Why Italy Switched Sides After World War I

From Allies to Axis

(By www.esercito.difesa.it, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=50800870)

For the most part, World War II was fought by the same sides that fought against one another during World War I. The Entente, later dubbed the Allies, was headed by France, Britain, Russia, and the United States. On the other side stood the Central Powers, which was led by Germany and included Austria-Hungary, the Ottomans, and Bulgaria. In World War II, the Axis included Germany, Hungary, and Bulgaria. The lines that were drawn in 1914 were largely the same ones observed in 1940. But there was one notable exception — Italy.

Italy had a turbulent and fascinating pathway from World War I to World War II. In 1914, at the outbreak of the Great War, Italy was actually allied with Germany and Austria-Hungary. However, due to a long list of historical grievances and overlapping territory claims, the average Italian wanted to fight Austria-Hungary, not France. If there was going to be a massive conflict with the promise of territory exchanging hands, Italy wanted to go blow-to-blow with the Hapsburgs.

But disengaging from an entangling alliance was no easy feat, as the rest of the world was about to learn. Italy initially stayed neutral. This should have caused Germany and Austria a large amount of concern. While the guns started firing on the Western Front, Italy was sitting on the sidelines…