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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:Eritrea: Remote Past and Present
Author:Tafla, BairuISNI
Year:2004
Periodical:Journal of Eritrean Studies (Asmara)
Volume:3
Issue:1
Period:May
Pages:82-98
Language:English
Notes:biblio. refs.
Geographic terms:Eritrea
Northeast Africa
Subjects:history
History and Exploration
colonialism
Inter-African Relations
History, Archaeology
Boundary disputes
Abstract:By concentrating on significant historical periods, this paper provides a bird's-eye view of Eritrean history from antiquity to the present. Because of its geographical position on the Red Sea, various powers were interested in controlling Eritrea in the remote past as well as in modern times. In ancient times, Eritrea formed an integral part of the Aksumite Kingdom. The Arabs controlled its islands and coast between the 8th and 15th centuries, while the Ottoman Empire replaced their rule in the mid-16th century until it was succeeded by the administration of Khedivial Egypt in the second half of the 19th century. Egypt was replaced by Italy, which declared the country 'Colonia Eritrea' in 1890. After the defeat of the Italians, the British Military Administration took over. Ethiopia, too, viewed the region as its natural outlet to the sea and, hence, tried intermittently throughout the centuries to incorporate Eritrea into the Empire. None of these powers ever formally gave up their claim to Eritrea or a part thereof out of free will until Eritrea's recognition by the international community as a sovereign State in 1993. The relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea were friendly in the beginning, but from mid-1997 onward began to deteriorate, culminating in the outbreak of a 2-year full-scale war in 1998. Notes, ref., sum. [ASC Leiden abstract]
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