Mussolini sought to re-create the Roman Empire and make Italy the major power on the Mediterranean Sea--he called it by its Roman name, "Mare Nostrum" which means "our sea." Mussolini invaded Corfu, which was Greek, in 1923 and the League of Nations made him withdraw, but his action made the Italian people admire his brashness. He then installed a puppet regime in the Yugoslavian city of Fiume and another puppet regime in Albania--this time the League of Nations did nothing. Mussolini invaded Ethiopia in 1935 and conquered the entire nation quickly. Britain and the League of Nations stood by while all of this happened. Mussolini also sent aid to the rightist general Franco during the Spanish Civil War, thus becoming an ally of Hitler in the conflict. Mussolini became a partner with Hitler in the "Pact of Steel." When Hitler annexed Austria, Mussolini did not object. In 1940, Italian forces launched offensives in Greece and North Africa but lost considerably and required German support. Mussolini sought to make Italy self-sufficient by re-creating the Roman Empire, but he only served to ruin the country.
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