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1884
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3
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Jun
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Yohannes IV signs the Treaty of Adowa with Ismael Pasha's successors: the British. He agrees to give safe conduct to Egyptian garrisons on the Ethiopian/Sudanese border and prohibit the slave trade. In return Britain gives him Bogos, a lowland province north of Tigre, and guarantees the supply of modern arms through the port of Massawa. Yohannes IV assumes he will get control of Massawa, but British make no move to relinquish it.
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1885
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26
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Jan
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General Gordon killed by Dervish spear at Khartoum.
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22
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Jun
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Mohammed Ahmad ibn Abdullah, The Mahdi, dies, of typhus; his Khalifa (deputy) Abdallahi ibn Mohammad takes command.
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1886
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3
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Feb
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A British captain runs down the flag at the Egyptian garrison at Massawa. In a secret deal with Italian prime minister Francesco Crispi (who wanted to create an Italian empire), Britain allows Italy to claim the Red Sea coast and form the colony of Eritrea. At the same time, Menelik, King of the Shoa, and a rival for the Ethiopian crown held by Yohannes IV, claims the Egyptian garrison town of Harar (this proved to be an essential lifeline to supplies from the French post of Djibouti and the British port of Zeila).
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Mar
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Battle of Sabarguma, – the attacking force of Ethiopians are spooked when the Italian army releases balloons. Another attack is reported stopped by electric searchlights.
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1887
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26
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Jan
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The Dogali Massacre: an Italian relief column approaching the garrison at Saati is trapped and overrun. Out of a total force of 550, 430 are dead and 82 wounded. Yohannes IV's troops are mostly armed with old muzzle-loaders, swords and spears.
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Yohannes IV is now threatened on three sides: the Khalifa has sent an army of Dervishes to raid the Ethiopian highlands, defeating the king of Gojam (a vassal lord of Yohannes IV) and has sacked the holy city of Gondar; the Italians are entrenched at Massawa; and King Menelik of the Shoa, armed by the Italians and expanding his territory westwards into Galla, is gaining strength on the southern border. Yohannes IV decides to fight the Khalifa first.
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1889
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Britain leases a coastal strip of Somaliland from Sultan of Zanzibar.
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Mar
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With 100,000 warriors, mostly from the loyal provinces of Begemdir and Tigre (and others from the less loyal province of Wollo) Yohannes IV goes to Gallabat, an Egyptian garrison on the border between Ethiopia and Southern Sudan (opposite the Ethiopian town of Metema) to fight the Khalifa's forces. He is going at the request of the British to relieve the garrison cut off from aid from Egypt by the Mahdist war.
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10
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Mar
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Battle of Gallabat. Yohannes IV is killed in the fighting against the Mahdists. The Khalifa, Abdallahi ibn Mohammad, displays his head on the end of a pole. Menelik (King of the Shoa) is proclaimed Nagus (Emperor) of Ethiopia. He is crowned at Entotto, on the southern lip of the Ethiopian high plateau, and gives the town the new name Addis Ababa (New Flower) as his capital. (He is officially Menelik II, In Tigre province, 500 miles to the north, Yohannes IV's son Mangasha claims to be Yohannes' heir. In return for support Menelik agrees to split the province of Tigre (where Ras Mangasha is based) with the Italians.
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2
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May
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A Treaty of Peace and Amity is signed between Ethiopia and Italy at Wichale (known as Uccialli to the Italians). Ethiopian territory as far south as Asmara (actually to the River Mareb, 50 miles south of Asmara) and the Muslim lowland region of Bogos is ceded to the Italians, in return for modern rifles and ammunition. An initial shipment of 5,000 rifles is delivered, but the ammunition has been carefully selected not to fit them. Additional arms bought with a 2 million lira loan (equivalent to £80,000) are promised.
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1890
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May
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Italians proclaim a protectorate over the Red Sea coast with the full acknowledgement of Britain. They also claim, under the requirements of the Berlin congress, the whole of the Ethiopian empire as part of the protectorate. – citing Article 17 of the Treaty of Wichale. Italians take Tigrean town of Adowa after a battle with the local ruler Ras Mangasha. They announce their intention to remain until Menelik conforms to their version of the treaty.
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1891
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10
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Apr
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Menelik sends an address (one of several) to various European powers:
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"I have no intention of being an indifferent looker-on whilst distant European Powers have the idea of dividing up Africa, for Ethiopia has existed for fourteen centuries as an Island of Christians in the middle of a sea of pagans. I trust that God, who has protected Ethiopia until this day, will henceforth protect and increase her, and I have no fear that He will divide her and give her away to other nations."
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About's African History Chatroom:
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Alistair Boddy-Evans – your Guide to African History
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