| The Italian dictator Benito Mussolini’s grand plan was to resurrect the Roman Empire in the Mediterranean. To achieve this, one of his goals was to take the strategic waterway of the Suez Canal in the British-controlled colony of Egypt. Similarly to today’s situation, the Suez Canal provided the transport of goods from South-Asia without having to sail around Africa. Italy’s two colonies, Libya and Ethiopia faced the British both from the west and the east. The dictator was in a good position to reach his objective.
It is important to note that in desert warfare in North-Africa the supply of war materiel and troops was only possible through major ports or airfields along the coastline. If the supply lines got overstretched, the troops would simply run out of fuel, ammunition and food in the middle of the desert. In sandstorms and with engines overheating, every mile travelled in the desert needed a multiple amount of resources and logistical effort compared to movement on normal terrain. This resulted in an almost endless circle of attacks, counterattacks and retreats depending on which side was getting too far away from its main source of supplies. |
