The Battle of the Dindar River was fought near the Dinder River in 1738, between the forces of the EthiopianEmperor Iyasu II and the Sennar army under King Badi IV. The battle was a disaster for the Ethiopians and for Iyasu.[1]
Stung by lampoons which called him Iyasu Tannush ("Iyasu the Little", in contrast to his earlier namesake "Iyasu the Great") and described him as more interested in pursuing his pleasures and amusements than to the well-being of his own subjects, Emperor Iyasu decided to conquer the Kingdom of Sennar. He summoned the army of Ethiopia, and marched west from Gondar into Sennar, following the course of the Dindar River.
The inhabitants of Sennar fell back before the overwhelming force of the Ethiopians, although some under Nail Wad Agib defected to the Ethiopians and saved their lives for the moment. Some local inhabitants along the Dindar (whom Wallis Budge describes as "Arabs") opposed the invaders, but Iyasu's general Waragna, commanding the vanguard of the army, scattered them "with great slaughter".
Although King Badi had assembled an army, he was unnerved at the size of the Ethiopian army before him. However, Hamis, a prince of Darfur in western Sudan, proposed a strategy to defeat the invaders. On his advice, the main part of the Sennar army feigned a retreat from the Ethiopian army, drawing them forward. Meanwhile, Hamis led 4000 horsemen around and behind the army and fell upon the main body of 18,000 men under the command of Wolde Leul. Welda Uhlo escaped with some of his officers, and a number of soldiers found safety in the nearby woods, but the rest were slaughtered in Hamis' attack. Hamis also captured a number of relics that Emperor Iyasu had brought with him, which included an icon of Christ and a piece of the True Cross.[2] While a follower of Nail Wad Agib brought word of the ambush to the vanguard with Emperor Iyasu, it was clear that they would be unable to reach the fighting in time to save them.[3]
Instead, Emperor Iyasu followed the main stream of the Nile north to where the Tekezé River entered it, wreaking destruction upon the villages he encountered, burning houses and capturing cattle, aware that he had been defeated. Once he reached the Tekezé, Iyasu followed that river upstream into his realm. Upon entering Gondar, the Emperor paraded the cattle his soldiers had captured proclaiming his campaign a success. However, he quietly sent his courtier Tensa Tammo to Sennar who ransomed the captured relics for 8,000 ounces of gold.
Notes
↑ The following account, unless otherwise stated, is based on E. A. Wallis Budge, A History of Ethiopia: Nubia and Abyssinia, 1928 (Oosterhout, the Netherlands: Anthropological Publications, 1970), pp. 454f.
↑ Remedius Prutky claims that Iyasu also lost his "golden crown", but Richard Pankhurst is skeptical about this claim (J.H. Arrowsmith-Brown [trans.], Prutky's Travels in Ethiopia and other Countries with notes by Richard Pankhurst [London: Hakluyt Society, 1991], p. 150 n.7)
The Funj Sultanate, also known as Funjistan, Sultanate of Sennar or Blue Sultanate, was a monarchy in what is now Sudan, northwestern Eritrea and western Ethiopia. Founded in 1504 by the Funj people, it quickly converted to Islam, although this conversion was only nominal. Until a more orthodox form of Islam took hold in the 18th century, the state remained an "African empire with a Muslim façade". It reached its peak in the late 17th century, but declined and eventually fell apart in the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1821, the last sultan, greatly reduced in power, surrendered to the Ottoman Egyptian invasion without a fight.
Gondar, also spelled Gonder, is a city and woreda in Ethiopia. Located in the North Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, Gondar is north of Lake Tana on the Lesser Angereb River and southwest of the Simien Mountains. As of 2021, Gondar has an estimated population of 443,156.
Susenyos I, also known as Susenyos the Catholic, was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1607 to 1632, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. His throne names were Seltan Sagad and Malak Sagad III.
Yohannes I, also known as Yohannes the Righteous, throne name A'ilaf Sagad was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1667 to 1682, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the fourth son of Fasilides.
Iyasu I, throne name Adyam Sagad, also known as Iyasu the Great, was Emperor of Ethiopia from 19 July 1682 until his death in 1706, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty.
Tekle Haymanot I, throne name Le`al Sagad was Emperor of Ethiopia from 27 March 1706 until his death in 1708, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the son of Iyasu I and Empress Malakotawit. He is often referred to as "Irgum Tekle Haymanot" or "Tekle Haymanot the Cursed".
Yostos, throne name Tsehay Sagad, was Emperor of Ethiopia from 14 October 1711 to 19 February 1716, and a member of Solomonic dynasty. After the death of Tewoflos, the nobles chose one of their own as nəgusä nägäst to avoid a cycle of vengeance. Yostos, facing challenges to his authority, remained in Gondar throughout his reign, only venturing out for hunting.
Dawit III, throne name Adbar Sagad, also known as Dawit the Singer was Emperor of Ethiopia from 8 February 1716 to 18 May 1721, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the son of Iyasu I and his concubine Qeddesta Krestos.
Iyasu II , throne name Alem Sagad, was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1730 to 1755, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the son of Emperor Bakaffa and Empress Mentewab.
Iyoas I, throne name Adyam Sagad was Emperor of Ethiopia from 27 June 1755 to 7 May 1769, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the infant son of Iyasu II and Wubit, the daughter of an Oromo chieftain of the Karrayyu.
Yohannes II was Emperor of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the son of Iyasu I, and brother of Emperors Tekle Haymanot I, Dawit III, and Bakaffa. During his brief reign of a little longer than five months, little of note happened. There are conflicting accounts of his death.
Iyasu III was Emperor of Ethiopia from 16 February 1784 to 24 April 1788, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. His throne name was Ba'ala Segab. He was the son of Abeto Azequ, and the grandson of Iyasu II.
Hezqeyas was Emperor of Ethiopia from 26 July 1789 to January 1794, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the son of Iyasu III.
Rabat I was a ruler of the Kingdom of Sennar. According to James Bruce, he was the son of Badi I.
Bādī III, or Bādī al-Aḥmar (1692–1716), was a ruler of the Kingdom of Sennar. James Bruce includes in his account of Ethiopia the translation of a letter the Ethiopian Emperor Tewolfos sent him dated 21 January 1706, wherein he addresses him as "king Baady, son of king Ounsa".
Badi IV, also known as Badi abu Shilluk, was a ruler of the Kingdom of Sennar. He was the son of his predecessor, Nul.
Mikael Sehul was a nobleman who ruled Ethiopia for a period of 25 years as regent of a series of emperors. He was also a Ras or governor of Tigray 1748–71 and again from 1772 until his death. He was a major political figure during the reign of Emperor Iyasu II and his successors until almost the time of his death.
Hezqeyas was a member of the Solomonic dynasty who was proclaimed Emperor of Ethiopia from 1736 to 1737 by a group of notables opposed to Emperor Iyasu II. Hezqeyas had been confined to the royal prison on Mount Wehni until freed by his supporters, and had little influence over the early events.
Medri Bahri or Mereb Melash, also known as Ma'ikele Bahr or Bahr Melash was a semi-autonomous province of the Ethiopian Empire located north of the Mareb River, in the Eritrean highlands (Kebassa) and some surrounding areas. Mereb Melash corresponds to the administrative territory ruled by the Bahr Negus in medieval times. Mereb Melash comprised the historical provinces of Hamasien and Seraye.
The Gondarine period was a period of Ethiopian history between the ascension of Emperor Fasilides in 1632 and a period of decentralization in 1769, known as the Zemene Mesafint.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Iyasu II 
