Retreat to Lake Ashenge

Ethiopian retreat attempt on Lake Ashenge
Part of the Second Italo-Ethiopian War
Maychew Lake Ashenge Location of Lake Ashenge and Maychew in Ethiopia
Date 3–5 April 1936 (2 days) Location Lake Ashenge, near Maychew, Tigray, Ethiopia Result Italian victory Ethiopian retreat to Lake Ashenge failed The Ethiopians flee with heavy casualties and their army is routed
Belligerents
Kingdom of Italy	Ethiopian Empire
Commanders and leaders
Pietro Badoglio Ruggero Santini Alessandro Biroli Gustavo Pesenti Aviation support: Vincenzo Magliocco	Haile Selassie Ras Kassa Ras Seyoum Ras Getachew
Units involved
Regio Corpo Truppe Coloniali 5th Alpine Division "Pusteria" 1st Eritrean Division 2nd Eritrean Division	Defense Force of Ethiopia
Strength
30,000 men and 150 aircraft	Around 20,000 men
Casualties and losses
15 dead and 31 wounded	Around 3,000 dead

The Battle of Lake Ashenge, also called the Retreat of Lake Ashenge, was a skirmish that occurred during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War between the Italian army and the Ethiopian troops. The battle was not essentially a head-on clash between two armies, but rather a pursuit that the Italian troops carried out against the Imperial Army defeated in the previous Battle of Maychew. In this battle, the contribution of the Regia Aeronautica was decisive as it decimated the Ethiopian troops on the shores of Lake Ashenge, effectively causing the dissolution of the last army of the northern front.