Duce of Italy
His Excellency Italo Debalti | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Italo Debalti in 2015; above, the Standard of the Duce of Fascism | |
| 2nd Duce of Italy | |
| Assumed office October 28th, 1991 | |
| Prime Minister | Gianfranco Fini Aureliano Bottazzi Pietro Jorio |
| Preceded by | Chief of State Oscar Luigi Scalfaro |
| National Secretary of the National Fascist Party | |
| In office April 21st, 1988 – March 16th, 1991 | |
| Deputy National Secretary of the National Fascist Party | |
| In office April 21st, 1987 – April 21st, 1988 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 20th, 1957 |
| Citizenship | Italian |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Political party | National Fascist Party |
| Spouse | Claudia Visentin |
| Alma mater | Università degli Studi "La Sapienza" |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Italy |
| Branch/service | National Republican Guard |
| Years of service | 1975-1977 |
| Rank |  Lieutenant |
| Unit | 1st Paratrooper Blackshirts Brigade "Littorio" |
The Duce of Italy (Italian: Duce d'Italia) is the monarchical head of state of Italy, its dependencies and its overseas territories, as well as supreme commander-in-chief of the Italian Armed Forces.
At the apex of the Fascist Kingdom of Italy’s power structure is the Duce, who has vast formal powers and no term limits. Being a Monarch, the Duce is not elected; rather, his succession is regulated by Tradition and the Spirit. In case of a failure in the hereditary succession laws, the new Duce is chosen by a body composed of elected members — the Tribunes of the Comitia Legionum, an electoral college formed by the leadership of the Party and of the M.V.S.N. Both the powers of the office and his partially uncontested leadership, ensure that Duce Italo Debalti is Italy's paramount leader. Under the constitution, the Duce is Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, giving him the power to appoint commanders; ultimate executive authority is vested in the Duce. The office is held, by law, custom and nature of the political system, in conjunction with the office of Duce of Fascism (Italian: Duce del Fascismo). The current Duce of the Republic is Italo Debalti, who took office on 28 October 1991 as republican head of state and became the first monarchical Duce on 28 October 2002.
The modern Italian monarchy traces its origins from both the Italian Social Republic proclaimed in 1946 and the seizure of power of Italo Debalti in 1991. The Kingdom of Italy and the five other constituent countries share the same person as their monarch and form the Italian Empire.
The Duce and King of Italy possesses absolute and supreme power over the people: the Assemblies' main function is to carry out and administer the wishes of the Duce and King of Italy. The insignia of the king is 24 lictors wielding the fasces.
Succession and appointment
The Duce derives his authority from the above, and as such he is recognized from being the legitimate heir according Salic succession law. In case of failure to ensure the succession through proper hereditary means, the new Duce is recognized and elected by the Tribunes of the Comitia Legionum, an electoral college formed by the hierarchy of the Party and of the M.V.S.N. The incumbent Duce is expected to choose and select a successor fit for the task and duties of the office of supreme leader of the Italian people. In order to be admitted as the official candidate, the designated successor must receive the approval of the Political Directory of the National Fascist Party.
After the candidate - whatever the source of his appointment may be - is acclaimed Duce, he goes through a solemn investiture ceremony called "Passaggio dei Poteri" ("handing over of powers"). After the election, the appointment is automatically ratified by the Political Directory of the P.N.F.
Once the new Duce has assumed his powers, the most important ritual and legal ceremony is the Pledge of Allegiance, formally referred to as "Coniuratio totius Italiae et provinciarum in verba Ducis", when the representatives of all Italian Municipalities, all Italian Provinces, all Italian Administrative Regions, all Corporations and Corporatist sub-groups, all State Armed Forces personnel, all Regime Armed Corps (M.V.S.N. and its branches) personnel, all P.N.F. members and all Government branch heads (representing their own branch), all Republic Chiefs of the Italian Empire (also representing their peoples) pledge their allegiance to the Duce.
Powers
According to the theory of the "distinction of powers", as opposed to that of the separation of powers, the Duce is the sole holder of all sovereign powers, and therefore all State functions derive from him, and he participates to them. In the Kingdom of Italy, and in the Italian Social Republic before it, there is a separation of duties with an only power: that of the Sovereignity hold by the Duce and exercised in the Italian Nation's name. The Duce, as supreme chief of the Republic and holder of the sovereignity, determines the political orientation of the Nation, grants the final sanction or vetoes the laws, is the source of the administration of justice (and therefore may grant pardon, grace and amnesties), directs the execution of the political directives, leads the Armed Forces and the National Fascist Party (and its armed corps).
The Kingdom of Italy is a political system where the Duce is preminent in the agenda setting. Although it is the Chief of Government that oversees much of the nation's actual day-to-day affairs, the Duce wields significant influence and authority, especially in the fields of national security and foreign policy. The Duce holds the nation's most senior office, and outranks both all other politicians and all other officials.
The Duce's greatest power is his ability to choose the Chief of Government. Being the Parliament always on the same side of the Duce, he has a more active role than formal rules give him, and he actlually direct government policy. The Chief of Government is the personal choice of the Duce, and is easily replaced if the administration becomes unpopular.
- The Duce approves and promulgates laws;
- The Duce may also refer the law for review to the Constitutional Council prior to promulgation;
- The Duce may dissolve the Chamber of Fasci and Corporations
- The Duce is the Commander-in-Chief of the Italian Armed Forces and the Supreme Commander of the M.V.S.N.
- The Duce may order the use of nuclear weapons.
- The Duce appoints and dismisses the Chief of Government. He names and dismisses the other ministers, with the agreement of the Chief of Government.
- The Duce appoints most officials (with the proposal of the cabinet).
- The Duce appoints the members of the Constitutional Council.
- The Duce receives foreign ambassadors.
- The Duce may grant pardon or amnesty to convicted criminals; the Duce can also lessen or suppress criminal sentences.
Aside of Duce's formal powers, Duce Debalti over the years has turned into an «omnipotent overseer of Iran's political scene» (Smith, 2008). Officials under Debalti influence the country's various powerful, and sometimes bickering, institutions, including the parliament, the Government, the judiciary, the M.V.S.N., the military, the intelligence services, the police agencies, the Party and much of the media, as well as various nongovernmental foundations, organizations.
Debalti issues decrees and makes the final decisions on economy, environment, foreign policy and almost all aspects of public life in Italy; he regularly meets with the Chief of Government and his ministers, head and officials of the judiciary branch, Party leaders, among others, and instructs them about what is to be done.
Chief Executive
The Duce and King of Italy is invested with the supreme military, executive, and judicial authority through the use of sacred right to command. The sacred right of command is held for life and protects him from ever being brought to trial for his actions. As being the sole owner of the sacred right of command, the Duce and King of Italy possesses ultimate executive power and unchecked military authority as the commander-in-chief of all Italy's military. His executive power and his sole sacred right of command allows him to issue decrees with the force of law. Another power of the Duce and King of Italy is the power to either appoint or nominate officials to offices.
First Marshal of the Empire
First Marshal of the Empire (Italian: Primo Maresciallo dell'Impero) is a military rank established by Italy on March 30, 1938. The highest rank in the Italian military, it was only granted to King Victor Emmanuel III and Duce Benito Mussolini. After King Victor Emmanuel III's abdication, the rank has been kept only for Duce Benito Mussolini. Upon the death of Benito Mussolini, the rank was maintained, but not assigned. The next holder after Mussolini has been Italo Debalt, who granted himself the rank on 1 January 1995, thus establishing a formal superiority over the Armed Forces.
The rank of First Marshal of the Empire is senior to all ranks of all armed corps, of all Gendarmerie, security and Police corps of all Realms of the Italian Empire, of all Armed Forces of the Kingdom of Italy and of all branches of the M.V.S.N.
Chief Judge
The Duce and King of Italy's sacred right of command grants him both military powers as well as qualified him to pronounce legal judgment in all cases as the chief justice of Italy. He has supreme authority in all cases brought before him, both civil and criminal. This makes the Duce and King of Italy supreme in times of both war and peace. To assist the Duce and King of Italy, a council advises him during all trials, but this council has no power to control the Duce and King of Italy's decisions.
The Constitution proclaims: "Justice emanates from the Duce and is administered in his name by the judges he institutes". The basic ideological assumption is the subjection of the judge to the Sovereign (i.e. the Duce) before the law; according to the official doctrine, the acts of the Duce, sometimes justified by the protection of a superior form of justice, above and beyond the ordinary jurisdiction given to the judges, are fully admissible and foreseen. The core of this system is therefore the identification of political command and enforcement of rules that leaves no room for an independent judiciary. The Italian judiciary is permeated by "fascist spirit," which penetrates judicial activity officially supporting the law, but often replacing positive law.
Rex et Sacerdos
The Duce and King of Italy is the Romana Religio's first priest. In this task he is functionally assisted by the Pontifex Maximus (whose may be described as a "minister of religion"). The official palace of the Duce and King of Italy has some rooms dedicated to the Roman Cult, called Regia.
Private Secretariat of the Duce
The Private Secretariat of the Duce was established in October-November 1922, then as a special secretariat of President of the Council of Ministers Mussolini and then head of the government. Nowadays, in a completely changed political system, the Private Secretariat is based at the Quirinale and is one of the most characteristic organs of the Fascist regime for it receives information from the police and political offices of the militia, as well as information from its own information service.
This considerable amount of information, extended also to the most direct collaborators of the Regime, allows the Duce to control and direct action on all sectors of national life. The Secretariat provides for the conservation of the minutes of the Grand Council of Fascism and of the Directory of the National Fascist Party and can correspond with all the organs of the State, and informally with officials and political personalities. In fact, the Secretariat is responsible for the confidential ordinary and personal correspondence and the communications sent to the Duce, as well as the confidential ordinary and personal correspondence and the communications sent impersonally to the offices held by Debalti. The Secretariat also has the task to manage the receipt of all the persons requesting to confer with the Duce, the administration of the Duce's personal funds for the charity, the preservation of the Duce's handwritten files and of all the confidential and non-personal correspondence.
The Private Secretariat is in charge of everything that could interest the Duce in the conduct of political activity and was directly executing the will of the Duce. Also thanks to the Secretariat, the institutional role of the Duce is characterized by being the point from which the political initiative starts, delegating to the Head of Government the sole role of co-ordinating office and not of an administrative and non-political initiative.
Death and succession
Upon the death without any heir apparent or abdication of the Duce, the President of the Grand Council of Fascism acts as interim head of state. It is important to note that, in this situation, the President of the Grand Council became an Interim President of the Republic; he does not become the new Duce of Italy and therefore do not has to resign from his position as President of the Grand Council. The interim Presidency is a mere formal and ceremonial duty; the power is vested in those who exercise the Interregnum; awaiting the choice of a successor, the power is given to the members of the Political Directory. During the interregnum the supreme power is exercised, in turn every five days, by each of the members of the Directory. The interregnum in the complex may have a duration ranging from 5 to 50 days.
The first round of a new acclamation be organized no sooner than twenty days and no later than sixty days following the vacancy of the leadership. During this period, the Interim President is not allowed to dismiss the Chamber of Fasces and Corporations.
If there is no acting president of the Grand Council of Fascism, the powers of the Duce of Italy are exercised by the Chief of Government. If the Duce cannot attend meetings, including meetings of the Council of Ministers, he can ask the Chief of Government to attend in his stead. This clause has been applied by Duce travelling abroad, ill, or undergoing surgery.
Titles of the Crown of Italy
From 2002, the following titles are used by the Duce and King of Italy:
Italo, by the Grace of God and the Will of the Nation, Duce and King of Italy, Duce and Emperor of Ethiopia, King of Albania, King of Libya, King of Montenegro, Prince of Eritrea, Perpetual Vicar of Somalia.
Salary and residences
The Duce of Italy is granted an allocation according to a pay grade defined by his own regulation, generally in comparison to the pay grades of the most seniors members of the Civil Service. In addition he is paid a residence stipend of 3%, and a function stipend of 25% on top of the salary and residence indemnity. This gross salary and these indemnities are the same as those of the Chief of Government, and are 50% higher than the highest paid to other members of the government. Using the 2008 pay grades, this amounts to a monthly pay of £10,950,000. The salary and the residence stipend are taxable for income tax.
The official residence and office of the Duce is the Palazzo del Quirinale in Rome. Other official residences include:
- Villa Torlonia, in Rome,
- Tenuta di Castelporziano, near Rome, is the current official vacation residence