TheZemene Mesafint(Ge'ez:ዘመነ መሳፍንት,variously translated"Era of Judges","Era of the Princes",etc.; taken from the biblicalBook of Judges) was a period inEthiopian historybetween the mid-18th and mid-19th centuries when the country was ruled by a class ofOromoelite noblemen who replacedHabeshanobility in their courts, making the emperor merely afigurehead.[1]For the most part, the regional lords were tightly related by marriage and constituted a stable ruling elite that prevailed until the mid-20th century. In short, during the Zemene Mesafint, theemperorsfrom theSolomonic dynastywere reduced to little more than figureheads confined to the capital city ofGondar.
| Zemene Mesafint | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1769–1855 | |||
 Ethiopian warriors during the Zemene Mesafint | |||
| Location | Ethiopian Empire | ||
| Monarch(s) | Yohannes II Susenyos II Tekle Haymanot II Salomon II Tekle Giyorgis I Iyasu III Hezqeyas Baeda Maryam II Salomon III Yonas Demetros Egwale Seyon Iyoas II Gigar Baeda Maryam III Iyasu IV Gebre Krestos Sahle Dengel | ||
| Key events | SeeHistory section Main battles | ||
Chronology
| |||
The most powerful lords during the Zemene Mesafint were from theHouse of Yejju,a dynasty that includedAli I of Yejju,Aligaz,GugsaandAli IIbased in Yejju, a region inWollo.Other regional lords includedKenfu HailuofGondar,Ras DulluMenz,Ras Hailu Yosedeq ofGojjam,Sabagadis Wolduof Tigre,Ras Wolde SelassieofTigre,Wube Haile Mariamof Simien, and provincial kingSahle SelassieofShewa.[2]
The lords fought against each other for the expansion of their territory and to become the guardians of the kings of kings inGondar,the capital of the empire at the time. The monarchy continued only in name because of its sacred character. This nominal butdivinely ordainedmonarchy preserved the dynasty from actual extinction.[2]
The Zemene Mesafint period came to an end when alocal outlaw,Kassa Hailu, would challenge the supremacy of the Oromo princes over the Abyssinian kingdom. Hailu gained support from the locals and defeated Oromo lords and princes and would throne himself asTewodros II,attempting to fulfill a prophecy that a man named Tewodros would restore theEthiopian Empireto greatness and rule for 40 years.[3][4]
History
editEarly history, Solomonic succession conflicts (1700s–1730)
editTraditionally, the beginning of this period is set on the dateRasMikael Sehuldeposed EmperorIyoas I(7 May 1769), and its end to Kassa's coronation asEmperor Tewodros II(11 February 1855), having defeated in battle all of his rivals. Some historians date the death ofIyasu I(Iyasu the Great) (13 October 1706), and the resultant decline in the prestige of the dynasty, as the beginning of this period. Others date it to the beginning of Iyoas's reign (26 June 1755).
During the Zemene Mesafint, various lords occasionally took advantage of their positions by making Emperors and encroaching upon the succession of the dynasty, by candidates among the nobility itself: for example, on the death of EmperorTewoflosin 1711, the chief nobles of Ethiopia feared that the cycle of vengeance that had characterised the reigns of Tewoflos andTekle Haymanot I(1706–1708) would continue if a member of theSolomonic dynastywere picked for the throne, so they selected one of their own,Yostos,to beKing of Kings(Ge'ez:ንጉሠ ነገሥት,romanized:nəgusä nägäst). However, the tenure of Yostos from 1711 to 1716 was brief and the throne returned to the Solomonic dynasty.
Solomonic succession conflicts (1730–1769)
editReign of Iyasu II (1730–1755)
editThe reign ofIyasu II(1730–1755) had brought the empire once again to disaster. He ascended the throne as a child, allowing his mother, EmpressMentewabto play a major role as hisRegentfrom 1723 to 1730. Mentewab had herself crowned as co-ruler in 1730, becoming the first woman to be crowned in this manner in Ethiopian history. Beyond the capital ofGondar,the Empire suffered from regional conflict between regions that had been part of the Empire for hundreds of years—theAgaw,Amharics,Tigrayansand theOromo.
Reign of Iyoas (1755–1769)
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Mentewab's attempt to strengthen ties between the monarchy and the Oromo of Wollo by arranging the marriage of her son Iyasu to Wubit, the daughter of an Oromo chieftain fromWollobackfired in the long run. Her attempt to continue her powerful role after the death of her son (1755) into the reign of her grandsonIyoas(r. 1755–1769) brought her into conflict withWubit(Welete Bersabe), Iyasu's widow, who believed that it was her turn to serve as regent. When Iyoas assumed the throne upon his father's sudden death, the aristocrats of Gondar were stunned to find that he preferred to speak in theOromo languagerather than inAmharic,and favored his mother's Yejju relatives over the Qwarans of his grandmothers family. Iyoas further increased the favour given to the Oromo. On the death of the Ras of Amhara, he attempted to promote his uncle Lubo governor of that province, but the outcry led his adviserWolde Leulto convince him to change his mind.
The conflict between these two queens led to Mentewab summoning her relatives with their armed supporters fromQwarato Gondar to support her. Wubit responded by summoning her own Oromo relatives and their considerable forces from Wollo. Fearing that the power struggle between the Qwarans and the Wolloyes led by the Emperor's mother Wubit would erupt into an armed conflict, the nobility summoned the powerful RasMikael Sehulto mediate between the two camps. He arrived and shrewdly maneuvered to sideline the two queens and their supporters making a bid for power for himself.
Iyoas' reign becomes a narrative of the struggle between the powerful Ras Mikael Sehul and the Oromo relatives of Iyoas. Iyoas effectively had little say, as he inherited an empty Imperial treasury and depended heavily on his Oromo relations. As he increasingly favored Oromo leaders likeFasil,his relations with Mikael Sehul deteriorated. Eventually Mikael Sehul deposed the Emperor Iyoas (7 May 1769). One week later, Mikael Sehul had him killed; although the details of his death are contradictory, the result was clear: for the first time an Emperor had lost his throne in a means other than his own natural death, death in battle or voluntary abdication. From this point forward the Empire devolved ever more openly in the hands of the great nobles and military commanders; because of its effects, Iyoas' assassination is usually regarded as the start of the Era of the Princes.
Solomonic succession conflicts (1769–1784)
editAn aged and infirm imperial uncle prince was enthroned as EmperorYohannes II.Ras Mikael soon had him murdered, and underageTekle Haymanot IIwas elevated to the throne. Then Mikael Sehul was defeated in theThree battles of Sarbakusaand the triumvirate of Fasil,Goshu of AmharaandWand BewossenofBegemderplaced their own emperor on the throne. More emperors followed as these three fell from power and were replaced by other strongmen, who constantly elevated and removed emperors;Tekle Giyorgisis famous for having been elevated to the throne altogether six times and also deposed six times.
Meanwhile,Amha Iyasus,MeridazmachofShewa(1744–1775), wisely kept out of this endless fighting, devoting his energies to consolidating his kingdom and foundingAnkober.This was a practice that his successors followed to the end of the kingdom.
The years from 1771 to 1784 constituted a sort of interregnum or a transition age between two eras – the era of the absolute monarchy and the era of rule by the Were Sheikh rulers of Yeju.Tekle Giyorgis I,whose first reign was from 1779 to 1784, tried to assert all over again some, if not all, of the powers of the monarchy. Unfortunately for him and the dynasty as a whole, he ended up losing everything.Ali Idefeated him in early 1784 at a place called Afara Wanat and replaced him withIyasu IIIwho was a full puppet.[5]Two years later, in 1786,Ali Ibecame Ras bitwadad and with his ascent to power, the Yejju dynasty, or more precisely, the Wara Seh dynasty came into being. Ras Ali I and his remaining Wara Seh family members becameEnderases(Regents) of the Ethiopian Empire.
Until the emergence ofDejazmachKassa Hailu, the future EmperorTewodros II,power was transferred fromRas Ali Ito his brotherRas Aligaz.After the death of Ras Aligaz,Ras Wolde Selassie,hereditary ruler ofEndertaand overlord of Tigray, became Enderase of the Empire, briefly taking power away from the Wara Sheh rulers. Upon his death, power was transferred to Ras Aligaz's nephew,Ras Gugsa,who in turn transferred power to his sonsRas Yimam,Ras MariyeandRas Dori.After the death of Ras Dori,Ras Ali II,a nephew of Ras Gugsa, becameEnderase.[6]
Warra Seh (Sheikh) rulers (Yejju) (1784–1855)
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Crummey, Rubenson, Abir and Shiferaw Bekele agree that despite the weakness of the Emperor, the Yejju lords constituted a stable ruling elite of a multiethnic background that ruled the country in the name of the Solomonic dynasty.[7]That being said, the term that perhaps needs to be precisely defined has to do with the appellation of the Yejju. Very often it is called the Yejju dynasty. There is no problem with this name except that at times it created confusion with the Yejju region of Wollo. It is preferable to call them by the name that they themselves preferred and by what others called them: Warra Sheh or Werre Sheikh (sons of the Sheikh) a name which reflects their Muslim background. This appellation clearly refers to the family rather than to the province, and to their Islamic and Oromo roots.[8]
Scholars now agree that of the Warra Sheh rulers,Ras Gugsa'sreign (1800–1825) was characterised more by peace than by war.[9][10]The power of the Warra Sheh rulers was much more than predominance. They exercised actual authority over the other lords. The latter were their tributary lords and the Warra Sheh were suzerains or overlords.[11]To be precise, the Warra Sheh did not exercise absolute authority outside of the provinces directly under their rule. These provinces extended from Begemeder across Chachaho Pass to the Amhara provinces of Maqet, Wadla, Dalanta and Dawent. Their authority over the lords of the rest of the regions –Qwara,Gojjam,Wollo,Semien,Tigrayup toHamasien,Wagand the like – was rather restricted to the power of making them pay regular tributes, be in attendance in their court for a given period of the year, participate in their wars and exercise right of appeal in matters of justice.[7]They also had the right of confirmation in their offices when new lords came to power in one way or another. At times, they even went to the extent of chaining some of their recalcitrant lords.[7]
End of the Zemene Mesafint
editThe time period had a lasting demographic impact onEritrea,with multiple previously predominantly Christian ethnic groups such as theBilenandTigre peoplebeing islamized by theOttoman Empireand laterEyalet of Egyptdue to a weakEthiopian imperialpresence.[12][13]The Zemene Mesafint, which in a span of eighty-six years saw twenty-three emperors occupy the throne (some were placed on and removed from the throne numerous times) came to an end with the rise of Kassa Hailu – better known by his later throne name ofTewodros II.Kassa won his way to control the imperial throne first by occupyingDembea,then following a series of battles beginning withGur Amba(1852) and ending withBattle of Derasge(1855), came to control all of northern Ethiopia. More importantly, with his triumph overRas Ali IIat theBattle of Ayshal,Kassa Hailu ended the Were Seh dynasty, and with imperial power once again in the hands of a single man, the Zemene Mesafint is considered to have ended and the history of Modern Ethiopia to have begun.[9][10]
References
edit- ^Abba Bahrey’s Zenahu Legalla: Towards an Ethiopian critical theory - JSTOR. (n.d.-a).https://www.jstor.org/stable/41756933
- ^abShiferaw Bekele,The State in the Zamana Masafent (1786–1853),p. 25
- ^Gashu Abebe, Semahagn (2016).The Last Post-Cold War Socialist Federation Ethnicity, Ideology and Democracy in Ethiopia.Connecticut, United States: Taylor & Francis. p. 100.ISBN9781317026327.
- ^Miller, Stephen (2021).Queen Victoria's Wars British Military Campaigns, 1857-1902.Maine, United States: Cambridge University Press. p. 63.ISBN9781108490122.
- ^Shiferaw Bekele,Reflections On the Power Elite of the Wara Seh Masfenate (1786–1853),p. 159–160
- ^Molla Tikuye,The Rise and Fall of The Yajju Dynasty (1784–1980),p. 199
- ^abcShiferaw Bekele,Reflections On the Power Elite of the Wara Seh Masfenate (1786–1853),p. 158
- ^Shiferaw Bekele,The State in the Zamana Masafent (1786–1853),p. 29
- ^abBekele, Shiferaw (2015). "Monarchical Restoration and Territorial Expansion: The Ethiopian State in the Second Half of the Nineteenth Century". In Prunier, Gérard; Ficquet, Éloi (eds.).Understanding Contemporary Ethiopia.Oxford University Press.pp. 159–182.ISBN9781849042611.
- ^abAdejumobi, Saheed A. (2007).The History of Ethiopia.Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 24.ISBN9780313322730.
- ^Shiferaw Bekele,The State in the Zamana Masafent (1786–1853),p. 33
- ^A Historical Overview of Islam in Eritrea - Jonathan Miran, 2005,https://www.jstor.org/stable/1571280?seq=9
- ^The blin between periphery and international politics in the 19th century,https://journals.openedition.org/cy/1373#ftn14
Further reading
edit- Mordechai Abir,The Era of the Princes: the Challenge of Islam and the Re-unification of the Christian empire, 1769-1855.London: Longmans, 1968.
- Bahru Zewde,A History of Modern Ethiopia, 1855–1991: Second Edition (Eastern African Studies).Addis Ababa: Addis Ababa University Press, 2001.