Empire · 1270–1974 · Northern Africa

Ethiopian Empire (Solomonic dynasty)

Also known as Ethiopia

In 1270 Yekuno Amlak overthrew the Zagwe dynasty and founded the Solomonic dynasty, claiming descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, a story later told in the Kebra Nagast. Its Christian emperors ruled the Ethiopian highlands from moving royal camps, and Amda Seyon and Zara Yaqob expanded the realm and strengthened the Orthodox Church.

In the 16th century the Adal sultanate under Ahmad Gragn nearly destroyed the empire until Portuguese help arrived. Gondar became a fixed capital in the 1630s, but from 1769 the emperors lost power to regional lords. Tewodros II and Yohannes IV reunited the country, and Menelik II expanded it south and defeated Italy at Adwa in 1896. Apart from Italian occupation in 1936 to 1941, it stayed independent until Haile Selassie was overthrown in 1974.

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Years

1270–1974

Capital

Moving royal camps; later Gondar (from 1636) and Addis Ababa (from 1886)

Greatest extent

1900, about 1.10 million km²

Region

Northern Africa

After Menelik II's expansion, roughly the borders of modern Ethiopia