Sabagadis
Encyclopedia
Sabagadis was a Dejazmach or governor of Tigray
, a province
in northern Ethiopia
. He was the son of Shum
Waldu of Agame
, and a member of the Irob people
.
. But just before the death of Wolde Selassie it seems that he made up with his master and became one of his loyal lieutenants. Following Wolde Selassie's death in 1816, he defied the authority of Wolde Selassie's son, and became the most powerful warlord in Tigray. Making Adigrat
his capital, he ruled Tigray, Semien
, and a small strip of the coastal plains of Eritrea by 1818. His rule also extended to the Eritrean highlands (Hamasien
, Akele Guzay, and Seraye).
Dejazmach Sabagadis believed that firearms were vital to neutralize the power of the Oromo
cavalry, so he devoted much time and effort to both collecting them, and seeking European help in buying them; this included seeking British
help—or at least permission—to capture the port of Massawa
. As a consequence, Sabagadis was one of the first Ethiopians to attempt building peaceful relationships with other countries in modern times. As a result of these things, by the 1820s he was seen both in Europe—and in Ethiopia—as the champion of Christianity
.
Three of his letters have survived. One to the Patriarch of Alexandria
Peter
complains of the behavior of Abuna
Qerellos
, sarcastically asking, "Was it because you hated Ethiopia that you sent him? Did you not know his conduct before, [and] so you sent him?" Another one is addressed to King George IV
of Great Britain
, asking for "one hundred cavalrymen, a carpenter, [and] a church builder who will build the way [you do] in your country".
Sabagadis maintained constant communication with the most important Christian lords in Ethiopia. Building upon his reputation, he formed a coalition with the warlords of Gojjam, Lasta and Semien against Ras Marye of Yejju
, the Enderase or regent of the Emperor
. Moreover, Ras Marye was an Oromo
, and a Muslim
. Marye defeated Dejazmach Goshu in Gojjam, marched the bulk of his army to Lasta
, then quickly turned to Semien Province and attacked Wube Haile Maryam. Subagadis watched the battle on the border of Lasta, and subsequently did not come to the aid of Wube. Wube preferred to submit to Marye rather than have to face him alone. Marye decided to put an end to the Tigrayan threat. At the head of Oromo contingents from Wollo
, Yejju, Begemder
and Amhara
, and now (forcibly) supported by the armies of Wube and Goshu, Marye advanced beyond the Tekezé River
into Tigray.
The armies of Dejazmach Sabagadis and Ras Marye met on the 14 February 1831 and the Battle of Debre Abbay
began. Although the Tigrayans had by far the greater number of firearms, the matchlockmen were poorly employed and the Oromo cavalry won the field after a bloody fight. Ras Sabagadis would surrender only to Ras Wube, his son-in-law. Wube dutifully handed him over to Marye's followers. On the 15th of February they beat Dejazmach Hagos Subagadis to death, and executed Sabagadis in retaliation for Marye's death. His remains reportedly were later interred at the monastery of Gunda Gunde
.
Nearly a year after his death, although he was a Tigrayan, people all over the Amhara provinces lamented Sabagadis:
; and Wolde Mikael. A number of other children are claimed for him: Kassa, Balgada-Ar'aya (who rebelled against Wube and his older brother Wolde Mikael in 1838, and was defeated by them), and several daughters including Dinqinash, who was married by her father to Ras Wube three years before the Battle of Debre Abbay.
Tigray Province
Tigray was a province of Ethiopia. The Tigray Region superseded the province with the adoption of the new constitution in 1995. The province of Tigre merged with its neighboring provinces, including Semien, Tembien, Agame and the prominent Enderta province and towards the end of 19th century it...
, a province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
in northern Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. He was the son of Shum
Shum
Shum is a romanization of the Chinese letter 岑 in 岑献光, the non-phonetic nuance of the Cantonese language. Shum are the descendants of King Wu of the Zhou Dynasty, named so after an area during the Zhou dynasty . Although not the descendent of Wu's first wife Yi Jiang , Shum is the descendent of...
Waldu of Agame
Agame
The Agame is a former province in northern Ethiopia, now part of the Tigray Region. Its inhabitants include the Irob people, a region where tradition states the legendary Makeda was born and raised...
, and a member of the Irob people
Irob people
The Irob people are an ethnic group who occupy a predominantly highland, mountainous area by the same name in northeastern Tigray Region, Ethiopia. They speak the Saho language, are Christians , and mainly agriculturalists...
.
Life
Sabagadis gained some notoriety in the first decade of the 19th century for rebelling a number of times against his overlord, Ras Wolde SelassieWolde Selassie
Wolde Selassie He was an Overlord of Tigray-Mereb Milash and a Ras Bitwoded of Ethiopia. He was the second son of Dejazmach Kefla Iyasus Amdamikael, hereditary chief of Enderta...
. But just before the death of Wolde Selassie it seems that he made up with his master and became one of his loyal lieutenants. Following Wolde Selassie's death in 1816, he defied the authority of Wolde Selassie's son, and became the most powerful warlord in Tigray. Making Adigrat
Adigrat
Adigrat is a city in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. Located in the Misraqawi Zone at longitude and latitude with an elevation of 2457 meters above sea level, below a high ridge to the west, Adigrat is the last important Ethiopian city south of the border with Eritrea, and is considered to be a...
his capital, he ruled Tigray, Semien
Semien province
Semien Province was a historical province of northwest Ethiopia, often called Gondar. It was located south and west of the Tekezé River, and north of Lake Tsana. It was south west of Enderta Province, west of Tembien Province, and east of the Sudan. To some extent it covered the territory of the...
, and a small strip of the coastal plains of Eritrea by 1818. His rule also extended to the Eritrean highlands (Hamasien
Hamasien
Hamasien was the name of an histoical province including and surrounding Asmara, now part of modern Eritrea. The region has been divided and distributed amongst the modern Maekel, Debub, Northern Red Sea, Gash-Barka and Anseba regions....
, Akele Guzay, and Seraye).
Dejazmach Sabagadis believed that firearms were vital to neutralize the power of the Oromo
Oromo people
The Oromo are an ethnic group found in Ethiopia, northern Kenya, .and parts of Somalia. With 30 million members, they constitute the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and approximately 34.49% of the population according to the 2007 census...
cavalry, so he devoted much time and effort to both collecting them, and seeking European help in buying them; this included seeking British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
help—or at least permission—to capture the port of Massawa
Massawa
Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa Massawa, also known as Mitsiwa (Ge'ez ምጽዋዕ , formerly ባጽዕ is a city on the Red Sea coast of Eritrea. An important port for many centuries, it was ruled by a succession of polities, including the Axumite Empire, the Umayyad Caliphate,...
. As a consequence, Sabagadis was one of the first Ethiopians to attempt building peaceful relationships with other countries in modern times. As a result of these things, by the 1820s he was seen both in Europe—and in Ethiopia—as the champion of Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
.
Three of his letters have survived. One to the Patriarch of Alexandria
Patriarch of Alexandria
The Patriarch of Alexandria is the Archbishop of Alexandria and Cairo, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation of Pope , and did so earlier than that of the Bishop of Rome...
Peter
Pope Peter VII of Alexandria
Pope Peter VII of Alexandria ' was the 109th Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark . He was born in the village of El-Gawly in Upper Egypt, and known as Mankarius while a monk at St...
complains of the behavior of Abuna
Abuna
Also see Leaders of ChristianityAbun is the honorific title used for any bishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church as well as of the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church...
Qerellos
Abuna Qerellos III
Qerellos III was an Abuna, or head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church . In the words of Richard Pankhurst, "A controversial figure, he is reputed to have been fanatical and rapacious."...
, sarcastically asking, "Was it because you hated Ethiopia that you sent him? Did you not know his conduct before, [and] so you sent him?" Another one is addressed to King George IV
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
of Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, asking for "one hundred cavalrymen, a carpenter, [and] a church builder who will build the way [you do] in your country".
Sabagadis maintained constant communication with the most important Christian lords in Ethiopia. Building upon his reputation, he formed a coalition with the warlords of Gojjam, Lasta and Semien against Ras Marye of Yejju
Marye of Yejju
Marye of Yejju was a Ras of Begemder and Enderase of the Emperor of Ethiopia. He was the brother of his predecessor Ras Yimam....
, the Enderase or regent of the Emperor
Emperor of Ethiopia
The Emperor of Ethiopia was the hereditary ruler of Ethiopia until the abolition of the monarchy in 1974. The Emperor was the head of state and head of government, with ultimate executive, judicial and legislative power in that country...
. Moreover, Ras Marye was an Oromo
Oromo people
The Oromo are an ethnic group found in Ethiopia, northern Kenya, .and parts of Somalia. With 30 million members, they constitute the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and approximately 34.49% of the population according to the 2007 census...
, and a Muslim
Islam in Ethiopia
According to the latest 2007 national census, Islam is the second most widely practised religion in Ethiopia after Christianity, with over 25 million of Ethiopians adhering to Islam according to the 2007 national census, having arrived in Ethiopia in 615...
. Marye defeated Dejazmach Goshu in Gojjam, marched the bulk of his army to Lasta
Lasta
Lasta is a historic district in north-central Ethiopia. It is the district in which Lalibela is situated, the former capital of Ethiopia during the Zagwe dynasty and home to 11 medieval rock-hewn churches....
, then quickly turned to Semien Province and attacked Wube Haile Maryam. Subagadis watched the battle on the border of Lasta, and subsequently did not come to the aid of Wube. Wube preferred to submit to Marye rather than have to face him alone. Marye decided to put an end to the Tigrayan threat. At the head of Oromo contingents from Wollo
Wollo
Wollo was a historical region and province in the northeastern part of Ethiopia, with its capital city at Dessie. The province was named after the Wollo Oromo, who settled in this part of Ethiopia in the 17th century...
, Yejju, Begemder
Begemder
Begemder was a province in the northwestern part of Ethiopia. There are several proposed etymologies for this name...
and Amhara
Amhara province
Amhara was the name of a medieval province of Ethiopia, located in present day Amhara Region, and the pre-1996 province of Wollo...
, and now (forcibly) supported by the armies of Wube and Goshu, Marye advanced beyond the Tekezé River
Tekezé River
The Tekezé River, also known as the Takkaze River, is a major river of Ethiopia, and forms a section the westernmost border of Ethiopia and Eritrea for part of its course. The river is also known as the Setit in Eritrea, western Ethiopia, and eastern Sudan. According to materials published by the...
into Tigray.
The armies of Dejazmach Sabagadis and Ras Marye met on the 14 February 1831 and the Battle of Debre Abbay
Battle of Debre Abbay
The Battle of Debre Abbay was a conflict between Ras Marye of Yejju, Regent of the Emperor of Ethiopia, and his rival from Tigray, Dejazmach Sabagadis of Agame...
began. Although the Tigrayans had by far the greater number of firearms, the matchlockmen were poorly employed and the Oromo cavalry won the field after a bloody fight. Ras Sabagadis would surrender only to Ras Wube, his son-in-law. Wube dutifully handed him over to Marye's followers. On the 15th of February they beat Dejazmach Hagos Subagadis to death, and executed Sabagadis in retaliation for Marye's death. His remains reportedly were later interred at the monastery of Gunda Gunde
Gunda Gunde
Gunda Gunde is an Ethiopian Orthodox monastery, located in the Misraqawi Zone of the Tigray Region of northern Ethiopia. It is known for its prolific scriptorium and its library of Ge'ez manuscripts...
.
Nearly a year after his death, although he was a Tigrayan, people all over the Amhara provinces lamented Sabagadis:
Alas! Sabagadis, the friend of all,
Has fallen at Daga Shaha, by the hand of Aubeshat [i.e. Wube]!
Alas! Sabagadis, the pillar of the poor,
Has fallen at Daga Shaha, weltering in his blood!
The people of this country, will they find it a good thing
To eat ears of corn which have grown in the blood?
Who will remember [St] Michael of November [to give alms]?
Mariam, with five thousand Gallas, had killed him
[him, i.e., who remembered to give alms]:
For the half of a loaf, for a cup of wine,
The friend of the Christians has fallen at Daga Shaha.
Family
Sabagadis was survived by two sons: Aregawi, (the father of Ras Sebhat Aregawi), who continued to rule in AgameAgame
The Agame is a former province in northern Ethiopia, now part of the Tigray Region. Its inhabitants include the Irob people, a region where tradition states the legendary Makeda was born and raised...
; and Wolde Mikael. A number of other children are claimed for him: Kassa, Balgada-Ar'aya (who rebelled against Wube and his older brother Wolde Mikael in 1838, and was defeated by them), and several daughters including Dinqinash, who was married by her father to Ras Wube three years before the Battle of Debre Abbay.