Every year, 10 June commemorates one of the most dramatic events in contemporary Italian history.

On that day in 1924, shortly after leaving his home in Rome, Member of Parliament Giacomo Matteotti was abducted by a Fascist squad. His body was found only two months later, in the countryside near Riano.

More than a century later, his name continues to represent far more than a victim of Fascism alone: Matteotti stands as a symbol of politics founded on legality, on the courage of one’s convictions, and on the defence of democratic institutions, even - and especially - in moments of greatest isolation.

Born on 22 May 1885 in Fratta Polesine, in the province of Rovigo, Matteotti grew up in a wealthy family of landowners.

Nevertheless, the environment in which he was raised was one of the poorest areas of Italy, marked by profound social inequalities and by the strong presence of the socialist movement among labourers and peasants.

It was, in all likelihood, precisely this contrast between family privilege and widespread poverty that so deeply influenced his political outlook.

After graduating in Law from the University of Bologna, he pursued studies in criminal law. He published a thesis on recidivism, immediately revealing a particular interest in social issues.

For Matteotti, law was never merely a technical discipline: above all, it was a tool through which to understand and correct the injustices of society.

In 1916 he married Velia Titta in a civil ceremony. She is a figure often overlooked in public memory, yet she was fundamental in his life.

Although she came from a deeply religious background and remained distant from political activity, unlike her husband, Velia shared with him his most difficult years and, after his death, contributed decisively to preserving his memory.

During the First World War, Matteotti publicly adopted an anti-war position. This cost him a trial for defeatism, military conscription, and internal exile in Sicily.

After returning to Polesine in 1919, he devoted himself to political activity and was elected to Parliament the following year.

From his very first speeches in Parliament, he distinguished himself through his combination of rigorous argumentation, legal expertise, and irony, quickly attracting the attention of the entire Chamber.

His political career, however, was marked by increasing violence.

Even before the rise of Fascism, he had been attacked by his opponents as a supposed « class traitor » - a wealthy landowner who had sided with socialism.

With the birth and expansion of the Fascist movement, these attacks became increasingly frequent.

In March 1921, he suffered a brutal physical assault and hours of abuse in Castelguglielmo, an episode that forced him to leave Polesine temporarily.

Meanwhile, the Italian political landscape was rapidly deteriorating.

After the socialist split at Livorno and the creation of the Communist Party of Italy, anti-Fascist forces appeared deeply divided.

Matteotti joined the Unitary Socialist Party (PSU), representing the reformist wing led by Filippo Turati. He became its secretary in 1922.

His distance from Fascism was clear, just as clear as his distance from revolutionary communism.

A committed supporter of parliamentary institutions and democratic reforms, he rejected any alliance that could call into question the central role of representative democracy.

During the final years of his life, he tirelessly denounced Fascist squad violence and the methods of the new regime.

This commitment also found expression in his essay « One Year of Fascist Domination » (« Un anno di dominazione fascista », 1923), a detailed collection of episodes of intimidation, violence, and restrictions on civil liberties.

Yet it was 1924 that marked the point of no return.

The general elections held in April of that year took place under the new Acerbo Law and in a climate characterised by intimidation, assaults, and pressure on voters.

On 30 May 1924, during a session of the Chamber of Deputies, Matteotti delivered what would become his most famous speech.

Amid constant interruptions, shouting, and insults from the government benches, he publicly denounced the violence and irregularities that had accompanied the electoral process.

Speaking about the conditions under which voting had taken place, he declared:

« No one was free, because every citizen knew in advance that, even if a majority had dared to express the opposite view, there existed a force at the Government’s disposal that would have nullified both his vote and its outcome. »

He further stated:

« I am presenting facts that should not provoke any noise. Either the facts are true, or you prove them false. There is no insult, there is no offence against anyone in what I say: there is simply a description of facts. »

And, addressing the Assembly, he continued:

« We defend the free sovereignty of the Italian people, to whom we send our highest salute, and we believe that we are vindicating their dignity. »

In doing so, he demanded that the elections be subjected to parliamentary review.

His request, however, was rejected.

According to a testimony that later became famous, once his speech had ended he confided to his party colleagues:

« I have delivered my speech. Now you can prepare the funeral speech for me. »

Alongside his denunciation of electoral violence, Matteotti was also investigating another sensitive issue: the agreement signed between the Italian government and the American oil company Sinclair Oil.

The agreement granted the company extensive rights to conduct oil exploration on Italian territory, raising serious concerns because of the favourable conditions offered to the American corporation.

Matteotti suspected that the concession concealed episodes of corruption and political favouritism benefiting members of the regime.

Although the role played by the Sinclair Oil affair in the motive behind the murder remains the subject of historical debate, it undoubtedly contributed to strengthening the perception of Matteotti as a particularly dangerous opponent.

Ten days after his speech in Parliament, on 10 June 1924, Matteotti was abducted on the Lungotevere Arnaldo da Brescia by five men led by Amerigo Dumini, members of the circles associated with the so-called Fascist « Ceka ».

Forced into a car while making his way to Montecitorio, he was killed during the journey. His body was subsequently abandoned in a wooded area near Riano.

It was not recovered until 16 August.

From a legal perspective, the Matteotti case represents one of the most significant episodes in twentieth-century Italian history.

The initial investigation proved surprisingly effective.

Thanks to the testimony of several citizens who had noted the licence plate number of the vehicle used in the kidnapping, investigators were quickly able to identify the direct perpetrators of the crime.

However, when the inquiry began to move closer to figures linked to the upper ranks of the regime, the first obstacles emerged.

In this context, the magistrate Mauro Del Giudice assumed a central role.

Aware of the risk that the investigation could be removed from independent magistrates, Del Giudice personally intervened to maintain control over the proceedings and ensure that the inquiry could continue without interference.

His actions remain, even today, an important example of the defence of judicial independence against political power.

The investigation uncovered connections that extended far beyond the men who had physically carried out the murder.

Prominent Fascist figures such as Giovanni Marinelli and Cesare Rossi became involved, while references also emerged to the clandestine organisation known as the « Ceka ».

Gradually, however, the investigative process encountered obstruction, misdirection, and political interference that reduced its effectiveness.

Del Giudice himself was removed from Rome and later forced into retirement.

The trial also revealed the limitations of an institutional system increasingly conditioned by political power.

The proceedings were transferred from Rome to Chieti, a decision that many contemporaries interpreted as an attempt to move the trial away from the centre of public attention.

While the courts succeeded in convicting the direct perpetrators of the murder, they never fully established whether higher political responsibilities existed.

The investigations had opened a path leading towards the upper levels of Fascism, but the trial ultimately focused almost exclusively on those directly responsible for the crime.

At the same time, the political response of the opposition came to a failure.

On 27 June 1924, anti-Fascist deputies decided to leave Parliament in what became known as the Aventine Secession, refusing to participate in parliamentary proceedings until the circumstances surrounding Matteotti’s disappearance had been fully clarified.

The initiative was based on the belief that King Victor Emmanuel III would intervene either by dismissing Mussolini or by imposing an institutional solution to the crisis.

This did not happen.

The absence of the opposition ultimately left Parliament in the hands of the Fascist majority, while the King refused any intervention.

The Aventine Secession, conceived as a constitutional instrument of political pressure, therefore proved ineffective and instead contributed to strengthening the position of the government.

The crisis opened by Matteotti’s assassination found, in some respects, its conclusion on 3 January 1925.

On that date, Mussolini assumed responsibility for what had happened before the Chamber of Deputies.

Although he did not admit direct responsibility for the murder, the Head of Government transformed what had been a defensive position into an assertion of political strength:

« Well then, before this Assembly and before the entire Italian people, I declare that I alone assume the political, moral, and historical responsibility for everything that has occurred. »

The speech marked a turning point in Italian history.

It not only finally provided a form of « clarification » regarding the Matteotti affair, but also represented the moment when the fragility of the liberal state could no longer be ignored.

The institutions had failed to respond effectively to the assassination of an opposition Member of Parliament; the investigations had been obstructed; the trial had not clarified all responsibilities; and the opposition had failed to obtain a response from the constitutional authorities.

To remember Giacomo Matteotti, then, means to remember something that goes beyond his tragic death.

It means remembering the importance of political freedom, judicial independence, parliamentary oversight of the executive, and the defence of democratic legality.

It means understanding that democracy is, always, an achievement that requires vigilance, participation, and civic courage.

More than one hundred years after 10 June 1924, the legacy of Giacomo Matteotti must therefore continue to speak to us.

Above all, it must continue to speak to younger generations.

It stands as a universal reminder of the need to defend democratic institutions whenever they are called into question.

Thus today, as forever.