Mussolini's Fateful Alliance With Germany

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plans” in “preparation for war.”
On the 28 of September, 1937, Mussolini made his first visit to Germany, outlandishly outfitted with lavish uniforms and an extensive entourage to impress Hitler. The visit, which lacked any significant military discussions, lasted only four days, but it was in this time that Mussolini managed to convince Hitler that he fully supported Germany and would do his part to strengthen the axis. He also made Hitler aware that he fully supported the unification of Anschluss. Mussolini, despite his extraordinary impression of the Nazi army and his declaration to “march together to the end,” did not immediately agree to sign a formal alliance with Hitler at the time.
Anonymous articles during this time continued to proclaim that the Fascist government were not pacifistic, as were the democracies. For this reason, Mussolini argued the Axis Powers could strike at the “precise moment” of the Allies’ weakness. Galleazo Ciano, foreign minister to Italy, and Mussolini’s son-in-law, argued that Italy should hesitate until the end of the Spanish Civil War; there was no need to start another war now. The perfect time to conquer England would be in the tropical heat of North Africa, where Italian forces were being built up diligently. Mussolini, however, felt differently about Italy’s role in the Spanish Civil War. Though it was extremely unpopular in Italy, he felt by supporting General Francisco Franco with his troops, he was toughening and preparing the population for the war that would surely be the end result of the rearmament of Third Reich Germany. The sequence of events that followed Italy’s brutal involvement in the Spanish Civil War fell into place one-by-one to assure the alliance with Germany.
Mussolini withdrew Italy from the League of Nations in December of 1937, just as Hitler had done with Germany after his election in March of 1933. Mussolini delayed...