page_title: Menelik II
section_title: Italo-Ethiopian War
hierarchical_section_title: Menelik II / Consolidation of power and defeat of the Italians / Italo-Ethiopian War
caption_attribution_description: Italiano: Al campo di Borumieda (1899) Ras Mangascià con la pietra al collo, fa atto di sottomissione al Negus Menelik
context_page_description: Menelik II was the Emperor of Ethiopia from 1889 to his death in 1913 and King of Shewa. At the height of his internal power and external prestige, the process of territorial expansion and creation of the modern empire-state was completed by 1898.
  The Ethiopian Empire was transformed under Emperor Menelik: the major signposts of modernisation with the help of key ministerial advisors, such as Gäbre-Heywät Baykädañ, were put in place. Externally, Menelik led Ethiopian troops against Italian invaders in the First Italo-Ethiopian War; following a decisive victory at the Battle of Adwa, recognition of Ethiopia's independence by external powers was expressed in terms of diplomatic representation at his court and delineation of Ethiopia's boundaries with the adjacent colonies. Menelik expanded his kingdom to the south and east, into Kaffa, Sidama, Wolayta and other kingdoms. He is widely called "Emiye Menelik" in Ethiopia for his forgiving nature and his unselfish deeds for the poor.
  Later in his reign, Menelik established the first Cabinet of Ministers to help in the administration of the Empire, appointing trusted and widely respected nobles and retainers to the first Ministries.
context_section_description: Menelik's disagreement with Article 17 of the treaty led to the Battle of Adwa. Before Italy could launch the invasion, Eritreans rebelled in an attempt to push Italy out of Eritrea and prevent its invasion of Ethiopia. The rebellion was not successful. However, some of the Eritreans managed to make their way to the Ethiopian camp and jointly fought Italy at the battle of Adwa.
  On 17 September 1895, Menelik ordered all of the Ethiopian nobility to call out their banners and raise their feudal hosts, stating: "An enemy has come across the sea. He has broken through our frontiers in order to destroy our fatherland and our faith. I allowed him to seize my possessions and I entered upon lengthy negotiations with him in hopes of obtaining justice without bloodshed. But the enemy refuses to listen. He undermines our territories and our people like a mole. Enough! With the help of God I will defend the inheritance of my forefathers and drive back the invader by force of arms. Let every man who has sufficient strength accompany me. And he who has not, let him pray for us". Menelik's opponent, General Oreste Baratieri, underestimated the size of the Ethiopian force, predicating that Menelik could only field 30,000 men.
  Despite the dismissive Italian claim that Ethiopia was a "barbaric" African nation whose men were no match for white troops, the Ethiopians were better armed, being equipped with thousands of modern French rifles and Hotchkiss artillery guns together with ammunition and shells which were superior to the Italian rifles and artillery. Menelik had ensured that his infantry and artillerymen were properly trained in their use, giving the Ethiopians a crucial advantage as the Hotchkiss artillery could fire more rapidly than the Italian artillery. In 1887 a British diplomat, Gerald Portal, wrote after seeing the Ethiopian feudal hosts parade before him, the Ethiopians were "...redeemed by the possession of unbounded courage, by a disregard of death, and by a national pride, which leads them to look down on every human being who has not had the good fortune to be born an Abyssinian [Ethiopian]". 
  The Emperor personally led his army to attack an Italian force led by Major Toselli on 7 December 1895 at Boota Hill. The Ethiopians attacked a force of 350 Eritrean irregulars on the left flank, who collapsed under the Ethiopian assault, causing Toselli to send two companies of Italian infantry who halted the Ethiopian advance. Just as Toselli was rejoicing in his apparent victory, the main Ethiopian assault came down on his right flank, causing Toselli to order retreat. The Emperor's best general, Ras Alula, had occupied the road leading back to Eritrea, and launched a surprise attack, which routed the Italians. The battle of Amba Alagi ended with an Italian force of 2,150 men losing 1,000 men and 20 officers killed.
  Ras Alula followed up that victory by defeating General Arimondi and forcing the Italians to retreat to the fort at Mekele. Ras Alula laid siege to the fort, and on the morning of 7 January 1896, the defenders of the fort spotted a huge red tent among the besiegers, showing that the emperor had arrived. On 8 January 1896, the emperor's elite Shoan infantry captured the fort's well, and then beat off desperate Italian attempts to retake the well. On 19 January 1896, the fort's commander, Major Galliano, whose men were dying of dehydration, raised the white flag of surrender. Major Galliano and his men were allowed to march out, surrender their arms and to go free. Menelik stated he allowed the Italians to go free as "to give proof of my Christian faith," saying his quarrel was with the Italian government of Prime Minister Francesco Crispi that was trying to conquer his nation, not the ordinary Italian soldiers who been conscripted against their will to fight in the war. Menelik's magnanimity to the defenders of Fort Mekele may have been an act of psychological warfare. Menelik knew from talking to French and Russian diplomats that the war and Crispi himself were unpopular in Italy, and one of the main points of Crisp
caption: Menelik II in 1899
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