Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 1, A-AME

An obfti-
nate battle,
A B Y [62
Abyffinia. 0f whom were determined to conquer or die as foon
as the royal family Ihould be out of the enemy’s hands.
By this conduct the Abyffinian monarch was fo much
irritated, that he divided his army into three parts 5 two
of which he commanded to enter the territory ol the
enemy by different routes, and to exterminate both man
and beaft wherever they came $ while he himfelf, with
the third, took the ftraight road to the place where
the new Adelian army was encamped. Here he found
a number of infantry drawn up and ready to engage
him •, but, befides thefe, there was a multitude of old
men, women, and even children, all armed with fuch
weapons as they could procure. Surprifed at this
fight, he ordered a party of horfe to difperfe them ; but
this was found impoffible •, fo that he was obliged to
call in the detachments he had fent out, with orders to
fall upon the enemy by the neareft way they could ad¬
vance. The engagement was for a long time very
doubtful ; and in oppofition to Amda Sion appeared
the young king of Wypo, who everywhere encoura¬
ged his troops, and made the moft obftinate refiftance.
The Abyffinian monarch having obferved him, fheathed
his fword, and arming himfelf with a bow, chofe the
broadeft arrow he could find, and took fo juft an aim,
that he fhot the young prince through the fide of the
neck, and his head inclining to one fhoulder he foon
fell down dead. On this the fpirit of the Adelians en¬
tirely forfook them, and they betook themfelves. to
flight; but unluckily falling in with two Abyflinian
detachments coming to the king’s relief, they were fo
completely deftroyed, that only three of them are faid
■ to have made their efcape. On the fide of the Abyf-
finians, however, the vi&ory was dearly purchafed *,
many of the principal officers being killed, and fcarcely
one of the cavalry efcaping Avithout a Avound.
The remainder of this expedition confifted only in
the deftruttion and burning of toAvns and villages, and
maffacres of helplefs people, on pretence of retaliating
the injuries committed by the Mahometans againft the
Chriftians. At laft, Aveary of conqueft and of carnage,
this vi&orious monarch, Avho never fuffered a defeat in
any battle, returned in triumph to his capital, Avhere
he ended his days after a reign of 30 years. In his
time Ave find that the royal family Avere not confined,
as had been the ufual praCtice from the time of the
queen of Sheba to the maffacre by Judith ; for Saif
Araad, the fon and fucceffor of Amda Sion, diftinguifti-
ed himfelf in one of the battles in Avhich his father Avas
engaged.
Though the neAV prince, as appears from Avhat has
been juft noiv obferved, was by no means dettitute of
military talents, the Abyflinian empire enjoyed a pro-
R-eign of found peace during his reign. The only remarkable
SaifAraad. tranfa&i-on Avas the relief given by him to the Coptic
The Moor-
ilh army
entirely cut
off.
Dreadful
devafta-
tions.
The royal
family not
confined
as former¬
ly.
] A B Y
fringement made on the treaty between Icon Amlac and Abyffmia,
the Abuna Tacla-Haimanout formerly mentioned. By v——v——*
that treaty the Abuna Avas to have a full third of the
whole empire for the fupport of his oAvn dignity and
that of the church : but Theodorus, juftly confidering
this as an unreafonable acquisition, reduced it very con-
fiderably, though he ftill alloAved a very ample revenue
out of every province of the empire j and even this has
been confidered by feveral of his lucceffors as far too
large, and confequently has been frequently abridged
by them. The annals of this prince’s reign are A'ery
defeClive, and Mr Bruce fuppofes that they havTe been
mutilated by the ecclefiaftics; Avhich, confidering Avhat
Ave havAi juft noAV related of his reducing their revenues,
is by no means improbable. By his fubjeCts he Avas js ce]e^ra.
confidered as fuch a faint, that to this day the people ted as a
believe he is to rife again and to reign a thoufand years ‘aint.
in Abyflinia; during which period war is to ceale, and
happinefs to be univerfally diffufed.
From the time of Theodorus to that of Zara Jacob,
Avho began his reign in 1434, the Abyflinian annals fur-
niftv us Avith little or nothing of any confequence. The Zara Jacob
character of this prince is reprefented as by no means in- faid to e-
ferior to that of Theodorus, or indeed of any monarch 0 Q*
that ever fat on the throne of Ethiopia, or any other
kingdom in the Avorld. He is, in ftiort, fet forth as
another Solomon, and a model of what fovereigns
ought to be j though, from fome particulars of his
reign, his character fhould feem to be rather exag¬
gerated. The firft remarkable tranfaCtion of this Sends an
great monarch Avas his fending an embafly to the embaffy to
council of Florence. The ambafladors Avere certaintlle' council
priefts from Jerufalem, Avho in that aflembly adheredof^lorencc,
to the opinions of the Greek church •, and the em¬
bafly itfelf Avas judged to be of fuch confequence as to
be the fubjeCt of a picture in the Vatican. This prince
obtained alfo a convent at Rome from the pope for
the ufe of the Abyflinians ; which is ftill preferved,
though very feldom vifited by thofe for Avhom it Avas
defigned. He feems to have been very defirous of
keeping up a correfpondence Avith the Europeans as
Avell as the Afiatics ; and in his time Ave firft read of
a difpute in Abyflinia Avith the Frangi or Franks on
the fubjeCt of religion. This Avas carried on in pre- A party for
fence of the king between one Abba George and a Ve- thecburch
netian painter, Francifco de Branco Lone, in Avhich of K-0™6
the former confuted and even convinced his antago- imet *
nift ; but from this time we find a party formed for the
church of Rome, and which probably took its rife from
the embafly to the council of Florence.
The prince of Avhom we noAV treat Avas the firft Avho
introduced perfecution on a religious account into his
dominions ; and for this reafon, muft probably, he is
fo highly commended by the ecclefiaftics. The ftate Religious
Egypt had thrown Into of religion in Abyffinia was now indeed very corrupt
P -r o erront "trade was carried on The Greek profeflion had been originally eftabliftied
Of Theodo
cus.
prifon. At this time a great trade Avas carried on
through the defert by caravans between Cairo and A-
byflinia, as Avell as from Cairo to Suakem on the Red
fea ; but the Ethiopic monarch having feized the mer¬
chants from Cairo, and font parties of horfe to interrupt
the caravans in their paffage, the fultan Avas foon con¬
tent to releafe the patriarch, Avhom he had imprifoned
only Avith a vieAV to extort money.
In the reign of Theodorus, Avho held the croAvn of
Ethiopia from the year 1409 an
OI ICiiy lull 111 xxuyiiiiiia <xo
The Greek profeflion had been originally eftabliihedltltr0 ucc !
from the church of Alexandria •, but in the low pro¬
vinces bordering on the coaft of Adel, the Mahome¬
tan fuperftition prevailed. Many of that perfuafion
had alfo difperfed themfelves through the towns and
villages in the internal parts of the empire, Avhile in not
a few places the groffeft idolatry flill took place; fuch
as the Avorlhip of the heavenly bodies, the Avind, trees,
coavs, ferpents, &c. All this had hitherto paflfed un¬
noticed but in the reign of Zara Jacob, fome fami¬
lies