'July 25th'), came as a result of parallel plots led respectively by Count Dino Grandi and King Victor Emmanuel III during the spring and summer of 1943, culminating with a successful vote of no confidence against the Prime Minister Benito Mussolini at the meeting of the Grand Council of Fascism on 24–25 July 1943.

[5] The defeat of the Italian expeditionary force (ARMIR) in the Eastern Front, the heavy aerial bombings of the cities, and the lack of food and fuel demoralized the population, the majority of whom wanted to end the war and denounce the alliance with Nazi Germany.

On 29 April 1943, at the meeting in Klessheim, Adolf Hitler rejected Mussolini's proposition to seek a separate peace with Russia and move the bulk of the German Army south.

Aristocrats, such as Crown Princess Marie-José, members of the upper class, and politicians belonging to the pre-Fascist elite, independently started plots to establish contact with the Allies.

[11] All except the Italian Communist Party and the republicans of the Partito d'Azione waited for a signal from King Victor Emmanuel III, whose inaction was prompted by his character, his fears and constitutional scruples, and the fact that the monarchy was likely to be doomed regardless of how the war turned out.

[19] Ambrosio, with the help of Giuseppe Castellano and Giacomo Carboni (both of whom would play an important part in the events leading to the armistice of 8 September 1943), slowly proceeded to occupy several key positions in the armed forces with officials devoted to the King.

[21] Almost all of the ministers were changed, including the Duce's son-in-law, Galeazzo Ciano, and Dino Grandi, Giuseppe Bottai, Guido Buffarini Guidi and Alessandro Pavolini.

[23] He also aimed to create a block of Balkan countries (the junior Axis partners Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria) led by Italy, which could act as a counterbalance to the excessive power of the German Reich in Europe.

In mid-May, the King started to consider exiting the war after being persuaded by Duke Pietro d'Acquarone, Minister of the Royal House, who was worried about the future of the monarchy.

[31][32][33] On 30 June, Bonomi met Crown Prince Umberto and proposed three generals (Ambrosio, Marshal Pietro Badoglio and Enrico Caviglia) as Mussolini's potential successors.

Grandi had often been considered the most likely successor to the Duce because of his diplomatic experience as the former foreign minister and ambassador in the UK and his position as a staunch enemy of Germany with a extensive circle of friends in the British establishment.

[56] On the same evening, Bastianini crossed the Tiber to meet Cardinal Maglione, Vatican Secretary of State, who received a document explaining the Italian position about a possible unilateral exit from the war.

Farinacci acted in close cooperation with the Germans, but Scorza thought that the power should be assumed directly by the Party, which had been largely discredited in the previous few years.

[62] On 13 and 16 July, several Fascists led by Farinacci met in the main seat of the Party in Piazza Colonna and decided to go to Mussolini in Palazzo Venezia to ask for the convocation of the Grand Council.

[81] At the same time, Grandi and Luigi Federzoni, his close ally and Italian nationalist leader, were trying to estimate how many among the 27 members of the Grand Council would vote for his document.

[96] Mussolini listened while Grandi was explaining the necessity of resigning to avoid a catastrophe, but at the end rebuked him saying that his conclusions were wrong since Germany was about to produce a decisive secret weapon.

[97] After that, Mussolini met Kesselring and the chief of police, Chierici, whom he confided in that it would have been easy to bring Grandi, Bottai and Ciano back to the fold as they were eager to be persuaded by him.

[99] At the same time, Grandi, Federzoni, de Marsico (one of the best jurists in Italy), Bottai and Ciano modified the OdG by removing the interpretative introduction which explained the functions of the Grand Council.

Farinacci told Grandi that he accepted the first part of the document, but that he did not agree with the rest: the military powers had to be given to the Germans, and Italy should start to fight the war by getting rid of Mussolini and the generals.

[103] The Grand Council of Fascism, meeting in these hours of utmost trial, turns all its thoughts to the heroic fighters in every corps who, side by side with the people of Sicily in whom shines the unequivocal faith of the Italian people, renewing the noble traditions of strenuous valor and the indomitable spirit of sacrifice of our glorious Armed Forces, having examined the internal and international situation and the war's political and military leadership, the sacred duty for all Italians to defend at all costs the homeland's unity, independence, and freedom, the fruits of sacrifice and the efforts of four generations from the Risorgimento to the present, the life and future of the Italian people; the necessity of moral and material unity of all Italians in this serious and decisive hour for the nation's destiny; that to this end the immediate restoration of all state functions is necessary, assigning to the Crown, to the Grand Council, to the government, to the Parliament, and to the corporate groups the duties and responsibility established by our statutory and constitutional laws; the government to beseech His Majesty the king, to whom turns the loyal and trusting heart of the whole nation, to assume effective command of the Armed Forces of land, sea, and air for the honor and salvation of the homeland, under article 5 of the Constitution, the supreme initiative that our institutions assign to him, and which have always been throughout our nation's history the glorious heritage of our august House of Savoy.

He wanted to give the supreme command of the armed forces back to the King and unify Italy's direction of the war with Germany's, all of which would strengthen the Party.

He ordered a search for Grandi from his office at Montecitorio, but he replied that he was not in Rome, potentially in an effort to give him the task of making contact with the Allies to prepare an armistice.

He was summoned by telephone with his colleague Captain Raffaele Aversa around 14:00 on 25 July by Lieutenant Colonel Frignani, who explored their method of carrying out the order of arrest issued against the Duce.

Hidaka heard Mussolini request that the Japanese Prime Minister, General Hideki Tojo, contact Hitler and convince him to reach an agreement with Stalin.

He was transferred to the island of La Maddalena, and finally to Campo Imperatore, where he remained until 12 September 1943 when a German commando unit led by Otto Skorzeny freed him.

[151] The same fate befell the MVSN: its Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Enzo Galbiati, advised Mussolini to arrest the 19 gerarchi who voted for the OdG Grandi, but he refused.

Although the majority of his officers wanted to react, he called the Undersecretary to the Interior, Umberto Albini, after consulting with four generals and declaring that the MVSN would have "remained faithful to its principles, that is to serve the fatherland through its pair, Duce and King".

His Majesty the King and Emperor has accepted the resignation from office of the Head of Government, Prime Minister, and Secretary of State His Excellency il Cavaliere Benito Mussolini, and has named as Head of Government, Prime Minister, and Secretary of State the Marshal of Italy, Sir Pietro Badoglio.At 22:45 on 25 July 1943, Titta Arista (nicknamed the "voce littoria") announced that Mussolini had resigned and that Badoglio was the new premier.

Windows illuminate violently, front doors burst open, houses empty, all are out embracing each other, telling each other the news, with those simple and exuberant gestures belonging to people overwhelmed by emotion.

[159] From 26 July until 8 August, eight German divisions and one brigade were moved without Italian consent to northern and central Italy: the same troops that Hitler had denied to Mussolini two weeks before in Feltre.