The Battle of Zari was fought in 1531 between Adal Sultanate forces under Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi and the Abyssinian army under Takla Iyasus. Ethiopian chronicles mention this battle as the Battle of Ayfars.
| Battle of Zari | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Ethiopian–Adal war | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Adal Sultanate |
 Ethiopian Empire | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Ahmed Gurey Garad Hirabu Goita Tedros |
Eslamu † Takla Iyasus † | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Minimal | All but 20 killed | ||||||||
After the Christian defeat at Antukyah Eslamu fled to Zari where he received orders from Lebna Dengel demoting him and placed him under the command of Takla Iyasus, The governor of Angot.[1] However, when Iyasus arrived in Zari Eslamu forces where largely reduced by desertations as well as from the casualties at Antukyah. At Zari the Muslims were able to catch the Christian force off guard due to intelligence gathered from native Crypto Muslims.[2] Both Eslamu and Takla Iyasus were slain in the ensuing battle along with numerous Azmachs such as the governors of Begemder, Gojjam, and Hamasien. This devastating loss led to the complete withdrawal of the Ethiopians from the Shewan Plateau.
References
edit- ^ Shihāb al-Dīn, Aḥmad ibn ʻAbd al-Qādir (2003). Futūḥ Al-Ḥabaša: The Conquest of Abyssinia [16th Century]. Translated by Stenhouse, Paul Lester. Hollywood, California, USA: Tsehai Publishers & Distributors. p. 146. ISBN 9780972317269.
- ^ Frederick A. Edwards (1905). The Conquest of Abyssinia pp.336.