Remembering The Iconic Battle of Adwa
130 years ago, on Sunday, 1 March 1896, the Ethiopian forces defeated the Italian invading force near the town of Adwa. The Battle of Adwa was the climactic battle of the First Italo-Ethiopian War. The decisive victory thwarted the campaign of the Kingdom of Italy to expand its colonial empire in the Horn of Africa. By the end of the 19th century, European powers had carved up almost all of Africa after the Berlin Conference; only Ethiopia, Liberia and the Dervish State still maintained their independence. Adwa became a pre-eminent symbol of pan-Africanism and secured Ethiopian sovereignty until the Second Italo-Ethiopian War forty years later.
On the night of 29 February and the early morning of 1 March, three Italian brigades advanced separately towards Adwa over narrow mountain tracks, while a fourth remained camped. However, the three leading Italian brigades had become separated during their overnight march and by dawn were spread across several kilometres of very difficult terrain. Unbeknown to General Oreste Baratieri, the colonial administrator of Eritrea who served as the commander of the Italian forces, Emperor Menelik knew his troops had exhausted the ability of the local peasants to support them and had planned to break camp the following day, 2 March 1896.
The Emperor had risen early to begin prayers for divine guidance when spies from Ras Alula (Abba Nega), his chief military advisor, brought him news that the Itali
