The Selassie Years

1930 - Emperor Haile Selassie came to power and undertook the rapid modernisation of Ethiopia.

1936-1941 - The Italian Occupation. Mussolini brutally invaded Ethiopia from Somaliland. Selassie was exiled but reinstated once the Italians were defeated with the help of the British Army.

1942 - Ethiopia signed the declaration of the United Nations and was one of the original 51 members.

1973 - Haile Selassie failed to come to grips with a poor harvest, and the situation escalated into a devastating famine. An estimated 200,000 Ethiopians died in the province of Wallo as a result of famine.