Ethiopia - History
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In the middle ages many great churches were built in Ethiopia.
This one is at Lalibela. Legend says the huge churches here
were inspired by a dream of King Lalibela, and built with
the help of angels |
Photo: Jenny Matthews/Oxfam |
Anthropologists believe that, four million years ago, a site in
Ethiopia was the home of our earliest
ancestors.
From 300 BC, the kingdom of Alum formed and expanded; its kings
claimed direct descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
The city of Alum still exists today.
In 1896, during the reign of Emperor Menelik II, Ethiopia defeated
Italy at the Battle of Adwa, which was considered the first victory
of any African nation over a European colonial power. From 1930
to 1974, Tafari Makonnen, known as Haile Selassie, reigned.
In the Second World War, between 1936 and 1941, Ethiopia was occupied
by Italian forces. It was liberated by the joint forces of the Resistance
Movement and the British army.
Restored to power, Emperor Haile Selassie attempted to implement
reforms and to modernise the state, but internal pressures -- including
conflict with neighbouring Eritrea and severe famine -- placed strains
on the country. In 1974, Haile Selassie’s reign ended when
the military took control of the country in a coup.
After the coup, Lieutenant Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam became
head of state, and set up a socialist government. During 17 years
of military control, the state of the economy worsened and civil
unrest grew. A unified force of Ethiopian people, the Ethiopian
Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), led to the
demise of the Mengistu regime in 1991.
Two years later Eritrea, which had been annexed by Ethiopia in
1962, gained its independence after thirty years of war.
In 1994, a new constitution was written, and in May 1995, representatives
to the Parliament were elected and Dr. Negasso Gidada was elected
President. Ethiopians were given a strong say in their government
at local and regional levels and new policies were introduced to
try to revitalise the economy.
However fighting between Ethiopia and Eritrea over their disputed
border broke out in 1997 and a year later this had become a full
scale war. By the time peace was made in 2000 100,000 people had
been killed, 750,000 driven from their homes and millions of dollars
had been spent on weapons by both sides.
The war was a disaster for the government's efforts to revitalise
the economy and, to make matters worse, for several years there
has been a severe drought which threatens over 20% of the population
with hunger.
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