Battle of Magdala
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Magdala was fought in April 1868 between British and Abyssinian forces at Magdala
Amba Mariam
Amba Mariam is a village in central Ethiopia. It was known as Magdala or Meqdela during the reign of Emperor Tewodros II of Ethiopia...

, 390 miles (627.6 km) from the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...

 coast, which at that time was the capital city of Abyssinia
Ethiopian Empire
The Ethiopian Empire also known as Abyssinia, covered a geographical area that the present-day northern half of Ethiopia and Eritrea covers, and included in its peripheries Zeila, Djibouti, Yemen and Western Saudi Arabia...

 (now known as Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...

). The British were led by Robert Napier
Robert Napier, 1st Baron Napier of Magdala
Field Marshal Robert Cornelis Napier, 1st Baron Napier of Magdala, GCB, GCSI, CIE, FRS was a British soldier.-Early life:...

, while the Abyssinians were led by Emperor Tewodros II
Tewodros II of Ethiopia
Tewodros II was the Emperor of Ethiopia from 1855 until his death....

.

In March 1866 a British envoy
Envoy (title)
In diplomacy, an Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary is, under the terms of the Congress of Vienna of 1815, a diplomat of the second class, ranking between an Ambassador and a Minister Resident....

 had been dispatched to secure the release of a group of missionaries  who had first been seized when a letter Tewodros II had sent to Queen Victoria, delivered by an envoy: Captain Cameron, requesting munitions and military experts from the British, had gone unanswered. They were released; however Tewodros II changed his mind and sent a force after them and they were returned to the fortress and imprisoned again, along with Captain Cameron.

The British won the battle, and Tewodros committed suicide as the fortress was finally seized.

Preparation and formation

Advance elements of the British military units arrived at Annesley Bay on 4 December 1867; but did not disembark until 7 December due to chaotic conditions on shore. Thousands of mule
Mule
A mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse. Horses and donkeys are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes. Of the two F1 hybrids between these two species, a mule is easier to obtain than a hinny...

s had been sent from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

 and other countries before adequate arrangements had been made to feed and water them and the freshly arrived troops had to first obtain fresh feed and water for them. A base camp was set up at Zula
Zula
Zula is a small town in central Eritrea. It is situated near the head of Annesley Bay , on the Red Sea coast...

.

The British were dressed in new khaki drill
Khaki drill
Khaki drill or KD was the term for a type of fabric and the British military uniforms made from them. Khaki Drill was worn as a combat uniform from 1900 to 1949 but is a variant, still referred to a Khaki Drill or KD's is worn by the UK Armed Forces, in non combatatant warm weather countries where...

 jackets with a white cloth-covered cork helmet called a 'Topi
Pith helmet
The pith helmet is a lightweight cloth-covered helmet made of cork or pith...

'. They had been issued with the new breech-loading Snider-Enfield
Snider-Enfield
The British .577 Snider-Enfield was a type of breech loading rifle. The firearm action was invented by the American Jacob Snider, and the Snider-Enfield was one of the most widely used of the Snider varieties. It was adopted by British Army as a conversion system for its ubiquitous Pattern 1853...

 rifles the previous year, which had increased the soldiers' firepower from three rounds per minute to ten rounds per minute.

Lord Napier arrived in early January 1868 and the expedition started from the advance camp at Senafe
Senafe
Senafe is a market town in southern Eritrea, on the edge of the Ethiopian highlands. The surrounding area is inhabited by the Saho people and the Tigrinya people....

 at the beginning of February. It took two months to reach their objective. The advancing British forces' route took them through rough terrain, traveling by way of Kumayli, Senafe, Adigrat
Adigrat
Adigrat is a city in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. Located in the Misraqawi Zone at longitude and latitude with an elevation of 2457 meters above sea level, below a high ridge to the west, Adigrat is the last important Ethiopian city south of the border with Eritrea, and is considered to be a...

, Antalo, passing west of Lake Ashangi, through the Wajirat Mountains and across the Wadla
Wadla
Wadla is one of the 105 woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia; it is named for the former district which lay roughly in the same area. Part of the Semien Wollo Zone, Wadla is bordered on the south and east by Dawuntna Delant, on the west by the Checheho River which separates it from the Debub...

 plateau, before finally arriving via the road Emperor Tewodros built through the Zhitta Ravine to move his heavy artillery to Magdala.

Composed of some 12,000 British and Indian troops, beside Royal Artillery
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery , is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...

 and Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....

, the field force comprised:

British: The 3rd Dragoon Guards, the 4th (The King's Own Royal), 33rd Regiment of Foot (1st West Riding Regiment). Six companies of Infantry from the 45th (Sherwood Forresters)
45th (Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot
The 45th Regiment of Foot was a British Army line infantry regiment. During the Childers Reforms it was united with the 95th Regiment of Foot to form the The Sherwood Foresters ....

 and a Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 Rocket battery and The Armstrong Artillery Battery, complete with elephants carrying their guns, joined the expedition on the plain at Talanta on 5 April, just 12 miles (19.3 km) from Magdala. Whilst during a delay of four days waiting for supplies to arrive. Towards the end of the campaign the 26th Cameronians also arrived.

Indian:
23rd Punjab Regt Bengal Native Infantry (Pioneers)
Punjab Regiment (India)
The Punjab Regiment of India was formed from the 2nd Punjab Regiment of theBritish Indian Army in 1947. It is one of the oldest regiments still in service in the Indian Army and has taken part in various battles and wars winning numerous honors for the same...

, 27th Bombay Native Infantry (1st Baluch), No 1 Company of Bombay Native Artillery, Corps of Madras Sappers and Miners
Madras Engineer Group
Madras Engineer Group are a regiment of the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army. The Madras Sappers draw their origin from the erstwhile Madras Presidency army of the British Raj. This regiment has its HQ in Bangalore...

, Corps of Bombay Sappers and Miners
Bombay Engineer Group
The Bombay Engineering Group, or the Bombay Sappers as they are informally known, are a regiment of the Indian Army Corps of Engineers. The Bombay Sappers draw their origin from the erstwhile Bombay Presidency army of the British Raj. This regiment has its centre in Khadki, Pune in...

.

While it is difficult to obtain an accurate order of battle of the Abyssinian forces, from British reports it appears to have consisted of a small amount of artillery and several thousands of light infantry lacking firearms.

The battle

Before the force could actually attack Magdala, they had to get past the plateau at Arogye, which lay across the only route to Magdala. It certainly looked formidable to attack. The British could see the way barred by many thousands of armed Abyssinians camped around the hillsides with up to 30 artillery pieces.

The British did not expect that the Abyssinian warriors would leave their defences to attack them and paid little regard to their defensive positions as they formed up to deploy. But the Emperor did order an attack, with many thousands of soldiers armed with little more than spears. The 4th of Foot quickly redeployed to meet the charging mass of warriors and poured a devastating fire into their ranks. When two Indian infantry regiments contributed their firepower, the onslaught became even more devastating. Despite this, the Abyssinian soldiers continued their attack, losing over 500 with thousands more wounded during the ninety minutes of fighting, most of them at a point little over 30 yards from the British lines. During the chaotic battle, an advance guard unit of the 33rd Regiment overpowered some of the Abyssinian artillerymen and captured their artillery pieces. The surviving Abyssinian soldiers then retreated back onto Magdala.

In his despatch to London, Lord Napier reported: "Yesterday morning (we) descended three thousand nine hundred feet to Bashilo River
Bashilo River
The Bashilo River is located in Ethiopia. Known for its canyon, which one source describes as almost as extensive as the canyon of its parent the Abay, also known as the Blue Nile, the river originates just west of Kutaber in the Amhara Region, flowing first to the northwest to where the Tergiya...

 and approached Magdala with First Brigade to reconnoiter it. Theodore opened fire with seven guns from outwork, one thousand feet above us, and three thousand five hundred men of the garrison made a gallant sortie which was repulsed with very heavy loss and the enemy driven into Magdala. British Loss, twenty wounded."

Two of the British soldiers wounded in the attack would later die from their injuries.

The following day as the British force moved on to Magdala. Writing later, Clements Markham
Clements Markham
Sir Clements Robert Markham KCB FRS was an English geographer, explorer, and writer. He was secretary of the Royal Geographical Society between 1863 and 1888, and later served as the Society's president for a further 12 years...

 recalled "a curious phenomenon" that occurred on the day of the final assault: "Early in the forenoon a dark-brown circle appeared round the sun, like a blister, about 15° in radius; light clouds passed and repassed over it, but it did not disappear until the usual rain-storm came up from the eastward late in the afternoon. Walda Gabir, the king's valet, informed me that Theodore saw it when he came out of his tent that morning, and that he remarked that it was an omen of bloodshed."

Tewodros II sent two of the hostages on parole to offer terms. Napier insisted on the release of all the hostages and an unconditional surrender. Tewodros refused to cede to the unconditional surrender, but did release the European hostages. The British continued the advance and assaulted the fortress. (The native hostages were later found to have had their hands and feet cut off before being sent over the edge of the precipice surrounding the plateau).

The bombardment began with mortar
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....

s, rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...

s and artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...

. Infantry units then opened fire, covering the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....

 sent to blow up the gates of the fortress. The path lay up a steep boulder strewn track, on one side of which there was a sheer drop and on the other a perpendicular cliff face, leading to the main gateway, known as the Koket-Bir, which included thick timber doors set into a 15 feet (4.6 m) stone archway. Each side of the gate was protected by a thorn-and-stake hedge. After this gate was a further uphill path to a second fortified gateway, which led onto the final plateau or amba
Amba (geology)
An amba is a characteristic geologic form in Ethiopia. It is a steep sided, flat topped mountain, often the site of villages, wells and their surrounding farmland. These settlements were located there because they were very defensible and often virtually inaccessible plateaus.The original term in...

.

On reaching the gate there was a pause in the advance, as it was discovered the engineer unit had forgotten their powder kegs and scaling ladders and were ordered to return for them. General Staveley
Charles William Dunbar Staveley
General Sir Charles William Dunbar Staveley GCB was a British Army officer.-Early life:He was born at Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, the son of Lt-General William Staveley and Sarah Mather, and educated at the Scottish military and naval academy, Edinburgh.-Career:He was commissioned as second...

 was not happy at any further delay and ordered the 33rd Regiment to continue the attack. Several officers and the men of the 33rd, along with an officer from the Royal Engineers, parted from the main force and, after climbing the cliff face, found their way blocked by a thorny hedge over a wall. Private James Bergin
James Bergin
James Bergin VC , born in Killbriken, Queens County, Ireland, was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:Bergin was 22 years old, and a private in the...

, a very tall man, used his bayonet to cut a hole in the hedge and Drummer Michael Magner
Michael Magner
Michael Magner VC was born in County Fermanagh, Ireland and was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:He was 27 years old, and a Drummer in the 33rd...

 climbed onto his shoulders and through the gap in the hedge and dragged Private Bergin up behind him as Ensign Conner and Corporal Murphy helped shove from below. Bergin kept up a rapid rate of fire on the Koket-Bir as Magnar dragged more men through the gap in the hedge.

As more men poured through and opened fire, as they advanced with their bayonets fixed, the defenders withdrew through the second gate. The party rushed the Koket-bir before it was fully closed and then took the second gate, breaking through to the amba. Ensign Wynter scrambled up onto the top of the second gate and fixed the 33rd Regimental Colours
Colours, standards and guidons
In military organizations, the practice of carrying colours, standards or Guidons, both to act as a rallying point for troops and to mark the location of the commander, is thought to have originated in Ancient Egypt some 5,000 years ago...

 to show the plateau had been taken. Private Bergin and Drummer Magner were later awarded the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....

 for their part in the action .

Tewodros II was found dead inside the second gate, having shot himself with a pistol that had been a gift from Queen Victoria. When his death was announced, all resistance ceased. His body was cremated and buried inside the church by the priests. The church was guarded by soldiers from the 33rd Regiment although, according to Henry M. Stanley, looted of "an infinite variety of gold, and silver and brass crosses"
along with filigree
Filigree
Filigree is a delicate kind of jewellery metalwork made with twisted threads usually of gold and silver or stitching of the same curving motifs. It often suggests lace, and in recent centuries remains popular in Indian and other Asian metalwork, and French from 1660 to the late 19th century...

 works and rare tabot
Tabot
Tabot , is a Ge'ez word referring to a replica of the Tablets of Law, onto which the Biblical Ten Commandments were inscribed, used in the practices of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Tabot can also refer to a replica of the Ark of the Covenant...

s.

Aftermath

On 19 April, having first blown up the fortress and burned the city, Napier commenced the return march. According to historian Richard Pankhurst
Richard Pankhurst (academic)
Richard Keir Pethick Pankhurst OBE is a British academic with expertise in the study of Ethiopia.-Early life and education:...

, fifteen elephants and almost two hundred mules were required to bear the loot across the Bashilo River to the nearby Dalanta Plain. A grand review was held, and then an auction of the loot; the money raised was distributed amongst the troops and no written list was made of who purchased the various items. Some books and artifacts held aside from the auction were presented to the Queen, whilst others were taken by the troops and officers, but not classed as loot, most of which are still held in public collections such as the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...

, and in private collections such as Queen's library at Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...

.

The AFROMET
AFROMET
AFROMET is an organization seeking the return of looted treasures to Ethiopia.-History:...

(Association For the Return Of the Madgala Ethiopian Treasures) campaign now lobbies for the return of these objects to Ethiopia.

Officers and soldiers who took part in the campaign were awarded the 1868 Abyssinian Campaign Medal.
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