Italy formally annexed Ethiopia, proclaiming Victor Emmanuel III 'Emperor of Ethiopia' after occupying Addis Ababa.
Sources: Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State (Foreign Relations of the United States) ; BlackPast.org
History
Ceiling of Debre Birhan Selassie church, Gondar, Ethiopia. Photo: Rod Waddington, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Licence · Source
On this day: May 9 in African history
Real events, births and milestones from Africa and the diaspora.
Police fired tear gas into a packed stand at Accra Sports Stadium after Asante Kotoko fans threw seats onto the pitch, and 126 people died in the crush that followed. Many of the exit gates were locked. A commission of inquiry blamed the police for overreacting, six officers were charged with manslaughter and all were acquitted, and no one has been held responsible.
Sources: VICE ; Working With Crowds
Corrected in September 2026 · see what changed
History
World Economic Forum, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons 1955 Meles Zenawi, who led Ethiopia as President and later Prime Minister for more than two decades, was born.
Sources: The Independent ; BBC News
Birth
Barcex, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons 1973 Tegla Loroupe, Kenyan long-distance runner and the first African woman to win a major marathon, was born.
Sources: World Athletics ; BBC World Service (Sporting Witness)
Birth
Eliot Elisofon, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons 1987 Obafemi Awolowo, Nigerian statesman and one of the country's most influential independence-era political leaders, died.
Sources: Encyclopedia.com (Gale, Encyclopedia of World Biography) ; Central Bank of Nigeria ; The Guardian Nigeria
DeathBrenda Fassie, the South African singer known as 'Madonna of the Townships', died.
Sources: South African History Online ; The Guardian
Death