Kebur Zabanga (more correctly - Zabanya or Zebenya ; Amh . ክቡር ዘበኛ ; Russian. "Honorary Guard" ) - the imperial guard in the Ethiopian empire . Also known as the First Division , this unit served both to ensure the personal security of the Emperor of Ethiopia , and to participate in hostilities as an elite infantry division. But, despite this, Kebur Zabanga did not obey the command of the Imperial Army , but Zebang - the Ethiopian gendarmerie . The location of the unit was Addis Ababa , the capital of Ethiopia.
| Kebur Zabanga Amh. ክቡር ዘበኛ | |
|---|---|
 Imperial Guards in the parade | |
| Years of existence | 1917 - 1936 1941 - 1974 |
| A country |  Ethiopian Empire |
| Type of | infantry |
| Number | 9 battalions |
| Dislocation | Addis Ababa |
| Patron | Emperor of Ethiopia |
| Participation in | Second Italo-Ethiopian War Korean war |
| Commanders | |
| Famous commanders | Mengistu Nevau (? - 1960) Tafessa Lemma (1974-1975) |
History
Ethiopian historian Richard Pankhurst dates the establishment of Kebur Zabangi in 1917 . It was this year that the races of Tefari Makkonnin , regent under Empress Zaudit , and later Emperor Haile Selassie, recruited a detachment of Ethiopian men and sent them to the territory of modern Kenya to be trained by British specialists [1] .
In 1930 , becoming emperor, Haile Selassie invited an Belgian military mission to Ethiopia with the goal of further modernizing the imperial army. Separate training was held for the future Kebur Zabanga. This unit consisted of three regular infantry battalions, well trained, armed with rifles , machine guns and mortars , as well as one heavy machine gun company. One of the battalions included former members of Mehl Sefari (the imperial guard established under Menelik II ). The Ethiopians, the graduates of the French military academy Saint-Cyr, commanded the battalions.
During the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, Kebur Zabanga as a whole took part only in the fateful battle of Ethiopia at Maichou , in which the imperial troops were completely demoralized and defeated. After that, the guards broke up into several separate groups, continuing resistance until the full occupation of Ethiopia by Italian troops. When World War II began , most of these groups joined the Ethiopian resistance, collaborating with Allied forces [2] .
After the return of Haile Selassie to Ethiopia and the defeat of the Axis, the Kebur Zabanga was recreated. This time, military specialists from Sweden were involved in the preparation of the unit. During the war in Korea, Kebur Zabanga was part of the joint UN forces fighting on the side of South Korea [3] .
As historian Bahru Zevde noted, Kebur Zabanga was "the elite forces of the empire until it discredited itself as a result of the attempted coup d'etat of 1960. " A failed rebellion against the imperial power was planned by the commander of the guard, Brigadier General Mengistu Nevau , and his brother Girmame Nevau [4] .
By 1961, Kebur Zabanga already numbered nine battalions. In 1969, about 7,000 people fought in its ranks. In 1974, Major General Tafessa Lemma was appointed commander.
After the overthrow of Haile Selassie and the liquidation of the monarchy in Ethiopia , the Provisional Military Administrative Council, which came to power in 1975, decided to dissolve Kebur Zabangi.
Notes
- ↑ Richard Pankhurst, Economic History of Ethiopia (Addis Ababa: Haile Selassie University Press, 1968), p. 562
- ↑ Bahru Zewde, A History of Modern Ethiopia , second edition (Oxford: James Currey, 2001), p. 148
- ↑ Bahru Zewde, A History , p. 186
- ↑ Paul B. Henze, Layers of Time (New York: Palgrave, 2000), pp. 254f.