Mussolini's Way of War

There is a common misconception, which is that Mussolini had no real strategy of his own and merely followed Hitler on the path of his victories. Even the so-called ‘Parallel War’, as the historians interpreted it so far, was somehow dictated by Hitler. First, when Italy entered the war attacking France in the Alps without success, then in Greece in October 1940 when Mussolini attempted to make Hitler’s seizure of Romania even. As historian Pier Paolo Battistelli reveals in this book, these assumptions are false and based on inaccurate sources. Thanks to new documents found in the hard-to-access Italian archives, the truth about Mussolini’s strategy and his ‘Parallel War’ eventually emerged. Mussolini had a precise strategy, intended to wage an indirect war against France and Britain with the support of Germany. In order to do that, aware of the weaknesses of Italy, Mussolini aimed at seizing part of Yugoslavia to exploit her resources. Which would make good for Italy’s own lack of resources, and solve her financial problems. Facing Hitler’s obstinate decision to attack in the West, Mussolini decided to wage a war of his own while keeping the side of Germany. His ‘Parallel War’ was to disappear when, facing the collapse of France, Mussolini turned west following for the first time Hitler’s footsteps.