Ciriaco De Mita
A shrewd Christian Democrat who led Italy's government during a turbulent era and embodied his party's deep roots in the nation's post-war fabric.
1928–2022 (age 94)·Italian politician·Birthday: February 2·The Silent Generation
Biography
Ciriaco De Mita was a political craftsman who spent his entire career within the labyrinthine structure of Italy's dominant Christian Democracy party. Hailing from Campania, he rose through the ranks not as a flamboyant orator but as a skilled organizer and intellectual from the party's left wing. His tenure as Prime Minister from 1988 to 1989 was brief but emblematic of Italy's 'First Republic'—his coalition government was fragile, constantly negotiating between Socialists, Communists, and his own faction-ridden party. More significant was his long stint as the DC's national secretary, where he wielded immense behind-the-scenes influence. De Mita represented a breed of politician deeply embedded in local and Catholic social networks, a connector between Italy's modern state and its traditional communities. His later years were marked by a shift to more regionalist politics, observing the old party system he knew so well crumble around him.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Ciriaco was born in 1928, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Ciriaco Was Born
The biggest hits of 1928
#1 Movie
The Singing Fool
Best Picture
Wings
Ciriaco's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1928Born
Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin; Mickey Mouse debuts
President: Calvin Coolidge"Ol' Man River" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: Wings
1933Started school
FDR's New Deal launches; Prohibition ends
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Stormy Weather" — Ethel WatersBest Picture: Cavalcade
1941Became a teenager
Pearl Harbor attack brings the US into WWII
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,060Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Chattanooga Choo Choo" — Glenn MillerBest Picture: How Green Was My Valley
1944Could drive
D-Day: Allied forces land at Normandy
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,400Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Swinging on a Star" — Bing CrosbyBest Picture: Going My Way
1946Could vote
United Nations holds its first General Assembly
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $5,150Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Prisoner of Love" — Perry ComoBest Picture: The Best Years of Our Lives
1949Turned 21
NATO founded; Mao proclaims the People's Republic of China
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Riders in the Sky" — Vaughn MonroeBest Picture: All the King's Men
1958Turned 30
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1968Turned 40
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1978Turned 50
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1988Turned 60
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1998Turned 70
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2008Turned 80
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
2022Died at 94
Russia invades Ukraine; Queen Elizabeth II dies
Gas: $3.97/galHome: $348,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"As It Was" — Harry StylesBest Picture: Everything Everywhere All at Once
Key Achievements
- Served as the Prime Minister of Italy from April 1988 to July 1989.
- Led the Christian Democracy party as its National Secretary for seven years during the 1980s.
- Was elected to the Italian Chamber of Deputies continuously for over 45 years, from 1963 to 2008.
- Served as a Minister for Industry and as a Member of the European Parliament.
Did You Know?
He was the father of Antonio De Mita, who also became a politician.
Even in his eighties, he served as the mayor of his small hometown, Nusco, in southern Italy.
His brother, Germano De Mita, was a respected sculptor.
He was a prominent figure in the 'Catholic Communist' wing of the Christian Democracy party.
“Politics is not spectacle; it is the patient construction of the possible.”
