18, 2021

Have you heard the one about the Irishwoman who tried to shoot Benito Mussolini?


IS THAT TERENCE STAMP IN DRAG?

September 17 2021

Next week, TG4 will broadcast a gripping documentary about Irishwoman Violet Gibson, the woman who tried to shoot Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.

Violet Gibson: An tÉireannach Mná a Lámhach Mussolini explores the moment Violet pushed her way through an adoring crowd in Rome on 7 April 1926 and shot one of the 20 century’s most infamous dictators at point-blank range.

She came the closest to success of the four assassination attempts on Mussolini. Yet, among the many acts of individual bravery against fascism in Europe back in the 20 century, Violet’s has been largely lost to history.

Violet Gibson: An tÉireannach Mná a Lámhach Mussolini is scheduled to be shown on TG4 at 9:30pm on Wednesday 22 September. It is a must-watch for all, but particularly documentary and history lovers.

Ahead of its showing, we take a closer look at this historic event and the questions it raised

Who was Violet Gibson?

Violet Gibson was born in Dublin on 31 August 1876 to Frances Colles and Edward Gibson, who was an Irish lawyer and politician. Edward served as Lord High Chancellor of Ireland from 1885–1905.

Violet was the second youngest of eight children: four boys and four girls, and was educated at home. The family lived between Dublin and London, and had a privileged Anglo-Irish background. Violet had been a debutante in the court of Queen Victoria, during her reign, and even appeared in the social columns of newspapers. She was a serious young woman, with an interest in religion and philosophy. After an attempt to engage with her mother’s religion of choice, Christian Science, she soon converted to Catholicism.
 
Who was Benito Mussolini?

Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini, also known as ‘Il Duce’ or ‘the leader’ was an Italian politician and journalist, who founded and led the National Fascist Party. As dictator of Italy and founder of fascism, Mussolini inspired and supported the international spread of fascist movements between the end of the First World War and the beginning of the Second World War, also known as the interwar period.

Mussolini coined the term ‘fascism’ in 1919. While it is a complex term, Robert Paxton - a professor emeritus of social science at Columbia University in New York, who is widely considered the father of fascism studies - told Live Science that fascism uses propaganda to promote:

anti-liberalism, rejecting individual rights, civil liberties, free enterprise and democracy
anti-socialism, rejecting economic principles based on socialist frameworks exclusion of certain groups, often through violence nationalism that seeks to expand the nation's influence and power

Mussolini believed a larger Italian population was necessary for the nation to function as a world-class military power. He also regarded Africans and Asians as inferior. And it is estimated that at least three million deaths can be directly attributed to Mussolini's rules, policies, and warmongering.
Why was Violet in Italy before the shooting of Mussolini?

Gibson was often ill as a child, and it was said she had lifelong difficulties with her mental health. In November 1924, she went to Rome accompanied by an Irish nurse companion, Mary McGrath and took up residence in Our Lady of Lourdes convent.




What drove Violet to this fateful act?


It was said that Violet was convinced that God wanted her to kill someone as a sacrifice.
In February 1925, Gibson got hold of a gun and shot herself in the chest. Miraculously, she survived. In March 1926, her mother passed away. By April of that year, her goal to kill someone had refocused and was now trained on Mussolini.

It is worth noting that Violet was a committed anti-fascist. It is believed that she spotted the dangers of fascism, at a time when many in the Anglo elite were either supportive of fascist ideas or believed in appeasement. Violet rejected her Anglo-Irish upbringing in a well-connected, political class to become a bold freethinker committed to social justice, anti-war activism, and opposition to fascism.
What happened to Violet after she shot at Mussolini?

When Violet fired on Mussolini, it almost altered the course of history forever. But what happened next was beyond belief.

95 years after the assassination attempt, Dublin City Council’s decision to erect a commemorative plaque honouring Violet Gibson has generated worldwide interest in this truly captivating story of Violet Gibson: The Irish Woman Who Shot Mussolini.

This is the story of why one woman attempted such a daring assassination and how the world conspired to bury her in the aftermath.


To find out what prevented Violet from succeeding and what happened to her after this significant event, tune in to Violet Gibson: An tÉireannach Mná a Lámhach Mussolini on TG4 at 9:30pm on Wednesday 22 September.

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