Axis Powers - Origins

Origins

The term "axis" is believed to have been first coined by Hungary's fascist prime minister Gyula Gömbös, who advocated an alliance of Germany, Hungary, and Italy. He worked as an intermediary between Germany and Italy to lessen differences between the two countries to achieve such an alliance. Gömbös' sudden death in 1936 while negotiating with Germany in Munich and the arrival of Kálmán Darányi, a non-fascist successor to him, ended Hungary's initial involvement in pursuing a trilateral axis. The lessening of differences between Germany and Italy led to the formation of a bilateral axis.

Italy under Duce Benito Mussolini had pursued a strategic alliance of Italy with Germany against France since the early 1920s. Mussolini, prior to becoming head of government in Italy, as leader of the Italian Fascist movement, had advocated alliance with recently-defeated Germany after the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 settled World War I. He believed that Italy could expand its influence in Europe by allying with Germany against France. In early 1923, as a goodwill gesture to Germany, Italy secretly delivered weapons to Germany for use in the German Army that had faced major disarmament under the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles. In September 1923, Mussolini offered German Chancellor Gustav Stresemann a "common policy", he sought German military support against potential French military intervention over Italy's diplomatic dispute with Yugoslavia over Fiume, should an Italian seizure of Fiume result in war between Italy and Yugoslavia. over Italy's diplomatic dispute with Yugoslavia and its ally France over the city of Fiume. The German ambassador to Italy in 1924 reported that Mussolini saw a nationalist Germany as an essential ally to Italy against France, and hoped to tap into the desire within the German army and the German political right for a war of revenge against France.

Italy since the 1920s had identified the year 1935 as a crucial date for preparing for a war against France, as 1935 was the year when Germany's obligations to the Treaty of Versailles were scheduled to expire. Mussolini stressed one important condition that Italy must pursue in an alliance with Germany, that Italy "must...tow them, not be towed by them".

In 1934, with the accession of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party to power in Germany, resulted in Germany and Italy setting out to establish an alliance. However relations between the two countries collapsed later that year after Hitler's subordinate Nazis in Austria assassinated Austrian Chancellor Engelbert Dolfuss, an ally of Italy. Italy's foreign policy suddenly reversed, with Mussolini condemning the murder of Dolfuss and condemning Germany for being responsible. Relations between Germany and Italy recovered due to Hitler's support of Italy's invasion of Ethiopia in 1935, while other countries condemned the invasion and advocated sanctions against Italy.

In November 1936 the term "axis" was used by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini when he spoke of a Rome-Berlin axis arising out of the treaty of friendship signed between Italy and Germany on 25 October 1936. This treaty was forged when Italy, originally opposed to Nazi Germany, was faced with opposition to its war in Abyssinia from the League of Nations and received support from Germany. Later, in May 1939, this relationship transformed into an alliance, which Mussolini called the "Pact of Steel".

The "Axis powers" formally took the name after the Tripartite Pact was signed by Germany, Italy, and Japan on 27 September 1940, in Berlin. The pact was subsequently joined by Hungary (20 November 1940), Romania (23 November 1940), Slovakia (24 November 1940), and Bulgaria (1 March 1941). Its most militarily powerful members were Germany and Japan. These two nations had also signed the Anti-Comintern Pact in 1936.