The mayor of the Italian town in which Benito Mussolini was born has announced a museum dedicated to the history of fascism.

Giorgio Frassineti said the museum would give visitors the chance to reflect on an important part of history while reclaiming the town of Predappio from modern-day supporters of the fascist dictator – who still embark on pilgrimages to the town to see the house in which Mussolini was born, as well as the mausoleum where he is buried.

The dictator – known as Il Duce – founded Italy’s National Fascist Party in 1919, before coming into power and ultimately leading the country into the Second World War on the side of Nazi Germany. He was captured and shot dead by Italian partisans while fleeing Italy in 1945.

The museum will be located in an abandoned 2,400sq m (25,833sq ft) building that was constructed as part of an urban renewal programme in the 1930s – in an attempt by Mussolini to glorify his home town.

Mayor Frassineti, who is a member of the centre-left Democratic Party and is running for re-election in May, said the project would require additional funding if it is to get off the ground.

The project is the latest in a recent string of museums dedicated to uncomfortable episodes or eras in history. A museum charting the history of Adolf Hitler and National Socialism in Germany recently announced a £14m ($23.5m, €17m) expansion project, while a new museum commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989 has just opened in Hong Kong.