The Treaty of Wuchale was a treaty signed between the Ethiopian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy. The signing parties were King Menelik II of Shewa, acting as Emperor of Ethiopia, and Count Pietro Antonelli representing Italy, on 2 May 1889, established the treaty after the Italian occupation of Eritrea. It was signed in the small Ethiopian town of Wuchale, from which the treaty got its name. The purpose of the treaty was to promote friendship and trade among the two countries. It was a treaty to maintain a positive long-lasting relationship between the two empires. The treaty has twenty articles written in two languages, Amharic and Italian; however, there were marked differences in the Italian and the Amharic versions of the treaty, which created miscommunications between the two countries. Specifically, Article 17 of the treaty was translated and interpreted differently by Ethiopia and Italy. Italy claimed the article imposed a protectorate over Ethiopia, while Ethiopia claimed the article allowed international diplomacy to be conducted through Italy by choice. When Menelik II denounced the treaty in 1893, Italy attempted to forcefully impose the protectorate over Ethiopia in the First Italo-Ethiopian War, which ended with Italy's defeat at the Battle of Adwa and the resulting Treaty of Addis Ababa.
The Treaty of Wuchale was signed, ending the Italo-Ethiopian War, but differences in translation later led to another war.
On May 2, in the year 1889, The Treaty of Wuchale was signed, ending the Italo-Ethiopian War, but differences in translation later led to another war. This event is recorded as a Selected Events event in the history of May 2, one of 377 recorded events on this date across all of history.
Key Facts
- This event took place on May 2, 1889 (AD era).
- It is categorised as a Selected Events event in recorded history.
- Referenced in 3 Wikipedia articles.
- Wikipedia source last updated on 27 September 2025.
On This Date in History 377
This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
More on May 2
Russo-Ukrainian War: Forty-eight people were killed during a confrontation between pro-Russian protesters and pro-Ukrain
The Russo-Ukrainian war began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia occupied Crimea and annexed it from Ukraine. It then supported Rus…
Russo-Ukrainian War: Forty-eight people were killed during a confrontation between pro-Russian protesters and pro-Ukrain
Two mudslides in Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan, killed at least 350 people
On 2 May 2014, a pair of mudslides occurred in Argo District, Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan. The death toll is uncertain, the number of deaths is believed to be at least 350 an…
Two mudslides in Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan, killed at least 350 people
The Conservative Party of Canada won enough seats in the federal election to establish their first majority government
The Conservative Party of Canada, sometimes referred to as the Tories, is a federal political party in Canada. The party sits at the centre-right to right of the Canadian politica…
The Conservative Party of Canada won enough seats in the federal election to establish their first majority government
Osama bin Laden was killed by U
On May 2, 2011, the United States conducted Operation Neptune Spear, in which SEAL Team Six shot and killed Osama bin Laden at his "Waziristan Haveli" in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Bin…
Osama bin Laden was killed by U
The Chaitén volcano in Chile began to erupt for the first time since around 1640
Chaitén is a volcanic caldera 3 kilometres (2 mi) in diameter, 17 kilometres (11 mi) west of the elongated ice-capped Michinmahuida volcano and 10 kilometres (6 mi) northeast of t…
The Chaitén volcano in Chile began to erupt for the first time since around 1640
Cyclone Manou formed in the Indian Ocean; over the next two weeks it struck Madagascar and left more than 100,000 people
Tropical Cyclone Manou was a relatively rare May tropical cyclone that affected southeastern Madagascar. The final named storm of the 2002–03 South-West Indian Ocean cyclone seaso…
Cyclone Manou formed in the Indian Ocean; over the next two weeks it struck Madagascar and left more than 100,000 people
Comments 0
Sign in to join the discussion.