Negus Mikael Ali of Wollo

[Digdahab]

Very interesting people our neighbours

Mikael of Wollo (1850 - 8 September 1918), born Mohammed Ali, was an army commander and a member of the nobility of the Ethiopian Empire. He was the father of the "uncrowned" Emperor Iyasu V. He changed his name to Mikael upon converting to Christianity.



Mohammed Ali, an Oromo, was born in Wollo. His father was Imam Ali Abba Bula and his mother was Woizera ("Dame") Getie.
Mohammed Ali was a relative of Queen Worqitu of Wollo.[1] Queen Worqitu befriended a young Shewan named Sahle Maryam when he escaped from Emperor Theodore II. In the mid-1850s, Theodore imprisoned the young man in his stronghold at Magdala. The imprisonment was not harsh and, while imprisoned, Sahle Maryam married one of Theodore's daughters.

Mohammed Ali became a close friend of Sahle Maryam who was six years older than him. In time, Sahle Maryam was proclaimed Emperor Menelik II and Mohammed Ali became one of his loyal supporters. As a result, by 1874 Menelik appointed Mohammed Ali as governor of Wollo.[1] However, when Mohammed returned to Wollo from a campaign with Menelik in Gojjam, he found his position threatened by an anti-Shewan revolt. He decided to forsake his friend to maintain his power base and sided with Yohannes IV, who was about to march on Shewa and likely to defeat Menelik.

"Although this political manoeuvre succeeded over the longer run," Harold Marcus observes, "Mahammad Ali immediately suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Shewan army."[2]
Despite Menelik's victory over the Wollo, Emperor Yohannes induced him to submit 20 March 1878, which included transferring Mohammed Ali's allegiance from Menelik to Yohannes.

Later that year, the Council of Boru Meda, held under the Emperor's direction, directed all Moslems holding office in Ethiopia convert to Christianity within three months or renounce their positions. "Having concluded that Wollo was worth a mass," Marcus writes, "Mohammad Ali led his people to Christianity." While he was baptized with the name "Mikael" and became a Ras (equivalent to "Duke"), many of his fellow Wollo Oromo refused to forsake their faith and left for sanctuary in Metemma, Jimma, and Harar.[3] Mikael of Wollo, as he was now known, married Shoagarad Menelik,[nb 1] Menelik's eldest daughter, becoming the third of his four wives. Mikael founded Dessie, the first town in Wollo and its new capital.

In 1896, during the First Italo-Ethiopian War, Mikael fought for Menelik and led the feared Oromo cavalry against the invading Italians at the Battle of Adowa. An Italian brigade began a fighting retreat towards the main Italian positions. However, the brigade inadvertently marched into a narrow valley where Mikael's cavalry slaughtered them while shouting "Reap! Reap!" (Ebalgume! Ebalgume!).

The remains of the brigade's commander were never found.[4]
Following Menelik's death in 1913, Mikael's son, Lij Iyasu, ascended as Iyasu V. Per Menelik's wishes, Ras Tessema Nadew became the Regent for Menelik's 18-year-old grandson. However, that same year, Tessema Nadew died. While Iyasu was now on his own, he was never fully accepted. More importantly, he was never formally crowned Emperor. However, on the instructions of Iyasu, his father Mikael was anointed Negus.[nb 2] Mikael then became the power behind the throne.

During World War I, concerns arose over Iyasu's ties to the Central Powers, over his possible support for Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, and over his potential conversion to Islam. In response to these concerns, on 27 September 1916, Iyasu was deposed and Mikael's sister-in-law, Leult ("Princess") Zewditu, was pronounced Negiste Negest ("Queen of Kings") Zewditu I. Zewditu was Menelik's third daughter and she was made Regent over young Tafari Makonnen, the future Emperor Haile Selassie.

Negus Mikael's response to Iyasu being deposed was swift. On 7 October, Mikael set out from Wollo at the head of an army of 80,000 men to invade Shewa and to reinstate his son; Iyasu would join him there with an army of his own. On 27 October, Negus Mikael confronted the main body of the forces supporting Zewditu in the Battle of Segale.

Mikael attacked first, but ammunition for his machine guns ran out early and his artillery was silenced quickly. His infantry and cavalry assaults ran directly into the murderous fire of an enemy ready for his attacks.[6] Iyasu was detoured on his way to the battlefield and arrived too late to help. He was only able to see that his father was defeated, and fled the battlefield and went into hiding.[7]

Mikael was captured and put under the supervision of Fitawrari ("Commander of the Vanguard") Habte Giyorgis, who confined on an island in Lake Chabo in Gurageland. After two and a half years, Mikael successfully petitioned to Empress Zewditu to be moved from the island, and he was put under house arrest at Holeta Genet, where he died six months later.[8]

They had mercy for their foes.. the habesha are admirable people, can't help but think that.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dessie_TosssaView.JPG

Can you believe this is Ethiopia, Amhara region?
I thought it was Luxembourg or something....

[The_Emperior5]

who is dis guy

[Digdahab]

Emperior this man was the father of Ethiopias last muslim emperor !
sadly he converted to christianity and in return received negus title, women , land ..royalty..
While his people mostly fled to Harar, Jimma and other muslim lands

[The_Emperior5]

So he is a murtad

[Digdahab]

We must learn from this amazing history, I never said you should admire HIM .

[St8OuttaDirree]

Emperior this man was the father of Ethiopias last muslim emperor !
sadly he converted to christianity and in return received negus title, women , land ..royalty..
While his people mostly fled to Harar, Jimma and other muslim lands

His people didn't move around. His people were the Wallo Oromos, some yes moved to harargee but not many.
He was forced to convert, all these stories you read on the web won't say that but the habesha forced a large amount of them to convert.

[original dervish]

TODAY WOLLO IS A STRONGHOLD OF ISLAM IN ETHIOPIA

[Aliyyi Oromada]

Well it always was a stronghold. The conversions were also out of compulsion and not out of conviction so most people just went back to practicing Islam. These regions are predominantly Muslim even according to the 1994 EPRDF census.



The 1994 population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: South Wollo Adm. Zone.

Anyways these ruling dynasties are usually very flimsy people and would do anything to keep their worldly possessions. Ras Ali, Abba Jifar of Jimma are examples of this. The real stories that Muslims should be reading is about the Ulama, the Shuyukh in Wallo who were active in preserving Islam and those who continued fighting after their land was taken. Not just the Wallo Oromo, but our brothers the Argobba, who are habasha Muslims.

Shaykh Talha is believed to have escaped from the massacre of a large number of Muslims in the hands of the forces of Yohannes at Bakke in Qallu in 1298 A. H. /1880-81 A.D (45). These Muslims had preferred death to abjuration of their faith. Shaykh Talha then established his base in his home district of Argobba in eastern Qallu (46), from where he declared an all-out Jihad (47). That the Wallo Muslims revolted was neither an isolated phenomenon nor the earliest uprising can be seen if one keeps in mind the fact that from April to June 1878, a revolt under the leadership of Hasan Wadajo was raging in Darra. Yohannes led an unsuccessful campaign against Hasen although he obtained considerable booty. In June 1878 Hasen succeeded in defeating the forces sent by Yohannes and Menilek led, respectively, by Mika'el and Masasa (48).

The principal cause for the armed insurrections which engulfed eastern Wallo in the early 1880s were, firstly, the attempt of Yohannes and his vassals to impose the Christian faith on the Muslim population of Wallo, secondly, the heavy economic burden which local Muslims were made to bear by maintaining a Christian clerical, administrative and military class through their labour and tribute; and, thirdly, the severity and ruthlessness with which the policy of conversion was carried out - all of which sparked off a spontaneous and widespread popular revulsion and reaction. This was articulated and channeled into a religious-political opposition led by the local Muslim religious notables and political leaders. Islam was thus not merely a rallying point of such uprising; it was itself the motive force behind them.

The period from 1880-81 to 1884 was one of organization of the movement led by Shaykh Talha and of recruitment of followers. In order to consolidate his power before proclaiming the 1884 revolt, Shaykh Talha employed three strategies: firstly, appealing to the religious sentiment of the ordinary people, mainly of eastern Qallu; secondly, established contact with disgruntled elements of the local aristocracy; and thirdly, mobilising support for his cause among the 'ulama'a and balabbat of Albukko, Qallu and Reqqe who are believed to have sworn oath of allegiance to him (49). It is perhaps after this development that he established his earliest relation with, and sought assistance from, the Mahadists (50), although his collusion with them came later. Shaykh Talha was able, through his organizing skill and power of persuasion, to build a small but formidable striking force which operated in the lowlands of Qallu and Garfa .

To read the full article: http://www.ethiopianmuslims.net/Islam_i ... _Jafar.htm


You can also find examples of good sincere rulers who had dignity. For example the story of, Firrisaa of Gumma sultanate.

Gumma succeeded in forming a Muslim League, which included other Gibe states, except Gera, but before the Muslim League had time to impose its will on its non-Muslim Oromo neighbours, Menelik's invasion of the Gibe region changed the course of history. However, even after the Amhara occupation of the Gibe region, Gumma remained the hotbed of rebellion and Muslim fanaticism against alien colonial administration. Gumma's resistance was inspired, organized and led by Firrisa, the heir to the throne of Gumma. After the occupation of Gumma, Firrisa fled to Massawa. There he met with Shaykh Abdurahman, a scholar fugitive from Gomma. The two men made several pilgrimages to Mecca and Medina. Inflamed by the Jihadic idea Firrisa went to the Sudan, where he assembled his followers and returned to the Western Oromoland in 1899. He soon proclaimed himself King of Gumma "independent of the Amhara". Although support for his call was not lacking, his Jihad was short lived, as the [Shewa] force which had superiority in firearms defeated his followers and captured Firrisa and Shaykh Abdurahman in 1902. The latter managed to escape, while the former was condemned to death together with many of his followers. Firrisa demanded to be executed holding the Koran in his hands, and before the hanging he cried out that he would be buried outside Ethiopia (insisting Gumma was still independent).

- The Oromo of Ethiopia: A History 1570-1860 (Author: Prof. Muhammed Hassan)

Thats how a leader of his people is supposed to go out. May Allah accept him.