Dervish War
A 21-year Somali rebellion against British, Ethiopian, and Italian forces.
The conflict lasted 21 years, from 1899 to 1920, and involved the Dervish movement fighting against British colonial administration, as well as Ethiopian, Italian, and some Somali clan forces. It is notable for its duration and the severe impact on the region, with an estimated one-third of the population of Somaliland dying during the rebellion.
Quick Facts
- Duration
- 21 years (1899–1920)
- Leader of dervish movement
- Sayid Muhammed Abdullah Hassan
- Opening battle
- Attack on Ethiopian garrison at Jigjiga (March 1900)
- Number of british expeditions
- Five
- Dervish capital
- Taleh
Facts from the source article.
Background
In 1841, the Somali merchant Haj Ali Shermerki purchased executive rights over Zeila from the Ottoman Empire, which nominally controlled Yemen and the sahil. Shermerki's governorship aimed to monopolize regional trade as far as Harar and the Ogaden. Between 1874 and 1884, Zeila and later Somaliland came under the control of Muhammad Ali, Khedive of Egypt. In 1874–75, the Khedivate of Egypt obtained a firman from the Ottomans securing claims over Somaliland, and the British recognized their nominal jurisdiction east to Cape Guardafui. In the late 19th century, the United Kingdom signed agreements with several Somali clans—including the Gadabuursi, Issa, Habr Awal, Garhajis, Arap, Habr Je'lo, Warsangeli, and the Isaaq Sultanate—establishing a protectorate. Many clans signed these treaties in response to Ethiopian Emperor Menelik's invasions, with the agreements dictating protection of Somali rights and maintenance of independence. After the Egyptian garrison in Harar was evacuated in 1885, Zeila became contested between French and British interests, leading to a convention on 1 February 1888 defining the border between French Somaliland and British Somaliland. The Majeerteen Sultanate in northeastern Somali territories had been established in the mid-18th century and rose to prominence under boqor Osman Mahamuud.
Campaigns
In 1895, Muḥammad ibn 'Abdallāh Hassan began preaching in Berbera, the administrative centre of British Somaliland, criticizing traditional Somali customs and the penetration of Christian missionaries, as well as British colonial policy. His preaching gained little traction in Berbera, where most followed the Qadiriyya brotherhood, and in 1897 he retired to Kirrit among his maternal clan, the Dhulbahante. There he founded his own brotherhood, preaching an anti-Western jihad against British and Ethiopian colonizers. Seeking to overcome tribal divisions, he called his followers daraawiish, or dervishes. In August, the Mullah assembled about 5,000 armed men, including 200 with modern rifles, at Burao, then raided the town of Sheikh. On 1 September 1899, he sent an ultimatum to British authorities in Berbera. Soon after, his movement weakened due to tribal divisions: after executing the sultan of Dhulbahante, Ali Farah, for not siding with him, many followers from his maternal clan abandoned him. He left Somaliland for Boholte, near his paternal Ogaden tribe, where he resumed preaching and gathered followers among the Ogaden, who were threatened by Ethiopian expansion. He also obtained arms from the sultan of Migiurtinia, Osman Mahamuud, who sought to use the dervishes against his rival Yusuf Ali Kenadid of Hobyo over disputed territories in the Nugaal valley.
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