Shire also known as Inda Selassie (እንዳ ሥላሴ, Tigrinya

Tigrinya language

Tigrinya , also spelled Tigrigna, Tigrnia, Tigrina, Tigriña, less commonly Tigrinian, Tigrinyan, is a Semitic language spoken by the Tigrinya people in central Eritrea , where it is one of the two main languages of Eritrea, and in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia , where it...

 "House of the Trinity

Trinity

The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...

"), is a town 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...

. The administrative center of the Mirabawi Zone of the Tigray region

Tigray Region

Tigray Region is the northernmost of the nine ethnic regions of Ethiopia containing the homeland of the Tigray people. It was formerly known as Region 1...

, this town has a latitude and longitude of 14°6′N 38°17′E with an altitude of 1953 meters above sea level. It is also the administrative center of Tahtay Koraro

Tahtay Koraro

Tahtay Koraro is one of the 36 woredas in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Mi'irabawi Zone, Tahtay Koraro is bordered on the southwest by Asigede Tsimbela, on the north by La'ilay Adiyabo, and on the southeast by Medebay Zana...

 woreda

Woreda

Woreda is an administrative division of Ethiopia , equivalent to a district . Woredas are composed of a number of Kebele, or neighborhood associations, which are the smallest unit of local government in Ethiopia...

.

The Ethiopian Roads Authority had two roads built to connect Shire to neighboring towns. In June 2009, the authority released a report on their status. The road connecting Shire with Addi Goshu, 156 kilometers in length, was 52% complete, and would be completed by November 2010. The road that would connect to Addi Abun, 92 kilometers in length, would be completed in two years. construction was underway on a road segment 71 kilometers long connecting Shire west to Dedebit, and which will continue on to Adi Remets then terminate at Dejena Densha. The town hosts an airport, Shire Airport

Shire Airport

Shire Airport is an airport in Shire, Ethiopia ....

 (IATA code SHC).

History

An early mention of Shire is in one of the three surviving charters of Emperor Dawit I of Ethiopia

Dawit I of Ethiopia

Dawit I was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the younger son of Newaya Krestos.-Life:...

 (r. 1382-1412).

As part of the Second Italo-Abyssinian War

Second Italo-Abyssinian War

The Second Italo–Abyssinian War was a colonial war that started in October 1935 and ended in May 1936. The war was fought between the armed forces of the Kingdom of Italy and the armed forces of the Ethiopian Empire...

, Italian units under General Pietro Badoglio

Pietro Badoglio

Pietro Badoglio, 1st Duke of Addis Abeba, 1st Marquess of Sabotino was an Italian soldier and politician...

 advanced out of Axum

Axum

Axum or Aksum is a city in northern Ethiopia which was the original capital of the eponymous kingdom of Axum. Population 56,500 . Axum was a naval and trading power that ruled the region from ca. 400 BC into the 10th century...

 on 29 February 1936 to attack the Ethiopian army under Ras Imru Haile Selassie

Imru Haile Selassie

Leul Ras Imru Haile Selassie was an Ethiopian noble, soldier, and diplomat. He was also the cousin of Emperor Haile Selassie.-Biography:...

 deployed around Shire in an action known as the Battle of Shire

Battle of Shire

The Battle of Shire was a battle fought on the northern front of what was known as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War. This battle consisted of attacks and counterattacks by Italian forces under Marshal of Italy Pietro Badoglio and Ethiopian forces under Ras Imru Haile Selassie...

. Despite determined Ethiopian resistance, by 3 March the Italians had resumed their advance and shortly afterwards crossed 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...

.

After the restoration of the monarchy in 1941, Shire served as the capital of the Shire sub-region until the administrative reorganization of the nation following the adoption of the 1995 Ethiopian Constitution. Shire once again became a battlefield during the Ethiopian Civil War

Ethiopian Civil War

The Ethiopian Civil War began on September 12, 1974 when the Marxist Derg staged a coup d'état against Emperor Haile Selassie, and lasted until the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front , a coalition of rebel groups, overthrew the government in 1991. The war overlapped other Cold War...

, until the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front

Tigrayan People's Liberation Front

The Tigrayan People's Liberation Front , known more commonly and sometimes pejoratively in Ethiopia as Woyane or Weyane is a political party in Ethiopia...

 (TPLF) ejected the government forces in March 1988. The third edition of Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet is the largest travel guide book and digital media publisher in the world. The company is owned by BBC Worldwide, which bought a 75% share from the founders Maureen and Tony Wheeler in 2007 and the final 25% in February 2011...

guide to Ethiopia notes that "war relics" could still be seen near Shire.

The first clash of the TPLF with government forces occurred 5 August 1975, after Mehari Tekle ("Mussie"), a member of the TPLF leadership, was arrested in Addi Daero by government militiamen and taken to prison in Shire. Before he could be transported to a more secure facility in Mek'ele

Mek'ele

Mek'ele , also transliterated as Makale, is a city in northern Ethiopia and the capital of the Tigray Region. It is located some 650 kilometers north of the capital, Addis Ababa, at latitude and longitude with an elevation of 2084 meters above sea level...

 or Addis Ababa

Addis Ababa

Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia...

, a squad of eleven men burst into the prison, wounded one policeman scattered the rest, freed their comrade and 60 other prisoners, and spirited him away to safety.

Shire also played a major role in the later part of the Ethiopian Civil War

Ethiopian Civil War

The Ethiopian Civil War began on September 12, 1974 when the Marxist Derg staged a coup d'état against Emperor Haile Selassie, and lasted until the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front , a coalition of rebel groups, overthrew the government in 1991. The war overlapped other Cold War...

. Following the massive Ethiopian defeat at the Battle of Afabet

Battle of Afabet

The Battle at Afabet was a watershed battle in the Eritrean War of Independence. The Battle occurred from March 17 through March 20, 1988 in and around the town of Afabet. This was Mengistu Haile Mariam's first humiliating defeat at the hands of the Eritreans....

 in March 1988, the TPLF launched a series of offensives, in which they destroyed government forces stationed at Rama

Rama, Ethiopia

Rama is a town in northern Ethiopia. Located 35 km north of the town of Adwa and 7 kilometers from the border with Eritrea, in the Mehakelegnaw Zone of the Tigray Region, this town occupies a fertile lowland area and has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 1385 meters above sea level...

, Adwa

Adwa

Adwa is a market town in northern Ethiopia, and best known as the community closest to the decisive Battle of Adowa fought in 1896 with Italian troops. Notably, Ethiopian soldiers won the battle, thus being the only African nation to thwart European colonialism...

, Seleh Leha

Seleh Leha

Seleh Leha is a town in northern Ethiopia. Located in the Mirabawi Zone of the Tigray Region, this town has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 2107 meters above sea level. It is the administrative center of Medebay Zana woreda.This town serves as the primary market center for much...

, and Shire. Only about 200 soldiers of the 17th Army Division were able to evacuate Shire and fall back to Gondar

Gondar

Gondar or Gonder is a city in Ethiopia, which was once the old imperial capital and capital of the historic Begemder Province. As a result, the old province of Begemder is sometimes referred to as Gondar...

. This led to the raising of the Third Revolutionary Army, composed of the 603rd, 604th and 605th core armies. Between 19 June and 3 July 1988 the 604th was able to regain control over 12 districts, and entered Shire with no significant resistance from TPLF forces. However, due to unrest amongst the government soldiers at Addi Hageray, which permitted the TPLF to attack and occupy that town, the 604th was unable to advance again until 28 December. This led to the Battle of Shire

Battle of Shire

The Battle of Shire was a battle fought on the northern front of what was known as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War. This battle consisted of attacks and counterattacks by Italian forces under Marshal of Italy Pietro Badoglio and Ethiopian forces under Ras Imru Haile Selassie...

, which ended on 19 February 1989 as a victory for the TPLF. Although Shire had been the headquarters of the Third Revolutionary Army at the beginning of the battle, at the end the remaining units were retreating towards Enda Aba Guna.

Demographics

In the mid 1980s, the population of the town was below 15, 000. Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency

Central Statistical Agency (Ethiopia)

The Central Statistical Agency is an agency of the government of Ethiopia designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that country used to monitor economic and social growth, as well as to act as an official training center in that field. It is part of the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and...

in 2005, Shire has an estimated total population of 43,967 of whom 21,333 are men and 22,634 are women. According to the 1994 national census the town had a population of 25,269 of whom 11,360 were men and 13,909 women.