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 Based on previously unpublished sources this is a groundbreaking contribution to genocide resistance war crimes and occupation studies as well as to the history of the Second World War more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.