April 7, 1939 marked the Italian occupation of Albania. Through the consultation of unpublished documents from both Albanian and Italian archives, the paper will try to reconstruct the policy implemented by the Italian authorities to try to ensure the necessary supplies to the whole Albanian territory. The reality turned out to be much more complex than the Italians expected. The underdeveloped Albanian experienced a large increase in population with the arrival of thousands of workers needed for the operation of many open sites, soldiers, employees, etc. This influx of people caused a twofold phenomenon: on the one hand, a constant demand for consumer goods and, on the other, an unstoppable increase in the prices of consumer goods and, in particular, of foodstuffs. The Italian authorities were taken by surprise and were not able to set up an adequate distribution system and were not able to contrast the phenomena of hoarding, smuggling and black market. On the whole, for a power with imperial ambitions such as Fascist Italy the growing difficulties encountered in Albania, contributed to loosening its grip on the occupied territories, preparing the ground for the disaster of September 1943.
Basciani, A. (2024). Between chaos and economic weakness. Italian food policies in Albania 1939-1943. In Paolo Fonzi - Xavier Bougarel - Sabine Rutar (a cura di), Food, Scarcity and Power in Southeastern Europe during the Second World War (pp. 57-73). Londra : Bloomsbury Academic.
Between chaos and economic weakness. Italian food policies in Albania 1939-1943
Alberto Basciani
2024-01-01
Abstract
April 7, 1939 marked the Italian occupation of Albania. Through the consultation of unpublished documents from both Albanian and Italian archives, the paper will try to reconstruct the policy implemented by the Italian authorities to try to ensure the necessary supplies to the whole Albanian territory. The reality turned out to be much more complex than the Italians expected. The underdeveloped Albanian experienced a large increase in population with the arrival of thousands of workers needed for the operation of many open sites, soldiers, employees, etc. This influx of people caused a twofold phenomenon: on the one hand, a constant demand for consumer goods and, on the other, an unstoppable increase in the prices of consumer goods and, in particular, of foodstuffs. The Italian authorities were taken by surprise and were not able to set up an adequate distribution system and were not able to contrast the phenomena of hoarding, smuggling and black market. On the whole, for a power with imperial ambitions such as Fascist Italy the growing difficulties encountered in Albania, contributed to loosening its grip on the occupied territories, preparing the ground for the disaster of September 1943.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
