Battle of Gomit

Battle of Gomit
Date 25 December 1445 (579 years and 3 days) Location Dawaro, Ethiopian Empire Result Ethiopian victory
Belligerents
Ethiopian Empire	Adal Sultanate
Commanders and leaders
Zara Yaqob	Arwe Badlay †
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Heavy

The Battle of Gomit or Battle of Egubba (or Battle of Ayfars) was fought in 1445 between the Ethiopian Empire and a powerful Muslim army under the Adal Sultanate. The Ethiopians were led by Emperor Zara Yaqob, while the forces of Adal were led by Sultan Badlay ibn Sa'ad ad-Din. The Ethiopian army was victorious, and Badlay was slain.

Battle

Badlay first invaded the Ethiopian province of Dawaro in 1443, and again in 1445, but while in Dago, the Emperor Zara Yaqob received news that the Sultan Badlay ibn Sa'ad ad-Din was advancing to attack him. He then marched south with the army of his vassal Hassab Bawassan to confront Badlay in Dawaro.

Early in the battle, an Abyssinian soldier shot an arrow at the face of Sultan Badlay, who caught it in his hand. Sultan Badlay then charged at Zara Yaqob in an attempt to capture him, but in response, Zara Yaqob used his spear to strike Badlay and slit his throat. When the Muslims saw that Badlay was dead, they took to flight, but were pursued by the Abyssinians who cut them down as they fled.

As the Adalite forces retreated, they were led by the Sultan's brother, Khair ad-Din. While attempting to cross the Awash River, they were taken by surprise and fell into an ambush by an Abyssinian general named Djan Sagana. After this victory, Djan Sagana sent the head of Khair ad-Din to the Emperor. The chronicles assert that the entire Adalite army was annihilated in this battle. However, according to Richard Pankhurst, this may have been an exaggeration. Zara Yakob pursued the Muslim army as far as the Hawash River and captured booty which seemed absolutely marvelous to the Christian Ethiopians; in fact, the commercial relations that existed between the Adal Sultanate and the rulers of the Arab peninsula allowed Muslims to obtain luxury items that Christian Ethiopians, whose relations with the outside world were blocked, could not get. Christian documents describing the Sultan Badlay report:

“And the robes [of the sultan] and those of his leaders were adorned with silver and shone on all sides. And the dagger which he [the sultan] carried at his side was richly adorned with gold and precious stones; and his amulet was adorned with drops of gold; and the inscriptions on the amulet were of gold paint. And his parasol came from the land of Syria and it was such beautiful work that those who looked at it marveled, and winged serpents were painted on it."

Badlay's remains were dismembered and sent to different provinces. Additionally, the possessions of both him and his wife, including their diverse collection of robes, were distributed among several monastic communities. Despite this victory, the Zara Yakob decided not to conquer the Adalites, believing they were outside of the Christian boundary and shouldn't be included in his kingdom. However, historian Mohammad Hassan states Adal's territorial defense capabilities persuaded the Ethiopian monarch from attempting to occupy the state.

Aftermath

According to Somali historian Mohamed Haji Mukhtar the Adalite sultan Muhammad ibn Badlay, son of the slain sultan, conceded an annual tribute to the Ethiopian emperor Zara Yaqob in the same year.