Editing Battle of Adwa (section)

==Background==
In 1889, the Italians signed the [[Treaty of Wuchale]] with [[Menelik II|King Menelik]] of Shewa. The treaty, signed after the Italian occupation of Eritrea, recognized Italy's claim over the coastal colony. In it, Italy also promised to provide financial assistance and military supplies. A dispute later arose over the interpretation of the two versions of the document. The Italian-language version of the disputed Article 17 of the treaty stated that the Emperor of Ethiopia was obliged to conduct all foreign affairs through Italian authorities, effectively making Ethiopia a [[protectorate]] of the Kingdom of Italy. The [[Amharic]] version of the article, however, stated that the Emperor could use the good offices of the Kingdom of Italy in his relations with foreign nations if he wished. However, the Italian diplomats claimed that the original Amharic text included the clause and that Menelik II knowingly signed a modified copy of the Treaty.<ref>{{cite web | author=Piero Pastoretto | title=Battaglia di Adua | url=http://www.arsmilitaris.org/pubblicazioni/ADUA/adua.htm | access-date=2006-06-04 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060531223251/http://www.arsmilitaris.org/pubblicazioni/ADUA/adua.htm |archive-date=31 May 2006 |language=it}}</ref>

The Italian government decided on a military solution to force Ethiopia to abide by the Italian version of the treaty. As a result, Italy and Ethiopia came into confrontation, in what was later to be known as the [[First Italo-Ethiopian War]]. In December 1894, [[Bahta Hagos]] led a rebellion against the Italians in Akele Guzai, in what was then Italian controlled [[Eritrea]]. Units of General [[Oreste Baratieri]]'s army under Major [[Pietro Toselli]] crushed the rebellion and killed Bahta. In January 1895, Baratieri's army went on to defeat [[Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles#Men's honorifics|Ras]] [[Mengesha Yohannes]] in the [[Battle of Coatit]], forcing Mengesha to retreat further south.

By late 1895, Italian forces had advanced deep into Ethiopian territory and occupied much of Tigray. On 7 December 1895, ''Ras'' [[Makonnen Wolde Mikael]], ''Fitawrari'' [[Fitawrari Gebeyehu|Gebeyehu]] and ''Ras'' Mengesha Yohannes commanding a larger Ethiopian group of Menelik's vanguard annihilated a small Italian unit at the [[Battle of Amba Alagi (1895)|Battle of Amba Alagi]]. The Italians were then forced to withdraw to more defensible positions in Tigray Province, where the two main armies faced each other. By late February 1896, supplies on both sides were running low. General Oreste Baratieri, commander of the Italian forces, knew the Ethiopian forces had been living off the land, and once the supplies of the local peasants were exhausted, Emperor Menelik II's army would begin to melt away. However, the Italian government insisted that General Baratieri act.

[[File:ET Tigray asv2018-01 img46 Adwa.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|The landscape of Adwa]]
On the evening of 29 February, Baratieri, about to be replaced by a new governor, General Baldissera, met with his generals [[Matteo Albertone]], [[Giuseppe Arimondi]], [[Vittorio Dabormida]], and [[Giuseppe Ellena]], concerning their next steps. He opened the meeting on a negative note, revealing to his brigadiers that provisions would be exhausted in less than five days, and suggested retreating, perhaps as far back as [[Asmara]]. His subordinates argued forcefully for an attack, insisting that to retreat at this point would only worsen the poor morale.<ref>Harold G. Marcus, ''The Life and Times of Menelik II: Ethiopia 1844–1913'', 1975 (Lawrenceville: Red Sea Press, 1995), p. 170</ref> Dabormida exclaimed, "Italy would prefer the loss of two or three thousand men to a dishonorable retreat." Baratieri delayed making a decision for a few more hours, claiming that he needed to wait for some last-minute intelligence, but in the end announced that the attack would start the next morning at 9:00am.<ref>David Levering Lewis, ''The Race for Fashoda'' (New York: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1987), p. 116. {{ISBN|1-55584-058-2}}</ref> His troops began their march to their starting positions shortly after midnight.