The Battle of Adwa is the climactic battle of the First Italo-Ethiopian War.

Led by Emperor Menelik II, Ethiopian forces, with the aid of Russia and France, defeat an invading Italian force on March 1, 1896, near the town of Adwa in Tigray.

The decisive victory thwarts the Kingdom of Italy's campaign to expand its colonial empire in the Horn of Africa and secures the Ethiopian Empire's sovereignty for another forty years.

As the only African nation to successfully resist European conquest during the scramble for Africa, Ethiopia becomes a pre-eminent symbol of the pan-African movement and international opposition to colonialism.

By the end of the nineteenth century, European powers have carved up almost all of Africa after the Berlin Conference.

Only Ethiopia, at this time still commonly known as Abyssinia and the Republic of Liberia still maintain their independence (Liberia being a settler nation supported by the United States).

The newly unified Kingdom of Italy is a relative newcomer to the imperialist scramble for Africa

Two of its recently obtained African territories, Italian Eritrea and Italian Somaliland, border Ethiopia on the Horn of Africa.

Italy seeks to improve its position in Africa by conquering Ethiopia and joining it with its two territories.

Menelik successfully pits Italy against its European rivals while stockpiling advanced weapons to defend his empire against the Italians and British.