Brief History of Italian Imperialism, Part II: Battle of Dogali 1887, the Mahdist Revolt, and the Battle Of Adowa 1896
Following the annexations of coastal territories by the Italians which cut off the growing Ethiopian Empire from the sea to East, Emperor Yohannes IV and one of his most trusted lords, Ras Alula raised armies to combat further Italian incursion, which by early 1887 had slowly begun to move inland. The most significant clash of this early period came at the Battle of Dogali on January 26 1887. Ras Alula Engida, a respected and influential military commander and Ethiopian lord around 1890 Ras Alula and around 10,000 of his men attacked a column of 500 Italian regulars who had set out to relieve forces attacked the previous at Fort Saati. Despite inflicting heavy casualties on the attacking Ethiopians the Italians were routed, loosing 23 officers and 407 enlisted men in the process. Like most victories over Imperial powers the Ethiopians could only enjoy their success for a time and by the end of year 18,000 Italian troops were in Eritrea. By 1888 these force...