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Coffe and the History of Ethiopia

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The popularity of coffee began with its introduction to Europe in the 17th century, a time when colonialism had brought many resources to countries like France and Britain. In Europe, coffee was a delicious beverage, and was very inexpensive due to the monopoly of coffee imports from colonized to colonizer. But while tea was still the preferred choice in North America, an increasingly higher tax on America’s favorite beverage led to the Boston Tea Party. Tea forever came to be known for the British oppressor, and coffee became as popular in the U.S. as it was in Europe. The popularity of coffee remained because the colonies in Africa were required to export all precious resources to Europe. Despite the history of exploitation of resources in many African countries, the coffee industry in Ethiopia has thrived, taking a product that is in high demand and creating a stable economy, leading to the improvement of its citizen’s economic prosperity. This is because Ethiopia was one of the few areas not colonized by European powers, letting it avoid the consequences of colonialism and focus on the development of a country.
Since the beginning of imperialism, Ethiopia has stood apart from other African nations. Being one of the only two countries in Africa that had not been colonized, Ethiopia had great potential to thrive without the distraction of foreign powers. In 1896 Ethiopia defeated Italy at the Battle of Adwa, which remains famous today as the first victory of an African

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