[4] With the rise of the Solomonic Dynasty in 1270 under Emperor Yekuno Amlak in Bete Amhara near town Dessie around Lake Hayk (born in the Maqdalla region) and until the establishment of Gondar as the new imperial capital around 1600, the Debre-Birhan to Mekane-Selassie region was the primary seat of the roving Wolloye-Shewan emperors.

This period is most significant in the formation of the medieval Ethiopian state, the spread and consolidation of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity (following the example set by the Zagwe kings in preserving the Axumite heritage) and propagating to the core provinces (besides Tigray/Eritrea, and Lasta) of Bete Amhara, Gojjam, Begemder, northern Shewa, Gafat, and Damot[4] The region's recorded history, in fact, goes back to the early 13th century.

For example, St. George's Church in the town of Woreilu (whose Tabot is reputed to have been carried by Emperor Menelik at the Battle of Adwa) was established around 1200.

The parish of Mekane Selassie (መካነ ሥላሴ), near Neded and the home of the cathedral by the same name, served as a favourite royal playground.

This was a year before the church (along with a large number of monasteries in the region) was sacked and burned down in 1531 by the invasion led by Ahmad bin Ibrahim.

Francisco Alvarez, who had earlier visited the church, confirms that its size was some 150 feet by 150 feet — wholly covered in gold leaf, inlaid with gems, pearls and corals[5] After the social movements of 2014–2017, Amhara nationalism developed strongly in the region, with a discourse that includes both issues of power balance between elites and territorial claims.

Since August 2023, Fano militants and ENDF troops intermittently controlled most part of the region, leading to major human rights violations and subsequent state of emergency.

Since the outbreak of the war, the region experienced internal displacements, extrajudicial killings and extensive property damages.

[10] According to the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) reports, 45 civilians were killed in Amhara region by security forces for allegedly supporting Fano in late January 2024.

According to the Ethiopian government website, the Amhara Highlands receive 80% of Ethiopia’s total annual rainfall of and are the country's most fertile and climatically hospitable region.

In the early 17th century, according to a contemporaneous report by Manoel de Almeida, a Portuguese missionary, there were 21 islands, which he described as "formerly large, but now much diminished,” and seven or eight of them had monasteries on them.

[13] In the late 18th century, James Bruce visited the area and noted that, though the locals reported that there were 45 inhabited islands, he believed that "the number may be about eleven.

In the late 20th century, the scholar Paul B. Henze reported being shown a rock on the island of Tana Qirqos and being told it was where the Virgin Mary had rested during her journey back from Egypt.

He was also told that Saint Frumentius, the bishop known for introducing Christianity to Ethiopia, was "allegedly buried on Tana Cherqos.

The region contains Ethiopia's largest inland body of water Lake Tana, which is the source of the Blue Nile river.

Situated within the Semien Mountains, Ethiopia's highest peaks Ras Dashen reaches an elevation of (4,543 m (14,905 ft)).

The park is home to endangered species found nowhere else in the world,[18] examples of endemic fauna include the iconic walia ibex, the gelada baboon, and the Ethiopian wolf (or Simien fox) among others.

Lalibela and its medieval monolithic churches attracts by far the most number of pilgrims annually of any religious site in Ethiopia.

The Fasil Ghebbi consist of some twenty palaces, royal buildings, the royal library, a chancellery, a banqueting hall, stables for the horses, highly decorated churches, monasteries and unique public and private buildings that was built during the reign of several emperors in the Gondarine period.

[20] Based on the 2007 census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), the Amhara region has a population of 17,221,976.

Barley, corn, millet, wheat, sorghum, and teff, along with beans, peppers, chickpeas, and other vegetables, are the most important crops.