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36-722: It was located east of the Semien Province , north of Abergele , and on the east, it was bordered by the Enderta Province . The original capital of the province was Melfa , west of the current town of Hagere Selam ; later on Abiy Addi , nowadays located in Kola Tembien ( Lower Tembien ), became the capital. The region reached a highpoint in the Tsatsen mountains at 2828 meters above sea level, just south of Hagere Selam. Tembien holds numerous prehistoric sites, which have been dated to

72-700: A (locally paved) horse-track between Melfa and Mekelle , passing through the V-notched Ksad Mederbai. He also ordered to build the Abune Aregawi church in Zeyi , after being informed about the discovery of a large cave there. Also his successors kept connections with Tembien: There were complex succession rules in Tembien, including transfer of positions through female lines. Some of the better-known 19th century higher ranked leaders of Tembien were: In 1935 and 1936,

108-581: A decade before making the way for his son Dejazmach Wube Haile Maryam , who significantly expanded the territory of Semien by conquering the provinces of Tsegede , Welkait and eventually went east of the Tekeze to rule Tigray Province and modern day Eritrea . Taytu Betul , empress consort to Menelik II and niece of Wube, hailed from Semien province. In his early 19th century writings, traveller Henry Salt noted that coarse carpets were made in Semien, from

144-493: A major land reform; it was from here that the offensives were organised till the conquest of Addis Ababa in 1991. Semien Province Semien Province ( Amharic : ሰሜን, “North”) was a historical province of northwest Ethiopia . According to Manoel De Almeida Semien was bordered on the north-east and north by Tigray and Tselemt , on the east and south by Abergele , and on the west by Wegera . Alexander Murray include Wag as part of Semien. The first mention of

180-558: A mountainous region in the heart of Ethiopia near a traditional village. Lalibela is an important center of Ethiopian Christianity, and even today is a place of pilgrimage and devotion. Lalibela is one of the world's heritage sites registered by UNESCO . Many other churches were hewn from rock in Ethiopia, outside of Lalibela in Amhara Region . This practice was very common in Tigray , where

216-529: A remarkable figure in Ethiopia's 17th century political history succeeded her brother as governor. Dejazmach Tasfa of Semien governed the region in the 18th century. His son, Ras Gebre (1771-1815) governed Semien since the early years of the Zemene Mesafint period, for more than four decades. On Amba Hay was their fortress stronghold and the main residence of the family. Succeeding his father Gebre, Dejazmach Haile Maryam Gebre reigned for over

252-429: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Monolithic church A monolithic church or rock-hewn church is a church made from a single block of stone . Because freestanding rocks of sufficient size are rare, such edifices are usually hewn into the ground or into the side of a hill or mountain. They can be of comparable architectural complexity to constructed buildings. The term monolithic church

288-528: Is about a war expedition of one of its late- Aksumite rulers against the Nubian Alodia kingdom. Written sources particularly about “princes of Tembien” became more dense starting from the 14th C. Starting from the 17th century the title of lord of Tembien was transmitted in the same family, while also getting approval from the Ethiopian Emperor. Hence, the degree of autonomy could vary. We know that, in

324-503: Is painted with scenes of his reign, and there are numerous gifts of the Emperor present in the church. Nowadays, every church serves also as a meeting place for the community. On Sundays, the villagers meet in the church compound after church service around a cup of blessed siwa (beer) . This and other informal traditional meetings and associations allow self-organisation of the peasant communities. The first written source that mentions Tembien

360-609: Is used of churches in various countries, not least the complex of eleven churches in Lalibela , Ethiopia , believed to have been created in the 12th century. The eleven monolithic churches in Lalibela are: The most famous of the edifices is the cross-shaped Church of St. George. Tradition credits its construction to the Zagwe dynasty King Gebre Mesqel Lalibela , who was a devout Orthodox Tewahedo Christian . The medieval monolithic churches of this 12th-century "New Jerusalem" are situated in

396-589: The Aksumite king . The region was governed by Uthman b. Guhar of Adal . Semien was governed by members of the Amhara royalty and nobility. In 1629, Emperor Susenyos made his son Fasilides governor of Semien Province with the title of Aggafari . The title ‘‘ Aggafari of Semien’’ became a normal title for the Crown Prince. Thereafter, the title became an honorific title for the governor of Semien, which came to occupy

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432-556: The Italians invaded Ethiopia, coming from the north ( Eritrea ). Tembien with its mountains and river gorges was a major obstacle on their way south. For instance, the armies of Seyoum Mengesha and Kassa Hailu regrouped there, and in January 1936, they caused important losses to the Italian army in the four-days First Battle of Tembien . However, at the end of February, a turning point came when

468-509: The May Ila open-air site in the Tsech'i gorge at the extreme west of Menachek at a height of about 1990 metres ( 13°36′35″N 39°01′42″E  /  13.609826°N 39.028260°E  / 13.609826; 39.028260 ). It contains blades, blade cores, and a few potsherds of Pastoral Neolithic age. These sites are found on the routes that lead from the northwestern lowlands of Ethiopia to

504-641: The Middle Stone Age in Ayninbirkekin , or Pastoral Neolithic in Aregen and Menachek . The Dabo Zellelew cave in Aregen at a height of about 2000 metres, has been explored over 14.4 m but its distance is claimed to be way longer ( 13°37′19″N 39°01′59″E  /  13.621862°N 39.033077°E  / 13.621862; 39.033077 ). It contains lithic tools, potsherds, engravings and paintings of Pastoral Neolithic age. The Mihdar Ab’ur cave in

540-681: The Simien Mountains comes from the Monumentum Adulitanum , an Aksumite inscription recorded by Cosmas Indicopleustes in the sixth century AD. The inscription describes the area as "inaccessible mountains covered with snow" and where soldiers walked up to their knees in snow. There is also a note in Cosmas Indicopleustes' work which states that the Simien Mountains was a place of exile for subjects condemned to banishment by

576-574: The Woyane rebellion in 1943 that could only be put down with the help of the British Royal Air Force . For a long time, Melfa , west of Hagere Selam, was the capital of Tembien; later on, the administration was established in Abiy Addi , as it was easier of access. In 1951, Gebru Gebrehiwot, the new governor, decided to create a new capital of Tembien. First the location of Melfa was chosen. As

612-415: The (political) life: after the harvest, young men often migrated seasonally to Young farmers, at the slack season, and in need of additional income, were often enrolled in armies, where they hoped to get noticed and receive a position. Hence, the war cycle followed the seasons. In the rainy seasons, when warfare was difficult anyway, the farmers were back on their land to plough and harvest. As evidenced by

648-407: The 15th Century. In Tembien's history, the farmers’ culture, life cycle and livelihood linked with the land are important. There were hierarchical structures in which the large landowners owned most of the land, assumed positions and controlled the peasants. It was common that half of the crop yield needed to be given to the lord what led to great misery in the villages. The seasons organised also

684-482: The 17th C., Tembien was part of the larger Agame , led by Kiflewahid , but after his death, Tembien became autonomous. As of the 19th Century, both oral traditions and written documents mention that the rulers of Tembien were based in Melfa . Best known is Emperor Yohannes IV , whose forefathers had managed to gain power through marriage with all the surrounding ruling families. Kassa (the future emperor Yohannes) controlled

720-636: The Italian bomb and gas attacks. Many strategic places, battle fields, and locations of mustard gas bombings during the Italian wars are located in Tembien. In history books, they are commonly named by their Italian transliteration of the original Tigrinya name. This inventory provides the list of warfare sites with the (current) place name in Tigrinya, and their location. As the Italians anticipated to stay for many years, they invested in road and other infrastructure projects, which also furthered some urbanisation along

756-495: The Italians targeted the counterattacking Tembien troops from the north and the south, with air force support and large-scale use of mustard gas . This Second Battle of Tembien led to the Italians capturing the Tembien highlands and the final retreat of ras Siyyum and ras Kasa to the south. Souvenirs of this period are still vivid, and particularly the people know the caves and other places where their grandparents went hiding for

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792-512: The Tembien highlands and later the whole of Tigray; ultimately he crowned himself king of kings of Ethiopia in 1872. However, Emperor Yohannes IV did not establish his capital in Tembien (due to relative inaccessibility), but in Mekelle and Adwa - these towns were well connected to the Red Sea and to inner Ethiopia. However Yohannes’ kept strong links with Tembien, as indicated by the establishment of

828-513: The Wer’i’). Whereas several other Tigrinya -speaking provinces were less linked with the centre, Tembien was often linked with Tigray proper (Adwa) in a dynamic way. In the rainy season, Tembien became full autonomous because the Wer’i river was an unpassable border. However, during dry seasons Tembien accepted the authority of Tigray proper. Tembien appears on indigenous maps of the northern Horn of Africa in

864-570: The churches was started by a group of missionaries known as the ' Nine Saints ', who arrived in Ethiopia from the Mediterranean region during the fifth or sixth century. Together with their Ethiopian followers these missionaries inspired a long tradition of monasticism , promoting isolation in remote and highly inaccessible locations such as those in which the rock-hewn churches are found. Preferred lithologies for church hewing were Adigrat Sandstone and Enticho Sandstone . The tradition continues up to

900-420: The districts Kola Tembien , Degua Tembien , Hawzen and Sa'esa Tsada Amba . Their precise ages are not well defined but the majority were probably carved during the reigns of the emperors Dawit II (ca. 1380–1413 CE) and Zer’a Ya’iqob (1434–1468), and some possibly earlier when Anbessa Wudim (legendary date: 10th C.) or Yekuno Amlak (1270–1285) were in power. According to local belief excavation of

936-567: The early years 2000. Both during the reign of Emperor Haile Sillasie and that of the military Derg regime, Tembien was marginalised, despite its closeness to Mekelle. In the 1980s, the TPLF , established its headquarters in a cave, again near Melfa , more particularly in Addi Geza'iti . From these underground rooms and offices cut out in sandstone cliffs, the TPLF carried out its political activities, including

972-593: The fifth place in Ethiopian table of ranks. Dejazmach Anestasyos , nephew of Fasilides , grandson of Susenyos , became the new governor ( Aggafari ) of Semien. Yostos, the eldest son and presumptive heir of Emperor Yohannes I governed Semien before his untimely death in June 1676. His brother, Iyasu the Great , then a prince, succeeded him. Iyasu I later became the Emperor in 1682, and moved to Gondar . Iyasu's sister Eleni ,

1008-531: The inhabitants of Melfa rejected the idea, Hagere Selam was created as a new town. It used already to be an open-air market place (hence the name "Idaga Hamus" or Thursday market ) – the place was a strategically located mountain saddle, also called "May Aleqti". In practice, the capital remained in Abiy Addi. It was only after the district of Dogu’a Tembien was created that Hagere Selam started to grow. Basic modern infrastructure (electricity, tap water) came only in

1044-520: The northern highlands via Tembien that holds a large number of distributions of rock art sites. Tembien in the past was at least partially inhabited by Agew people and there are still Agew communities south of Tembien, in Abergele . The border between Tigray proper (area surrounding Aksum and Adwa ) and Tembien traditionally was the Wer’i river . This is why Tembien was also called “Wer’i Mellash” (‘beyond

1080-460: The numerous monolithic churches in Tembien, the socio-political organisation is based on Oriental Orthodox Christianity since ancient times. There are even manuscripts referring to a mediaeval monastic movement, in which the leaders originated from Tembien. There is an important pilgrimage every year to the Abba Selama monastery, situated on an almost inaccessible rock that can only be reached at

1116-610: The outside world knew of only a few such churches until the Catholic priest Abba Tewelde Medhin Josief presented a paper to the Third International Conference of Ethiopian Studies in which he announced the existence of over 120 churches, 90 of which were still in use. Despite Dr. Josief's death soon after his presentation, research over the next few years raised the total number of these rock-hewn churches to 153, particularly in

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1152-507: The peril of one's life. After Aksum, this would be the oldest church of Ethiopia, established by the first Syrian missionary, Frumentius, commonly named “Abba Selama”. The monastery was even represented on a 17th-century map of Ethiopia. Like Mount Athos in Greece , the local monks do not recognise the state authority over the monastery. Emperor Yohannes IV was baptised at the St. Mary church of Melfa . It

1188-483: The present, as rock-hewn churches are still being excavated today. Although the churches differ in design and structure, most consist basically of halls with a basilica architecture that includes three naves and a vestibule, pillars, vast ceilings, archways, and domes. Walls and ceilings are often decorated with rock carvings and colourful frescoes. Many of the medieval churches are still used today for Christian orthodox religious ceremonies and festivities. There are

1224-467: The roads, such as in Abiy Addi , which attracted settlers. Nevertheless, there was a centre of local resistance in Tembien, what greatly hindered a stable Italian presence. The Italians retreated in 1941. The traditions of autonomy, the historical role in Tigrayan politics, and relative isolation on top of a massif made Tembien a centre of resistance after the Italian retreat. Tembien participated actively in

1260-626: The village of Mahba in Aregen at a height of about 2500 metres, is some 64 m long ( 13°37′14″N 39°03′05″E  /  13.620592°N 39.051313°E  / 13.620592; 39.051313 ). It contains engravings and paintings of Pastoral Neolithic age. The Danei Kawlos cave in the Tsech'i gorge at the west of Menachek at a height of about 2020 metres, is some 13.5 metres long ( 13°37′19″N 39°01′59″E  /  13.621862°N 39.033077°E  / 13.621862; 39.033077 ). It contains lithic tools, potsherds, and faunal remains of Pastoral Neolithic age. Further down,

1296-461: The wool and hair of sheep and goats. Semien was one of the major provinces for sheepherding . Semien itself was the object of insulting jokes by other provincials. Semenites were even ridiculed as soldiers whose shields were made of sheepskin. According to Wallis Budge 1928 publication, Semien was known for its semi-precious stones such as turquoise , carnelian , jaspers of various colors and agates . This Ethiopia location article

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