Timeline of Mekelle

Last updated February 19, 2024

This is timeline of Mekelle, a city and capital of Tigray Region, Ethiopia.

History

13th century – Mekelle believed to be evolved from hamlet called Enda Meskel, later Medhane Alem, becoming a town by the early 19th century, when Ras Wolde Selassie of Enderta made Antalo his seat power.^[1]^[2]
1882–84 – the grand palace of Yohannes IV was built by Tigrayan engineer Engedashet Kassa Sehul and forms the historic center of Mekelle.^{[ citation needed ]}
1871 – a church at Debre Gennet Medhane Alem, built after the return from Raya Azebo campaign.^[3]
1880s – Mekelle became the capital of the Ethiopian Empire, and urbanized rapidly.^[4]
1895–1896 – Mekelle was invited for conflict of the First Italo-Ethiopian War.
October 1895 – the Italian army established their fort near the Enda Eyesus Church.
January 1896 – the Italians surrendered; Menelik II allowed them to retreat their stronghold Adigrat.
1920s and 1930s – Mekelle emerged as a major trade center.
8 November 1935 – the Italians invaded Mekelle, contributed considerably to its modernization.^[5]
1938 – two shops opened, two Italian restaurant and Hotel Amba Aradam with four rooms.^[6]
May 1943 – Mekelle was the epicentre of Woyane rebellion against the weak Haile Selassie government. From September–October, the British conducted air bombardment caused heavy damage.^[7]^[8]
1942–74 – the third phase urbanization took place.^[9]
1942 – Mekelle municipality was founded.^[10]
1962 – Master plan for Mekelle issued.^[11]
1983–1985 – the 1983–1985 famine ravaged the city, causing 75,000 refugees with 20,000 more waiting to enter.^[12]
February 1986 – The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) released 1,800 political prisoners from Mekelle prison during the military action against the Derg.^[13]^[14]
25 February 1988 – series of offensives launched as TPLF fighters bypassed Mekelle but took control Maychew, Korem and another place along Dessie–Mekelle Road.^[15]
June 1988 – The TPLF controlled Tigray except Mekelle.^[16]^[17]
4 and 5 June 1988 – the Derg sacked villages around Mekelle, which included Addi Gera, Bahri, Goba Zena, Grarot, Issala and Rabea.^[18]^[19]
25 February 1989 – Mekelle was occupied by TPLF, after the government position in Tigray collapsed.^[20]
5 June 1998 – the Eritrean Air Force bombed Ayder School in Mekelle during the Eritrean–Ethiopian War killing twelve.^[21]
29 December 2002 – a riot was occurred between Ethiopian Orthodox and Adventist followers as Adventist prayer service being conducted in a stadium.^[22]^[23]
30 July 2008 – the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) headquarters was established in Mekelle in 2000 and continued to the date.^[24]
17–28 November 2020 – Mekelle offensive was took place by joint Ethiopian and Eritrean military forces during the Tigray War, including aerial bombardment.^[25]^[26]^[27]
20 December 2020 – witnesses from Mekelle stated that artillery shelling had taken place before 28 November.^[28]^[29]^[30]
28 June 2021, Mekelle was recaptured by Tigray Defense Force after evacuated by the federal government for several months.^[31]^[32]

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References

↑ Taddesse, Madhane (1995). Salt, Trade and Urbanization: the Story of Mäqälä Town, 1872-1935. Addis Ababa: Addis Ababa University.
↑ Sakkwar, Taddese (2000). የመቀሌ ከመሰራረትና እድገት[Foundation and Growth of Mäqälä Town]. Mekelle.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
↑ "Local history of Ethiopia : Debre Tabor - Delo wereda" (PDF). 7 October 2022.
↑ Okazaki, Rumi (November 2011). "Deterioration of Heritage by Informal Urbanization in Mekelle, Ethiopia". Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering. 10 (2): 343–350. doi: 10.3130/jaabe.10.343 . ISSN 1346-7581. S2CID 109528178.
↑ "Revisiting resistance in Italian-occupied Ethiopia". 7 October 2022.
↑ Marcus, Harold G. (2002-02-22). A History of Ethiopia. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-92542-7.
↑ Woldemariam, Michael, ed. (2018), "The Second Wave of Rebellion: Tigrayans, Oromos, Afars, and Somalis, 1973–2008", Insurgent Fragmentation in the Horn of Africa: Rebellion and its Discontents, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 185–208, ISBN 978-1-108-42325-0 , retrieved 2022-10-07
↑ "When Britain bombed Tigray into submission". Martin Plaut. 2019-10-06. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "City profile Mekelle" (PDF). 7 October 2022.
↑ "City profile Mekelle" (PDF). 7 October 2022.
↑ Lockot, Hans Wilhelm (1998). Bibliographia Aethiopica II: The Horn of Africa in English Literature. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. ISBN 978-3-447-03611-5.
↑ "11. starving tigray, 1984-88" (PDF). Human Rights Watch .
↑ "Ethiopia is situated in northeast Africa" (PDF). Amnesty International . 7 October 2022.
↑ "EVIL DAYS" (PDF). Human Rights Watch . 7 October 2022.
↑ "The Battle of Shire – February 1989 | Ethiopian Review | Page 2 - Ethiopian News" . Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ Cooper, Tom; Fontanellaz, Adrien (2018-07-31). Ethiopian-Eritrean Wars. Volume 2: Eritrean War of Independence, 1988-1991 & Badme War, 1998-2001. Helion and Company. ISBN 978-1-913118-35-8.
↑ Dixon, Jeffrey S.; Sarkees, Meredith Reid (2015-10-22). A Guide to Intra-state Wars. SAGE. ISBN 978-0-87289-775-5.
↑ "15. ARMED DECISION: THE NORTH" (PDF). 7 October 2022.
↑ "Local history of Ethiopia" (PDF). 7 October 2022.
↑ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | Chronology for Tigreans in Ethiopia". Refworld. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Eritrea/Ethiopia, Awards on Military Objectives | How does law protect in war? - Online casebook". casebook.icrc.org. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "ETHIOPIA COUNTRY REPORT OCTOBER 2003" (PDF). 7 October 2022.
↑ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2002 - Ethiopia". Refworld. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "UNMEE: United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea". peacekeeping.un.org. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Ethiopia says its military has taken control of capital in defiant Tigray region". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286 . Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Ethiopia: Government launches offensive on Mekelle - Vatican News". www.vaticannews.va. 2020-11-28. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Ethiopia's PM Abiy promises 'final' offensive in Tigray". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Ethiopia: Unlawful Shelling of Tigray Urban Areas". Human Rights Watch. 2021-02-11. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Ethiopia's Tigray crisis: 'How we survived when Mekelle was shelled'". BBC News. 2020-12-20. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Tigray conflict: Report calls for accountability for violations and abuses by all parties". Ethiopian Human Rights Commission - EHRC. 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ Paravicini, Giulia; Houreld, Katharine; Endeshaw, Dawit (2021-06-29). "Tigray's former rulers back in Mekelle, Ethiopian government declares ceasefire". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-10-07.
↑ "Interim government of Tigray flees as rebels seize capital". The Guardian. 2021-06-28. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

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[1] Taddesse, Madhane (1995). Salt, Trade and Urbanization: the Story of Mäqälä Town, 1872-1935. Addis Ababa: Addis Ababa University.

[2] Sakkwar, Taddese (2000). የመቀሌ ከመሰራረትና እድገት[Foundation and Growth of Mäqälä Town]. Mekelle.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[3] "Local history of Ethiopia : Debre Tabor - Delo wereda" (PDF). 7 October 2022.

[4] Okazaki, Rumi (November 2011). "Deterioration of Heritage by Informal Urbanization in Mekelle, Ethiopia". Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering. 10 (2): 343–350. doi: 10.3130/jaabe.10.343 . ISSN 1346-7581. S2CID 109528178.

[5] "Revisiting resistance in Italian-occupied Ethiopia". 7 October 2022.

[6] Marcus, Harold G. (2002-02-22). A History of Ethiopia. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-92542-7.

[7] Woldemariam, Michael, ed. (2018), "The Second Wave of Rebellion: Tigrayans, Oromos, Afars, and Somalis, 1973–2008", Insurgent Fragmentation in the Horn of Africa: Rebellion and its Discontents, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 185–208, ISBN 978-1-108-42325-0 , retrieved 2022-10-07

[8] "When Britain bombed Tigray into submission". Martin Plaut. 2019-10-06. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[9] "City profile Mekelle" (PDF). 7 October 2022.

[10] "City profile Mekelle" (PDF). 7 October 2022.

[11] Lockot, Hans Wilhelm (1998). Bibliographia Aethiopica II: The Horn of Africa in English Literature. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. ISBN 978-3-447-03611-5.

[12] "11. starving tigray, 1984-88" (PDF). Human Rights Watch .

[13] "Ethiopia is situated in northeast Africa" (PDF). Amnesty International . 7 October 2022.

[14] "EVIL DAYS" (PDF). Human Rights Watch . 7 October 2022.

[15] "The Battle of Shire – February 1989 | Ethiopian Review | Page 2 - Ethiopian News" . Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[16] Cooper, Tom; Fontanellaz, Adrien (2018-07-31). Ethiopian-Eritrean Wars. Volume 2: Eritrean War of Independence, 1988-1991 & Badme War, 1998-2001. Helion and Company. ISBN 978-1-913118-35-8.

[17] Dixon, Jeffrey S.; Sarkees, Meredith Reid (2015-10-22). A Guide to Intra-state Wars. SAGE. ISBN 978-0-87289-775-5.

[18] "15. ARMED DECISION: THE NORTH" (PDF). 7 October 2022.

[19] "Local history of Ethiopia" (PDF). 7 October 2022.

[20] Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | Chronology for Tigreans in Ethiopia". Refworld. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[21] "Eritrea/Ethiopia, Awards on Military Objectives | How does law protect in war? - Online casebook". casebook.icrc.org. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[22] "ETHIOPIA COUNTRY REPORT OCTOBER 2003" (PDF). 7 October 2022.

[23] Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2002 - Ethiopia". Refworld. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[24] "UNMEE: United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea". peacekeeping.un.org. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[25] "Ethiopia says its military has taken control of capital in defiant Tigray region". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286 . Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[26] "Ethiopia: Government launches offensive on Mekelle - Vatican News". www.vaticannews.va. 2020-11-28. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[27] "Ethiopia's PM Abiy promises 'final' offensive in Tigray". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[28] "Ethiopia: Unlawful Shelling of Tigray Urban Areas". Human Rights Watch. 2021-02-11. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[29] "Ethiopia's Tigray crisis: 'How we survived when Mekelle was shelled'". BBC News. 2020-12-20. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[30] "Tigray conflict: Report calls for accountability for violations and abuses by all parties". Ethiopian Human Rights Commission - EHRC. 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[31] Paravicini, Giulia; Houreld, Katharine; Endeshaw, Dawit (2021-06-29). "Tigray's former rulers back in Mekelle, Ethiopian government declares ceasefire". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

[32] "Interim government of Tigray flees as rebels seize capital". The Guardian. 2021-06-28. Retrieved 2022-10-07.

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