Battle of Dabarki
30°31′N 30°52′E / 30.51°N 30.87°E
| Battle of Dabarki | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Ethiopian–Ottoman border conflict | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Ethiopian Empire |
 Egypt | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Kassa Hailu (WIA) | Khalid Khusraw Pasha | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 16,000 spearmen |
800 riflemen 2 cannons | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Heavy | Light | ||||||
The Battle of Dabarki, also known as the Battle of Dabarqi, was a military engagement fought between the Ethiopian Empire and the province of Egypt in 1848. The battle was a heavy defeat for the Ethiopians and would spur the modernization of the Ethiopian army.
History
[edit]In the late 1840s, Kassa Hailu decided strengthen his position by damaging his major adversary, namely the Muslim power Egypt, then a nominal province of the Ottoman Empire. Invading through Ethiopia's western frontier, the Ethiopian army advanced into the Egyptian-controlled Sudan and occupied Metemma without resistance.[1][2]
In March 1848, Kassa and his force of 16,000 warriors attacked Dabarki, a fortified post garrisoned with a battalion of 800 Egyptian troops and two cannons.[3][4][5] Kassa led his men in a frontal charge against the Egyptian fort and the Ethiopians suffered heavy losses by the accurate musket fire and the cannons, Kassa himself was slightly wounded during the assault.[6] After this he led the remnants of his army back to Begemder.[7][5]
The battle at Dabarki greatly affected Kassa's military thinking, inspiring him to modernize the Ethiopian army with modern artillery and firearms.[7][5] Several sources have described the battle as the first significant defeat in Tewodros' military career.[2][5]
References
[edit]- ↑ El Amin, Abdel Karim. Ahmed, Abdel Karim (2009). AN HISTORICAL STUDY OF THE SHAWAN – AMHARA CONQUEST OF THE OROMO and SIDAMA REGIONS OF SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA 1865-1900
- 1 2 Dunn, John. "'For God, Emperor, and Country!' The Evolution of Ethiopia's Nineteenth-Century Army", War in History, 1 (1994), pp. 278-99. Accessed February 3, 2021.
- ↑ Abir, Mordechai. Ethiopia: the Era of the Princes. p. 129.
- ↑ Abir, M. "The Origins of the Ethiopian-Egyptian Border Problem in the Nineteenth Century", Journal of African History 8, no. 3 (1967): 443-61. Accessed February 3, 2021
- 1 2 3 4 Dunn, John P. (2005). Khedive Ismail's Army. Psychology Press. ISBN 978-0-7146-5704-2.
- ↑ Abir, Mordechai. Ethiopia: the Era of the Princes. p. 129.
- 1 2 Marcus, Harold G. (2002-02-22). A History of Ethiopia. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-22479-7.