Italian Ethiopia

Italian Ethiopia (Italian: Etiopia italiana), also known as the Italian Empire of Ethiopia, was the territory of the Ethiopian Empire which was occupied by Italy for approximately five years. Italian Ethiopia was not an administrative entity, but the formal name of the former territory of the Ethiopian Empire which now constituted the Governorates of Amhara, Harar, Galla-Sidamo, and Scioa after the establishment of Italian East Africa (Africa Orientale Italiana, AOI).

After the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, in which Ethiopia was occupied by Fascist Italy, the Ethiopian territories were proclaimed by Benito Mussolini as part of Italian East Africa (AOI) in 1936, with the capital of the AOI being established in Addis Ababa and King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy proclaiming himself Emperor of Ethiopia. Fighting between Ethiopian forces and the Italian military continued until February 1937, and subsequent guerrilla resistance against Italy persisted until 1939.

In 1941, during World War II, Ethiopia was liberated from Italian control by Allied forces in the East African campaign, but an Italian guerrilla war continued until 1943. Ethopia was placed under a British military administration, while Emperor Haile Selassie returned and reclaimed the Ethiopian throne. The Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement, signed in 1942, confirmed Ethiopia's status as a sovereign state, although some regions of Ethiopia were temporarily placed under British control. In December 1944, a new agreement led to the restoration of full sovereignty to Ethiopia, although the British continued to control the Ogaden until 1955. Under the peace treaty of 1947, Italy recognized the sovereignty and independence of Ethiopia and renounced all claims to special interests or influence in that country. Many Italian settlers remained for decades after receiving full pardon from Emperor Selassie.