Information About ™Battle Of Adwa |
The Battle of Adowa (also known as ''Adwa'' or sometimes by the Italian name ''Adua'') was fought on March 1 , 1896 between Ethiopia and Italy near the town of Adowa , Ethiopia, in Tigray . It was the climactic battle of the First Italo-Abyssinian War . BACKGROUND As the twentieth century approached, Africa had been carved up between the various Europe an powers, with the exception of the tiny republic of Liberia on the west coast of the continent and the ancient, newly landlocked kingdom of Ethiopia, bordering in the strategic Horn Of Africa . Italy, a relative newcomer to the Colonial Scramble For Africa , having been left with only two impoverished territories on the Horn, Eritrea and Somalia , sought to increase its influence by conquering Ethiopia and creating a land bridge between its two territories. Italy and Ethiopia faced off in First Italo-Abyssinian War, with the two armies at a standoff in Tigray. By late February, 1896 , supplies on both sides were running low. General Oreste Baratieri , commander of the Italian forces, knew the Ethiopian forces had been living off the land, and once the supplies of the local peasants were exhausted, Menlik's army would begin to melt away. However, his govenment insisted General Baratieri act, and he made the first move on the night of February 29 , expecting to surprise the Ethiopians while they were still sleeping. THE BATTLE The Italian army comprised four brigades totalling approximately 20,000 troops, with fifty-six artillery pieces. One brigade under General Matteo Albertone was made up of Italian officered Askari (native infantry) recruited from Eritrea. The remaining three brigades were Italian units under Generals Vittorio Dabormida , Giuseppe Ellena and Baratieri. The Ethiopian forces under Menelik outnumbered the Italians by an estimated five or six times. These four brigades advanced separately towards Adowa over narrow mountain tracks. However, the three leading Italian brigades had become separated during their overnight march and at dawn on 1 March were spread across several miles of very difficult terrain. Unknown to General Baratieri, Menelik and his army had risen early for Church services. Learning of the Italian advance, the Emperor rallied the separate armies of his nobles (whose masters included Ras Makonnen , Ras Mikael , and Negus Tekle Haymanot Of Gojjam ) and moved to meet them.Richard Pankhurst has collected the various estimates for the Ethiopian forces, which range from a low of 80,000 to a high of 150,000. ''Economic History of Ethiopia'' (Addis Ababa: Haile Selassie University, 1968), pp. 555-557. Albertone's askari brigade was the first to encounter the onrush of Ethiopians, near the hill called Enda Chidane Meret. The well-disciplined but heavily outnumbered askari, with artillery support, beat back attacks by Ethiopian forces for three hours until Menlik sent forward his reserve of 25,000 Shoans and swamped Albertone's brigade. Dabormida's Italian brigade had moved to support Albertone but was unable to reach him in time. Cut off from the remainder of the Italian army, Dabormida executed a well-organised fighting retreat. However the numbers, courage and ferocity of the Shoan warriors opposing him led to Dabormida's death and the destruction of much of his brigade. The remaining two brigades under Baratieri himself were outflanked and destroyed piecemeal on the slopes of Mount Belah. By noon, the survivros of the Italian army were in full retreat and the battle was over. AFTERMATH The 14,527 Italians were heavily outnumbered by over 120,000 Ethiopians and were eventually encircled and routed. Further casualties resulted from the heavy skirmishing as the Italians retreated to their bases. The Italians took 5,900 casualties, while the Ethiopians had about 10,000. Italian prisoners were treated as well as possible under difficult circumstances, but 800 captured askaris, regarded as traitors by the Ethiopians, had their right hands and left feet amputated. Baratieri was accused of abandoning his troops, and later tried for desertion. The Crispi government fell, and was replaced by a new administration. As a direct result of the battle, Italy signed the Treaty Of Addis Ababa , recognizing Ethiopia as an independent state. Responsibility for the fiasco fell on Baratieri, and he was relieved of his command. The humiliation remained with Italy for almost forty years, until 1935 , when during the Second Italo-Abyssinian War Italy commenced a short-lived conquest of Ethiopia. SIGNIFICANCE "The confrontation between Italy and Ethiopia at Adwa was a fundamental turning point in Ethiopian history," writes Paul B. Henze, who compares this victory to Japan's naval victory over Russia at Tsushima . "Though apparent to very few historians at the time, these defeats were the beginning of the decline of Europe as the center of world politics."Henze, ''Layers of Layers of Time: A History of Ethiopia'' (New York: Palgrave, 2000), p.180. On a similar note, the Ethiopian historian Bahru Zewde observed that "few events in the modern period have brought Ethiopia to the attention of the world as has the victory at Adwa." However, Bahru Zewde puts his emphasis on other elements of this triumph: "The racial dimension was what lent Adwa particular significance. It was a victory of blacks over whites. Adwa thus anticipated by almost a decade the equally shattering experience to the whites of the Japanese victory over Russia in 1905."Bahru Zewde, ''A History of Modern Ethiopia'' (London: James Currey, 1991), p. 81. This defeat of a colonial power and the ensuing recognition of African sovereignty became rallying points for later African nationalists during their struggle for decolonization. REFERENCES FURTHER READING
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