The Axis
Axis, The, the coalition of countries that opposed the Allies in World War II. The coalition was often called the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis. The term originated in 1936 when Italy and Germany were supporting the Nationalists in the Spanish Civil War. Mussolini, the Italian dictator, referred to the united action of Rome and Berlin as "an axis around which all European states … may collaborate." In 1937 Italy joined the Anti-Comintern Pact that had been signed between Germany and Japan in 1936 for the purpose of fighting Communism.
Shortly before World War II began in 1939 Germany and Italy formed a military alliance; the next year Japan joined. During the war Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, and Croatia became members of the Axis.