In 1865, Charles Tilstone Beke attempted to travel to Ethiopia to negotiate the release of a party of missionaries and British officials held captive by the emperor, Tewodros II.

Beke arrived at Massawa (now in Eritrea) and forwarded letters from the hostages’ families to the emperor in the hopes of achieving their release. These efforts made the emperor suspicious and following the receipt of a new set of demands, the British government arranged a military expedition to secure the release of the hostages. Beke had a good knowledge of Ethiopia from a previous mission to the country in 1840-3 and this book, printed in 1867, provides a brief history of the political situation and the treatment of European missions by Ethiopian authorities. Beke’s knowledge of the country was of much use to the Army and in 1868 he received an award of £500 in gratitude.

While the Ethiopian expedition was successful in securing the release of the hostages, it also resulted in the taking of valuable treasures, many of which ended up in the collections of major institutions in Britain.