The Dissident Left (), commonly named The Pentarchy () for its five leaders, was a progressive and radical parliamentary group active in Italy during the last decades of the 19th century."Giuseppe Zanardelli – Biografia" .
History It emerged in 1880 from the left-wing of the two dominant parliamentary groups, the Historical Left, in opposition to the trasformismo of Agostino Depretis. In the 1880 general election, the party won 19.7% of the vote and 119 seats in the Chamber of Deputies.Dieter Nohlen; Philip Stöver (2010). Elections in Europe: A Data Handbook. p. 1047. .
The Pentarchy was a group formed led by Francesco Crispi and composed also by Giuseppe Zanardelli, Benedetto Cairoli, Giovanni Nicotera, Agostino Magliani, Alfredo Beccarini and Gabriele D'Annunzio. Initially split from the Left in 1880, this group re-merged in to the Left in 1887.Denis Mack Smith (1997). Storia d'Italia dal 1861 al 1897.
Ideology The Dissident Left supported statist and progressive internal policies, expansionism and Germanophile foreign policies, as well as protectionist economy policies. Most of these policies were to be implemented by Francesco Crispi when he became Prime Minister in the 1890s.Simone Oldani. "La politica di Crispi" .
Electoral results Chamber of DeputiesElection yearVotes% Seats+/−Leader188070,479 (3rd)19.7Giuseppe Zanardelli188245,282 (4th)3.7Giuseppe Zanardelli188671,632 (4th)5.1Giuseppe Zanardelli
References