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General ras alula9/11/2023 Albertone’s heavily outnumbered askaris held their position for two hours until Albertone’s capture, and under Ethiopian pressure the survivors sought refuge with Arimondi’s brigade. The Ethiopian forces positioned themselves on the hills overlooking the Adwa valley, in perfect position to receive the Italians, who were exposed and vulnerable to crossfire.Īlbertone’s askari brigade was the first to encounter the onrush of Ethiopians at 6:00, near Kidane Mehret, where the Ethiopians had managed to set up their mountain artillery. The Ethiopian forces positioned themselves on the hills overlooking the Adwa valley, in perfect position to receive the Italians, who were exposed and vulnerable to crossfire. Negus Tekle Haymanot commanded the right wing, Ras Alula the left, and Rasses Makonnen and Mengesha the center, with Ras Mikael at the head of the Oromo cavalry the Emperor and his consort remained with the reserve. The Emperor summoned the separate armies of his nobles and with the Empress Taytu beside him, ordered his forces forward. The Emperor had risen early to begin prayers for divine guidance when spies from Ras Alula, his chief military advisor, brought him news that the Italians were advancing. Unbeknownst to General Baratieri, Emperor Menelik knew his troops had exhausted the ability of the local peasants to support them and had planned to break camp the next day (2 March). However, the three leading Italian brigades had become separated during their overnight march and at dawn were spread across several miles of very difficult terrain. On the night of 29 February and the early morning of 1 March three Italian brigades advanced separately towards Adwa over narrow mountain tracks, while a fourth remained camped. Most of the army was composed of riflemen, a significant percentage of which were in Menelik’s reserve however, there were also a significant number of cavalry and infantry only armed with lances. In addition, the armies were followed by a similar number of camp followers who supplied the army, as had been done for centuries. The forces were divided among Emperor Menelik, Empress Taytu Betul, Ras Wale Betul, Ras Mengesha Atikem, Ras Mengesha Yohannes, Ras Alula Engida, Ras Mikael of Wollo, Ras Makonnen Wolde Mikael, Fitawrari Gebeyyehu, and Negus Tekle Haymanot Tessemma. Estimates for the Ethiopian forces under Menelik range from a low of 73,000 to a high of over 120,000, outnumbering the Italians by an estimated five or six times. One brigade under General Albertone was made up of Eritrean Askari led by Italian officers. In January 1895, Baratieri’s army went on to defeat Ras Mengesha Yohannes (son of Emperor Yohannes IV) in the Battle of Coatit, forcing Mengesha to retreat further south.Įxperts estimate that the Italian force at Adwa consisted of about 15,000 effectives. After crushing the the rebellion of Bahta Hagos against the Italians in Akele Guzay, in what was then Italian controlled Eritrea, the Italian army then moved southward and occupied the Tigrayan capital, Adwa. It was the climactic battle of the First Italo-Ethiopian War, securing Ethiopian sovereignty while leaving Eritrea as a separate colony of Italy.Ī dispute arose over the interpretation of the two versions of the Treaty of Wuchale on Article 17 of the document. The Italian government decided on a military solution to force Ethiopia to abide by the Italian version of the treaty. The Battle of Adwa was fought between the Ethiopian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy near the town of Adwa, Ethiopia, in Tigray.
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