The Battle of Hirna was an engagement fought in October 1886 between the Abyssinian army of Shewa under Dejazmach Walda Gabriel and officer Bakri Salih of the Emirate of Harar.[1] The Shewan forces were routed.[2][3]
| Battle of Hirna | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Menelik's Expansions | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Shewa | Emirate of Harar | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Dejazmach Walda Gabriel | Bakri Salih | ||||||
Background
editIn response to king Menelik's orders to occupy the Emirate of Harar, in September 1886 Dejazmach Wolde Gabriel a general of Menelik invaded the Emirate of Harar and occupied the Chercher area at Hirna however his army would be ambushed by the Emirate's troops.[4]
Battle
editAccording to Harold G. Marcus, his army "was in poor shape, reduced to a relatively small number by sickness and desertions." A night attack by Emir 'Abd Allah's army routed the Dejazmach's force, sending them fleeing westward towards the Awash River.[5] Ethiopian historian Bahru Zewde calls it a decisive victory for the emirate's troops.[6]
Menelik's informant Asme Giyorgis, conceded the initial push towards Harar by Walda Gabryiel was a failure as the Amir's soldiers used fireworks to startle his men, forcing a retreat.[7] Harari records report Walda Gabryiel's army were strategically pushed into a wheat field full of spikes which pierced their feet, immobilizing them.[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Ahmed, Wehib. History of Harar and Hararis (PDF). p. 93.
- ^ Asnake, Gossa. A History of Hirna Town from Its Foundation Up to 1991. Addis Ababa University. pp. 13–14.
- ^ Cerulli, Enrico. Folk-literature of the Galla of Southern Abyssinia. Peabody Museum of Harvard university.
- ^ Walda Gabriel. Encyclopedia Aethiopica.
- ^ Harold G. Marcus, The Life and Times of Menelik II: Ethiopia 1844-1913, (Lawrenceville: Red Sea Press, 1995), p. 91
- ^ Zewde, Bahru. A History of Modern Ethiopia, 1855–1991. Ohio University Press.
- ^ Chelenqo. Encyclopedia Aethiopica.
- ^ Caulk, Richard (1971). "The Occupation of Harar: January 1887". Journal of Ethiopian Studies. 9 (2): 10–11. JSTOR 41967469.