Leffel's capture of the island of Malta not only became another pain in Wavell's heart, but also became a great blessing for Italy's new Prime Minister Rossi.
Taking advantage of Mussolini's serious injury and death, Rossi took over all other major forces in Italy in one fell swoop. The Italian King's faction eliminated the forces of Foreign Minister Ciano, but the power of Deputy Prime Minister Rossi increased by leaps and bounds.
After King Emanuele III of Italy cleaned up the remnants of Ciano's party, he was surprised to find that Rossi had already used this gap to integrate the previous officials and generals under Mussolini, and almost succeeded Mussolini.
Much of Rini's political legacy.
Since it was Ciano who murdered Mussolini and had nothing to do with Rossi, this man who endured humiliation and hated Mussolini the most in Italy has now taken over the large number of party members and forces left by Mussolini.
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Some of these forces that were originally attached to Mussolini were loyal black-shirt generals, as well as bureaucrats and Italian capitalists whose interests were tied to Mussolini. They may have worked for Rossi, "Mussolini's first confidant."
"title, or to find another big shot that you can rely on.
Due to various reasons, they came together to work under Rossi.
But that's not all.
In terms of the navy, because Rossi had established a deep friendship with the Italian navy's new star Admiral Leifer before and after the previous Mediterranean naval battle, he gained the support of almost the vast majority of naval generals.
This is not all because of the popular man around Rossi, Angelo Taone di Leifer. This Italian admiral defeated the British Mediterranean Fleet and became a hero. He was famous enough to reach the point where he could
To the extent that the entire Italian Navy was mobilized.
The reason why Rossi was able to obtain the support of most naval generals through Leifer Jr. was actually largely due to the face of Leifer Sr.
Yes, Angelo Taone di Leifer, Italy's newly promoted naval star, is actually not a little person without any background. It can even be said that the reason why he was able to become an Italian navy admiral is because
His father's name was Paul Tone di Leifer.
Speaking of which, Old Leifer also served as the Minister of the Italian Navy and also served as the chief military adviser to King Vittorio Emanuele III, so he had some connections with the King's faction.
And this is not the most important thing. The most important thing is that Old Leifer was the first naval marshal in the history of the Kingdom of Italy and was awarded the title of Duke.
In the Italian Navy, so far, they only have one marshal like Old Leifer. His influence is naturally extraordinary.
In short, with the help of Little Leifer and Old Leifer, Rossi can be said to have established a quite superior connection with the Italian Navy.
In addition, after Rossi inherited Mussolini's mantle, he controlled the Blackshirt Army, and then controlled the Army through the Blackshirt Army departments throughout the Army. The fall of Ciano made those who were previously hesitant to try to cooperate with him
The Italian Air Force turned to Rossi's side.
It is no exaggeration to say that the actions of Ciano, Mussolini's son-in-law, and the King of Italy ultimately contributed to the development of Rossi's power. Rossi's dowry for others allowed Rossi to further securely control the Italian navy, land and air forces.
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Rossi's power expanded and he quickly became the "second Mussolini" of the Kingdom of Italy. As a result, the royal family had to continue to recognize his leadership position and gave up the position of prime minister that originally belonged to Mussolini to the previous one.
Deputy Prime Minister Rossi.
What is shocking is that after Leifer captured the island of Malta, Rossi may have provided a good example and goal to the Italian navy, army and air force, or he may have wanted to show his authority to the king.
This fat deputy prime minister, who had always had a personal influence and was submissive, now has great courage. Not long after he took the position of prime minister, when everyone thought he would quietly consolidate power in a low-key manner, he suddenly announced that he would personally give
Admiral Leifer, who captured the island of Malta, was promoted to the second marshal of the Kingdom of Italy!
This news greatly cheered up a group of people.
While people were lamenting the coincidence that the two Italian naval marshals had the same surname as Leifer, they also had a sense of admiration for the new prime minister.
There is no doubt that this promotion of marshal has rekindled a bit of vitality in the Italian army, which has not been promoted to marshal for a long time.
Once upon a time, they could only see German generals conquering cities and territories, and then being promoted to marshals. However, the Italian army was defeated in every battle, and was repeatedly defeated by European powers.
This has always been a tragic fact that Italian generals are unwilling to admit, but have to face.
However, General Leifer defeated the British twice, and the Italian Navy defeated the arrogant British Royal Navy.
There is nothing more exciting than this.
Previously, Leifer defeated the fleet of British General Forbes, severely damaged the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, and captured Italy's first aircraft carrier "Ark Royal". At that time, many people were already very optimistic about Leifer.
However, the person in power at that time was Mussolini, the fool who always took all the credit for himself and blamed all the faults on his subordinates. While taking away the credit from Leifer, he also treated Leifer harshly.
Add criticism and accusation.
This is obviously something an unqualified leader would do.
Now, Italy has a new prime minister who clearly distinguishes rewards and punishments. The generals have discovered that as long as they have military exploits, they can be promoted just like Leifer based on their military exploits. Although the actual effect on improving the combat effectiveness of the Italian army may not be great, it is still possible.
It had an inspiring effect on Italian generals.
More importantly, this gave the Italian generals the idea of continuing to participate in the war and strive to make achievements.
This is Rossi's most important purpose.
Because Reinhard, the German head of state to whom Rossi was truly loyal, needed Italians to continue to contribute on the Allies' tanks.
Not to mention, in the African battlefield, the Italian army has become an indispensable support for Rommel.
On the Soviet-German battlefield, Reinhardt needed Rossi to bring out three Italian expeditionary armies as soon as possible to coordinate operations.
All these are needed to encourage Italian generals to participate.
Regarding Reinhardt, Rossi was grateful to him for lending a helping hand during his most difficult time and saving his life. So he vowed to be loyal to Reinhardt for the rest of his life.
On the other hand, he really did not dare to disobey the German head of state who controlled the entire Italian Gestapo branch. Otherwise, Reinhard would have too many options to choose from if he wanted to take away everything Rossi had now.
In a dual mood of gratitude and awe for the Führer, Rossi became increasingly loyal and continued to play a greater role in Italy for the Third Reich.
