UNIT FIVE

Politics, Economy and Society in

Ethiopia and the Horn from the early
16th century to the end of the 18th century
Major Topics

5.1.Conflict between the Highland Kingdom & the

Sultanate of Adal
5.2.Forign Intervention & Religious Controversies
5.3.Population Movements
 5.1.Conflict between the Christian
Kingdom and the Sultanate of Adal
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.
 Cont’d…
 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.
 Cont’d…
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 left- handed,” 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.
 Cont’d…

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.
 Cont’d…
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 liberate themselves
form the Christian Kingdom.
 He was able to gain acceptance as Imam and
consolidated his army to fight the Christian
Kingdom.
 Cont’d…
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.
 Cont’d…
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.
 Cont’d…
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.
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 highly motivated
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.
 Cont’d…
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.
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.
 Cont’d…
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 respectively.
 Cont’d…
On the part of the Christian Kingdom, the military set
back forced the reigning king, Lebne- Dengel, 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.
In the meantime, based on earlier request made by
Lebne- Dengel 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 and gained an initial
victory against the Imam
 Cont’d…
Observing the success of the kingdom with the
Portuguese assistance ,the Imam requested and
gained the support of Ottoman Turkey.
Using this support the Imam army defeated the
portugese army in southern Tigray their leader
Christopher da Gama was also killed.
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 the Ottoman armies back home and
let his army camp.
 Cont’d…
On February 25, 1543 the well prepared
Christian kingdom under Gelawdewos with the
support of the Portugese attacked and killed the
forces of the Imam & he himself was killed
while fighting against them at the battle of
Woyna-Dega.
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.
 Cont’d…
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 al- Waazir
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.
 Cont’d…
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 territory 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
 Cont’d…
The Muslim-Christian conflict had resulted in a
number of consequences. These includes;
I. One of the most obvious was the huge human
and material cost.
II. 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.
III. On the positive side, it should be restated that
the war had arguably resulted in cultural
interaction among the peoples of Ethiopia and
the Horn
 Cont’d…
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..
 Cont’d…
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
 Cont’d…
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
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 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.
 Cont’d…
The Jesuits began their evangelical effort with
Emperor Gelawdewos (r.1540-59), hoping that
the rest of the society would follow.
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.
 Cont’d…
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 (r. 1598-1603 )was
overthrown by Yaqob (r.1604-7), who met a similar
fate in the hands of Susenyos (r. 1607-32).
 Cont’d…
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.
As a means to this, Susenyos sought for an
alliance, which he got through the diplomatic
advisory of Pedro Paez.
 Cont’d…
Even worse, with the monarch’s consent,
another Spanish Jesuit, Afonso Mendez ordered
consecration 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.
By 1612 Paze was abel to convert Susneous in
Chatolocism & By 1622 Chatolicism was
declared as the official religion of the kingdom.
 Cont’d…
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.
The declaration of Catholicism in the kingdom
led peasant rebellions in the kingdom
Civil war between the Orthodox & the newly
converted Catholics followed
 Cont’d…
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.
 Cont’d…
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
 Cont’d…
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.
 Cont’d…
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.These includes:
I. 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.
 Cont’d…
II. 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.
III.Sost Lidet/Three Births
IV. (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
 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
history.
5.3.1.Population Movements of the Argoba, Afar,
and Somali
I. 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.
 Cont’d…
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.
 II. 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 center 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..
 III. 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 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.
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
 Geda Age-grades and their roles
Gadaa-grade Age Roles

Dabale birth-8 years socialization

Game 9-16

Folle 17-24 military training, agriculture etc

Qondala 25-32 military service

Raba-Dori 33-40 candidates for political power

Luba 41-48 leaders of Gadaa government

Yuba 49 to 80 senior advisors, educatorsand ritual

leaders
 B. The Oromo Population Movement(1522-1618)
A combination of natural and man made 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..
 Cont’d…
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.
 Cont’d…
From 1522 to 1618, the Oromo fought twelve Butta
wars.
Accordingly, the first Gadaa i.e Melba (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.
 Cont’d…
 Not resisted the Oromo expansion Minas Moved the
center of the Christian kingdom to the north of the
Abay river in Gojjam which Serse Dingel(r.1563-
1597) further moved to the north and establihsed the
center at Enfranze
The Adal forces also moved its center to Awsa in Afar
in the northeast on 1576/77
The longed waged wars between the Christian
kingdom & the Muslim Sultanates for more than two
centuries enable the Oromos to easily expand &
Setteled in large areas in the Ethiopian region & the
horn of Africa.
 6.4.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.
 Cont’d…
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
 Cont’d…
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
5.5.1.Peoples and States in the East
-The Somali
-The Afar
-The Argoba
-The Emirate of Harar
5.5.2.Peoples and States in Central and South Central
Parts
-The Kingdom of Shewa
-Kembata
-Hadiya
 5.5.3.Peoples and States in the South

-Sidama
-Gedeo
-Konso
5.5.4.Peoples and States in Southwestern
-Wolayta
-Kafa
- Yem
- Gamo
-Dawuro
-Ari
 5.5.5.Peoples and States in the West
-Berta and Gumuz
- Anywa
-Nuer
- Majang
- The Kunama
All the above mentioned ppeoples & states of the
time were politically independent with their own
traditional Systems
 5.6. The Gondarine Period and Zemene-Mesafint
5.6.1.The Gondarine Period
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 Gorgora.
Gondar was founded in 1636 when Fasiledas
established his political seat there.
 Cont’d…
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.
 Cont’d…
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).
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.
 Cont’d…
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 Takla- Haymanot II (1769-77) on power.
This marked the onset of the period of Zemene-
Mesafint (1769-1855).
B. Achievements of the Gondarine Period

-Architecture: Building of palaces & churches

 Cont’d…
II. 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.
III. Literature: The Imperial and provincial
scriptoria produced a great number of manuscripts
IV. 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
 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 1769 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.
 Cont’d…
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.
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 or the Great ) was
considered as the founder of “Yejju dynasty” in 1786.
 Cont’d…
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;
 Rivalry and competition 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.