Menelik II in the context of "Ethiopian Empire"

Addis Ababa (/ˌædɪs ˈæbəbə/ AD-iss AB-ə-bə; Amharic: አዲስ አበባ [adˈdis ˈaβəβa] , lit. 'new flower'; Oromo: Finfinnee, lit. 'fountain of hot mineral water') is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the eleventh-largest in Africa. At an elevation of 2,355 metres (7,726 ft), it is the fourth highest capital city in the world and the highest capital in Africa. Addis Ababa is a highly developed and important cultural, artistic, financial and administrative center of Ethiopia.

The founding history of Addis Ababa dates back to the late 19th century by Menelik II, Negus of Shewa, in 1886 after finding Mount Entoto unpleasant two years prior. At the time, the city was a resort town; its large mineral spring abundance attracted nobilities of the empire and led them to establish permanent settlement. It also attracted many members of the working classes – including artisans and merchants – and foreign visitors. Menelik II then formed his imperial palace in 1887. Addis Ababa became the empire's capital in 1889, and subsequently international embassies were opened. Urban development began with the 20th century, without any prior planning.

Beginning with the Kingdom of Aksum, Ethiopia's territory evolved significantly through conquest of the lands surrounding it. Strong Aksumite trading partnerships with other world powers gave prominence to its territorial expansion. In 330, Aksum besieged the Nubian city of Meroë, marking the beginning of its great expansion. It finally declined after the rise of Islamic dominion in South Arabia, and it ultimately collapsed in the 10th century.

The Zagwe dynasty emerged and ruled until 1270, when Amhara-Shewan Yekuno Amlak revolted against the last king, Yetbarak, commencing the Solomonic dynasty-led Ethiopian Empire. The empire reached its greatest extent under the emperors Amda Seyon I and Zara Yaqob. In 1896, Emperor Menelik II’s conquest strongly consolidated Ethiopia’s modern borders while eluding the 19th-century Scramble for Africa and Italian colonialism. Eritrea was annexed by the Ethiopian imperial government under Emperor Haile Selassie in 1952, culminating in the Eritrean War of Independence. Eritrea eventually seceded by referendum during its seizure by the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) in 1993.

Menelik II's conquests, also known as the Agar Maqnat (Amharic: አገር ማቅናት, romanized: ʾägär maqnat, lit. 'to position the country'), were a series of late 19th-century military campaigns led by Emperor Menelik II of Shewa to expand the territory of the Ethiopian Empire.

Emerging from a fragmented Abyssinian highland polity, Menelik—who had ascended to power in 1866—began, a decade later, to capitalize on growing centralization efforts, an increasing militarized state apparatus, and substantial arms imports from European powers to launch a wave of expansive and often violent annexations across the south, west, and east of the Horn of Africa beginning in the early 1880s. These campaigns, conducted largely by Amhara forces from Shewa, mirrored European colonial practices—such as indirect rule, settler militarism, and land dispossession—and were frequently justified by Menelik as part of a Christianizing civilizing mission. Central to the imperial structure in many southern regions was the neftenya-gabbar system, a settler-colonial arrangement that established Amhara dominance over newly incorporated regions through land grants, taxation, and forced labor.

Zara Yaqob (Ge'ez: ዘርዐ ያዕቆብ, Zarʾa Yāʿǝqob; 1399 – 26 August 1468) was Emperor of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty who ruled under the regnal name Constantine I (Ge’ez: ቈስጠንጢኖስ, Ḳʷasṭanṭinos; Amharic: ቆስጠንጢኖስ, Ḳosṭänṭinos). He is known for the Geʽez literature that flourished during his reign, the handling of both internal Christian affairs and external wars with Muslims, and the founding of Debre Birhan as his capital. He reigned for 34 years and 2 months (r. 1434-1468).

The British historian Edward Ullendorff stated that Zara Yaqob "was unquestionably the greatest ruler Ethiopia had seen since Ezana, during the heyday of Aksumite power, and none of his successors on the throne – excepted only the emperors Menelik II and Haile Selassie – can be compared to him."

The Battle of Adwa (Amharic: የዐድዋ ጦርነት; Tigrinya: ውግእ ዓድዋ; Italian: battaglia di Adua, also spelled Adowa) was the climactic battle of the First Italo-Ethiopian War. It was fought on March 1, 1896, near the town of Adwa between the Ethiopian Empire under Emperor Menelik II and an Italian colonial force led by Oreste Baratieri.

Following a dispute over the interpretation of the Treaty of Wuchale, Italy attempted to force Ethiopia to abide by the Italian version of the treaty and impose a protectorate over Ethiopia. In response, Emperor Menelik II mobilized a massive army, with estimates ranging from 73,000 to over 100,000 men, mostly equipped with modern rifles imported from France and Russia. Facing them was a much smaller Italian colonial force under General Oreste Baratieri, which was unfamiliar with the terrain and hampered by poor reconnaissance.

The First Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the First Italo-Abyssinian War, or simply known as the Abyssinian War in Italy (Italian: Guerra d'Abissinia), was a military confrontation fought between Italy and Ethiopia from 1895 to 1896. It originated from the disputed Treaty of Wuchale, which the Italians claimed turned Ethiopia into an Italian protectorate, while the Ethiopians claimed that the treaty simply ensured peace between the two powers. Full-scale war broke out in 1895, with Italian troops from Italian Eritrea achieving initial successes against Tigrayan warlords at Coatit, Senafe and Debra Ailà, until they were reinforced by a large Ethiopian army led by Emperor Menelik II. The Italian defeat came about after the Battle of Adwa, where the Ethiopian army dealt the Italian soldiers and Eritrean askaris a decisive blow and forced their retreat back into Eritrea. The war concluded with the Treaty of Addis Ababa. Because this was one of the first decisive victories by African forces over a European colonial power, this war became a preeminent symbol of pan-Africanism and secured Ethiopia's sovereignty until the Second Italo-Ethiopian War of 1935–37.

The Italo-Ethiopian War of 1887–1889 was an undeclared war between the Kingdom of Italy and the Ethiopian Empire occurring during the Italian colonization of Eritrea, then a semi-autonomous province of the Ethiopian Empire under the name of Medri Bahri. The conflict ended with the treaty of Wuchale, which delimited the border between Ethiopia and Italian Eritrea. The treaty also contained clauses whose different interpretations led to another Italo-Ethiopian War.

The Emperor Yohannes IV had to face internal resistance from his powerful vassals. King Menelik of Shewa signed a treaty of neutrality with Italy in October 1887. As the Mahdist uprising in Sudan spilled over the frontier, Ethiopia was faced with a two-front war. In early 1888, Yohannes decided to prioritize fighting against the Mahdists. In March 1889, Yohannes died while he was fighting the Mahdists during the Battle of Gallabat. Menelik claimed the throne after the death of Yohannes and signed the Treaty of Wuchale with Italy in May 1889.

The Treaty of Wuchale (also spelled Treaty of Ucciale; Italian: Trattato di Uccialli, Amharic: የውጫሌ ውል) was a treaty signed between the Ethiopian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy. The signing parties were King Menelik II of Shewa, acting as Emperor of Ethiopia, and Count Pietro Antonelli representing Italy, on 2 May 1889, established the treaty after the Italian occupation of Eritrea. It was signed in the small Ethiopian town of Wuchale, from which the treaty got its name. The purpose of the treaty was to promote friendship and trade among the two countries. It was a treaty to maintain a positive long-lasting relationship between the two empires. The treaty has twenty articles written in two languages, Amharic and Italian; however, there were marked differences in the Italian and the Amharic versions of the treaty, which created miscommunications between the two countries. Specifically, Article 17 of the treaty was translated and interpreted differently by Ethiopia and Italy. Italy claimed the article imposed a protectorate over Ethiopia, while Ethiopia claimed the article allowed international diplomacy to be conducted through Italy by choice. When Menelik II denounced the treaty in 1893, Italy attempted to forcefully impose the protectorate over Ethiopia in the First Italo-Ethiopian War, which ended with Italy's defeat at the Battle of Adwa and the resulting Treaty of Addis Ababa.