Emperor Tewodros II
Witness History10 Apr 2023

Emperor Tewodros II

Emperor Tewodros II is one of the towering figures of modern Ethiopian history.

He tried to unify and modernise Ethiopia but his reign was also marked by brutality.

He faced a rising tide of rebellion inside the country and then in 1868 a British military expedition marched into the Ethiopian highlands.

Its aim was to free British diplomatic envoys the Emperor had imprisoned.

Tewodros II made a last stand at Magdala, his mountain top fortress.

In 2016, Rob Walker spoke to historian Philip Marsden.

(Picture: Tewodros II. Credit: Getty Images)

Episoder(2000)

My dad created Mr Men and Little Miss

My dad created Mr Men and Little Miss

In 1971, advertising writer Roger Hargreaves's eight-year-old son Adam asked him an unusual question: 'What does a tickle look like?'Inspired, Roger got out his marker pens and created an orange chara...

6 Feb 10min

Austria's wine scandal

Austria's wine scandal

In 1985, government scientists discovered anti-freeze in bottles of fine Austrian wine. No one died or fell ill from drinking the poisoned wine, but the scandal nearly destroyed the country's wine-mak...

5 Feb 10min

Jimmy Carter visits Cuba

Jimmy Carter visits Cuba

In May 2002, former US President Jimmy Carter paid a controversial visit to Cuba, which had been subject to a US trade embargo for more than 40 years.The trip culminated in a speech, broadcast live on...

4 Feb 10min

Cuba's Mariel boatlift

Cuba's Mariel boatlift

In April 1980, thousands of Cubans tried to escape the country by claiming asylum at the Peruvian embassy in Havana. In response, Cuban President Fidel Castro opened the port of Mariel to anyone who w...

3 Feb 10min

The 'Jugroom Fort' rescue mission

The 'Jugroom Fort' rescue mission

In 2007, four British servicemen perched on the wings of an Apache helicopter in Afghanistan, in an audacious mission to rescue a fallen comrade. Lance Corporal Mathew Ford was part of a unit which ha...

2 Feb 10min

Ötzi: The Iceman of Bolzano

Ötzi: The Iceman of Bolzano

In September 1991, two German hikers found a dead body while walking through Europe’s Ötzal Alps. It turned out to be a perfectly preserved 5,000-year-old mummy. The archaeologist Konrad Spindler ins...

30 Jan 9min

The Kaohsiung Incident

The Kaohsiung Incident

On 10 December 1979, pro-democracy activists clashed with police in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.The incident, which happened during Taiwan's martial law period, paved the way for the transition to democracy.Rac...

29 Jan 10min

Chile's 'Penguin Revolution'

Chile's 'Penguin Revolution'

In 2006, hundreds of thousands of school children in Chile took over their schools and marched in the streets, in a protest about inequality in education. It was known as the "Penguin Revolution" bec...

28 Jan 9min

Populært innen Samfunn

rss-spartsklubben
giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
konspirasjonspodden
aftenpodden-usa
popradet
rss-nesten-hele-uka-med-lepperod
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
min-barneoppdragelse
wolfgang-wee-uncut
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
grenselos
rss-espen-lee-usensurert
rss-dannet-uten-piano
rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
fladseth
frokostshowet-pa-p5
synnve-og-vanessa
alt-fortalt
opptur-med-annette-og-ingeborg