Shopping in wartime Italy: On the purchases made by German troops, tourists, and politicians, 1940/1941

Abstract

It is well known that the reality of the Axis Alliance could not compete with its myth. Contrary to what had been hoped for by the fascist regime, there was no close cooperation within the ‘Berlin-Rome Axis’ after the war started. Historians certainly went too far when they called the Italy of 1941 a German satellite state. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that the balance of power within the axis had been redefined. The purchases of German troops, tourists, and politicians in Italy and the countermeasures taken by the fascists are good indicators of how relations had changed.