Fascism's European Empire
Fascism's European Empire
This 2006 book is a controversial reappraisal of the Italian occupation of the Mediterranean during the Second World War, which Davide Rodogno examines within the framework of fascist imperial ambitions. He focuses on the European territories annexed and occupied by Italy between 1940 and 1943: metropolitan France, Corsica, Slovenia, Croatia, Dalmatia, Montenegro, Albania, Kosovo, Western Macedonia, and mainland and insular Greece. He explores Italy's plans for Mediterranean expansion, its relationship with Germany, economic exploitation, the forced 'Italianisation' of the annexed territories, collaboration, repression, and Italian policies towards refugees and Jews. He also compares Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany through their dreams of imperial conquest, the role of racism and anti-Semitism, and the 'fascistization' of the Italian Army. Based on previously unpublished sources, this is a groundbreaking contribution to genocide, resistance, war crimes and occupation studies as well as to the history of the Second World War more generally.
- A revisionist history of the Italian occupation of the Mediterranean during World War II
- Major contribution to contemporary Italian history, history of Fascism, European colonialism, and imperialism.
- Based on unexplored Italian archives, for the first time translated into English
Reviews & endorsements
'Rodogno's book derives from deep digging in the hitherto almost inaccessible Italian army and foreign ministry files … Rodogno now offers a rich and innovative analysis of the often radical implementation of fascist policy in the Balkans and southern France … [he] offers a generally persuasive and sustained analysis of little-known, poorly understood, yet vitally important chapters in the history of Fascist Italy and of the war that it willed.' MacGregor Knox, Journal of Modern History
'… well-researched and well-written … an important and original work …' The Historical Journal
Product details
No date availableHardback
9780521845151
562 pages
230 × 160 × 39 mm
1kg
41 b/w illus. 12 maps
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Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Part I: Prologue: the conquered territories. 1. Italo-German relations in Mediterranean Europe
- 2. The New Mediterranean Order
- 3. The discrepancy between Fascism's plans for domination and actual occupation
- 4. Mussolini, the civil and military authorities and the coordination of occupation policies
- 5. The conquerors
- Part II:
- 6. Relations with the occupied countries
- 7. Economic valorization and the exploitation of the occupied territories
- 8. The forced Italianization of the new provinces
- 9. Collaboration
- 10. Repression
- 11. Policy towards refugees and Jews
- Epilogue
- Appendices
- Archival sources
- Printed sources and bibliography.
