Menelik's March on Massawa! - an Ethiopia TL

An Emperor's Rise
Kassa Mercha had grown up in an Ethiopia that had become increasingly centralized under the rule of Emperor Tewodros II, the man who had brought about the end of Zemene Mesafint in 1855 after successful military campaigns against the Yejju Dynasty that had controlled the throne of Gondar for much of the 17th Century. The provinces of Tigray, Gojjam, Wollo, Begemdir and Shoa were united under his control as Tewodros turned towards unifying and modernizing Ethiopia to make sure she remained independent of expanding foreign powers. However, this was to be brief after the death of Empress Tewabech Ali which resulted in Tewodros giving into his violent tendencies that his wife had managed to sooth and would bring his downfall in the future. Tewodros had kept in contact with Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Britain and Ireland, writing letters to her and other European monarchs in hopes of acquiring assistance in Ethiopian modernization but found himself becoming increasingly impatient with the lack of answers - with the exception of Paris who dispatched a Lazarist mission. The final straw was to be the failure of Captain Charles Cameron Duncan to deliver one of his letters directly to Queen Victoria, especially after traveling through what he perceived as enemy territory and this led to Tewodros imprisoning European diplomats and missionaries alike in a fit of rage. After British attempts at negotiating failed, an Anglo-Indian force was sent to rescue these prisoners as it successfully defeated the Ethiopian force at Arogye and liberated the European prisoners, finding that Tewodros had committed suicide to avoid becoming a British prisoner. However, Kassa had risen to prominence during the 1868 British Expedition to Ethiopia as General Napier, the commander of the Anglo-Indian force, approached him about securing logistical support in the campaign against Tewodros - he was happy to oblige them. By then, Kassa had managed to expand rapidly throughout northern Ethiopia and even into the Christian Eritrean Highlands as it only weakened Tewodros further which left him in a powerful position by the end of the British campaign. Kassa sought to secure British support and recognition of him as the new Emperor of Ethiopia but this proved to be unsuccessful as London wanted to avoid any pretense about an Anglo-Ethiopian alliance. Kassa did receive a gift in the form of 900 smooth-bore muskets as well as a battery of mountain guns and mortars that were enough to equip a regiment under his direct command while the Anglo-Ethiopian force withdrew. These were to be turned on a newly-crowned Emperor Tekle Giyorgis II who Kassa had refused to recognize as the Ethiopian Emperor, leading to a confrontation at Assem where he emerged victorious. Soon, Kassa was crowned Emperor Yohannes IV at Axum and by the same Abuna that had crowned his predecessor as he inherited an Ethiopian Empire that had been centralized under Tewodros - the only issue was her proper unification and modernization.

Yohannes continued where Tewodros had left off but pursued different policies - he opted to tour the various regions that made up Ethiopia, appointing local nobles to administrative posts after they formally submitted to him. Yohannes installed Menelik II as the King of Shoa and Tekle Haimanot as the King of Gojjam, encouraging them to expand Ethiopia's borders beyond Old Ethiopia but this created an unhealthy rivalry that manifested in the Battle of Embabo where Yohannes had to intervene as Menelik won. Spheres of influence and territories were then clearly defined under Yohannes' definition as a region was given to the other from each other's domains, the issue being resolved by dynastic marriages where Menelik married Taytu Betul of Tigray. Ethiopia had other issues than feudal rivalries, namely religion as Yohannes began with resolving the internal tensions and competing doctrines of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church where several different doctrines conflicted. The Tewahedo Doctrine had been the most prominent in Christian Ethiopia, declaring that there had only been two different Births of Christ from the Father and Virgin Mary as this had been the official doctrine preached by Alexandria. The Qibat Doctrine made the argument of Christ's flesh having become divine in the Womb of the Virgin Mary through Unction whereas the Sost Lidet Doctrine regarded that Unction was to the Baptism of Christ. To resolve these internal struggles of the Orthodox Church, Yohannes held the Council of Boru Meda in Wollo where it found the Tewahedo Doctrine to be in favor as Yohannes promoted the construction of Orthodox Churches and spread of Christianity. Yohannes also launched conversion campaigns throughout the predominantly-Islamic Wollo province where he encouraged Wollo's Muslims to convert to Orthodox Christianity but he could not force it as he feared Muslim Egyptian reprisals against the Coptic Orthodox Church in Alexandria. Despite this looming threat, Yohannes continued to facilitate the spread of Christianity throughout the Ethiopian Empire as he envisioned the creation of an Orthodox Christian Ethiopia that would be able to defeat the encroaching Egyptians, Sudanese and Ottoman Turks. However, this couldn't be achieved unless Ethiopia secured a European ally that wasn't interested in seizing her independence and willing to assist Ethiopia in modernizing which led to Yohannes turning to the Kingdom of Shoa. Yohannes summoned Menelik and Taytu to the re-established Ethiopian capital of Gondar, making an offer to the Shoan rulers about an alliance between them and Yohannes in order to unify and modernize Ethiopia. Under pressure from the Emperor and Tatytu, Menelik accepted this and was promised the throne of the Ethiopian Empire as Yohannes' southern flank was secured - not to mention, a growing power in Shoa had been acquired. Yohannes had recognized that Menelik's Shoan forces were growing in influence and size with the Shoan expansion further into the Horn of Africa which could potentially be used to enforce Shoan hegemony over historically northern-dominated Old Ethiopia.

Now that Yohannes had acquired Shoa as an ally, he turned towards another potential ally that Ethiopia was coming to depend on for military equipment - Britain, the nation that had been responsible for Yohannes' rise to power. London had become interested in Ethiopia as Yohannes emerged as the dominant figure in Ethiopia, slowly unifying Ethiopia under his grasp as they became more and more powerful while Yohannes made an overture towards Britain. He recognized the prominence of the British Empire in Africa, sending a small team of representatives to London in order to not only gain the UK as an ally but establish relations with other European countries seeking to expand their influence in Africa. This small team was led by Menelik and Kirkham where they met with the Gladstonian government, Menelik bringing up the issue of the Horn of Africa being dominated by Islamic influence and the possibility of the Ottoman Turks being able to retake the lands they formerly held. This appealed to British PM William Gladstone who possessed fervent anti-Turkish views which Ethiopian representatives attempted to play on, to a varying level of success as a shipment of seven thousand surplus Snider-Enfield rifles and a few thousand Martini-Henry rifles were sent to Ethiopia. A series of loans were given to Yohannes' government to provide the necessary financial backing for modernization purposes outside of the Ethiopian Army i.e. the construction of roads, railroads, infrastructure, etc. as its mission proved to be successful. The Ethiopian representatives arrived in Paris, Berlin and St. Petersburg where the small team of representatives managed to secure shipments of arms to Ethiopia but these were accompanied by advisors to neutralize the growing amount of British influence in the Ethiopian Army. There was also the issue of which European country seemed to be the best model for which the Ethiopian Empire could modernize off of - Menelik favored closer relations with St. Petersburg and Russian-style modernization. Yohannes proved to be more open to embracing a mixed Russo-Prussian unification and modernization process that was ultimately decided upon in a compromise between Yohannes and Menelik who were determined to bring Ethiopia into the modern age. However, their visions for the Ethiopian Empire would be threatened by another growing power in Northeast Africa that was under the nominal control of the Ottomans and were led by a man who wanted to unite the Nile River Basin under his nation's grip - Isma'il Pasha's Egypt.
 
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Looks interesting, but what year is this all taking place in right now. You might want to do better iin describing the setting to get a feel of what's going on though this all seems to be very interesting.
 
The Ethiopian-Egyptian War
Khedive Isma'il Pasha had managed to rapidly modernize Egypt under his leadership, continuing his grandfather's reforms which included the construction of the Suez Canal and expansion of Egyptian industries but he possessed dreams of expanding Egypt's frontiers further into Northeastern Africa. This dream of "Uniting the Nile Valley" included an Egyptian annexation of its southern neighbor, the Ethiopian Empire but the progressing modernization of the Ethiopian Army under Emperor Yohannes IV made this a problem. In the eyes of Isma'il, Ethiopia must be either transformed into an Egyptian protectorate or outright annexed into Egypt in order to make sure that Egyptian ambitions in East Africa couldn't be threatened. Egypt attempted to play on the feudal rivalries that plagued Ethiopia by acquiring Menelik as an ally but these attempts were unsuccessful, as Menelik had recently become an ally of Yohannes and the occupation of Harar by Egyptian forces isolated him. Gondar only became increasingly suspicious of Egyptian intentions with the Egyptian annexations of Darfur, Bogos, and Hamasien which manifested in the form of Yohannes' order for a partial mobilization of the Imperial Ethiopian Army. More orders were placed for shipments of equipment from Europe but these failed to arrive, Egypt was actively issuing an embargo against arms coming into Ethiopia and despite this clear message, Yohannes attempted to negotiate. He only found silence from Cairo as Egyptian forces moved from their bases on the Eritrean coast and into the Christian regions of the Eritrean Highlands that Ethiopia held, leading to Yohannes' declaration of war against Egypt. A nationwide decree for mobilization was issued while the Imperial Ethiopian Army was mobilized as well and emerged in 1874-75 at 40,000 men strong who were bolstered by an influx of recruits that saw the IEA grow to 53,000 but the feudal Central Army outnumbered it by 23,000 men. Ethiopian and Egyptian forces met at Gundet where the Egyptian forces were successfully ambushed whilst marching through a narrow mountain pass where Ethiopian troops opened fire and dispersed the Egyptians before overwhelming it. The Battle of Gundet had inflicted large casualties on the Egyptians while Ethiopian forces distributed captured Egyptian equipment amongst the more ill-armed feudal levies and the IEA captured Adi Quala with little resistance. Many commanders, including Ras Alula Engida, wanted to ultimately capture Asmara and reclaim Eritrea from the Egyptians who were scrambling to send another force to make sure they hadn't been expelled from Eritrea. Yohannes appointed Ras Alula Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Ethiopian and Central Armies, giving him the task of not only capturing Asmara but cultivating support in an Eritrea that he envisioned would be Ethiopian.

Meanwhile, Menelik launched a series of assaults into Egyptian-occupied Harar and successfully forced the remaining Egyptians to surrender as he included the city of Harar to his conquests in the new southern and eastern provinces of the Ethiopian Empire. A small but experienced Shoan contingent was sent to the Eritrean frontier to participate in the advance on Asmara and reclaiming of Eritrea for Ethiopia while Cairo attempted to negotiate with Gondar as London mediated. Yohannes demanded a unilateral Egyptian withdrawal from all territories considered to be Ethiopian by Gondar and recognition of Ethiopian sovereignty in Northeast Africa but this was unacceptable in Isma'il's eyes. However, Egypt's position in Eastern Africa was becoming an increasingly untenable one with an expanding revolt in Darfur and European encroachment in regards to the sizable debt that had been wracked during his reign. Ethiopia had already taken Asmara, moving rapidly towards the Egyptian-held ports of Massawa and Zeila which were becoming even more expensive in order to simply maintain Egyptian positions. Despite all of their failures against Ethiopia, Egyptian forces in Eritrea were reinforced in hopes of securing a peace that allowed for Egypt to maintain control over the Eritrean coast and opted to confront their rapidly advancing enemies at Dogali. The Ethiopians secured another victory at Dogali, smashing through the Egyptian right flank with veteran units as Ras Alula sent Oromo cavalrymen to exploit the breakthrough and rout the fleeing Egyptian troops but Ethiopian forces proved to be unable to penetrate an Egyptian fortification without heavy losses. Hotchkiss artillery proved to be successful in breeching the walls of the aforementioned fort where Ethiopian troops, professional and feudal alike, swarmed through the gap and overwhelmed the defending Egyptians in a massed infantry attack. The Battle of Dogali crushed the last Egyptian Army in Eritrea capable of opposing the Ethiopian advance but the Egyptians had managed to inflict 10,000 men KIA, although it had been a great victory for Ethiopia and recruits from all over Ethiopia - even Christian Eritrea - that reinforced the Imperial Ethiopian and Central Armies. The capture of Harar meant that the road to the French port of Djibouti was open for Ethiopia, allowing for supplies and equipment to flow into Ethiopia as military equipment once again flowed into Harar and into Shoa, giving the Ethiopian forces fighting against the Egyptians newer arms and boosting morale.

London observed the Ethiopian-Egyptian War with interest, especially with the Ethiopian victories at Gundet and Harar that made it evident that Ethiopia was the growing powerhouse in the Horn of Africa - not Egypt. The Battles of Harar and Zeila also interested London in potentially backing the Ethiopians as an ally against the expansion of Ottoman or French influence in their spheres of influence, evidenced by French expansion from Djibouti. It placed the Ethiopians on a particularly strategic position in Eastern Africa in the eyes of the British but the revolt in the Egyptian-held province of Darfur posed a more pressing matter in the short-term, pressuring Egypt into accepting peace. Isma'il agreed to accede to Yohannes' demands as Egyptian troops were withdrawn from the Horn of Africa, alongside captured Egyptian troops being released through Djibouti and Zeila in order to be redeployed in Sudan. The Ethiopian-Egyptian War would end in Ethiopian victory as it was heralded as a Christian triumph over an expanding and militant Islamic power that sought to wipe out "an island of Christianity in a sea of Islam" that was met with cheers in Gondar. Ethiopia had drastically changed the historical spheres of influence in Northeastern Africa and replaced Egypt as the dominant power, peaking London's interest over which country to support after Ethiopian forces expanded Ethiopia's frontiers. Even as Egypt became another protectorate in the British Empire and the Mahdist Revolt exploded in the Darfur province, Ethiopia remained a prominent and growing regional powerhouse under the reign of Emperor Yohannes IV.
 
Looks interesting, but what year is this all taking place in right now. You might want to do better iin describing the setting to get a feel of what's going on though this all seems to be very interesting.
I'll attempt to make it more clear in the future but currently, its in the timespan of 1868-1876.
 
The Rise of an Ethiopian Empire
The Ethiopian-Egyptian War had resulted in a decisive Ethiopian victory, solidifying Yohannes' rule in Ethiopia while he successfully expanded Ethiopia's frontiers into Eritrea and new Somali territories to the east that had come to include Harar. However, Yohannes had to resolve the issue of Menelik possessing too much influence over the new eastern and southern regions that were now apart of the Ethiopian Empire before he became too powerful for Yohannes to suppress. The Emperor trekked from Gondar to Harar where he had Harar's main Mosque destroyed and a large Church erected in its absence while Menelik had appointed Ras Makonnen as governor in a compromise. Yohannes traveled throughout the rest of the conquests that were added to Ethiopia in order to foster support amongst the local peoples and make sure his Empire remained as internally stable as possible. The local administrative structure was integrated into an ever-centralizing Imperial government that was spreading its roots throughout Ethiopia's new provinces and Yohannes managed to portray himself as a benevolent protecter in comparison to previous rulers. Yohannes had previously recognized the issue of domination of the landed nobility and Church in Old Ethiopia, especially the threats they proved to modernization under his tutelage so he sought to create another system of support for the Ethiopian monarchy in the more easily-administrable territories. He had also seen a similar threat in Menelik who had proved himself to be just as in favor of reform as Yohannes but might be able to restrict his power in an expanded Ethiopian Empire, especially with the assistance of the skilled Taytu Betul who had been an experienced politician in Tigrayan politics prior to marriage with Menelik. Yohannes found other allies that could prove to be just as, if not more dangerous than Menelik in the expanding colonial powers of Western Europe - Britain and France who had become quite interested in the Horn of Africa.

Britain had been involved in Ethiopia since the reign of Tewodros but Anglo-Ethiopian relations in this time had ranged from apathetic to quite dangerous but they managed to indirectly put Yohannes in control of Ethiopia through Napier's supplying of arms to him when he was still known as Kassa Mercha. However, it had been far more interested in Isma'il Pasha's Egypt as it saw the potential opportunities to continue expanding its influence in Northern Africa but had continued to maintain contact with Gondar once Yohannes took power. Now that Yohannes had led Ethiopia to victory against the Egyptians whose Eritrean-based forces had been shattered during the Ethiopian-Egyptian War, London's interest was shifted towards Ethiopia whose ruler had been attempting to secure British assistance in modernization. Britain was rather apathetic towards these Ethiopian attempts but now that she proved herself to be a regional power in the Horn, this became an opportunity to expand British influence throughout Eastern Africa while making sure that Paris couldn't expand her own. Through contacts in Gondar, Britain learns that the Ethiopians had turned towards France and Germany as potential supporters which alarmed London - this alarm was further cemented with the conclusion of the Franco-Ethiopian and German-Ethiopian Treaties of Friendship and Commerce. France had already consolidated her control over the ports of Djibouti and Obock where they expanded from as Ethiopia would allow for Paris to invest not only in the Ethiopian-held port of Zeila but finance a Franco-Ethiopian from Djibouti to Harar and Dire Dawa. The completion of the Suez Canal in 1869 meant it could allow for France to lay claim to Somali territories deep into the hinterlands of East Africa and disrupt British plans for the Cape-to-Cairo Railway's construction. There were proposals of an unofficial alliance with Ethiopia to have the Cape-to-Cairo Railway go through Ethiopia's interior which were enacted, despite Egypt becoming a British protectorate and British influence expanding to Sudan. This saw London offering to send military advisors and skilled workers to assist with Ethiopian modernization which Yohannes cautiously accepted, fearing Britain trying to impose a protectorate over Ethiopia economically but they were welcomed nonetheless. However, London and Paris couldn't anticipate that a newly-unified nation was going to become quite involved in Ethiopia shortly after becoming unified under its Iron Chancellor - the Empire of Germany.

Despite Otto von Bismarck's attempts at keeping Berlin focused on Continental Europe, it turned towards establishing a colonial empire abroad and found an interesting target in Ethiopia as Yohannes played merry hell with the Anglo-French rivalry and played them against one another to the benefit of Ethiopian modernization. Some in Berlin wanted to impose a protectorate in Gondar under Yohannes or Menelik but Bismarck overrode this attempt, noting that Ethiopia was far more useful as a de-facto proxy spreading German influence throughout Eastern Africa and whatnot. Ethiopia could also act as a bulwark against the expansion of British influence in Northern and Eastern Africa, even in Southern Arabia if Ethiopia became powerful enough that she could expand her borders beyond her current frontiers. In the aftermath of the Ethiopian-Egyptian War, Ethiopia had directly annexed Christian Eritrea where Ras Alula had been placed in charge as Bahr Negus once the last Egyptians finally left Eritrea and left it to Ethiopian governance. Similar to other regions, Yohannes had begun cementing the embryonic administration that existed in Eritrea to make sure that Eritrea would remain firmly under the grasp of the Ethiopian government. German businessmen and pro-colonial government officials saw it as ripe for German investment, especially when Gondar allowed Germany the chance to examine the rich and fertile soil where Ethiopian land reforms had transformed the system. Despite a wary attitude, Yohannes welcomed German investment and admired Otto von Bismarck's policies when he had pursued German unification under the Kingdom of Prussia, often imagining that he had instituted a similar change in his Empire as the new provinces began to slowly reform under tricolor flag of Old Ethiopia.
 
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