Aligaz of Yejju
Aligaz of Yejju (died 1803) was
Life
He fought and killed
Tekle Giyorgis, however, was not Aligaz's only problem. For much of the first year of Hezqeyas' rule Aligaz could not directly intervene to support this emperor because he had his hands full consolidating his own position amongst the
Further once Tekle Giyorgis was safely out of the picture, his puppet Emperor Hezqeyas met with
Then, in an attempt to overthrow Aligaz, Haile Wand Bewossen freed Tekle Giyorgis in 1793, after the Emperor had been confined for two years and eight months.[8] Tekle Giyorgis then marched against his rival Emperor, Hezqeyas, who was dwelling at Gondar; Hezqeyas left Gondar and sought the help of Dejazmach Haile Eshte, and they were joined by Aligaz. A series of battles followed that year, which led to Heqzeyas fleeing alone to Dengel Ber.[9]
These defeats also led to Ras Aligaz's fall from leadership of the Yejju. When Hezqeyas returns to Gondar in late 1793 at the head of an army, his supporters include Dejazmach Gugsa, the nephew of Aligaz. After fourteen years as Enderase, Ras Aligaz Gwangul died in 1803 due to an illness. His period of rule was punctuated by significant civil wars and as a result, he did not exercise complete authority continuously throughout his years as Enderase. Ras Asrat and Ras Wolde Gabriel scored decisive victories against him, and at one point, had pushed him out of Begemeder which they ruled for some time. The transfer of power from Aligaz to Gugsa made the sons of Aligaz subservient to him.[10]
Notes
- ^ Mordechai Abir, The era of the princes: the challenge of Islam and the re-unification of the Christian empire, 1769-1855 (London: Longmans, 1968), p. 31
- ^ Following Shiferaw Bekele, "The Chronicle of Täklä Giyorgis I (first r. 1779-84): An Introductory Assessment" in Studia Aethiopica, Verena Böll editor (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2004), pp. 247-258. In Weld Blundell's translation of Tekle Giyorgis' Royal Chronicles, Azaj Dagale and Kantiba Ayadar were given credit for bringing Hezqeyas down from Wehni. H. Weld Blundell, The Royal chronicle of Abyssinia, 1769-1840 (Cambridge: University Press, 1922), pp. 392f
- ^ Weld Blundell, Royal chronicle, pp. 399, 405
- ^ Weld Blundell, Royal chronicle, p. 412
- ^ Weld Blundell, Royal chronicle, p. 393
- ^ Donald Crummey, "Family and Property amongst the Amhara Nobility", Journal of African History, special issue: The History of the Family in Africa, 24 (1983), p. 218
- ^ Weld Blundell, Royal chronicle, pp. 421f
- ^ Weld Blundell, Royal chronicle, p. 424
- ^ Weld Blundell, Royal chronicle, pp. 427f
- ^ Molla Tikuye, The Rise and Fall of The Yajju Dynasty (1784 - 1980), p. 203