Dhowre Ali Sheneeleh was the castellan of the Darawiish fort / Dhulbahante garesa of Eyl (also called Illig), whilst the governor of Nugaaleed-Bari for the Darawiish was Ali Meggar. He was also the primary commander which spearheaded opposition to Abyssinian expansionism towards the east in the 1900s.
The notion of the building of fortresses or Dhulbahante garesas for Dervish inhabitation was conceived first in the pre-1902 period with the Halin fort and subsequently when the Dervishes built a fort at Eyl also called Illig. According to the British War Office, the castle at Illig was exclusively inhabited by the Dhulbahante clan, and in particular by the Bah Ali Gheri subclan of the Dhulbahante: [1]
The Mullah, with practically only his Ali Gheri following, is a discredited refugee in the Mijjarten territory, at the mercy of Osman Mahmud. His actual capture by the field force is, under present conditions, in my opinion impracticable ... the operations already ordered for the capture of lllig and dealing a last blow at the Mullah are to be carried out
According to Douglas Jardone, Eyl was the capital of Dervishes for four years, from 1905, until it was changed to Taleh in 1909, was at Eyl, also called Illig: [2]
Thus the Mullah became an Italian-protected subject; and during the three years that followed, his haroun remained in the neighbourhood of Illig.
According to Douglas Jardine, the Dervish fortifications or Dhulbahante garesa at Illig or Eyl were exclusively inhabited by the Dhulbahante: [2]
while the Mullah's Dolbahanta allies had retreated south-east towards Illig, the Mullah himself, with all his sheep and goats, but abandoning his camels, bullocks, and ponies, had fled post-haste across the waterless Haud to Mudug.
Being appointed castellan of the Eyl fortress by extension made Dhowre Sheneeleh the governor of its expansive vicinity too, which roughly corresponds to modern-day Nugaaleed-Bari: [3]
Qalcaddii Daawad oo Ayl ka dhisnayd, Daraawiishina si gaara u fiirin jirtay, ayaa waxaa madax looga dhigay Darwiishka la oron jiray Dhowre | The fortress of Daawad that was built in Ayl gave the Dervishes a good vantage point to see from all sides; Dhowre was appointed as its Castellan |
The Secretary of the British War Office described Daarta Dhowre Sheneeleh as follows:
About the month of August , 1903 , the Mullah had seized Illig , then a small fishing village situated at the mouth of the Nogal River , and , as reported by an Italian warship , had commenced to construct a formidable fortified camp there, only partially visible from the sea
— Ronald Lane, Secretary of the British War Office
The book Ferro e fuoco in Somalia by former Italian Somaliland governor Francesco Caroselli records the causes and circumstances of the Dervish abandonment of Eyl and other forts. The letter, originally in Arabic, but since translated into Italian and Somali, records correspondence between the Sayid and the Italian Somali governor Giacomo De Martino stating that the forts were abandoned because the Dhulbahante tribe, of whom the Dervishes were members, had by and large surrendered. [4] [5]
Bisha Abriil, horraanteedii, waxaa ka yimid Daraawiishta Beled Weyne, warqad dhambaal Wadaadku ku soo toosiyey Talyaaniga, una nisbeynaayo kala tagga dadkiisa raacsanaa ee Dhulbahante ahaa, codsanayana inaan u dhex galno isaga iyo Ingiriiska. | At the beginning of April, a letter was sent from the Dervish base at Beledweyne, containing a message from the Sayid to the Italians, wherein he clarifies the dispersal of the mainstay tribe of the Dervishes, i.e. the Dhulbahante, and where he seeks Italian mediation between the British and himself. |
According to a war report by British army colonel Alexander Rochfort, Dhowre Ali Sheneeleh was the most senior governor or commander at the southernmost Dervish base at Qollad, near present day Hiran, whereupon he clashed with an Abyssinian force allied to the British:
One of their wounded who was captured states that these men who are Dervishes and wear as such distinguishing bands round the head and arm , were sent by mullah sheikh Ali Sheneeleh, a man of considerable influence between Hiran [6]
Ali Xaaji Meggar, full name Cali Xaaji Axmed Aaden Meggar, as the Naval commander for the defence of Darawiish Coastal defence and fortifications at Eyl in a 1904 British intelligence report. The report claims that Ali Haji Meggar and Darawiish used a 7 pounder cannon to defend the Illig fort complex, and that he was injured and arrested in the process. [7] Meggar was mentioned in the Geoffrey Archer's 1916 important members of Darawiish haroun list and the 1905 peace treaty granted him reprieve with a release from prison. An entire poem was dedicated to Meggar by the Sayid, by the name CALI XAAJI AXMED. The poem details that Meggar died in the battle against Richard Corfield in 1913, and that he was the maternal cousin of the Sayid. [8]
Nugal, traditionally known as Nugaaleed-Bari or Bari-Nugaal meaning eastern Nugaal, or Nugaal xaggeeda hoose meaning lower Nugaal, is an administrative region (gobol) in northern Somalia.
The Dhulbahante is a Somali clan family, part of the Harti clan which itself belongs to the largest Somali clan-family — the Darod. They are the traditional inhabitants of the physiographic Nugaal in its topographic sense, and its pre-independence administrative sense, which included Doollo. The clan's progenitor is buried at Badweyn.
Sayid Mohamed Abdullahi Hassan was a Somali religious, military and political leader. He headed the Somali Dervish movement whom led a two-decade long struggle against British, Italian, and Ethiopian influence in the region. Sayyid Mohamed Abdulle Hassan is considered the father of the Somali people and the figure of Somali nationalism.
Harti, meaning "strong man", is a Somali clan family that is the part of the Darod clan. The major sub-clans include the Majeerteen, Dhulbahante, Warsangali, Tinle, Maganlabe, Kaptallah and Dishiishe, while other minor sub-clans consist of Kaskiqabe, Geesaguule and Liibaangashe.
Eyl is an ancient port town in the northeastern Nugal region of Somalia in the autonomous Puntland region, also serving as the capital of the Eyl District. Eyl, also called Illig, was the capital of the Dervishes from 1905 onwards, until superseded by Taleh, which became Dervish capital in 1909.
Taleh is a historical town in the eastern Sool region of Somalia. As of September 2015, both Puntland and Somalia had nominal influence or control in Taleh and it's vicinity. The town served as the capital of the pre-independence Dervish movement.
The Dervish Movement was a popular movement between 1896 and 1925, which was led by the Salihiyya Sufi Muslim poet and militant leader Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, also known as Sayyid Mohamed, who called for independence from the British and Italian colonies and the defeat of Ethiopian forces. The Dervish movement aimed to remove the British and Italian influence from the region and restore the "Sufi system of governance with Sufi education as its foundation", according to Mohamed-Rahis Hasan and Salada Robleh.
Jidbali road is a new road which runs from Tifafleh near Las Anod Airport in the south, to Xudun towards the north. It is the main route leading from the Sool province towards Sanaag province. A precursor to the tarmac existed since the nineteenth century when it was a pathway.
Gudban is a 1907 poem and oration by Muhammad Abdullah Hassan, the leader of the darawish, announcing his policy declaration. It was one of many orations and poems which were salvaged after Maxamed Aadan Sheekh, Somalia's Minister of Culture ordered for them to be salvaged, but only permitted poems which were memorized by former members of the Haroun. The Gudban poem in particular, was transmitted in 1957 by the darawish veteran Garaad Soofe Durraan. The darawish referred to the poem as Gaala leged, which could be translated from Somali to English as Defeating the Infidels. Non-darawish Somalis referred to the poem as Gudban, which is a Somali word that literally means "moving across". This was in reference to how during the year it was released, the darawish moved back into their old territories in the Nugaal Valley.
Haroun, also called Fadhiweyn, and natively transliterated as Xarunta in Somali, was a government and headquarters of the Dervishes, headed by Faarax Mahmud Sugulle. According to Claude Edward Marjoribanks Dansey, the political officer in the British Somali Coast Protectorate consisted of 400 individuals. The capture of the haroun was regarded as conceivably resulting in the Sayyid's surrender. In the third expedition, major Paul Kenna was tasked "by every means" to find where the haroun is.
Haji Yusuf Barre was the commander at the battle of Jidbali, the largest and deadliest engagement between the dervishes and the British empire in the Horn of Africa. Haji Yusuf Barre is also noted for being the person whom held the last stand at the Dhulbahante garesa at Taleh, in the aftermath of the bombings at Taleh wherein Taleh became the first place to be targeted in Africa through aerial attacks.
Ciid or 'Iid is an archaic native geographic name for the land between the region of Mudug and the Nugaal Valley, roughly congruous with the northern Bookh district in Ethiopia. As such, Ciid constitutes the tripoint of the former three colonial powers Abyssinia, Britain and Italy, thus situating Mudug immediately southeast of Ciid, the Nugaal Valley immediately north of Ciid, and Haud to the west of Ciid. One historian referred to it as the syrup-colored land and it is today embodied by Ciid towns such as Xamxam, Magacley, Qoriley, Biriqodey, Beerdhiga and Gumburka Cagaare.
Dalyare fort is an open-top Dhulbahante garesa of the Darawiish era which was ordered built by the Dervish as a strategy for countering the colonization efforts of the Europeans. The building is located in the Nugaal Valley a few miles east of Las Anod. The purpose of the Dalyare fort was to serve as a refuge and escape route for Darawiish retreating from colonial forces who intend to head south towards the Shabelle River. However, retrospectively, some analysts have described the building as a setback to the previous tactic of maneuverability on the part of the Darawiish. Cali Jalax was the builder. The native Darawiish referred to the building as Sool-Daryare. On the other hand, the colonialists who launched attacks against the Darawiish referred to the building as Dariali.
Jidali fort was a cross-shaped fort of the Dervish era located in the town of Jidali in Sanaag, Somalia and is also the first place in Africa to be bombed via aerial bombardment by a tally of four sorties of De Havilland DH-9's on 21 January 1920. An April 1920 letter between the Sayid and Italian-Somali governor Giacomo De Martino states that the Dervishes built a total of twenty-seven forts which are described as Dhulbahante garesas.
Adan Ali Gurey was a political advisor in the Darawiish, an anti-colonial instigator, the commander of Golaweyne, a chieftain of the Dhulbahante, and an arms supplier.
Afbakayle is a 1905 poem by the Sayid Mohammed Abdullah Hassan made while he was in exile. The poem is a political poem which primarily deals with the topic of treachery and two-facedness, known as jeesjeesnimo in Somali. According to scholar Abdulqadir Sheik Abdi, the poem is a direct denunciation of those described as "friendly tribes" by the British, whom he describes as the Sayid's sworn arch-enemies. A repeated mantra in the poem used to describe the Somali colonial collaborators is naga ajoon waayey, meaning won't even flinch.
The Mohamoud Garad is a Somali clan. Its members form a part of the Dhulbahante, a sub-division of the Harti/Darod clan-family. The clan is divided into three main sub-clans ― namely the Jama Siad, the Ugaadhyahan and Omar Wa’eys.
The Farah Garad or the Garad Farah is a Somali clan which is part of the Dhulbahante clan-family, a sub-division of the larger Harti/Darod clan. The Farah Garad are divided into two sub-clans — Yassin Garad and Abdalla Garad. Abdalla has four clan eponyms, Ahmed Garad, Mohamed Garad Baharsame, Guled Garad Barkad and Ali Garad.They are largely significant in Sool and Togdheer regions of Somaliland.
The Baho Nugaaleed, is a division of Somali clan that is part of the Dhulbahante clan-family. The primary homeland of these clans include the regions of Sool and Togdheer in Somaliland, the Lower Juba region in Somalia and the Dollo Zone in Ethiopia. The Bah Nugaaleed are composed of three major sub-groups in accordance with their locality in the SSCD regions. These groups are Qayaad, the Ugaasyo, the Reer Aymeed and Reer Oodeed.
The Dhulbahante Garadship is presumed to have began in the 16th century with Garad Shishore assuming the royal title in approximately 1530. During the 19th century, the Dhulbahante garadate morphed into a dual monarchy. The current Garad, Garad Jama Garad Ali hails from this long line of succession.