During World War II, why did Hitler still choose Mussolini as his ally when he knew Italy was unreliable?

In 1939, Italy withdrew from the League of Nations led by Britain and France, and formed the Berlin-Rome axis with the German Nazis who had the same smell, and Italy and Germany officially merged. In May 1939, Germany and Italy once again concluded the Steel Pact, further strengthening the Berlin-Rome axis. From then on, Mussolini's Italy and Hitler's Nazi Germany remained staunch allies throughout World War II.

Hitler and Mussolini

However, at the same time, Italy's "pig teammates" were resounding all over the world, and even such a joke was circulated during World War II: It is said that if Italy can remain neutral, it can contain 10 French divisions. If Italy becomes Germany's opponent, Germany will only need 5 divisions to completely defeat it. However, if Italy becomes Germany's ally, the German army will need 20 divisions. To protect him.

During World War II, the Italian army’s various jaw-dropping performances were worthy of its reputation as pig teammates. Whether it was the North African battlefield or the European battlefield, Italy repeatedly tricked the German army into vomiting blood. So, why did Hitler choose Italy, an ally that had little success but more than failure?

Italy

First of all, as rising stars, both Germany and Italy are eager to break the international order controlled by Britain and France and gain more benefits. In this regard, Germany and Italy It has a natural alliance advantage. Moreover, Germany and Italy are weaker than Britain, France and other countries. Therefore, in order to defeat opponents that are far more powerful than themselves, it is an inevitable choice for the two countries to unite for warmth.

Secondly, forming an alliance was a long process, and Hitler was the first to take the initiative. Although the Italian army performed as weak as spaghetti, Mussolini was a veritable predecessor of fascism. Even the name "fascism" was first coined by Mussolini.

Mussolini

As early as 1922, when Hitler was still a nobody, Mussolini had already led the Italian Fascist Party onto the Italian political stage and Quickly became dictator of Italy. The intersection between Mussolini and Hitler also happened very early, and it was Mussolini who Hitler pursued first.

In 1928, before Hitler came to power, he hoped to win Mussolini to fight alongside him. In August 1928, Hitler sent an envoy to Italy. While hoping to get Mussolini's support, he also Hoping for his understanding of the impending coup.

In April 1934, in order to establish a united front with Italy, Hitler, who had just come to power, even went to Venice to meet with Mussolini in person. Obviously, the collusion between Italy and Germany had already occurred and had gone through a long process of more than ten years. Therefore, Hitler's choice to form an alliance with Mussolini was actually a well-planned and well-thought-out process.

Nazi Army

Finally, and most importantly, Hitler had no choice. Although the fragmented European continent has more than 40 countries and regions, there are only a few dominant countries. When broken down, there are only a few countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and the Soviet Union. Even Spain does not have much influence because it has long since declined.

So, who can Nazi Germany ally with if it wants to break the old order? France is the biggest obstacle and potential enemy for Germany to dominate the European continent. It is naturally impossible for Hitler to form an alliance with France. The Soviet Union was larger in area and richer in resources. However, the Soviet Union was a socialist country. It was naturally in an antagonistic position to Hitler, who started his life by clamoring for anti-Communism, and it was impossible to form an alliance.

World War II Europe Map

The one Hitler wanted to ally with most was actually the United Kingdom, located in the British Isles. The empire on which the sun never sets has a powerful navy and colonies all over the world, regardless of war potential. The current strength is very strong. However, Hitler did have a hot pot.

He wanted to form an alliance with Britain, but Britain was not interested in this. Britain, which had long been the world's largest power, had no reason or need to participate in Nazi Germany's actions.

The reason is also very simple. Assuming that Britain and Germany really form an alliance, let alone the question of who is the boss, even if World War II starts, what can Britain gain? Obviously, the best result is to maintain the status quo, and smart British politicians will naturally not do such a stupid thing.

Mussolini

Therefore, across the European continent, Italy is the only country that can ally with Germany. Therefore, even though he knew that the combat effectiveness of the Italian army was worrying and that the Italians were very unreliable, in order to prevent them from fighting alone and pushing Italy into the arms of his opponents, Hitler still had to hold his nose and form an alliance with Italy.