Abyssinia Where? The Forgotten War

Flags of Italy, top, and Abyssinia

When one thinks about World War II in a European context, nearly everyone thinks about Hitler and the Nazis. This is mostly due to the many atrocities they committed and the subsequent ramifications of those actions. Also, when one thinks about the war in the Pacific, one rightly thinks about the Japanese. However, many people forget that the belligerent forces in World War II were called the Axis powers for a reason. Italy, the third member of the Axis, is most often forgotten or relegated to afterthoughts of the common person. Over the next few posts, I wish to delve into the oft-forgotten dictatorship: fascist Italy.

Many people may be familiar with the name Benito Mussolini, as he was the fascist dictator of Italy before and during World War II. Many people don't realize, though, how much impact Mussolini had in the post-World War I Europe. It was Mussolini and the Fascists who took power in November 1922, and in doing so inspired the actions taken by the Nazi Party in 1923 during the Beer Hall Putsch. A result of that act was the imprisonment of one Adolf Hitler, who from his jail cell would write the infamous "Mein Kampf". The rest, as they say, is history.

 In the mid-1930s, with Hitler rising to power in Germany and beginning his campaign of reclaiming old territory lost in the Versailles Treaty, Mussolini felt left out. This led to his campaign to lead Italy into the creation of "a new Roman Empire". The first target in Mussolini's scope: Abyssinia, present day Ethiopia. The Abyssinians and the Italians had shared some bad blood in the past. In previous centuries, Italy tried not once, but twice to conquer Abyssinia, leaving the Italians in a swamp of ridicule for many years. In 1935, Mussolini decided that it was time for payback; after all, third time's a charm.

Because Abyssinia was located close to Italy's African colonies, it was ripe for the conquest. However, Mussolini was worried that the Abyssinian emperor would successfully gain support and aid from the League of Nations. Remember, this was before the United Nations, and at the time the League of Nations was considered to be weak and ill-equipped to respond to threats. The Japanese annexation of Chinese territory earlier in the decade proved that the League was weak, so Mussolini decided to play the odds that any help would arrive too late to affect the outcome of his invasion.

The Italians invaded in October of 1935, and Abyssinian emperor Haile Selassie indeed pleaded with the League of Nations for help. However, Mussolini had been right; the League knew that any aid would get there too late, and they were also worried that any aid would alienate Italy and push them towards non-League nations, of which Germany was included at this time. In the end, after heroic resistance, Abyssinia was annexed into the newly-formed Italian empire, and the League imposed mediocre sanctions against Italy, which for all intensive purposes did next to nothing.

These actions proved to Europe, and especially Germany, that the League of Nations was weak, and was in no position to resist aggressive actions. This would later encourage Hitler to  push the envelope further and further: first the Rhineland, then Czechoslovakia, and finally Poland. It is interesting to see how events such as these can have such widespread repercussions on the political stage. Such was the role that Italy played, and for it they are often overlooked. My future posts will strive to uncover other actions that Italy made that would prove to have lasting consequences for both sides. Until next time, take care, and thanks for reading.