Battle of Adwa
Originally an enlightened Italian patriot and democrat liberal, he went on to become a bellicose authoritarian prime minister and ally and admirer of Bismarck. He was indefatigable in stirring up hostility toward France. His career ended amid controversy and failure: he got involved in a major banking scandal and fell from power in 1896 after the devastating loss of the Battle of Adwa, which repelled Italy's colonial ambitions over Ethiopia.