Achille Starace
| Achille Starace | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Secretary of the National Fascist Party | |
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In office 12 December 1931 – 31 October 1939 |
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| President | Benito Mussolini |
| Preceded by | Giovanni Giuriati |
| Succeeded by | Ettore Muti |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
18 August 1889 Sannicola, Kingdom of Italy |
| Died | 29 April 1945 (aged 55) Milan, Kingdom of Italy |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Political party | National Fascist Party |
Achille Starace (Italian pronunciation: [aˈkille staˈratʃe]; 18 August 1889 – 29 April 1945) was a prominent leader of Fascist Italy before and during World War II.
Starace was born in Sannicola in southern Puglia province Italy near Lecce. He was son of a wine and oil merchant.
Achille Starace attended the Lecce Technical Institute as a young man and earned a degree in accounting. In 1909, he joined the Italian Royal Army (Regio Esercito) and by 1912 had become a Second Lieutenant (Sottotenente) of the élite sharpshooters (Bersaglieri). A dedicated bellicist he entered singlehanded in a brawl with pacifist demonstrators at the Biffi cafe in Milano in August 1914 and gained quite a reputation by this action.
Seeing action during World War I, Starace was highly decorated for his service, winning one Silver Medal of Military Valor]] plus four bronze. After the war, he left the army and moved to Trento, where he first came into contact with the growing Fascist movement. He also joined the freemason lodge "la vedetta (the sentinel)" in Udine in March 1917.
An ardent nationalist, Starace joined the Fascist movement in Trento in 1920 and quickly became its local political secretary. In 1921, his efforts caught the attention of Benito Mussolini, who put Starace in charge of the Fascist organization in Venezia Tridentina. In October 1921, Starace became Vice-Secretary of the National Fascist Party (Partito Nazionale Fascista, or PNF). In 1922, Starace participated in the March on Rome (Marcia su Roma), leading a squadron (squadristi) of Blackshirts (Camicie Nere, or CCNN) in support of Mussolini.
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