Menelik II: Adwa, Conquest, and the Making of Modern Ethiopia

In 1896, Menelik II's army defeated an invading Italian force at Adwa, preserving Ethiopia's independence and making the emperor an enduring symbol of African resistance. Yet the power that won at Adwa had also been forged through conquest within Africa—through war, tribute, land reordering, diplomacy, weapons purchases, and systems that included slavery.From a childhood shaped by captivity to the...