| | + | In October 1922, out of a fear of a communist takeover, Mussolini gathered his ''Black Shirts'' and marched on Rome. Once there, [[King Victor Emmanuel III]] asked Mussolini to form a government and restore order. Over the next three years, Mussolini dismantled the democracy , and in 1925, he declared himself dictator of Italy. He took the title ''Il Duce'' - literally, "The Leader". |