On this date in 1896, Ethiopia defeated Italy at Battle of Adowa. Ethiopian forces under Emperor Menelik II united to defeat an invading force of Italian troops. This was a very significant turning point in the history of modern Africa. It occurred, in 1896, when the “colonial era” was well advanced on the African continent, and it served notice that Africa was not just there “for the taking” by European powers. More than this, it marked the entry of Ethiopia into the modern community of nations. Menelik’s victory over the Italians caused the other major European states, and Italy itself, to recognise Ethiopia as a sovereign, independent state.