Christian Democracy (Italy)

This article is about the 1943–1994 party. For other parties with similar names, see Christian democracy (disambiguation).

Christian Democracy
Democrazia Cristiana
AbbreviationDC
Leader
Founded15 December 1943
Dissolved16 January 1994
Preceded byItalian People's Party (pre-Fascist-era precursor)
Succeeded by
HeadquartersPiazza del Gesù, Rome
NewspaperIl Popolo
La Discussione
Youth wingChristian Democracy Youth Movement
Women's wingChristian Democracy Women Movement[1]
Membership (1990)2,109,670[2]
Ideology
Political positionCentre[7]
National affiliation
European affiliationEuropean People's Party
European Parliament groupEuropean People's Party
International affiliationChristian Democrat International
Colors
  •   White
AnthemO bianco fiore ("O White Flower")
Party flag

Christian Democracy (Italian: Democrazia Cristiana, DC) was a Christian democratic[3][8] political party in Italy. The DC was founded on 15 December 1943 in the Italian Social Republic (Nazi-occupied Italy) as the nominal successor of the Italian People's Party, which had the same symbol, a crusader shield (scudo crociato). As a Catholic-inspired, centrist,[9] catch-all party[10][11] comprising both centre-right and centre-left political factions, the DC played a dominant role in the politics of Italy for fifty years, and had been part of the government from soon after its inception until its final demise on 16 January 1994 amid the Tangentopoli scandals. Christian Democrats led the Italian government continuously from 1946 until 1981. The party was nicknamed the "White Whale" (Italian: Balena bianca) due to its huge organisation and official colour.[12] During its time in government, the Italian Communist Party was the largest opposition party.

From 1946 until 1994, the DC was the largest party in the Italian Parliament, governing in successive coalitions, including the Pentapartito system. It originally supported liberal-conservative governments, along with the moderate Italian Democratic Socialist Party, the Italian Liberal Party, and the Italian Republican Party, before moving towards the Organic Centre-left involving the Italian Socialist Party. The party was succeeded by a string of smaller parties, including the Italian People's Party, the Christian Democratic Centre, the United Christian Democrats, and the still active Union of the Centre. Former DC members are also spread among other parties, including the centre-right Forza Italia and the centre-left Democratic Party. It was a founding member of the European People's Party in 1976.

  1. ^ Movimento femminile della Democrazia cristiana Archived 12 August 2014 at the Wayback Machine, istituto Don Luigi Sturzo, 9 June 2014
  2. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 10 November 2013. Retrieved 10 November 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ a b Maurizio Cotta; Luca Verzichelli (2007). Political Institutions in Italy. Oxford University Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-19-928470-2.
  4. ^ Warner, Carolyn M. (2013). "SAGE Journals: Your gateway to world-class journal research". Party Politics. 19 (2): 256–276. doi:10.1177/1354068812462934. S2CID 145534789.
  5. ^ Storia, Rai. "Il referendum sul divorzio". Rai Storia.
  6. ^ [4][5]
  7. ^ Democrazia Cristiana, Enciclopedia Treccani
  8. ^ Gary Marks; Carole Wilson (1999). "National Parties and the Contestation of Europe". In T. Banchoff; Mitchell P. Smith (eds.). Legitimacy and the European Union. Taylor & Francis. p. 126. ISBN 978-0-415-18188-4. Retrieved 26 August 2012.
  9. ^ J. Denis Derbyshire; Ian Derbyshire (1989). Political Systems Of The World. Allied Publishers. p. 117. ISBN 978-81-7023-307-7.
  10. ^ Mark Donovan (1998). "Democrazia Cristiana: party of government". In David Hanley (ed.). Christian Democracy in Europe. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 72. ISBN 978-1-85567-382-3. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  11. ^ James L. Newell (2010). The Politics of Italy: Governance in a Normal Country. Cambridge University Press. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-521-84070-5. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  12. ^ John A. Agnew (2002). Place and Politics in Modern Italy. University of Chicago Press. p. 144. ISBN 978-0-226-01051-9.