British Expedition to Abyssinia

It certainly wasn't WW2 tactics, but it looks like a fitting strategy at the height of the British Emprire, maintaining image is important when you are the dominant superpower:

> Harold G. Marcus described the action as "one of the most expensive affairs of honour in history.

Allowing an unpopular and weakly defended emperor hold hostages to ransom could set a dangerous precedent no?

"... while the native hostages had their hands and feet amputated before being thrown over the edge of the precipice surrounding the plateau."

Good old days when governments weren't afraid to take horrible leaders head on.

Odd how this 3D relates to music - see my other comment...

Even more apropos of nothing: it’s also used in a famous episode of MAS*H, “Abyssinia, Henry”.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abyssinia,_Henry

Hard to believe that re:definition is 21 years old

As far as I can tell dangerous sports seem more popular than ever so I'm not sure that is true (I've known a few people who had died in motorbike accidents and in the mountains so I may be biased).

Also, I'd go to Mars!

>i guarantee almost no one will sign up. because we value life now like in no other period in human history

Plenty of people will sign up.

That won't stop whoever floated the idea from being fired and dragged through the mud. The majority doesn't really care about this sort of thing. A subset of society thinks life is still cheap, or at least no so ungodly expensive that it must be protected at all costs. However, the people who think life is infinity expensive are loud, vocal and their viewpoint is a simple absolute that is easy to defend so the rest of society caters to them.

Edit: And before anyone implies otherwise, I am specifically not passing a value judgement on either side.

TIL: Queen Victoria truly was a Lady (not unlike the obviously idealized character of the BBC movie - IIRC it's called hagiography), and what could've otherwise been a massacre actually turned into a remarkable war expedition against the Emperor of Ethiopia Tewodros, who apparently was a dick. As a side note, the last of his successors (though fortunately not his descendant) claiming to be nothing less than King Solomon's heirs, was the man Bob Marley sang about, Ras Tafari! Incredible.

There is — of course — a relevant Flashman book

The Anglo-Egyptian conquest of Sudan was quite grandiose too.

Wondering if they would do the same for Hong Kong if mainlands breaks the pledge to not force changes until 2046? The costs would be incredible.

It is pointed out right at the beginning of the wikipedia article that the country was already in a state of civil war.

"By October 1862 Emperor Tewodros's position as ruler had become precarious: much of Ethiopia was in revolt against him, except for a small area stretching from Lake Tana east to his fortress at Magdala. "

I don't see how the issues were trumped up? And I don't see any foundation to the claim that the country was left in bloody civil war?

It seems to me that the expedition mainly succeeded because the country was already divided, and the British were able to barter cooperation from the vaious other fractions.