Zemene Mesafint
Encyclopedia
The Zemene Mesafint (Ge'ez
: ዘመነ መሳፍንት zamana masāfint, modern zemene mesāfint, variously translated "Era of Judges," "Era of the Princes," "Age of Princes," etc.; named after the Book of Judges
) was a period in Ethiopian history
when the country was rent by conflicts between warlord
s, the Emperor
was reduced to little more than a figurehead confined to the capital city of Gondar
, and both society and culture stagnated. Religious conflict both within the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and with Ethiopian Muslims
were often used as the pretext for the powerful to battle each other.
Traditionally, the beginning of this period is set to the date Ras Mikael Sehul
deposed Emperor Iyoas
(7 May 1769), and its end to Kassa
's coronation as Emperor Tewodros II (11 February 1855), having defeated in battle all of his rivals. Some historians date the murder of 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).
Nobles came to abuse their positions by making Emperors, and encroached upon the succession of the dynasty, by candidates among the nobility itself: for example, on the death of Emperor Tewoflos
, the chief nobles of Ethiopia feared that the cycle of vengeance that had characterized the reigns of Tewoflos and Tekle Haymanot I
would continue if a member of the Solomonic dynasty
were picked for the throne, so they selected one of their own, Yostos
, to be King of Kings (Negusa Nagast). However, the tenure of Yostos was brief and the throne came into the hands of the Solomonic house once again.
The reign of Iyasu II had brought the empire once again to disaster. He ascended the throne as a child, allowing his mother, Empress Mentewab
to play a major role as his Regent
. Mentewab had herself crowned as co-ruler, becoming the first woman to be crowned in this manner in Ethiopian history. Beyond the capital of Gondar
, the Empire suffered from regional conflict between nationalities that been part of the Empire for hundreds of years—the Agaw
, Amharans
, Showans
, and Tigreans
-- and the Oromo
newcomers. Mentewab's attempt to strengthen ties between the monarchy and the Oromo by arranging the marriage of her son to the daughter of an Oromo chieftain from Yejju backfired in the long run.
Her attempt to continue in this role after the death of her son (1755) into the reign of her grandson Iyoas
brought her into conflict with Wubit (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 the Oromo language
rather than in Amharic, and favored his mother's Yejju relatives over the Qwarans of his grandmothers family. Iyoas further increased the favor given to the Oromo when adult. On the death of the Ras of Amhara, he attempted to promote his uncle Lubo governor of that province, but the outcry led his advisor Wolde Leul to convince him to change his mind.
The conflict between these two queens led to Mentewab summoning her relatives with their armed supporters from Qwara
to Gondar to support her. Wubit responded by summoning her own Oromo relatives and their considerable forces from Yejju. Fearing that the power struggle between the Qwarans and the Yejju Oromos led by the Emperor's mother Wubit would erupt into an armed conflict, the nobility summoned the powerful Ras Mikael Sehul
to 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. Mikael settled soon as the leader of Amharic-Tigrean (Christian) camp of the struggle.
Iyaos' 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 like Fasil, 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.
An aged and infirm imperial uncle prince was enthroned as Emperor Yohannes II
. Ras Mikael soon had him murdered, and underage Tekle Haymanot II
was elevated to the throne. Then Mikael Sehul was defeated in the Three battles of Sarbakusa and the triumvirate of Fasil, Goshu of Amhara, and Wand Bewossen
of Begemder
placed 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 Giyorgis
is famous for having been elevated to the throne altogether six times and also deposed six times.
Meanwhile, Amha Iyasus
of Shewa
(1744–1775) wisely kept out of this endless fighting, devoting his energies to consolidating his kingdom and founding Ankober
. This was a practice that his successors followed to the end of the kingdom.
The first years of the 19th century were disturbed by fierce campaigns between Ras Gugsa
of Begemder, and The Great Ras
Wolde Selassie
of Tigray, who fought over control of the figurehead Emperor Egwale Seyon
. Wolde Selassie was eventually the victor, and practically ruled the whole country as Enderase till his death in 1816 at the age of eighty. Dejazmach Sabagadis
of Agame
succeeded Wolde Selassie in 1817, through force of arms, to become warlord of Tigray.
This constant civil war left Ethiopia isolated, an isolation pierced by very few European travellers. One was the French physician C.J. Poncet, who went there in 1698, via Sennar and the Blue Nile
. After him James Bruce
entered the country in 1769, with the object of discovering the sources of the Nile, which he was convinced lay in Ethiopia. Accordingly, leaving Massawa in September 1769, he travelled via Axum to Gondar, where he was well received by Emperor Tekle Haymanot II. Bruce left Ethiopia in 1772, by way of Sennar and the Nile
.
The end of the Zemene Mesafint came with the rise of Kassa Hailu—better known by his later throne name of Tewodros II of Ethiopia
. Originally little more than a bandit surviving in the Ethiopian marches against the Sudan, Kassa won his way to control of first one province of Ethiopia, Dembiya
, then following a series of battles beginning with Gur Amba
(27 September 1852) and ending with Battle of Derasge
(1855), came to control all of Ethiopia. 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.
Ge'ez alphabet
Ge'ez , also called Ethiopic, is a script used as an abugida for several languages of Ethiopia and Eritrea but originated in an abjad used to write Ge'ez, now the liturgical language of the Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox Church...
: ዘመነ መሳፍንት zamana masāfint, modern zemene mesāfint, variously translated "Era of Judges," "Era of the Princes," "Age of Princes," etc.; named after the Book of Judges
Book of Judges
The Book of Judges is the seventh book of the Hebrew bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its title describes its contents: it contains the history of Biblical judges, divinely inspired prophets whose direct knowledge of Yahweh allows them to act as decision-makers for the Israelites, as...
) was a period in Ethiopian history
History of Ethiopia
This article covers the prehistory and history of Ethiopia.-Prehistory:Lucy, discovered in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia's Afar region, is considered the world's second-oldest, but most complete and best preserved, adult Australopithecine fossil...
when the country was rent by conflicts between warlord
Warlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
s, 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...
was reduced to little more than a figurehead confined to the capital city of 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...
, and both society and culture stagnated. Religious conflict both within the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and with Ethiopian Muslims
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...
were often used as the pretext for the powerful to battle each other.
Traditionally, the beginning of this period is set to the date Ras Mikael Sehul
Mikael Sehul
Mikael Sehul was a Ras or governor of Tigray 1748–71 and again from 1772 until his death...
deposed Emperor Iyoas
Iyoas I of Ethiopia
Iyoas I or Joas I was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
(7 May 1769), and its end to Kassa
Tewodros II of Ethiopia
Tewodros II was the Emperor of Ethiopia from 1855 until his death....
's coronation as Emperor Tewodros II (11 February 1855), having defeated in battle all of his rivals. Some historians date the murder of Iyasu the Great
Iyasu I of Ethiopia
Iyasu I , also known as Iyasu the Great, was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
(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).
Nobles came to abuse their positions by making Emperors, and encroached upon the succession of the dynasty, by candidates among the nobility itself: for example, on the death of Emperor Tewoflos
Tewoflos of Ethiopia
Tewoflos or Theophilus was of Ethiopia and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
, the chief nobles of Ethiopia feared that the cycle of vengeance that had characterized the reigns of Tewoflos and Tekle Haymanot I
Tekle Haymanot I of Ethiopia
Tekle Haymanot I was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the son of Iyasu I and Empress Malakotawit...
would continue if a member of the Solomonic dynasty
Solomonic dynasty
The Solomonic dynasty is the Imperial House of Abyssinia. Its members claim lineal descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, the latter of whom tradition asserts gave birth to the first King Menelik I after her Biblically described visit to Solomon in Jerusalem .-Overview:The dynasty, a...
were picked for the throne, so they selected one of their own, Yostos
Yostos of Ethiopia
Yostos or Justus was of Ethiopia.According to James Bruce, he was the son of Delba Iyasu and a daughter of Emperor Iyasu I...
, to be King of Kings (Negusa Nagast). However, the tenure of Yostos was brief and the throne came into the hands of the Solomonic house once again.
The reign of Iyasu II had brought the empire once again to disaster. He ascended the throne as a child, allowing his mother, Empress Mentewab
Mentewab
Mentewab , was Empress of Ethiopia, consort of Emperor Bakaffa, mother of Iyasu II and grandmother of Iyoas I. She was also known officially by her baptismal name of Welete Giyorgis...
to play a major role as his Regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
. Mentewab had herself crowned as co-ruler, becoming the first woman to be crowned in this manner in Ethiopian history. Beyond the capital of 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...
, the Empire suffered from regional conflict between nationalities that been part of the Empire for hundreds of years—the Agaw
Agaw
The Agaw are an ethnic group in Ethiopia and neighboring Eritrea.-History:The Agaw are perhaps first mentioned in the 3rd c. AD Aksumite inscription recorded by Cosmas Indicopleustes in the 6th century...
, Amharans
Amhara people
Amhara are a highland people inhabiting the Northwestern highlands of Ethiopia. Numbering about 19.8 million people, they comprise 26% of the country's population, according to the 2007 national census...
, Showans
Shewa
Shewa is a historical region of Ethiopia, formerly an autonomous kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire...
, and Tigreans
Tigray-Tigrinya people
Tigray-Tigrinya are an ethnic group who live in the southern, central and northern parts of Eritrea and the northern highlands of Ethiopia's Tigray province. They also live in Ethiopia's former provinces of Begemder and Wollo, which are today mostly part of Amhara Region, though a few regions...
-- and 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...
newcomers. Mentewab's attempt to strengthen ties between the monarchy and the Oromo by arranging the marriage of her son to the daughter of an Oromo chieftain from Yejju backfired in the long run.
Her attempt to continue in this role after the death of her son (1755) into the reign of her grandson Iyoas
Iyoas I of Ethiopia
Iyoas I or Joas I was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
brought her into conflict with Wubit (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 the Oromo language
Oromo language
Oromo, also known as Afaan Oromo, Oromiffa, Afan Boran, Afan Orma, and sometimes in other languages by variant spellings of these names , is an Afro-Asiatic language, and the most widely spoken of the Cushitic family. Forms of Oromo are spoken as a first language by more than 25 million Oromo and...
rather than in Amharic, and favored his mother's Yejju relatives over the Qwarans of his grandmothers family. Iyoas further increased the favor given to the Oromo when adult. On the death of the Ras of Amhara, he attempted to promote his uncle Lubo governor of that province, but the outcry led his advisor Wolde Leul to convince him to change his mind.
The conflict between these two queens led to Mentewab summoning her relatives with their armed supporters from Qwara
Qwara
Qwara may refer to:*Qwara province in Ethiopia*Qwara language*Qwara , a district in the approximate location as the province...
to Gondar to support her. Wubit responded by summoning her own Oromo relatives and their considerable forces from Yejju. Fearing that the power struggle between the Qwarans and the Yejju Oromos led by the Emperor's mother Wubit would erupt into an armed conflict, the nobility summoned the powerful Ras Mikael Sehul
Mikael Sehul
Mikael Sehul was a Ras or governor of Tigray 1748–71 and again from 1772 until his death...
to 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. Mikael settled soon as the leader of Amharic-Tigrean (Christian) camp of the struggle.
Iyaos' 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 like Fasil, 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.
An aged and infirm imperial uncle prince was enthroned as Emperor Yohannes II
Yohannes II of Ethiopia
Yohannes II or John II was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the son of Iyasu I, and brother of Emperors Tekle Haymanot, Dawit III and Bakaffa....
. Ras Mikael soon had him murdered, and underage Tekle Haymanot II
Tekle Haymanot II of Ethiopia
Tekle Haymanot II was as Admas Sagad III of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
was elevated to the throne. Then Mikael Sehul was defeated in the Three battles of Sarbakusa and the triumvirate of Fasil, Goshu of Amhara, and Wand Bewossen
Wand Bewossen
Wand Bewossen is a military figure in Ethiopian history. He was on the losing side in the Battle of Nefas Mewcha , but one of the victorious generals in the Three battles of Sarbakusa...
of Begemder
Begemder
Begemder was a province in the northwestern part of Ethiopia. There are several proposed etymologies for this name...
placed 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 Giyorgis
Tekle Giyorgis I of Ethiopia
Tekle Giyorgis I was Emperor of Ethiopia intermittently between 20 July 1779 and June 1800, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
is famous for having been elevated to the throne altogether six times and also deposed six times.
Meanwhile, Amha Iyasus
Amha Iyasus
Amha Iyasus, better known as Ammehayes , was a Meridazmach of Shewa, an important Amhara noble of Ethiopia...
of Shewa
Shewa
Shewa is a historical region of Ethiopia, formerly an autonomous kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire...
(1744–1775) wisely kept out of this endless fighting, devoting his energies to consolidating his kingdom and founding Ankober
Ankober
Ankober is a town in central Ethiopia and one of the capitals of the former kingdom of Shewa. Located in the Semien Shewa Zone of the Amhara Region, Ankober is perched on the eastern escarpment of the Ethiopian Highlands 40 kilometers to the east of Debre Birhan, with a latitude and longitude of ,...
. This was a practice that his successors followed to the end of the kingdom.
The first years of the 19th century were disturbed by fierce campaigns between Ras Gugsa
Gugsa of Yejju
Gugsa of Yejju was a Ras of Begemder , and Inderase of the Emperor of Ethiopia. According to Nathaniel Pearce, he took the Christian name of Wolde Mikael. He was the son of Mersu Barentu and Kefey, the sister of Ras Aligaz. Both Bahru Zewde and Paul B...
of Begemder, and The Great Ras
Ras
Ras is the name given to a family of related proteins found inside cells, including human cells. All Ras protein family members belong to a class of protein called small GTPase, and are involved in transmitting signals within cells...
Wolde Selassie
Wolde 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...
of Tigray, who fought over control of the figurehead Emperor Egwale Seyon
Egwale Seyon of Ethiopia
Egwale Seyon or Gwalu was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
. Wolde Selassie was eventually the victor, and practically ruled the whole country as Enderase till his death in 1816 at the age of eighty. Dejazmach Sabagadis
Sabagadis
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.- Life :...
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...
succeeded Wolde Selassie in 1817, through force of arms, to become warlord of Tigray.
This constant civil war left Ethiopia isolated, an isolation pierced by very few European travellers. One was the French physician C.J. Poncet, who went there in 1698, via Sennar and the Blue Nile
Blue Nile
The Blue Nile is a river originating at Lake Tana in Ethiopia. With the White Nile, the river is one of the two major tributaries of the Nile...
. After him James Bruce
James Bruce
James Bruce was a Scottish traveller and travel writer who spent more than a dozen years in North Africa and Ethiopia, where he traced the origins of the Blue Nile.-Youth:...
entered the country in 1769, with the object of discovering the sources of the Nile, which he was convinced lay in Ethiopia. Accordingly, leaving Massawa in September 1769, he travelled via Axum to Gondar, where he was well received by Emperor Tekle Haymanot II. Bruce left Ethiopia in 1772, by way of Sennar and the Nile
Nile
The Nile is a major north-flowing river in North Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. It is long. It runs through the ten countries of Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Egypt.The Nile has two major...
.
The end of the Zemene Mesafint came with the rise of Kassa Hailu—better known by his later throne name of Tewodros II of Ethiopia
Tewodros II of Ethiopia
Tewodros II was the Emperor of Ethiopia from 1855 until his death....
. Originally little more than a bandit surviving in the Ethiopian marches against the Sudan, Kassa won his way to control of first one province of Ethiopia, Dembiya
Dembiya
Dembiya is a historic region of Ethiopia, intimately linked with Lake Tana. According to the account of Manuel de Almeida, Dembiya was "bounded on East by Begemder, on South by Gojjam, on West by Agaws of Achefer and Tangha...
, then following a series of battles beginning with Gur Amba
Battle of Gur Amba
The Battle of Gur Amba was fought on 27 September 1852 between the forces of the Ethiopian regent, Ras Ali II, and the rebel forces of Kassa Hailu. Kassa was victorious, and Goshu Zewde of Gojjam, the commander of the regent's forces, was killed...
(27 September 1852) and ending with Battle of Derasge
Battle of Derasge
The Battle of Derasge was fought on 9 February 1855 between Kassa Hailu's forces and the forces of the warlord Wube Haile Maryam. Kassa won the battle, and two days later crowned Tewodros II of Ethiopia at the church of Derasge Mariam near Mekane Berhan....
(1855), came to control all of Ethiopia. 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.
Further reading
- Mordechai Abir, The Era of the Princes: the Challenge of Islam and the Re-unification of the Christian empire, 1769-1855. London: Longmans, 1968.