History
Italian Prime Minister Salandra Used Sacred Egoism to Justify Betraying Austria-Hungary
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672. The First World War: Italy’s Doomed Campaign (Part 2)
"We should use this historic cataclysm to complete and enlarge the Fatherland. Italy's destiny should be guided by sacro egoismo, sacred egoism."
Italian Prime Minister Antonio Salandra coined the phrase 'sacred egoism' in August 1914 to justify Italy switching sides in World War I, betraying its alliance with Austria-Hungary to pursue territorial conquest. This cynical strategy, which he acknowledged would be seen as perfidious, helped Italy enter the war in 1915 purely for expansion. The phrase became one of the most infamous in modern Italian history, symbolizing the nation's opportunistic war aims.
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