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
