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Today in African History

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Obelisk of Axum

Imagine a towering monument standing tall for over a millennium, bearing witness to the history and culture of a proud nation. Built in the 4th century by the legendary King Ezana, this 160-tonne monolith, known as the O...

Historical Events

8
  • 📈 1859 Construction of the Suez Canal,  connecting the Mediterranean and Red Seas, begins.
  • 🎭 1944 The United Negro College Fund is incorporated in the United States. United States
  • 🏛️ 1954 British raid Nairobi, Kenya, arresting 25,000 Mau Mau suspects. 🇰🇪 Kenya
  • 🔬 1961 France conducted its fourth nuclear bomb test in the Sahara Desert. 🇩🇿 Algeria
  • Mswati III
    👑 1986 🇸🇿 Eswatini
    Mswati III is crowned King of Swaziland.
  • Robert Mugabe
    🏛️ 2004 🇿🇦 South Africa
    Two 5-star South African hotels refuse to accommodate Zimbabwean President Mugabe because of human rights abuses in his country.
  • 🎭 2005 The final piece of the Obelisk of Axum is returned to Ethiopia after being stolen by the invading Italian army in 1937. 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
  • 🏛️ 2019 Cyclone Kenneth strikes Mozambique with winds of 220km/h, killing at least 38 people and damaging nearly 35,000 homes. 🇲🇿 Mozambique

Discover Africa's Rich Past

Obelisk of Axum

Obelisk of Axum

Imagine a towering monument standing tall for over a millennium, bearing witness to the history and culture of a proud nation. Built in the 4th century by the legendary King Ezana, this 160-tonne monolith, known as the Obelisk of Axum, had survived the test of time until the dark clouds of colonialism cast their shadow upon Ethiopia.

The Italian occupation of Ethiopia brought with it a period of immense hardship and suffering, as the occupiers plundered the country's long-hidden treasures and sacred artefacts. Despite its colossal size, the Obelisk of Axum was not spared. In the 1930s, a group of Italian soldiers stumbled upon the monolith, semi-submerged in a pit, and took it away from its rightful owners.

The Obelisk was partially dismantled and transported to Rome, where it remained for almost a century, a trophy of war displayed prominently in front of the Italian Ministry for African Relations. Despite multiple calls for its return, the lack of funding and technical challenges stood in the way, and the monument remained imprisoned in Rome.

But the tides were about to turn. In 2005, after 68 years of captivity, the Obelisk of Axum was finally repatriated to Ethiopia amidst widespread celebration and praise. This momentous event set the stage for the return of other stolen artefacts, many of which were looted by British troops.

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