Legacy of Bitterness Ethiopia and Fascist Italy, 1935-1941 [Paperback]

Alberto Sbacchi (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Legacy of Bitterness: Ethiopia and Fascist Italy 1935-91 is an important study of the relationship between Ethiopia and Fascist Italy during the 1930s. Italy's colonial ambitions in Ethiopia and the gallant resistance of the Ethiopians led to global segmentation of world opinion. The legacy of bitterness in Italo-Ethiopian relations to which the title refers stems from the fact that the Italians, besides using poison gas during the invasion of Ethiopia, continued to commit atrocities against the colonial people during their five year presence in Ethiopia. In the anti-colonial resistance of the Ethiopians to Fascist rule, moreover, the Ethiopian nobility was conspicuously absent, focused as it was on its own self-preservation. In spite of a lack of leadership and coordination, however, the Ethiopians patriots delayed Italian demographic colonization and drained the Italian economy by keeping Ethiopia in a state of continuous warfare. The emergent Black nationalism of that period capitalized on the precarious internal situation of Ethiopia to win world public opinion and support in preventing the recognition of the Italian Empire. Italy's atrocities, including the use of banned poison gas, posed a dilemma that had to be addressed by the Western powers. The international community, for political reasons and military considerations - primarily the containment/appeasement of Nazi Germany - proceeded to eliminate the economic sanctions against Italy which had been imposed by the League of Nations, after two years of debate, acknowledged the (illegal) acquisition of Ethiopia by Italy. Thus was Ethiopia sacrificed for the security of Europe. The author, a renowned authority on the subject, has skillfully provided a broad perspective on the Italo-Ethiopian war global terms. His study looks at the response to the war by emergent black nationalism in the Diaspora, and Ethiopia's bitter struggle to tip the balance of world opinion in its favor.

"[This book is] a path-breaking achievement, [and] the most fully researched, analytical and rewarding treatment yet to appear on Fascist Italy in Ethiopia and on the international scene in the period immediately preceding World War II." - John H. Spencer, Professor Emeritus of International Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University; and former Legal and Foreign Adviser to the Imperial Ethiopian Government, 1936-74 -

About the Author

Alberto Sbacchi is Professor of History at Atlantic Union College in Massachusetts. In 1993, Professor Sbacchi was inducted as a knight of the prestigious Cavaliere dell'Ordine al Merito della Republica Italiana (Knighthood of the Order of Merit of the Italian republic) for his outstanding contribution to Italian culture and scholarship. The author of five books and numerous articles, Alberto Sbacchi is considered one of the world's leading experts on the Italian Empire and Italy's involvement in Ethiopia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 390 pages
• Publisher: Red Sea Press (November 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0932415741
• ISBN-13: 978-0932415745
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #806,037 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #96 in Books > History > Africa > Ethiopia

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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A crucial point in European history, a nation sacrificed, July 7, 2004

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Legacy of Bitterness Ethiopia and Fascist Italy, 1935-1941 (Paperback)

In my opinion, the Italian invasion and conquest of Ethiopia is a war that has not received enough emphasis. While the Italians were victorious after a fashion and King Victor Emanuel III of Italy was now considered an Emperor, the consequences for Europe and the world were enormous. Before the war, Italy was a significant power in Europe and while not specifically anti-German, Mussolini was opposed to any territorial realignment in Europe that did not involve Italy gaining territory. At that time, even though they possessed similar ideologies, Italy and Germany were still at odds. It seems to be forgotten now that it was Mussolini's forceful military response that prevented the German Anschluss with Austria from taking place in 1934. Until the Italian adventure in Ethiopia, it was Italian military power that was checking the southern expansion of the German Reich. Mussolini openly described Hitler as a "little clown" and he entered into agreements with the smaller nations, where he pledged to defend them against German expansion. Germany and Italy were also natural territorial rivals, as Mussolini clearly understood that a German seizure of Austria would reopen the Tyrol issue. An alliance between Britain, France and Italy standing against German expansion would have kept it from happening. If those three had aligned against Germany, it would have been fighting on three fronts, a southern, western and on the seas.
However, Britain and France tried to play both sides of the fence during the war between Italy and Ethiopia. In the guise of collective security, they tried to punish Italy, imposing rather weak sanctions. At the same time, they were reaching an accommodation with Mussolini, awarding him de facto recognition of the conquest, although they were not to the point where they were willing to make it de jure. The policy of trying to punish a nation while simultaneously attempting to form a stronger alliance with it projected weakness.
As this was happening, Hitler did not join the sanctions, supplying Italy with essential materials, which led to an understanding between Hitler and Mussolini. Germany would acquiesce in the Italian conquest of Ethiopia, and then Italy would do the same when Germany tried to annex Austria. The cost of carrying out a colonial war so far away from the home country served to weaken Italy, making it far less formidable in the power structure of Europe. It was at this point that the British and French decided that there was no point in making any additional concessions in an attempt to draw Italy into an anti-German alliance.
All of the above is covered in detail in this book, but there is also a great deal of attention paid to the actions of the Italians in Ethiopia. That war was the last one where poison gas was extensively used. Even though it had been banned as a weapon, the Italians made effective use of several different types, a fact well known to the European powers. In their focus on trying to keep Italy an ally, a great deal of effort was made to cover it up. There is little doubt that the fact that those being asphyxiated were Africans had something to do with this effort. Another point brought out, something that I have never read in any other book, was the Italian policy of execution as a means of controlling the country. In several instances, they lured Ethiopian leaders by promises of safety, only to have them killed.
At the end of the war, Italy emerged weak, estranged from her natural ally of Great Britain and somewhat reliant on the rising power of Germany. Britain and France tried to sacrifice Ethiopia for security in Europe. It did not work, although in their defense, there was little public support for any forceful action of any kind. I enjoyed this book; it should be read and studied as a chronicle of one of the prelude events to the Second World War.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Has good information with lots of filler, June 21, 2001

By 

Victoria (Cabin John, MD United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Legacy of Bitterness Ethiopia and Fascist Italy, 1935-1941 (Paperback)

I bought this book because I was writing a research paper on the Italo-Ethiopian War, and seeing as this humongous volume was written all about it, I was thrilled.. and I wasn't disappointed. It has lots of information about the war and was a great help in helping me narrow down my topic; it also covers background to the war, etc. However, I only found about half of the book at all relevant to what I was trying to find. Nevertheless, this fault does not affect the usefulness of the book, except that it just makes it a whole lot heavier. Not my choice for a light afternoon read, but very good for research.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting collection of essays about the Italo-Ethiopian War, May 17, 2007

By 

Kathryn McNamara (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Legacy of Bitterness Ethiopia and Fascist Italy, 1935-1941 (Paperback)

Be careful with this book: I bought it for use in a history essay, expecting it to be a single work. Instead, Alberto Sbacchi, the noted Italian scholar and critic of imperialism, who is listed as the author, compiled a series of essays ranging from the 1970s to the present about the history of Italy in Ethiopia. There is a special concentration on Italian generals' use of poison gas against the Ethiopians, which is a little-adressed subject. Essentially, it is useful as a general reference, but be aware of bias and don't depend on it as a serious piece of historography.