But why are they always talking about Ethiopia and what does some obscure historical battle in a place I’ve never heard of have to do with me? First, Ethiopia is not just about you. It is about the cradle of human civilization and learning and if you do not wish to be associated with that then I sincerely apologize.

Second, the fact that you had never heard of the Battle of Adowa (also pronounced Adwa) is really sad commentary on the persistent domination of Euro-centric world views in our education system. This is the reason for a Black History Month and I live for the day when the balance is restored and the month abandoned.
The Battle of Adowa was as significant a moment in history as Ethiopia’s place is in time. I am sure there is no need to rehash the facts that Ethiopia is named in the Biblical description of the Garden of Eden and is referred to variously as Cush/Kush and even Libya. Time does not permit us to go to the Kebra Negast to tell the story of the flight of the Ark of the Covenant from the old Jerusalem, making Ethiopia the New Jerusalem, so we will stick with the Holy Bible and zoom in on my favourite song in The Psalms, 87. The Psalm is so short and sweet I can share it here in its entirety to remind you of the privileges of dwelling in Zion, which for I and I is synonymous with Ethiopia. It goes like this:
1 His foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah
4 I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me: behold Philis’ti-a, and Tyre, with Ethiopia; this man was born there.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, this and that man was born in her:and the Highest himself shall establish her.
6 The Lord shall count, when he writeth up the people, that this man was born there. Selah
7 As well the singers as the players on instruments shall be there: all my springs are in thee.
The story of the conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch is one explanation for Ethiopia having one of the most ancient forms of Christianity that there is but Ethiopia also has one of the most ancient forms of Judaism that exists and the two cannot be separated. You may also remember that Moses took for himself and Ethiopian wife. The Harar region of Ethiopia is also the place where in 1974, the bones of an adult skeleton, nicknamed Lucy was thought to be that of the oldest human being known to science. Then in 2000 in another region named Dikika, scientists unearthed the fossilized bones of child, dubbed Lucy’s baby, which they then dated 3.3 million years. Please folks, I am not trying to start any kind of debate on topics about which I know nothing. I am simply tying to establish the special nature of Ethiopia and some of her contributions.
From a Euro-centric world view, any study of democracy journey’s to Greece and stops there but for the Greeks Alexandria was a major centre of learning and the Egyptians credited the Ethiopians for being even more learned as the latter had the reputation of sometimes dining with the gods. It is all a matter of your preferred starting point of historical study but what is clear is that Ethiopia is associated with origins and in writing to you about my visit to that country last September, I commented on its “anciency”.
What the Italians were after in 1896 was a land bridge between Eritrea and Somalia, its two territories on the Horn of Africa. This was also the goal of Mussolini in 1935, when he bombed Haile Selassie’s Ethiopia and it was payback for the humiliation suffered at Adowa too. But while Italy was humiliated, the Black World was forced to sit up and notice Adwa. According the Ethiopian historian Bahru Zewde in A History of Modern Ethiopia, “few events in the modern period have brought Ethiopia to the attention of the world as has the victory at Adwa…The racial dimension was what lent Adwa particular significance. It was a victory of blacks over whites.” In his address entitled “The Impact of the Adowa Victory on the Pan-African and Pan-Black Anti-Colonial Struggle,” delivered to the Institute of Ethiopian Studies at Addis Ababa University in 2006, Professor Kinfe Abraham made the point that the defeat of a colonial power and the ensuing recognition of African sovereignty became rallying points for later African nationalists during their struggle for decolonization, as well as activists and leaders of the Pan-African movement. As the Afrocentric scholar Molefe Asante explains, “After the victory over Italy in 1896, Ethiopia acquired a special importance in the eyes of Africans as the only surviving African State. After Adowa, Ethiopia became emblematic of African valour and resistance, the bastion of prestige and hope to thousands of Africans who were experiencing the full shock of European conquest and were beginning to search for an answer to the myth of African inferiority.”
The Battle was really the culmination of a series of skirmishes leading up to the fateful day on March 1, when the Italians could not withstand the unanticipated unity and military tactics of their supposedly inferior foe. The Rases had responded with loyalty and patriotism to the call of Emperor Menelik II and they outnumbered as well as outsmarted the Italians. The military might of Empress Taitu (also spelled Taytu) is also described in every account of the Battle. In one of the earlier skirmishes, she had secured a major victory by capturing the enemy’s water supply. Taitu is described as generous to her friends harsh to her enemies; intelligent strong willed, conversant with law, religious doctrine, internal and foreign affairs she managed vast holdings astutely and efficiently directed sumptuous banquets. It was she who financed the first hotel and agricultural bank in Addis Ababa. This is the Empress who comes and takes residence in my chest whenever I am faced with any challenging life battle. As we move into the month of March and International Women’s Day on March 8th, it is to her that I am inclined to give a defiant last word that really should have been taken by the Italians as a warning.
“I am a woman. I do not like war. However, I would rather die than accept your deal… If it is your wish, start the war next week. Nobody is afraid. We will see when you turn into action. Don’t ever think that we are not willing to sacrifice our comfort and die for our country. Giving one’s life for the country is an honourable death…”

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