History of Ethiopia: Encyclopedia II - History of Ethiopia - Interactions with European Colonial Powers

History of Ethiopia - Interactions with European Colonial Powers

Ethiopia stands with Liberia as one of the two places in Africa which were never colonized by European powers (if one excludes the brief Italian invasion and occupation between 1936 and 1941). However, several colonial powers had interests and designs on Ethiopia in the context of the "Scramble for Africa."

In 1867, when Victoria, Queen of the United Kingdom, did not answer a letter King Theodore sent her, he took it as an insult and imprisoned several British residents, including the consul. An army of 12,000 was sent from Bombay to Ethiopia to rescue the captured nationals, under the command of Sir Robert Napier. The Ethiopians were defeated, and the British stormed the fortress of Magdala (now known as Amba Mariam) on April 13, 1868. When King Theodore heard that the gate had fallen, he fired a pistol into his mouth and killed himself. His son was taken to England to be educated at the expense of the nation. He died there in 1879, at the age of 17. Sir Robert Napier was raised to the peerage, and given the title of Lord Napier of Magdala.

The Italians now came on the scene. Assab, a port near the southern entrance of the Red Sea, had been bought from the local sultan in March 1870 by an Italian company, which, after acquiring more land in 1879 and 1880, was bought out by the Italian government in 1882. In this year Count Pietro Antonelli was despatched to Shewa in order to improve the prospects of the colony by treaties with Menelik and the sultan of Aussa.

In April 1888 the Italian forces, numbering over 20,000 men, came into touch with the Ethiopian army; but negotiations took the place of fighting, with the result that both forces retired, the Italians only leaving some 5000 troops in Eritrea, as their colony was now called.

Meanwhile Yohannes had not been idle with regard to the dervishes, who had in the meantime become masters of the Egyptian Sudan, continued, and in 1887 a great battle ensued at Gallabat, in which the dervishes, under Zeki Tumal, were beaten. But a stray bullet struck the king, and the Ethiopians decided to retire. The king died during the night, and his body fell into the hands of the enemy (March 9, 1889). Immediately the news of Yohannes's death reached Menelik, the king of the Shewa, he proclaimed himself emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia, and received the submission of Begemder, Gojjam and several other provinces.

On May 2 of that same year, Menelik, signed the Treaty of Wuchale with the Italians, granting them a portion of Northern Ethiopia, the area that would later be Eritrea and part of the province of Tigray in return for the promise of 30,000 rifles, ammunition, and cannons (Pakenham, The Scramble for Africa p. 472-3). The Italians notified the European powers that this treaty gave them a protectorate over all of Ethiopia. Menelik protested and showed that the Amharic version of the treaty said no such thing.

The conflict with the Italians came to head with their defeat at the Battle of Adowa on March 1, 1896. On October 26, 1896 a provisional treaty of peace was concluded at Adis Ababa, recognizing the absolute independence of Ethiopia.

Regarding the question of railways, the first concession for a railway from the coast at Djibouti (French Somaliland) to the interior was granted by Menelik, to a French company in 1894. The railway was completed to Dire Dawa, 28 miles from Harrar, by the last day of 1902.

When Menelik II died, his grandson, Lij Iyassu, succeeded to the throne but soon lost support because of his Muslim ties. He was deposed in 1916 by the Christian nobility, and Menelik's daughter, Zauditu, was made empress. Her cousin, Ras Tafari Makonnen, was made regent and successor to the throne.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Interactions with European Colonial Powers", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki