UNIT ONE

INTRODUCTION (3 hours)
1.1. The Nature and Uses of History
A. Nature of History

The term history derived from the Greek word Istoria, meaning “inquiry” or “an account of
one‟s inquiries.” The first use of the term is attributed to one of the ancient Greek historians,
Herodotus (c. 484–425 B.C.E.), who is often held to be the “father of history.” In ordinary usage,
history means all the things that have happened in the human past. The past signifies events,
which have taken place and the facts of the past, which are kept in writing. More specifically, the
distinction is between what actually happened in the past or that part which exists independently
of the historian and still waits to be recorded and the accounts of the past provided by historians,
that is, „history‟. Historians apply their expertise to surviving records and write history in the
form of accounts of the past.

Academically, history can be defined as an organized and systematic study of the past. The
study involves the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past
events. Evidently, what actually happened in the past is almost infinite. Historians select which
topics and problems they wish to study, as do natural scientists. In this regard, the major concern
of history is the study of human society and its interaction with the natural environment, which is
also the subject of study by many other disciplines.

What differentiates history from other disciplines is that while the latter study the interaction
between humans and their environment in the present state, history studies the interaction
between the two in the past within the framework of the continuous process of change taking
place in time. Because of the longevity of that time, historians organize and divide the human
past into discrete periods after identifying significant developments in politics, society, economy,
culture, environment etc. through the rigorous study of documents and artifacts left by people of
other times and other places. Then they give a label to each period to convey the key
characteristics and developments of that era. Accordingly, history is conventionally divided into
ancient, medieval and modern history. This is what we call periodization in history; one of the
key characteristics of the discipline.
When historians talk about continuities or persisting patterns, they are not implying that a
particular pattern applied to everyone in the world or even in a particular country or region. Nor
are they claiming that absolutely nothing changed in the pattern they are describing. All aspects
of human life that is, social, cultural, economic, and political in the past have been changing
from time to time; and none of them were practiced in exactly the same way in the lifetime of
our ancestors. Nevertheless, some things stay more or less the same for long periods, since few
things ever change completely. For example, we continue to speak the languages of our
ancestors; follow their beliefs and religious practices; wear the costumes they were wearing;
continue to practice their agricultural or pastoral ways of life; maintain the fundamental
components or structures of their social organization. In the same vein, the basic fabric of society
in Ethiopia and the Horn remains similar and continues to have special characteristics.

B. Uses of History
Peoples live in the present and plan for and worry about the future. History, however, is the study
of the past. Why bother with the past while living in the present and anticipating what is yet to
come? This section discusses the uses of history in the context of the relationship between the
past and the present.

History Helps Better Understand the Present

History is the only significant storehouse of information available for the examination and
analysis of how people behaved and acted in the past. People need to produce some sort of
account of their past because it is difficult to understand problems that face humanity and society
today without tracing their origins in the past. Put differently, knowledge of relevant historical
background is essential for a balanced and in-depth understanding of many current world
situations.

History Provides a Sense of Identity

Knowledge of history is indispensable to understand who we are and where we fit in the world.
As memory is to the individual, history is to the society. An individual without memory finds
great difficulty in relating to others and making intelligent decisions. A society without history
would be in similar condition. It is only through sense of history that communities define their
identity, orient themselves, and understand their relationships with the past and with other
societies.
History Provides the Basic Background for Other Disciplines
Historical knowledge is extremely valuable in the pursuit of other disciplines such as literature,
art, philosophy, religion, sociology, political science, anthropology, economics, etc.
History Teaches Critical Skills
Studying history helps students to develop key research skills. These include how to find and
evaluate sources; how to make coherent arguments based on various kinds of evidence and
present clearly in writing. These analytical and communication skills are highly usable in other
academic pursuits. Gaining skills in sorting through diverse interpretations is also essential to
make informed decisions in our day-to-day life.

History Helps Develop Tolerance and Open-Mindedness

Most of us have a tendency to regard our own cultural practices, styles, and values as right and
proper. Studying different societies in the past is like going to a foreign country, which
contributes to free ourselves from some of our inherent cultural provincialism. By studying the
past, students of history acquire broad perspectives that give them the range and flexibility
required in many life situations.

History Supplies Endless Source of Fascination

Exploring the ways people in distant ages constructed their lives offers a sense of beauty and
excitement, and ultimately another perspective on human life and society. To conclude, history
should be studied because it is essential to the individual and the society. Only through studying
history can we grasp how and why things change; and only through history are we able
understand what elements of a society persist despite change. Aesthetic and humanistic goals
also inspire people to study the past, far removed from present-day utility. Nevertheless, just as
history can be useful, it can also be abused. Such abuses come mainly from deliberate
manipulation of the past to fit current political agenda. In such cases, history is written
backwards. That is, the past is described and interpreted to justify the present. While personal
biases are not always avoidable, a historian is different from a propagandist in that the former
takes care to document his judgment and assertions so that they can be subjected to independent
and external verification. That said, how do historians study and interpret the past and the
changes that took place in periods during which they have not lived?
1.2. Sources and Methods of Historical Study
Historians are not creative writers like novelists. Therefore, the work of historians must be
supported by evidence arising from sources. Sources are instruments that bring to life what
appear to have been dead. It is said that “where there are no sources, there is no history”. Sources
are, therefore, key to the study and writing of history. Historical sources are broadly classified
into two types: Primary and Secondary. Primary sources are surviving traces of the past available
to us in the present. They are original or first hand in their proximity to the event both in time
and in space.

Examples of primary sources are manuscripts (handwritten materials), diaries, letters, minutes,
court records and administrative files, travel documents, photographs, maps, video and
audiovisual materials, and artifacts such as coins, fossils, weapons, utensils, and buildings.
Secondary sources, on the other hand, are second-hand published accounts about past events.
They are written long after the event has occurred, providing an interpretation of what happened,
why it happened, and how it happened, often based on primary sources. Examples of secondary
sources are articles, books, textbooks, biographies, and published stories or movies about
historical events. Secondary materials give us what appear to be finished accounts of certain
historical periods and phenomena. Nevertheless, no history work can be taken as final, as new
sources keep coming to light. New sources make possible new historical interpretations or
entirely new historical reconstructions.

Oral data constitute the other category of historical sources. Oral sources are especially
valuableto study and document the history of non-literate societies. They can also be used to fill
missing gaps and corroborate written words. In many societies, people transmit information from
one generation to another, for example, through folk songs and folk sayings. This type of oral
data is called oral tradition. People can also provide oral testimonies or personal recollections of
lived experience. Such source material is known as oral history.

For the history of Ethiopia and the Horn, historians use a combination of the sources described
above. However, whatever the source of information-primary or secondary, written or oral- the
data should be subjected to critical evaluation before it is used as evidence. Primary sources have
to be verified for their originality and authenticity because sometimes primary sources like letters
may be forged. Secondary sources have to be examined for the reliability of their
reconstructions. Oral data may lose its originality and authenticity due to distortion through time.
Therefore, it should be crosschecked with other sources such as written documents to determine
its veracity or authenticity. In short, historians (unlike novelists) must find evidence about the
past, ask questions of that evidence, and come up with explanations that make sense of what the
evidence says about the people, events, places and time periods they study about.

1.3. Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn

Historiography can be defined as the history of historical writing, studying how knowledge of
the past, either recent or distant, is obtained and transmitted. People have had some sense of the
past perhaps since the beginning of humanity. Yet historiography as an intentional attempt to
understand and represent descriptions of past events in writing has rather a briefer career
throughout the world. The organized study and narration of the past was introduced by ancient
Greek historians notably Herodotus (c. 484–425 B.C.E.) and Thucydides (c.455-400 B.C.E.) The
other major tradition of thinking and writing about the past is the Chinese. The most important
early figure in Chinese historical thought and writing was the Han dynasty figure Sima Qian
(145–86 B.C.E.).

Despite such early historiographical traditions, history emerged as an academic discipline in the
second half of the nineteenth century first in Europe and subsequently in other parts of the world
including the US. The German historian, Leopold Von Ranke (1795–1886), and his colleagues
established history as an independent discipline in Berlin with its own set of methods and
concepts by which historians collect evidence of past events, evaluate that evidence, and present
in a meaningful discussion of the subject. Ranke‟s greatest contribution to the scientific study of
the past is such that he isconsidered as the “father of modern historiography.”

Historiography of Ethiopia and the Horn has changed enormously during the past hundred years
in ways that merit fuller treatment than can be afforded here. This section is devoted to exploring
significant transformations in historical writing. In order to appreciate twentieth century
historiography of the region, it is first necessary to examine earlier forms of historiography
(historical writing). The earliest known reference that we have on history of Ethiopia and the
Horn is the Periplus of the Erythrean Sea, written in the firstcenturyA.D by an anonymous
author. Another document describing Aksum‟s trade and the thenAksumite king‟s campaigns on
both sides of the sea is the Christian Topography composed by Cosmas Indicopleustes, a Greek
sailor, in the sixth century A.D. Inscriptions aside, the earliest written Ethiopian material dates
from the seventh century A.D. The document was found in Abba Gerima monastery in Yeha.
This was followed by a manuscript discovered in Haiq Istifanos monastery of present day Wollo
in the thirteenth century A.D. The value of manuscripts is essentially religious. Yet, for
historians, they have the benefit of providing insights into the country‟s past. For example, the
manuscript cited above contains the list of medieval kings and their history in brief. The largest
groups of sources available for medieval Ethiopian history are hagiographies originating from
Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Invariably written in Ge‟ez, an important function of hagiographies
is enhancing the prestige of saints. Yet other related anecdotes are also introduced, and often
discussed in detail such as the development of the church and the state including territorial
conquests by reigning monarchs. A parallel hagiographical tradition existed among Muslim
communities of the country. One such account offers tremendous insight into the life of a
Muslim saint, Shaykh Ja‟far Bukko of Gattira, in present day Wollo,in the late nineteenth
century. Besides the saint‟s life, the development of indigenous Islam and contacts between the
region‟s Muslim community and the outside world are some of the issues discussed in this
document.

Ethiopia had also an indigenous tradition of history writing called chronicles. Chronicles in
the ancient Ethiopian Ge‟ez tongue first appeared in the fourteenth century and continue
(sometimes in Amharic) into the early twentieth century. Kings or their successors entrusted the
writing of chronicles to court scribes or clergymen of recognized clerical training and
calligraphic skills. The earliest and the last of such surviving documents are the Glorious
Victories of Amde-Tsion and the Chronicle of Abeto Iyasu and Empress Zewditu respectively.
Chronicles incorporate both legends and facts-past and contemporary about the monarch‟s
genealogy, upbringing, military exploits, piety and statesmanship. Chronicles are known for their
factual detail and strong chronological framework, even if it would require considerable labor to
convert their relative chronology to an absolute one. They are also averse to quantification.
Furthermore, chronicles explain historical events mainly in religious terms; they offer little by
way of social and economic developments even in the environs of the palace. However, in
conjunction with other varieties of written documents, such as hagiographies and travel accounts
by foreign observers, chronicles can provide us with a glimpse into the character and lives of
kings, their preoccupations and relations with subordinate officials and, though inadequately, the
evolution of the Ethiopian state and society. Written accounts of Arabic-speaking visitors to the
coast also provide useful information on various aspects of the region‟s history. For example, al-
Masudi and Ibn Battuta described the culture, language and import-export trade in the main
central region of the east African coast in the tenth and in the fourteenth centuries respectively.
For the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries we have two documents composed by Yemeni
writers who were eyewitnesses to the events they described. The first document titled Futuh al
Habesha was composed by Shihab ad-Din, who recorded the conflict between the Christian
kingdom and the Muslim principalities in the sixteenth century. Besides the operation of the war
including the conquest of northern and central Ethiopia by Imam Ahmed ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi,
the document describes major towns and their inhabitants in the southeastern part of Ethiopia,
although the discussion abruptly ends in 1535. The other first-hand account was left to us by Al-
Haymi, who led a Yemeni delegation in 1647 to the court of Fasiledes (r. 1632-67).

Other materials that appeared in the sixteenth century include Abba Bahrey‟s Geez script on the
Oromo written in 1593. Notwithstanding its limitations, the document provides us with first-hand
information about the Oromo population movement including the Gadaa System. The
contribution of European missionaries and travelers to the development of Ethiopian
historiography is also significant. From the early sixteenth until the late nineteenth centuries,
missionaries (Catholics and Protestants) came to the country with the intention of staying, and
who, nevertheless, maintained intimate links with Europe. Thus, the missionaries‟ sources
provide us with valuable information covering a considerable period. Some of the major topics
covered by these sources include religious and political developments within Ethiopia, and the
country‟s foreign relations. An example of such account is The Prester
John of the Indies, composed by a Portuguese priest, Francisco Alvarez who accompanied the
Portuguese mission to the court of Lebne-Dengel in 1520. In addition to the missionary sources,
travel documents had important contribution to the development of Ethiopian historiography.
One example of travel documents is James Bruce‟s Travels to Discover the
Source of the Nile. Like other sources, however, both the missionaries and travelers‟ materials
can only be used with considerable reservations and with care for they are socially and politically
biased. Foreign writers also developed interest in Ethiopian studies. One of these figures was a
German, Hiob Ludolf (1624-1704). Ludolf was the founder of Ethiopian studies in Europe in the
seventeenth century. He wrote Historia Aethiopica (translated into English as A New
History of Ethiopia). Ludolf never visited Ethiopia; he wrote the country‟s history largely based
on information he collected from an Ethiopian priest named Abba Gorgorios (Abba Gregory)
who was in Europe at that time. In the nineteenth century, August Dillman published two studies
on ancient Ethiopian history. Compared to Ludolf, Dillman demonstrated all markers of
objectivity in his historical research endeavors. Historical writing made some departures from
the chronicle tradition in the early twentieth century. This period saw the emergence of
traditional Ethiopian writers who made conscious efforts to distance themselves from chroniclers
whom they criticized for adulatory tone when writing about monarchs. The earliest group of
these writers include Aleqa Taye Gebre Mariam, Aleqa Asme Giorgis and Debtera Fisseha-
Giorgis Abyezgi. Later, Negadrases Afework Gebre-Iyesus and Gebre-Hiwot Baykedagn joined
them. Unlike chroniclers, these writers dealt with a range of topics from social justice,
administrative reform and economic analysis to history. Taye and Fisseha-Giorgis wrote books
on the history of Ethiopia while Asme produced a similar work on the Oromo people.
Notwithstanding his other works, Afework wrote the first Amharic novel, Tobiya, in Ethiopian
history, while Gebre-Hiwot has Atse Menilekna Ityopia (Emperor Menilek and Ethiopia) and
Mengistna Yehizb Astedader (Government and Public Administration) to his name. The most
prolific writer of the early twentieth century Ethiopia was, however, Blatten Geta Hiruy Wolde-
Selassie. Hiruy published four major works namely Ethiopiana Metema (Ethiopia and Metema),
Wazema (Eve), Yehiwot Tarik (A Biographical Dictionary) and Yeityopia Tarik (A History of
Ethiopia). In contrast to their predecessors, Gebre-Hiwot and Hiruy exhibited relative objectivity
and methodological sophistication in their works. Unfortunately, the Italian occupation of
Ethiopia interrupted the early experiment in modern history writing and publications. After
liberation, Tekle-Tsadik Mekuria formed a bridge between writers in pre-1935 and Ethiopia
professional historians who came after him. Tekle-Tsadik has published about eight historical
works. Tekle-Tsadik made better evaluation of his sources than his predecessors. Another work
of importance in this period is Yilma Deressa‟s Ye Ityopiya Tarik Be’asraSidistegnaw Kifle
Zemen (A History of Ethiopia in the Sixteenth Century). The book addresses the Oromo
population movement and the wars between the Christian kingdom and the Muslim sultanates as
its main subjects. Blatten Geta Mahteme-Selassie Wolde-Meskel also contributed his share.
Among others, he wrote Zikre Neger. Zikre Neger is a comprehensive account of Ethiopia‟s
prewar land tenure systems and taxation. Another work dealing specifically with aspects of land
tenure is left to us by Gebre-Wold Engidawork. Another writer of the same category was
Dejazmach Kebede Tesema. Kebede wrote his memoir of the imperial period, published as
Yetarik Mastawesha in 1962 E.C

The 1960s was a crucial decade in the development of Ethiopian historiography for it was in this
period that history emerged as an academic discipline. The pursuit of historical studies as a full-
time occupation began with the opening of the Department of History in 1963 at the then Haile
Selassie I University (HSIU). The production of BA theses began towards the end of the decade.
The Department launched its MA and PhD programs in 1979 and 1990 respectively. Since then
researches by faculty (both Ethiopians and expatriates) and students have been produced on
various topics. Although mainly a research organization, the Institute of Ethiopian Studies (IES)
is the other institutional home of professional historiography of Ethiopia. The IES was founded
in 1963. Since then the Institute housed a number of historians of whom the late Richard
Pankhurst, the first Director and founding member of the Institute is worthy of note here.
Pankhurst‟s prolific publication record remains unmatched. He has authored or co-authored
twenty-two books and produced several hundred articles on Ethiopia. Since its foundation, the
IES has been publishing the Journal of Ethiopian Studies for the dissemination of historical
research. The Institute‟s library contains literary works of diverse disciplines and has its fair
share in the evolution of professional historiography of Ethiopia.

The professionalization of history in other parts of the Horn is a post-colonial phenomenon. With
the establishment of independent nations, a deeper interest in exploring their own past quickly
emerged among African populations, perhaps stimulated by reactions to decades of education in
an alien imperial historiography. With this came an urgent need to recast the historical record
and to recover evidence of many lost pre-colonial civilizations. The decolonization of African
historiography required new methodological approach (tools of investigation) to the study of the
past that involved a critical use of oral data and tapping the percepts of ancillary disciplines like
archeology, anthropology and linguistics. At the same time, European intellectuals‟ own
discomfort with the Euro-centrism of previous scholarship provided for the intensive academic
study of African history, an innovation that had spread to North America by the 1960s.
Foundational research was done at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London
and the Department of History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Francophone scholars
have been as influential as Anglophones. Yet African historiography has not been the sole
creation of interested Europeans. African universities have, despite the instabilities of politics
and civil war in many areas, trained their own scholars and sent many others overseas for
training who eventually published numerous works on different aspects of the region‟s history.

1.4. The Geographical Context

The term “Ethiopia and the Horn” refers to that part of Northeast Africa, which now contains the
countries of Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia. The region consists chiefly of mountains
uplifted through the formation of the Great Rift Valley. The Rift Valley is a fissure in the Earth‟s
crust running down from Syria to Mozambique and marking the separation of the African and
Arabian tectonic plates. The major physiographic features of the region are a massive highland
complex of mountains and plateaus divided by the Great Rift Valley and surrounded by
lowlands, semi-desert, deserts and tropical forests along the periphery. The diversity of the
terrain led to regional variations in climate, natural vegetation, soil composition, and settlement
patterns. As with the physical features, people across the region are remarkably diverse: they
speak a vast number of different languages, profess too many distinct religions, live in various
types of dwellings, and engage in a wide range of economic activities. At the same time,
however, peoples of the region were never isolated; they interacted throughout history from
various locations.

Thus, as much as there are many factors that make people of a certain area unique from the other,
there are also many areas in which peoples of Ethiopia and the Horn share common past. The
history of Ethiopia and the Horn has been shaped by contacts with others through commerce,
migrations, wars, slavery, colonialism, and the waxing and waning of state systems. Yet, the
evolution of human history owed much too geographical factors notably location, landforms,
resource endowment, climate and drainage systems which continue to impact, as incentives and
deterrents, the movement of people and goods in the region.

In this section, we will study the impact that the region‟s geography has on the way people live
and organize themselves into societies. Spatial location in relationship to other spaces and
locations in the world is one geographical factor that has significant bearing on the ways in
which history unfolds. Ethiopia and the Horn lies between the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Indian
Ocean on the one hand, and the present-day eastern frontiers of Sudan and Kenya on the other.
Since early times, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden linked Northeast Africa to the Eastern
Mediterranean, the Near and Middle East, India, and the Far East. Likewise, the Indian Ocean
has linked East Africa to the Near and Middle East, India and the Far East.

Another element of geographical factor that had profound impact on human history is drainage
system. Ethiopia and the Horn has five principal drainage systems. These are the Nile River,
Gibe/Omo–Gojeb, Genale/Jubba-Shebele, the Awash River, and the Ethiopian Rift Valley Lake
systems. Flowing from Uganda in the south to the Sudan in the north, the White Nile meets the
Blue Nile (Abay in Ethiopia that starts from the environs of Tana Lake) in Khartoum and
eventually, drains into the Mediterranean Sea through Egypt. The Awash River System is
entirely confined to Ethiopia and links the cool rich highlands of Central Ethiopia with the hot,
dry lowlands of the Danakil Depression. The Ethiopian Rift Valley Lakes System is a self-
contained drainage basin, and includes a string of lakes stretching from Lake Ziway in the north
to Lake Turkana (formerly known as Rudolf) on the EthioKenyan border. The Gibe /Omo–Gojeb
River System links southern Ethiopia to the semidesert lowlands of northern Kenya. The Shebele
and Genale rivers originate in the Eastern highlands and flow southeast toward Somalia and the
Indian Ocean. Only the Genale (known as the Jubba in Somalia) makes it to the Indian Ocean;
the Shebele disappears in sand just inside the coastline.

Ethiopia and the Horn can be divided into three major distinct environmental zones. The vast
Eastern lowland covers the narrow coastal strip of northeastern Eritrea, widens gradually and
descends southwards to include much of lowland Eritrea, the Sahel, the Danakil Depression, the
lower Awash valley, and the arid terrain in northeast of the Republic of Djibouti. It then extends
to the Ogaden, the lower parts of Hararghe, Bale, Borana, Sidamo and the whole territory of the
Republic of Somalia.

There is no much seasonal variation in climatic condition in this zone. Hot and dry conditions
prevail year-round along with periodic monsoon winds and irregular (little) rainfall except in
limited areas along the rivers Awash, Wabe-Shebele and Genale/Jubba that traverse the region
and a few offshore islands in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean that are inhabited by
people closely related to those of immediate mainland districts. Much of the lowland territories
are covered by shrub and bush as its major vegetation.
Immediately to the west of and opposite to the eastern lowland region forms the highland massif
that starts from northern Eritrea and continues all the way to southern Ethiopia. The eastern
extension of the highland massif consists the Arsi, Bale and Hararghe plateau. The major divide
between the western and eastern parts of this zone is the Rift Valley. The major physiographic
features of the zone are complex of mountains, deep valleys, and extensive plateauFurther to the
west, along the western foothills or on the periphery of the plateau and on borderlands of the
Sudan stretching from north to south are hot lowlands that were characterized in earlier times by
thick forests chiefly on the banks of the Nile and its tributaries. Despite the varied physical
environments discussed above, the countries of the Horn of Africa are, for the most part,
linguistically and ethnically linked together as far back as recorded history goes. Population
movements had caused a continuous process of interaction, creating a very complex picture of
settlement patterns. The high degree of interaction and the long common history of much of the
population had weakened ethnic dividing lines in large parts of the region. Linguistic and
cultural affinities are therefore as important as ethnic origin in the grouping of the population.
 UNIT TWO
PEOPLES AND CULTURES IN ETHIOPIA AND THE HORN (4 hours)

2.1. Human Evolution

Human evolution accounts only a fraction of history of the globe that had been formed through
gradual natural process since about (circa/c.) 4. 5 billion years before present (B. P.) The earliest
into
life came being between 3 and 1 billion years B. P. Blue green algae, small plants, fishes,
birds and other small beings emerged at c. 800 million years B. P. Primates branched of placental
mammal stream as of 200-170 million years B. P. and then some primates developed into
Pongidae (such as gorilla, chimpanzee, orangutan, gibbon etc) while others evolved into
Hominidae (human ancestors). Archeological evidences suggest that East African Rift Valley is
the cradle of humanity. Evidences related to both biological and cultural evolution have been
discovered in the Lower Omo and Middle Awash River valleys both by Ethiopian and foreign
scholars. A fossil named Chororapithecus dated 10 million B. P. was unearthed in Anchar (in
West Hararghe) in 2007. Ardipithicus ramidus kadabba (dated 5.8-5.2 million years BP) was
discovered in Middle Awash. Ardipithicus ramidus (dated 4. 2 million B.P.) was discovered at
Aramis in Afar in 1994. Other Australopithecines were uncovered at Belohdelie (dated back 3.6
million years B. P.) in Middle Awash. A three years old child‟s fossil named as Australopithecus
afarensis, Selam, dated to 3.3 million years B.P was also discovered at Dikika, Mille, Afar in
2000. Another Australopithecus afarnesis (Lucy/Dinkinesh, dated c. 3.18 million years B. P.)
with 40% complete body parts, weight 30kg, height 1.07 meters with a pelvis looks like bipedal
female was discovered at Hadar in Afar in 1974 A. D.

Fossil named Australopithecus anamensis was discovered around Lake Turkana. An eco-fact
named as Australopithecus garhi (means surprise in Afar language) dated to 2.5 million years
B.P was discovered at Bouri, Middle Awash, between 1996 and 1999.

The development of the human brain was the main feature of the next stage of human evolution,
which produced the genus Homo, believed to have emerged 2-2.5 million years B.P. Different
evidences of the genus homo have been recovered in different parts of Ethiopia and the Horn. A
partial skull of a fossil named as Homo habilis, which is derived from Latin terms "Homo"
(human being) and "Habilis" (skillful use of hands), dated 1.9 million years B. P. has been found
in the Lower Omo. A fossil named Homo erectus (walking upright, dated 1. 6 million years B.
P.) was discovered at Melka Kunture, Konso Gardula and Gadeb with 900-1100 cc brain size.

Homo erectus seems to have originated in Africa and then spread out to the rest of the world.
Skeleton of Archaic Homosapiens (knowledgeable human being, dated 400, 000 years B.P.)
named Bodo with brain size of 1300-1400cc was discovered in Middle Awash. Fossils of Homo
sapiens sapiens (100, 000 years B.P.) were discovered at Porc Epic near Dire Dawa, and Kibish
around Lower Omo (in 1967). In 2004, Kibish fossils were re-dated to 195, 000 B. P, the oldest
date in the world for modern Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens idaltu, found in Middle Awash in
1997, lived about 160, 000 years B.P.

Cultural evolution is related to technological changes that brought socio-economic

transformation on human life. It can be conventionally grouped in to Stone Age, Bronze Age and
Iron Age. Stone tools had been the first technologies to be developed by human beings. By
taking their features, ways and period of production, stone tools can be grouped in to Mode I
(Olduwan, which was named based on the first report made at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania), Mode
II (Acheulean, named after the first report at St. Acheul, France) and Mode III (Sangoon). The
Mode I stone tools are mainly characterized by crude and mono-facial styles, and were produced
by the direct percussion. Mode II stone tools were produced by indirect percussion, by using
hand-ax or hammer, and mainly characterized by bifacial, pointed and convex features. Mode III
stone tools are characterized by flexible and fine form of production by the use of obsidian.

Examples of the above types of stone tools have been found in Ethiopia and the Horn. Fossilized
animal bones (3. 4 million years B. P.) were found with stone-tool-inflicted marks on them (the
oldest evidence of stone tool in the world) at Dikika in 2010. Artifact findings suggest that
Olduwan tools made and used by Homo habilis were discovered near Gona (dated 2.52 million
years B.P. in 1992) and at Shungura in Afar. Homo erectus produced Acheulean tools dated back
to 1.7.million years B.P, invented fire and started burial practice. Acheulian tools (over a million
years old) were found at Kella, Middle Awash in 1963. Homo sapiens produced Sangoon tools
that trace back up to 300,000 years B. P. Gademotta site in central Ethiopian Rift Valley has
been dated back to 200, 000 B. P. Other sites such as Gorgora, Ki‟one and Yabello in Ethiopia
and Midhidhishi and Gudgud in Somalia have offered noteworthy information about Stone Age
communities.
The period of usage of stone tools is divided into sub-periods. The first, the Paleolithic (Old
Stone Age, from 3.4 million to 11, 000 years B. P.) was the period when human being sheltered
in caves, developed language, and used stone , bone, wood, furs, and skin materials to prepare
food and clothing. There was sex-age labor division with able-bodied males as hunters of fauna,
and children and females as gatherers of flora. Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age /11, 000-10,000 B.
P.) was transition between Paleolithic and Neolithic (New Stone Age /10, 000-6, 000 B.P).

2.2. Neolithic Revolution

During the Neolithic period human beings transformed from mobile to sedentary way of life.
This was a radical shift involving changes from hunting and gathering to the domestication of
plants and animals. Climatic change and increased hunter-gatherers‟ population resulted in the
declining number of animals and availability of plants. As food gatherers were already aware of
growing cycle of most grass types, they began to grow those, which were most common and
yielded seeds that are more edible. The big animals, which depended on dense bushes for
sustenance, were reduced by hunting, while smaller animals that were easy to domesticate were
easily domesticated and animals that people were able to domesticate easily were smaller ones.

The process of domestication took place independently in the various parts of the world. In
Ethiopia and the Horn chiefly in the more elevated and wetter-parts, people cultivated plants
including Teff (Eragrotis teff), dagussa (Eleusine coracana), nug (Guzotia abyssinica), enset
(Ensete ventricosum) etc. The domestication of enset plant (Ensete edule) reduced shifting
cultivation (continuous clearing of new plots), slowing down soil exhaustion. The discovery of
polished axes, ceramics, grinding stones, beads, stone figures and animal remains in sites like
Emba-Fakeda around Adigrat in Tigray as well as Aqordat and Barentu in Eritrea evinces the
existence of Neolithic material culture. The Gobodara rock shelter near Aksum has provided us
agricultural stone tools. Remains associated with domesticated cattle, chickpeas and vegetables
have been excavated from Lalibela Cave on the southeastern shore of Lake Tana. Stone tools
used for cutting grass and grass like plants as well as rock paintings of domesticated animals
have been found at Laga Oda rock shelter near Charchar. Evidence for domesticated cattle also
comes from around Lake Basaqa near Matahara. Playa Napata and Kado in the Sudan, Cyrenaica
in Libya and Futajalon in West Africa were among known places of domestication of animals
like Nidamawa and Zebu (Bos indicus) cattle that in due course expanded to Ethiopia and the
Horn.

2.3. The Peopling of the Region

2.3.1. Languages and Linguistic Processes
Ethiopia and the Horn in general is marked by ethnic and linguistic diversity. There are about 90
languages with 200 dialects in Ethiopia and the Horn. Beneath this apparent diversity, there is
some degree of unity. Linguists classify languages of Ethiopia and the Horn into two major
language super families. These are Afro-Asiatic and Nilo-Saharan.

A.Afro-Asiatic: this super family is sub-divided into the following families:

Cushitic: linguists divided this language family into four branches:
 Northern: is represented by Beja, spoken in northwestern Eritrea bordering the Sudan.
 Central: Agaw includes Awign, Kunfel, Qimant; Hamtanga and Bilen.
 Eastern: this includes diversified linguistic groups like Afar, Ale, Arbore, Baiso, Burji,
Darashe, Dasanech, Gedeo, Hadiya, Halaba, Kambata, Konso, Libido, Mosiye, Oromo, Saho,
Sidama, Somali, Tambaro, Tsemai, etc.
 Southern: represented by Dhalo in Kenya and Nbugua in Tanzania.

 Semitic: is divided into two:

 North: Ge'ez, Rashaida (spoken around Eritrea-Sudanese border); Tigre (spoken in Eritrean
Lowland); Tigrigna (spoken in highland Eritrea and Tigray).
South: is further divided into two
 Transverse: Amharic, Argoba, Harari, Silte, Wolane and Zay.
 Outer: Gafat (extinct), Gurage and Mesmes (endangered).
 Omotic: Anfillo, Ari, Banna, Basketo, Bench, Boro-Shinasha, Chara, Dawuro, Dime, Dizi,
Gamo, Gofa, Hamer, Karo, Keficho, Konta, Korete, Male, Melo, Oyda, Sezo, Shekkacho,
Sheko, Wolayta, Yem, Zayse etc.

B. Nilo-Saharan: Anywa, Berta, Gumuz, Kacipo-Balesi, Komo, Kunama, Kwama, Kwegu,

Majang, Mi'en, Murle, Mursi, Nara, Nu‟er, Nyangatom, Opo, Shabo, Suri and Uduk. Language
classification did not remain static. Factors like population movements, warfare, trade, religious
and territorial expansion, urbanization etc. have resulted in intense linguistic processes that
forced languages to be affected. In this process, some languages died out or have been in danger
of extinction while others thrived over time.

2.3.2. Settlement Patterns

A settlement pattern, the distribution of peoples across the landscape, is the results of long
historical processes in northeast Africa. In some areas, settlement was dense and in other areas
sparse. Some people inhabited extensive highlands and others the lowlands. Based on historical
linguistic and history of inter-peoples relations, studies indicate that environmental, socio-
economic, and political processes significantly shaped and reshaped the spatial distribution of
peoples in the region.

Since early times, the Cushitic and Semitic peoples had inhabited the area between the Red Sea
in the east and Blue Nile in the west from where they dispersed to different directions. In due
course, the Cushites have evolved to be the largest linguistic group in Ethiopia and the Horn and
have also spread over wide areas from Sudan to Tanzania. Similarly, the Semitic peoples spread
over large area and eventually settled the northern, north central, northeastern, south central and
eastern parts of Ethiopia and the Horn. The Semites are the second majority people next to the
Cushites. Except the Shinasha, who live in Benishangul-Gumuz and the South Mao in Wallagga,
the majority of Omotic peoples have inhabited southwestern Ethiopia along the Omo River
basin. Yet, in the earlier times, they had extended much further to the north. In the west, the
Nilotes are largely settled along the Ethiopia-Sudanese border although some of the Chari-Nile
family inhabited as far as southern Omo. The latter are identified as the Karamojo cluster living
around Turkana Lake along Ethio-Kenyan border.

2.3.3. Economic Formations

The domestication of plants and animals gave humanity two interdependent modes of life:
agriculture and pastoralism. While there may be pure pastoralists, it is very rare to think of a
farmer without a head of cattle or two. Likewise, in Ethiopia and the Horn, these two forms of
livelihood have coexisted and quite often intermingled. Topographic features and climatic
conditions largely influenced economic activities in Ethiopia and the Horn. A predominantly
pastoral economy has characterized the eastern lowland region since early periods.
Pastoral economy namely the production of camel, goat, and cattle has been the most common
economic practice among the Afar, Saho and Somali as well as Karayu and Borana Oromo.

While the Afar and Karrayu have depended on the Awash River, the Somali have owed a great
deal to Wabi Shebelle and Genale (Jubba) Rivers.The plateaus have sustained plough agriculture
for thousands of years supporting sizable populations. Majority of the populations were engaged
in mixed farming. It is here thatsedentary agriculture had been started and advanced at least since
10, 000 years B. P. by the Cushites, Semites and Omotic groups. The major economic activity of
the Omotic has been mixed farming and trade in northern Omo while southern Omo have
predominantly practiced pastoralism and fishing. Many of the Omotic groups have also been
famous in metallurgy, weaving and other crafts.

In the sparsely populated western lowland region, the dominant economic formations were
pastoralism, shifting agriculture, fishing, apiculture and hunting. For instance, sorghum, millet,
cotton and other crops have been largely cultivated in the lowlands along EthioSudanese border
since antiquity. The Nilotes along the Blue Nile and Baro-Akobo Rivers have been shifting
cultivators where sorghum has been a staple food. Among majority Nilotic communities, cattle
have high economic and social values. Berta and other Nilotes had trade and other social contacts
with northern Sudan.

2.4. Religion and Religious Processes

2.4.1. Indigenous Religion
This includes a variety of religious beliefs and practices, which are native to the region and have
been followed by the local people since ancient times. A distinctive mark of indigenous religion
is belief in Supreme Being, but special powers are attributed to natural phenomena, which are
considered sacred. Spiritual functionaries officiate over rituals, propitiate divinities, and are held
in a lot of respect as intermediaries between the society and spirits. Some major indigenous
religious groups that still claim adherents among the region's population are discussed here
under. Waqeffanna of the Oromo is based on the existence of one Supreme Being called Waqa.
Waqa's power is manifested through the spirits called Ayyana.

The major spirits include Abdar/Dache (soil fertility spirit), Atete (women or human and animal
fertility spirit), Awayi/Tiyyana (sanctity spirit), Balas (victory spirit), Chato/Dora (wild animals
defender), Gijare/ Nabi (father and mother‟s sprit), Jaricha (peace spirit), Qasa (anti-disease
spirit) etc. There is also a belief that the dead exist in the form of a ghost called Ekera in the
surrounding of his/her abode after death, or his/her cemetery (Hujuba). In the autumn and spring
seasons every year at the edge of ever-flowing river and top of mountain respectively, there is
thanks giving festival called Irrecha besides New Year (Birbo) rite.

Revered experts known as Qallu (male) and Qallitti (female) have maintained link between the
Ayyana and the believers. Qallu's ritual house called galma is located on hilltop or in the groves
of large trees. On Wednesday and Friday nights, there is Dalaga/ecstasy at which Qallu or
Qallitti is possessed by Ayyana so that s/he can interpret mysteries. The Jila/Makkala (delegated
messengers) used to make pilgrimage to get consecration of senior Qallu (Abba Muda or
anointment father) until about 1900. Abba Muda had turban surrirufa of tri-colors: black at top,
red at center and white at bottom representing those in pre-active life, active (Luba) and those in
post-active life respectively.

Among the Hadiya the Supreme Being is known as Waa, who is believed to exist before
everything (hundam issancho) or create world (qoccancho) and whose eyes are represented by
elincho (sun) and agana (moon). Spirits like Jara (male‟s protector), Idota (female‟s guard),
Hausula, Qedane and Warriqa attracted prayers and sacrifices at Shonkolla and Kallalamo
mountains chosen by Anjancho and Jaramanjcho. One of Hadiya's clans, Worqimene, is believed
to have the power to send rain in drought. Fandanano (sing. Fandancho) practice is believed to
be introduced by either spiritual leaders, Itto and Albaja from Bimado clan, or Boyamo, father of
five Hadiya clans, and was largely followed by inhabitants of Boshana, Misha etc.

The Kambata have Negita or Aricho Magano/Sky God and religious officials known as
Magnancho.

The Gedeo called the Supreme Being, Mageno and had thanks giving ceremony called
Deraro.The Konso religion is centered on worship of Waaq/Wakh.

The Gojjam Agaw used to call the Supreme Being Diban (Sky God). Among sections of the
Gurage, there have been Waq/Goita (Supreme Being), Bozha (thunder deity) and Damwamwit
(health goddess).
Yem worshipped Ha’o (Sky God). So‟ala clan was considered as the top in religious duties as it
was in charge of Shashokam (the most vital deity). Religious functions were performed through
couriers in each village called Magos.

The Konta‟s spirit-cult was called Docho. The Wolayta called God Tosa and spirit Ayyana
including Tawa-Awa /Moytiliya (father‟s spirit), Sawuna (justice spirit), Wombo (rain spirit),
Micho (goat spirit), Nago (sheep spirit), Kuchuruwa (emergency spirit), Gomashera (war spirit),
Talahiya (Beta Talaye or talheya, Omo spirit) etc. Dufuwa (grave) was believed to be abode of
Moytiliya. Annual worship of spirits was performed at a sacred place called Mitta usually at the
end of May and beginning of June to offer sacrifice of the first fruits called Teramo or Pageta
(Dubusha). People gathered around tree called Dongowa, which varied from clan to clan:
sycamore (Ficus surexasperate) for the Bubula, podocarpo for Zatuwa etc. The Qesiga called
their meeting placeKasha (Dabre). To protect people from eating crop before harvesting
Zomboro clan usedDiqaysa practice by planting in their fields sour olive and nubica trees.

The Wolayta also had the practice of Chaganna (prohibited days to work) to protect produce
from disaster. They also chose and kept dark brown heifer called Beka (Beqabe) or Baqa
Potilliya (Literally, ritual cattle) as birthday fate. If they made error in respecting this custom,
they would anoint their bodies with a leaf called Aydameta (ground red pepper) as repentance.
Religious practitioners known as Sharechuwa had Becha or Kera Eza Keta (ritual house).

The Keficho called Supreme Being as Yero; spirit as Eqo and a person who hosts Eqo is known
as Alamo or eke-nayo. Father of all spirits is dochi or dehe-tateno and its host is called
dochi-nayo or Ibedechino/Ibede-gudeno (including Arito and Wudia Riti), with residence at
Adio. Harvest spirit is called Kollo and sacrifice to it is dejo. Earth and area spirits are known as
Showe-kollo and Dude-baro respectively. There are also local spirits like damochechi of Channa,
yaferochi of Sharada and wogidochi of Adio as well as gepetato or king of hill identified by
Yetecho clan as landowner. Members of the Dugo clan led spiritual services.

The Boro-Shinasha people believe in super natural power called Iqa, which created everything
and presides over the universe. The indigenous religion elements prescribe praying for the
prevention of drought, flooding, erosion, disease and starvation within the community and their
surrounding environment. Among various prayer rituals, the first is Gure Shuka for preservation
of their locality through slaughtering animals by calling the name of God being at the tip of the
mountains. The second is Shode De’na, praying and slaughtering when unexpected disease
happens. The third is Marrowa Shuka; slaughtering for children to grow without disease and to
prevent children from evil spirits attack; for rehabilitation of wealth; to promote harmonious way
of life and productivities in the family. The rituals are led by recognized elders, whose pray and
bless are trusted to reach God among the three clans: Enoro, Endiwo and Dowa.

The Nuer believe in Kuoth Nhial (God in Heaven), but believe in the coming of God through
rain, lightning and thunder, and rainbow is necklace of God. Sun and moon as well as other
entities are also manifestation or sign of God. There are also spirits associated with clanspears
names such as WiW (spirit of war) associated with thunder. The Nuer believe that when a person
dies, flesh is committed to earth while breath or life goes back to Kuoth and soul that signifies
human personality remains alive as a shadow or a reflection, and departs together with ox
sacrificed to place of ghosts. An interesting feature of indigenous religion is the way its practices
and beliefs are fused with Christianity and Islam. This phenomenon of mixing of religions is
known as syncretism.

2.4.2. Judaism
Judaism is considered as the expression of the covenant that Yahweh/Jehovah (God) established
with the ancient Hebrew community. Sources indicate that Judaism has been followed in
Ethiopia and the Horn by peoples before Christianity reached the region. . The Bete-Israel
practiced Haymanot (religious practices, which are generally recognized as Israelite religion that
differs from Rabbinic Judaism). Many of the Bete-Israel accounts trace their religion from the
very ancient migration of some portion of the Tribe of Dan to Ethiopia, led it is said by sons of
Moses, perhaps even at the time of the Exodus (1400-1200 B.C.).

Alternative timelines include perhaps the later crises in Judea, e.g., split of the northern Kingdom
of Israel from the southern Kingdom of Judah after the death of King Solomon or Babylonian
Exile. Other Bete-Israel take as their basis the account of return to Ethiopia of Menilek I, who is
believed to be the son of King Solomon (r. 974-932 B.C.) of ancient Israel and Makeda, ancient
Queen of Saba (Sheba), and considered to be the first Solomonic Emperor of Ethiopia. Another
group of Jews is said to have been arrived in Ethiopia led by Azonos and Phinhas in 6th century
A.D. There are also other stories that attribute the presence of the Bete-Isreal in Ethiopia to an
intermarrige between Jewsh immigrants with native Agaws. On the other hand, scholars such as
Tadese Tamirat and Kay Shelmay argue that the Bete-Israel are remenants of old testament
followers of orthodox Christianity rather than Jews who migrated from abroad.Whatever the
case, the Jews appear to have been isolated from mainstream Judiac practice for at least a
millennium. The Jews developed and lived for centuries in northern and northwestern Ethiopia.

2.4.3. Christianity
Christianity became state religion in 334 A.D. during the reign of King Ezana (r. 320-360), who
dropped pre-Christian gods like Ares (Hariman/Maharram/war god), Arwe (serpentpython god),
Bahir (sea god) and Midir (earth god), and embraced Christianity. Instrumental in conversion of
the king were Syrian brothers, Aedesius and Frumentius (Fremnatos). When Fremnatos (Kasate
Birhane or Abba Salama) visited Alexandria, Patriarch Atnatewos (328-373) appointed him as
the first Bishop of Ethiopian Orthodox Church (EOC). Consecration of bishops from Coptic
Church in Egypt continued until 1959, when Abune Baslios became the first Ethiopian Patriarch.

The expansion of Christianity continued in Zagwe period (1150-1270) and chiefly gained fresh
momentum during the early Medieval Period (1270-1527), when many churches and monasteries
were constructed. These include Rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, Debra-Bizan of Hamasen in
Eritrea; Debra-Hayiq in Wollo, Debre-Dima and Debre-Werq in Gojjam; Debra-Libanos in
Shewa, Birbir Mariam in Gamo and Debre-Asabot on the way to Harar. These churches and
monasteries are not merely religious centers, but served through the ages as repositories of
ancient manuscripts and precious objects of art.

From mid-sixteenth to the early seventeenth centuries, the Jesuit missionaries tried to convert
Monophysite EOC to Dyophysite Catholic. Yet, this led to bloody conflicts that in turn led to
expulsion of the Jesuits. However, the Jesuits intervention triggered religious controversies
within the EOC that is discussed in subsequent units. As of 1804, missionaries‟ religious
expansion also resulted in the conclusion of treties between European diplomats and Ethiopian
authorities. The Catholic Giuseppe Sapeto (Lazarist mission founder), Giustino De Jacobis
(Capuchin order founder), Cardinal Massaja, Antoine and Arnauld d'Abbadie were active.
Anglican Church Missionary Society (ACMS), Church Missionary Society of London (CMSL)
and Wesleyan Methodist Society led Protestant missionaries under such leaders as Samuel
Gobat, C.W. Isenberg and J. L. Krapf. Systematic approach of trained Protestants enabled them
to win confidence of local people. They translated spiritual books into vernaculars. They adopted
old names for Supreme Being like Waqayyo, Tosa etc and used them in new versions as
equivalent to God. Village schools were established as centers of preaching the faith. These
schools were open to all children of chiefs and farmers. They also provided medical facilities.
All these attracted a large number of followers. Eventually, continuous and systematic
indoctrinations seem to have resulted in grafting of new teaching on indigenous religion.

2.4.4. Islam
When Prophet Mohammed had preached Islam in Mecca since 610 AD, he faced opposition
from the Quraysh rulers. Under this circumstance, the Prophet sent some of his early followers to
Aksum including his daughter Rukiya and her husband Uthman as well as the Prophet's future
wives Umm Habiba and Umm Salma to Aksum .The first group of refugees was led by Jafar
Abu Talib. In his advice to his followers, the Prophet said of Ethiopia, "…a king under whom
none are persecuted. It is a land of righteousness, where God will give relief from what you are
suffering." The then Aksumite king, Armah Ella Seham (Ashama b. Abjar or Ahmed al-Nejash
in Arabic sources), gave them asylum from 615-28. Leaders of the Quraysh asked Armah to
repatriate the refugees, but the king did not comply. Armah is said to have replied, "If you were
to offer me a mountain of gold I would not give up these people who have taken refugees with
me.”

Subsequently, Islam spread to the Horn of Africa largely through peaceful ways including trade.
Islam was well established in Dahlak (Alalay) Islands on the Red Sea by the beginning of the
eighth century. In the early tenth century, the Muslim community on the islands developed a
sultanate. In due course, Muslims settled other places on the Red Sea coast. It was from these
coastal areas that Islam gradually spread among the predominantly pastoral communities of the
interior, largely through the agency of preachers and merchants. Notwithstanding the debates, the
Dahlak route played a minor role in the introduction of Islam into the interior as Christianity was
strongly entrenched as a state religion in Aksum and later states of northern Ethiopia and open
proselytization of Islam was prohibited. Thus, the port of Zeila on western coast of the Gulf of
Aden served as an important gateway for the introduction of Islam mainly into the present day
Shewa, Wollo and Hararghe. Islam firmly established itself in the coastal areas by the eighth and
ninth centuries. From there, it radiated to central, southern, and eastern Ethiopia through the role
of Muslim clerics who followed in the footsteps of traders. In this regard, it should be noted that
Sheikh Hussein of Bale, a Muslim saint (Waliy) of medieval period, played very important role
in the expansion of Islam into Bale, Arsi and other southeastern parts of Ethiopia and the Horn.
Another Islamic center in this region is Sof Umar cave. Islam was introduced into Somali
territories in the eigth century A. D. through Benadir coasts of Moqadishu, Brava and Merca.
Abu Bakr Ibn Fukura al Din Sahil set up Moqadishu Minirate c.1269. The mosques, Islamic
learning and pilgrimage centers have been the depositories of cultures, traditions and literature of
local Muslims.
 UNIT THREE

Politics, Economy and Society in Ethiopia and the Horn to the End of the
Thirteenth Century (6 Hours)

3.1. Emergence of States

One important factor for the emergence of states was the beginning of sedentary agriculture.
Peoples had to descend from mountainsides to build houses near cultivated plots fencing both
farming fields and residences, and harvested crops had to be stored and protected from humidity
and rodents. Families preferred to live together forming larger communities for better security
and to help each other in hard works. Using stick or hoe for planting was gradually replaced by
ox-drawn plough and farmers acquired surplus produce to exchange with better tools and clothes
with the artisans who were able to specialize in the production of these items. Gradually,
intermediaries (traders) also began to buy the products of both to take to predetermined places or
markets for exchange. Therefore, states were formed mainly through the expansion of agriculture
that gave rise to class differentiation.

Furthermore, the growth of trade facilitated the development of states. State refers to an
autonomous political unit having population, defined territory, sovereignty and government with
the power to decree and enforce laws. State was the outcome of regular cultural process. In this
regard, it should be emphasized that, states arose independently in different places and at
different times. Favorable environmental conditions helped to hasten the rate of transformation
in some regions. Religious leaders such as shamans played prominent role in maintaining the
social and religious affairs of their people during the intial formation of the states. As production
became market oriented, religious elites were gradually replaced by chiefs, who began collecting
regular and compulsory tributes which amounted to protection payments with which they
maintained themselves, their supporters chiefly the army, the bureaucracy and other followers.

Ethiopia and the Horn is one of the regions in Africa where early state formation took place.
From small beginnings, such states gradually developed into powerful kingdoms and even
empires with a well-demarcated social structure. Geographical proximity to and control of the
international water bodies like Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean along with their ports as
well as rich interior favored some of them to become stronger than their neighbors and
eventually dominated them.

3.2. Ancient States

3.2.1. North and Northeast

A. Punt
Punt was the earliest recorded state in Ethiopia and the Horn. The evidence on Punt comes from
Egyptian hieroglyphic writings, accompanied by vivid paintings that describes series of naval
expeditions, which the Egyptian Pharaohs sent to Punt. Pharaoh Sahure (r. 2743-2731 B.C.) sent
expedition to collect myrrh, ebony and electrum (gold and silver alloy). During Pharaoh Asosi,
treasurer of God Bawardede took dancing dwarf “dink" to Egypt from Punt. The best described
and illustrated expedition was the one undertaken by the order of the famous Egyptian Queen
Hatshepsut (1490-1468 B.C.), whose expedition is documented at her tomb in Dier El Bahri. She
sent five ships under the leadership of Black Nubian Captain Nehasi via Wadi-Tumilat. The
expedition was warmly welcomed by the Puntites King Perehu, his wife Ati, sons, daughters and
followers. The expedition was able to return collecting frank incense, cinnamon, sweet smelling
woods (sandal), spices, ivory, rhinoceros horn, leopard and leopard skins, ostrich feathers and
egg, live monkeys, giraffes, people etc.

Hatshepsut presented some parts of the items to her god, Amun. It was because of the ritual
importance of their exports that Puntites were also known as Khebis of the Ta Netjeru (divine or
ghosts land). Iron, bronze, asses, foxes, cattle, animals fur, dying and medicinal plants were also
exported from Punt to Egypt. In return, axes, daggers, swords, knives, sickles, clothes, bracelets,
necklaces, beads and other trinkets were imported from Egypt to Punt. Scholars have not reached
agreement as to the exact location of Punt. The varieties of incense and myrrh mentioned in the
writings have suggested northern or northeastern Somalia to some scholars while others are
inclined more towards Northern Ethiopia because of the reference to gold, ebony and monkeys.
The latter reinforce their guess arguing that at that early period, Egyptian sailboats might not
have been strong enough to pass through the Strait of Bab-el Mandeb into the Gulf of Aden and
the Indian Ocean. Considering the two suggestions, still some others argue that it probably
stretched from Swakim or Massawa to Babel Mandeb (Gate of Tears) and Cape Guardafui.
B. Da‟amat and Other Cultural Centers in Northern Ethiopia and Eritrea
The state known as Da‟amat had a center a little to the south of Aksum. Inscription of the king of
Da‟amat tentatively dated to the fifth century BC shows that he used politicoreligious title known
as Mukarib. Various gods and goddesses like Almouqah (principal god), Astarr (Venus god),
Na’uran (light god), Shamsi (sun god), and Sin (moon god) were worshipped in the domain of
the Da‟amat state and other northern Ethiopian pre-Aksumite cultural centers.There were similar
practices in South Arabia at the time.

There were a number of cultural centers in northern Ethiopia. The major ones are:
 Yeha: is located 30 kms to the northeast of Aksum and was the oldest of these centers. It
probably emerged around 1, 000 BC as a small emporium where South Arabian merchants
and their agents bought and stored ivory, rhinoceros horn and other commodities coming
from the interior. It seems that the period of its prosperity (zenith) was from about 750 to 500
B.C. Remains of walls of some of its buildings and stone masonry as well as still standing
temple and inscriptions indicate Yeha‟s glory.
 Hawulti Melazo: is situated to southeast of Aksum, where stone tablets that are inscribed in
rectangular temple surrounded by a wall decorated with paintings representing herds of cattle
have been excavated.
 Addi-Seglemeni: is located at 10kms southwest of Aksum, from where a stone slab is found
and the oldest Ethiopian monumental inscription is discovered.
There were also other cultural centers like Addi Gelemo, Addi Grameten, Addi Kewih, Atsbi
Dera, Feqiya, Hinzat, Sefra, Senafe, Tekonda etc.

C. The Aksumite State The nucleus of the Aksumite state was formed around 200-100 B.C.
Initially, its power was limited to a relatively small area comprising the town of Aksum and its
environs. Gradually, however, it expanded to include large territories in all directions. In its
heyday, Aksumite territories extended from the Red Sea coast in the East to the Western edge of
Ethiopian plateau overlooking the vast Nile Valley in the west and from the northern most corner
of Eritrea and possibly as far south as northern parts of Shewa.

According to Periplus of Erithrean Sea, Adulis on the western coast of the Red Sea was the
major port of Aksum. The long distance trade routes from Adulis and other posts on the Red Sea
coast passed inland through such centers as Kaskasse, Coloe, Matara and even further west
across Takaze River. The document also mentioned ports of Aden (Eudaemon) Gulf like
Avalites (Zayla) and Malao (Berbera), and Indian Ocean Benadir Coasts like Serapion
(Moqadishu), Nicon (Brava) and Merca. The major items of export of the Aksumite state
consisted mainly of the natural products such as ivory, myrrh, emerald, frankincense and some
spices (like ginger, cassia and cinnamon), gold, rhinoceros horns, hippopotamus hides, tortoise
shells and some curiosity animals like apes. In turn, a number of manufactured products like
garments and textiles from Egypt, India, the Roman Empire, and Persia; glassware and jewelry
from Egypt and other places; metallic sheets, tools or utensils of various kinds, oil and wine from
the regions of Roman Empire and Syria were imported. Zoscales (c. 76-89), the then king of
Aksum, used to speak the Greek language, the Lingua Franca of Greco-Roman world. Aksum
also had relations with Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and Laodicea (Asia Minor). The Adulis inscription
written in Greek about an unknown king, who eventually was published in Cosmas
Indicopleustes‟ book, the Christian Topography, describes commercial activities of the Red Sea
areas. It also mentions the internal long distance trade between Aksum and a distant region called
Sasu, most probably in Beni Shangul and the adjoining lands beyond the Blue Nile. A big
caravan made up of close to five hundred merchants some of them special agents of the kings of
Aksum would take to Sasu cattle, lumps of salt (probably salt blocks) and iron to exchange for
gold. Yet, as they did not speak each other‟s language, and did not even trust to be near to each
other to bargain through signs and gestures, the whole exchange was done without one side
seeing the other. This was a good example of silent trade. Aksumite kings had extensive contacts
with the outside world notably with the South Arabian region, leading to exchange of ideas,
material and spiritual culture. Sometimes such contacts involved conflicts between the two
regions. One of such known recorded conflict between areas on both sides of the sea took place
around 200 A.D. Accordingly, peoples in Southern Arabian Peninsula, in present day Yemen,
had difficulties in defending themselves against the army of the Aksumite king, Gadarat. From
the third to the seventh centuries, Aksumite kings like Aphilas, Endybis, Wazeba, Ezana,
Ousanas II, etc. minted and issued different kinds of coins in gold, silver and bronze for both
overseas and local transactions.

Aksum was one of the four great powers of the world (i. e. Roman Empire, Persia, China and
Aksum) at the time. It was a major naval and trading power from the first to the seventh
centuries. Aksumite ships were the main means of transporting goods.
Aksum was the only one with sufficient sources of timber for ship building and in those days, the
technology for it existed in Adulis. Aksum had a large fleet of ships, which was used not only for
trade but also for its wars across the Red Sea.

Kaleb (r. 500-35) expanded overseas territories of Aksum beyond Himyar and Saba, but the local
prince Dhu-Nuwas was converted to Judaism, marched to Zafar and Nagran, and killed many
Christians. Byzantine Vasaliev Justinian (r. 527-65) with sanctification of Patriarch Timit III
(518-538) provided Kaleb with a number of ships to transport armies led by Julianos and
Nonossus against Dhu Nuwas. Dhu Nuwas was defeated and Kaleb appointed Abraha as
governor of Arabia that continued until 570 A. D. Kaleb was succeeded by his son Gabra Masqal
(535-48) who built a church at Zur Amba in Gayint. It was during Gabra Maskal that Yared
developed Ethiopian Orthodox Church liturgical songs and hymns.

The Aksumite state begun to decline since the late seventh century because of internal and
external challenges. Environmental degradation, decline in agricultural productivity and possibly
plague infestation started to weaken it. With the destruction of the port of Adulis by the Arabs
around 702, the international lifeline of the state was cut. The whole network of Aksumite
international trade came under the control of the rising and expanding Arab Muslims, isolating
the Aksum state from its old commercial and diplomatic partners. Consequently, the Aksumite
state declined economically. This naturally led to the decline of its political and military power
not only on the Red Sea coast but also in its interior provinces, where Aksumite hegemony was
challenged by local rebellions. Rebellions of the Beja, the Agaw and Queen Bani al Hamwiyah
(Yodit) finally sealed the collapse of the Aksumite state.

However, as a civilization, Aksum had a profound impact upon the peoples of the Horn of Africa
and beyond, and on its successors i.e. the Zagwe, „Solomonic Dynasty‟, the Gondarine period
etc. Some of its achievements include Sub-Saharan Africa‟s only surviving indigenous script and
calendar as well as EOC hymns and chants, paintings etc; diversified ceramic and lithic tools,
ivory curving, and urbanization and sophisticated building traditions (palaces, stele, rock-hewn
churches…). It also developed complex administrative and governance system, and agricultural
system including irrigation etc.
D. Zagwe Dynasty After its decline, the center of Aksumite state shifted southwards to Kubar
rural highland in the territory of the Agaw, one of the ancient inhabitants of the land between the
Eritrean Plateau and Jema River, and to the west up to the Blue Nile valleys. This apparently
gave Agaw elites the opportunity to take part in Aksumite state structure serving as soldiers and
functionaries for at least four centuries.

After integrating so well with Aksumite ruling class, they successfully tookover the state
administration. Accordingly, the Agaw prince Merra Teklehaimanot married Masobe Worq, the
daughter of the last Aksumite king Dil Na'od. Later he overthrew his father-in-law and took
control of power. Merra-Teklehaimanot's successors include Yimirahana Kirstos, Harbe, Lalibela
(1160-1211), Ne'akuto La'ab, Yetbarek etc. Notwithstanding the debates, the Zagwe Dynasty is
believed to have ruled from c. 1150 to 1270. The Zagwe Dynasty made its center in Bugna
District within Wag and Lasta, more exactly at Adafa near Roha (Lalibela). The territory of the
Zagwe kingdom extended from most of the highland provinces of the ancient Aksumite kingdom
in the north down to northern Shewa in the south, the Lake Tana region and the northern part of
what is today Gojjam in the west. The Agaw maintained the ancient Aksumite traditions almost
intact. Zagwe rulers renewed cultural and trade contact with eastern Mediterranean region.

The most important exportitems included slaves, ivory and rare spices while cotton, linen, silver
and copper vessels, various types of drags and newly minted coins were imported. Furthermore,
the Zagwe period was a golden age in Ethiopia's paintings and the translation of some religious
works from Arabic into Ge'ez. That said, Zagwe rulers are best known for the construction of
cave, semi-hewn and monolithic churches:

1. Cave: with some decoration inside, almost similar with natural cave, eg. Bete-Mesqel.
2. Semi-hewn: this and the monolithic churches that have become UNESCO world heritage are
unique in costructions. Semi-hewan are with detailed interior decoration and partial decoration
outside. They are not totally separated from the surrounding rock. Their roofs or walls are still
attached to the rock, eg. Bete Denagil, Bete Debresina/Mikael, Bete Golgota, Bete Merqoriwos,
Bete Gabri‟el-Rufa‟el and Bete Abba Libanos.

3. Monolithic: with detailed decoration in the interior and exterior parts. They are completely
separated (carved out) from surrounding rock, eg. Bete Amanuel, Bete Giyorgis, Bete Mariyam
and Bete Medhanialem. Among the eleven churches of Lalibela, Bete Medhanelem is the largest
of all and Bete Giyorgis is said to be the most finely built in the shape of the Cross.

Lalibela wanted to establish the second Jerusalem, and mitigate or even avoid difficulties, which
Ethiopian Christians encountered in their journey to the Holy Lands. This was done by
constructing churches based on the model of Holy Lands in Israel. The Zagwe Dynasty came to
end due to internal problems of royal succession and oppositions from groups claiming descent
from the ancient rulers of Aksum. The latter considered Zagwe kings “illegitimate rulers” based
on the legend of the Queen of Sheba.

The legend was in turn based on a book known as Kebra-Negest (Glory of Kings) that was
translated from Coptic to Arabic and then into Ge‟ez. Based on the legend, the power claimants
contend that “Solomonic” Dynasty ruled the Aksumite state until its power was “usurped” by the
Zagwes.Yekuno-Amlak (r. 1270-1285), who claimed decent from the last Aksumite king
Dilna‟od, organized his forces with the assistance of the ecclesiastical hierarchy and engaged the
last king of Zagwe, Yetbarek in battle. Yetbarek was killed inGaynt and Yekuno-Amlak took the
state power proclaiming the “restoration” of “Solomonic” Dynasty.

3.2.2. East, Central, Southern, and Western States

3.2.2.1. Bizamo, Damot, Enarya and Gafat

A. Bizamo: was a kingdom located on the southern bend of Abay River just opposite to the
present districts of Gojjam and around the current Wambara area. It was founded in the eighth
century and had early connections with Damot.

B. Damot: was a strong kingdom that expanded its territories into most of the lands the south of
Abay and north of Lake Turkana as well as west of Awash and east of Didessa. Motalami was a
prominent king of Damot in the thirteenth century.

C. Enarya: was a kingdom in the Gibe region in southwestern Ethiopia. The royal clan was
Hinnare Bushasho (Hinnario Busaso). Enarya's kingship was a divine one: the king
(HinnareTato) was secluded and considered as sacred. He communicated with visitors through
an intermediary, AfeBusho. The real power rested with Mikretcho (council) including Awa-rasha
(king's spokesperson) and Atche-rasha (royal treasurer). The kings had residences in Yadare and
Gowi. In the nineth century, Aksumite king Digna-Jan is said to have led a campaign into
Enarya, accompanied by Orthodox Christian priests carrying arks of covenant (tabots).
D. Gafat: historically, the territory of Gafat lies south of Abay (Blue Nile) River adjoining
Damot on the south western periphery of the Christian Kingdom. It was inhabited by Semitic
speaking population related to Harari and the Gurage. It is not clear from available records
whether the Gafat formed a “state” or not, but Gafat mountains provided a rich source of gold.
Despite efforts by Christian evangelists, the Gafat largely remained practitioners of their own
indigenous religion. As of early medieval period, Gafat was paying tribute to the Christian
Kingdom mainly in cattle, which came from six districts, among which Gambo and Shat are
Gafat clan names. The state was governed by rulers bearing the title of Awalamo.

3.2.2.2. Muslim Sultanates

After the spread of Islam since the beginning of the eighth century, viable Muslim communities
and states had been established at many locations especially along the main trade routes from
Zeila and its many branches penetrating the interior. These states include:

A. Shewa: Makhzumi Khalid ibn al-Walid, who claimed decent from Meca, set up the
Makhzumite Sultanate in 896 A. D (283 A.H.) on northeastern foothill of Shewa.

B. Fatagar: was founded around Minjar, Shenkora and Ada‟a in the eleventh century. It was a
hilly lowland area with thoroughly cultivated fields of wheat and barley, fruits, and extensive
grazing grounds full of numerous herds of cattle, sheep and goats.

C. Dawaro: located south of Fatagar between upper waters of Awash and WabiShebelle
extending to Charchar in Northeast and Gindhir in Southeast. We have valuable information on
Dawaro by an Egyptian courtier Ibn Fad Allah el-umari. It was much smaller than Ifat, but
resembled it in many aspects. Dawaro had a currency called hakuna for transaction.

D. Bali: was an extensive kingdom occupying high plateau, separating basins of Shebelle and
Rift valley Lakes. It was separated from Dawaro by the Wabi-Shebelle River and extended
southwards to the Gannale Dirre River. Bali was one of the largest of Ethiopia‟s Muslim
provinces. Its economic activity resembles those of other nearby Muslim lands. Trade was
mainly based on barter exchanging cattle, sheep, cloth etc. It had strong army composed of
cavalry and infantry.
E.Ifat: was a state located adjacent to Shewan Sultanate. Its territory ran from northeast-
southwesterly in the Afar plain eastward to the Awash. It was established by Umar Walasma,
who claimed descent t from Hashamite clan and said to have come from Arabia between 1271
and 1285. He intervened between quarrelsome Makzumite princes Dil-Marrah and Dil-Gamis,
weakened and annexed the sultanate of Shewa. The sultanate was fertile and well watered. Its
inhabitants earned their living from cultivation of wheat, sorghum, millet and teff, and animal
husbandry. Sugar cane, bananas, variety of fruits, beans, squashes, cucumbers, and cabbage
completed the diet. Chat was described for the first time as being consumed as a stimulant.

F. Others: autonomous states mutually independent states like Arababani (between Hadiya and
Dawwaro), Biqulzar, Dera (between Dawaro and Bali), Fadise, Gidaya, Hargaya, Harla,
Kwilgora, Qadise, Sharkah (West of Dawaro and North of Bali in Arsi) and Sim were
established and flourished.

3.3. External Contacts

Ethiopia and the Horn had contacts with Egypt since at least 3,000 B. C. These relations may be
the region‟s earliest contacts with the Mediterranean world or the Greco-Roman World. It had
very close relations with all commercially active South Arabian Kingdoms starting sometimes
before 1,000 B.C. The introduction of Christianity to Aksum established a new pattern of
relation between the region and Egypt. Until the introduction of Islam into Egypt and the general
reduction of the Christians into minority, relations between the two were fairly smooth and
friendly. Following the introduction of Christianity, Aksum established close relationship with
the East Roman or Byzantine Empire with which it shared common commercial interest in the
Red Sea area against their rival Persians. Yet, in the seven century, this relation became
complicated and began to deteriorate. The rapid expansion of the Muslim Arabs through the
Near and Middle East, North Africa and the Nile valley led to the decline of Aksumite land
routes and shipping lines. Successive Egyptian Muslim rulers began to use the consecration and
sending of a bishop as an instrument to further their own foreign policy objectives and to squeeze
concessions from Ethiopian Christian rulers, who reacted by threatening to divert the Nile. The
coming to power of the Mamluk was followed by the reciprocal persecution of religious
minorities. Moreover, the Mamluk presented a barrier to the contacts between Christian Ethiopia
and European states. However, the tradition to visit Jerusalem and other holy places in the
Middle East had begun at the end of the first millennium AD.

In order to reach the places, Ethiopian Christian pilgrims used the land route to Egypt. From
Cairo, again they used the land route to the Holy land. Consequently, there were considerable
numbers of Ethiopian Christian communities found in different regions, in Egyptian monasteries,
in the holy places of Palestine and Armenia, and in Italian city-states in subsequent centuries.
The communities living in different parts of the world served as an important link or bridge
between Ethiopian Christian Kingdom and Europe.When pilgrims met their fellow Christians of
Europe in the holyplaces, they transmitted information about the EOC and its exceptional
liturgical practices. They also explained about the territorial extent of the Christian Kingdom.
From the information, the Europeans began to consider Ethiopian Christian Kingdom as a very
powerful and wealthy state existing in the Horn of Africa.

Consequently, they wanted to use this imaginary strong Christian power in their struggle against
the Muslim powers in the Holy land. Around the middle of the 12th century, a myth about a very
rich and powerful Christian ruler known as Prester John began to circulate in Europe. The legend
was developed when the balance of the crusade war fought over Jerusalem between the
Christians of Europe and the Muslims of the Middle East was in favor of the latter.

In 1165, a letter addressed to European kings, thought to be sent by the Prester John appeared in
Europe mentioning about the enormous power of the Prester John. The geographical location of
the country of Prester John was not known to Europe for over a century. However, the Europeans
began to regard Ethiopian Christian Kingdom as the land of Prester John since the only Christian
kingdom between the Red Sea and the Indian sub-continent was the Ethiopian Christian
Kingdom. Then, they began to search for the location of the Kingdom and to make an alliance
with it.

3.4. Economic Formations

A. Agriculture and Land Tenure System
The main stay of ancient states' economy in highland areas was plough agriculture. The mastery
of the technology of irrigation also contributed to the growth of agricultural production. Small
valley head wetlands were drained for dry season cultivation.
The people used diverse soil fertility enhancement strategies like manuring, compost and
spreading residues‟ ashes as well as fallowing, crop rotation, intercropping and contour plowing.
In times of peak harvest seasons, farmers also orgnized teamwork. Land has always been one of
the most precious possessions of human society throughout history. The rules according to which
members of the society hold share and use land constitute what is known as the land tenure
system. The most ancient system of land holding which survived in many parts of Ethiopia and
the Horn is the communal land tenure system. Communal right to land is a group right. Here
group refers to the family, the clan and the Here group refers to the family, the clan and the other
lineage groups to which the individual belonged.

Each of these groups had communal right to the land they lived in and freely exploited the
resources of the land. Peasants in the north had rist rights in their respective areas. Rist is a kind
of communal birthright to land by members of the families and clans whose ancestors had settled
and lived in the area over long periods. It is inherited from generation to generation in
accordance to customary law. Most of the subjects of the state had rist rights. The rist owners
were known as bale-rist. Yet, they paid tributes to the state and all land belonged to the state
theoretically. Tribute was collected through a complex hierarchy of state functionaries or
officials who were given gult right over the areas and populations they administered on behalf of
the central government. Gult is a right to levy tribute on rist owners‟ produce. The tribute
collected by bale-gults, partly allotted for their own up keep and the rest were sent to the
imperial center. Gult right that became hereditary was called Riste-Gult as prominent well-placed
officials used to transfer their position to their offspring.

B. Handicraft
Indigenous handcraft technology had existed since the ancient period. The social, economic and
political conditions of ancient states had allowed the emergence of artisans in various fields with
diverse forms and applications including metal work, pottery, tannery, carpentry, masonry,
weaving, jewelry, basketry and others. Metal workers produced spears‟ points, swords , javelins,
bows, arrows, traps, slings, slashers, shields, knives, axes, sickles, hoes, ploughshares, spades,
machetes, hatchets, iron tripods, ornaments etc. Carpenters engaged in carving wood implements
like doors, windows, stools, chairs, tables, beds, headrests, mortars, bowls, beams, yoke, stilt,
coffins etc while potters produced ceramic utensils like saucepan, ovens, jar, pot, kettle, cooking
tripod, plates, granary etc. Tanners produced leather tools used for bed, bed cover, saddles,
harness, ropes, footwear, prayer mats, sacks, honey and butter container, drinking cup and
clothes until replaced by weavers‟ cotton dresses. However, except the carpenters and masons in
some cases, the artisans were mostly despised and marginalized. The ruling classes mostly spent
their accumulated wealth on imported luxurious items rather than the domestic technology. The
general public attitude towards artisans was not at all encouraging. Consequently, the locally
produced agriculturalimplements and house furniture did not show any significant improvement
and sophistication.

C. Trade
Trade was another important economic activity of ancient states that obtained considerable
income from both internal and international trade. The major socio-economic and political
centers of earliest states seem to have also been major trade centers with wide ranging contacts in
various directions within the region itself and with merchants coming to the area across the
international water bodies. A network of roads connected the centers with the coast and various
dependencies in the interior. Local and international merchants frequented these roads. The
region was crisscrossed by various trade routes connecting various market places in all
directions. The regular flow of trade was so vital to the states in that one of their major concerns
was to protect the trade routes and make them safe from robbers.

3.5. Socio-cultural Achievements

A. Architecture
As the states expanded, architecture also began to flourish and one of the unique architectural
technologies were the engraving of stele around the third century AD. There were totally fifty
eight steles in and around Aksum that can be grouped into well made and decorated, half
completed and megaliths (not hewn). As local tradition says, the steles were engraved
specifically at Gobodara from which they were transported and planted in Aksum. The longest
one of these stele measures 33meters heights (the first in the world). It is highly decorated in all
of its four sides. It represents a-14 storied building with many windows and a false door at the
bottom. It also bears pre-Christian symbols, which are a disc and a crescent (half-moon) at the
top. Some scholars suggest that this giant stele was broken while the people were trying to erect
it. The second longest obelisk measures 24 meters height that was successfully erected and
represents a ten-storied building with many windows and a false door at the bottom. The third
longest stele measures 21 meters and represents a nine-storied building with many windows and
a false door at the bottom. It is smooth at the back of its side with no decoration.

The Zagwe churches are regarded as some of the finest architecture of artistic achievements of
the Christian world and that is why they were registered by UNESCO as part of world cultural
heritage in 1978, two years before that of the Aksumite stele. Further refinement can be observed
in the construction and decoration of the rockhewn churches in the Zagwe period. Zagwe
architecture used a softer material like sandstone, which was cut and shaped all round, except the
floor, into a variety of delicately decorated churches.

B. Writing System
The Sabean language had an alphabet with boustrophedon writing type that is paleographical
writing from left to right and right to left alternatively. The earliest Sabean inscriptions in Eritrea
and Ethiopia date to the ninth century BC. One peculiar feature of Sabean inscriptions is absence
of vowels as most of the words are written in consonants. For instance, Da‟amat was inscribed as
D‟mt, while its successive kings are written as RDM, RBH and LMN using title, mlkn. After the
seventh and sixth centuries BC, however, variants of script arose, evolving in the direction of the
Geʽez script (an alpha syllabary).

This evolution can be seen most clearly in evidence from inscriptions mainly graffiti on rocks
and caves. By the first century AD, "Geʽez alphabet" arose, an abjad (26 consonant letters only)
written left-to-right with letters identical to the first-order forms of modern vocalized alphabet.
Though the first completely vocalized texts known are inscriptions by Ezana (who left trilingual
inscriptions in Greek, Sabean and Ge'ez) c. 330 AD, vocalized letters predate him by some years,
as vocalized letter exists in Wazeba‟s coin some 30 or so years before. The process was
developed under the influence of Christian scripture by adding vocalic diacritics for vowels, u, i,
a, e, ə, o, to the consonantal letters in a recognizable but slightly irregular way, so that the system
is laid out as a syllabary. Ethiopia's ancient indigenous writing system has immense contribution
to the development of literature, art and the writing of history.
C. Calendar
People needed to know and remember the times when the rains would begin and end as well as
the rise and fall of the water level. The responsibility of understanding these vital climatic cycles
fell on expertise. In due course, calendars were invented. In most cases, the length of the month
was based on the movement of the moon or the apparent movement of the sun. Otherwise, the
number of days in the week or in the year varied from region to region. Calendars were
developed and adopted among various peoples of Ethiopia and the Horn. Oromo calendar has
been based on astronomical observations of moon in conjunction withseven or eight particular
stars or group of stars called Urjii Dhahaa (guiding stars) and Bakkalcha (morning star).

There are 29.5 dates in a month and 354 days in 12 months of a year. Pillars (dated 300 B.C.),
which were discovered in northwestern Kenya from 1978-86 by Archaeologists Lynch, Robbins
and Doyl have suggested to represent site used to develop Oromo calendar. In connection with
this, c. 900 A. D. Oromo person Waqlim is said to have taken art of shaping phallic bowls to
Zimbabwe. The Sidama calendar rotates following movements of stars with 13 months a year, 12
of which are divided equally into 28 days while the thirteenth month has 29 days. The Sidama
week has only 4 days (Dikko, Dela, Qawado and Qawalanka) and hence each month has 7
weeks. Nominated Mote (King) is presented to Fiche Chambalala, New Year ritual, for Qetela
or popular demonstration. Ethiopic solar calendar has 12 months of 30 days plus 5 or 6 (is added
every 4 years) Epagomenal days, which comprise a thirteenth month. A gap of 7–8 years
between Ethiopic and Gregorian calendars results from alternative calculation in determining
date of Annunciation. Thus, the first day of the year, 1 Meskerem/Enkutatash is usually
September 11 (Gregorian). However, it falls on September 12 in years before the Gregorian leap
year. The Ethiopic solar calendar has evolved to become the official calendar of the country. The
Muslim (Islamic) calendar is a lunar calendar consisting of 12 months in a year of 354 or 355
days. It employs the Hijra year of 622 AD, in which Mohammed and his followers made flight
from Mecca to Medina and established the first Muslim community (ummah). Dates in this era
are usually denoted AH (After Hijra, "in the year of the Hijra"). Years prior to the
Hijra are reckoned as BH ("Before the Hijra"). Other peoples like the Agaw, Halaba, Hadiya,
Wolayta, Gedeo, the Nilotes, etc have their own dating system.
D. Numerals
Numerals appeared in Ethiopia and the Horn at the beginning of fourth century AD. Geʽez uses
numeral system comparable to the Hebrew, Arabic and Greek numerals, but it lacks individual
characters for multiples of 100. Numbers are over- and underlined in property presetting,
combined to make a single bar, but some less sophisticated fonts cannot render this and show
separate bars above and below each character.
 UNIT FOUR

POLITICS, ECONOMY AND SOCIETY FROM THE LATE THIRTEENTH

TO THE BEGINNING OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURIES (6 hours)

4.1. The “Restoration” of the “Solomonic‟‟ Dynasty

The rulers of the “Solomonic” Dynasty claimed that they were descendants of the last king of
Aksum and hence, they were legitimate to take over state power from the “illegitimate” rulers of
the Zagwe dynasty. As the claim has no historical evidence, the name “Restoration” is put in
quotation mark. Similarly, the name “Solomonic” is placed in quotation marks because the claim
of descent from King Solomon of Israel is legendary. The claim has been elaborated in the Kibre
Negest (“Glory of Kings”) that associated Ethiopia with the Judeo-Christian tradition. The Kibre
Negest claims that Ethiopian ruling class descended from the line of Menilek I, son of the Queen
of Sheba and King Solomon of Israel. As a result, Ethiopian monarchs from YikunoAmlak to
Emperor Haile-Silassie I claimed descent from Menilek I.

4.2. Power Struggle, Consolidation, Territorial Expansion and Religious Processes

4.2.1. Succession Problem and the Establishment of a „Royal Prison‟ of Amba Gishen

Following the end of the reign of Yikuno-Amlak in 1285, a political instability caused by
constant power struggles among his sons and grandsons for succession occurred. A letter written
by Yegba-Tsion (r.1285-94) to the Sultan of Egypt and the Patriarch of Alexandria in 1290
reflected the existence of those struggles. The power struggle intensified during the reigns of
Yegba-Tsion‟s five sons who reigned from 1294 to 1299.

The succession problem seems to have been partly resolved in 1300 during the reign of Widim-
Ra‟ad (r. 1299-1314) following the establishment of a 'royal prison' at Amba-Gishen located in
present day southern Wollo where all male members of the royal family were confined until one
among them was installed in power. Loyal soldiers to the reigning monarch guarded the royal
prison. When the monarch died, court dignitaries would send an army to the royal prison to
escort the designated successor and put him on the throne. This practice continued until Amba-
Gishen was destroyed by Imam Ahmad Ibrahim Al-Ghazi's force in 1540.
4.2.2. Consolidation and Territorial Expansion of the Christian Kingdom
From 1270 until the establishment of Gondar in 1636, the medieval monarchs had no permanent
capital. Initially, the center of the “restored” dynasty was in medieval Amhara (today‟s South
Wollo) around Lake Haiq. However, it gradually shifted southward to the districts of Menz,
Tegulet, Bulga, and finally to the regions dominated by the great height of the Yerer, Entoto,
Menagesha, Wachacha, Furi and Zequalla mountains. After coming to power, Yikuno-Amlak
embarked on consolidating his authority throughout the empire. In this regard, he quickly
subdued Ifat, the Muslim center adjacent to Shewa. Yet, until the coming of Amde-Tsion
(r.1314-44), the center and the territorial limit of the Christian Kingdom was mainly in present
day Tigray, Lasta, medieval Amhara and Shewa. Amde-Tsion was the first "Solomonic" King,
who embarked on a policy of a wider and rapid territorial expansion.

His main motives of expansion were economic and political i.e. to control the trade routes and
seize territories. The Christian Kingdom controlled extensive territories during the reign of
Emperor Amde-Tsion. The period also witnessed the expansion of trade leading to the flow of
commodities to the coast following the major routes. In the process of consolidating his power,
Amde-Tsion subdued rebellions in an attempt to end centrifugal tendencies, which threatened the
unity of the Christian Kingdom. In the process, he expanded his territory into Agaw (Awi) of
Gojjam around 1323/4; Bizamo and Damot in 1316/7; Bete-Israel (located between Dambiya and
Tekeze River) around 1332; and the Red Sea Coast. To consolidate the control of the Christian
state over the provinces of the north extending to the coastal areas of Massawa, Amde-Tsion
gave Enderta (in today‟s northeastern Tigray) to his wife Bilen-Saba. Amde-Tsion's army faced
stiff resistance from among Ifat and Shewa, which might have cooperated with the rebellious
army at Enderta, led by Yibeka-Igzi in 1320s. However, Bahr-Sagad, the son of Amde-Tsion,
became the governor of Tigray. In 1325, Amde-Tsion campaigned to today‟s Eritrean region.
After controlling the whole region, he appointed a governor with a title of Ma'ekale-Bahir, which
later on changed to Bahire-Negash.

In the southeast, Muslim sultanates paid tributes to the Christian Kingdom. In the south, Gurage
speaking areas and a few of the Omotic kingdoms like Wolayta and Gamo werebrought under
the influence of the Christian state. Amde-Tsion was in full control of all the trade routes and
sources of trade of the Ethiopian region in the early 1330s. The consolidation and territorial
expansion of the Christian Kingdom continued during the successors of Amde-Tsion.

4.2.3. Evangelization, Religious Movements, and Religious Reforms of Zara-Yaqob

I. Evangelization
Christianity had a long history of expansion. Churches and their believers had been in existence
long before expansion of the Christian Kingdom in various parts of the Horn of Africa. For
instance, in Shewa there were early Christians who maintained contacts with their distant
relatives in Northern part of Ethiopia. Those early Christians played an important role in the
spread of Christianity in several areas. In the thirteenth century, Eyesus-Mo'a opened new
opportunities of learning for Christians who lived in the central part of Ethiopia and later
evangelized the newly incorporated areas where the influence of Christianity had either been
non−existent or minimal. The territorial expansion carried out by Amde−Tsion during the
medieval period set an addition momentum for the spread of Christianity. Abune Tekle-
Haymanot (thirteenth century) played a key role in reviving Christianity in Shewa, which was
followed by the evangelization of areas in southern Ethiopia including medieval Damot. He
baptized and converted Motalami to Christianity. The clergy, under the direction of the bishop in
Ethiopia, Yaqob, spread Christianity to different areas of Shewa such as Kil'at, Tsilalish,
Merhabite, Wereb, Moret and Wegda, and Fatagar, Damot, Waj and Enarya.

II. Religious Movements

A. The Ewostatewos Movement
Monasticism became a dominant practice in Ethiopian Orthodox Church in the midthirteenth
century. The period witnessed development of monasticism and religious movements of which
the major one was the Ewostatewos movement, named after the founder. Ewostatewos
established his own monastic community in Sara'e (in present day Eritrea). There, he was joined
by many students and taught until about 1337. Among his teachings was the strict observance of
Sabbath. When he was opposed by an organized religious rival group of the clergy in Sera'e, he
fled the country to Egypt. He faced the same opposition in Cairo by Ethiopian pilgrims.

After Ewostatewos left Ethiopia, the movement was weakned although his followers led by Abba
Absad tried their best to maintain its momentum. The movement revived when some ofhis
followers such as Bekimos, Merkoryewos and Gebre–Iyasus returned home from Armenia.
The followers of Ewostatewos soon became active and dispersed to different monasteries in
northern Ethiopia. The movement spread to areas like Enfraz, northern Tigray, and Hamessen.
The King and the Abun opposed the movement. Hence, the antiEwostatewos group led by the
Abbot of the Hayq Monastery called Aqabe-Se‟at SereqeBirhan was supported by the Abun and
the monarch. The monarch imprisoned some of the Ewostatians owing to the fact that he feared
that dispute in the church could divide his kingdom. The clergy expelled Ewostatians from their
church services; some of the Ewostatians were forced to withdraw and settle in peripheral areas
while some of them sustained their movement in monasteries like Debre- Bizen, Debre-San, etc.

B. Deqiqe Estifanos/ the Estifanosites

The Estifanosites were a movement within Ethiopian monasticism, called so after their founder
and spiritual leader Abba Estifanos. The movement rose to prominence in the fifteenth century
and continued until the sixteenth century, when it was formally reconciled with the main body of
the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The head of the movement, Abba Estifanos, was born in Agame
at the end of the fourteenth century. He established a rigid monastic organization, which
emphasized poverty, absolute self-subsistence, equality and autonomy from secular authorities.

His adversaries in the monastic circles attempted to discredit him, but the movement gained
followers in various monastic communities. When summoned to the royal court, Estifanos was
initially able to convince the emperor (probably Atse Takla Maryam, r. 1430-33) that he posed
no threat to royal power or the unity of the Church. Later, however, he collided with Zara-
Yaqob. Estifanos appears to have disapproved of the Emperor‟s religion initiatives, rejected
royal supremacy and authority in spiritual matters and refused to participate in court judiciary
procedures. Zara-Yacob took very harsh measures against the Estifanosites allegedly for their
opposition of the veneration of St. Mary. Naod appears to have been more favorably inclined
towards the Estifanosites and to have been instrumental in their reintegration into the EOC
during the period of Metropolitan Abune Yeshaq. For their part, Estifanosites appear to have
softened their position; the excommunication was lifted by the Metropolitan. Despite the
importance of the Estifanosites movement for the history of Ethiopia, as yet we have neither a
comprehensive critical history of its background and development, nor a clear idea of its real
geographical scale, historical significance and influence.
III. The Religious Reforms of Emperor Zara-Yaqob
Emperor Zara-Yaqob (r.1434-68) took several measures to stabilize and consolidate the
Orthodox Church. First, he settled the conflict among the Ethiopian clergy in order to create an
amicable church-state relationship. In this regard, he made peace with the House of Ewostatewos
by reviving Sabbath in the Ethiopian church and the Ewostatian agreed to receive Holy orders
from the Ethiopian prelates. Further, he urged the clergy to preach Christianity in remote areas.
Besides, he ordered the people to observe fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays and get Father
Confessors.

Lack of sufficient religious books was another problem. Thus, the king encouraged the
establishment of a library in every church. This was followed by revival of religious literature.
He himself wrote some books like Metsafe-Birhan, Metsafe-Me’lad, MetsafeSillasie, Metsafe-
te'aqebo Mister, etc. In addition, during his reign, some parts of Te’amreMaryam were translated
from Arabic to Geez.

4.3. Political and Socio-Economic Dynamics in Muslim Sultanates

A number of strong sultanates had emerged since the fourteenth century. Trade was one of the
major factors that resulted in the rise and development of those sates. Trade served not only as a
major source of livelihood but also acted as a major agent that resulted in the formation of
Muslm Sultanes and remained a major source of conflict between the Christian Kingdom and
Muslim sultanates. One of the strong Muslim sultanates that emerged along trade routes and
became a center of resistance against the Christian Kingdom until the second half of the
sixteenth century was the Sultanate of Adal.

4.3.1. The Rise of Adal

After its establishment, Ifat conducted a series of campaigns against its neighboring sultanates
thereby extending its hegemony over these areas. It also resisted the expansion of the Christian
Kingdom. However, one branch of the Walasma family, which realized that Ifat was becoming
an easy target to the Christian Kingdom due to its location, moved further to the southeastern
lowlands and established new and vigorous Muslim Sultanate of Adal in the highland districts
around Harar in 1367. The first center of this extended Walasma Dynasty was at a place called
Dakar, a place located to the southeast of Harar. The Walasma family consolidated its power in
the new center, and began another phase of military campaigns against the frontiers of the
Christian Kingdom. The center of Adal in 1520 changed to the city of Harar and after the defeat
of Imam Ahmed; a growing threat from a new force-the Oromo forced the sultanate to change its
capital to Awsa in 1576/7, to the present Afar region.

4.3.2. Trade and the Expansion of Islam

Islam spread into the central and southwestern parts of the Ethiopian region through Muslim
merchants and preachers. Trade served as channel for the expansion of Islam in the Muslim
Sultanates while at the same time it formed the base of the economy of those states. The most
known Muslim Sultanates during this period were Ifat (1285-1415) and Adal (1415-1577). The
main trade outlet shifted to Zeila and the old city-states of Mogadishu, Brava, and Merca were
used as ports for their hinterland.

In the meantime, for the trade in the northeast, Massawa served as an outlet. With the revival of
trade, different towns and trade centers emerged along the route from Zeila to the interior.
Travelers' accounts and chronicles referred to these towns and ruins of mosques and residences
mark the existence of market centers, which followed and served the trade coasts. The ruins that
mark the landscape around Jigjiga and the highlands of Harar and Charchar attest to the market
towns that served the Zeila route.

These include Weez-Gebeya in western Shewa/famous market on the Fatagar-Dawaro-Harar

route, Suq-Wayzaro in old Damot, Suq-Amaja and the very famous market center Gandabalo on
the Ifat-Awsa route. Gandabalo was largely inhabited by Muslim and Christian merchants
serving the kings and sultans as agents. Other big market towns include the ones that linked
medieval Amhara with Awsa, called Wasel near what is today Ware-Illu, Qorqora/Qoreta (north
of Waldiya) and Mandalay in southern Tigray. The towns of Dabarwa, the seat of the Bahre-
Negash (“Lord of the Sea”), and Asmara were the two important entre pots of caravans in the
hinterland of Massawa. Muslim states had significant control over trade routes that passed
through Zeila due to their geographical proximity, although contested by “Solomonic” Kingdom
especially after its revival and consolidation.

4.4. Rivalry between the Christian Kingdom and the Muslim Sultanates
Zeila was the main outlet to the sea during the medieval period. The ambition to control this
trade route and commodities that passed through Zeila led to rivalry between the “Solomonic”
rulers and the Sultanate of Ifat. The first recorded conflict between the Christian Kingdom and
Ifat took place in 1328 when the Muslim Sultanates organized their armies to take military action
against the Christian Kingdom. The Sultan of Ifat, Haqaddin I stopped merchants belonging to
the Christian King, Amde-Tsion, confiscating the goods, capturing, and imprisoning the king's
agent, Ti‟iyintay returning from Cairo. These actions forced Amde-Tsion to wage a campaign
against Haqaddin I; defeated and took him prisoner and eventually replaced him by his brother
Sabradin. Both Ifat and Fatagar came under Sabradin. Ifat was defeated and Sabradin was
captured during his retreat. As a result, Ifat, Fatagar and Dawaro were incorporated. Amde-Tsion
required from them annual tributes and freedom of movement for all caravans through Zeila.
Following the decline of Ifat, other Muslim Sultanates like Sharkha, Bali, Dara, and Arbabani
were also seriously weakened.

It was owing to these developments that some members of the Walasma moved their seat of
power further east to Adal, from where they continued their struggle. To check their attacks on
the highlands, the successors of Emperor Amde-Tsion conducted repeated campaigns into the
lowlands. In 1376, Haqadin II came to power and refused to pay tribute and rebelled against
Neway-Maryam (r. 1371-80), the son of Amde-Tsion. However, he died fighting in 1386.
Similarly, the successor of Haqadin II, Sa‟d ad-Din II (c. 1386-1402) gained initial success until
king Dawit I (r. 1380-1412) in 1402/3 extended his expansion and defeated him. Sa‟d ad-Din II
became refuge in Zeila until King Yishaq (r.1413-30) killed him in 1415. Since then the area was
called "the land of Sad ad-Din." Following the death of Sa‟d ad-Din and loss of Zeila to
Christian Kings, the Muslim sultanates declined in power. Sa‟d ad-Din‟s sons who took refuge in
Yemen came back to succeed their father. Yet, Adal continued to challenge the Christian state
and were successful in killing Tewodros (1412-13) and Yeshaq. This led to intense struggle for
predominance.

During the mid-fifteenth century, Emperor Zara Yaqob gained some access to the Red Sea. In
1445, Zara Yaqob defeated Sultan Ahmed Badlay at the battle of Yeguba. As a result, the son
and successor of Ahmed Badlay, Mohammed Ahmed (r.1445-71) sent a message of submission
to Ba‟ede Mariam (r. 1468-78) to remain vassal of the Christian Kings. On the death of
Mohammed, however, Adal was still strong and continued its struggle. Hence, thereigning
monarch, Ba‟ede-Mariam campaigned against Adal.
Despite initial successes, the army of Ba'ede-Mariam lost the battle in 1474. The successors of
Ba'ede-Mariam proved weak in their dealings with the rulers of Muslim Sultanates. At the same
time, leaders of the Muslim Sultanate sought to resolve the problem peacefully. As a result,
Mohammad ibn Azhar ad-Din (1488-1518) attempted to smoothen relations with the Christian
Kingdom. However, among the various Sultans of the Muslim sultanates, Emir Mahfuz carried
out some effective military campaigns into the highlands. In 1517 Emir Mahfuz died fighting
against Emperor Lebne-Dengel's (r. 1508-40) force and his son-in-law, Imam Ahmed ibn
Ibrahim al-Ghazi, popularly known as Ahmed Gragn or the "left-handed" took over the
leadership.

Apart from the hostile relations, there were wider socio-economic and cultural interactions
between the Christian Kingdom and Muslim principalities. As in earlier periods, trade continued
to be the major channel of social integration. Also, it had long been the source of friendship,
interaction, interdependence, and conflict among the states of the region. The long distance trade
and local markets served as core areas of social ties. Relatively, the difference in ecology of the
Muslim sultanates and the Christian Kingdom created economic interdependence, which in due
course strengthened socio-economic bondage. Merchants of the two regions often moved from
the highlands to the coast and vice versa. It was through such caravan merchants that the social
links were strengthened and religions spread. These interactions and interdependence in
economic, social, cultural and political spheres lay the foundation for modern Ethiopia.

Beside the above dusscused socio-cultural and economic interactionas, the period witnessed the
flourishing of Geez literature as is evident from the works of Abba Giorgis Ze-Gasicha and
others and philosophies epitomzed by Zara-Ya'iqob (not to be confused with the king). On the
Muslim side, literature had developed including the works of Arab writers such as Ibn Fadil al
Umari, Ibn Khaldun and others

4.5. External Relations

4.5.1. Relations with Egypt
From the late thirteenth century onwards, the Christian Kingdom continued to maintain relations
with Egypt, which was mainly religious in character. In 1272, Yekuno-Amlak sent an emissary
to Egypt‟s Sultan, Baybars, requesting an Abun from the Coptic Church. Furthermore, both
Egypt and Ethiopia continued to act as protectors of religious minorities in their respective
domain. Egypt also wanted to ensure secure flow of the Nile (the Abay River) that originated
from Ethiopia. In the early fourteenth century, Mohammed ibn Qala‟un persecuted the Copts and
destroyed their churches in Cairo. In response, Amde-Tsion demanded the restoration of the
churches and warned that failure to do so would result in the diversion of the Nile waters.
Patriarch Marqos (1348- 63) sent a message to Sayfa-Arad (r.1344-71), revealing his
imprisonment by the then Egyptian Sultan. Sayfa-Arad is said to have mobilized a huge army
against Egypt after which the Sultan released the patriarch and sent a delegation to the King.
Besides, Patriarch Matewos (1328-1408) delegated by the Sultan, established harmonious
relations between King Dawit and Egypt.

The Sultan is said to have sent a piece of the "True Cross" and in return, Dawitis said to have
given a number of religious paintings to the Sultan. In 1437/8, Zara-Yaqob wrote a friendly letter
to Sultan Barsbay requesting the protection of Christians in Egypt. Three years later, however,
Patriarch Yohannes XI wrote Zara-Yaqob a letter stating the demolition of the famous church of
Mitmaq (Debre-Mitmaq). Then ZaraYaqob sent an envoy to Sultan Jaqmaq (1438-53) with a
strongly worded letter. In reply to this message, Jaqmaq sent an envoy to Ethiopia, with
complimentary gifts to the King but rejected the reconstruction of the church.

4.5.2. Relations with Christian Europe

As with the Muslim Arab world, the Christian Kingdom maintained relations with Christian
Europe. During the medieval period, contacts between the two regions were strongly influenced
by the legend of “Prester John”.This was followed by sustained relations in subsequent decades.
For example, it is stated that Ethiopian delegation was in attendance of. Gian Galeazzo
Visconti‟s coronation in Milan in 1395. In 1418, three Ethiopians attended the Council of
Constance. In another report, message from an Ethiopian monarch, Amde-Tsion was presented
to King Phillip of France in 1332. The earliest known message to Ethiopia from a European
monarch is the letter of King Henry IV of England dated 1400 A.D. and addressed to “Prester
John”,the purported king of the Christian Kingdom. The identification of the King with “Prester
John” was firmly established in the fourteenth century. They even thought that it was possible to
liberate Jerusalem with the help of this King. Hence, during the reign of King Dawit, the leaders
of Rome, Constantinople, Syria, Armenia and Egypt sent letters to the king in which they asked
for support. King Dawit received some Italian craftsmen consisting mainly of Florentines.
In 1402, King Dawit sent his first delegation to Europe led by a Florentine man called Antonio
Bartoli. Alphonso de Paiva V of Aragon received a delegation from Yishaq in the city of
Valentia, in 1427. Yishaq‟s delegation to Europe was to ask for more artisans and military
experts. The embassy of the Duke of Berry consisting craftsmen, Neapolitan Pietro, a Spaniard
and a Frenchman reached Ethiopia during the reign of Yishaq. In 1450 a Sicilian Pietro
Rombulo, who had been in Ethiopia since the last years of Dawit's reign and who had previously
carried out a successful trade mission to India on behalf of the King, was now sent to Europe as
Zara-Yaqob‟s ambassador. An Ethiopian priest, FikreMariam and two other individuals
accompanied him. The mission was to Alphonso of Aragon (also ruled as king of Naples and
Sicily). King Zara-Yaqob sent delegates to Alphonso to get political, military, and technical
assistance. Alphonso wrote a letter to ZaraYaqob and informed him that he has sent him artisans
and masons he requested.

The most authentic pieces of evidence on Ethio-Europe links are the maps of Egyptus Novelo (c.
1454) and Fra Mauro's Mappomondo (1460) which clearly depicted many places and peoples.
Venetian Gregorio or Hieronion Bicini visited Ethiopia in 1482. Pedros da Covilhao/Peter de
Covilham arrived at the court of Eskindir (1478-1494) in 1493.

The beginning and continued rivalry between the Christian Kingdom and Muslim Sultanates in
the fifteenth century strengthened the relation between the Christian Kingdom and Christian
Europe. Queen Elleni (the daughter of Hadiya Garad and married to King Zara Yaeqob) played
an important role in the strengthening of these relations. She had foreseen the threat that came
from the Ottoman Turkish who showed a clear interest to support the Muslim Sultanates. She
also had foreseen the possibility of consolidating relations with and getting support from
Portugal that was against the Turks. In 1508, Portugal sent an envoy to act as an ambassador to
Christian Ethiopia. Around 1512, Queen Elleni, the mother and regent of Lebne-Dengel sent an
Armenian called Mathew to Portugal. The Portuguese court doubted his authenticity and was
received coldly. The Portuguese Embassy led by Rodrigo di Lima, Duwarto Galliba and
Francisco Alvarez reached Ethiopia in 1520 and remained for six years. The objective was to
establish a naval port against the expanding Turkish power in Red Sea Area. The mission was
not successful.
 UNIT FIVE

POLITICS, ECONOMY AND SOCIAL PROCESSES FROM THE

EARLY SIXTEENTH TO THE END OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURIES
(10 hrs)

5.1. Conflict between the Christian Kingdom and the Sultanate of Adal and After

As discussed in unit four, the revival of long-distance trade caused competition and struggle for
control over the trade routes between the Christian Kingdom and the Muslim principalities. This
was followed by a series of wars, which were depicted as wars for religious supremacy in
historical accounts of Christian and Muslim clerics. While maladministration and exploitation of
periphery made military mobilization possible, religion provided ideological justification for the
wars. However, the interest to control trade routes lay at the heart of the conflict between the
Christian Kingdom and the Muslim Sultanates that continued for over two centuries, culminating
in the wars between the Christian Kingdom and the Sultanate of Adal that lasted from 1529 to
1543.

As a prelude to this conflict, among the Muslim Sultanates, internal strife, corruption and
anarchy was intensified and a new leadership was urgently called for. Such leadership came from
Imam Ahmed Ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi. The origins of Imam Ahmed, alias “the lefthanded,” are
obscure. He was born at Hubet in between Dire Dawa and Jigjiga and raised by his devout
Muslim kin in one of the oases on the route to Zeila. He was a devout Muslim. He soldiered for
Garad Abun of Adal, who during his few years in power called for Islamic Puritanism.
According to local tradition, the Imam withdrew to the countryside, upon the death of his source
of inspiration, Garad Abun, and started calling for devotion to the teachings of Islam.

Here came fundamental change in the cause of the confrontations. After Imam Ahmad‟s rise to
power under circumstances discussed above, the battles were not just fought for control of the
long-distance trade route going through Zeila but mainly because there was environmental
pressure among the Afar and Somali pastoralists pushing to approach Harar and the Christian
Kingdom. For centuries, lowland inhabiting Muslim pastoralists had wanted to expand to high
plateaus for better and enough pasturelands and attempted to do so but only to be held back by
the Christian army. With increased population and overgrazing in Somali and Afar of eastern
Ethiopia, between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries, raiding and counter-raiding at water
holes or animal rustling intensified.

It was one of the Imam‟s remarkable achievements in leadership that he mobilized the pastoral
communities of the Afar, the Somali, the Harla, Harari and others to a common cause. He
convinced them not to fight amongst themselves but to unite and expand to the Christian
Kingdom and resolve their pressing material needs while at the same time guarding Islamic
doctrines and practices from the infiltration of any alien religious doctrine. He was able to gain
acceptance as Imam and consolidated his army to fight the Christian Kingdom. Meanwhile,
Lebne-Dengel was enthroned when he was only eleven. Assisted by the elderly Elleni and due to
internal conflicts in Adal, the Christian state initially retained its interest and even advanced into
Muslim territory scoring significant victories in the early sixteenth century. As a result, most of
the Muslim Sultanates including Adal were made tributaries to the Christian Kingdom.

However, shortly, Adal fell to Imam Ahmed‟s army. By the time Imam Ahmed was strong
enough for military confrontation in 1520, he refused to pay tribute and this was followed by a
campaign against the Christian Kingdom in 1527.The Imam‟s army fought fiercely and
controlled the territories including Bali, Dawaro, Fatagar, Sidama, Hadiya and Kambata and
putting the Christian Kingdom at risk. In 1528, realizing the rising threat, Lebne-Dengel
mobilized a vast force from his domain and encamped about fifty kilometers east of what is now
Addis Ababa. In addition to logistical problems, the leadership of the army of Christian Kingdom
failed to adopt a common strategy to defeat Adal‟s force. On the other hands, Imam Ahmed's
highlymotivated but small-sized army faced no such logistical challenges. The Imam‟s army had
also an excellent leadership characterized by better mobility and flexible tactics with a unified
command. As a result, the larger and well-equipped Christian army was defeated in one of the
most decisive engagement at the battle of Shimbra Kure in 1529, near present day Mojo. After
the victory, the Imam‟s army made a large-scale control of the territories of the Christian
Kingdom including Shewa, Amhara, Lasta, and moved as far north as Mereb Melash. By 1535,
Imam Ahmed‟s empire stretched from Zeila to Massawa on the coast including the Ethiopian
interior. As he penetrated deep into the Christian Kingdom, Imam Ahmed established a civil
administrative bureaucracy constituted from his own men and newly recruited personnel from
the Christian territories. One of the most illuminating figures during the war was the wife of the
Imam, Bati Del Wanbara. She was the daughter of a Muslim military commander of Adal known
as Mahfuz. Tradition claimed that Del Wanbara had encouraged her husband to avenge the death
of her father. She accompanied her husband throughout his expeditions and she is said to have
marched even in a state of pregnancy during which she was unable to use mules. Indeed, she
delivered her two sons during the campaigns of 1531 and 1533 in Ifat and present day Tigray
respectivelyOn the part of the Christian Kingdom, the military set back forced the reigning king,
LebneDengel, to retreat finally dying in 1540 as a fugitive.

His son and successor, Gelawdewos (r.1540-1559), continued to face the wars this time with
more intensity as Imam Ahmed had received Turkish musketeers. In the meantime, based on
earlier request made by LebneDengel in 1535, about four hundred Portuguese soldiers, armed
with matchlocks arrived in the Christian court in 1541.The force was led by Christopher da
Gama, the youngest son of Vasco da Gama. However, in August 1542 the Christian army was
defeated in Ofla, in today's southern Tigray. In the battle, about two hundred Portuguese were
killed and their leader Christopher da Gama was beheaded.

An important anecdote that should be mentioned here is the role of Lebne-Dengel's wife
Seblewongel. She is said to have participated in the war against Imam Ahmed in 1542 when the
army of the Christian Kingdom lost almost half of the Portuguese soldiers. After the success,
Imam Ahmed was confident about his army‟s ability to repulse any future attack by the force of
the Christian Kingdom that he sent his allies back home and let his army camp. On the part of the
Christians, preparations were made for final confrontation under the leadership of Emperor
Gelawdewos (r.1540-59). The Queen mother, Seble-Wongel, advised the reigning emperor how
to prepare and march for the battle of Woyna-Dega. Due to limited resources, the monarch
employed hit and run strategy, which severely affected Imam‟s army. Imam Ahmed‟s army
could not use its previous advantage of easy mobility because they did not know where the
attacks came from. On February 25, 1543 while Imam Ahmed was encamped near Lake Tana, he
was attacked and killed after a fierce fighting at the battle of Woyna-Dega. Soon after the battle,
Gelawdewos was confident that the nobility and his army were loyal to him. As a result, the king
restored possession of almost all the northern and central plateau. Muslim communities in the
highlands submitted to Gelawdewos and he was tolerant toward them to promote national
conciliation and to develop revival of smooth relations with the Muslim world. Besides,
Gelawdewos was able to restore many of the pre-1520s territories and tributary regions. The king
attempted to reconsolidate the state through campaigns to different areas and camping Chewa
(regiment) in border areas. By the early 1550s, Gelawdewos had established a strong Christian
Kingdom. However, the control over the Muslim dominated areas was not an easy task. In the
period, the growing challenge to the Christian state came from the retreating soldiers of the
Sultanate of Adal, the Ottoman Turks, Jesuit interlude, and Oromo advance into the center. Adal
under the leadership of Nur Ibn alWaazir Mujahid was ready to wage war against the Christian
state for revenge. In 1559, the forces of Emir Nur confronted Gelawdewos and killed the king
himself. Emperor Minas (r.1559-1563) who succeeded Gelawdewos defeated the Turks' force
and reclaimed territories in the coast including Dabarwa. However, in the early 1560s, Yishaq
revolted and allied with the Turks against him. Similarly, Sartsa-Dengle (r.1563-1598) had to
defend his terittory from the Turks while fighting with the Agaw, Gumuz, Bete-Israel, Sidama,
Enarya and the Oromo. The emperor then marched to the north, defeated Turkish forces, and
restored the territories. The Muslim-Christian conflict had resulted in a number of consequences.
One of the most obvious was the huge human and material cost. It is also evident that both the
Muslim Sultanate and Christian Kingdom were weakened thereby paving the way for an easy
infiltration and success of the Oromo population movement. On the positive side, it should be
restated that the war had arguably resulted in cultural interaction among the peoples of Ethiopia.
Linguistic and religious interactions accompanied by intermarriages among peoples of the
various cultural groups were one of these manifestations in the long history of Ethiopia and the
Horn. Competition for supremacy over the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean between Portugal and
the Ottoman Turks gave the prolonged conflict between the Christian Kingdom and the Muslim
principalities a global dimension. Middle Eastern powers including the dominant Ottoman
Empire who were the intermediaries of the international trade were adversely affected by the
discovery of a new sea route to India by Vasco da Gama in 1498.

They tried to counter the Portuguese encroachment into the East, while Portugal for its part
began to look toward the Christian Kingdom of Ethiopia as an ally, reviving the old "semi-
spiritual quest" for Prester John. From the first decade of the sixteenth century, messengers were
sent. However, actual military alliance did not take place because Ethiopia was not a sea power
to give a meaningful maritime support to Portugal against the Ottoman Turks.
On its part, the Christian Kingdom asked Portugal‟s military assistance against its Muslim rival.
Having noticed the movement of diplomatic missions between the Christian Kingdom and
Portugal, the Turks gave moral and military support to Imam Ahmed. In 1540, the Imam turned
to his Muslim ally, Turkey, for assistance and regional Ottoman authorities provided two
hundred Muslim musketeers and ten cannons.

5.2. Foreign Intervention and Religious Controversies

As with the state, the church was weakened by the wars against the sultanate of Adal. The
destruction of property and deaths of its clergy hampered the operation of the Church and by
extension its service as an ideological arm of the state. At the same time, the monarchy could not
count on the traditional political and military apparatus to withstand the continued expansion of
the Oromo deep into the Christian Kingdom and then to consolidate the Christian Kingdom.
Thus, revival was sought in the church. The rulers of the Christian Kingdom may have regarded
an alliance with Roman Catholicism as a tactic to secure sufficient modern weaponry and
training to restore its lost territories. In 1557, several Jesuit missionaries along with their bishop,
Andreas de Oviedo, came to Ethiopia to expand Catholicism. The Jesuits promoted Catholic
doctrine of two different and therefore separate, natures of Christ-divine and human, which was
contrary to Monophysite theology of Ethiopian Orthodox Church. EOC taught that Christ,
through union or Tewahedo had a perfect human nature inseparable from the divine. The leading
members of the mission who played key role in efforts to evangelize the country include Joao
Bermudez, Andreas de Oviedo, Pedro Paez and Alfonso Mendez. The Jesuits began their
evangelical effort with Emperor Gelawdewos (r.1540-59), hoping that the rest of the society
would follow suit. Gelawdewos listened and engaged in doctrinal debates with the missionaries,
but he was not prepared to give in. Instead, he defended the teachings of Orthodox Christianity in
a document entitled the Confession of Faith. Minas and Sertse-Dengel, who succeeded
Gelawdewos one after the other, were too busy fighting against the Oromo and the Turkish
forces to engage the Jesuits in their courts. The Jesuits got relative success with Emperor Za-
Dengel (r. 1603-4), who was said to have been sympathetic to Catholicism. Yet Za-Dengel‟s
reign was too short for the Jesuits to effect the desired result. Za-Dengel was overthrown by
Yaqob (r. 1598-1603; 1604-7), who met a similar fate in the hands of Susenyos (r. 1607-32).
Susenyos who was challenged by provincial leaders who refused to pay tribute, integrated the
Oromo with the forces of the central government to consolidate his power and stabilize the
country. Probably as a means to this, Susenyos sought for an alliance, which he got through the
diplomatic advisory of Pedro Paez. In 1612, Susenyos converted to Catholicism and announced
it to be state religion later in 1622. In the meantime, in 1617-8 several anti-Catholic voices
mounted following the changes in liturgy and religious practices. Even worse, with the
monarch‟s consent, another Spanish Jesuit, Afonso Mendez ordered reconsecration of Orthodox
priests and deacons and rebaptism of the mass. Besides, he called for the suspension of Old
Testament customs such as male circumcision and the observance of the Sabbath. Additional
pronouncements include prohibition of preaching in Ge‟ez, fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays,
reverence for Ethiopian saints and the Ark of Covenant (Tabot). Meanwhile, he ordered eating
pork, Latin Mass and Gregorian calendar to be adopted. The reforms led to revolts led by the
ecclesiastics and the nobility. Even loyal followers of the emperor including his own son
Fasiledas (r. 1632-67) were opposed to the changes initiated by the Jesuits. After 1625,
controversies, rebellions, repressions mounted and the state came to the verge of falling apart. In
a battle in June 1632, large number of peasants lost their lives in one day.

Finally, the emperor abdicated the throne in favor of Fasiledas, who reversed the Catholic
transformation. Fasiledas restored the position of Orthodox Church as the state religion, expelled
the Jesuits and punished local converts including Susenyos‟ brother and the most fervent
supporter of Catholicism, Se'ela Kristos. Fearing another religious conflict, Emperor Fasiledas
introduced a “closed-door” policy, which isolated the country from all Europeans for about a
century and a half. Conversely, he initiated and adopted a policy of close diplomatic relations
with the Islamic world and formed an alliance with the neighboring Muslim states to ensure that
no European crossed into the Christian Kingdom. As a result, in 1647, he concluded an
agreement with the Ottoman Pasha at Suakin and Massawa to the effect that the latter should
block any European from entering in to his territory. By doing so, Fasiledas was able to restore
peace and order. Ethiopia‟s diplomatic break from Europe remained effective until the beginning
of the nineteenth century with the exception of secret visits by a French Doctor Charles Jacques
Poncet and the Scottish traveler James Bruce in 1700 and 1769, respectively.

Yet, the Jesuit intervention triggered doctrinal divisions and controversy within the Ethiopian
Orthodox Church that was divided into disputant sects and reached its peak during the
Zemene Mesafint. Tewahedo teaches Hulet Lidet (two births) of Christ: first in eternity as a
Divine Being the eternal birth and second, born again from St. Mary into the world as a perfect
man and perfect divinity united in one nature, thus Tewahedo (United). It was dominant in
Tigray and Lasta. Qibat (Unction) was also developed from Hulet Lidet doctrine and accepted
the eternal birth as the first birth of Christ, but claimed that at the moment of his incarnation,
when he was born into the world, Holy Ghost anointed him. This sect was dominant in Gojjam.
Sost Lidet/Three Births (Ya Tsega Lij/Son through Grace) taught that Christ was first born in
eternity as divine being, was born again in the womb of St. Mary and anointed by Holy Ghost.
This sect was dominant in Gonder and Shawa.

5.3. Population Movements

The movements of people from one place to another have played important roles in shaping the
history of Ethiopia and the Horn. Population movements occurred in the Horn due to various
reasons, in varied scales and followed different directions. People moved from place to place due
to pull and push factors, which can be summed up as natural and social. Specifically, people
move out from their habitats in search of resources and better living environment in general. In
Ethiopia and the Horn, the causes of the movements could be attributed to the region's long
socio-political conditions involving military conflicts, drought and demographic factors.
Population movements of the medieval period had extensive effects including the integration of
peoples across ethnic and religious lines. Major outcomes of population movements during the
period under consideration include religious, ethnic and linguistic interactions and intermingling
of peoples. Specifically, this has resulted in intermarriage of peoples, change of abode, original
culture and evolution of new identities.

5.3.1. Population Movements of the Argoba, Afar, and Somali

The military conflict between the Christian Kingdom and the Sultanate of Adal in the late
fifteenth and the early sixteenth centuries was partly responsible for the population movement of
the Argoba, Afar and Somali. In addition, pressure on the environment was a major factor for the
population movement. Their territories lay in the region where trade routes passed and hence
were affected by the consequences of the military conflict. These peoples moved back and forth
in response to the ongoing military conflict.

The Argoba: the Argoba were major agents of Islamic expansion, trade and Muslim state
formation in the Horn. For instance, the sultanate of Shewa and Ifat were established by the
Makhzumite and Walasma Dynasties respectively. Towards the end of the thirteenth century, the
sultanate of Shewa moved further to the east as the result of the pressure from the Christian
Kingdom. The sultanate of Ifat, in which the Argoba were dominant, became the center of
Muslim resistance. On the eve of the wars of Imam Ahmed al Ghazi, the Argoba joined the Afar
and the Somali against the Christian Kingdom. The area inhabited by the Argoba was also a
target of the expanding Christian Kingdom and was the major center of conflict. This was
because the major caravan trade routes passed through Argoba territory. As a result, the
Christian-Muslim rivalry and the conflicts thereof led to the destruction of sultanates and
dispersion of the people. The enduring effect of the conflict can be observed from the fragmented
settlement patterns of the people.

The Afar: before the sixteenth century, due to drought, the Afar moved towards the east until
they reached the middle Awash. Trade routes linking the ports in the Horn passed through the
Afar's territory. As a result, the region was the centre of competition between the Christian
Kingdom and the Muslim sultanates to control the trade routes. Besides being actors in the
conflict, the conflict inevitably pressurized the Afar to move into different directions to avoid the
risk of the conflicts. Their pastoral economy helped the Afar to survive the destructive effects of
the wars of the sixteenth century.

The Somali: their territory lay in the region traversed by major trade routes during medieval
period. Prior to the sixteenth century wars between the Christian Kingdom and the Muslim
Sultanates, there was environmental pressure on Somali inhabited areas. The population
movement of the Somali was a strong force behind the military strength of the Imam. However,
the population movement of the Somali did not last for long as they returned to their home base
following the defeat of Imam Ahmed in 1543.

5.3.2. Gadaa System and Oromo Population Movement (1522-1618)

A. The Gadaa System
The Oromo population movement of the sixteenth century cannot be better understood without
considering the Gadaa system. The Gadaa system was an institution through which the Oromo
socially organized themselves, administered their affairs, defended their territories, maintained
law and order, and managed their economies. This section reflects onthe operation of the Gadaa
system in relation to the Oromo population movement of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Studies do not clearly indicate when and how the Gadaa system emerged. However, it is clear
that for long the society organized their politics, economy, social, cultural, and religious affairs
through the Gadaa institution. The account by Abba Bahrey indicates that during the early
sixteenth century, the system fully functioned because of which the Oromo were well organized.
Thus, it is reasonable to think that the Oromo had practiced the Gadaa system long before the
sixteenth century movement. Recent studies based on the Gadaa calendar and Gadaa centers
suggest that the system evolved from the earlier Cushitic age-set social organization. Time
computation and recording history was based on the eight-year segment of time. In the system,
eight years represented one Gadaa period, 5-gadaa periods or 40 years represented one
generation and nine generations represented an era. Accordingly, the earliest eras of Gadaa but
still obscure were those of Bidiri Dhoqqe. Prior to the beginning of Gadaa Borana-Barentu
around 1450 AD, the Oromo passed through known eras of Taya, Tasaa, Munyo, Suftu, Maddile,
Abroji, Dhittacha and Warra-Daye (warden), each of which survived for an era. Gadaa was
interrupted and revitalized during various eras because of various internal and external factors.
For instance, the Borana-Barentu Gadaa was instituted after interruption for nearly two
generations. It was revived in 1450 at Madda Walabu that became the central Chaffe (assembly)
and seat of the senior Qallu until 1900.

The Gadaa system constituted elements of democracy such as periodic succession and power
sharing to prevent a one-man rule. Other principles of the system included representation of all
lineages, clans and confederacies. It also served as a mechanism of socialization, education,
maintenance of peace and order, and social cohesion. In addition, Gadaa constituted rules of
arara (conflict resolution), guma (compensation), and rakoo (marriage). The Gadaa system
organized the Oromo society into age-grades and generation sets delineating members' social,
political, and economic responsibilities. In the system, ten agegrades and five classes operated in
parallel. The system provided a socio-political framework that institutionalized relationship
between seniors and juniors and egalitarian relations amongmembers of a grade. The system
helped the members of age-sets to develop a consistent and stable sense of self and others. Sons
joined the first grade as members of Gadaa class (generation class or set) forty years after their
fathers and were initiated into the next higher grade every eight years. The following table shows
a common version of age-grades and roles associated to them.
The gadaa/luba assumed power for eight years. The head of the government was known as
Abba-Gadaa literally “father of the period” who was assisted by several elected representatives
from among the generation set. These included Abba Bokku (father of scepter), Abba Chaffe
(head of the assembly), Abba-Dula (war leader), Abba Sera (father of law), Abba Alanga (judge),
Abba Sa'a (father of treasury) and other councilors. In the Gadaa system, the senior Qallu (Abba
Muda) played indispensable roles in power transfer and legitimizing the ruling gadaa class.
Women maintained their rights by the Sinqe institution, which helped them to form sisterhood
and solidarity. Women from childhood to old age i.e. guduru (pre-pubescent), qarre (adolescent,
ready for marriage), kalale (wives of Luba and Yuba) and cifire (wives of Gadamojji/above 80
years) were believed to have sacred power. They involved in occasions like power transfer,
conflict resolution, thanks-giving and others. The kalale were also privileged to support and
advise the ruling class. The Gadaa system functioned by the cyclical power transfer from one
Gadaa class to the next every eight years. With some minor differences in nomenclature in
different parts of Oromo territories, the five Gadaa classes (generation sets) are listed below:

B. The Oromo Population Movement (1522-1618)

A combination of natural and manmade factors caused the Oromo population movement of the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Natural factors include demographic pressure and
subsequent need for land to accommodate the growing human and livestock population.
Furthermore, the conflict between the Christian Kingdom and Muslim Sultanates from the
thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries might have pressurized mainly pastoral Oromo groups to
leave the lands they inhabited for other areas. In the early decade of the sixteenth century, when
the population movement began, the Oromo were already organized under Borana and Barentu
confederacies. The Oromo forces took northern direction and passed through a corridor between
Mount Walabu and Lake Abbaya. When they reached half way between Lakes Abbaya and
Hawassa, they took westward and penetrated across the Bilatte River to the southwest. Then they
headed northwards to the lakes region of the Rift Valley. From 1522 to 1618, the Oromo fought
twelve Butta wars. Accordingly, the first Gadaa i.eMelba (1522-1530) fought and defeated
Christian regiment Batra Amora led by Fasil and occupied Bali while Mudena (1530-8) reached
the edge of Awash River. The Kilole (1538- 46) controlled Dawaro after defeating Christian
regiment Adal Mabraq while Bifole (1546- 54) advanced to Waj and Erer. The Michille (1554-
62) scored victory over Hamalmal's force at Dago, and Jan Amora forces as well as Adal led by
Emir Nur Mujahiddin at Mount Hazalo. The Harmufa (1562-70) fought Minas (r.1559-63) at
Qacina and Wayyata; occupied Angot, Ganzyi, Sayint etc.

In 1574, Sartsa Dingil‟s (r.1563-97) cavalry led by Azzaj Halibo defeated Robale gadaa (1570-
78) at Woyna Daga, but Robale recovered by defeating Zara‟a Yohannis‟ force. The
Birmaji (1578-86) controlled Ar'ine in Waj, crossed Jama to Wolaqa and overwhelmed the
Daragoti regiment. The Mul’ata (1586-94) seized Damot, Bizamo, Gafat, Dambiya and Tigray.
In the early seventeenth century, the Dulo (1594-1602), Melba (1603-10), and Mudena (1610-
18) expanded to West and Northern parts of the Horn of Africa while others like the Warday
moved to Kenya and Bur Haqaba and Majertin in Somalia.

In addition to the wars between the Christian Kingdom and Muslim Sultanates, the organization
of the Oromo under the Gadaa system played crucial role in the success of the Oromo population
movement. In the course of their movement into various regions, different Oromo branches
establishedGadaa centers. Accordingly, Oda Nabee of Tulama, Oda Roba of Sikko-Mando
(Arsi), Oda Bultum of Itu-Humabenna, Oda Bisil of Mecha and Oda Bulluq of Jawwi Mecha
became major Gadaa centers. Other places, which became Gadaa centers, were Gayo of Sabbo-
Gona, Me'e Bokko of Guji, Oda Dogi of Ilu, Oda Hulle of Jimma, Oda Garado of Waloo, etc.
Gadaa leaders such as Dawe Gobbo of Borana, Anna Sorra of Guji, Makko-Bili of Mecha,
Babbo Koyye of Jimma and others established Gadaa centers and laid down cardinal laws in
their respective areasHowever, various Oromo groups kept their relations through the office of
Abba Muda (the father of anointment) seated at Madda Walabu and formed alliances during
times of difficulty. Besides, they obeyed similar ada (culture) and sera (law) through sending
their delegates to Madda-Walabu, the central chaffe until the pan-Oromo assembly was
forbidden in 1900 due to the political influence of the Ethiopian state. In due course, Gadaa
devised effective resource allocation formula including land. Land holding system to regulate
resource and their interaction among different clans is known as the qabiyye system. The system
established rights of precedence (seniority) in possession of land. Accordingly, place names were
given the names of pioneers as markers of qabiyye rights.

5.4. Interaction and Integration across Ethnic and Religious Diversities

The political, social, and economic processes of the medieval period were the major factors for
the people's interactions across regions. Such interactions occurred during peace and conflict
times. The cases in point were the trade contacts and conflicts to control trade routes, religious
expansion, and territorial expansion and population movements. One of the major consequences
of the interactions in the medieval period particularly in the population movement of the
sixteenth century was the integration of peoples across ethnic and religious diversities in
Ethiopia and the Horn. Population movement of the period relatively covered extensive
geographical areas in the region. It involved diverse ethnic groups, cultures, and religions from
south to north and from east to west. It is apparent that territorial and religious expansion by the
Christian kingdom diffused Christian tradition from north to the south. Similarly, the wars of
Imam Ahmed and the population movements of the Argoba, the Afar and the Somali caused the
expansion of Islam into the central parts of Ethiopia.

One consequence of the Oromo population movement was that it put an end to the wars between
the Christian and Muslim states as well as the southward expansion of the Christian state. At
larger scale, the Oromo contact with diverse peoples in the sixteenth century brought far-
reaching integrations among peoples across ethnic and religious background. The Oromo
integrated non-Oromo through two adoption mechanisms: Guddifacha and Moggasa.
Guddifacha refers to the adoption of a child by a foster parent. In this system, the child enjoyed
equal rights and privileges with a biological child.

Likewise, Moggasa was a system of adopting non-Oromos commonly known as Oromsu.

Moggasa was the practice of incorporation of individuals or groups to a clan through oath of
allegiance with all the rights and obligations that such membership entailed. Moggasa was
undertaken by the Abba Gadaa on behalf of the clan. The adopted groups gained both protection
and material benefits. The process significantly contributed to the social cohesions, national
integration, and the revival of long-distance trade. The interactions also resulted in an exchange
of socio-cultural values and institutions. A number of peoples in the neighborhood of the Oromo
adopted Gadaa system and Oromo language. Likewise, the Oromo adopted and adapted cultures
and traditions of the people with whom they came into contact. The case in point is the adoption
of monarchical systems and the integration of the Oromo to the Christian and Muslim cultures. It
is important to mention the rise of nobles in the northern Oromo in politics particularly during
the Gondar period, Zemene-Mesafint and the making of modern Ethiopia.
5.5. Peoples and States in Eastern, Central, Southern and Western Regions
It is not possible in the space of a brief teaching module such as this to provide an exhaustive
detail of societies and states in eastern, central, southern, and western parts of the country in the
period covered by this unit. Thus, this section explores the history of some of the states (as
illustrations) in the period under consideration. Although there was no one criterion used to
select the states, due regard has been given to balance the number of states selected from each
region mentioned above. The selection of states for discussion also considered availability of
sources and treatment in earlier sections.

5.5.1. Peoples and States in the East

Somali
The Somali people inhabited vast territory in the Horn. For long, the Somali practiced pastoral
economy and moved between places for centuries possibly in search of sufficient pasture. Ibn
Said (1214-86), an Arab geographer, noted that Merca town located in the southern Somali coast
near Shabele River was a capital that brought large number of Somalis together during the
thirteenth century. The songs celebrating King Yeshaq's (r. 1413-30) military success depicts
that the Somali lived close to the Christian Kingdom. Somali contingents also played important
role in the victories of the Sultanate of Adal against the Christian kingdom.

Historically, a council known as shir governed the society. The decision making process was
highly democratic in which all-adult male were allowed equal access and participation. These
councils at sub-clan, clan and inter-clan level provided a governing structure that acted as an
enforcement of law and justice. The council governed wide-ranging affairs including resource
allocation, marriage, trade and crime. As a component of shir, the guurti (a council of elders)
was the highest political council mandated with resolving conflict and crisis.
Afar
The Afar predominantly lived in northeastern Ethiopia and in northern Djibouti, although some
have also inhabited southern part of Eritrea. The Afar had an indigenous governance system
known as Makabanto, which has some elements of democracy. The Afar people were first
mentioned by Ibn Said. During the thirteenth century, they occupied the lowland territory near
Bab el-Mandeb. The land inhabited by the Afars was home for many historical cities such as
Maduna and Abasa. Following the collapse of the power of Sultanate of Adal in the sixteenth
century, the Afar established their sultanates like Awsa, Girrifo, Tadjourah, Rahaito and Gobad.
Awsa Sultanate succeeded the earlier Imamate of Awsa in the middle Awash. The latter polity
had come into existence in 1577, when Mohammed Jasa moved his capital from Harar to Awsa.
At some point after 1672, Awsa declined and temporarily ended in conjunction with Imam Umar
Din bin Adam's recorded ascension to the throne. The Sultanate was subsequently reestablished
by Kedafo around 1734, and was thereafter ruled by his Mudaito Dynasty. Primary symbol of the
Sultan was silver baton. Awsa‟s economy mainly depended on BatiGinda‟e trade route. Later it
became center of Islamic learning led by preachers like Tola Hanfire.

Argoba: Early reference to the people of Argoba is insufficient. There are two versions on the
origin of the people of Argoba. The first version holds that they descended from the followers of
the Prophet Mohammed who came to the Horn of Africa and settled at Ifat. The second version
claims that the origin of the Argoba is not related with Muslim-Arab immigrants. More
plausibly, the Argoba are one of the ancient peoples in the region that accepted Islam very early
from religious leaders who came from Arabia.

The Emirate of Harar

Harar is one of the earliest Muslim centers in the region of Ethiopia and the Horn. In the
sixteenth century, Harar became the capital of Walasma of Adal replacing Dakar until 1577
when it was shifted to Awsa due to the pressure from the Oromo. Imam Ahmed ibn Ibrahim used
Harar as a center from where he launched his campaigns into the Christian kingdom in 1527.
Later during the reign of Emir Nur Mujahid, Harar became a walled city where the sultanate of
the Harari developed. In the mid seventeenth century, Emir Ali ibn Da‟ud (r. 1647-62) in
cooperation with the Oromo established a dynasty which was to rule for nearly two centuries and
a half.

It was strengthened by Amirs like Abdul Shakur (1783-94). The Amir‟s council, Majilis engaged
in supervising Mosque land, Waqfand offering other assistance to the Amir. The emirate grew in
importance to be a steady center of Islamic culture and power. Its economic power grew as it
controlled trade routes from the Gulf of Aden ports of Zeila and Berbera. Its authority was
established over the surrounding Oromo and Somali through trade, inter-marriage, and expansion
of Islamic teachings. Egyptians were attracted by such a prominence that they sent an
expeditionary force in 1875 and controlled the emirate for nearly a decade. Although it was later
restored, and ruled by Amir Abdulahi, as the last emir of the Sultanate for two years, Emperor
Menilek‟s expansion to the region shortly followed in 1887.

5.5.2. Peoples and States in Central and South Central Parts

The Kingdom of Shewa
The Kingdom of Shewa was formed by a Menz ruler Negasi Kristos (r.1696-1703) and
eventually controlled districts like Asandabo, Debdabo, Mafud and Yifat. The second king was
Merid Azmatch Sebestie/Sebastyanos (r.1703-18). Abuye/ Abiyye (1718-45) made Haramba, his
capital and tried to subjugate the surrounding Oromo before he was killed by the Karrayu
Oromo. In addition to his unsuccessful attempts to control the Afar and Abitchu Oromo, Amaha
Iyesus/ Amayyes (r.1745-75) declared authority over Bulga, Efrata, Menz and Tegulet with his
capital at Doqaqit which later shifted to Ankober. Asfa-Wosen (r.1775- 1808) conquered
Antsokia, Asbo, Gedem, Gishe, Merhabete, Morat and Shewa Meda. The dynasty became very
strong under Negus Sahle-Sellasie (r.1813-47), the grandfather of Emperor Menilek II. During
his reign, many travelers visited Shewa and he even signed “treaty of friendship and commerce”
with the British in 1841. Shewa‟s economy was mainly based on agriculture supplemented by
trade and craft. Near the capital, Ankobar, there was an important trade center in Aleyu Amba
administered by the Shewan court.

Gurage
The Gurage are divided into the Western and Northern Gurage. The first are also known as
Sebat Bet Gurage and include: Chaha, Muher, Ezha, Gumer (Inamor, Enner, Endegegna
andGyeto). The latter are variously known as Kistane, Aymallal or Soddo Gurage. Additional
groups included Dobbi, Gadabano and Masqan. The staple crop in Gurage land is enset. The
Gurage had traditional system of governance developed over the centuries. It is known as
the Yajoka Qicha among the Sebat Bet and the Gordanna Sera among the Kistane. There was,
however, no centralized leadership. Power was vested in clan or lineage groups. The descent
groups displayed corporate rights, obligations, and influence.

Kambata By about 1550-70, four communities of separate origin coalesced to form the
contemporary state of Kambata which means, “this is the place” (where we live-as the Kambata
believe in). The first one, Kambata in the narrow sense, had its original homeland around Mount
Hambericho in the heartland of Kambata territory. The other three namely the Dubamo, Donga
and Tembaro trace their homeland from Sidama highlands. If the above processes led to the
formation of the nucleus of the state, the ethno-genesis of Kambata also benefitted from Omotic
and Semitic peoples who moved into the region at different times. Emperor Yeshak (r.1413-30)
annexed Kambata proper and controlled the area between Omo and Bilate Rivers, which he
incorporated into the Christian Ethiopian Empire.

In 1532, the region was captured by Imam Ahmed‟s army, which furthered the interaction of
peoples. At the end of the sixteenth century, the groups were recognized as and conscious of the
name Kambata related to one of the seven dominant clans (Kambata Lamala) in the region. The
people were ensete farmers sharing similar culture and speaking the same language called
Kambatissa, which belongs to the Highland East Cushitic family together with Qabena, Halaba,
Hadiya, Sidama, Gedeo and Burji groups. The Kambata had a traditional administrative
institution called the Hambericho Council. The council had seven members each representing the
seven clans in the region. With a king at the top, the council ruled Kambata until the late
nineteenth century. Hadiya The origin of the state of Hadiya goes back to the thirteenth century.
It was mentioned in the Kebre-Negest (Glory of the Kings) and it referred to the area west of the
Islamic states in thefederation of Zeila.

The people were heterogeneous both linguistically and culturally. Semitic-speaking agricultural
people dominated north of the state while the southern part was largely inhabited by Cushitic-
speaking pastoral communities. There was a considerable Muslim population. By about 1332,
the ruler of the Christian kingdom, Amde-Tsion, subjugated Hadiya after defeating its ruler,
Amano who supported by a Muslim “prophet” Bel‟am aligned with the then leader of Ifat,
Sabraddin to confront the Christian force. From the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries, Hadiya‟s
political importance was considerable with sizable population and vast territory. In 1445, a
Hadiya king called Mahiqo rebelled against Emperor Zara-Yaqob (r.1434-68) and was
consequently replaced by his uncle Bamo. To stabilize the situation, Zara-Yaqob made a political
marriage. Accordingly, Princess Elleni, from Hadiya, who became an important historical figure,
married Emperor ZaraYaqob. Another Hadiya leader, Garad Aze refused to pay tribute to
Emperor Sartsa-Dengel (r.1563-98), but was suppressed in 1568/9. The relations between Hadiya
and the Christian Kingdom was interrupted following the wars between the latter and Adal and
the Oromo population movement until Hadiya's incorporation into the Imperial state in the late
nineteenth century. After these two major historical events especially the latter, Hadiya‟s
population became more diverse. However, descendants of the old Hadiya can be traced from
four different linguistic clusters: the Oromo, the Sidama, the Kabena and Alaba, and the Hadiya
proper with its sub-groups-the Mareko, Lemu, Soro, Shashogo and Badowacho. As with the
Kambata and Sidama, the Hadiya language belongs to the Highland East Cushitic family and
their languages are intelligible to members of these ethnic groups.

5.5.3. Peoples and States in the South Sidama

Historically, the Sidama have been living in the southern parts of Ethiopia occupying lowlands
of about 1500 m a.s.l in the Great East Africa Rift Valley that cut through Lakes Hawasa and
Abaya up to 3000 m a.s.l in the eastern Sidama highlands of Arbegona, Bansa and Arroressa
districts. Agriculture, although practiced traditionally, remained the basis ofSidama‟s economy.
Enset and coffee are Sidama‟s important food and cash crops respectively. The Sidama had an
indigenous system of governance led by the Mote (king). The Mote exercised political and
administrative authority in consultation with the council of elders called Songo. Songo members
raised any agenda for discussion within the council and submitted their decisions to the Mote for
approval. Although there was no written constitution, rules were known by heart through
generations and practiced accordingly. The cultural and ritual leader in Sidama society was the
Woma. He was selected for his ability as a peacemaker, bodily perfection, oratorical ability,
wisdom and caution. The Woma could not participate in war or cattle raiding as he was
considered a man of peace.

The Woma handled cultural matters such as offering sacrifices to the spirits. He also performed
other rituals such as circumcision and marriage. Sidama society was divided into generation-sets
called Luwa. The system had five grades each lasting for eight years. These are Darara,
Fullassa, Hirbora, Wawassa and Mogissa. Candidates for Luwa received a five-month military
training and war songs like gerarsha under the leadership of the gaden with his deputy called
Ja’lawa. The gaden settled disputes within his Luwa, besides handling the defense of Sidama
society together with the Mote. Another important institution of Sidama society is Seera. Seera
was the social constitution of the Sidama people governing social life based on the Sidama moral
code, halale (the ultimate truth) to judge the right and wrong. Although it was not written and
defined with strict enforcement mechanisms, people abide by the rules of halale to avoid curse or
ostracization by the society.

Gedeo
Contradictory traditions exist regarding the origin of the Gedeo people. The dominant tradition
relates the ancestors of the Gedeo to Daraso, who was the older brother of Gujo (father of Guji
Oromo). Accordingly, the seven major Gedeo clans descended from the seven sons of Daraso.
The clans were grouped in two houses, the first being the shole batte (senior house) where the
first four clans belonged including more than 25 sub-clans and the secondcalled sase batte
(junior house) where the last three belonged having 10 sub-clans. Each clan was exogamous and
was assigned for particular duty such as ritual, traditional medicine or leadership. The Gedeo had
a culture called baalle, a traditional governance system that worked with age classes and ranking.
The baalle had seven grades with a 10-year period each creating a 70- year cycle. Sasserogo was
a federation of three territories; Sobbho, Ributa and Rikuta sharing one Abba Gadaa who leaves
office every eight years to be replaced by a new holder with the next age set at baalle ceremony.
It was at this ceremony that all positions ranging from the top, Abba Gada down to Hayitcha
were assumed. Like the neighboring Sidama, with whom they shared a very close language, their
economy was based on the cultivation of enset.

Konso
The name Konso is invariably used to refer one of the ancient peoples in Ethiopia and the Horn
who spoke affa Konso (Konso language) and their land. The literal meaning of the term is a
“heavily forested hill/ area.” A century ago the highlands of Konso, which was covered by dense
forest, had been the traditional home of Konso people while the low-lying environment along
Sagan and Woyito river valley served as hunting grounds. Konso attracted the attention of local
and international researchers interested in human evolution, as it is one of the earliest human
settlement sites in the world. Agriculture was and remains to be the major economic activity of
the Konso. Farmers practiced a fairly balanced and integrated system of specialized agricultural
technology. The location of mainland Konso within mosquito infested hot and dry lowlands at
the edge of the Great East African Rift Valley led farmers to adopt intensive agriculture. Farmers
combined crop production with cattle breeding. At the same time, they adopted soil conservation
techniques notably the construction of terraces, which proved helpful to convert rugged and hilly
areas into permanent cultivation. Farmers were also adept at selecting plant varieties that
withstood harsh climatic conditions. Such complex agricultural practices enabled farmers to
produce sufficient food on small plot of land for their sustenance. Besides agriculture, Konso‟s
economy depended on bee keeping and craftworks. All of these activities attest the ingenuity of
local adaptation strategies.

Until the late nineteenth century, the Konso people lived in walled villages (paletas) which were
further divided into wards called Kanta. There was no central authority who acted as sovereign
power over the three regions. Each village was ruled by a council of elders called
hayyota who were selected through direct participation of male members of the village.
Membership to the council was not hereditary but rotated every eighteen years. At the core of the
socio-political organization of the Konso appear to be the clan or lineage group and generation
set, Tselta.The Konso were divided into nine exogamous clans namely Toqmaleta, Elayta,
Saudata, Pasanta, Kertita, Ishalayta, Mahaleta, Tikisayta and Argamyta. The Tselta had fixed
cycle of years starting from birth, although they varied across villageseighteen in Karat, nine in
Takati and five in Turo. The major function of the generation set was informing the
responsibilities expected of each age group.

5.5.4. Peoples and States in Southwestern Part

Wolayta
The name Wolayta denotes a specific ethnic group in southwestern Ethiopia and their powerful
kingdom, which first emerged as a state in the thirteenth century. According to local traditions,
before the emergence of Wolayta as a political unit, the area was inhabited by different
communities such as the Badia, Badiagadala and Aruja. The state flourished in the late
eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries because of successful wars that the Wolayta fought
against their neighbors and the material, human and territorial gains thereof. At the apex of the
social and political hierarchy was the Kawo (king), assisted by a council of advisors. From the
thirteenth to the late nineteenth centuries, two successive dynasties ruled Wolayta: the Wolayta-
Malla and the Tigre. Founded in the thirteenth century by Motalami, the Wolayta-Malla seems to
have ruled until the end of the fifteenth century. It was then superseded by the Tigre dynasty, so
called because it was supposedly founded by Tigreans from northern Ethiopia. The land of
Wolayta is known for its fertility and moderate climate, with green vegetation cover for the most
part of the year. All land was nominally owned by the king who granted it to his dependents. In
practice, land relationships were ordered according to three basic principles of social
organization i.e. kinship, polity and social status. Accordingly, rights overland were vested in the
lineage group, the crown (royal estate) and the nobility. There were also communal lands
allocated for grazing and social gatherings to which all members of the society except artisans
had equal access. The king rewarded people with land on grounds of gallant deeds in battle and
other important contributions to the state. By grants of land or by threats of dispossession the
reigning monarch ensured loyalty to the state. Except those who worked on the royal estate,
landholders paid tribute to the king. The dominant food crop was enset (Enset Ventricosum).

Kafa
According to traditions, this powerful kingdom emerged in the fourteenth century. Around mid
seventeenth century, the state had come to prominence. The ruling Minjo dynasty and the
medieval kingdom of Ennarya had close contact. The Oromo expansion might have forced the
ruling house of Ennarya to flee south of the Gojeb which as a result brought Christianity and the
royal title tato to Kafa. As with a number of Cushitic and some Semitic peoples of the south,
Kafa‟s economy was based on the cultivation of enset on peasant farms supported by trade.
Besides working on their land, peasants rendered free labor service and tilled royal estates with
the support of slaves who were acquired through raiding or trading, or as payment for debt.

As far as trade is concerned, a prosperous commerce took place with Oromo states of the Gibe
region. Major trade items, such as musk, coffee, slaves, Ivory, gold, honey-wax, and civet were
exported via markets like Tonkolla, Tiffa, Qeya etc. From the seventeenth to the eighteenth
centuries, the kingdom expanded to Bonesho, Mashengo, Maji, Nao, She and Chara. At the apex
of the administration of the kingdom was the Tato with his major political center at Bonga.
Another seat of power was Andarcha, seven miles to southeast. The Tato was assisted by a
council of seven advisors calledMikrecho. The Mikrecho served to moderate the power of the
king but they played important roles in succession as well.

The Kafa had a tradition of digging deep trenches called Kuripo as defensive barrier. The Gojeb
also served as natural protection against external invasion and it might have contributed to their
relative independence until 1897.
Yem
The Yem state was located along the eastern banks of the Gibe or to the northeast of the Kafa
kingdom. Yem‟s economy combined agriculture, trade and crafts. Initially, an indigenous
dynasty called Dida or Halmam-Gamma ruled Yem from its palace in Dudarkema/Zimarma near
Oya, in the vicinity of Bor Ama Mountain. Besides being at the top of the political ladder, the
Amno (king) of Yem acted as a chief priest with attributes of divinity. A state council of 12
members named Astessor with its chairperson Waso assisted the Amno in administering the state.
Erasho were the provincial governors and they were responsible for digging ditches called bero
and erecting nearly fifty-meter wooden or iron pillars at the center of the kingdom around Brisi
Bita so that the war father, the Nomiaw, could patrol the surroundings. Special messengers, Wosi
carried orders from Amno down to district chiefs, Gagna and vice versa. In the fourteenth
century, the last King Oyokam/Amo Dasha was overthrown by people from the north who
founded a new dynasty called Mowa (Howa) with its center at Angari. In the nineteenth century,
the neighboring state of Jimma Abba Jifar tried to control the Yem which itself was absorbed
into the imperial state of Ethiopia under Emperor Menilek II towards the end of the century.

Gamo
Historically, the Gamo inhabited areas from Lakes Chamo and Abaya to the Gughe Mountain
and beyond. Gamo‟s physical landscape can be divided into two: the geze (highland) and thebazo
(lowland). The highlands were densely populated while people who escaped coercion by the
state at the political center largely settled the lowlands which also served as hunting fields. A set
of interrelated indigenous laws called the Woga defined land-use in the Gamo highlands. The
laws had their origin in a belief that everything was connected and bound in a delicate balance.
Together they formed a natural resource management system that governed everything from
interpersonal relationships to the conservation and preservation of pasture, forest, soil, and water.
The cultivation of enset had been central to the subsistence of Gamo highlands while maize and
sweet potato were staple food crops in the lowlands. Other crops grown in the highlands included
barely, wheat, teff, peas, beans and cabbage. Besides farming, most farmers keptcattle for food,
farming and manure, which they needed for successful agriculture. Craft making, pot making,
tanning and metalworking were other modes of the subsistence system. These people had
developed their own indigenous knowledge and technologies in manufacturing different types of
tools and weapons, traditional musical and funeral instruments, weaving colorful textiles etc. The
first mention of the Gamo in written records dates back to the fifteenth century in the praise
songs of king Yishak (r.1413-30). The song mentioned the Gamo as one of the tributary states to
the monarch. The Gamo maintained relative autonomy from control by the Christian Kingdom
after war with the Muslim sultanates weakened the latter. Between the sixteenth and the
nineteenth centuries, the Gamo lived in scattered settlements and organized in different
communities called dere. The dere were politically autonomous villages (units) but shared three
essential features. These were: 1) each dere had kawo (hereditary ruler) who also offered
sacrifices and symbolized the unity of the people. 2) every dere had its own initiates called
halaqa and; (3) every dere had its own assembly place called dubusha, where communal matters
were discussed and disputes solved. Access to politico-ritual status among the Gamo people was
made possible through initiation or election and baira, a system of seniority. The two systems
functioned both in opposition to each other as well as complementarily. Through initiation or
election the dulata (assembly) elected married men to positions that were known by different
names from one dere to another. In some dere it was called halaqa, in others it was known by
the name huduga ormaga. Election to this office was open to all married men and accorded
representatives with provisional political authority. The dulata had an institutional authority to
give decisions on different social, political and many other important matters. The assembly had
also the power to impose sanctions as penalty on individuals or groups who committed serious
crimes or violated the community‟s social regulations and cultural values.

The second system, the baira, was ascribed and largely based on genealogical seniority
according to primogeniture. The Gamo people were distributed in agnatic clans each having a
system of individual genealogical hierarchy. The baira (senior) of the clan had a privilege over
lineage members. The baira made animal sacrifice on behalf of their juniors at all levelsof the
community. The senior sacrificer of the dere is the kawo. The concept of kawo refers to the first
rank status, with variable attributes and he was legitimatized by birth and primogeniture. The
kawo represented the unity of dere and played an important role in relations with the outside
world.
Dawuro
Dawuro‟s topography mostly is mountainous and plateau at the central, and lowland and plain at
Gojeb and Omo river basins. The land is divided into three climatic zones.
These are geziya (highland), dashuwa (mid-altitude) and gad’a (lowland). Such climatic
conditions enriched Dawuro with a variety of tree species and natural vegetation/forest. The
livelihood of Dawuro people is based on mixed agricultural activities. The language of Dawuro
people is Dawurotsuwa, a sub-group of the Omotic family. Historically, Dawuro land had been
inhabited by three major clans namely Malla, Dogolla, and Amara which altogether were
regarded as Gok’as or K’omos. The area was also home for people that came from neighboring
Omotic states such as Wolayta, Kucha, Gamo, Gofa, and Kafa and from places like Gondar,
Gojjam, Tigray and Shewa. A political alliance through royal marriages was one important factor
that facilitated the movement of people from neighboring territories into Dawuro. By about
1700, the Kawuka dynasty had created a big state from a great number of petty chieftainships on
the territory between the Gojeb and Omo rivers in the north, east and south and the Kafa high
mountains in the west. Among the rulers of the Kawuka dynasty of Dawuro, Kati Irashu and Kati
Halala were famous. Kati Halala was the grandson of the king of Kafa. During his reign, Dawuro
incorporated Konta. He is known for his stone fortifications, which he oversaw to defend his
territories from outsiders.

Ari
The Omo River basin had been home to different groups of people since early times. These
included the Ari, Dasenech, Tsemayi, Erbore, Hamer, Surma, Meniet, Nyangatom, Bodi, Male,
etc. Major economic activities in the region were sedentary agriculture, pastoralism and
handcrafts. The language of the Ari people is called Araf, which is one branch of the Omotic
language family. The people were sedentary agriculturalist. The society was organized into ten
independent clan based chiefdoms. Hereditary clan chief known as Babi headed each of these
chiefdoms. The clan chief was entitled with both political and ritual authorities over the people
of his respective domain. The clan chief was assisted by officially appointed prominent figures in
the administration of the political unit.The assistants included Godimis (religious leaders), Zis
(village heads) and Tsoikis (intelligence agents of Babi).

5.5.5. Peoples and States in the West

Berta and Gumuz

The Berta people inhabit the present Beni-Shangul Regional State. The earliest record of Berta
settlement in this region dates from the sixteenth century. The Berta people speak the Berta
language as their mother tongue. It is a tonal language classified as a branch of the Nilo-Saharan
linguistic group. In addition to the Berta, the Beni-Shangul is home for the Gumuz. They are
mentioned by the Scottish explorer James Bruce. He notes that they hunted with bows and
arrows, a custom that survives today. The Gumuz speak the Gumuz language, which belongs to
the Nilo-Saharan family. It is subdivided in several dialects. Islamic influence had been strong on
the Berta and other Nilotes because of their trade and social contacts with the northern Sudan.

Anywa
Historically, the Anywa predominantly inhabited areas along Pibor, Sobat, Gila, Akobo, Agwei,
Oboth, Baro, and Alwero Rivers on the western borderlands of the present-day Gambella region.
The people speak Dha-anywaa, a sub-branch of the Nilo- Saharan language family. The Anywa
had an indigenous administrative system whereby each village lived under a chief called Kuaari
who along with the nobles, Nyiye, managed the distribution of farm and grazing fields, settled
disputes etc with the community. Although local traditions mention a certain person by the name
Oshoda as the founding father of the Anywa, the administration of the territory was not
centralized. Economically, they are engaged in smallscale cultivation, fishing and hunting. While
most Anywa practiced Christianity, they also believed in traditional religion.

Nuer
Historically, the Nuer lived in areas that extended across the savannas and marshes of the Bahr
el-Ghazal and the Upper Nile regions of the Sudan. Since the nineteenth century, they had been
largely settled in the plains of Gambella along the Sobat and Baro Rivers and parts of the Sudan.
The mainstay of Nuer‟s economy was cattle breeding supplemented by crop production. The
Nuer had developed a rather complex spiritual culture around their cattle, which were used as
bride wealth as well. The Nuer had an age-set system combining social and political functions.
Nuer boys had to pass through a rigorous test and a series of rites connected with it before they
were initiated into adulthood.

Majang
The Majang formed the southern end of the Nilo-Saharan settlement that covered the escarpment
of the Oromo inhabited highlands to the Baro plains. Linguistic evidence relates the origin of the
Majang to the Boma plateau in South Sudan. Gradually, they moved northwards and settled in
forested areas of western Ethiopia. By mid twentieth century, their settlement extended to areas
near Dembi-Dollo in the north. Economically, the Majang practiced shifting cultivation and
animal husbandry. Other economic activities of the Majang include beekeeping, hunting and
fishing.

The Kunama
The Kunama people also called the Baza are one of the ancient inhabitants of western Eritrea on
the Gash and Tekkeze Rivers and in today‟s northwestern and western Tigray. The Arab traveller
al-Ya‛qubi in 872 A.D. mentions the kingdom of Baza, which is a self-designation of the
Kunama. The Kunama had a customary institution called sanga-anene mandated with the
administration of the society. Other responsibilities of the sanga-anene included granting asylum
to new comers in the sanctuary of their compounds and performing rituals as part of
reconciliation process in case of homicides. The office of the sanga-anene was held by male
members of the society. The office was transmitted hereditarily from the eldest brother to the
next born through matrilineal line.

The mainstay of Kunama‟s economy is mixed agriculture. Agriculture is based on the use of hoe,
spades, sickles and the ox (camel)-drawn plough. Signs of past practices of terraced agriculture
are still visible in some areas of the Kunama. The staple crop among the Kunama is sorghum
(kina), which also has a ceremonial value. Other crops grown are millet (bortaor
beca), pulses and maize (afokina). The Kunama also keep livestock mainly goats, sheep, oxen,
and camels.

5.6. The Gondarine Period and Zemene-Mesafint

5.6.1. The Gondarine Period
A. Political Developments
The period of Gondar began from the reign of Emperor Sartsa-Dengle when the political center
of Ethiopian emperors shifted to Gondar area. Emperor Sartsa-Dengle established royal camp at
Enfranz in 1571. Emperor Susenyos also tried to establish his capital near Gondar in such places
as Qoga, Gorgora, Danqaz and Azazo. Gondar was founded in 1636 when Fasiledas established
his political seat there. Gondar achieved its glory during the reigns of its first three successive
emperors: Fasiledas (r.1632–67), Yohannes I (r.1667-82) and Iyasu I (r.1682- 1706). Among the
major reforms during these periods were the restoration of Orthodox Church as state religion,
and the establishment of a royal prison at Amba Wahni to solve problems stemming from power
rivalry. Emperor Yohannes I and his council established a separate quarter for Muslims at Addis
Alem. His successor, Iyasu I, reformed land tenure system, introduced a system of land
measurement in Begemder, taxes, and customs, and revised the Fetha Negest (the civil code).
The assassination of Iyasu the Great by a faction under the leadership of his own son,
TekleHaymanot, ushered in political instability in Gondar involving intrigues and poisoning of
reigning monarchs. Tekle-Haymanot was crowned in 1706 before the death of his father and was
in turn assassinated by Tewoflos in 1708. Tewoflos was again killed in 1711 by Yostos, who was
also poisoned in 1717 and replaced by Dawit III, who himself was poisoned and replaced by
Bakafa in 1721. Bakafa tried to restore stability with the support of his followersand his wife
Etege Mentewab until he was incapacitated in 1728. The Gondarine Period also witnessed
increased involvement of the Oromo in Imperial politics and the army as will be discussed
shortly.

From 1728 to 1768, Etege Mentewab together with her brother Ras-Bitwaded Walda Le‟ul
(1732-1767) dominated the Gondarine court politics. Walda Le‟ul was influential during the
reigns of Iyasu II (1730-55) and Iyoas (1755-69). Following his death in 1767, Etege Mentewab
was challenged by Wubit Amito, her daughter-in-law from Wollo. To counter the growing power
of the Wollo Oromo in the royal court, Mentewab sought the alliance of Ras Mika'el Sehul of
Tigray who was politically astute and militarily powerful. Mika'el Sehul succeeded in stabilizing
the situation but refused to return to Tigray although demanded by Iyoas. This was followed by
the killing of Iyoas and his replacement by an old man Yohannes II by Ras Mika'el. Soon Ras
Mika'el killed Yohannes II and put his son TaklaHaymanot II (1769-77) on power. This marked
the onset of the period of Zemene-Mesafint (1769-1855).

B. Achievements of the Gondarine Period

Gondar became the center of state administration, learning, commerce, education, art, and crafts
for more than two centuries. The first three kings were successful not only in political affairs but
also in cultural developments. Gondar had great influence on the country‟s cultural
developments. This enabled Gondar to repeat the splendors of Aksum and Lalibela. The cultural
achievements of the period led some writers to describe Gondarine period in history as Ethiopian
Renaissance.
Architecture: When Gondar served as a permanent capital, for about one hundred fifty years,
Ethiopian kings built significant secular buildings like castles, bridges, residences, bath, library,
towers, fortifications and churches of various size and shapes. In the city‟s compound, in
addition to the most impressive building known as Fasil Gemb, there are different palaces
corresponding to Emperor Fasiledas, Yohannes I, Iyasu I, Dawit III, Bakafa and Regent Queen
Mentewab. The Gondarine style of architecture may have started before the reign of emperor
Fasiledas during the reign of Emperor Sartsa-Dengle atabout 1586, as could be seen from his
palace at Guzara near Enfranz. The architectural styles of Fasiledas castle usually have two
strides and almost square, circular domed corner towers. Not only castles, but the building of
bridges are said to be predate the reign of Fasiledas. Emperor Sartsa-Dengel is said to have built
a very fine bridge near his palace at Guzara, and Emperor Susenyos likewise erected a bridge
over Blue Nile at Alata.

Painting: this period is known as for the production of a wealth of religious paintings on
manuscripts and on wood, ornaments, weapons and other accessories. The churches built by
Queen Mentwab were known for their beautiful paintings, cross and art works.

Literature: the Imperial and provincial scriptoria produced a great number of manuscripts.
Besides the Gospels, the Miracles of Mary, the Lives of Ethiopian Saints and the Litanies, many
other kinds of illuminated manuscripts were also produced. Gondar is also known for its
traditional medicine, music and poetry.

Trade and Urbanization: Gondar was a commercial center that connected long distance trade
routes of the southern region with Massawa and Metemma in the Ethio-Sudan border. Gold and
salt were used as medium of exchange. Daily markets were commonly held in the city. With
spread of urbanization, the city became residences of foreign communities like Indians, Greeks
and Armenians. The city had an estimated 60,000-70,000 population. Inaddition to its political
and commercial importance, it served as religious center of Christians, Muslims and Bete-Israel.
Besides, it served as the center of Ethiopian Orthodox Church until the middle of the nineteenth
century. Many of the Orthodox churches which served as education centers, known for their
excellence in teaching aqwaqwam, liturgical chanting were centered at Gondar.
5.6.2. The Period of Zemene-Mesafint (1769-1855)
Zemene-Mesafint refers to the period when actual political power was in the hands of different
regional lords. The period lasted from the time Ras Michael Sehul "assassinated" king Iyoas in 1
769 to 1855, when Kasa Hailu was crowned as Tewodros II.

Ras Mika‟el who was a king-maker in the period attempted to dominate the other regional lords.
These measures made him highly unpopular because of which coalitions of lords of Gojjam,
Amhara, Lasta and Wollo fought and defeated him at the battle of Sarba-Kussa in 1771. Under
the reigns of his successors, there was relative stability but several regional lords evolved. The
main political regions that Zemene-Mesafint lords ruled were Tigray, Semen, Dembiya,
Begemedir, Lasta, Yejju, Wollo, Gojjam and Shewa. When compared to each other the “Yejju
dynasty” was the leading power during the Zemen-Mesafint with the center at Debre-tabor. Ali
Gwangul (Ali I or Ali Talaq) was considered as the founder of “Yejju dynasty” in 1786. Yejju
rule reached its zenith under Gugsa Marso (r.1803-1825) who made incessant struggle against
Ras Walde-Silassie of Enderta and Dejjazmatch Sabagadis Woldu of Agame. In 1826, Gugsa's
successor, Yimam (r.1825-8), defeated Hayle-Mariam Gebre of Simen. Maru of Dambiya was
also killed at the battle of Koso-Ber in 1827. The period of Zemene Mesafint was brought to an
end by Kasa Hailu of Qwara through a series of battles that lasted from 1840s to 1855.

Major features of Zemene-Mesafint include:

 absence of effective central government;

 the growing power and influence of the regional warlords;
 the domination of Yejju lords over other lords in northern Ethiopia;
 rivarly and compeition among regional lords to assume the position of king-maker;
 establishment of fragile coalitions to advance political interests;
 Ethiopian Orthodox Church was unable to play its traditional role of unifying the state
due to doctrinal disputes;
 Revival of foreign contacts that ended the “closed-door” policy.

In addition to the above features, there were developments in terms of literature, arts,architecture
etc during the period.
 UNIT SIX

INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS OF

ETHIOPIA AND THE HORN, 1800-1941 (10 hours)

6.1. The Nature of Interactions among Peoples and States of Ethiopia and the Horn
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, many autonomous and semi-autonomous peoples and
states existed in Ethiopia and the Horn. This section deals with the history of these peoples and
states in the period under consideration.

6.1.1. Peoples and States in South-Central, Southwestern, and Western Ethiopia

A.South-Central: Hadiya, Halaba, Kambata and Gurage were autonomous and semiautonomous
political entities during this period. Economically, they depended largely on agriculture. Local
merchants were actively involved in local trade and to some extent in the long distance trade.
Trade routes that connected the interior with the coast passed through these territories. Among
these, the Gurage land was an important market centre and political entity. Important trade
centers such as Soddo and Aymallel were located in the Gurage land. The Gurage had their own
political organization and their leaders held the titles of Abegaz or Azmatch who combined
political and military authority. In the second half of the nineteenth century, Qabena emerged as
a strong political entity. It became a centre of Muslim revivalist movement to the northeast of the
Gibe River. Stirred by Muslim refugees from Wollo, and with possible connections even with the
Mahdist Sudan, the movement swept across a large part of the region and was attended by a fast
spread of Islam.

B. The Gibe States: towards the beginning of the nineteenth century, several monarchical states
(motumma) emerged among the Mecha Oromo at the expense of the Gadaa system. Many
factors accounted for the transformation of the Gadaa system. In the process, the war leaders of
the Gadaa system (Abba-Dula) and powerful individuals usurped the power of the Gadaa
government. The abba-dula accumulated wealth from the control and taxation on long distance
trade and utilized the opportunity to establish hereditary leadership. This development especially
took place among the Oromo around Gibe, where the following five monarchical states emerged.
i. Limmu-Enarya: Limmu-Enarya was the earliest of the Gibe states. It was founded through
the incorporation of Enarya. Initially, Abbaa Dulas of Limmu like Tesso fought and defeated the
rulers of Enarya like Badancho, Gu‟amcho and Banaro at different times. Finally, Bofoo/Abba
Gomol (1800-1825) established Limmu-Enarya. Bofo abdicated in favor of his son, Ibsa/Abba
Bagiboo (1825-61). The Kingdom reached the height of its power during Ibsa‟s reign, when he
incorporated areas including Hagalo, Badi-Folla etc. Ibsa was succeeded by Abba Bulgu (1861-
1883).
ii. Gumma: Jilcha Abba Bal‟oo of Chira killed Sarbaroda of Dagoye clan; began state formation
and succeeded by his son Oncho (1810-1830) who was in turn followed by Jawwe (1840-1854).
iii. Gomma: formed by Abba Bokee (1800-1829) who was succeeded by his son Abba Manoo
(1829-1840) who occupied Qattuu and converted to Islam by Muslim Ulama/scholars.
iv. Jimma: Towards the late eighteenth century, Makahore emerged as an influential female
figure among the Sadacha Mecha Oromo of Jimma. The local Abba Dula sought to take political
power from her. Among the Abba Dulas, Ose Kobi (Abba Faro) was elected as a hereditary ruler
against the Gadaa rule. He was succeeded by Dangila (Abba Magal) who enlarged the domain.
The process of state formation was completed by Sanna/Abba Jifar I (r.1830-55) who formed
Jimma Kingdom and left a consolidated state to his successors like Abba Rebu (1855-59), Abba
Boqa (1859-1861) and Abba Gomol(r.1861-75). Themost famous among the Jimma monarchs
was Abba Jifar II (c. r.1875-1934). Apart from agriculture and trade, the kingdom's economy
depended on iron mining and smelting at Dakkano and Kito, respectively.
v. Gera: was the last of the Gibe kingdoms to be formed. The process of state formation in Gera
was completed during the reign of Tullu Gunji (r.1835-38), a successful war leader who made
himself king. Abba Rago I (r.1838-48) succeeded Tullu Gunji after a short interlude by Abba
Basso. Gera enjoyed its prosperity under Abba Magal who had been converted to Islam. As with
other Gibe states, Gera attracted Muslim missionaries to preach Islam.

C. The Leqa States

Like in the Gibe region, several monarchical kingdoms evolved among the Mecha Oromo of
Wallagga. Among these were the Leqa states, the Sibu and the Jawwi south of the Abbay River.
While Moti Abishe established strong kingdom of Horro, a number of Abba Dulas declared
themselves moti (king) by controlling profitable trade routes and large territories in the region
west of the Gibe region. Among these, the Leqa states were the prominent ones.
I. Leqa-Naqamte: was founded by Bakare Godana in 1840, and reached its height under his
successors Moroda and Kumsa. The latter were able to establish strong monarchical state rich in
trade and agriculture. Moti Kumsa (later Dejazmach Gebre-Egzi'abiher) was known for
promoting handcraft work, gold washing, coffee planting and game reserves/hunting. The Leqa-
Naqamte rulers instituted a new administrative structure and judicial hierarchy that replaced the
Gadaa system known as sirna abba-qoro (qoro system).In its nature, the administration system
was essentially kingship and was quite similar to feudal administration in its reliance on land.
II. Leqa-Qellam: was located in southwestern Wallagga. It was founded by Tullu and became
powerful under his son, Jote being centered at Gidami and controlling the areas around Sayyo-
Dambi Dollo.
D. Ilu: the Tume clan leader Chali Shono (also known as Abba Bor) set up the wellconsolidated
state of Ilu-Abba Bor in the early nineteenth century. It was one of the prosperous states in the
region. Each Oromo monarchical state had officials like Abba Gurmu (next person to the king),
Abba Mizan (treasurer and foreign affair minister), Abba Dango (immigration chief), Lammi
(ambassador/royalmessenger), Abba Qoro (district governor), Abba Ganda (village chief), Abba
Busi (tax head), Abba Jiga (murder judge) and Abba-Qawe (body-guard). Contrary to the Gadaa
values that did not levy any kind of taxation, under monarchical systems farmers were forced to
pay crop tax measured by traditional instruments called buchano (about 15 kilograms) and later
guboo (25 kilograms) on each crop.

E. Nilotic Sheikdoms: in the early nineteenth century, important Islamic centres emerged in the
lower course of the Abbay. A number of Shiekdoms were established through parallel imposition
of Arabic-speaking Sudanese mercantilists over Berta and Gumuz inhabitants. Among them, the
Sheikhdoms of Assosa or Aqoldi, Bela Shangul and Khomosha were established to the south of
Abbay River and the Sheikhdom of Guba emerged to the north of the same river in the western
edge of Gojjam. The four sheikhdoms were founded by Muslim leaders of Sudanese origin who
considered themselves as „Watawit‟. The term Watawit refers to Arabized Berta people who had
entered and settled in Benishangul as traders and Islamic religious teachers in the late nineteenth
and early twentieth centuries. The main economic bases of the sheikdoms were agriculture, gold
mining and frontier trade. Among these sheikhdoms, Asosa got preeminence under Sheikh
Khojale al Hasan. While Bela/BeniShangul became famous under Abd al Rahman Khojale,
Khomosha reached its zenith under Khojale Muhammad Wad Mahmud. Similarly, Guba was
founded to the north of the Abbay River along the Ethio-Sudanese border. The influence of Islam
from the Sudan and cross border trade was the main reasons for the rise of these states.
The rich gold of the region also attracted foreign powers like the Egyptians and Mahdists who
attempted to control the sheikdoms at different times.

6.1.2. Trade and Trade Routes

Although the trade routes which linked southwestern Ethiopia to the coast had medieval
antecedents, it was in the nineteenth century that they attained particular prominence. This was
partly because of the revival of external trade in the Red Sea region. As a result, trade became
one means of maintaining strong relations across peoples of different areas and backgrounds.
During this period, two main trade lines linked various territories of Ethiopia and the Horn. One
route originated from Bonga, the capital of Kafa Kingdom, linked peoples and states of the
southwestern Ethiopia with the northern part of the Ethiopian region. The main market centers
along this line were Bonga, Hirmata (in Jimma), Saqa (in Limmu), Billo (in Leqa-Naqamte),
Asandabo (in Guduru), Basso-Yajube (in Gojjam), Yifag and Darita (in Begemider) and Gondar.
From Gondar, one line bifurcated to westward through Chilga to Matamma-Qallabat (Gallabat)
taking commodities to be sold to the Sudanese merchants called Jallaba.

The other route passed through Adwa, Asmara and entered Massawa. Stillanother split at Basso
to move via Ancharro and Dawwe in Wollo and Awusa in Afar to Tajura, Obbok and Rahe‟ita in
Djibouti. The second major trade route also began from Bonga and passed through Hirmata to
AgabjaAndode-Toli to Soddo in southwest Shewa; Rogge near Yerer. Then, the line passed
through Aliyu Amba or Abdul Rasul in northern Shewa and ran eastward to Harar. From Harar,
the route branched into Zeila and Berbera, the most important commercial centers in Somalia.
Then Ethiopian products were mostly sold in the Middle East.

In the trade between the interior and the coast, varieties of items were exchanged. The main
sources of exported items were the southwestern regions. Among these weregold, ivory,
rhinoceros horn, skins, civet, musk, honey, wax, coffee, various spices and slaves. Slaves were
either raided or bought from different parts of Ethiopia and exported to Arabia, Persia and India.
Likewise, imported products included mirrors and ironware. The major medium of exchange
were salt bars (amole), iron bars, wines, cowries‟ shells, beads, pieces of cotton cloth (abujadi),
Maria Theresa Thalers (MTT), etc. For internal trade, amole was the major important commodity
and source of wealth. It was mined in the Afar plains bordering eastern Tigray where it was also
suitably shaped for transportation. Then, it was transported from the region to the highlands
through Adwa, Gondar, and to south and southwestern parts of the region. The other route took
salt from eastern Tigray to south Wollo and Shewa. The town of Mekelle prospered as the salt
was cut in and distributed to the highlands from the area under the supervision of the governor of
Enderta with the title of Balgada, who collected the tributes as tax judge, and grew in importance
and rivalying the Bahre-Negash (the governor of the maritime province to the north). MTT was a
coin introduced from Austria to the Horn of African region at the end of the eighteenth century.
On the Red Sea Coast, MTT was used with other kinds of European and Middle Eastern coins.
Diverse peoples of different ethnic and religious background were involved in the trade. At each
market center, local peoples were active traders. However, Muslim merchants were the most
dominant that traveled from interior to the coast. Among these were northern Muslim merchants
(Jabarti) and Muslim Oromo merchants of southwestern region known as Afqala. Similarly, the
Argoba from the Kingdom of Shewa were active merchants in the trade between Harar and the
northern Somali coast.

6.2. The Making of Modern Ethiopian State

As discussed in the previous units, the diverse peoples of Ethiopia and the Horn were brought
into contact through the agency of trade, population movements, evangelization, and wars. These
agencies played an important part in the making of the modern Ethiopian state. On the other
hand, a number of autonomous and semi-autonomous peoples and polities were in existence in
many regions up to the end of the nineteenth century. During the nineteenth century, several
states that emerged in the region were involved in territorial competition not only to extend
control over resources but also for state building. To put it differently, state building remained an
agenda of several powerful individuals and groups that arose in the nineteenth century. The
difference was the level of their strength and ambition, and their relations with foreign powers.
States in the northern and central parts of Ethiopia had relativestrength that were built up over
time and gained a new momentum during the nineteenth century owing to their foreign contacts
and their strategic location. The making of the modern Ethiopian state went through two distinct
phases. The first one involved unifying different regions and peoples in north and north central
parts of Ethiopia. The second phase involved territorial expansion into the southern parts of the
country. Hereunder, the processes of unification and territorial expansion are discussed in some
detail.
A. The Process of Territorial Unification
The territorial unification ushered in a revival of the imperial power, which had declined during
the Zemene-Mesafint. This occurred after a series of battles and human and material losses. A
leading figure in the overall process was Kasa Hailu of Quara who later became Emperor
Tewodros II of Ethiopia. Kasa‟s mission to create a unified state goes back to the time when he
was a shifta. It is better to trace the origin of Kassa's ideas to the tradition of a once unified
Ethiopian state. The myth behind his throne name "Tewodros" makes this clear.

As indicated above, the man who ended the Zemene Mesafint was Kasa Hailu. He started his
career by assisting his half−brother, Dejjazmach Kinfu in defeating the Egyptians at Wad
Kaltabu (in present-day eastern Sudan) in 1837. As he acquired military and political strength
and experiences, he started mobilizing his own army in the area and fought battles in his own
right. In 1848, Kasa fought against the Egyptians at a place called Dabarki (again in present
Sudan). Although they showed extraordinary courage, Kasa‟s forces lost the battle owing to the
Egyptians‟ superior military organization, discipline, and better arms. Notwithstanding his
defeat, Kasa drew a lesson pertaining to the importance of a modern army. On the other hand,
Kasa‟s fame was spreading in the area and became a major concern to the Warra-Sheh (Yejju)
ruling house. As a result, they decided to pacify Kasa through marriage arrangement. Hence,
Kasa married Mentwab, the daughter of Ras Ali II and he was appointed the governor of Quara.
However, Kasa felt that he was not well treated by Ras Ali and his mother, Etege Menen, and
hence, he resumed his shiftnet resulting in a series of battles. Accordingly, Kasa defeated
Dejjach Goshu Zewde of Gojjam at Gur Amba on November 27, 1852; Birru Aligaz, Aben,
Yazew and Belew, the four dejjazmachs sent by Ras Ali, at Taqusa (Gorgora Bichign) on April
12, 1853; Ras Ali at Ayshal on 29 June 1853 and Dejjazmach Wube ofSimen and Tigray at
Deresge on 8 February, 1855. After defeatingthe major regional lords one after another, he was
anointed by Abune Salama, the Coptic bishop at Deresge Mariam on 9 February 1855, with the
throne name of Tewodros II (1855-1868), King of Kings of Ethiopia. Tewodros pursued his
victory at Deresge by marching to the south. He subsequently marched first to Wollo and then to
Shewa. He wanted to create a strong central government by appointing individuals (both
hereditary and non-hereditary) who would be totally accountable to him. However, he faced
resistance soon after he came to power. After the inclusion of Shewa, rebellions broke out in
several regions such as in Gojjam, Simen, Wag and Lasta, Shewa, Wollo, and Tigray.
Externally, he was involved in a serious diplomatic crisis following the imprisonment of a
handful of Britons and other Europeans. As a result, the British government sent an
expeditionary force to free those prisoners and punish the emperor. In a battle that took place at
Maqdela, Emperor Tewodros committed suicide on April 13, 1868. Following the death of
Emperor Tewodros, three contenders to the throne emerged; namely, Wagshum Gobeze of Lasta,
Kasa Mircha of Tigray and Menilek of Shewa. Gobeze took state power immediately after
Tewodros as Emperor Tekle-Giorgis II (1868−71). Although attempts were made to create a
smooth relation between the Emperor and Kasa Mircha, the quest for state power put them in
enmity and it was brought to an end following a battle at Assam (near Adwa) in July 1871, in
which the latter became victorious. Kasa, who became Emperor Yohannes IV in January 1872,
embarked on a state building project with an approach that differed from that of Tewodros.
Yohannes IV (1872-1889) attempted to introduce a decentralized system of administration,
permitting regional rulers to exercise a great deal of autonomy. A good example of this was his
recognition of Menilek as Negus of Shewa in 1878 by the Liche agreement. Similarly, Yohannes
designated Ras Adal Tesema of Gojjam as Negus Tekle-Haymanot of Gojjam and Kafa in 1881.
He succeeded in achieving the unity of the predominantly-Christian provinces including Wag
and Lasta, Simen, Begemidr, Amhara Saynt, Gojjam, Wollo, Shewa, and the Mereb Milash for
quite some time. Emperor Yohannes IV sought to end the religious controversy within the EOC
as well as effect religious unity in the country as a whole. In this regard, he presided over the
Council of Boru Meda (1878) where Tewahdo was declared the only doctrine of the EOC. This
was followed by a campaign to convert Muslims and adherents of other religions into Orthodox
Christianity. Accordingly, the leading Wollo leaders such as Mohammed Ali and Amede Liben
heeded the Emperor's call, rather reluctantly, converting to Christianity and changing their names
to Ras Michael and Dajjach Hayle-Mariam, respectively. Others accepted the Emperor's demand
outwardly but remained Muslims, becoming "Christians by day and Muslims by night". Others
resisted and fled Wollo to Arsi, Gurage, Jimma and the Sudan while others revolted under the
leadership of Sheikh Tola (Talha) Jafar that led to harsh measures of Emperor Yohannes IV.
Externally, Emperor Yohannes faced challenges from Egyptians, Italians, and the Mahdists at
different times. He lost his life fighting the latter at Metemma in 1889. Although the Emperor
had designated Mengesha Yohannes as his successor, rivalry for power split the monarch's camp
and thus, Mengesha was unable to make a viable bid for the imperial throne.
As a result, the throne was assumed by Negus Menilek of Shewa who became Emperor Menilek
II (1889-1913). Ras Mengesha refused to submit to Emperor Menilek. The tension was resolved
after Menilek led a campaign to force Mengesha's submission in 1889. Ras Mengesha was
appointed as governor of Tigray after a temporary arrangement in which Ras Mekonnen Wolde
Mikael ruled the area for about a year.

B. Territorial Expansion
As indicated above, Emperor Tewodros II, Emperor Yohannes IV and others made state building
their mission and struggled to achieve that goal. Yet, the most successful was Menilek of Shewa.
This was because Menilek had, among other factors, access to modern firearms. The control of
resource rich areas that enabled the emperor to build military muscle as well as the determination
of his generals counted for his successes. The process of territorial expansion by Menilek can be
discussed in three phases i.e. when he was king of Shewa (1865-89), from 1889-96 and the
aftermath of Adwa (1896-1900). Before the 1870s, Menilek had already incorporated the Tulema
and eastern Mecha Oromo territories after controlling local leaders notably Ashe Rufo of Salale,
Dula Ara‟e of Gullale, Tufa Muna of Gimbichu, Ture Galate of Soddo and others. Meanwhile,
other Oromo elites such as Ras Gobena Dache, Fitawrari Habte-Giorgis Dinagde, Dejjach Balcha
Safo (Abba Nefso) and others worked towards the formation of the modern Ethiopian state. In
1875-76, the northern Gurage, the Kistane, peacefully submitted to Menilek because of their
religious affinity and geographical proximity to the Kingdom of Shewa, and for fear of their
local rivals notably the surrounding Oromo. On the other hand, the western Gurage, led by Hasan
Enjamo of Qabena, which had elements of Hadiya-Gurage coalition, strongly resisted Menilek's
force until Ras Gobena broke their resistance in 1888. Menilek's territorial expansion to western
and southwestern regions was concluded through both forceful and peaceful submissions. In the
regions south of the Abbay River, particularly in Horro Guduru, Ras Adal Tesema of Gojjam had
already established his control over the region since the mid1870s. Although he faced stiff
resistance from Moti (King) Abishe Garba of Horro, Adal‟s force ambushed Abishe and his
entourage at a place called Kokor. Thus, Ras Adal (Nigus Tekle-Haymanot since 1881)
controlled the region until 1882, when he was defeated at Embabo by Menilek's commander, Ras
Gobana. After the Battle of Embabo, Leqa-Naqamte, Leqa-Qellem, and Jimma Abba Jifar
submitted to Menilek peacefully, who promised them to recognize and maintain their autonomy.
Meanwhile, Garbi Jilo (of Leqa-Billo), Tucho Dano (Leqa-Horda), Ligdi Bakare(LeqaNaqamte),
Genda Busan (Sibu-Sire), Mardasa Konche (Nonno Migira), and Turi Jagan (Nonno Rogge)
formed a coalition and defeated Menilek's army led by the Nadew brothers, Dasta, Dilinesaw and
Tesemma at the Battle of Gurra Doba. Similarly, west of the Dhidhessa River, an alliance of
Wachu Dabalo of Sibu, Jorgo Dagago of Noole Kabba and others fought Menilek's local allies
like Moroda and Amante Bakare at Sambo Darro.

Later, however, they were defeated. In the Gibe region, Firissa of Guma fought Menilek's army
from 1889 to 1901. The imperial army faced similar resistance from Abba Bosso of Gomma,
although defeated by RasDemisew Nesibu in early 1900. Also, Ras Tesemma Nadew‟s force
incorporated Ilu Abba Bor into the imperial state after fighting with Fatansa at Qarsa Gogila. Of
all the campaigns Nigus Menilek conducted before he became emperor, perhaps, the most
sustained bloody wars were those against the Arsi Oromo. It took six different campaigns from
1882-6 to control this vast region. Menilek encountered fierce resistance from the Arsi Oromo
led by notables like Sufa Kuso, Damu Usu, Lenjiso Diga, Gosa Dilamo and Roba Butta. Initially,
the Arsi Oromo defeated Menilek's force at Dodota and Qalata. Yet, with intelligence service of
local supporters, Ras Darge Sahile-Selassie's force defeated the Arsi Oromo at the battle of
Azule on 6 September 1886. The battle of Azule was followed by what is known as the Anole
incident of 1887, which inflicted heavy damage on the Arsi.

[There is disagreement among historians on the veracity of the incident and on whether there is a
need to highlight it, as the campaigns of territorial expansion were often attended by atrocities as
was the case for instance in Kafa and Walayta]. In the east, Menilek's commander, Dejjach
Wolde-Gabra'el, fought against the Itu in 1886 and incorporated Chercher. A year later, Dejjach
Mekonnen‟s army marched into Harar. The resisting forces of Emir Abdullahi (r.1885-1887) of
the Harari and Bakar Ware of the Eastern Oromo were defeated in the final engagement at
Chalanqo on 6 January 1887. This was followed by the appointment of Dejjach (later Ras)
Makonnen Wolde Mikael as governor of the province by Emperor Menilek II. The Great Famine
or Kifu Qen (Evil Day) of 1888-92 also contributed to Menilek's territorial expansion to parts of
southern Ethiopia. Accordingly, Menilek's army occupied DawuroKonta and Kambata in 1889
and 1890, respectively. From the early 1890s to 1894, Menilek's army controlled Bale, Sidama,
Gamo Gofa and Wolayta. In the campaign to Wolayta, Emperor Menilek and many notables
such as Ras Mikael of Wollo, Fitawurari Gebeyehu Gurmu, Liqe Mekwas Abate Buayalew,
Dejjach Balcha Safo, Ras Wolde-Giorgis, and Abba Jifar II of Jimma participated.

Wolayta's resistance led by Kawo (King) Tona against Menilek's force was defeated in 1894 in
which large number of people lost their lives. This was followed by the incorporation of Gedeo,
Borana and Konso into the imperial state. Menilek's force incorporated Kafa, Borana Beni-
Shangul, and Gambella after the battle of Adwa. The process of the incorporation of Kafa
paralleled the Wolayta experience in terms of human cost. In 1897, the king of Kafa, Tato Gaki
Sherocho, fought and lost to Menilek's army led by Ras Wolde Giorgis. Beni-Shangul was
incorporated after the Battle of Fadogno in 1897/98. This was followed by the occupation of
Maji in 1898/99. Tesema Nadew also controlled Baro (Sobat) and Nasir in Gambella around this
time. The process of territorial expansion was consummated with the signing of boundary
agreements with the neighboring colonial powers that continued until 1908. Most of these
treaties were signed after the victory of Adwa.

After Menilek, the process of centralization and establishing a unitary state continued by
abolishing regional autonomies in the early decades of the twentieth century. In the process,
Wollo (after the battle of Segele in 1916 when Nigus Mika‟el was defeated), Begemedir (after
the battle of Anchim at which Ras Gugsa Wole was defeated in 1930), Gojjam in 1932 and
Jimma in 1933 were reduced to mere provinces by Teferi-Mekonnen (Haile-Sillassie I).

6.3. Modernization Attempts

The period from 1800 to 1941 also witnessed efforts to adopt western ideas and technology by
Ethiopian monarchs. Although several Ethiopian regional rulers were interested in European
technologies, Emperor Tewodros had relatively better information/contact about western
technologies than his predecessors. He was well aware of the importance of European
technologies to transform his people and country. For this purpose, he attempted to approach
Europeans for the introduction of western science and technologies. It is apparent that, Kasa‟s
defeat by the well-trained and equipped Egyptian troops at the Battle of Dabarki in 1848 had
made him think putting the country “on an equal footing with European powers.” As a monarch,
Tewodros took a number of military, administrative and socio-economic reform measures. As
regards the army, Tewodros introduced military titles, like Yasr Aleqa, Yamsa Aleqa, and Yeshi
Aleqa. Besides, he tried to organize and replace the regional armies of the Zemene-Mesafint with
salaried national army. Furthermore, he tried tomanufacture firearms at his workshop, Gafat
(near Debre Tabor) with the help of European missionaries and artisans.

At Gafat, about 35 cannons were produced of which the biggest one was known as “Sebastopol."
He also tried to build a small navy in Lake Tana. The administrative reforms of Tewodros were
focused on the centralization of power and securing financial base. He introduced a policy of
“general pacification”, warning that everyone should return to his lawful vocation, the merchant
to his store, and the farmer to his plough. He tried to separate church and the monarchy. He tried
to reduce the amount of land held by the church as well as the number of priests and deacons
serving every church, which brought him into conflict with the EOC, which precipitated his
downfall. In the case of socio-economic reforms, he began the construction of Ethiopia‟s first
embryonic road network to link Debre Tabor with Gondar, Gojjam, and Maqdela. He also
attempted to put an end to the slave trade. Other reform attempts include land reform and
banning of polygamy.

The use of Amharic writing became more developed, and a traditional library was established at
Maqdala, all of which contributed to the development of literary Amharic.. He wrote letters after
letters to different foreign powers including to Queen Victoria using Amharic language. With
regard to religion, he tried to solve the doctrinal controversy that continued from the 17th century
within the EOC. However, his reforms were not fully materialized owing to internal oppositions
and external challenges. Emperor Yohannes' reign also witnessed several important reforms and
innovations. Among these, he was the first Ethiopian monarch to appoint foreign consul who
served as his representative in London. He hired a French mechanic, a Hungarian gunsmith, and
an Italian construction worker to assist his modernization efforts of the country. Furthermore, he
sent some individuals abroad for modern education. He was also the first to introduce modern
style vaccine against smallpox replacing traditional inoculation. His reign also witnessed
extensive treatment of syphilis in several towns. Modernization attempts of the reign of Emperor
Menilek had diverse elements. The post-Adwa period was marked by the establishment of a
postal service and telecommunications/the telephone-telegraph system, the construction of
railway line from Djibouti to Addis Ababa, the opening of a bank (the Bank of Abyssinia) and
the introduction of silver coin. Interms of administration, the emperor introduced European style
ministerial system/ministers in 1907. Accordingly, he appointed Afe-Nigus Nesibu Meskelo
(Minister of Justice), Azazh Metaferia Melke-Tsadiq (Minister of Imperial Court), Bejirond
MulugetaYigezu (Minister of Finance), Fitawurari Habte-Giorgis Dinagde (Minister of War),
Negadras Hailegiorgis Weldemikael (Minister of Commerce and Foreign Relations), and
Tsehafe-Tizaz Gebreselase Welde Aregay (Minister of Pen). His reign also witnessed the
opening of a hotel in 1907 (Itege Hotel), a modern school (Menilek II School in 1908) and the
foundation of Russian Red Cross hospital in 1906 and Russian-run hospital (Menilek II Hospital)
in 1910. After Emperor Menilek II faced permanent ailment that incapacitated him, he
designated and eventually proclaimed Lij Iyasu and Ras Tesemma Nadew as heir to the throne
and regent, respectively. During his short stay in power, Lij Iyasu (1913-16) also took several
reform measures. The reforms are the banning of the Quragna system, a system that involved
chaining the applicant and defendant as well as creditor and debtor until justice was settled. He
tried to amend Leba Shay, a customary mode of detection of criminals or theft. He introduced
municipal police called Tirnbulle. He introduced a policy of auditing of government accounts,
and he tried to integrate Ethiopian Muslims into the administration structure. His rule also
witnessed the introduction of a flourmill that functioned mechanically and private industrial
enterprises like sawmill, a grinding-mill, a tannery, a soap-factory, etc.

During the Dual Rule of Empress Zewditu and Ras Teferi (r. 1916-1930), there were several
modernization attempts in broader scope. The two rulers namely Ras Teferi and Empress
Zewditu had different views towards western culture. Because of his close link with foreigners,
Ras Teferi had keen interest in modernization by which he wanted to boost the country‟s image
on the international stage. This was marked by the entry of Ethiopia into the League of Nations
and his grand tour to Europe in 1923 and 1924, respectively. Some remarkable reforms based on
European model took place following his coronation as Emperor Haile-Selassie I in 1930. Some
of the reforms were the centralization of the government, promulgation of Ethiopia‟s first
constitution in 1931 (despite its drawbacks), establishment of Imperial Body Guard in 1930, with
the help of Belgian military mission and the opening of Ethiopia‟s first Military Academy at
Holeta with the help of a Swedish military mission in 1934.
6.4. Socio-Economic Developments
The period from 1800 to 1941 was also marked by changes in socio-economic conditions
including trade, slavery and slave trade, agriculture, urbanization and manufacturing. Factors for
these changes included the socio-economic dynamics in the region and the world.

6.4.1. Agriculture and Land Tenure

The nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were times when agricultural economy grew and the
demand for land for cultivation and grazing increased. The system favored the powerful groups
to control land that resulted in the change of property right on the preexisting land tenure system.
The role of agriculture in the local economy and the politics of the period could be understood
from the territorial competition and expansions to control surplus producing areas. This altered
people's relation to land, making some privileged and others unprivileged. The quest for land and
surplus production was one factor for territorial expansion by Menilek in the late nineteenth
century. Land was required, among others, to settle and feed the warriors and their families.
Hence, the incorporation of the southern half of the country into the imperial state resulted in the
redefinition of access to resources in these regions.

The state institutionalized different forms of surplus expropriation and mechanisms to ensure
political control in the regions that had peacefully submitted and those that resisted. The former
relatively enjoyed self-administration but were subjected to pay qurt-gibir (fixed tax). The latter
were placed under the naftegna-gabbar/gabbar-naftegna system whereby local peoples were
made to pay tribute to the former. Gradually, the naftegna-gabbar system led to the evolution of a
new tenure regime in the forcefully incorporated areas. Literally, naftegna means a person with a
gun. In this context, naftegna refers to soldiers of different social backgrounds who were
stationed in the southern territories under the imperial banner. In the latter case, the major force
of change was the settlement and exploitative nature of the system that altered both settlement
pattern and agricultural system. One effect of the institution of the naftegna-gabbar system was
the creation of classes like landlords, ballabat, gabbar and tenants. The landholders were largely
government agents while the local population was reduced in time into gabbar and later tenants.
One major factor that brought change to agricultural practices including land tenure system was
the beginning of the qalad system (land measurement) in the 1890s. Land measurement affected
access to agricultural resources in diverse ways including changes to customary rules of access to
land. Qalad introduced new practices in which certain social classes gained access to land while
at the same time it resulted in the dispossession of the local peasantry in parts of the south. Later,
land was categorized into lam (cultivated), lam-taf (partlycultivated) and taf (uncultivated) to
facilitate taxation.
6.4.2. Slavery and Slave Trade
Earlier in this unit, we have learned that both local and long-distance trade had flourished in the
nineteenth century. The major commodities traded were ivory, slaves, civet, and gold. Slavery
and slave trade had long history in Ethiopia and the Horn. Most slaves in Ethiopia were kept as
domestic slaves and some were sold to Egypt and the Middle East and the Ottoman Empire
through the Sudan, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden ports. During the nineteenth century, in
some parts of Ethiopia, slaves were required for agricultural works, in the army and as sources of
revenue through selling into slavery. Thus, several regional and local rulers enslaved people for
these purposes. Slaves were traded as commodities in local and international markets. For
instance, in 1837 slave raiders captured Bilile from Guma and sold her to a German prince,
Herman Pickler Muskau at Cairo who changed her name to Mahbuba and made her his mistress.
Similarly, Hika (later Onesimos Nasib) was kidnapped in 1869 in Hurumu when he was four
years old. He was sold at Massawa, later freed by a Swedish mission, after which he translated
the Bible into Afan Oromo at Menkulu (in Eritrea). Aster Gano was also sold into slavery from
Limmu. However, in 1886, she was emancipated and assisted Onesimos in the translation of the
Bible. During the nineteenth century, slave trade expanded in Ethiopia and the Horn due to
increased demand for slaves in foreign markets largely in the Middle East. This was followed by
the emergence of market centers from Bonga to Metemma and Massawa. Selling slaves was
source of revenue for many local chiefs. Slaves were acquired through raiding, kidnapping, war
captivity, debt bondage, and purchase from open markets. Major sources of slaves were southern
and southwestern parts of Ethiopia. Emperors Tewodros II, Yohannes IV and Menilek II tried to
stop the slave trade although not slavery itself. In 1923, Ras Teferi banned slave trade which
eventually came out in a decree in 1924 to emancipate slaves. This was followed by the
establishment of the Office for the Abolition of Slavery in 1932. Freed slaves were kept under
the overall supervision of Hakim Warqineh Eshete. The Italians proclaimed the abolition of
slavery immediately after their occupation of the country. After liberation, the Emperor issued a
new decree in 1942 abolishing any forms of slave trade and the institution of slavery itself.
The impact of slavery was obviously social and economic deterioration of the source areas,
families and suffering of the slaves themselves.

6.4.3. Manufacturing
In many cultures in Ethiopia and the Horn, there were age-old indigenous ways of
producing/making tools. Such manufacturing activities involved simple procedures and
techniques and produced limited quantity of items. For instance, different items like furniture,
dresses and food including local drinks, were produced and processed by using traditional
techniques involving manual labor.

One result of the contact with the industrialized world from the mid nineteenth century was the
introduction of manufacturing technologies. Although evidences do not trace the exact period of
the beginning of modern industry in Ethiopia, there is a consensus that the strong interest of
rulers in the region for the introduction of western technologies and the subsequent contacts with
the industrial world since the mid nineteenth century contributed to the introduction of
manufacturing industries.
The beginning of diplomatic relations and opening of legations in the post-Adwa period was
followed by the coming of many expatriates, who either came with the skill or became agents of
the introduction of modern manufacturing. Foreign citizens from Armenia, Greece, Italy and
India also brought entrepreneurial capacity to develop manufacturing industries locally. Among
modern manufacturing industries, Holeta Grain Mill and Massawa Salt Processingwere set up in
1896 and 1904, respectively. Up to 1927, about 25 factories were established in Addis Ababa,
Dire Dawa, Asmara and Massawa. These included cement factories, wood and clay workshops,
tanneries, soap and edible oil plants, ammunition factories, breweries, tobacco processing plants
and grain mills. Private entrepreneurs established most of them. Among these, Artistic Printing
Press and Ambo Mineral Water plant were established before the Italian occupation. After 1928,
including in the short lived Italian occupation, more than ten manufacturing industries were set
up.

6.4.4. Urbanization
The period from the early nineteenth century to 194l marked the evolution of towns stemming
from political, socio-economic, demographic and ecological factors. During the period, the
expansion of both local and long distance trade since the early nineteenth century had
transformed old markets and socio-political centers into towns in Ethiopia and the Horn. In this
case, several towns located on the long-distance trade in western Ethiopia grew into towns. In
addition, the beginning of railway connecting Djibouti and Addis Ababa as of 1917 was
followed by the evolution of several fast growing towns. Towns including Dire-Dawa, Adama,
Mojo, Bishoftu and others were results of the extension of the railway and the expansion of
trade.

On the other hand, politico-religious centers in several parts of the region evolved into towns.
This was true mainly in the northern parts of Ethiopia. Many centers that once served as "royal
camps" evolved into towns and parallel to this many towns declined with the demographic
change when "royal camps" shifted to other centers. One of the towns that grew through such
process was Addis Ababa. Empress Taytu Betul chose the place for its hot springs, Fel-Wuha
(formerly called Hora Finfinne). Similarly, as of the late nineteenth century, in southern
Ethiopia, a number of towns emerged when Menilek's generals established garrisons in suitable
locations in order to maintain control of the occupied provinces. The presence of the governors
and soldiers made such areas permanent areas of politico-economic and religious activities. Such
centers of administration known as katamas (garrison towns) became centers of trade and
eventually grew into towns. Towns including Gobba, Ticho, Gore, Arjo, etc were garrisons that
grew into towns. During the Italian rule (1936-41), several of the above towns grew in size and
other new towns evolved because of socio-economic and political developments of the period.

6.5. External Relations

6.5.1. Agreements and Treaties
One consequence of the Zemene-Mesafint was the end of the 'close door policy‟ that was
introduced by Emperor Fasiladas (1632-1667). Thus, beginning from the early 1800s, regional
rulers made independent foreign contacts and signed treaties. During the nineteenth century, the
agents of these external relations were mainly travelers. Travelers came to Ethiopia and the Horn
with the motives of adventure and scientific research. They were also sometimes involved in
fostering friendship and trade relation on behalf of their governments. Some of them, however,
came with covert mission of colonialism. Meanwhile, various rulers of Ethiopia and the Horn
had also dispatched their own delegations to various countries of the world.
One of the earliest private travelers was Henry Salt who reached the court of Ras WoldeSelassie
of Tigray on 28 August 1805. He came for scientific reasons, but he claimed that his mission was
to establish friendship between Great Britain and Ethiopia. He returned to Ethiopia in 1809 and
concluded agreement with the Ras. Several British travelers including Christian Kugler also
arrived in the 1830s. Travelers from Germany like Eduard Ruppell (a scholar) arrived in 1846;
Captain W.C. Harris, leading an official British mission visited Shewa. John Bell and Walter
Plowden in the 1840s, the Italian Geographic Society in 1869 and the like arrived for trade
relation and scientific purposes. The result of these contacts was the agreement between Negus
Sahle-Selassie of Shewa and British Captain W. Harris in 1841 as well as with the French
Rochet d‟Hericourt, in 1843. In addition, Walter Plowden also signed treaty with Ras Ali in
1849.

Furthermore, other regional lords had contacts with religious centers in the Middle East,
particularly with Jerusalem. During the period, Egyptians threatened the Ethiopian religious
community settlement at Deir Al-Sultan in Jerusalem. As a result, in the early 1850s, strong lords
like Ras Ali and Dejjazmach Wube sent letters to Queen Victoria of England to request support
against the Egyptians. External relations during the reign of Tewodros II seemed more elaborate
and oriented towards obtaining western technology and military support todefend against foreign
aggression. As with his predecessors, Emperor Yohannes IV tried to create strong relations with
Europeans. The major concerns of Emperor Yohannes IV were the restoration of the lost
territories, the delimitation of boundaries and the defense of the sovereignty of the state against
the threat and interference by foreign powers. When he confronted external challenge like Egypt,
he tried to solve through negotiation than war. War was his last choice as he fought with Egypt
in 1875/76 and Mahdists Sudan in 1889.

One of the major diplomatic relations Yohannes concluded was Hewett /Adwa Treaty. It was a
treaty signed between the Emperor and the British Rear Admiral William Hewett on behalf of
Egypt on 3 June 1884 at Adwa. The purpose was to safely evacuate Egyptian troops through
Ethiopia who were trapped by the Mahdists troops along the Ethio-Sudanese border. In return,
Bogos was to be restored to Ethiopia and the latter was to freely use Massawa for the transit of
goods and firearms.
Based on the agreement, Emperor Yohannes facilitated the safe evacuation of Egyptian troops
through his territory. Britain restored Bogos to Ethiopia. However, Britain secretly transferred
Massawa from Egypt to Italy in February 1885. One consequence of the treaty was Mahdists'
determination to avenge Yohannes that led to the battle of Metemma on 9 March 1889, which
claimed his life. In terms of diplomatic relations and repulsing external threats, Emperor Menilek
II was more successful through maintaining the balance among powerful forces of the period.
While he was king of Shewa, he established commercial relation with Italy that later helped him
to acquire military equipment.

Menelik‟s relations with Italy reached its climax with the signing of the Wuchale Treaty. It was
drafted by Count Pietro Antonelli and signed on 2 May 1889, at Wuchale, Wollo between
Emperor Menilek II of Ethiopia and Antonelli on behalf of Prime Minister Crispi of Italy. The
treaty has twenty articles and was written both in Amharic and Italian languages. s When Ras
Mokonnon vistited Italy after the signing of the treaty, the Italians made him sign an additional
convension, which introduced the phrase “effective occupation” of Italy to legitimize the
territories that the Italians had come to occupy after the treaty. As a result, based on the Italian
version of Article XVII, Italy announced that all foreign powers had to deal with Ethiopia only
through Italy. European powers gave recognition to this Italian claim except Russia. In January
1890, the Italian government formally declared Eritrea as its colony.

Italian action to colonize Ethiopia through a combination of tricky treaties, persuasion and
subversive methods failed. This was because Menilek publicly abrogated the Wuchale Treaty in
February 1893 and Tigrian lords including Ras Mangasha Yohannes, Ras Sebhat Aragawi and
Dajjach Hagos Tafari, who the Italians were hoping to use, began to fight against the Italians
collaborating with Emperor Menilek. Italian determination to occupy Ethiopia and Ethiopian
resistance against colonialism led to the battle. Finally this led to the Battle of Adwa, where the
Ethiopians won a decisive victory. After the victory of Adwa, different foreign countries opened
their legations at Addis Ababa to establish relations on official basis.

Furthermore, Emperor Menilek made boundary agreements with the then neighboring colonial
powers like French-Somaliland (the present day Djibouti) on 20 March 1897, with British-
Somaliland (now Somaliland) on June 1897, with Anglo-Egyptian Sudan on 15 May 1902, with
the Italian colony of Eritrea on 10 July 1900 and also with British East Africa (Kenya) in 1907
and Italian-Somaliland in 1908. These boundary agreements shaped modern Ethiopian boundary.
International politics of the twentieth century also shaped Ethiopia‟s foreign relations. For
instance, during the First World War (1914-18) Lij Iyasu showed a tendency to side with the
Central Powers (Germany, Austro-Hungary, and Ottoman Empire) believing that the defeat of
the Allied powers (France and Britain) would allow Ethiopia to push Italy out of Eritrea and
Somalia. He also befriended the Somali nationalist leader, Sayyid Mohammed Abdille Hassan,
against Italy and Britain. Sayyid Mohammed Abdille Hassan (1864-1920) led the Somali against
the European occupation. He tried to attract mass support through his PanSomali movement. In
the history of the Somali, he is recognized as a forerunner of modern Somali nationalism.

One of the successes of Ethiopia‟s foreign relation in the early twentieth century was her
admission to the League of Nations in 1923. A year later, Teferi made his grand European tour,
which shaped his ideas of modernization. Ethiopia‟s entry into the League of Nations, however,
did not save her from Italian invasion in 1935/36.

6. 5. 2. Major Battles Fought Against Foreign Aggressors and Patriotism

Ethiopian people fought several battles against foreign threats during the period under
discussion. The following section discusses patriotism, determination and cooperation as well as
the successes and limits of Ethiopian peoples in the course of defending their country.

The Battle of Dabarki (1848): Dabarki was fought between Kasa Hailu of Qwara and Egyptian
forces in 1848. Although the forces led by Kasa Hailu lost the battle, the military imbalance
particularly, the modern artillery and discipline of Egyptian troops gave him a lesson to
modernize his military force, acquire modern technologies. This later initiated him to widen his
vision and mission when he became emperor.
The Battle of Maqdela (1868): Tewodros II had early relation with Britain through two British
citizens, Walter Plowden and John Bell. His main aim was to obtain help against foreign threats.
In 1862, he sent a letter to Queen Victoria requesting assistance through Consul Cameron.
Cameron came back to Ethiopia via Egypt without bringing any response. Suspecting him of
plotting with Egypt, Tewodros imprisoned Captain Cameron and other Europeans. On learning
of the imprisonment of the Europeans, Queen Victoria sent a letter through Hormuzd Rassam,
which did not satisfy Tewodros.
After some communications, the British parliament decided to take military action.
Subsequently, 32,000 troops led by Sir Robert Napier were sent through Massawa. This force
reached Maqdela guided by Dejazmach Bezibiz Kassa of Tigray (later Emperor Yohannes).
Although Wagshum Gobeze did not make any attempt to fight the British, he did not join them.
On April 10, 1868, up to 8,000 Tewodros‟ soldiers including his general Gebriye were defeated
by the British at the battle of Aroge. On April 13, 1868, Tewodros committed suicide at
Maqdela. This was followed by the burning of his fortress and looting of manuscripts, religious
and secular artifacts including his crown by the British troops.

The Battles of Gundet and Gura

In the nineteenth century, Egyptians showed a keen interest to occupy Northeast Africa with the
ambition of controlling the source of the Nile. Following their occupation of the Sudan in 1821,
they moved to occupy Ethiopia on several occasions. For instance, in 1875, Khedive Ismail
Pasha sent his troops to invade Ethiopia in three directions. Mohammed Rauf Pasha led the Zeila
front and the result was the occupation of the Harar Emirate between 1875 and 1885. Werner
Munzinger, the architect of the whole of Ismail‟s scheme for invasion of Ethiopia, led about 500
Egyptian troops equipped with cannons and rocket tubes through Tajura. But, Munzinger and his
troops were all killed by the Afars at the Battle of Odduma. Finally, Colonel Arendrup and
Arakel Bey led another 2,000 well-armed troops through Massawa. Emperor Yohannes IV and
Ras Alula mobilized about 20,000 forces and encountered the Egyptians at the Battle of Gundet
(16 November 1875) where the Egyptian troopswere severely defeated. Notwithstanding their
setback, Egyptians again reorganized their forces and sent their army to invade Ethiopia.
However, the Ethiopian forces again defeated them at the Battle of Gura (7–9 March, 1876).

It is important to understand that some Europeans and Americans were in the service of
Egyptians. For instance, the architect of the whole of Ismail‟s plan, Werner Munzinger, was a
Swiss born adventurer and former French Consul in Northeast Africa. Colonel Arendrup himself
was a Danish Citizen, and General Charles Stone was fellow American.

The Battle of Dogali

During the late nineteenth century, Europeans had interest to control the Red Sea area. With the
opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, the Red Sea region acquired great strategic and commercial
importance. One of the colonial powers with interest in the Horn of Africa was Italy.
The relations Italy had with the Horn began when an Italian private shipping company
(Rubatino) bought the port of Assab from the local chiefs in 1869. In 1882, the port of Assab was
transferred to the Italian government. In 1885, Britain secretly transferred Massawa from Egypt
to Italy. By using these bases as springboard, Italy began to penetrate into northern Ethiopia.
Subsequently, the Italian forces occupied Sa‟ati, Aylet and Wia in the then Mereb Milash region.
However, they were defeated decisively at the Battle of Dogali by Ras AlulaEngida, Emperor
Yohannes‟s famous general and right hand man. Following this battle, Italy signed a Treaty of
Neutrality with Menilek in October 1887 in a bid to isolate Emperor Yohannes.

The Battle of Metemma

As indicated above, the Hewett Treaty caused clashes between the Mahdist and Ethiopian forces
that lasted from 1885 to 1889. The first clash was at Kufit between Ras Alula and Uthman Digna
in September 1885. Initially, the Ethiopian force was victorious. In January 1887, Yohannes
ordered Nigus Tekle-Haymanot of Gojjam to repulse the Mahdists. A year later, the Mahdists led
by Abu Anja, defeated Nigus Tekle-Haimanot‟s troops at Sar- Wuha in Dembia. However, when
Emperor Yohannes IV was in northern Ethiopia to check the Italian advance to Mereb Milash, he
heard of the Mahdists advance up to Gondar. The Mahdists caused a lot of destruction on
churches and monasteries, including the killing of the clergy and the laity. At this important
juncture, Nigus Menilek and Nigus Tekle-Haimanot conspired against the emperor, instead of
directly facing the Mahdists. As a result, Emperor Yohannes faced what can be called a
triangular tension, namely the Italians in the north, the Mahdists in the west and northwest, and
his two vassals in the center. Later, in another direction, the Mahdists were defeated at Gute Dilli
(in Najjo-Wallagga) by Menilek's commander Ras Gobana Dache on October 14, 1888. Emperor
Yohannes made a national call:
የኢትዮጵያ ህዝብ ሆይ ኢትዮጵያ የተባለችዉ ሀገር: 1 ኛ እናትህ ናት፤ 2 ኛ ክብርህ ናት፤ 3 ኛ ሚስትህ

ናት፤4 ኛ ልጅህ ናት፤5 ኛ መቃብርህ ናት። እንግዲህ የእናትን ፍቅር፣ የዘዉድን ክብር፣የሚስትን

የዋህነት፣ የልጅን ደስታ፣ የመቃብርን ከከባቲነት አስበህ ተነስ!

Literally, Oh! the people of Ethiopia,

The country called Ethiopia is firstly your mother, secondly your crown, thirdly your wife,
fourthly your child, fifthly your grave. Accordingly, rise up understanding the love of a
 mother, honor of a crown, the goodness of a wife, the delight of having a child, and the
shelter of a grave.

Hence, on March 9, 1889, the Emperor marched to Metemma where he died fighting the
Mahdists. Evidently, it has to be noted here that internal divisions and acrimonies amongrulers
would result in a huge cost to the country and its peoples. Among others, Maqdela and Metemma
are very good testimonies.

The Battle of Adwa and Its Aftermath

The disagreement on the Wuchale Treaty finally led to the big battle between Ethiopia and
Italian forces. This was because Italians were determined to colonize Ethiopia whereas
Ethiopians were ready not to give in. To meet their intention, the Italians crossed the Mereb
River, arrived at Adigrat, and proceeded to Emba-Alage. Following Emperor Menilek's
proclamation for general mobilization, about 100,000 troops from every part of the country
gathered at Wara-Illu (in today‟s South Wollo).People marched to the front irrespective of
gender, regional, and ethnic differences to fight against the Italian aggression. The force led by
Fitawrari Gebeyehu Gurmu defeated the Italians at Emba-Alage and forced them to retreat to
Mekelle. In January 1896, under the leadership of Ras Mekonnen, the Ethiopian forces defeated
Italians at Mekelle. At Mekelle, the Italians were brought under seige denying them of access to
a water well which they used. The strategy was commonly called the “siege of Mekelle” and was
considered to be designed by Empress Taytu. After some negotiations, the besieged Italian
troops were set free and joined their compatriots at Adwa. A month later, Ethiopian forces led by
Emperor Menilek, Empress Taiytu and war generals like Ras Mikael, Ras Makonnen, Ras Alula,
Ras Mangasha and Negus Tekle-Haymanot and others encountered the Italians at Adwa. The
result of this battle was a decisive victory for Ethiopians but a huge blow to the Italians, which
doomed their colonial ambition over Ethiopia. At this battle, about 8,000 Italian fighters were
killed, 1,500 wounded and 3,000 were captured. On the Ethiopian side, about 4,000-6,000 troops
are said to have been killed. Consequently, Italy recognized the independence of Ethiopia by the
treaty of Addis Ababa that was signed on October 26, 1896. A number of powers of the time
(including Italy, France, Britain, Russia, the United States, Germany, Belgium, Turkey, and
others) also recognized the independence of Ethiopia and opened their legations in Addis Ababa.
Despite different interpretations on the results of the battle of Adwa, the heroic national
campaign, cooperation, and common successes of peoples of Ethiopia had a positive implication
for success and national integration. The victory assured independence and national pride. It has
thus become a source of pride for Ethiopians, Africans and the black race in general.

Furthermore, the victory of Ethiopians at Adwa has had an enduring legacy in the relations
between freedom fighters and colonizing powers. The victory of black people over white
colonizers initiated entire Africans fighting against colonialism. The well-known
PanAfricanist, Marcus Garvey, inspired his followers in his “Back to Africa” movement with
the success of Ethiopians. He used phrases like “Ethiopia thou land of our fathers” and
Ethiopianism became a symbol of anti-colonial movements.

6. 5. 3. Italian Occupation (1936-41) and the Patriotic Resistance

A. Background
Following their defeat at Adwa in 1896, the Italians suspended their expansionist colonial policy
in Northeast Africa for a short time. However, they were just waiting for the right time to fulfill
their ambitions in any possible way. Italy eventually got its ideological strength in 1922, when
Fascists led by Benito Mussolini held power. The Fascists were determined to restore the power
and glory of ancient Roman Empire by avenging Italy‟s shameful scar at Adwa.

Initially, Mussolini did not disclose his ambition against the sovereignty of Ethiopia rather he
was playing diplomatic „cards‟ till the coming of the „right time.‟ To achieve their goal of
occupation of Ethiopia, Italians followed two policies as was the case before the Battle of Adwa;
„subversion‟ and „rapprochement‟. The policy of subversion aimed at affecting the unity of the
empire via sowing dissatisfaction in Tigray, Begemedir, Gojjam and Wollo. This responsibility
was entrusted to Corrado Zoli, the governor of Eritrea (1928-1930). The Italian legation in Addis
Ababa, headed by Guiliano Cora led the policy of „rapprochement‟, a pseudo reconciliation
tactic which was trying to persuade the Ethiopian government to establish cordial relations
between the two countries. For instance, the signing of the 1928 Italo-Ethiopian Treaty of Peace
and Friendship was the manifestation of the success of the rapprochement policy. Here, beside
their legation in Addis Ababa, the Italians had also consulates in provincial towns such as
Dessie, Adwa, Debre Markos and Gondar. These consulates played a significant role in
propagating dissatisfaction and gathering vital military and political intelligence.
In addition to such preparations, the Fascists were also able to get indirect diplomatic support
from Britain and France for their colonial project in Ethiopia.

Here, although it is difficult to pinpoint one particular year when the decision was made by
Mussolini to launch the intended invasion, 1932 appears to have been a crucial year. Mussolini
who made all necessary preparations to launch an invasion against Ethiopia was only searching
for a pretext, and then fortunately he found it in the Walwal incident. The Walwal Incident (5
December 1934) was the result of the post-Awa boundary agreement limitations: lack of
demarcation on the ground and lack of effective administrative control in the frontier regions.
However, the Italians refused to give back Walwal and even attacked the Ethiopian soldiers who
were stationed nearby. Thus, this situation gave birth to the Walwal Incident.

Surprisingly, although the number of Ethiopians dead during this border clash was three times as
high as the Italians, it was Italy, which demanded totally unreasonable apology and reparation
from Ethiopia. Then, Ethiopia that refused to accept Italy‟s demand took the matter to the
League of Nations and a period of diplomatic wrangling followed to resolve the dispute.
However, in the meantime Mussolini, who already got the desired excuse, was finalizing his
preparations to launch a total invasion.

B. The 1935 Invasion and After

After they completed their preparations, the Italians waged their aggression via two major fronts:
the northern and the southern Front. The war was started in the northern Front when the Italians
crossed the Mereb River on October 3, 1935 and launched a three pronged invasion and
controlled Adigrat, Adwa and Mekelle. In January 1936, the Ethiopian counter offensive force
marched north through three fronts. Ras Emiru Haile-Selassie led the western front, Ras Kasa
Hailu (also commander of the entire northern front), Ras Seyum Mengesha led the central front,
and Ras Mulugeta Yigezu (War Minister) led the eastern front.

On January 20, 1936, the Ethiopian army launched a major offensive against the Italians
intending to isolate Mekelle, but failed to realize its objective due to lack of coordination among
the above-mentioned commanders. On January 24, the Ethiopian force lost to the Italians at the
first Battle in Temben. This was followed by an attack on the Ethiopian force, which was
stationed in what seemed to be an impregnable natural fortress of Amba-Aradom, to the south of
Mekelle. The Italians scored yet another decisive victory in which the commander of the
Ethiopian army, Ras Mulugeta Yigezu, lost his life. Besides modern weapons, the Italian force
had superiority in the air. Moreover, the forces of Ras Kasa and Ras Seyum were outnumbered
by the Italian troops. This resulted in another defeat at the Second Battle of Temben (27-29
February 1936). Ras Kasa and Ras Seyum narrowly escaped and joined the Emperor at Korem.

On the western front, the Ethiopian army under Ras Emeru put strong resistance against the
advancing force of the Italians. Thanks to Ras Emeru‟s better leadership quality, the number of
death of Ethiopian soldiers was less than what it had been in the northern front.

A series of battles between the Ethiopian and Italian forces in the northern Front culminated in
Maychew on 31 March 1936. Although the Ethiopian army (especially members of the Kebur
Zebegna) under the command of the Emperor put strong resistance against the Italians, they were
not able to conclude the battle with victory. Many Ethiopian soldiers lost their lives from ground
and air bombardment during the battle. Then the Italian forces controlled Dessie and Addis
Ababa on 4 April 1936 and 5 May 1936, respectively.
The Ethiopian army in the Southern Front was better equipped and well led. Ras Desta Damtew
(in the south) and Dejazmach Nesibu Zamanuel (in the southeast) were leaders of the Ethiopian
troops in this Front.

The Ethiopian army lost to the Italians at two major battles in the Southern Front: Qorahe
(November 1935) and Genale Dorya (12-14 January 1936). In the ensuing battles, the Askaris
(recruited from Eritrea) deserted the Italians and joined the Ethiopian force which boosted the
moral of Ras Desta‟s troops. Ras Desta continued to challenge the Italians until he was captured
and executed in early 1937. The number of soldiers the Italians lost during the fighting in the
Southern Front was larger than the North, which slowed their advance to the center; Badoglio
entered Addis Ababa before Graziani even crossed Harar.

On 2 May 1936, the Emperor fled the country and three days later the Italians entered Addis
Ababa. Between Haile Selassie‟s departure and the Italian entry, Addis Ababa was beset by
burning of buildings, looting and random shooting. The major targets of the violence were the
rich, foreigners and the imperial palace. Many foreigners saved their lives by taking refuge in
foreign legations.
Here, the entry of the Italian forces into the capital in the middle of such chaos was a relief for
both the foreigners and the natives since the Italians were able to bring peace and order to the
city. At this juncture, some scholars suggested that the Italians deliberately delayed their entry so
that the people of the city would consider them as „angels‟ of peace, and easily accept their rule.
Anyway, after their control of the capital, Marshal Badoglio immediately reported the situation
to Mussolini. Benito Mussolini announced to the people of Italy and the world about their control
of Ethiopia using the phrase “Ethiopia is Italian!”

The Italians immediately merged Ethiopia with their colonies of Italian Somaliland and Eritrea.
Then, they named the combination of their colonies Italian East Africa (IEA) or Africa Orientale
Italiana (AOI). The newly formed Italian East Africa had six administrative regional divisions
that replaced former international boundaries. These were: Eritrea (including Tigray) with its
capital at Asmara; Amhara (including Begemidr, Gojjam, Wollo and Northern Shewa) with its
capital at Gondar; Oromo and Sidama (including Southern and Southwestern provinces) with its
capital at Jimma; Eastern Ethiopia with its capital at Harar; Somalia (including Ogaden) with its
capital at Mogadishu; Addis Ababa (later changed to Shewa), the capital of the entire Italian East
Africa.
During the Italian occupation of Ethiopia, the following Italians served as governors of Italian
East Africa successively: Marshal Badoglio (till the end of May 1936), Marshal Graziani (till
February 1937), and finally Amadeo Umberto d‟Aosta (the Duke of Aosta).

Generally, a top-heavy bureaucracy and corruption characterized the Italian administration of

IEA. For instance, the last governor of IEA, the Duke of Aosta himself characterized 50% of his
officials as inept and 25% as thieves. Marshal Badoglio himself reportedly pocketed about
1,700,000 Maria Theresa Thalers confiscated from the Bank of Ethiopia, in the immediate
aftermath of the conquest. In the economic respect, the Italians weakened and destroyed non-
Italian foreign firms and replaced them with governmental enterprises that controlled the
industry, trade and agriculture.

The Italians were relatively successful in the sectors of trade and industry as compared to the
agricultural sector. For instance, they planned to settle Italian farmers in selected Ethiopian areas
such as Wegera, Chercher and Jimma. However, their agricultural plan failed (they only
accomplished 10%) due to their failure to secure the control of the rural areas due to the patriotic
movement.
As indicated above, the Italian administrative control was largely confined to urban areas due to
the strong patriotic resistance. Thus; their legacy was also largely reflected in the towns than the
rural areas, which were actually out of Italian effective rule. Generally, the legacy of the Italian
rule can be summarized in the following brief points:
 Architecture- the Italians left an indelible mark in towns such as Addis Ababa, Jimma,
Adwa, Gondar, Desse, Harar, Asmara, Mogadishu and others.
 Introduction of urban facilities like clean water and electricity;
 Social legacies (expansion of prostitution, adoption of European habits-including eating
and dressing styles, and adoption of Italian words);
 The consolidation of cash economy;
 Road construction and development of motor transport;
 The sense of division, deliberately fostering ethnic and religious tensions etc.

C. The Patriotic Resistance Movement

The five-year Italian occupation (1936-41) was not a smooth experience. Rather, the Ethiopian
peoples opposed them in a number of ways. Among others, the patriots gave them hard times
largely in rural areas. They continuously harassed them. Ethiopian patriots continued their
resistance in almost all regions and by all ethnic groups of the empire with varying degree of
intensification. The first phase of resistance was the continuation of the war itself. Among the
highlights of this phase was the resistance waged by three commanders of the Southern Front,
Ras Desta Damtew, Dejjach Beyene Merid and Dejjach Gebre Maryam Gari. An extension of
this phase was a five pronged assault on the capital in the summer of 1936. The campaign
involved two sons of Ras Kasa Hailu (Asfawesen and Aberra), the veteran of Adwa Dejjach
Balcha Safo, Balambaras (later Ras) Abebe Aregay, and Dejjach Fikre-Mariam Yinnnadu.

However, it failed because of lack of effective means of transportation and radio communication.
Abune Petros, the Bishop of Wollo, who was the spirit behind the patriots was executed and
became a martyr of the resistance. The killing of the bishop was unheard of in Ethiopia and
shocked the nation, arousing the indignation of the people, especially the clergy.
The second phase covers from 1937 to the end of the Italian occupation in 1941. On 19 February
1937, two young Ethiopian patriots, Abreha Deboch and Moges Asgedom, hurled a bomb at
Graziani in the Genete-Le‟ul palace compound at Sidist Kilo, wounding him seriously and
killing some others. This was followed by a reign of terror waged by the Black Shirts; who
chopped off heads, burnt down houses with their inhabitants, and disemboweled thousands in
Addis Ababa. According to Ethiopian official accounts, about 30,000 Ethiopians of different
ages, classes and sex were killed in three days‟ campaign. Special targets of the Fascist terror
were educated Ethiopians (including many members of the Black Lion Organization). The EOC
also became a target. For instance, on 21 May 1937, in the monastery of Debre Libanos alone,
297 monks were executed. The elimination of the intelligentsia was to create 'the missing
generation' in Ethiopia's intellectual and political history.

This Fascist terror marked the transition from the conventional patriotic resistance to guerrilla
warfare that could eventually weaken the enemy forces. Different guerrilla units kept the Italian
troops under constant harassment.
As the Fascist regime became intolerable to Ethiopians, there also arose women who led their
own army in the guerrilla wars, like Woizero Lekyelesh Beyan, whose career as a guerrilla
fighter ended in January 1941, when she was captured after an Italian air bombardment.
Woizero Kebedech Seyoum (a daughter of Ras Seyum Mengesha and the wife of Dejazmach
Abera Kasa), started her patriotic activity before the fall of Addis Ababa to the Italians. Thus,
when her husband was fighting in the northern front, she maintained peace and order in the
province of Salale representing her husband.

Although it lacked coordination, patriotic resistance to Italian rule took place in the country in
numerous forms and tenacity. There was no unified command structure. In most provinces of the
country, similar acts of resistance were observed. Eritreans too were joining the resistance in big
numbers. A comprehensive list and explanation on each patriot in a module such as this would
not be possible.

However, hereunder an attempt has been made to list a few patriots that we think can represent
different parts of Ethiopia. Dejjazmach Umar Samatar, Colonel Abdisa Aga, Dejjazmach Belay
Zeleke, Dejjazmach Gebrehiwot Meshesha, Dejjazmach Abbbai Kahsay, Woizero Shewareged
Gedle, Zeray Dires, Colonel Jagama Kello, Woizero Sinidu Gebru, Ras Amoraw Wubneh, Lij
Haile Mariam Mamo, Ras Abebe Aregay, Dejjazmach Habte Mariam, Colonel Belay Haile-ab,
Major Matias Gemeda, Captain Yosef Nesibu, Blatta Takele Wolde-Hawaryat, Dejjach Geresu
Duki, Bekele Woya, etc. The struggle continued but it suffered from serious internal weakness.
The resistance was handicapped by the Ethiopian collaborators called the Banda who exercised
their corrosive activities in different areas. Another weakness of the resistance movement was
that it was divided and that there was no one national organization to coordinate the activities of
the many patriotic groups dispersed in many parts of the country. Relations between guerrilla
groups were characterized by parochialism and jealousy. Some guerrilla groups spent more time
fighting one another than attacking the declared enemy.

Despite these weaknesses, the patriots carried on a persistent resistance against Italian fascism,
until suddenly they got external support from Britain in 1941. Ethiopian struggle for
independence was associated with World War II, when Italy declared war on France and Britain
on 10 June 1940. Mussolini decided to enter the war on the side of Germany in the hope of
securing outside support; the internationalization of the conflict was a good opportunity. For
Haile-Sellassie too, the situation was important. His requests for assistance were finally
answered by the British government that decided to drive out Italians from East Africa.

On July 12, 1940, London recognized the Emperor as a full ally. The British launched a three-
pronged attack on the Italians. In the north, General William Platt led the forces that attacked the
Italians in Eritrea. In January 1941, Colonel Sandford and Major Wingate accompanied the
Emperor from the Sudan into Gojjam at the head of British and Ethiopian troops called the
Gedeon force. General Cunningham led the attack from Kenya. The advances were rapid largely
due to the demoralization that the patriots had caused on the Italian forces. Emperor Haile-
Selassie entered Addis Ababa on 5 May 1941, exactly five years after Italian entry to the capital.
 UNIT SEVEN
INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS, 1941–1995
(5 hours)
7.1. Post-1941 Imperial Period
7.1.1. Restoration and Consolidation of Imperial Power and External Relations
A. Ethiopia and Britain
In the post-1941 period, Britain recognized Ethiopia‟s status as a sovereign state with mutual
diplomatic accreditation, but it continued to exercise the upper hand because of the role it played
in the liberation of Ethiopia from Fascist rule. Another reason for the preponderant influence of
Britain in Ethiopia‟s domestic and international affairs was the continuation of WWII (1939-45)
which required adequate provision for the Allied defense to win the war. Accordingly, despite
protests, the British considered Ethiopia Occupied Enemy Territory Administration (OETA). The
1942 and 1944 agreements that Emperor Haile-Selassie I was forced to sign with the British
show the ascendancy of the latter.

The 1942 agreement gave Britain a final authority over Ethiopia‟s foreign affairs, territorial
integrity, administration, finances, the military, and the police. The British minster in Ethiopia
enjoyed precedence over other foreign diplomats in Ethiopia and Britain was to approve
employment of other nationals by Ethiopian government. Even more, British citizens held key
posts in Ethiopian administration as advisors and judges while at the same time they maintained
total control over the country‟s police force, which was set up in February 1942. Additionally,
British aircraft had exclusive aviation rights and the emperor had to obtain approval from the
Commander in Chief of the British Forces in East Africa, Sir Philip Mitchell, to implement
sovereign matters such as declaration of war or state of emergency. Britain also decided details
on disposal of Italian prisoners of war and civilians and the administration of Italian properties in
the country. In terms of finance, the British assumed control over currency and foreign exchange
as well as import-exports.

The Emperor resented such restrictions to his powers and made some diplomatic engagements.
With this and the help of the USA and friends of Ethiopia such as Sylvia Pankhurst, Britain
relaxed the restrictions imposed upon the Ethiopian government. The second Anglo-Ethiopian
agreement, signed in 1944, shows some of the concessions the emperor won from Britain.
According to this agreement, the priority accorded to the British minster over all other foreign
diplomats in Ethiopia was lifted. The Ethiopian government could now employ non-British
foreign personnel and it regained control over a section of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway, a
vital line of external communication. Control over this route assured Ethiopia free access to
foreign goods and services including arms and ammunitions. The British also agreed to evacuate
their army from the region once they equip Ethiopia‟s military force- a task mandated to the
British Military Mission to Ethiopia (BMME). The BMME assisted the government of Ethiopia
in organizing, training, and administration of its army until 1951. Haile-Selassie I Harar Military
Academy was modeled after a British Military Academy called Sandhurst.

Britain did not, however, yield to Ethiopia‟s territorial demands during the negotiation for the
1944 Agreement. The Ethiopian government requested union of Eritrea with Ethiopia claiming
that it was historically, culturally, and economically inseparable from Ethiopia. Both Eritrea and
Ogaden were part of the Ethiopian empire before they fell into Italian hands in 1890 and 1936
respectively. But Ethiopia‟s claims to the two territories were met with little sympathy from the
British. Britain insisted that Ogaden should be merged with the former Italian Somaliland and
British Somaliland to form what they called “Greater Somalia”. Similarly, the western and
northern lowlands of Eritrea were intended by the British to be part of Sudan. Further, they
wanted to integrate the Tigrigna speaking highlands of Eritrea with Tigray to form a separate
state. Therefore, in September 1945 at the London conference of Allied powers Ethiopia‟s claims
to Eritrea and Ogaden were rejected.

The territorial issues were resolved only after a decade. In 1948, the British left parts of Ogaden,
and in 1954, they withdrew from the region. In Eritrea, people were divided; those who wanted a
union with Ethiopia rallied behind the Unionists. The Liberal Progressive Party and later the
Muslim League rallied people who sought for separation and independence. In 1948, the
question of Eritrea was referred to the UNSC by Britain, France, USA and USSR. The UN
appointed a commission of five men from Burma, Guatemala, Norway, Pakistan and South
Africa to find out the actual wishes of Eritreans. After a period of investigation, Guatemala and
Pakistan recommended granting independence to Eritrea. While Norway recommended union
with Ethiopia, South Africa and Burma recommended Federation. On December 2, 1950, UN
Resolution 390V granted the Federation of Eritrea with Ethiopia, which came into effect in 1952.
However, this arrangement did not satisfy both unionists and the independence bloc; each side
seeking to unmake the federation to fit their respective interests. On November 14, 1962, the
Eritrean Parliament, under pressure from the Ethiopian government, resolved to dissolve the
Federation and placed Eritrea under the imperial umbrella.

B. Ethiopia and the USA

The first official contacts between Ethiopia and the United States of America traced back to 1903
when Ethiopia signed a Treaty of Friendship and Commerce with the USA delegate led under
Robert P. Skinner. The relations between the two countries had been in the doldrums because of
the tripartite domination of the Ethiopian diplomatic scene until the early 1940s. Following the
Second World War, two super-powers, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged. In
Ethiopia and the Horn, British pre-dominance in 1940s was replaced by the dominance of the
United States in the 1950s. In his efforts to ensure his sovereign political authority from British
domination, to modernize his country and consolidate his power, Haile-Selassie I turned towards
the United States as a powerful ally than Britain. American interest in the region began to grow
especially after they acquired a communication base in Asmara known as Radio Marina from the
Italians. The radio station was later on renamed Qagnew after the Ethiopian force that fought on
the side of the Americans in the Korean War (1950-3).

In 1943, the Ethiopian vice Finance Minister, Yilma Deressa, visited the US to request expertise
to assist the country's development. In response, USA extended the Lend-Lease Agreement with
Ethiopia and sent a technical mission led by Perry Fellows in May 1944. Emperor Haile-Selassie
I and the American President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, met in Egypt and discussed recognition of
an American Sinclair Company to prospect for oil in Ogaden at the beginning of 1945. By
granting a concession to the company, Ethiopia sought to reassert its rights in the region as much
as it was eager to exploit a lucrative natural resource. The renewed contact between the two
countries was concretized with the signing of two agreements in the 1950s. First, the Point Four
Agreement that enabled subsequent American assistance in education and public health was
signed in 1952. Second, the Ethio-US Treaty that granted a continued American use of the
Qagnew base in return for military assistance was signed in 1953. These two agreements in
general but the latter in particular defined the Ethio-American relationship in the following
decades.
Following the 1953 treaty, the US launched a military aid program named the American Military
Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) to equip Ethiopia‟s armed forces. The MAAG was to train
60,000 Ethiopian soldiers in three separate divisions. In the year between 1953 and 1968, over
2,500 Ethiopians received various forms of military training in the US. It was in the army that
American military assistance and training was most noticeable. By 1970, sixty percent of US
military aid to Africa went to Ethiopia. In the period between 1946 and 1972, US military aid
was over 180 million US Dollar. Anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, naval craft, infantry
weapons and some times even uniforms like field jackets were of American origin.

Civil aviation, road transport, and education were other spheres that the Americans took active
part. From 8 September to 15 December 1945, the founding conference of the UN was held at
San Francisco. There, the Ethiopian delegation approached American delegates for assistance to
form a civilian airline. Hence, an agreement was concluded with Transcontinental and Western
World Airline (TWA) that established Ethiopian Air Lines (EAL) in 1946 with five C-47
warplanes that served during WWII and of which three were converted to passenger version
DC 3. In 1962, EAL entered the jet age. Meanwhile the shortage of trained Ethiopian personnel
slowed the progress towards the Ethiopianization of the EAL. For almost three decades since the
signing of the agreement with the TWA in 1946, key management and executive posts of the
Ethiopian airline were seized by expatriates notably by the Americans. EAL got its first
Ethiopian national pilot, Alemayehu Abebe, in 1957 and Colonel Simeret Medhne became the
first Ethiopian General Manager of EAL in 1971.

The Imperial Board of Telecommunication was established with the help of International
Telephone and Telegraph (ITT) organization between 1950 and 1952. In January 1951, with
financial loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the
Imperial High Way Authority (IHA) was set up based on the model of the US Bureau of Roads.
It continued to be run by Americans until 1962. Together with ELA‟s domestic network the
improvement of road transport along with communication services played important role in
facilitating national integration and the speedy transport of such lucrative commodities as coffee.
In the field of education, American presence was particularly evident in the university and high
schools. A variety of American scholarship programs under USAID and African American
Institute African Graduate Fellowship Program (AFGRAD) offered opportunities for many
Ethiopians to go to the United States for their second and third Degrees. Meanwhile, many
American volunteers came to Ethiopia to teach in Ethiopian schools under the Peace Corps
Program.
Other foreign countries with significant presence in Imperial Ethiopia include Sweden and
Norway whose advisors were entrusted to the Air force and navy successively. Germany and
Israel trained and equipped the Police Force while the Swedes supported the Imperial Bodyguard
and the Harar Military Academy was entrusted to British trained Indians.

In 1956, the Qoqa Dam was built with war reparations money that the Italians agreed to pay.
This was followed by the return of the Statue of Judah in 1970, which Italians had taken during
the occupation period. Russians established good relations with Ethiopia through their
exhibition, library around city hall, post office, mathematics, and literature.

7.1.2. Socio-Economic Developments

Given the low development of industrialization in the country even well into the twentieth
century, agriculture remained the leading economic sector in providing employment for about
ninety percent of the population, generating about seventy percent of the national GDP and
supplying almost hundred percent of the country‟s income from export trade. Therefore, the
landholding that was a primary means of production was vital.

Generally, peasants in the northern and central highland parts of Ethiopia held land in the form
of rist. In the 1970s, more than sixty-six percent of the peasant farmers cultivated less than 0.5
hectares. In southern Ethiopia, government grants were made by the Government for large
number of its supporters and tenancy was widespread. The disparity of landownership between
north and south Ethiopia by the middle of the twentieth century can be seen from the proportion
of tenants to landed peasants. It was only minority religious and occupational castes who
suffered from tenancy in the north while the tenant population as percentage of total rural
population in newly incorporated regions varied from 37 percent in former Sidama Governorate
General to a staggering 73 percent in Ilu Abba Bor, and 75 percent in Hararghe, whereas tenancy
in Northern provinces averaged 11 percent. Tenants surrendered up to 60 percent of their
produce to landlords who mostly lived in towns or the capital.
In addition to formal tributes, there were sundry payments that smallholder and landless farmers
had to make, such as “voluntary” contributions to self-help funds for projects from which they
rarely benefitted. Sharecrop tenancy arrangements in the country were so onerous that increasing
production only increased the exploitation of peasants. Similarly, the extreme taxation to which
smallholding peasants were subjected to was too high discouraging peasants from maximizing
production beyond subsistence levels. From 1953 to 1974, the annual growth rate of agricultural
production was only 2.4 percent, which was lower than the 2.5 percent population growth rate.
Consequently, Ethiopia ranked among the countries with very low per capita income.

The deteriorating condition of the country‟s economy posed a threat to the social and political
stability of the country and thus, the regime‟s power. This coupled with external pressure from
donors, induced the government to establish a Land Reform Committee in 1961. This later
became the Land Reform and Development Authority that grew to become the Ministry of Land
Reform and Administration. Yet no meaningful reform was implemented because it would affect
the vested economic and political interests of landlords who at that time had taken hold of
government.

In the 1960s and 1970s, commercial agriculture was expanding especially in southern Shewa, the
Setit-Humera region on the Sudan border, and in the Awash Valley. The mechanization of
farming in these areas led to eviction of tenants. Profitability of agriculture led some landlords to
work the land by themselves. Sometimes they rented the land under their ownership to whoever
offered them better price in cash (as opposed to the sharecropping tenancy practice); a price paid
in advance and for longer periods. The effect of all these was the eviction of tenants.

Furthermore, the government attempted to enhance the productivity of small farmers through
launching comprehensive agricultural package programs. The most notable in this regard were
the Chilalo Agricultural Development Unit (CADU) and Wolayta Agricultural Development
Unit (WADU). CADU was launched in 1967 through the initiative of the Swedish International
Development Authority (SIDA) while the World Bank supported WADU. The major objective
of the package programs was demonstrating the effectiveness and efficiency of agricultural
packages to pave the way for subsequent nationwide emulation of the intensive package
approach. Nonetheless, the plan was conceived and implemented without undertaking the crucial
task of land reform, thereby leaving the targeted population (small peasant producers) at a
disadvantageous position vis-a-vis big landlords when it comes to the distribution of benefits.
Although few participant small farmers gained real benefit, farmers with large land-holdings
took the lion‟s share of the benefits accrued from these projects. The unintended outcome of
CADU was aggravating tenant eviction. WADU initiated by the World Bank was more
successful in promoting re-settlement.

Since the 1950s, the government formulated strategic plans for economic development and this
came in a series of five-year plans. The First Five Year Plan (1957-1961) targeted the
development of infrastructure. The Second (1962-1967) turned towards mining, manufacturing
and electricity. The Plan also mentioned major constraints to the development of the agricultural
sector, although in very general terms. The Third (1968-1972) gave priority to large-scale
agricultural development and „bringing higher living standard‟. The package projects noted
above were part of the third plan. Following these plans, the Ethiopian economy witnessed some
progress particularly after 1950. Overall, domestic output increased nearly three and a half times
and even better progress was registered in manufacturing. The number of industrial enterprises
grew to over four hundred and the industrial working force to nearly sixty thousand. The
electricity supply and infrastructure expanded considerably. Road and air communication
enabled linkage of parts of the country. The emergence of new towns and the development of
city life hastened urbanization. Moreover, public revenue and expenditure both grew nine and
tenfold, respectively. Banking facilities expanded and the State Bank of Ethiopia was formed in
1942. In 1963, it was divided into the Commercial Bank and the National Bank of Ethiopia. Also
a private bank, Addis Ababa Bank was established in 1963. The capital Addis Ababa became a
continental capital when the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Organization
of African Unity (OAU) were established in 1958 and 1963, respectively. Overall, there was
relatively high level modernization that was reflected in many facets of life: music, sports,
cuisine and dress styles.

Yet, much of Ethiopia remained traditional with a low living standard and Ethiopia was one of
the least developed countries in global terms. While the manufacturing sector contributed less
than five percent of the national income, industrialization was spatially limited in the capital and
its vicinity in addition only to Asmara and Dire Dawa. The manufacturing sector only produced
light consumer goods. Moreover, industrial investment was also primarily of foreign origin.
For example, the Ethiopian share in capital was hardly more than twenty percent for Wonji-
Shewa and Metahara sugar factories which were largely Dutch-owned. Above all, the absence of
meaningful land reform constrained the forces of production in the countryside where the
majority of the population lived.

Consolidation of Autocracy
The post-liberation period witnessed the climax of the emperor‟s power. As in the period before,
at the center of post-1941 national policies was the state‟s enduring interest to curb the political
and economic bases of the power of regional lords in favor of the monarch. After he was restored
to the throne in May 1941, Emperor Haile-Selassie embarked on consolidating his power. This
was made possible through the bureaucratization of government, the building of a national army
and a centralized fiscal system. In order to fill-in the expanding bureaucracy, education was
promoted at both school and college levels. While primary schools had already been established
prior to 1935, secondary schools were opened in the post 1941 period. The Haile-Selassie I
Secondary School, founded in 1943, and the General Wingate School, established in 1946,
became the two most popular and prestigious secondary schools. A significant number of the
educated elites in the 1950s attended either of these two schools. In 1950, the University College
of Addis Ababa (UCAA) was inaugurated. This was followed by the Engineering and Building
College in Addis Ababa, the College of Agriculture in Alamaya (Hararghe), and the Public
Health College in Gondar. These various colleges were brought together to form the
Haile Selassie I University in 1961 which again was re-named Addis Ababa University after the
outbreak of the Revolution in 1974.

The post-1941 political order was dominated by Haile-Selassie that both the state and the country
came to be identified with the emperor. Significant urban landmarks such as schools, hospitals,
theatre halls, stadiums, main avenues and squares in the country bore the name of the Emperor. It
was common for students to chant songs praising the emperor who would then gift them with
sweets or fruits on holidays such as Ethiopian Christmas on January 7. The emperor‟s birthday
and coronation day were national holidays where large sum of money was spent.
Yet another major pre-occupation of the imperial regime was the strengthening of the military
and security apparatus. The ministries of Defense and Interior, in charge of maintaining public
security, consistently received the highest budgetary allocations.
For example, out of the country‟s total budget of ETB 38 million in 1944/5 fiscal year, nearly 11
million was allocated for the Ministry of Interior of which security absorbed almost 5 million
and about 8 million went for war. Figures show over 80 million allocation for Ministry of
Defense and nearly 60 million for Ministry of Interior, out of about 400 million ETB in
1967.Ironically although the emperor anticipated that the military that was composed mainly of
the army, the police force and the Imperial Bodyguard would suppress opposition to the regime,
they themselves rebelled more than once- a failed coup in 1960 and the more successful one in
1974.

The traditional aristocracy, although made to enjoy urban and rural property, had lost most of its
political privileges. Based on the traditional shum shir, the emperor appointed and demoted his
ministers, most of whom had humble origins. In 1943, the emperor appointed eleven ministers to
draft laws and appoint junior officials but their subservience to the monarch was stated in
explicit terms. For example, it was only in 1966 that even the prime minster was allowed to
select his cabinet members to be approved by the emperor. Ras Bitweded Mekonnen
Endalkachew served as prime minister from 1942. Next to Mekonnen Habte-Wold (1949-58),
whose brother, Aklilu, became the last prime minister of the imperial regime (1961-74), Yilma
Deressa left the strongest mark on the Ministry of Finance. But the most powerful of the
ministers in the post-1941 political order was Tsehafe-Tizaz Wolde-Giorgis Wolde-Yohannis
who headed the strategic Ministry of Pen in the period 1941-55. Besides, Wolde-Giorgis held the
portfolios of Justice and Interior on various occasions that he was the defacto prime minister in
the above stated period. Wolde-Giorgis‟ access to the emperor and the latter‟s trust in him made
him so powerful. In general, members of the royal family, leading nobility and the Abun still
were members of the crown council, which was an advisory body to the emperor. In 1959, the
Emperor‟s private cabinet was set up as a high-level advisory body to the emperor and developed
into agency doing intelligence.

In 1955, Haile-Selassie promulgated a new constitution, revising the first constitution issued in
1931. American advisers like John Spencer as well as Tsehafe-Tizaz Wolde-Giorgis Wolde
Yohannis and Tsehafe-Tizaz Aklilu Habte-Wold were in the drafting committee of the 1955
revised constitution. More than its predecessor, the 1955 revised constitution provided the basis
for the consolidation of absolutism in Ethiopia. About 36 articles of the 1955 constitution dealt
with the question of imperial succession and the emperor‟s privileges. The constitution clearly
states the Emperor‟s personality as sacred, his dignity inviolable and his power indisputable.
Some Human rights provisions like those of speech and press were accompanied by nullifying
phrases like within law limits. However this constitution introduced universal adult suffrage and
elected chamber of deputies for four years term and that of the senate six years with certain
property qualification.

In the final analysis, however, neither the constitution nor the Parliament that it created put a
limit to the autocratic power of the emperor. He was the head of the three branches of
government: the executive, the legislative and the judiciary. The idea of a constitutional
monarchy was never materialized. Human rights and civic liberties were restricted and violated.
Regional identities, needs and feelings were ignored in the interest of centralization.

As the years progressed, the emperor started to dedicate his attention to foreign affairs. He
played a significant role in the Non-Aligned Movement and the drive for African unity and this
increased his international stature that finally resulted in the birth of the Organization of African
Unity at the summit of heads of African states held in Addis Ababa in 1963. But his
preoccupation with international affairs detached the emperor from the domestic affairs that he
failed to see the signs of trouble at home.

7.1.3. Oppositions and the Downfall of the Monarchical Regime

A. Plots and Conspiracies
Various sectors of the society opposed the imperial rule before the 1974 Revolution broke out.
Before the 1960s, opposition to the regime took in the form of plots and conspiracies. After the
1960 Coup d‟état, however, oppositions gained wider mass support and came out more openly.
Some leaders of the resistance movement against Fascist rule were opposed to the restoration of
the emperor to the throne for fleeing the country when it needed him most whereas others wished
for a republican government. Such misgivings combined with the privileges and rewards
accorded to exiles and people who served the colonial administration exacerbated the resentment
against the monarchy leading to rebellions. One notable patriot who resented the fact that he was
not given a stature recognizing his contribution to the Resistance was Dejazmach Belay Zeleke.
The emperor made Belay governor of a southern province of Gojjam because he wanted to
remove him from his base in Bichena in eastern Gojjam. Belay rejected the offer and was even
more dissatisfied at dignified positions of Ras Haylu Belaw (Governor General of Gojjam) and
Bitweded Mengesha Jembere (Deputy Governor General of Gojjam). In February 1943, forces
from Debra-Marqos and Addis Ababa invaded Belay‟s district. After fighting for three months,
Belay surrendered, was detained in Fiche from where he tried to escape and return to Gojjam a
few months later, but was captured with his brother Ejigu. Taken back to the capital, Belay was
finally hanged in public.

Bitweded Negash Bezabih was a vice minister and Senate President in the emperor‟s
administration after liberation. He plotted to assassinate the emperor and proclaim a republic in
1951. In the process, some military officers like Beqele Anasimos were attracted to the plot, but
Dejach Geresu Duki, another patriot, whom the plotters had unsuccessfully approached to recruit
to their cause, exposed them. Finally, the plotters were tried and sentenced to various terms of
imprisonment after being arrested during one of their clandestine meetings.

The most fierce and sustained opposition to the emperor came from Blatta Takele
Wolde Hawaryat, who hatched a plot in constitutionalist terms using Yohannes Iyasu as front
and with the support of some contingents of the army. But the plot was uncovered and he was
detained. In 1945, Blatta Takele Wolde-Hawaryat was released and appointed as deputy Afe-
nigus. Yet, he was involved in another plot in 1946 and was detained up to 1954. Upon his
release, he once again became Vice Interior Minister and Afe-nigus. He tried to assassinate the
emperor on November 17, 1969, but his final plot failed and he barricaded himself in his house
and engaged in a shoot-out with the police in which he was killed.

The most serious challenge to the emperor‟s authority came in 1960 in the form of a coup
attempt. The abortive coup d'etat of 1960 was led by the Neway brothers, Brigadier General
Mengistu and Germame. Garmame attended Haile-Sellasie I Secondary School, and then the
University of Wisconsin where he received his B.A and M.A. Degrees from Columbia.
Garmame was also president of Ethiopian Students Association during his stay in the USA.
Upon his return to Ethiopia, Garmame became the president of a clandestine alumni association
of his former school. As governor of Wolayta, Germame‟s activities were alarming to the
regime. He monitored police activities, introduced a settlement program in which he distributed
government holdings to landless peasants and ordered written tenancy agreements. He was then
summoned back to Addis Ababa for explanation. However, unable to criticize Germame‟s
intentions Haile-Selassie sent him to Jijiga where he continued as radical reformer. He oversaw
the digging of new wells while improving the old, set up clinics, schools etc. But his actions
were not liked by the regime which convinced Germame of the need for change. Together with
his brother General Mengistu Neway, the head of the Imperial Bodyguard, and others the two
brothers started detaining ministers and other members of the nobility when the emperor was on
state visit in Brazil. They also took over the radio station and spoke about the backwardness of
the country than newly independent African states. The crown prince Asfawosen was declared to
be a salaried constitutional monarch. The prince delivered a speech on Radio Addis explaining
the rationale of the coup in which he promised the establishment of new factories, schools etc.
On December 14, 1960, a new government was declared that was to be headed by Ras Emiru
Haile-Selassie. Major General Mulugeta Buli was chosen as chief of staff of the armed forces
while Brigadier-General Tsige Dibu was to lead the Imperial Bodyguard and the Police Force,
and Colonel Workneh Gebeyehu was security chief.

However, the army and the air force refused to side with the rebels and with the support of the
Americans and the blessing of the patriarch, the loyalists led by General Merid Mengesha, Ras
Asrate Kassa etc attacked the plotters. The rebels asked for a cease-fire, which the loyalists
rejected. Finally, they had to run for their lives but only after killing the ministers and other
dignitaries they had detained at Geneta L'uel palace. In the meantime, the emperor entered the
capital. Finally, Garmame died fighting in the outskirts of the capital and Mengistu was captured
and hanged after trial. The regime made some concessions after the failed coup attempt, but
failed to address the root causes that triggered the coup itself. Thus, opposition to the imperial
regime was only to grow stronger leading to the outbreak of the 1974 Revolution.

B. Peasant Rebellions
The post-liberation period also witnessed growing opposition among peasants in different parts
of the country against Haile-Selassie‟s regime thereby giving the opposition a broader
dimension. Peasant revolts, although on a small scale, were especially numerous in the southern
territories, where the imperial government had traditionally rewarded its supporters with land
grants thereby reducing the local peasantry into tenancy. It is not possible in the space of a brief
essay such as this to discuss the numerous peasant rebellions in the entire country. But an effort
will be made to canvas major eruptions in the country with the intent of showing some of the
deficiencies of the system.

The Woyane Rebellion

The first peasant resistance against imperial rule took place in Tigray, known in history as the
Woyane rebellion. The term Woyane means 'revolt' in Tigrigna language. A combination of
long running problems stemming from the inequities of the system and short-term factors
caused the eruption. Peasants felt victimized by corruption and greed of the Territorial Army unit
stationed in the region and general administrative inefficiency that led to the shiftnet of peasants
who possessed armament left by Italians. The peoples of Wejjerat and Raya-Azebo had wanted
to maintain their local autonomy that the government violated. Another cause for the rebellion
was the 1942 land decree which forced peasants to pay tax arrears whose collection was
problematic.This rebellion had the support of members of the nobility who perceived their
position to be endangered by the expansion of central authority. The nobility took advantage of
the popular discontent against government officials and their militias and put strong resistance
against government forces thanks to the able leadership of Blatta Haile-Mariam Reda. Finally,
the government‟s retribution against the Raya-Azebo on allegation of cattle raids on Afar
territory sparked the general rebellion. As such, the Woyane rebellion was as a continuation of
the government‟s punitive campaign against the region‟s peasants in the late 1920s. The dress
rehearsal for the major confrontation took place on January 11, 1942 where the imperial force
was defeated and humiliated by Raya-Azebo peasants. On May 22, 1943, the rebels scored an
astounding victory fighting an even larger and well-equipped government army in Addi Awuna,
15 kms away from Hewane in southern Tigray. Soon small towns around Mekelle like Qwiha
and Enda-Iyyasus, and Meqelle itself on October 14, 1943 fell in rebel hands. They then
expanded to Kilte-Awlalo, Wuqiro etc in eastern Tigray. Such initial advances of the rebel
forces, however, did not last long. In October 1943, the imperial army under the command of
Abebe Aregay with the support of the British Royal Air Force crushed the rebellion. The
government exiled or imprisoned the leaders of the revolt. The emperor took reprisals against
peasants suspected of supporting the Woyane. Meanwhile, the imperial regime reversed the 1942
land decree, although the Wejjerat and Raya-Azebo lost their autonomous status, and
Raya Azebo was made part of Wollo.
The Yejju Rebellion
Overt dissidence of Yejju peasants in Wollo during Haile-Selassie‟s rule occurred three times. In
1948, peasants rose against the system after their appeal against land alienation was ignored by
the government. With Qegnazmach Melaku Taye and Unda Mohammed in the forefront,
peasants stormed and freed inmates held in Woldya prison. The nech lebash were called to quell
the unrest and eventually the leaders were publicly flogged. Throughout the 1950s, localized
skirmishes between government forces and peasants expanded to Qobo, Hormat, Tumuga,
Karra Qore etc led by prominent figures like Ali Dullatti (Abba Jabbi). In 1970, peasants
revolted against the introduction of mechanized agriculture that encroached on pastureland and
killed Qegnazmach Abate Haylu who was a member of the local nobility and direct beneficiary
of the new development. Finally, the rising was suppressed by the local militia.

The Gojjam Peasant Rebellion

In 1968, another violent peasant uprising set off in Gojjam caused by the government‟s attempt
to implement new tax on agricultural produce, which the parliament adopted in November 1967.
This rebellion was not, however, without its antecedents. The nobles of Gojjam refused to accept
any limitation upon the prevailing land tenure system and successfully battled the regime over
this issue. Although the expansion of central authority by appointed officials and the
development of infrastructural works required a parallel increase in tax payments, it was fiercely
resisted by the local gentry. Against this background, the then governor of Gojjam, Dejach
Kebede Tesema, initiated land assessment and classification to determine taxation. He then
raised tax rate from what it had been in the pre-1935 period. In 1950, a revolt broke out in Mota,
Qolla-Daga Damot and Mecha districts led by people like Dejach Abere Yimam. As a result tax
rate was reduced by 1/3, Kebede was removed and replaced by Haylu Belew, a hereditary ruler
of Gojjam. Later, Haylu‟s Shewan successor named Dejjazmach Tsehayu Enqu-Selassie forced
contributions to build the emperor‟s statue in Debra Marqos. Besides, peasants were ordered to
pay tax arrears and register their arms with fees. Meanwhile, peasants were victimized by the
ravages committed by the nech lebash in the pretext of eradicating banditry. With all the above
unfolding, an attempt was made to introduce the new agricultural tax and this finally sparked the
1968 uprising led by veterans of the resistance period, who had taken titles for themselves such
as leul and fitawrari. The government was forced to transfer Dejazmach Tsehayu to Kafa, declare
amnesty, abandon the new tax, and cancel all tax arrears of taxation going back to 1950.
Despite these concessions, the rebellion spread throughout Gojjam except Agaw-Midir and
Metekel, which alarmed the government. Finally the rebellion was subdued by the combined
forces of the army, police and nech lebash by the end of 1968.

The Gumuz Rebellion

The Gumuz staged major armed rebellion against the regime of Emperor Haile-Selassie in
1952/3. The movement is named after one of its famous leaders, Abba Tone. Abba Tone served
the imperial regime with a position of Abba Qoro (head /chief of a sub- district) responsible for
collection of taxes, maintenance of law and order as well as mobilization of the people for public
works in time of peace and for war in cases of conflict.

As with the other peasant rebellions, the Abba Tone armed uprising had its roots in
administrative injustice, land and taxation policies of the imperial regime. Abba Tone sided with
the local people who were discontented with the system of government and administration of
Emperor Haile-Selassie in general and heavy taxation and mal-administration in particular.
Although Abba Tone reported the complaints of the peasants to higher government authorities in
Najjo and Gimbi, they were not in a position to solve the problem. Meanwhile, the Gumuz were
determined not to pay taxes unless the government took appropriate measures to address their
concerns.
Finally, an open clash broke out between the policemen and the Gumuz when tax collectors with
the backing of the police force attempted to force the people pay land taxes. The situation soon
grew into an open rebellion against the government leading to a general breakdown of law and
order in the region, particularly in places like Gaba Robi and Tullu Lubu where the first clash
had occurred. During the initial engagement between the government‟s expeditionary forces and
those of Abba Tone, the latter obtained an upper hand over the former. Nevertheless, the
government forces were soon reinforced with more weapons and manpower. Abba Tone and his
followers were outgunned and outnumbered and thus, the government was able to put down the
uprising. Abba Tone was captured and later released on pardon.

The Gedeo Peasant Rebellion

As in many parts of rural Ethiopia, the major source of peasant discontent in Gedeo was land
alienation. The dispossession of land from the indigenous peasantry was unabated particularly
following the introduction of land measurement in the 1920s. In the 1960s, the Gedeo witnessed
an unprecedented level of land expropriation by members of the northern nobility who were
vying for coffee farms. The major contender in this regard was the emperor‟s daughter Princess
Tenagneworq. This coupled with the denigration of their culture exacerbated Gedeo‟s resentment
against the system. Petitions and appeals to higher authorities to curb the continued land
alienation proved futile. Then peasants refused to pay erbo (1/4 of agricultural produce payable
to landlords), armed themselves with traditional weapons like spears, swords and arrows and
clashed with the imperial army at Michille in 1960. That is why it was known as the Michille
rebellion. Over a hundred peasants lost their lives in the fight while much of their property was
destroyed. Finally, Afe Nigus Eshete Geda, fined the elders locally called the hayicha accused of
supporting the rebellion.

The Bale Peasant Rebellion

The Bale peasant uprising, which lasted from 1963 to 1970, presented the most serious challenge
to the Ethiopian government. The causes of the uprising were multifaceted. The indigenous
peasants largely became tenants on their own land after the introduction of the qalad that
initiated land measurement in 1951. Peasants also suffered from high taxation, religious and
ethnic antagonism that reached to unprecedented level after the appointment of Warqu
Enqu Selassie as governor of the territory in 1963. The predominantly Muslim population
resented the imposition of alien rule from the northern and central highlands parts of the empire
and thus, political and cultural domination by Christian settlers. Further, the government of
Somalia extended material and moral support to the rebels as part of its strategy of re-
establishing a “Greater Somalia”.

The revolt broke out in El Kerre led by people like Kahin Abdi. Initially, rebel groups conducted
hit-and-run raids against military garrisons and police stations separately. Soon, however, they
tried to coordinate their military activities under an umbrella organization named the Western
Somali Liberation Front (WSLF), engaging in conventional wars against government forces.
Haile Selassie tried to win loyalty of the people by developing alliances with notable Oromo
leaders. Although this strategy enabled the emperor to recruit some members of local ruling
houses in the service of the imperial system, it failed to contain the popular revolt. Instead, it
quickly spread to Wabe, Dallo and Ganale under the able leadership of Waqo Gutu and others. In
Gola-Abbadi forest, rebels went to the extent of attacking government forces.
Further, the rebels killed Girazmach Beqele Haragu of Adaba and Fitawrari Wolde-Mika‟el Bu‟i
of Dodola in 1965 and 1966 respectively. In December 1966, the government put Bale under the
martial rule of Wolde-Selassie Baraka, the head of the army‟s Fourth Division. In 1967, the
army, police, Territorial Army (beherawi tor), settler militia (nech lebash) and volunteers (wedo
zemach) launched massive operations against the province. Meanwhile, the rebels lost support
from the government of Somalia after Mohammed Siad Barre took over power in 1969 and
found it impossible to sustain their campaigns in southeastern Ethiopia. The rebellion ended in
1970s after some of its popular leaders including the self-styled General Waqo Gutu surrendered
to government forces.

C. Movements of Nations and Nationalities

Oppositions to the imperial rule did not come only from individuals, peasants, students and the
army. The question of nations and nationalities for equality, freedom and autonomy was also
assuming a significant development towards the end of the imperial regime. Among the
movement of nations and nationalities of this period, the Mecha-Tulama movement of the
Oromo deserves a special treatment here.

In January 1963, the Mecha-Tulama Welfare Association (MTWA) was formed with the
objective of improving the welfare of the Oromo through the expansion of educational,
communication and health facilities in Oromo land. Founding members of the association
included Colonels Alemu Qitessa and Colonel Qedida Guremessa, Lieutenant Mamo Mezemir,
Beqele Nedhi, and Haile-Mariam Gemeda. In the next two years, the association attracted large
number of Oromo elites, including such high-ranking military officers as Brigadier General
Taddesse Birru.

Although the Mecha-Tulama Association had its root in the will and commitment of a few
Oromo elites to mobilize support for the development of Oromo inhabited territories, it soon
transformed into a pan-Oromo movement coordinating countrywide peaceful resistance against
the regime. This is evidenced by the successful rallies the association organized in Gindeberet,
Dandi, Arsi (Dera and Iteyya), etc. The association raised contentious issues such as land and
expressed its dissatisfaction with the condition of the Oromo in the society during mass rallies as
well as in private meetings. The regime was alarmed by the activities of the association and
determined to curb the movement before it crystallized into an organized liberation front.
Meanwhile, leaders of the association plotted to assassinate the emperor and change the regime
on the anniversary of his coronation in November 1966, but the plot was foiled by security
forces. This coupled with a bombing incident in one of the cinemas at the capital in which the
association was implicated led the government to move swiftly and violently to ban the
association‟s activities. Mecha-Tulama was dissolved in 1967 following the imprisonment and
killing of its prominent leaders such as Mamo Mezemir and Haile-Mariam Gemeda by the
regime‟s forces. Brigadier General Taddese Birru was captured while retreating to the bush and
eventually sentenced to death. Later the death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment and
he was exiled to Gelemso where he stayed until the outbreak of the 1974 revolution. In 1975 the
Derg executed Tadesse on allegation of instigating armed struggle.

The brutal suppression of the Mecha-Tulama Association, however, did not end the struggle of
the Oromo for justice, equality and liberty. In 1971, an underground movement called the
Ethiopian National Liberation Front (ENLF) was formed by Oromo elites, perhaps by former
members of the association. The Front maintained contact with student circles and other
opposition figures in and outside Addis Ababa. The aim was to coordinate local resistance
towards a common goal of liberation, although thwarted by the regime‟s security forces.

The regime‟s unwillingness to accommodate the legitimate and peaceful demands of various
Oromo groups for equality within Ethiopia transformed Oromo nationalism into militancy for
self-determination. In 1973, some members of the ENLF and other Oromo nationalists formed
the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) with the aim of establishing an independent State of Oromia.
The following year, OLF launched an offensive against the imperial regime in Hararghe. After
the revolution, OLF increased its military activities because the Derg would not allow the Oromo
to elect their rulers and use their language in schools and newspapers. Accordingly, the armed
struggle which set off in the eastern part of Ethiopia extended to other Oromo inhabited areas
such as Arsi and Wallagga.

But the biggest military challenge to the imperial regime came from Eritrea. As we have
discussed above, Eritrea was integrated into the Ethiopian empire. The measure consolidated
internal and external opposition to the union and led to the formation of liberation movements
based in Eritrea and abroad. Although some opposition movements had taken shape as far back
as the late 1940s, they did not seem to have much of an impact.
In 1958, a number of Eritrean exiles founded the Eritrean Liberation Movement (ELM) in Cairo.
In 1961, the ELM evolved into the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) or Jabaha in Arabic. Hamid
Idris Awate who fired the first bullet of the Eritrean armed struggle (he was the one who „started
the armed struggle‟). By 1966 the ELF challenged imperial forces throughout Eritrea. In June
1970, two splinter group liberation movements emerged from the ELF. These were the Popular
Liberation Forces (PLF) and the Salfi Natsenet Eritrea (Front for Eritrean Independence). The
PLF was formed in the Red Sea area led by Osman Salah Sabbe while Salfi Natsenet Eritrea
(Front for Eritrean Independence) emerged under the leadership of Isayas Afeworqi. In early
1972, a new coalition of forces composed of Eritrean Liberation Front-Popular Liberation Front
(ELF-PLF) led to the founding of the Eritrean People‟s Liberation Front (EPLF) or Sha'abiya in
Arabic. After a long and bloody civil war, the EPLF was able to establish its hegemony over the
independence movement. Finally, the EPLF succeeded in achieving de facto independence in
1991 and which eventually was confirmed through referendum in 1993.

D. The Ethiopian Student Movement (ESM)

The regime was not only challenged in the provinces. In fact, the Ethiopian student movement
was building up in the center as a strong opposition against the regime. Although the movement
started within the university, students had turned into a radical opposition and were already
marching on the streets from 1965 onwards and were spreading to the high schools by 1968. The
parliament‟s rejection of tenancy reform bill in 1964 triggered student protest in the following
year demanding “Land to the Tiller.”

Factors that contributed to sharpening the students‟ ideology include the 1960 coup, students‟
increased awareness of the country‟s socio-economic and political conditions vis a vis other
African countries which they learned from scholarship students from different parts of Africa,
and the Ethiopian University Service (EUS). Launched in 1964, the EUS required the students to
teach and offer other services to the community usually in the provinces. In 1964, the emergence
of a radical group of students with Marxist-Leninist leanings known as “the Crocodiles” marked
the increased militancy of the students.

Side by side with the radicalization of the movement, students formed the University College
Union (UCU) to coordinate their activities in 1962 and then the National Union of Ethiopian
University Students (NUEUS) in 1963. The Main Campus Student Union (MCSU) and the
University Student Union of Addis Ababa (USUAA) with its paper Tagel (Struggle) were
established in 1965 and 1968 respectively. Outside the country, students were organized under
the Ethiopian Students Union in North America (ESUNA) with its paper called Challenge and
the Ethiopian Students Union in Europe (ESUE) with its paper Tateq (Gird yourself) in the USA
and Europe. ESUNA and ESUE gave ideological support to MCSU and USUAA.

Throughout the 1960s, a rallying cry of student demonstrations was “land to the tiller”, but other
local and global issues were also raised. For example, students protested against the minority
white regime in Southern Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) in 1968, while at other times they expressed
their solidarity with the people of Vietnam. In the national arena, students protested against
Shola Destitute Concentration Relief Camp and the holding of expatriate sponsored fashion show
at the university campus and educational reform in 1966 and 1969 respectively. With the
students‟ demands for the respect of the rights of nations and nationalities, the government was
alarmed and started taking measures against leaders of the movement ranging from press
campaigns to detentions and killings. Furthermore, the regime deported large number of students
to the torrid Gibe river valley in 1972. Meanwhile, students‟ opposition was aggravated to armed
hijacking of transport aircrafts.

By early 1970s, the student movement coupled with other under-running issues such as rising
inflation, growing discontent of urban residents, corruption and widespread and yet covered-up
famine especially in Wollo all prepared a fertile ground for a revolution.

7.2. The Derg Regime (1974-1991)

The mass uprising that finally put an end to the old regime came in February 1974. From January
8 to 15, 1974, soldiers and non-commissioned officers stationed at a frontier post in
Negele Borana mutinied protesting their bad living conditions. In the process, they detained the
commander of the ground forces who was sent to pacify the situation. The soldiers made the
commander eat their food and drink their water so that he could witness the kind of life they
were living. Also, soldiers of the Second Division in Asmara, the Fourth Division in Addis
Ababa and the Air Force in Debre-Zeyt (Bishoftu) mutinied demanding salary increment and
political and economic reforms. The various units then set up a coordinating committee which
became a precursor of the later Derg, in order to coordinate their actions.
Teachers throughout the country protested against the implementation of an education reform
program known as Sector Review, which they deemed was disadvantageous for the poor and
biased against them. Although the Ethiopian Teachers Association (ETA) had coordinated
demonstrations against the program already in December 1973, it called for a general strike
demanding a number of other social reforms on 18 February1974. On the same day, taxi drivers
went on strike demanding increase in transport fees (fifty percent) due to rise of petrol prices that
followed the Arab-Israeli Yom Kippur war of 1973. Students, workers and the unemployed
youth joined the protests, vehicles particularly buses, and luxury private automobiles were
attacked.

The government responded by suspending the Sector Review, reducing petrol prices and raising
the salaries of soldiers. In spite of this, the uprisings continued and on February 28, the cabinet of
Prime Minister Aklilu Habte-Wold resigned. He was replaced by Endalkachew Mekonnin who
was an Oxford-educated member of the aristocracy. Although Endalkachew seemed to gain the
support of a group of officers within the army, promised to introduce reforms, including
constitutional reform and included highly educated and progressive ministers into his cabinet, the
protests continued. On March 8, the Confederation of Ethiopian Labor Unions (CELU) staged a
successful general strike.

It was only a matter of time before the strikes and demonstrations spread to the provinces. A
major popular demonstration was held on April 20 by about 100,000 Muslim residents of the
capital and their Christian sympathizers who came out demanding religious equality.

In the meantime, the soldiers, through their various committees, were also taking their own
measures. The coordinating committee of soldiers and Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs) set
up in February were joined by officers, such as Colonel Alem Zewd Tessema of the Airborne
Brigade, who then became its leader. In April, the Committee, perhaps with involvement of
Endalkachew, arrested Aklilu and hundreds of other high-ranking officials of the regime. The
Minister of Defense, Lt. General Abiy Abebe, who had noticed the growing power of the
Committee as well as series of demonstrations and strikes, set up what was called the National
Security Commission to restore order and respect for the authority of the government.
The leading opposition against the Endalkachew cabinet was the students. Not only did they
stage their own demonstrations against the cabinet but they also encouraged other sectors of
society to join the revolutionary tide. Nevertheless, the students were less organized to achieve
their goals and eventually, the soldiers hijacked the struggle.

The Derg was officially formed on June 28, 1974 when it held its first meeting at the
headquarters of the Fourth Division. “Derg” a Ge‟ez word for “Committee” was the shorter
name given to the Coordinating Committee of representatives from various military units: the
Armed Forces, the Police and the Territorial Army. However, officers above the rank of major
were suspected of supporting the old regime and therefore were not included. Hence, Major
Mengistu Haile-Mariam of the Third Division of Hararghe, and the vice-chairman, Major Atnafu
Abate of the Fourth Division, came to be key figures.

For some time the Derg exercised power parallel with the Endalkachew‟s cabinet and the
emperor tied up in a dual state, trying to keep a balance between the two. However, on August 1,
Endalkachew was imprisoned and replaced by Lej Mikael Emiru as prime minister. Meanwhile,
the Derg continued arresting other members of the regime whom it considered obstacles to the
revolution. The Derg also tried to define its ideology and declared the motto, “Ethiopia Tikdem”
(“Ethiopia First”), “Yaleminim Dem” (“Without any bloodshed”).

The Derg continued systematically working to isolate the emperor and removing the supports of
his imperial power. A strong propaganda campaign was launched against the regime and the
widespread corruption of government functionaries. Two enterprises, Anbessa Bus Company and
the St. George Brewery in which the emperor and the imperial family had more than fifty percent
stake were nationalized. Moreover, a British documentary film disclosing the hidden horrors of
the Wollo famine precisely served the awaited interest of the Derg. Finally, on September 12,
Emperor Haile-Selassie I was deposed and detained at the Fourth Division headquarters.

The Derg then proclaimed itself the Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC) and
assumed full powers. All strikes and demonstrations were immediately banned. Very soon,
civilian revolutionaries, who had started calling for the establishment of a provisional people‟s
government, started gathering around the Confederation of Ethiopian Labor Unions (CELU), the
University teachers‟ group known as Forum, and the students.
Sections of the military, the Army Engineers Corps, the First Division (the former Bodyguard),
and the Army Aviation opposed what was to become a military government.

However, the Derg was not prepared to make compromise on any ground. Instead, it imprisoned
the leaders of CELU and a leader of the Forum group. On October 7, a militant group within the
Army Engineering Corps was violently crushed in a tank assault which took the lives of five
soldiers and there was massive arrest afterwards. The motto of “Ethiopia First, without any
bloodshed” thus failed as early as then.

On November 23, an even more violent phase commenced. Lieutenant General Aman Mikael
Andom, chairman of the PMAC was shot dead after a disagreement within the Derg over the
Issue of Eritrea. Aman Mikael Andom who was of Eritrean origin believed in peaceful approach
against some radical members of the Derg particularly the First Vice-Chairman Mengistu
Haile Mariam, who advocated for a military solution. The killing continued and the Derg
announced execution of some 52 prominent members of the old regime who had been detained
and half a dozen other leaders of the military units who had opposed the Derg as a “political
decision.”
7.2.2. Attempts at Socio-Economic Reform
The Derg took a series of measures that aimed at fundamentally transforming the country. In
December 1974, what was called the Edget Behibiret Zemecha (Development Through
Co operation Campaign) was inaugurated. In this campaign, all high school and university
students and their teachers were to be sent to the countryside to help transform the life of
peasants through programs such as literacy campaigns and the implementation of the awaited
land reform proclamation. However, the campaign was opposed by most of the civilian left as a
system that the Derg designed to remove its main opponents from the center. To appease the
oppositions, the Derg changed its slogan of “Ethiopia First” to “Ethiopian Socialism.” It also
adopted slogans like Ethiopian Unity or Death, Revolutionary Motherland or Death, and later
Every Thing to the War Front, Produce while fighting or Fight While Producing, etc.

In 1975, banks and insurance companies were nationalized following a series of proclamations.
Over seventy private commercial and industrial companies were then nationalized. Finally, in
March 1975 the Derg made a radical land reform proclamation, which abolished all private land
ownership and set the upper limit on family holdings at ten hectares. The proclamation also
provided the establishment of peasant associations, which were to be implemented with the
cooperation of the zemach. On 26 July1975 another proclamation nationalized all urban lands
and extra houses. In April 1976, PMAC proclaimed National Democratic Revolution Program
and set up the Provisional Office for Mass Organization and Affairs (POMOA) with the
objective of organizing and raising the political consciousness of the masses.

The campaigns showed Derg‟s belief in mass mobilization to achieve a cause. There was the
“Green Campaign” of 1978 aimed at bringing about rapid economic development, the literacy
campaign aimed at eradicating illiteracy, and the “Red Star Campaign” of 1982 that aimed at
solving the Eritrean problem. Of these campaigns, only the literacy campaign registered some
degree of success. The land reform proclamation did put an end to landlord exploitation but it
failed to make the peasant master of his land because now the state took over as ultimate owner,
with the peasant associations serving as its agents. The cooperatives only led to monopolistic
government enterprises such as Ersha Sebil Gebeya Dirijit (Agricultural Marketing Corporation),
resettlements and villagization.

On the other hand, nationalization killed private initiative and introduced a highly bureaucratized
management of resources. The state, with its significant role and growing proportion now gained
tremendous capacity to reward or penalize. The Derg used peasant associations to control the
countryside and the urban dwellers‟ associations (kebele) to control the towns. The kebele
became battleground when the struggle between the Derg and the Ethiopian People‟s
Revolutionary Party (EPRP) (formed in Berlin in 1972) reached its bloodiest phase in 1976/7.
The EPRP targeted kebele leaders and assassinated them while they in turn led the government‟s
campaign of terror against the EPRP called the “Red Terror”, as opposed to the “White Terror”
of the EPRP.

Initially, the leftist opposition to the Derg came from two rival Marxist-Leninist political
organizations called the EPRP and the All-Ethiopian Socialist Movement (acronym in Amharic,
Meison). In the meantime, the Derg pushed by the dominant leftist political culture
systematically abandoned “Ethiopian socialism” and embraced Marxism-Leninism. With the
setting up of the POMOA, Derg proclaimed the National Democratic Revolution Program, which
was the Chinese model for socialist revolution and had identified feudalism, imperialism, and
bureaucratic capitalism as the three main enemies of the people.
In a few months, Derg‟s leftist political organization known as Abyotawi Seded (Revolutionary
Flame) was launched. In 1977, an alliance called Emaledeh (the Union of Ethiopian Marxist–
Leninist Organizations) was established as prelude to the formation of one vanguard party. The
Emaledeh was composed of Marxist Leninist Revolutionary Organization (MLRO, or in its more
common Amharic acronym Malerid), Meison, Abyotawi Seded (Revolutionary Flame), Wezlig
(Workers League) founded by a onetime president of the Ethiopian Students‟ Union in North
America, Dr. Senay,Malerid (the Ethiopian Marxist–Leninist organization) and Ech‟at (the
Ethiopian Oppressed Masses Revolutionary Struggle) founded by Baro Tumsa. That said, the
Emaledeh was beset by power struggle from the outset as each organization competed for
supremacy instead of working together to realize the original objective of the organization.

Meanwhile, the struggle between the EPRP and the Derg and its allies had created a civil war
scenario since September 1976 when EPRP militants were arrested and executed by the Derg and
supporters of the Derg were assassinated by EPRP squads. EPRP also attempted to assassinate
Mengistu himself in mid-September. In what was followed, the Derg attacked EPRP with large-
scale arrests of its members and sympathizers and carried out massive search and destroy
campaigns, particularly in Addis Ababa.

In late 1976, the Derg itself was ideologically divided and beset with the internal struggles.
Mengistu had eliminated two powerful members of the Derg and potential rivals of his power
and influence, Major Sisay Habte and Major Kiros Alemayehu. Many other key members of the
Derg were accused of being EPRP members or sympathizers. On their parts, other members such
as Lieutenant Alemayehu Hayle and Captain Moges Wolde-Mikael resented the growing
dictatorial power of Mengistu and his alliance with Meison and other pro-Derg leftist
organizations. With the help of the chairperson, Brigadier General Teferi Benti, they then
successfully re-organized the structure of the Derg in such a way that Mengistu was
marginalized. On February 3, 1977 Mengistu hit back with a coup against Teferi. Eventually,
Teferi and other anti-Mengistu Derg members were executed. After the coup, Mengistu
Haile Mariam assumed the chairmanship of the Derg and the post of commander-in-chief of the
armed forces. He then filled the top positions in the Derg with his loyal supporters. Within just a
year, the only remaining outstanding Derg member, Lt. Colonel Atnafu Abate, was charged of
impeding the revolutionary process and executed.
Then Mengistu and his civilian left allies unleashed what they called the “Red Terror” initially
targeting the EPRP and later including other opposition organizations, including EPLF and the
Tigray People‟s Liberation Front (TPLF) and Meison after its break up from the Derg. EPRP had
to take its only option of turning to rural guerrilla warfare as internal split within it hastened its
collapse.

In the meantime, the Derg faced another challenge. In the summer of 1977, the government of
Somalia led by Siad Barre waged a large-scale war against Ethiopia. The Somalia National Army
crossed the border into Ethiopia and carried out military operations in Degahbour, Kebridehar,
Warder and Godey taking control of Jigjiga and large scale pockets of western regions in the first
two weeks of the war. Within a couple of months, the cities of Harar and Dire Dawa were
endangered. Yet Somalia‟s victory did not last long. The government mobilized a force of about
100,000 peasant militia and other forces that were trained at Angetu, Didessa, Hurso, Tateq and
Tolay in a short time with the help of USSR advisors and equipment. Finally, with 17,000 Cuban
troops and the help from Southern Yemen Democratic Republic, the Somalia National Army was
defeated at Kara-Mara near Jigjiga on March 4, 1978. The aggression of the State of Somalia had
been checked. The defeat led to the weakening of Siad Barre‟s government and contributed to its
fall. At the same time, the aggression of the State of Somalia made it possible for the Derg to
rally the population to its side.

In early 1977, the Derg had severed relations with the USA as the American cultural and military
institutions ended their operation in the country. This was preceded by the termination of the
Ethio-USA 1953 mutual defense agreement. After a month, Mengistu concluded agreements
with Moscow for economic, cultural and military co-operation. The relations between Ethiopia
and the Soviet Union remained strong until the end of the military regime.

In the north, Eritrean insurgents had encircled Asmara while a pro-monarchy organization, the
Ethiopian Democratic Union (EDU), was marching inroads from the Sudan in the Satit-Humera
region. Yet, by the end of 1978, the EPRP had been contained in the towns and the Eritrean
insurgents were pushed back. EDU was crushed near the Ethio-Sudan borderland in places like
Metema, Abder Raffi and Satit-Humera.
The Union of Ethiopian Marxist-Leninist Organizations fell apart once Meison defected the Derg
and its leaders were consequently either killed or arrested as they tried to retreat to the
countryside. The other three member organizations Ech‟at, Wezlig, and Malerid were
successively expelled from Emaledeh and their leaders and members executed or detained. It was
only Mengistu‟s Seded that remained as the authentic Marxist-Leninist organization in the
country. The strategy of merging political organizations for party formation was then replaced by
recruitment of individuals loyal to Mengistu Haile-Mariam. In December 1979, the Commission
for Organizing the Party of the Working People of Ethiopia (COPWE) was established with this
motive. In September 1984, the Workers‟ Party of Ethiopia was inaugurated during the
celebration of the tenth anniversary of the coming of the Derg to power. It was a given that
Mengistu became the new party‟s secretary-general.

In order for the government to have a more direct societal control, there was the need for
re structuring of mass organizations that took place after the formation of the party. It started
with workers who had challenged the Derg right from the start, and on January 6 1977, the
CELU was replaced by a government-controlled All Ethiopia Trade Union (AETU), which was
later re named Ethiopian Trade Union (ETU). This was followed by the formation of the All
Ethiopia Peasants‟ Association (AEPA), which ensured the government‟s control over peasants.
Later AETU was renamed Ethiopia Peasants‟ Association (EPA). Established in 1980, the
Revolutionary Ethiopian Women‟s Association (REWA) and Revolutionary Ethiopian Youth
Association (REYA) played similar role, rallying women and the youth behind the state.

It was when the Shengo (PMAC National Assembly) proclaimed the People‟s Democratic
Republic of Ethiopia (PDRE) in 1987 that such elaborate organizational set-up designed to
ensure total control of society reached its peak. With the birth of the PDRE, the Derg officially
ceased to exist. A typically Communist constitution already on its way, Colonel Mengistu
became President of PDRE, secretary general of WPE and Commander in chief of the national
armed forces with Fisseha Desta as Vice President and Fiqre-Sellassie Wegderes head of the
Council of Ministers as Prime Minister with five deputies.

Finally, it turned out that Mengistu could not stay in power more than four years after he was
proclaimed president of PDRE. The dictator, who had maneuvered the urban left and had gone
ruthless in the process, fell under the attack of rural-based guerrilla movements.
Rural-based movements fighting for national self-determination thrived as liquidation of the
urban-based multi-national movements like the EPRP and Meison intensified in the center.
These included the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), active mainly in the Wallagga region, the
Islamic Front for Liberation of Oromia, based in Hararghe, the Afar Liberation Front, the Sidama
Liberation Front, the Beni-Shangul Liberation Front and the Gambella Liberation Front. Some of
these fronts appeared only in the last days of the Derg. The two significant liberation fronts
which could be considered to have jointly brought about the downfall of the Derg were the EPLF
and the TPLF.

In 1984/5, a more devastating famine than the one in 1973/4 indicated the failure of the Derg‟s
economic policies especially in agricultural production and marketing. In the late twentieth
century, Ethiopia had experienced two major famines that gave rise to national and international
mobilization created a bad image on the country in international scene. These were the 1972-4
and 1984-5 famines, caused by a variety of interrelated factors, which include environmental
crises (notably drought), economic, social causes as well as political factors. The state responded
to the latter by resettling the affected people in less affected areas of western Ethiopia. The
government responded to the famine by ignoring the problem for some time and then only to
introduce its controversial policy of massive resettlement of the affected peasants, mostly of
Tigray and Wollo provinces, in southwestern Ethiopia. The villagization program that followed
the resettlement further alienated the majority of peasants. It was in this context that the guerrilla
forces scored remarkable victories against the regime forces towards the end of the decade.

International politics too had turned against Mengistu‟s interest as his ally, the Soviet Union
ceased to be the source of his external support. Mikhail Gorbachev‟s policy of perestroika
(restructuring) and glasnost, (openness) in 1985 aimed at making Soviet communism more
efficient and humane was a failure and the Soviet Union collapsed as a major world power. Even
worse, the United States who the Derg had never been friendly with became the sole arbiter of
international affairs. Although Mengistu now tried to improve relations with the Americans, they
were more directed towards his opponents, the EPLF and the TPLF, who they believed had fully
abandoned Marxism Leninism. In March 1990, the Derg proclaimed a mixed economy policy,
which seemed to come too late.
The government‟s military failure came after defeating the invading force of Somalia; the Derg
turned its forces to the north, with the rather too assured slogan that “the victory scored in the
east will be repeated in the north.” Initially the plan seemed to go well when the EPLF forces
pulled back under the massive assault launched by the Derg, which regained control over the
rebel‟s major strongholds in 1976/7. However, the retreated EPLF forces were not driven out of
their fortress at Naqfa in northern Eritrea. In March 1988, EPLF scored a major victory at
Afabet, north of Asmara, from its stronghold in Naqfa-Raza. When in 1990, EPLF forces
captured the port town of Massawa, it became only a matter of time before the capital, Asmara,
also fell to them.

The final decisive blow to Mengistu‟s regime came to be administered by the TPLF that aimed to
secure the self-determination of Tigray within the Ethiopian polity. The TPLF, at its inception,
was grounded on the cumulative grievances of Tigray people against the successive regimes of
Ethiopia. To address the problems, Tigrayan students created the Political Association of
Tigrayans (PAT) and the Tigrayan University Students‟ Association (TUSA) in the early 1970s.
PAT developed into a radical nationalist group calling for the independence of Tigray,
establishing the Tigray Liberation Front (TLF) in 1974. In TUSA, there emerged a Marxist
leaning group favoring national self-determination for Tigray within a revolutionary transformed
democratic Ethiopia. Whereas the multinational left movements such as the EPRP and MEISON
advanced the view that the problem of Ethiopian nationalities could be resolved through class
struggle, the Marxists of TUSA argued that due to the existing inequalities among Ethiopian
nationalities, revolutionaries must use the struggle of Ethiopian nationalities for
self determination as the launching pad for the ultimate socialist revolution.

In February 1974, the Marxists within TUSA welcomed the Ethiopian Revolution, but opposed
the Derg as they were convinced that it would neither lead a genuine socialist revolution nor
correctly resolve the Ethiopian nationality question. Three days after the Derg took power, on 14
September 1974 the Mahber Gesgesti Bihere Tigray (Association of Progressives of the Tigray
Nation), also known as Tigrayan National Organization (TNO) was established. TNO was to
prepare the ground for the future-armed movement of Tigray.

The TPLF started in February 1975 as a small guerrilla band in the northern region of Ethiopia
and eventually grew to provide the core of a future Ethiopian government. Before it turned to
confront the Derg, the TPLF was engaged in a bloody struggle with the Ethiopian People‟s
Revolutionary Army, EPRA (the armed wing of the EPRP), EDU, ELF, and TLF. The Derg
initially thought that TPLF was a mere creation of the EPLF to be vanished once EPLF was
crushed and thus underestimated its potentials. This made it possible for TPLF to strengthen its
forces and when the Derg opened offensives against it in the early 1980s, TPLF, which had built
strong army was able to successfully fight back. In February 1989 TPLF scored its most decisive
victory at Enda-Selassie, Western Tigray, after a series of other military successes. At the victory
of Enda-Selassie, tens of thousands of government troops were captured and their commanders
were either killed or captured. This resulted in the withdrawal of all government troops from
Tigray. TPLF then took control of the whole of Tigray and then started marching into the
neighboring provinces.

Meanwhile, the prevalent accumulated dissatisfaction with Mengistu‟s regime and the
exhausting war in the north had been high especially in the higher echelons of the army. In May
1989, commanders of almost all military units, coordinated and led a coup against Mengistu
when he left the country on a state visit to the German Democratic Republic, East Germany.
However, the coup was so poorly organized that loyal palace troops encircled the leaders before
they could even announce their intentions to the public. Mengistu returned triumphantly to take
his revenge. The coup leaders were all imprisoned or executed.

TPLF, after liberating Tigray, continued to move forward and made the necessary organizational
adjustments forming a bigger front known as the Ethiopian Peoples‟ Revolutionary Democratic
Front (EPRDF). The member organizations were TPLF, the Ethiopian People‟s Democratic
Movement (EPDM), a fragment group of the EPRP which had begun to play a significant role in
many of the military campaigns, the Oromo People‟s Democratic Organization (OPDO) and the
Ethiopian Democratic Officers‟ Revolutionary Movement (EDORM). Other Liberation Fronts
including the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), Afar Liberation Front, Sidama Liberation Front,
Gambella Liberation Front and Beni Shangul Liberation Front also became active.

In 1990 and 1991 in consecutive and stunning campaigns, EPRDF forces drove the Derg out of
Gondar, Gojjam, and Wollo and parts of Wallagga and Shewa and approached the capital from
the north and west. In 1990, Oromo forces dismantled the Derg army of the 131st Brigade in
battle that liberated Asosa and Bambasi in the then Wollega province.
In the meantime, negotiations for a peaceful end to the conflict were underway between the
government, the EPLF, and the TPLF in Atlanta, Nairobi, and Rome. In May 1991, while the last
of these negotiations were going on in London, a series of events put an end to the regime.

On May 21, Mengistu fled the country first to Nairobi and then to Harare (Zimbabwe). There
remained no resistance left that the Derg troops could put. In London, the government delegation
could not bargain anymore after the flight of the president. EPLF forces entered Asmara and
Assab and announced the de facto independence of Eritrea. The PDRE Vice President, Lt.
General Tesfaye Gebre-Kidan appealed for an end to the civil war on May 23, 1991. Prime
Minister Tesfaye Dinqa left for the London peace conference mediated by the U.S.A‟s Foreign
Affair African Service head Mr. Herman Cohen on May 27, 1991. In the early hours of May 28,
EPRDF, forces triumphantly entered Addis Ababa.

7.3. Transitional Government

On 1 July 1991, a handful of organizations of which many were organized along ethnic lines
assembled to review the draft Charter prepared by the EPRDF and the OLF. The gathering was
called the Peace and Democracy Transitional Conference of Ethiopia. The USA was at the
forefront in providing the necessary diplomatic backing for the Peace and Democracy
Conference. The Conference was attended by delegates from the UN, the OAU, the G7, the US,
the USSR, Sudan, Kenya, Djibouti and Eritrea. Eritrea was represented by its future president,
Isayas Afeworki.

The Conference debated and approved the Transitional Charter on the basis of which the
Transitional Government of Ethiopia was created. Representatives of 27 organizations formed a
Council of Representatives (COR) which acted as a legislative body („Parliament‟). This
transitional parliament had 87 seats of which 32 were taken by the EPRDF and the remaining 55
seats were divided among the 23 non-EPRDF organizations. At the same time, a Council of
Ministers was formed as an executive branch, with Meles Zenawi as the President of the
Transitional Government of Ethiopia (TGE). Meles Zenawi then appointed a Prime Minister
(Tamirat Layne) and a seventeen-member Council of Ministers. Key posts were given to
members of the EPRDF and OLF.
In December 1994, the constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) was
ratified, taking effect following federal elections in mid-1995. The constitution stipulates that the
country would have nine federated states based on ethno-linguistic, identity and settlement
patterns. The federal arrangement sought to decentralize power to the regional states by
accommodating the country‟s various ethno-linguistic groups. After the election, Meles Zenawi
assumed the premiership while Dr. Negasso Gidada became head of state.

Meanwhile, EPLF set up a Provisional Government of Eritrea in 1991. This was followed by a
referendum to decide the fate of Eritrea in which the majority of the population voted for
independence from Ethiopia. In May 1993, the Government of Eritrea was formed with Isayas
Afwerki becoming the first president of the country after independence.