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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 January 2016
This article deals with Alcide De Gasperi's political development, from his militancy in the Trentino Catholic movement under the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the advent of the Fascist regime. The analysis of his political writings and speeches (1909–1926) allows us to identify some fundamental issues in the development of someone whom we can call a ‘professional politician’. He was a municipal councillor and Member of Parliament in the Austro-Hungarian Empire; after the annexation of Trentino to Italy he was elected to the national Parliament (1921), appointed President of the parliamentary group and then Secretary (leader) of the Italian Popular Party. There he dealt with issues relating to local government, the battle for the autonomy of the new provinces inside the Italian State, the analysis of international relations in the context of the post-First World War period, and relations between the parties during the crisis of the liberal State. The wealth of his journalistic output and his political activity offer a valuable standpoint for reflecting on the continuity and the disruptions of a historical period of which he was a protagonist, an interpreter and a witness.