We saw last week that the period after World War I had witnessed a number of reforms, as well as difficult relations with both Britain and France. Now read on: Reforms of the 1920s Contacts between Ethiopia and the outside world were nevertheless strengthened by the establishment of an Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and by the setting up of Ethiopian Legations in Paris, Rome and London. Talks with the Coptic Church of Egypt were also initiated, with a view…

The Religious Issue Iyasu, a child of the twentieth century, and son of Ras Mika’‚l, a former Muslim, had a significantly different attitude to religion from that of previous Ethiopian monarchs. Extending the secularist attitude of his grandfather, Menilek, who had permitted the practice of smoking, hitherto banned by the Church, he tried to treat followers of the two country’s two main religions, Christianity and Islam, on a more or less equal footing. This was doubtless easier for him than…

Having, in the last two weeks examined the beginnings of modernisation in the last part of Menilek’s reign, we turn now to the political crises of the time: Succession Problems The last years of Menilek’s reign, like those of several earlier Ethiopian rulers, were bedevilled by the problem of succession. This became particularly serious after 1904, when the Emperor’s health began visually to deteriorate. The question of the royal inheritance was the more serious in that the ageing monarch by…

We saw last week that Menilek, mainly after his victory at the battle of Adwa in 1896, began Ethiopia’s modernisation. Now read on: Another important development of this period was the introduction, by whom is uncertain, of the Australian eucalyptus tree. Some of the first plants were reportedly planted by Menilek’s French adviser, Casimir Mondon-Vidailhet, in 1894 or 1895. The tree grew so fast that it was soon extensively cultivated in Addis Ababa. Some landowners planted large eucalyptus forests on…

We saw last week that post-World War II Ethiopia witnessed significant achievements in economic and other fields. This did not, however, prevent the growth, in the 1960s and early 1970s, of steadily increasing political discontent. Now read on: The 1960 Coup d’Etat Complaints at the slow pace of Ethiopian economic development, which was seen as comparing unfavourably with that of other African countries, and criticism of the Emperor’s autocratic rule, led to an escalation of political discontent in the late…

We saw last week how Ethiopian foreign policy developed in the 1940s and 1950s. Now read on: Political and Legal Reform, and Economic Developments The 1950s and 1960s witnessed notable developments in the Ethiopian political, legal, and economic fields. Realisation of the inadequacy of the then existing Ethiopian Constitution, and comparison with the more progressive UN Eritrean Constitution of 1952, led to the formulation in 1955 of a Revised Ethiopian Constitution. Reportedly having taken six years to draft, it was…

We saw last week that Ethiopia, in the 1950s, edged ever closer to the United States. Now read on: The Future of Eritrea Emperor Haile Sellassie’s foreign policy, during the post-war years, was largely preoccupied with the future of the Italian colonies. This was a seemingly intractable question, which led to lengthy international discussions. The Ethiopian Government, for historical reasons, was particularly interested in the disposal of Eritrea. The colony, much of which prior to the late nineteenth century had…

We saw last week that Ethiopia’s Post-World War II Relations with Britain were far from satisfactory, and the Emperor, in the mid 1940s. reduced his contacts with that country. Now read on: Post-War Reconstruction The 1940s and early 1950s constituted an important period of post-war reconstruction. Decrees designed for the most part to bring the entire country under centralised, and standardised, administration, were issued as early as 10 March 1942. Dealing with a wide variety of subjects, including significantly enough…

We saw last week that Ethiopia’s liberation from Italian fascist rule, by British forces, resulted in no small Ethio-British tension. Now read on: Haile Sellassie Unwilling to Accept British Hegemony Haile Sellassie, 1n 1941, was unwilling to acquiesce in British hegemony, or to accept the British political agenda. He succeeded in despatching a telegram to Prime Minister Winston Churchill, in London, inquiring why a treaty between Ethiopia and Britain had been so long delayed. The British Premier replied, by way…

We saw last week how Mussolini’s entry into the European war, on 10 June 1941, led directly to Ethiopia’s Liberation, and to the country’s occupation by British troops. Now read on: The Italian Legacy The collapse of fascist rule, the termination of Italian investment, upon which the Italian East African empire had hitherto been based, the demobilisation of colonial soldiers, many still in possession of their weapons, the disruption of the economy, the consequent drying-up of trade, and hence of…

At the outbreak of the European war, on 3 September 1939, Mussolini refrained from involving himself in the war. He nevertheless declared that fascist Italy, a close ally of nazi Germany, was in a state of “pre-belligerency”. By that he implied that he was committed to eventually participating in the struggle. By postponing his entry into the conflict he obviated having to fight with Italy’s neighbour, France, and avoided any immediate Allied attack on the insecure Italian East African empire,…

Despite Ethiopia’s military collapse in 1935-6, patriotic resistance continued throughout the occupation. Many patriotic Ethiopians were from the outset determined to continue the struggle. The first to do so was Lej Hayla Maryam Mammo, of Dabra Berhan, 130 kilometres north of Addis Ababa, who on 4 May 1936 attacked a group of invading forces on the way to capital. This action earned him the title the “first arbagna”, or, patriot, of Shawa. Other, more or less un-co-ordinated, attacks on the…

We saw last week how Mussolini’s invasion led to the establishment of an Italian fascist empire. Now read on: A.O.I. The Italian occupation led to important political and other changes. Italian-occupied Ethiopia was officially merged with Eritrea and Somalia, into an entirely new territory designated Africa Orientale Italiana (A.O.I.), i.e. Italian East Africa. This for the first time brought the greater part of the Horn of Africa under a single administration. The area was divided into six constituent units: 1)…

We saw last week how the the Italian Fascist army began to advance on Addis Ababa in the early Spring of 1936. Now read on: Badoglio and Graziani’s Manifestly Incorrect Picture of the War In considering official Italian accounts of the war it should be noted that the fascist use of gas is fully substantiated, and was known indeed at the time throughout the world. Any mention of gas was, however, strictly excluded from the Italian press, which was highly…

We saw last week how the League of Nations, faced by Mussolini’s invasion of Ethiopia in 1935, branded fascist Italy as the aggressor, but imposed only ineffective sanctions. Now read on: The Hoare-Laval Proposals The British and French foreign ministries, which also had no desire to see the imposition of an oil sanction, strove meanwhile to devise a compromise peace which would render it unnecessary to impose one. Proposals were duly formulated, after which Hoare went to Paris, on 7…