Atse tewodros biography

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Tewodros II was born Kassa Hailu sometime around 1818. His father, Hailu Welde Giyorigis, was the ruler of Qwara district, located on the Ethiopian-Sudanese border.

His military experience started when he served in his half brother’s army (Prouty and Rosenfeld 1982, 71). His half brother died in 1839 and Qwara was lost to the family and claimed by Empress Menen of Gondar. Kassa Hailu resorted to become a shifta, one who refuses to recognize his feudal lord.

Kassa Hailu organized his own army in the plains of Qwara.

Atse tewodros history in amharic pdf

When he became too powerful to ignore, as a way to deal with him with out using force, he was named dajazmach of Qwara and given the hand of Tawabach, the daughter of Ras Ali of Begemder, in 1845. (Zewde 2001, 28)

Kassa was very close to Tawabach and devoted to his marriage but his submission to Empress Menen was short-lived.

In October 1846, he attacked and plundered Dembea, a city located due south of Gondar, and in January 1847 he went on to occ