Wwii: the African and Mediterranean Theatres of War Essay

WWII: The African and Mediterranean Theatres of War Essay The battle for mating Africa was a struggle for control of the Suez Canal and get to to oil color from the midsection East and raw materials from Asia. Oil in token had execute a critical strategic commodity delinquent to the increase mechanization of modern armies. Britain, which was the first major commonwealth to correction a completely mechanized army, was particularly interdependent on the Middle Eastern oil. The Suez Canal also provided Britain with a worth(predicate) link to her overseas dominionspart of a lifeline that ran through with(predicate) and through the Mediterranean Sea. Thus, the North African commove and the nautical campaign for the Mediterranean were extensions of each other in a in truth(prenominal) real sense. The struggle for control of North Africa began as earlyish as October 1935, when Italy invaded Ethiopia from its colony Italian Somaliland. That move do Egypt very wary of Italys imperialistic aspirations. In reaction, the Egyptians granted Britain authorization to invest relatively large forces in their territory. Britain and France also concord to take off the responsibility for principal(prenominal)(prenominal)taining naval control of the Mediterranean, with the main British can located at Alexandria, Egypt. Italy was the wild visor in the Mediterranean strategic equation at the low of WWII.

If the Italians remained neutral, British access to the vital sea lanes would remain some assured. If Italy sided with Germany, the powerful Italian navy had the capability to close the Med iterranean. The navys main base was at Taran! to in southern Italy, and operations from there would be back up by Italian production line force units flying from bases in Sicily and Sardinia. Italy did remain neutral when Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. When Germany invaded France in June 1940, however, Benito Mussolini could not resist the opportunity to view his share of the spoils. On June 11, 1940, six days after the British evacuation at Dunkirk, France, Italy tell war on Britain and France. Britain...If you wishing to get a spacious essay, order it on our website: OrderCustomPaper.com

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