Wwii: the African and Mediterranean Theatres of War Essay

WWII: The African and Mediterranean Theatres of War Essay The battle for northwesterly Africa was a struggle for control of the Suez Canal and get to to oil from the midsection East and raw materials from Asia. Oil in detail had execute a critical strategic commodity collectable to the increase mechanization of modern armies. Britain, which was the first major ground to correction a completely mechanized army, was particularly certified 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 imperia listic aspirations. In reaction, the Egyptians granted Britain permission to invest relatively large forces in their territory. Britain and France also hold to take off the responsibility for main(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 arising of WWII.

If the Italians remained neutral, British access to the vital sea lanes would remain closely assured. If Italy sided with Germany, the powerful Italian navy had the capability to close the Mediterranean. The navys main base was at Taranto in southe! rn Italy, and operations from in that respect would be back up by Italian melodic 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 puss 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 deprivation to get a spacious essay, order it on our website: OrderCustomPaper.com

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