ABSTRACT
The direct link between the architect and the political leader, whether emperor, pope, chancellor, or general secretary, is not a new phenomenon. Despite the intense historical production that has taken place over the last few decades, and whose exhaustive assessment would be a superhuman undertaking, a simplistic identification of architectural forms with political regimes continues to be the rule. The convenient terms of “Fascist,” “Nazi,” or “Stalinist” architecture remain common. But an alternative history could be written, in which the strategies deployed by architects to capture the commissions of the political and economic leaders would be investigated, showing that in many cases, they have been the instruments of the architects.
