ABSTRACT
Fascism took hold in Europe during a particularly turbulent period in history. In the aftermath of the First World War, a series of huge social and political changes hit the continent. The Russian Revolution in 1917 brought Communists to power for the fi rst time, sparking not only a devastating civil war throughout the Russian Empire, but also years of political unrest across Europe. The collapse of the German, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires after the war also precipitated various power struggles. Then, in the late 1920s, Europe was struck by one of the greatest economic crises the world has ever seen, which again resulted in widespread civil unrest. Life during this time was, as the aphorism goes, just one damn thing after another.
