After Adal’s decline in 1543, Portugal and the Pope sought to convert Ethiopia to Catholicism. Portugal claimed King Libne Dingil had promised conversion and a third of his kingdom in exchange for military help. Jesuit missionaries arrived to facilitate this mission. King Gelawdewos rejected Catholic conversion and criticized Jesuit criticisms of Orthodox practices. Portuguese attempts continued with Bishop Andre de Oviedo, who failed to convert Gelawdewos. After Gelawdewos’s death in 1559, Oviedo aligned with rebel leader Bahire Negash Yeshaq and later died in 1597.

In 1603, Bishop Pedro Paez arrived but faced resistance from new King Ze Dingil, who was suspected of secretly converting. Ze Dingil’s reign was marked by political strife and was cut short by his death in 1604. His successor, Ya`ekob, also faced opposition and was succeeded by Susinyos in 1607. Susinyos, influenced by Paez, converted to Catholicism in 1622 and made it the state religion. This led to widespread rebellion due to the forced conversion and bans on Orthodox practices. By 1632, recognizing the failure to suppress opposition and lacking promised Portuguese support, Susinyos abdicated in favor of his son Fasiledes. Fasiledes restored Orthodox Christianity and expelled Jesuit missionaries. He established a closed-door policy to prevent European interference, which lasted until the early 19th century. During this period, only two Europeans—Charles Jaques Poncet and James Bruce—visited the Ethiopian court.