Abyssinian Crisis

By Audra T and Merrick S

 Why did Italy invade Abyssinia?
• In December 1934 a dispute
broke out about the border
between Abyssinia and the
Italian Somaliland. 
• Mussolini wanted lots of
colonies under Italian control.
• Italy had attempted to invade
Abyssinia before but had
failed.
• Italy invaded Abyssinia in
October 1935.
• Mussolini wanted glory.

Italian Somaliland
What roles did Britain and France play?
• Britain and France weren't prepared
to intervene using force.
• They undermined the sanctions
created by the League.
• They talked tough but weren't going
to back up their threats with
actions.

• The Hoare-Laval pact was a secret

plan made by the British Foreign
Secretary, Samuel Hoare and the
French Prime Minister, Pierre Laval.
• It stated that Abyssinia should be
divided with Italy receiving the
majority of land.
 How did the League respond?
In January 1935 the emperor of Abyssinia, Haile Selassie
appealed to the League for help.

The League:
• Condemned Italy as in the
wrong
• Banned the sale of arms to both
sides
• Imposed trade sanctions 
 
However,
The sanctions did not include basic
war materials such as coal, oil and
iron.
What was the outcome of the
Abyssinian Crisis?
• In October 1935, 100,000 Italian
troops invaded Abyssinia.
• The Abyssinians were helpless
against the modern weapons of
the Italians e.g. tanks and
poisonous gases.
• Italian troops entered Addis
Ababa, the Abyssinian capital in
May 1936.
• Italy had conquered Abyssinia.
What effect did the crisis have on the
League?
The League had failed to resolve the dispute resulting in Italy
conquering Abyssinia.

After the League failed to resolve this dispute no-one took

the it seriously anymore. 
 
• Italy ignored the League which showed it to be powerless
• Sanctions were not enforced
 
The reputation of the League had been destroyed and it had
no influence or power when dealing with strong nations e.g.
Italy and Japan.
 Which had the biggest effect?
Both the Manchurian Crisis and the Abyssinian Crisis affected 
the League of Nations, mostly by destroying its reputation.
After these events people lost faith in the League and it stopped 
being an important international organisation.
 
I think that the Abyssinian Crisis had the biggest effect on the 
collapse of the League because the most important League 
members e.g. Britain and France undermined its authority and 
refused to intervene at all. When strong nations were involved 
the League was powerless and useless.