In the early morning of October 3, 1935, Emilio Debono, military commander of the Italian colony of Eritrea in East Africa, commanded an army to invade neighboring Ethiopia. His opponents were overwhelmingly numerically superior, but they were vulnerable from any other point of view, with so little equipment that they could not withstand the invasion of any of the great Powers of the West. The operation, arguably of any military significance, revealed Mussolini's growing ambitions, which had far-reaching implications for Europe and the world.
For more than a century, greedy European colonists have invaded the continent, and Ethiopia is unique in maintaining its independence. The Abyssinian Empire has ruled the country for 700 years, and the rulers claim to be descendants of King Solomon. Even the most patriotic Ethiopians do not see their country as governed by the "modern means" that Europeans espouse, but Ethiopia is indeed an independent country. In 1923, Ethiopia joined the League of Nations, which ironically prohibited war between its members, but Italy was the vanguard of the invasion of Ethiopia. Five years later, the two countries signed a treaty pledging to maintain 20 years of peace, which was simply superfluous.
In November 1930, Haile Selassie I, the Lion of Judah and King of Kings, was crowned emperor in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and dignitaries from all over the world came to watch the ceremony. Italy sent the king's cousin, Prince Udine, as a representative, and the British sent a member of the royal family, duke Gegst, to observe the ceremony. Although the specifications of the spectators were very high, this did not mean that the Western world supported the regime, and a Reporter for the Times wrote: "Ethiopia is synonymous with barbarism and chaos: the chaos of feudal territories and tribes and the barbarism of the slave trade." "But this undoubtedly shows that in the eyes of the countries of the world, especially in Italy, this country is real.
Although led by members of the royal family, the Italian delegation attending the coronation ceremony must have been uncomfortable. Italy wanted to settle its long-standing grievances when, about 40 years ago, an Italian army, based in its colony of Eritrea in East Africa, invaded Tigri, one of the two kingdoms of Ethiopia at the time. At first, the Italian army was overwhelming, encountering only sporadic resistance. The Italian commander-in-chief, Baratieri, was eager to make a contribution, coupled with the agitation of Rome's expansionist government, vowed that the Ethiopian army would not pose any serious threat to the Italian army. The situation was then reversed, and in Adóba, Balatieri encountered an enemy force four or five times larger than his own, and although he fought back, he was defeated. More than 6,000 Italian soldiers were killed in the war, and the rest fled back to Eritrea. From then until 1935, the two sides maintained an unstable peace. When Britain, France, and Belgium have established huge colonial empires in Africa and seized huge wealth, Italy can only be in the east, which makes Mussolini unhappy. The only way for Italy to expand its territory in Africa was to invade Ethiopia.
Still, Mussolini's primary goal was not to build a larger Italian empire. He exclaimed, "You have to give the arrogant and unruly Serbs a little color!" To this end, he tried to turn Greece, Yugoslavia, and Turkey in Eastern Europe into Italy's sphere of influence. Unfortunately, although the entire plan was ambitious, the other side of the plan was not willing to accept the dispatch of Italy, and the Yugoslav revolt was particularly fierce. Mussolini believed that a fierce war would eventually break out in the Balkans, but at the same time he also believed that the invasion of Ethiopia would easily enhance Italy's international status and lay a solid foundation for more important causes in the future. In a speech in the House of Lords in May 1935, he said: "In order to strengthen Italy's self-confidence in Europe, we must consolidate the security of the African colonies. This reasoning does not seem logical, and if Italy has colonies in Africa, it seems that no country poses a threat to its colonies. But what is clear is that the invasion of Ethiopia was a useful attempt, if not a necessary rehearsal for the start of a war in Europe.
In the second half of 1934 and 1935, Italy stepped up its military presence in Eritrea. Mussolini claimed that he was only strengthening his defenses: the threat from Ethiopia was growing, and cross-border invasions were becoming more frequent and severe. Italy had an obligation to protect innocent colonial residents from stubborn and aggressive enemies. This claim is not entirely alarmist, Haile Selassie I's control over remote areas is very loose, in fact, Eritrea is often subjected to frequent and devastating attacks. What is clear, however, is that Mussolini's main goal was not to protect the Italian colonies in East Africa, but to invade most or even all of Ethiopia. He told Debono: "Although there are rumors that we will reach a compromise, I need to let the outside world know that we will not look back anyway. He realized that his actions would definitely clash with the League of Nations, or even withdraw from the League of Nations altogether, "we may have to leave Geneva." He confessed. But he didn't seem to care about it. He would certainly do his best to avoid such a conflict if possible, but to his satisfaction he was that if it was condemned by the League of Nations, or even expelled from the League, Italy would not bear any military responsibility and the political and economic costs would not be too high.
If he could win before the other countries could rally their forces against it, the situation in Italy would be very good. The miracle that Ethiopia did in Adua will undoubtedly not be repeated, Ethiopia is ill-prepared, and the Italian army that invaded Ethiopia this time is much better equipped and personneled than the unlucky army that came before. "The war will soon be over," Mussolini threatened, "and we stand on the moral, spiritual and cultural high ground, in addition to the overwhelming superiority of both armaments and resources." "Whether to stand on the moral and spiritual high ground is debatable, but Italy clearly has a military advantage. Within days, the Italian army had occupied Adóba and built a monument to victory in the humiliating ruins of yesteryear. Not only did the Italian Army have absolute superiority, but the Italian Air Force also roared over Ethiopia without any effective interception. The unfortunate Ethiopians were not only subjected to relentless shelling and heavy strafing, but also to the mustard gas sprayed from time to time by the Italian army. In fact, the italian army's use of poison gas cost them more than military progress. The attack of poorly equipped Western armies on ill-equipped and poorly organized African armies would have condemned the Italian army, and with the use of a poison gas that was not only barbaric but also explicitly prohibited by international law, Italy itself went against morality. The use of poison gas has further strained ethiopian troops, and defeat in the short term is a foregone conclusion.
The focus remains on what other countries will do. If the League of Nations had not existed, the answer would have been "Indifferent!" "Throughout Europe, Italy is only closely following the possible reactions of Britain and France, but the criminal colonial history of these two countries has made it impossible and impossible for them to make harsh condemnations and public moral warnings when Italy invaded Ethiopia." They may object privately, but that's about it. The British had considered making concessions elsewhere in East Africa in exchange for the Italians halting their aggression against Ethiopia, but the Italians refused. Neither Britain nor France had any intention of using large-scale military or economic means to stop the aggressors. Nevertheless, Britain and France did not sit idly by, and they, along with Italy and Ethiopia, are members of the League of Nations, which means that a new important factor is involved. In the eyes of others, it was the role of the League of Nations in this war, or more precisely, its failure to play, that made this seemingly noisy but insignificant conflict of great significance.
At the end of 1919, the United States announced that it would not join the League of Nations, so the League of Nations was not well organized, but with the support of European member states, it still played an important role in international affairs and resolved many small conflicts between countries. But the League of Nations is, at best, an operational mechanism in which the dominant countries— Britain, France, and the relatively weak Italy — can negotiate a solution that can then be imposed on other weaker countries. For other countries, this is a platform, and it can even be said that some commendable opinions must be expressed, but the League of Nations must not be expected to eventually take any effective measures. "Friends of Democracy, Bookmanists, women's groups, student unions, Christian scientists, youth associations, anti-fascist and anti-war coalitions for all sorts of just reasons" flocked to Geneva, seemingly concerned only with whether they could find some resonant audience, rather than being frustrated that their incessant rhetoric had no practical effect. At that time, there had not yet been a situation in which two of the three Powers were at odds with each other, or when one of them had behaved in a manner that the other two could not tolerate. When this does happen, or if it does, the League of Nations will undoubtedly face a new and most challenging test, and in October 1935 the moment arrived.
Nine months earlier, the Government of Ethiopia had submitted to the League of Nations a report on the italian build-up of forces in Eritrea, which it considered to be suspected of aggression against the country. Unfortunately, Pierre Laval, then Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, not only did not sympathize with this independent African country, but also defended fascist Italy at every turn. Anthony Aiden, then British Secretary of the Seal and Minister for Foreign Affairs, had been closely following developments and was not enthusiastic about the League of Nations intervening in Italy's aggression in Africa. Both Britain and France believed that Italy's move did not seriously threaten their national interests, and that the growing threat posed by Germany's aggressive military expansion and the rise to power of the Nazi regime was the focus of their attention. They saw Italy as a potential ally against Germany, at least as eager to avoid the formation of the German-Italian Axis. If Italy's annexation of Ethiopia can achieve this goal, they believe that the price will be worth it. They warned Haile Selassie not to make any move that might anger belligerent Italy, and that in order to satisfy Italy, he should always make any territorial concessions.
Italy, of course, will not be satisfied, but on the contrary, it is encouraged by the appeasement of France and Britain for its acts of aggression. Within a few months, Ethiopia's main force was destroyed and the capital, Addis Ababa, was devastated. In order to resolve the conflict peacefully, the League of Nations, chaired by Salvador de Madariagarojo, was instructed to mediate the parties and persuade them to "end hostilities and restore the final peace as soon as possible within the framework of the League of Nations and in the spirit of the Covenant". This view is commendable, but the Italian government does not seem to have taken the so-called spirit of the covenant seriously. "Is the so-called collective security merely a painless attack on the aggressor and then sympathy for the invaded country?" Haile Selassie I asked angrily. The succinct and cruel answer is "it is." Aiden protested that Britain was ready to join other members of the League of Nations in imposing more effective sanctions on Italy. In the end, however, the Uk did not take any effective measures. When Ethiopia's resistance collapsed almost completely, the League of Nations continued to repeat its good intentions tirelessly. However, while condemning Italy's acts of aggression, no effective measures have been taken to stop them.
In fact, what more effective measures can be taken? Will the League of Nations be able to save Ethiopia? Theoretically, Britain and France could unite with other members of the League of Nations to make a military threat against Italy. In fact, it can only be a threat – Ethiopia has succumbed long before any effective military action against Italy – but it can also act as a deterrent. In fact, neither Britain nor France has considered this approach, and Italy does not think it is possible for them to do so. Czechoslovakia soon discovered that the maintenance of peace and the status quo in Europe was the primary concern of Britain and France, and in 1938 Neville Chamberlain defended that "because in a distant country there was a quarrel between a group of people we knew nothing about", how "terrible, absurd and incredible" it was for Britain to consider starting a war! How far is Ethiopia than Czechoslovakia? How ignorant is Britain to the people there? It is true that military action is not the only option, and effective economic sanctions, especially the embargo on oil and petroleum products, will cause great distress to the Italian aggressors. One of the reasons why the Italian army rushed to act was Mussolini's eagerness to end the fighting before the League of Nations took action. If economic sanctions are imposed on Italy, the League of Nations does take some time. But if it is fast enough, it will be enough to cause great trouble for Italy and even force Italy to cancel its aggressive actions. The focus of the problem is that Britain and France are not moving quickly, and the more effective the sanctions policy, the more reluctant they are to implement it. And even if the major European powers take effective measures quickly, other countries will not necessarily follow suit. Anthony Aiden argues that "as long as other countries follow suit", the British government is willing to impose an oil embargo on Italy. But he never called on other countries to adopt an embargo policy, and even when it was too late and unable to return to heaven, he was still wavering and hesitating.
To be fair, he had many more urgent matters to focus on, and in March 1936, when the League of Nations was in an emergency —perhaps more accurately the word "slow"—to discuss whether to impose an embargo on Italy, German troops were stationed in the Rhineland. Britain and France believed that this was the greatest threat to world peace, and Italy's aggression in Africa became insignificant overnight. It was imperative to ensure that Italy became an ally of Britain and France, or at least that it did not form a close alliance with Germany. By then, it was too late for Haile Selassie. The German invasion of the Rhineland made it too late for the League of Nations to cry out for the fall of Ethiopia, and there was no value in talking about the League's good intentions. Speaking in Geneva, Aiden has frankly acknowledged his utter defeat in this incident, stating in a speech in Geneva: "Everyone in this room should be unhappy with the current situation, and all of us, especially Ethiopia, should be saddened by it." ”