1935 Asahi Shimbun Japanese Map of Ethiopia, Abyssinia Crisis

This is a 1935 Japanese-language map of Ethiopia and its environs published by the Tokyo Asahi Shimbun in tandem with the Abyssinian Crisis at the outbreak of the Second Italo-Ethiopian War (1935 -1937). The map illustrates a little-known episode in pre-WWII history wherein Japan and Ethiopia considered the creation of an 'Alliance of Non-White Peoples.'

A Closer Look

The map covers all of modern-day Ethiopia, as well as parts of Eretria, Somalia, Djibouti, Sudan, and Kenya. Settlements, roads, railways (including those under construction), waterways, mountains, and other features are labeled throughout, as indicated in the legend at the bottom left. Colonial possessions and protectorates are color-coded so that Italy's are bright green, Britain's pink, France's purple, and so on. An inset in the upper right situates Ethiopia in the context of North Africa, and a text block in the lower right describes the country's people, history, political system, and geography.

Alliance of Non-White Peoples

Japan's reaction to the Abyssinian Crisis is not well-known but is both unexpected and fascinating. As an increasingly militaristic and nationalistic society that had itself left the League of Nations the year prior after a nakedly imperialist land grab in Manchuria, Japan would presumably align with Italy's militarist, nationalist government set on a naked land grab against the wishes of the League of Nations. But the opposite was the case. This was largely retaliation for Italy's opposition to Japan's invasion of Manchuria and subsequent improved relations with China. However, there were also deeper and longer-term connections between Japan and Ethiopia. Both were ancient hereditary empires, never conquered or dependent upon another nation, and both considered themselves threatened and oppressed by foreign (Western) powers. Moreover, Japan saw Ethiopia as a means of extending its economic influence in Africa.

Starting in 1931, the two countries improved diplomatic and economic relations, signing a commercial treaty and discussing a scheme for sending 150,000 Japanese immigrants to grow cotton in Ethiopia and a similarly ambitious plan to have tens of thousands of laborers build irrigation systems around Lake Tana. The 1931 Constitution of Ethiopia was partly modeled on the 1890 Meiji Constitution, and a faction of modernizers in Addis Ababa came to be called 'Japanizers.' The Ethiopians also increasingly saw Japan as a means of resisting Italian designs on their land, appealing to Tokyo to send them weapons after the December 1934 border clashes between Ethiopia and Italian Somaliland. In the following months, the Italian press denounced Japanese meddling. In Tokyo, parades were held supporting the Ethiopian cause. (For its part, the Japanese Legation to Rome was much more measured, focusing on protecting Japan's economic interests in Ethiopia.)

An important part of these enmities was racial, and the Japanese discourse around the Abyssinian Crisis was clear about resisting the overbearing incursions of the white race (a proxy for Western criticism of Japan's expanding influence in China). At the same time, in an August 1935 speech, Mussolini invoked the 'Yellow Peril' in denouncing Japanese criticism of Italy's actions in Ethiopia, claiming that Japan planned to use Africa as 'a bridge which the Yellow race would use to attack the white race.' Nevertheless, after Italy occupied Ethiopia, negotiations began on mutual recognition of Italian Ethiopia and Manchukuo as part of a broader rapprochement resulting in the Anti-Comintern Pact. Still, the experience helped Japan hone its message as the leading member of the non-Western (non-white) world and a liberator of colonized people. This message would become central to the country's self-image in the following years.

Second Italo-Ethiopian War

The origins of the Second Italo-Ethiopian War lie in the 19th century, soon after Italy unified, when it attempted to gain a presence on the continent before the door closed on the 'Scramble for Africa.' Francesco Crispi, twice Prime Minister of Italy in the late 19th century, was desperate for colonies wherever they could be acquired and managed to establish a foothold in Eritrea and, from there, expanded a protectorate into Somalia (Italian Somaliland). More ambitious plans to conquer or subjugate Ethiopia resulted in skirmishes throughout the late 1880s and 1890s, known as the First Italo-Ethiopian War. These culminated in the Battle of Adwa in 1896, a decisive and humiliating defeat for Italy. In the following decades, tensions between Italy and Ethiopia remained high as the former maintained clear designs on the latter.

The ascension of fascism in Italy provided a boon to pro-colonial nationalists. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, Italy modernized its military, maneuvered diplomatically to assure French and British quiescence regarding its aims in Africa, and ginned up border disputes with Ethiopia to justify a conflict. These forces culminated in the Abyssinian Crisis of 1935, a major test for the League of Nations and the international community. Italy was 'exonerated,' largely because France and Britain were more worried about Hitler's Germany than Italian colonialism in Africa (despite later being allies, at this point Hitler and Mussolini eyed each other warily, especially over Hitler's desire to incorporate Austria into the Third Reich).

With any serious diplomatic opposition cleared away, Italy launched an invasion of Ethiopia from Eritrea on October 3, 1935, and two days later sent another army into Ethiopia from Italian Somaliland. The Italians made slow progress through the rugged terrain, meeting stiff resistance, including a counter-attack in December 1935. It was a tough fight, with the Ethiopians using weapons provided by Nazi Germany, which wanted to see Italy bogged down and distracted in Africa. Though Addis Ababa was occupied in May 1936, organized and guerilla resistance continued unabated. Frustrated with the stalwart Ethiopian defense, the Italians turned to chemical weapons and committed major atrocities against prisoners of war and civilians. Though Ethiopia was nominally incorporated into Italy's colonial empire, it was never truly colonized. Moreover, the effort came at a great cost, weakening Italy's position in Europe and presaging its later troubles in attempting to occupy the Balkans.

Publication History and Census

This map appeared as a supplement to the Tokyo Asahi Shimbun (東京朝日新聞) on October 1, 1935 (Showa 10). It was printed by the Toppan Printing Company. The map is noted in OCLC among the institutional holdings of the Library of Congress and Northwestern University, while an example is also noted in the Koshigaya City Archives (越谷市諸家文書).