Invasion of Abyssinia

• Italy was under the control of Benito Mussolini and his Fascist Party
• Mussolini had been made Prime Minister in 1922 after threatening to take power by marching into Rome. He used his new position to change the voting rules, and in the 1924 election the Fascists swept to power
• From 1925, Mussolini began to establish a dictatorship in Italy
• Opposition political parties were banned in Italy. He used his harsh secret police against opponents
• Italy had been defeated by Abyssinia in 1896 and the Italians wanted revenge
• Success would divert people's attention from the Depression and boost Mussolini's popularity
• Mussolini dreamed of making Italy a great empire again, and had seen Japan succeed in Manchuria in 1931
• In October 1935, Mussolini sent troops with heavy artillery and tanks to invade Abyssinia
• The Abyssinian leader appealed directly to the League of Nations. The LoN imposed economic sanctions, but delayed banning oil exports in case the USA didn't support them
• Britain and France didn't close the Suez Canal to Italian ships - so supplies got through despite the sanctions
• By May 1936, Italy had conquered all of Abyssinia
• Members of League didn't want to go to war with Italy. Hitler was becoming powerful, and Britain and France wanted to save their resources
• Britain and France made a secret agreement (the Hoare-Laval Pact) to give Abyssinia to Mussolini. When the news got out, there was a public outrage
• Italy became more confident - and eventually started making pacts with the fascist leader of Germany, Adolf Hitler