When is Revolution Day?
Revolution Day is a public holiday in Eritrea on September 1st each year.
This holiday marks the start of the armed struggle for independence on this day in 1961.
History of Revolution Day
The region now known as Eritrea emerged when Italian colonial expansion into Africa was halted by defeat at the battle of Adua in 1869. In 1936, Italy invaded Ethiopia and declared it part of their colonial empire.
After the Italians had been defeated in the second world war, the 1952 UN General Assembly Resolution 390 to federate Eritrea with Ethiopia went into effect. Eritrea was meant to have autonomy with a federation, but frustrated at the lack of progress, the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF), under the leadership of Hamid Idris Awate began its armed struggle for independence from Ethiopia.
Violent insurrection began on September 1st 1961 with the Battle of Adal, when Hamid Idris Awate and his companions fired the first shots against the occupying Ethiopian Army and police.
This marked the start of the Eritrean War for Independence, which would continue until May 1991, when the Eritreans overthrew the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in Eritrea and helped a coalition of Ethiopian rebel forces take control of the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.
