The Scramble for Libya: Italy, the Ottomans, and the Prelude to the Balkan Wars

Jan 23, 2026

A look at Italy’s sudden grab for Libya and why a newly unified state turned to colonial conquest. The rise of Enver Pasha and his desert guerrilla campaign with the Senussi Brotherhood. How Libyan fighting exposed Ottoman weakness and helped set off the Balkan crises that reshaped Europe.

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INSIGHT

Italy's Colonial Drive Explained

Italy targeted Libya to satisfy new-state imperial ambitions after unification and limited options in Europe.
Nick Shepley links Italian expansion to domestic nationalism and the Risorgimento's redirected energies.

INSIGHT

Great Powers Let Italy Attack

Britain and France guaranteed neutrality, leaving Italy free to attack the Ottomans without great-power interference.
Nick Shepley stresses that Rome saw no major obstacle to pursuing Libya by force.

ANECDOTE

Enver's Gambit And Young Officers

Enver Pasha persuaded the Committee of Union and Progress to launch a guerrilla campaign in Libya.
Dozens of patriotic young officers followed him, including Mustafa Kemal as an adjutant major.

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Episode Summary:

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick continues his exploration of the twilight of the Ottoman Empire. We shift our focus to North Africa, where a newly unified Italy sought to satisfy its imperial ambitions by seizing Libya—the Ottomans' last foothold on the continent.

Drawing on Eugene Rogan's The Fall of the Ottomans, we examine the invasion of 1911 and the fierce guerrilla resistance led by the Young Turk officer Enver Pasha. From his alliance with the mystical Senussi Brotherhood to his use of Islam as a mobilizing force against European colonialism, Enver's campaign in the desert foreshadowed the tactics of the First World War.

Nick also discusses the broader geopolitical fallout: how Italy's aggression exposed Ottoman weakness, triggering the Balkan Wars and setting the stage for the catastrophic collapse of 1914. Was the seizure of Libya the first domino in the chain reaction that led to the Great War?

Plus: A final call for history students! Our Russian Revolution Masterclass is this Sunday, January 25th. Don't miss out on this deep dive into exam technique and historical argument.

Key Topics:

The Italian Invasion: Why a "liberal" Italy launched a brutal colonial war.
Enver Pasha: The secular Young Turk who became a desert warrior.
The Senussi Brotherhood: The Islamic order that fought alongside the Ottomans.
The Balkan Card: How the war in Libya triggered the collapse of Ottoman power in Europe.

Books Mentioned:

The Fall of the Ottomans by Eugene Rogan

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