The Federation of Ethiopia and Eritrea or Ethiopian–Eritrean Federation[3] was a federation of the Ethiopian Empire and the autonomous province of Eritrea, which was the former Italian Colony of Eritrea after it had been relinquished by Italy during a period of British military administration during and after World War II. It was created by the approval of the Federal Act in Ethiopia and the Eritrean Constitution on 15 September 1952. After the beginning of the Eritrean War of Independence in 1961, following pressure from Haile Selassie I on the Eritrean Assembly,[4][3] the federation was officially dissolved and the autonomy of Eritrea withdrawn.