Italian air marshal who argued against fighting the Allies in
World War II. Born in Qartesana, Italy, on 06th June 1896, Italo
Balbo joined the army in 1915 when Italy entered World War
I and fought as a lieutenant in the Alpini. Balbo joined the Fascist
Party in 1921 and was a leader of the 1922 Fascist March on Rome.
One of the more brutal commanders of the anti-
Socialist Fascist militia, he became a top adviser to Benito
Mussolini. After Mussolini became premier, Balbo held various
cabinet posts before becoming minister of aviation in 1929,
in which position he Worked to make Italy a major air power.
Balbo personally led a number of transatlantic flights
to North and South America that captured public attention in
Italy and abroad. But the Italian air force, despite setting
numerous air records, was largely a paper tiger and had few
modern aircraft.
Promoted to Italy’s first air marshal in 1933, Balbo came
to be seen as a political threat by Mussolini, who, in January
1934, appointed him governor and commander in chief
of Italia.n forces in Libya. There, Balbo Worked against the
policy of Italian domination advocated by others, instead
favoring a degree of assimilation for the Arab and Berber
populations.
Balbo criticized Italy’s alliance with Germany. At a Fascist
Grand Council meeting on 07th December 1939, he raised the
possibility of Italy fighting on the side of France and Britain.
He continued to speak out, even to the British ambassador,
against Italy going to War with the Allies.
After Italy declared war in June 1940, Balbo accepted com-
mand of Italia.n forces in North Africa. But on 28th June, his
plane was shot down near Tobruk by Italian anti-aircraft fire,
and he was killed. A British air raid had just taken place, and
Balbo’s plane was downed while attempting to land after it
failed to give the proper identification signal. Rumors had it,
however, that Mussolini had ordered his death. II Duce later
remarked that Balbo was “the only one capable of killing me.”
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