Interactive Timeline

• Italian colonial troops in current day Eritrea attempt to expand inland. • Ras Alula leads Ethiopian forces in a decisive victory, killing over 500 Italian soldiers. • Dogali becomes the first major Ethiopian resistance victory against Italian expansion.

• Ethiopian forces under Emperor Menelik II and Empress Taitu defeat the invading Italian army at Adwa[MM1.1]. • This victory forces Italy to recognize Ethiopia’s sovereignty and becomes a major symbol of African resistance to colonialism.

• Ethiopia’s army is defeated at Maichew, in northern Ethiopia. • Retreating forces are aerially attacked with chemical weapons.

• After an attempted attack on Rodolfo Graziani, Italian forces unleash indiscriminate killings in Addis Ababa. • Thousands of civilians are murdered; widespread arrests and torture follow. • Arrests of Ethiopian elites, intellectuals and community leaders, as well as random mass arrests.

• The initial group of Ethiopian prisoners transported to Sardinia arrives on Asinara. • Prisoners include men, women and children. • Conditions are harsh • Nearly 400 Ethiopians are held on the island over two years, enduring isolation, disease, and psychological trauma. • Most families never receive full accounts of their loved ones’ condition and treatment.

• The only surviving former prisoner travels to Asinara with other descendants and participates in a commemorative gathering offering testimony and closure. • Local Italian officials issue an apology; memorialization efforts begin, marking the first collective act of transnational memorialization.