IB History Impact of Fascism and Nazism on the Foreign Policies of Italy Notes

Fascist Ideology and Italian Foreign Policy

1. Fascism was a ruling philosophy of nationalism which supported industrialists and workers, emphasised order and obedience to the state, and enforced a single-party government. In foreign policy, fascism advocated war and imperialism as essential for national greatness.
2. Mussolini declared: "War is to man what maternity is to a woman." Fascism held that "only through warfare could it become the great nation for which it was destined." Men should be warriors; women were encouraged to have children for future armies, and those with the most children received awards. Mussolini held the position of Prime Minister from 1922 until his overthrow in 1943.
3. Various youth groups were founded by the Fascist Party to teach the young about fascism, "and learn to march and shoot." Mussolini portrayed his regime as a revival of the Roman Empire, using the fasces (bundle of rods with an axe), Roman letters, new architecture, and public sculpture. He claimed the Mediterranean as Mare Nostrum (Our Sea).

Mussolini's Rise to Power

1. Italy had been a victor in WWI but felt cheated. The Treaty of London (1915) had promised territorial gains for joining the Allies, but Britain and France "simply disregarded earlier promises." Over 600,000 Italians died and promises to 2 million soldiers (farmland grants) were unfulfilled.
2. Italy was "severely divided internally" by the Biennio Rosso (1919-1920): riots, strikes, factory occupations, a "dysfunctional parliament, religious interference by the Catholic Church, the spread of communist ideology." Conservatives and industrialists feared revolution.
3. Mussolini formed the Black Shirts (Squadristi), a gang "financed by industrialists and bankers, as well as other conservatives." By 1922 he had support from the king, industry leaders, and the middle classes. The March on Rome (October 1922) led to his appointment as Prime Minister.
4. Mussolini (called Il Duce, The Leader) banned opposition parties, outlawed independent trade unions (replacing them with government-managed organisations), suppressed publications, resolved disputes with the Catholic Church, and created youth groups to indoctrinate the young.

Economic Constraints and the Impact of the Depression

1. In the 1920s, Italy's economy was dependent on Britain, France, and the USA for food, fuel, and raw materials. "An embargo on fuel by the USA or Britain, for example, would severely restrict the economy." While fascism advocated war, there were "clearly limits on what could be achieved without putting the country at financial risk."
2. Italy's foreign policy in the 1920s was "primarily opportunist" (Philip Morgan), "taking advantage of small incidents to gain politically." The Corfu Incident (1923) and the seizure of Fiume (Rijeka) from Yugoslavia "required little on the part of Italy."
3. The Great Depression (1929) freed Italy from Western dependence. Trade was redirected toward Yugoslavia, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania. Italy now had "less fear of economic retaliation" and "more freedom to operate its foreign policy in line with its fascist governing philosophy."
4. Mussolini created the corporate state: government-industry boards eliminated competition, set prices, and directed production. "This eliminated competition in industries such as steel so that all producers set a single price." All major industries survived the Depression by cooperating with the government.
5. Massive deficit spending went into military production: "trucks, tanks, ships and aircraft, as well as rifles, tyres, shells and engines." The army and navy "massively expanded, providing jobs for up to 1 million men by late 1935."
6. In 1933, Mussolini reorganised the government and personally took control of the ministries of war, air, navy, interior, and foreign affairs. This unprecedented centralisation of power allowed him to direct all aspects of national policy toward military expansion.
7. Italy pursued autarky (economic self-sufficiency) as a national goal. The "Battle for Grain" aimed to reduce food imports, while industrial policy focused on developing domestic alternatives to imported raw materials.

Italian Expansion: Abyssinia, Spain, and Albania

The Abyssinian Crisis (1935-1936)

1. Italy's existing colonial empire (Libya, Eritrea, Somalia) was poor and "somewhat of an embarrassment because of their poverty." Mussolini wanted empire to make Italy a Great Power. Only Abyssinia and Liberia remained unconquered in nearby Africa.
2. Abyssinia was "conveniently located beside the Italian colonies of Somaliland and Eritrea" with "loosely defined" borders. Mussolini was "completely uninterested in its economic potential" and "disregarded the state of the Italian economy, which was totally unprepared to finance a war."
3. The Wal-Wal Incident (December 1934) provided the pretext: a clash 80 km inside Abyssinia. Italy demanded $100,000 and an apology. Arbitration found neither side at fault, but Mussolini had already ordered invasion preparations.

1. Italy invaded on 3 October 1935. "The relatively modern Italian forces annihilated the Abyssinian armies sent against them that used a variety of antique weapons." Aerial bombing and poison gas "led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of men, women, children and livestock, poisoning water and destroying crops."
2. Over 750,000 Abyssinians were killed. Mussolini ordered "prisoners be shot, that various villages be gassed... and that priests and others suspected of complicity in armed resistance be executed without hesitation." Emperor Haile Selassie fled to Britain.
3. Italian Somaliland, Eritrea, and Abyssinia were merged into Italian East Africa. Mussolini proclaimed "the foundation of a new Roman Empire" and the King of Italy was retitled Emperor of Ethiopia. The capital was Addis Ababa.

The Spanish Civil War (1936-1939)

1. Italy sent approximately 75,000 troops plus "large quantities of weapons" and naval support to Franco's Nationalists. Italy's navy also assisted. Mussolini hoped France would become involved, allowing Italy to seize Corsica and southeastern France. This did not happen.
2. "Money, troops and supplies that Italy could not afford were wasted" on Spain. The intervention drained Italy's already weak military without territorial gain, but it strengthened the Rome-Berlin Axis through shared military cooperation and demonstrated Anglo-French willingness to pursue non-intervention.

The Invasion of Albania (April 1939)

1. In April 1939, Italy invaded Albania, partly to match Germany's annexation of Czechoslovakia the previous month. Albania was already an Italian client state, so resistance was minimal. The invasion gave Italy a strategic base in the Balkans and was followed by the signing of the Pact of Steel with Germany.
2. Each act of expansion reflected fascist ideology's core belief that war and empire were essential. However, Italy's military was fundamentally unprepared: outdated L3 tankettes (3.2 tonnes, machine guns only), obsolete biplanes, no aircraft carriers, only 10 of 73 divisions combat-ready, and ammunition lasting only weeks.

Consequences of Fascist Foreign Policy

1. Fascist foreign policy alienated Italy from Britain and France and pushed it into alliance with Germany. The Abyssinian Crisis destroyed the Stresa Front. League sanctions convinced Mussolini the democracies were enemies.
2. Italy became a junior partner in the Axis. "Germany's economy was far greater... Germany, not Italy, determined the course of their mutual foreign policies and... Italy's opinions were of little importance to Hitler."
3. The Pact of Steel (May 1939) committed Italy to war it was unprepared for. Mussolini declared non-belligerency in September 1939, only entering in June 1940 after France fell. He told his Chief of Staff: "I need only a few thousand dead to sit at the peace conference."
4. Italy's campaigns in Greece (October 1940) and North Africa (September 1940) both failed disastrously. In North Africa, 236,000 Italian troops were routed by 36,000 British, with 130,000 prisoners captured. Germany had to send Rommel's Afrika Korps to prevent total collapse.
5. The Greek campaign forced Germany to intervene in the Balkans (April 1941), potentially delaying Operation Barbarossa by five weeks. The "parallel war" concept collapsed; Italy became dependent on Germany rather than fighting as an equal.
6. Fascist ideology's emphasis on military glory far exceeded Italy's actual capability. The gap between rhetoric and reality proved catastrophic. Mussolini's foreign policy led to Italy's defeat, his overthrow in July 1943, and the destruction of the fascist state.

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