Italian Fascism: Relationship Between Nazi Germany And Italy

Nazi Germany’s obvious political and military ally in Europe was Italy. The Italians had been governed by a fascist regime under Benito Mussolini since 1925. Italian fascism was very much the elder brother of Nazism, a fact Hitler himself acknowledged. Yet for all their ideological similarities, the relationship between Hitler and Mussolini was bumpy and complex. The alignment of their two countries was consequently not as firm as many anticipated. By the late 1930s Germany and Italy had become military allies – however their priorities were still with their own national interests, rather than supporting the interests or ambitions of another country. The union between Nazi Germany and fascist Italy became a marriage of convenience and expedience, rather than a firm alliance of sister states.
In his early years at the helm of the NSDAP, Hitler was a great admirer of Mussolini. The Nazi leader was particularly fascinated with Mussolini’s ‘march on Rome’ – a 1922 protest where thousands of fascists and fascist supporters strode into the Italian capital, which led to Mussolini’s appointment as prime minister. In 1923 Hitler wrote to his Italian counterpart about the ‘march on Rome’; the Munich putsch
These shows of strength were obviously convened to impress the Italian leader, and it worked. Two months after, Italy joined Germany and Japan in the Anti-Comintern Pact: an agreement to resist the expansion of the Soviet Union and prevent the spread of communism. Hitler’s influence on Mussolini became evident in the Italian leader’s Manifesto of Race (July 1938). This decree, which proved very unpopular in Italy, stripped Italian Jews of their citizenship and removed them from government occupations. In September 1938 Mussolini was part of the four-nation summit on the Czechoslovakian crisis and a signatory of the Munich