The Difficult Years: Eritrea and the Great War (1914–1922)

This episode of the Eritrawi Podcast explores the profound socioeconomic transformation of Eritrea during and after the First World War between 1914 and 1922. Although far from the European frontlines, Eritrea was deeply affected by the war as Italy extracted livestock, labor, and resources for its colonial campaigns in Libya. The episode examines the devastating impact of wartime requisitions, inflation, food shortages, disrupted trade routes caused by the British naval blockade, and the collapse of local agriculture during years of drought and locust invasions.

It also explores how certain wartime industries such as hides, salt, and potassium generated immense profits for a small group of merchants while much of the population endured severe hardship. As the postwar recession of 1920–1921 struck Eritrea, bankruptcies, unemployment, and social frustration intensified among Italian settlers. The episode traces how these crises contributed to the rapid rise of fascism in Eritrea and the formation of the Fascio d’Eritrea in 1922.

Drawing from historical research and archival material, this episode examines how war, economic collapse, colonial extraction, and political radicalization reshaped Eritrean society during one of the most turbulent periods of the colonial era.

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