War · 1896
Battle of Adwa
Adwa, Tigray (Ethiopia)
On 1 March 1896 the army of Emperor Menelik II, estimated at 73,000 to over 100,000 men and mostly armed with modern rifles bought from France and Russia, routed an Italian colonial force under General Oreste Baratieri that was trying to impose a protectorate on Ethiopia after a dispute over the Treaty of Wuchale. Over 6,000 Italian and colonial troops were killed and about 3,800 captured, while Ethiopian losses are estimated at 4,000 to 7,000 killed; Italy was forced to recognise Ethiopia's sovereignty in the Treaty of Addis Ababa.
Why it mattered
Adwa kept Ethiopia independent through the Scramble for Africa, and the victory became a rallying point for later African nationalists and the Pan-African movement.
Elsewhere
Ethiopia remained independent until Fascist Italy occupied it in 1936; Italian rule there ended during World War II.
Related
- The world in 1880: Steam, Rail and Empire chapter
- First Italo-Ethiopian War January 1895 – 26 October 1896
- Berlin Conference and the Scramble for Africa previous moment · 1884–1885
- The Wright brothers' first powered flight next moment · 1903