Salih was the leader of

Adal Adal may refer to: *A short form for Germanic names in ''aþala-'' (Old High German ''adal-''), "nobility, pedigree"; see Othalan ** Adál Maldonado (1948–2020), Puerto Rican artist ** Adal Ramones (born 1969), Mexican television show host ** A ...

in the fourteenth century. He was commonly known as

Qadi A qadi (; ) is the magistrate or judge of a Sharia court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and minors, and supervision and auditing of public works. History The term '' was in use from ...

Imam Imam (; , '; : , ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Salah, Islamic prayers, serve as community leaders, ...

of the

Harar Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...

territory.

Militant Career

Salih is known for resisting the invasion of Adal by

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 ...

Amda Seyon I Amda Seyon I, also known as Amda Tsiyon I ( , , "Pillar of Zion"), throne name Gebre Mesqel (ገብረ መስቀል , "Servant of the Cross"), was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1314 to 1344 and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He is best known ...

. Despite their alliance tension between Ifat and Adal leaders was evident as Salih refused to wait for the arrival of Ifat's troops under sultan

Jamal ad-Din I Jamal ad-Din () (flourished mid-14th century) was a governor of Ifat. He was the son of Nahwi b. Mansur b. Umar Walashma (Umar ibn Dunya-huz) and a brother of Haqq ad-Din I. Reign The Emperor of Ethiopia Amda Seyon I made Jamal ad-Din Governor ...

before attacking the Abyssinians in order to avoid allocating the spoils of war with Ifat.

Taddesse Tamrat Taddesse Tamrat (; 4 August 1935 – 23 May 2013) was an Ethiopian historian and scholar of Ethiopian studies. He is best known as the author of ''Church and State in Ethiopia 1270–1520'' (1972, Oxford University Press ), a book which has domi ...

argues Salih diminished Sultan Jamal of Ifat's power as he had gained the confidence of Muslims in the region.

Death

Salih and his

Harla The Harla, also known as Harala, Haralla were an ethnic group that once inhabited Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti. They spoke the Harla language, which belonged to either the Cushitic or Semitic branches of the Afroasiatic family. History The ...

supporters were however defeated at the

Battle of Das The Battle of Das was fought in 1332 between the Ethiopian Empire under the command of Emperor Amda Seyon and a large Muslim coalition led by Salih of Adal. The Ethiopian army was victorious, and Salih was slain. Background According to the ch ...

in which Salih was himself killed by Emperor Amda Seyon’s army. In 1621 Salih's tomb was rediscovered in Harar.

References

People from the Adal Sultanate Military personnel killed in action People from Harari Region People executed by Ethiopia {{Africa-reli-bio-stub