Major-General '' Dejazmach'' Beyene Merid (sometimes rendered as Beine Merid) (1897 - 24 February 1937) was an

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

army commander, a patriot, and the son-in-law of

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

Haile Selassie I.

Biography

Son of '' Dejazmatch'' Merid. '' Dejazmatch'' Beyenne Merid married ''Leult'' Romanework, the daughter of Haile Selassie. He spent most of his career as the ''Shum'' of

Bale Bale may refer to: Apps Bale Messenger, an Iranian instant messaging (IM) app owned by the National Bank of Iran Packaging * Cotton bale * Hay or straw bale in farming, bound by a baler * Paper bale, a unit of paper measurement equal t ...

. By 1935, he had also established himself as the ''Shum'' of Gamu-Gofa. During the

Second Italo-Ethiopian War The Second Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, was a war of aggression waged by Fascist Italy, Italy against Ethiopian Empire, Ethiopia, which lasted from October 1935 to February 1937. In Ethiopia it is oft ...

, '' Dejazmach'' Beyenne Merid commanded the Army of Bale and fought on the "southern front" against Italian forces based in

Italian Somaliland Italian Somaliland (; ; ) was a protectorate and later colony of the Kingdom of Italy in present-day Somalia, which was ruled in the 19th century by the Sultanate of Hobyo and the Majeerteen Sultanate in the north, and by the Hiraab Imamate and ...

. Before the Battle of Genale Doria, Beyenne Merid and the 4,000 strong Army of Bale advanced down the Shebelle River with the intention of invading central Italian Somaliland. Beyene Merid and his army was able to move forward quickly due to the good terrain along the Shebelle River. In November, advancing elements of Beyenne Merid's force clashed with about 1,000 '' dubats'' of the pro- Italian Olol Diinle. Both sides withdrew from the battlefield in the end, but Beyene Merid had been seriously wounded. Its commander stricken, the Army of Bale retired from battle. Olol Dinle managed to complete the main objective of his mission which was to immobilise Beine Merid. During the Italian occupation, Beyenne Merid fought as an '' Arbegna''. On 24 February 1937, he and his forces joined up with ''Ras'' Desta Damtew and his forces. On the same day, he and Desta Damtew were captured by the Italians. They were then immediately executed.

Family

Beyene Merid and Romane Work had four sons. In 1930, ''Lij'' Getachew Beyene was born. In May 1932, ''Dejazmatch'' Merid Beyene was born. In 1934, ''Dejazmatch'' Samson Beyene was born. In 1936, ''Lij'' Gideon Beyene was born. Only Merid and Samson survived the Italian occupation.Haile Selassie, p. 170

Notes

;Footnotes ;Citations

References

* * * * {{cite book, author=Pankhurst, Richard , title=The Ethiopians: A History (Peoples of Africa), publisher=Wiley-Blackwell; New Ed edition, year=2001, isbn=0-631-22493-9 , ref=Pankhurt 2001 1897 births 1937 deaths Ethiopian nobility Ethiopian military personnel Executed Ethiopian people Executed military personnel 20th-century executions by Italy People of the Second Italo-Ethiopian War

Biography

Family

See also

Notes

References