Gobana Dacche

Ras Gobena Dache (Ge'ez: ራስ፡ ጎበና Oromo: Goobanaa Daaccee; 1821 – July 1889) was an ethnic Oromo member of the Shewan aristocrats of central Ethiopia in the mid-19th century. He is known for coordinating his Shewa Oromo? army with the central army of Menelik II, who later became Ethiopian Emperor, to incorporate more lands into the Ethiopian Empire in the late 19th century.[1]

History

Early years

During his early years, Gobena was lord of Falle before he gained fame around the region for his bravery, strength and leadership ability. During the reign of Emperor Tewodros II, Gobena assisted southern rebellion who kept the Emperor's reign troubled with conflicts. In addition to Gobena's actions, other northern Oromo militias, Tigrayan rebellion, and the constant incursion of Ottoman Empire and Egyptian forces near the Red Sea weakened and contributed to the downfall of Emperor Tewodros II who died after his last battle with a British expeditionary force.

When the young Menelik escaped from Tewodros' fortress at Maqdala in 1865, Gobana was one of the first to support to him and help him secure control of Shewa. In return, Menelik made him chief of his palace guard, which began Gobana's rapid rise to power. In 1878, Gobana was made Ras which is the same title as duke. A few years earlier before the rise of Gobana, there had emerged a dynasty of Oromo descent who called themselves the Were Sheik. Of Oromo lineage, this ruling class consisted of Abba Seru Gwangul, Ras Ali I, Ras Aligaz, Ras Gugsa Mursa, Ras Yimam, Ras Marye, Ras Dori and Ras Ali II. These ruled the empire making the emperors of the Solomonic dynasty as mere figureheads for several decades until the rise of Emperor Tewodros II who restored the crown by electing himself emperor after defeating the last of the were sheh princes, Ras Ali. . While the Yejju dynasty dominated the northern Christian Amhara, Tigray and Agaw provinces, Amharic remained the court language of Gondar, and Christianity remained the state religion. Similar to the noblemen of Tigray and Agaw subgroups like Wag, Qwara and Awi these northern Christianized noblemen of Oromo lineage ruled the empire using Amharic for official purposes, and speaking Oromiffa language privately and identifying themselves with their clan name. Like the rest too, they built churches, appointed bishops and regional chiefs under the name of the powerless emperors.

In the 1870s, Gobena helped Menelik II to defeat another militia of the Negus Tekle Haymanot of Gojjam, a significant event which helped him to strengthen his alliance with Shewa Amhara rulers.

Gobena's son Wedajo was married to Menelik's daughter Shoarega who bore him, a grandson, Wasan Seged Wedajo, whom Menelik saw as his successor, and had him raised at the court as if heir to the throne. Wedajo Opposed the court education of his son and this dispute over child custody led to the divorce of his wife. This grandson of Menelik II was eliminated from the succession due to dwarfism.[2]

Southern expansion

Ras Gobena (earlier Dejazmach Gobena) became a famed Oromo chief who was close to the Aba Mudda, a spiritual head of the Oromo. He gained support among various Oromo clans, and he led the western and southern military movement of Menelik II. According to historian Donald Levine, Ras Gobena did most of the southern expansion that incorporated more Oromo speaking peoples into Menelik's Ethiopian Empire, helped by Oromo soldiers that were led by various famous Oromo chiefs like Moroda Bekere. In addition to Oromo communities, Ras Gobena defeated the militias of southern ethnic Sidama and Kebena communities. Near the end of his life in the 1880s, the Shewan army governed by Ras Gobena defeated the forces of the Muslim Kebena leader Hassen Injamo. On 14 October 1888, the allied forces of Ras Gobena and Moroda Bekere defeated the Mahdist Sudanese invasion of the Welega Oromo at the Battle of Guté Dili.[3]

Some of the southern communities militarily opposed Ras Gobana's army throughout his campaigns, while others, particularly the kingdoms in the Gibe region, embraced the alliance with Ras Gobena and Menelik II, who later became the Emperor of Ethiopia. Despite the opposition, historian Dr. Donald Levine states that some southern Oromo supported Ras Gobana and the Ethiopian centralization was "welcomed as a way to put an end" to 'intertribal fighting' between the Oromo communities.[4] During the conquest of southern territories, Menelik's Army carried out mass atrocities against his opponents in battle including mutilation, killings and large scale slavery.[5][5][6]

Some Oromo writers believe that the Oromo Ras Gobana and the Ethiopian Menelik II were the first two people in Ethiopia with the concept of national boundary that brought various ethno-linguistic communities under one rule.

The two most important historical figures who signify the introduction of the concepts of national boundary and sovereignty in Ethiopia are Emperor Menelik II and Ras Gobana Dache, who used guns manufactured in Europe to bring a large swath of Biyas (regions/nations) under a centralized rule.[7]

The sentiment of most Ethiopians toward Ras Gobana often correlates to 21st century Ethiopian politics. Ras Gobana is a controversial figure for some Oromo nationalists who think he was a traitor for allying with the Northern Ethiopians to conquer some southern regions. Mohammed Hassan translates the following song as an example of Oromo expression that Gobana betrayed his own people:

It is strange, it is strange, it is strange,

women do not raid houses;
she who gives birth to a dog is strange.
Relatives do not hurt each other,
the haft of an axe is strange
people of one stock do not sell each other

that of the son of Dacche is strange[8]

Though many Oromo communities battled and conquered each other for centuries, some contemporary Oromo politicians who favor ethno-political mobilization toward Oromo Unity often associate Oromo opposition to them as a betrayal act similar to that of the 19th century Ras Gobana and other Oromo leaders who allied with the Amhara and Tigray. And those Oromos who associated with Ethiopian governments of the past, including Derg and the Selassie Monarch are sometimes labeled "neo-Goobanaas." [9] In contrast, other Ethiopians who advocate Ethiopian unity and who oppose ethnocentric political movements often glorify Ras Gobana as an Ethiopian hero and as a unifying figure.

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References
  1. "Ras Gobena (1821-1889)", ethiopians.com
  2. "Encyclopaedia Aethiopica- Google Books": Siegbert Uhlig, 2010. p. 1066.
  3. Alessandro Triulzi, "Trade, Islam, and the Mahdia in Northwestern Wallagga, Ethiopia", Journal of African History, 16 (1975), p. 68
  4. Donald Levine, Greater Ethiopia, the Evolution of a multicultural society (University of Chicago Press: 1974)
  5. Conquest, Tyranny, and Ethnocide against the Oromo: A Historical Assessment of Human Rights Conditions in Ethiopia, ca. 1880s–2002 by Mohammed Hassen, Northeast African Studies Volume 9, Number 3, 2002 (New Series)
  6. Genocidal violence in the making of nation and state in Ethiopia by Mekuria Bulcha, African Sociological Review
  7. "Lenco Lata Vindicates Gobana Dache’s Participation in Building Ethiopia" Finfinne Times, 9 November 2008 (accessed 23 September 2009)
  8. Hassan, The Oromo, pp. 198f
  9. Neo Gobanas, Derg
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