Giuseppe Tatarella (17 September 1935 – 8 February 1999), also known as Pinuccio Tatarella, was an Italian politician who served as

deputy prime minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

in the first cabinet of

Silvio Berlusconi Silvio Berlusconi ( ; ; 29 September 193612 June 2023) was an Italian Media proprietor, media tycoon and politician who served as the prime minister of Italy in three governments from 1994 to 1995, 2001 to 2006 and 2008 to 2011. He was a mem ...

from 1994 to 1995.

Early life and education

Tatarella was born in

Cerignola Cerignola (; ) is a town and ''comune'' of Apulia, Italy, in the province of Foggia, southeast from the town of Foggia. It has the third-largest land area of any ''comune'' in Italy, at , after Rome and Ravenna and it has the largest land ar ...

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

, in 1935. He held a law degree.

Career

Tatarella was a lawyer and journalist. He worked for the local branches of the

Italian Social Movement The Italian Social Movement (, MSI) was a neo-fascist political party in Italy. A far-right party, it presented itself until the 1990s as the defender of Italian fascism's legacy, and later moved towards national conservatism. In 1972, the Itali ...

(MSI), a

neo-fascist Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology which includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, ultraconservatism, racial supremacy, right-wing populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xe ...

party that was launched by

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

's followers in 1946 based on his strong nationalistic ideals. In the 1960s, he launched the weekly ''Puglia d'Oggi'' (''Puglia Today''). In 1970, he became a member of the Puglia regional council. In 1979, he was first elected to the

Italian Parliament The Italian Parliament () is the national parliament of the Italy, Italian Republic. It is the representative body of Italian citizens and is the successor to the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia (1848–1861), the Parliament of the Kingd ...

and retained his seat until 1999. Tatarella was among the co-founders of

National Alliance National Alliance may refer to: Electoral alliances *National Alliance (Egypt) (2015) * National Alliance (Ireland) (2024 onwards) * National Alliance (Pakistan) (2002-2004) *Nation Alliance (Turkey) (2018-2023) Political parties and organizations ...

(AN) in January 1994. He became one of its senior member. The party was the continuation of the MSI. He served as

floor leader A parliamentary leader is a political title or a descriptive term used in various countries to designate the person leading a parliamentary group or caucus in a legislative body, whether it be a national or sub-national legislature. They are thei ...

of the AN at the parliament for a long time. In 1996, he took over the ''Il Roma'', a

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

-based daily, and served as its editor until 1999. Tatarella was appointed deputy prime minister to the

first Berlusconi government The first Berlusconi government was the 51st government of the Italian Republic. It was the first right-wing and non- Christian Democrats government since World War II. Berlusconi resigned on 22 December 1994. History In order to win the Marc ...

, which was the first right-wing cabinet of Italy after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, on 10 May 1994. He also served as Minister of Post and Telecommunications. Although he was one of four AN members in the same cabinet, only Tatarella's appointment was regarded as significant, and he was surnamed the minister of harmony. Tatarella was in office until 1995. He also won his seat from

Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...

in the

1996 Italian general election The 1996 Italian general election was held on 21 April 1996 to elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. Romano Prodi, leader of the centre-left The Olive Tree, won the election, narrowly defeating Silvio Berl ...

. In January 1997, he was named as the head of a parliamentary subcommittee. It was one of four subcommittees that constituted a bicameral committee of Parliament set up to discuss the institutional reorganization of Italy. During his political career, Tatarella was often described and viewed as a fascist, which he denied. Tatarella said that he had joined the MSI not because he was nostalgic of

Italian fascism Italian fascism (), also called classical fascism and Fascism, is the original fascist ideology, which Giovanni Gentile and Benito Mussolini developed in Italy. The ideology of Italian fascism is associated with a series of political parties le ...

but because it was the strongest

anti-communist Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communist beliefs, groups, and individuals. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when th ...

party. He defined himself thusly: "I am a nationalist, a Catholic and a democrat." Belgian minister

Elio Di Rupo Elio Di Rupo (; born 18 July 1951) is a Belgian politician who served as the prime minister of Belgium from 2011 to 2014, heading the Di Rupo Government, and as minister-president of Wallonia for three non-consecutive terms between 1999 and 20 ...

refused to shake Tatarella's hand during a meeting in Brussels when Tatarella was serving as deputy prime minister and ministry of posts and telecommunications. It was due to the negative image of AN.

Death

Tatarella died of a heart attack at a hospital in

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

at age 63 on 8 February 1999. A funeral service was performed for him in Bari.

References

External links

Historical Portal of Chamber of Deputies
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tatarella, Giuseppe 20th-century Italian journalists 20th-century Italian lawyers 20th-century Italian male writers 1935 births 1999 deaths Italian Roman Catholics Italian Social Movement politicians National Alliance (Italy) politicians Deputies of Legislature VIII of Italy Deputies of Legislature IX of Italy Deputies of Legislature X of Italy Deputies of Legislature XI of Italy Deputies of Legislature XII of Italy Deputies of Legislature XIII of Italy Politicians of Apulia Italian male journalists Deputy prime ministers of Italy People from Cerignola Italian newspaper founders Italian newspaper editors Italian political party founders Government ministers of Italy Conservatism in Italy