Ethiopian History

Origins of Ethiopia

The history of Ethiopia, as a region, may extend back to the roots of humankind. Within its borders have been found some of the oldest known hominid fossils, including the famous Australopithecus “Lucy,” believed to be about 3 million years old. Our own species, Homo sapiens, has been dated in the region up to 200,000 years ago.

The early people who inhabited Ethiopia settled a land rich in resources and fertile farms. They raised crops of teff (a fine grain), barley, ensete (or false banana), and emmer wheat, as well as livestock like cattle, sheep, and goats. By the time the area entered the historic record through Ancient Egypt, it had developed into a prosperous trading state. The Egyptians called their land Punt and prized it for its ivory, gold, silver, incense, salt, exotic animals, and myrrh. They conducted regular trade with Punt, also known as the Kingdom of D’mt or Da’amat. Even as D’mt declined, the smaller states that followed stayed in regular contact with other civilizations of the Middle East and Mediterranean.

According to Ethiopian tradition, around the year 975 BCE, an Ethiopian queen named Makida traveled to study statecraft with Israel’s King Solomon. She is remembered today as the Queen of Sheba. Makida gave birth to a son of Solomon’s, Menelik I, who is considered to be the founding member of the Solomonic dynasty.

The Axumite Empire

The small kingdoms that broke apart in the wake of D’mt warred and consolidated to form the Kingdom of Aksum in the first century CE. The Axumite Kingdom controlled the Horn of Africa’s Red Sea coast, including part of the southern Arabian Peninsula. Throughout its reign, it conducted extensive trade with the Roman Empire, among others, and eventually minted its own coins.

Commerce brought ideas as well as wealth to the region. Perhaps most significant of these was Christianity, a new religion gaining traction in Rome and Alexandria. By the early 4th century, the elites of Aksum, who spoke Greek, had converted, and much of the Ge’ez-speaking public soon followed. This made Ethiopia one of the oldest sites of Christian worship. At its height, Aksum represented a major force of the Mediterranean world, as integral to its politics and economy as Greece, Egypt, Rome, and Persia.

The Arrival of Islam

Aksum persisted for about 1,000 years, but its influence faded from the 7th century on. Slowly, the empire lost ground to the rising tide of Islam. It may have also been weakened by new trade routes and a changing climate. The period between Aksum and the Solomonic dynasty was most notably ruled by the Christian Zagwe dynasty, which reigned from Lalibela and recovered at least a portion of the empire’s prestige and wealth.

The Solomonic Dynasty

In 1270, the last Zagwe ruler is said to have been slain by the first king of the Solomonic dynasty, Yekuno Amlak. As its later name suggests, the Solomonic dynasty claimed ancestry from both the Axumites and King Solomon through the Queen of Sheba. The leaders of the House of Solomon expanded their territory into the Ethiopian Empire. Their bloodline ensured the stability of their reign, even through succession struggles, religious revolts, and the machinations of powerful vassals.

The most important emperor of early Solomonic Ethiopia was Amda Seyon I, who held the throne from 1314 to 1344. He is remembered as a successful conqueror, pushing back Muslim borders, as well as a champion of Christianity and expander of trade. Around 1636, King Fasiladas settled his capital in Gondar. There he built the Fasil Ghebbi, a fortress and city containing castles, churches, and a library, among other halls, palaces, and administrative structures.

Portugal and the Oromo

The Ethiopian Empire emerged during a tumultuous period of world history. The Mongol Empire tore across the plains of Eurasia, its armies threatening lands as distant as Poland, China, and Persia. Populations in Europe and Asia took heavy losses from sweeping plague before recovering again. Expanding trade, shipbuilding, and navigation connected the world like never before. In this atmosphere of opportunity and uncertainty, wild stories of a Christian king in a rich, exotic land circulated. Everywhere they traveled, Christian missionaries, merchants, and armies looked for this legendary figure, Prester John, or his descendants.

Having not found Prester John in China or India, many Europeans began to look to Ethiopia, or Abyssinia. The Portuguese in particular believed the House of Solomon to be that of Prester John and sought a close diplomatic relationship. When Ethiopia was threatened by Muslim armies in the 16th century, it was assisted by Portuguese sailors and soldiers. This reliance on the military might of Spain and Portugal caused Emperor Susenyos I to convert to Catholicism in 1622. The change proved contentious and lasted only until 1632.

Susenyos requested foreign intervention primarily in response to migrations of Oromo people, now the largest ethnic group of Ethiopia. Originally raiders from what is now southern Ethiopia, the Oromo pushed gradually north into Amharic Ethiopian territories. Despite cultural and religious differences, Oromo people slowly came to be accepted as members of Ethiopian society, though they have generally been consigned to the outskirts of its politics and economy.

The Birth of Modern Ethiopia

The Oromo migrations, conflict with neighboring Muslims, and political instability all weakened the House of Solomon in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. The 19th century, however, saw the empire find its footing once more. Emperor Tewodros II consolidated Ethiopia once again and implemented significant reforms, but his reign ended in disaster. After discovering that Europeans in his land were working against him, he imprisoned them and incurred the wrath of the British Empire. Facing defeat and capture, he chose to end his own life in 1868.

In 1889, after a turbulent period of succession, Emperor Menilek II assumed power. His reign is notable for his defeat of Italy, which had attempted to establish Ethiopia as its colony. Menilek, a shrewd reformer, used diplomacy within Europe to organize a large and well armed army. In 1896, his forces defeated the Italians at the Battle of Adwa. His victory ensured Ethiopian independence and respect in the eyes of European monarchs, who turned their attentions to other potential colonies. Menilek oversaw the construction of railways, roads, modern communication networks, and the current capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa. He is considered by many to be the founder of today’s Ethiopia and one of its most capable rulers in history.

Modern Ethiopia

From this strong position, the Empire of Ethiopia faced the upheavals of the 20th century. Its next, and last, major leader was Haile Selassie, crowned in 1930. Five years later, however, the forces of Italy returned under the fascist Benito Mussolini. After a costly defeat, Ethiopia was declared an Italian colony until the end of World War II. At that time, Haile Selassie returned and Ethiopia became a founding member of the United Nations.

After decades of work to modernize Ethiopia, Selassie’s reign sank into controversy over the annexation of Eritrea, famine, and economic difficulties. In 1974, he was deposed by socialist and military forces within the country. His ouster marked the end of the long-lived Solomonic dynasty.

Since that time, Ethiopia has struggled to recover from the fallout of this coup. The communist regime under Mengistu Haile Mariam, known as the Derg, purged its political opponents en masse. The situation in Eritrea devolved into atrocity. To make matters worse, the Derg either could not or would not combat a disastrous drought and famine between 1983 and 1985. This widespread suffering instigated a civil war, led in part by the Tigray People's Liberation Front. The Derg fell in 1991 and was replaced by the modern Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia by 1995. While the effects of the 20th century are still felt in Ethiopia, the nation’s economy has rebuilt to become a major power of Africa.

References

Addis Getahun, Solomon and Wudu Tafete Kassu. Culture and Customs of Ethiopia. ABC-CLIO. 2014.

De Waal, Alexander. Evil Days: Thirty Years of War and Famine in Ethiopia. Human Rights Watch. 1991.

Marcus, Harold G. A History of Ethiopia. University of California Press. 2002.

“The World Factbook: Ethiopia.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 1 Feb. 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/et.html.

Uhlig, Siegbert, David Appleyard, et. al. Ethiopia: History, Culture, and Challenges. LIT Verlag Münster. 2017.

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Traditions of the Ancestors

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