Why Did Mussolini Invade Ethiopia in 1935?
At the time of the invasion of Ethiopia in 1935, Italy had already made a colony out of the neighboring country of Eritrea. It served as the perfect base to launch an invasion of Ethiopia. Italy had some other colonies in Africa at that time. Perhaps, the most significant one was Libya. Mussolini had a chip on his shoulder and felt that the Italians were considered “second rate” by other European powers like Britain, France, and Germany. At the time, these countries all had many colonies of their own in Africa. He was determined to prove that his fascist regime had created a “new Italy”. This would be an Italy that was modern, industrialized, and militaristic like Germany was becoming. He had spoken many times of restoring the glory of ancient Rome to his country. If you remember, Rome built an Empire all around the Mediterranean that even extended into the British Isles. I’m sure Mussolini had that vision in mind when he cast his eye on Ethiopia. He craved equality with the other “gre
