Geschichte Italiens im 20. Jahrhundert

European History in the 20th Century in 10 Volumes edited by Ulrich Herbert. Each volume is available in both a paperback and a hardcover edition.

In this impressive book, Hans Woller provides the first scientifically grounded comprehensive account of Italy's history in the 20th century, making the current situation of the country understandable in a completely new way. Italy, like Germany, was a latecomer as a nation-state and was a bitterly poor agrarian state around 1900, barely touched by industrialization. A century later, the country is among the leading industrial nations. The path to industrial modernity was rocky: it led through a totalitarian dictatorship that embroiled the country alongside Hitler in World War II, through a bloody civil and class war, and ultimately into a constantly precarious democracy. This journey was based on a specific "Italian model," characterized by state support for key industries and large state holdings. Observers referred to it as the "largest real-existing state economy in the Western world." After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the old system imploded, making way for Silvio Berlusconi, who continues to captivate the country to this day. Hans Woller traces this breathtaking development and brings Italy, a country that seems so exotic to many, back into European normality.