Battle of Amba Alagi (1895)
Battle of Amba Alagi | |||||||
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Part of the First Italo-Ethiopian War | |||||||
![]() Ras Makonnen leading his troops to victory | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Strength | |||||||
2,350 Italians and Eritrean Askari | 30,000 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
1,300 Eritrean Askari; 20 Italians | Unknown |
The Battle of Amba Alagi was the first in a series of battles between the Italian General Baratieri and Ethiopia's Emperor Menelik during the First Italo-Ethiopian War. Amba Alagi was one of Baratieri's forward positions; it was under the command of Major Toselli with 2,000 Eritrean Askari. On 7 December 1895, the Ras Makonnen, and Ras Mengesha Yohannes commanded an assault of Menelik's vanguard that annihilated the Italians and killed Major Toselli.
However, the defeat at Amba Alagi did have a silver lining for Baratieri. Prime Minister Crispi's shocked cabinet agreed to advance another 20 million lire (£80,000) to ensure that a disaster could be stopped.[1] This money allowed for a larger Italian disaster at the Battle of Adwa, halting Italian plans to annex Ethiopia.
References[]
- ^ Thomas Pakenham, The Scramble for Africa, (London: Abacus, 1992) p. 477
Coordinates: 12°59′39″N 39°30′13″E / 12.99417°N 39.50361°E
- Battles of the First Italo-Ethiopian War
- Battles involving Ethiopia
- Battles involving Italy
- 1895 in Ethiopia
- Conflicts in 1895
- December 1895 events