In
celebrating this Anniversary of the establishment of the only high school
named after Ethiopia�s great Emperor Yohannes IV in that part of
Ethiopia of our Tigrai no less than four million people we need to reflect
on the painful journey we Ethiopians have to travel to this point in our
lives in the Diaspora. I am wag in between great satisfaction, of
celebrating the anniversary of the only monument of some note to one of
Ethiopia�s greatest Emperors (who defended Ethiopia against all foreign
and domestic disruptive forces), and sadness, of the realization that even
after a hundred and eighteen years after the death of Emperor Yohannes IV
(1889) that we do not have a proper monument for Ethiopia�s greatest
defender and protector. As one scholar once said, "all the great men
of history were driven by ambition. It goes hand in hand with power.
Contrary to public opinion, the world is not divided by good and evil, but
between those who do and those who do not, the visionaries and the blind,
the realists and the romanticists. The world does not turn on good deeds
and sentiments... but on achievements." We cannot let the great
legacy of Emperor Yohannes IV to become just a leaf in the many pages of
history, and we must not permit history to be falsified.
Without
a doubt our Emperor was an achiever and visionary. We have streets named
after foreigners whose service to Ethiopia at best is quite dubious, and
yet we do not have a single monument to Emperor Yohannes IV in the Capital
City of a nation he preserved in freedom and dignity. Emperor Yohannes IV
died from wounds received in a battle fighting against a vicious enemy
(the successors of the Mahdi, Sudan) that was scourging the region with
fanatic brutality and stopping it on its track to Gondar. Emperor Yohannes
IV did not die of old age or sickness in bed surrounded by conniving
courtiers in intrigue filled palace, but on the battle field among his
great generals and worriers, the true sons of Ethiopia, in the wastelands
of Ethiopia�s Northwestern borderlands defending the honor and freedom
of his people and nation.
At
times, particularly insidious groups of people, the Mahel Sefaris, have
been writing and revising history about the Napier Expedition trying to
undermine the patriotism and dedication with which Yohannes fought to
preserve the independence and territorial integrity of Ethiopia. In an
effort to cover the far more serious treasonous agreements and
collaboration of Emperor after him with the Italians selling off
Ethiopia's vital interest for money and political power, such individuals
try to divert our attention by writing about what Kassa (before he became
Emperor) did or did not do to counter the Napier Expedition of twelve
thousand well equipped professional soldiers who were armed to the teeth
with the latest "modern" guns and canons. The British Government
sent the Napier Expedition (1867-1868) in order to free its illegally
detained diplomats and other citizens by Emperor Tewodros II, who had
alienated at that stage of his reign most of the leaders of Ethiopia and
theEthiopian Orthodox Church. Almost all the leaders of the great houses
of Ethiopian politics, including Menilik of Shoa, Gobeze of Lasta, Wube's
descendants of Semine (Gondar/Begemder), Workit and Mestawot of Wollo et
cetera were all against Emperor Tewodros.
By
contrast, Kassa with his eight to ten thousand men was the least important
political personality at that time compared to Wubei's family, with over
thirty thousand; Gobeze, with sixty thousand; Menilik, with over twenty
thousand; and Workit and Mestawot, with another twenty to thirty thousand
armies. None of those leaders, who were actually near or about Meqdella
(the fort of last stand of Tewodros) and who could have easily defended
the Emperor if they wanted to, simply looked on waiting for leftovers when
the British liquidated the diminished Imperial force of Emperor Tewodros.
Blaming Kassa, a minor leader with limited military capacity, for not
stopping the British is unconscionable and a distortion of history and the
responsibilities of leaders. It is like asking the Cheka-shume to mount a
military attack on a formidable enemy while the Dejazmatches are doing
nothing.Moreover, those same leaders Menilik, Gobeze et cetera were also
sending envoys to General Napier trying to make favorable arrangement of
succession once the British finished off Tewodros II. One of the British
Diplomats, Henry Blanc, who was one of the freed prisoners from Meqdella,
summed up his views at that time on the rebellious leaders as follows:
�Gobeze and Menilek, had both in view to themselves rulers of Abyssinia,
by the possession of Magdalla... All wanted Mr. Rassam, not merely to help
them, but to give them the mountain.� [Blanc, 271-272]
The
fact of the matter is that Emperor Tewodros brought about his own violent
end through his own action even endangering Ethiopia's national security.
Of course, I grieve too at the loss of an Emperor who started out with
such wonderful and great vision of Ethiopia, and later turning that vision
into a nightmare of indiscriminate killing and all kinds of atrocities and
breaking international law principles and norms of diplomatic hospitality.
Even if accepting the insignificant part played by Kassa as a young man
before he became Emperor Yohannes IV as regrettable a mistake;
nevertheless, Yohannes's many great deeds as Emperor completely overshadow
any such mistakes. Even the briefest sketch of the life of Emperor
Yohannes IV shows us his continuous struggle against the World powers of
his time to preserve the territorial integrity and sovereignty of
Ethiopia. To wit, consider four of his dramatic military engagements: Even
the briefest sketch of the life of Emperor Yohannes IV shows us his
continuous struggle against the World powers of his time to preserve the
territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ethiopia. To mention among four
of his greatest military achievements and engagements:
1.
Gundet, 16 November 1875 against Egypt
2. Gura
, 8-9 March 1876 against Egypt
3.
Dogali, 26 January 1887 against Italy
4.
Gallabat/Metema, 12 March 1889 against the Mahdists where Yohannes died in
battle.The British were intimately involved with the political life of the
people of Egypt and Sudan. In fact, at one time the British were
completely controlling the foreign policy of those nations and were
throwing their weight behind the schemes to undermine the sovereignty and
territorial integrity of Ethiopia, a monumental mistake in their foreign
policy, which ultimately and negatively affected everyone in the area
dearly to this day.
Emperor
Yohannes IV was a very religious man. As a mater of fact, towards the last
years of his life, he was to abdicate his Throne and join a monastic life,
but stayed in power because he was pressured to do so by his loyal
generals and the Church fathers who pleaded with him that if he were to
abdicate Ethiopia will be left without a great defender against the
vultures surrounding her. There is no doubt about Emperor Yohannes�s
integrity, ethics, and compassion for his people. �There is no question
that next to Emperor Zera Yacob, Emperor Yohannes was the most devoted and
faithful servant of the Church of Ethiopia. He established great holdings
and churches throughout his reign. Even at a time he was a struggling
contender to the Ethiopian Imperial Crown with limited means, he devoted
almost all of his personal fortune to buy land and built a church and
sanctuary for Ethiopian pilgrims who traveled to the Holy City of
Jerusalem. It was his foundational holding that Ethiopian pilgrims to this
day visit when they travel to Jerusalem. His fear for God, humility, and
sense of justice, and above all his sense of duty is unmatched by any
Ethiopian Emperor or leader ever. It is his sense of duty to his people
that led him back [to Gallabat/Metema] when he was halfway coming to Shoa
to demonstrate his mighty army against the forces of Menilik for his
uncooperative stance when Menelik decided to turn back instead of facing
the Mahdists, who were on their way to attack Gondar, destroy Churches and
massacre Ethiopians.
Emperor
Yohannes IV was truly an Ethiopian Emperor of the people who envisioned
one great Empire and a glorious people living in peace, harmony, and
justice. In his effort to unite the people of Ethiopia he foresaw the
importance of having a common language. In his great wisdom of
statesmanship, rather than trying to make his own mother-tongue (Tigregna)
as the national language of Ethiopia and his Court, he opted to institute
the Amharic language, a language that he himself was learning to speak, as
the official language of his Imperial Court and Ethiopia�s national
language. The Amharic language being a relatively young language was very
much susceptible to great changes, growth, and incorporation of different
words from sources from the diverse people and cultures of Ethiopia was
attractive and ideal to use as an instrument to forge �unity� among
the diverse people and cultures of Ethiopia. It takes a real genius to
understand that sociological factor and proclaim such a language as a
national Court language.
Emperor
Yohannes IV tried to create close relationships with the great houses
around the country by appointing courtiers and representatives from all
over Ethiopia. His court was dynamic and inclusive. There has been some
revisionist lie written by some Mahel Sefaris trying to paint the actions
of Emperor Yohannes IV, actions taken in defense of the unity and
territorial integrity of Ethiopia against the encroaching Turkish/Ottoman
insurrection into Ethiopia, as a campaign against Muslim Ethiopians.
Nothing could be further from the truth for his military campaigns were
not aimed per se against Ethiopian Muslims but against Ottoman Turks
aggression and collaborators. Because of his devotion to Ethiopia and his
heroic decisiveness, he brought stability and stopped the local rivalries
between the descendants of Mestawat and Workit in Wollo. The threat of
disruptive factions against the unity and territorial integrity of
Ethiopia involved at some level with the Ottoman Turkish expansionist
policies was the reality of the period not some academic interpretative
indulgence. Emperor Yohannes IV supported the claims of Ras Michael,
(Later elevated to the status of a King, to be succeeded by his son Iyassu,
the future contender as the legitimate Heir to the Throne of Emperor
Menilik II.) whose claims and service to Ethiopia deserved such
recognition and thereby succeeded in bringing stability to the region. At
that time the national stability and security of Ethiopia were threatened
by the infiltrations of the Turkish/Ottoman agents.
Further
proof of his love for all Ethiopians is best illustrated in the choice he
made in his private life: he chose as his wife an Afar Moslem lady with
whom he was truly in love. It is to be recalled that he spent his youthful
years in the Afar area mobilizing his supporters who were mostly Afar
Moslems before he challenged Wag Shum Gobeze who was claiming the
Ethiopian Crown. It is during such period in the Afar region that Yohannes
wedded the daughter of one of his Afar leader�s supporters. When his
wife tragically died at a young age, Yohannes never remarried, rather
contemplated to abandon his crown and enter a monastic life. It is one of
the great love stories in the world that we all should appreciate and
learn from. Even more important is the fact that during his fight against
the Egyptians and later the followers of the Mahdi of the Sudan, his great
army consisted of contingents of Kunama Moslem leaders and soldiers, as
well as, Ben Amir commanders and soldiers.
During
Emperor Yohannes IV reign, Ethiopia did gain some part of its territories
that was occupied by foreign forces. Yohannes never signed a single treaty
or international instrument that jeopardized Ethiopia�s sovereignty or
territorial integrity. He never received a single penny from any foreign
government undermining any Ethiopian king or leader. As a matter of fact,
he sealed his unwavering commitment in his own blood by dying on a
battlefield defending Ethiopia�a true sacrifice of love, honor, and
courage. There is much we all can learn from the courageous act of Emperor
Yohannes IV about the price we must be prepared to pay for our Ethiopia.
It is not enough to throw darts of insidious insults from the safety of
comfortable dwelling places in the West; one must follow in the footsteps
of such heroic and dignified Ethiopians.
Bereket Kiros
Seattle, Washington
Saturday, June 10,
2006
