Battle of Magdala
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Battle of Magdala | |||||||
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Part of the 1868 Expedition to Abyssinia | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Supported by: Ethiopian rebels[1] | Ethiopian Empire | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Robert Napier | Tewodros II | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
13,000[2] | ~4,000 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
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The Battle of Magdala was the conclusion of the
In March 1866, a British
The British won the battle and, rather than being subjected to capture, Tewodros committed suicide as the fortress was finally seized.
Preparation and formation
Advance elements of the British military units arrived at
The British were dressed in new
Lord Napier arrived in early January 1868 and the expedition started from the advance camp at
Composed of some 12,000 British and Indian troops, beside Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers, the field force comprised:
British:
Indian:
While it is difficult to obtain an accurate order of battle of the Abyssinian forces, from British reports it appears to have consisted of a small amount of artillery and several thousands of light infantry lacking firearms.
The battle
Before the force could actually attack Magdala, they had to get past the plateau at Arogye, which lay across the only route to Magdala. It certainly looked formidable to attack. The British could see the way barred by many thousands of armed Abyssinians camped around the hillsides with up to 30 artillery pieces.
The British did not expect that the Abyssinian warriors would leave their defences to attack them and paid little regard to their defensive positions as they formed up to deploy. But the Emperor did order an attack, with many thousands of soldiers armed with little more than spears. The 4th Regiment of Foot quickly redeployed to meet the charging mass of warriors and poured a devastating fire into their ranks. When two Indian infantry regiments contributed their firepower, the onslaught became even more devastating. Despite this, the Abyssinian soldiers continued their attack, losing over 500 with more wounded during the ninety minutes of fighting, most of them at a point little over 30 yards from the British lines. During the chaotic battle, an advance guard unit of the 33rd Regiment outgunned some of the Abyssinian artillerymen and captured their artillery pieces. The surviving Abyssinian soldiers then retreated back onto Magdala.
The Anglo-Indian advance party involved in this first clash numbered between 600 and 700 men. One of the missionaries who observed the fighting noted that the breech-loading
In his despatch to London, Lord Napier reported: "Yesterday morning (we) descended three thousand nine hundred feet to Bashilo River and approached Magdala with First Brigade to reconnoitre it. Theodore opened fire with seven guns from outwork, one thousand feet above us, and three thousand five hundred men of the garrison made a gallant sortie which was repulsed with very heavy loss and the enemy driven into Magdala. British Loss, twenty wounded."
Two of the British soldiers wounded in the attack would later die from their injuries.
The following day the British force moved on to Magdala. Writing later, Clements Markham recalled "a curious phenomenon" that occurred on the day of the final assault: "Early in the forenoon a dark-brown circle appeared round the sun, like a blister, about 15° in radius; light clouds passed and repassed over it, but it did not disappear until the usual rain-storm came up from the eastward late in the afternoon. Walda Gabir, the king's valet, informed me that Theodore saw it when he came out of his tent that morning, and that he remarked that it was an omen of bloodshed."[6]
Tewodros II sent two of the hostages on parole to offer terms. Napier insisted on the release of all the hostages and an unconditional surrender. Tewodros refused to cede to the unconditional surrender, but did release the European hostages. The British continued the advance and assaulted the fortress. (The native hostages were later found to have had their hands and feet cut off before being sent over the edge of the precipice surrounding the plateau.)[7]
The bombardment began with
On reaching the gate there was a pause in the advance, as it was discovered the engineer unit had forgotten their powder kegs and scaling ladders and were ordered to return for them.
As more men poured through and opened fire, advancing with their bayonets fixed, the defenders withdrew through the second gate. The party rushed the Koket-bir before it was fully closed and then took the second gate, breaking through to the amba. Ensign Wynter scrambled up onto the top of the second gate and fixed the 33rd Regimental
Tewodros II was found dead inside the second gate, having shot himself with a pistol that had been a gift from Queen Victoria. When his death was announced, all resistance ceased. His body was cremated and buried inside the church by the priests. The church was guarded by soldiers from the 33rd Regiment.
Succession and power struggle
Magdala was formerly in the territory of the Muslim Gallas (
For the victory in the campaign, Lieutenant-General Napier was ennobled by Queen Victoria, and became Baron Napier of Magdala. Officers and soldiers who took part in the campaign were awarded the Abyssinian War Medal.
After the withdrawal of the British, fighting for the succession to Tewodros' throne raged in Ethiopia from 1868 to 1872. Eventually, it was
Tewodros had asked his wife, the Empress Tiruwork Wube, in the event of his death, to put his son, Prince Alemayehu, under the protection of the British. This decision was apparently made in fear that his life would be taken by any aspirant for the empire of Abyssinia. In accordance with these wishes, Alemayehu was taken to London, where he was presented to Queen Victoria, who took a liking to the young boy. Alemayehu later studied at Cheltenham College, Rugby School and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. However, both the Queen and Napier were later concerned with the subsequent development of the young prince, who became increasingly lonely, unhappy and depressed during this time. In 1879, the prince died of illness at the age of 19. He was buried near St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle with a funeral plaque placed to his memory by Queen Victoria.[1]
One of the British soldiers,
Looting
On 19 April, having first blown up the fortress and burned the city, Napier commenced the return march. According to historian
Many looted objects, cultural artefacts and art objects found their way into state and private collections, family possessions, and the hands of ordinary soldiers. Most of the books and manuscripts went to the
The scientific acquisitions and expropriated articles of the Magdala expedition are credited with stimulating and promoting an interest in the history and culture of Ethiopia within Europe, laying the foundations for modern
From time to time, some of the looted treasure has been returned to Ethiopia; since 1999, the
Returned items include:
- An edition of the Emperor Yohannes IVin the 1870s
- Lady Valerie Meux's collection of Ethiopian manuscripts were bequeathed in 1902 to Emperor Menelik IIin her will; however, shortly following her death in 1910, this was overturned.
- One of the two looted crowns of Tewodros was returned to Empress Zawditu in 1924, but the more valuable gold crown was retained by the Victoria and Albert Museum.
- In the 1960s, Queen Elizabeth II returned Tewodros' royal cap and seal to Emperor Haile Selassie while on a state visit to Ethiopia.[1]
- In 2019, the National Army Museum announced the return of a lock of Tewodros' hair, taken after his death in battle.[11][12]
- In 2021, numerous items including a Coptic bible, crosses, imperial shield, a set of horn beakers and a crown were bought by a British non-profit organisation to return them to Ethiopia. The items were purchased from a British auction house and a private collector in Belgium and were described as 'the single most significant heritage restitution in Ethiopia's history'.[13][14][15]
- In 2023, artefacts including a lock of Prince Alemayehu's hair was handed over to the Ethiopian ambassador to the UK in London. Other artefacts handed over included the Holly Tabot tablet of ‘Medhane’Alem, three silver cups with bronze plating, and a shield.[16]
The Ethiopian government has called for the remains of Prince Alemayehu to be returned to Ethiopia from his burial place in Windsor Castle.[17]
See also
- Sebastopol (cannon)
References
- ^ a b c d Matthies, Volker (2010). The Siege of Magdala: The British Empire Against the Emperor of Ethiopia. Princeton, New Jersey: Markus Weiner Publishers.
- ^ a b c d e Ferguson, p. 177
- ^ Brereton and Savoury, p. 184
- JSTOR 1798567.
- ^ Ten Years in Abyssinia and Sixteen Years in Syria being the Autobiography of Theophilus Waldmeier pp.109,110,117
- ^ Markham, "Geographical Results", p. 48
- ^ Brereton and Savoury, p. 189
- ^ "No. 23405". The London Gazette. 28 July 1868. p. 4187.
- ^ Our Soldiers, by W.H.G. Kingston - Battle of Magdala, page 194
- ^ Pankhurst, Richard. "Maqdala and its loot". Institute of Ethiopian Studies. Archived from the original on 6 December 2008. Retrieved 8 July 2008.
- ^ "Ethiopian Emperor Tewodros II's stolen hair to be returned by UK". BBC News. 4 March 2019. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
- ^ Abdur Rahman Alfa Shaban (4 March 2019). "UK museum to return lock of hair of Ethiopia's Emperor Tewodros II". Africanews. Archived from the original on 26 September 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
- ^ "Looted artefacts withdrawn from UK auction after Ethiopia's appeal". The Guardian. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
- ^ Gershon, Livia. "Looted Maqdala Treasures Returned to Ethiopia After 150 Years". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
- ^ Bailey, Martin (10 September 2021). "Maqdala treasures looted by British troops returned to Ethiopia in 'largest single restitution'". The Art Newspaper. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
- ^ "The looted artefacts during the Meqdala war in 1868 were handed over to Ethiopian embassy in London". Embassy of Ethiopia, London. 22 September 2023. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
- ^ "Ethiopia seeks prince's remains". 3 June 2007. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
Works cited
- Brereton, J. M.; Savoury, A. C. S. (1993). History of the Duke of Wellington's Regiment. ISBN 0-9521552-0-6.
- Ferguson, Niall. Empire: How Britain made the Modern World.