The
Italian Social Republic ( ), informally known as the
Republic of Salò (, ), was a
puppet state of
Nazi Germany during the later part of
World War II (from 1943 until 1945). It was the second and last incarnation of the
Fascist Italian state and it was led by
Duce Benito Mussolini and his reformed
Republican Fascist Party. The state declared
Rome as its capital, but was
de facto centered on Salò (hence its colloquial name), a small town on
Lake Garda, near
Brescia, where Mussolini and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was headquartered. The RSI exercised nominal sovereignty in northern and central Italy, but was largely dependent on German troops to maintain control.