Stefano Cavazzoni

Cavazzoni was born in Guastalla, Reggio Emilia, on 1 August 1881.^[1] He was a member of the Italian People's Party being one of its right-wing group leaders.^[2] Following the general elections in November 1919 and also, in 1921 he was elected to the parliament.^[1] He was named as minister of labour on 31 October 1922 in the first cabinet of Benito Mussolini and remained in office until 27 April 1923.^[1]

He left the Italian People's Party and established a group entitled the National Center together with Paolo Mattei Gentili, Aristede Carapelle, and Giovanni Grosoli in 1924.^[3] It was a Catholic group and was close to fascism.^[3] In 1924 Cavazzoni was again elected as a deputy.^[1] On 21 January 1929 he was appointed senator.^[1] In May 1930 he became the president of the Istituto Centrale di Credito.^[3] The same year the National Center ended its activities.^[1]

From 1933 to 1943 Cavazzoni was the representative of the government on the board of directors of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan.^[4] In 1940 he became a member of the National Fascist Party.^[1] Following the fall of fascism he was tried in the High Court of Justice at the Senate and was found guilty for his political activities in October 1945.^[1]

Cavazzoni died in Milan on 31 May 1951 as a result of angina which he had experienced since 1939.^[1]

Cavazzoni was a devout Catholic. He was among the clerico-fascists in the period of Fascist rule in Italy.^[5] While serving as a senator he argued that the Fascist labour legislation should be consistent with Catholic social principles.^[4] During the Fascist rule he believed that collaboration with Fascists was the principal way of achieving the best national and religious outcomes.^[4]

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