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Banadir resistance

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Banadir resistance
Part of Italian Somali Wars

Italians and Somali colonial troops fighting against the Bimaal at Danane.
Date1890s–1908[2][3]
Location
Horn of Africa, southern Italian Somalia
Result Italian victory
Insurgencies eventually suppressed
Belligerents

Kingdom of Italy

Bimal rebel forces

Commanders and leaders

Kingdom of ItalyGiacomo Trevis X[4]

Kingdom of ItalyGustavo Pesenti

Kingdom of Italy Antonino Di Giorgio

Sheikh Abdi Abikar Gafle

The Banadir resistance, also known as the Bimaal revolt, Merca revolt, or simply the Bimaal resistance, was a guerrilla war that lasted from the 1890s to 1908, opposing Italian colonial expansion in southern Somalia. The resistance was most active in the Lower Shebelle, Banadir and Middle Shebelle regions. Its intensity and significance have drawn comparisons to the Somali Dervish Movement.[6]

Early history

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Maurizio Talmone, an Italian officer killed in Merca by a Biimal gamase soldier

In the 1890s, Italian-occupied Marka was the centre of the Bimal culture. This sparked the beginning of conflict and outrage among the Bimal clan, and soon after the Wa'dan. The clans would represent the core of the initial Somali resistance against Italian colonialism.[1] An Italian resident of the city named Giacomo Trevis was assassinated in 1904; in response Italy occupied the port town of Jazira about 30 miles (48 km) south of Mogadishu.[7] In response Bimal leaders called for a grand conference mobilizing the Banadiri clans. The resistance was spearheaded by Sheikh Abdi Gafle and Ma’alin Mursal Abdi Yusuf, two prominent local Islamic teachers in Marka from the Bimal clan. The resistance, albeit initially clan-based, transformed into one with a religious fervour. Whilst the initial resistance consisted mainly of the Bimal, numbers of the Wa’dan, Hintire and other clans of the Geledi confederation later joined to resist the Italian advance and the decision to isolate the ports from trade with the interior. The Qur’anic school teachers, called in Somali ma'alims, and religious leaders or imams of Marka and the Bimal led the war of resistance against the colonial occupation of Banadir, but they and their followers paid dearly.

A local poet who attacked those who refused to take up arms said:

Reer Jannah waa jid galeen. Reer Jahanamna iska jooga
Those who resist are heaven-bound. Those who submit can stay home in Hell where they belong.[8]

Biimal rebel leaders in Merca[9]

Conflicts

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Massacre of Warsheikh

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The earliest conflict between Italians and Somalis on the Banaadir coast, was the Massacre of Warsheikh.

On April 24 1890 An Italian steamboat was ordered to be equipped and sent to the shores of Warsheikh under the command of Lieutenant Zavagli, with instructions to “seek a meeting with the local chief of the area, whose population primarily belonged to the Abgaal subclan of the Hawiya Somalis, to demonstrate the crew's friendly intentions and to offer gifts for the chiefs and the population.” Alongside Zavagli were Coxswain Angelo Bertolucci, Seaman 3rd Class Angelo Bertorello, Engineer 3rd Class Alfredo Simoni, Stoker 2nd Class Giuseppe Gorini, Chief Helmsman 2nd Giovanni Gonnella, and an Arab interpreter Said Achmed.[10]

Portrait of Lieutenant Carlo Zavagli

What happened after Zavagli arrived, from Minister Brin's report to the King, it was a veritable ambush, launched at a signal from the village Somali chief, against the three Italians who had disembarked.

Somali attack on Italian ships at Warsheikh

Zavagli was immediately wounded and died on the boat, which was hastily trying to get out to sea while the rest of the crew fired wildly to cover their escape. Bertorello was hit by the Somalis while working on the anchor; he suffered wounds, which caused him to die shortly after, he jumped into the water to free the propeller from its mooring where it had become entangled due to the disaster.[11]Upon return, their boat was studded in arrows, and Lieutenant Zavagli's body in a pool of blood, his head decapitated.[12]

Sheekh Ahmed Gabyow, also known as Sheekh Gabyow, recited this poem at the end of June 1891 after the battles of Cadale and Warsheikh killing the Lieutenant Carlo Zavagli, along with 60 Italian colonial troops said to have been the first call for Somali nationalism.[13]

We are fighting for the Somalis We fight those who commit evil Oh ye reject colonial infidels Before the wind of death takes you Turning to ashes to be eaten by worms So rear the path for future generations

— Ahmed Gabyow

Battle of Lafoole

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Battle scene during the Italo-Somali War of 1896

The Banaadir resistance and their sieges across Somali cities, with the growing anti Italian Sentiment and the Italian authority's retribution, continued unabated for many years. It was heightened when, in November 1896, while on a pleasure trip, Consul Antonio Cecchi [it], the Societá del Benadir administrator and also the de facto governor of Southern Somaliland, and his lieutenants, were ambushed at Lafoole, a small village a few kilometres from Afgooye, south of Muqdisho, by Wa'daan and Bimaal fighters, who massacred 14 of the Italians, including Cecchi.[14]

Italian memorial for the soldiers massacred by Somali troops at Lafoole

With the attack at Lafoole resulting in the deaths of 14 Italian officials and soldiers, it had managed to garnish strong reactions in Rome, as the embarrassing incident was dubbed “The Somali Adwa” by Italians.

Resistance by the Bimaals, Geledi, and Wacdaan

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Bimaal leaders in the Benadir included Sheikh Abdi Abikar Gafle, Ma’alin Mursal, Abdi Yusuf, Haji ibrahim Gaashan, Malaakh Cabdi Juray, and Bilow Ageede.[15][16] In the late 1890s and early 1900s, the Bimal opposed Italian colonialism in Somalia. Italian garrisons in both Marka and Jazira were under siege and barely survived. Though Italy sent support troops, they suffered considerable losses. In February 1907, at Turunley, also known as Dhanane, north of Marka, some 2,000 Banadiri warriors, led by Sheikh Abdi Abiikar Gaafle, a religious Bimaal leader and imam fought 1,000 Italian troops, assisted by some 1,500 Arab, Eritrean, and Somali mercenaries led by Lieutenant Gustavo Pesenti. The attack started after midnight, February 9, 1907, and lasted to the noon of the 10th. The Banadiri warriors retreated, leaving behind several hundred dead and as many wounded. Although the Italians had high casualties, they considered Turunley a major military victory, one which Lieutenant Pesenti, the commander of the regiment, celebrated in an eyewitness account, Danane (Dhanane). In July 1908, at Finlow, the Bimal avenged Turunley defeating some 500 Italian troops. However, the subsequent 1908 expeditions led by Antonino Di Giorgio and Vincenzo Rossi led to the capitulation of major centres such as Afgoy and the ceasing of hostilities by the Bimal. In this period the Sultan of the Geledi Osman Ahmed, agreed to turn his realm into an Italian protectorate.

Perception

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One of the Italian's greatest fears was the spread of 'Dervishism' ( had come to mean revolt) in the south and the strong Bimaal tribe of Benadir whom already were at war with the Italians, while not following the religious message or adhering to the views of Muhammad Abdullah Hassan, understood greatly his goal and political tactics. The dervishes, in this case, were engaged in supplying arms to the Bimaal.[17]

The Italians wanted to bring in an end to the Bimaal revolt and at all cost prevent a Bimal-Dervish alliance, which lead them to use the forces of Obbia as prevention.

Italian garrisons in Marka barely survived the harassments and skirmishes and reinforcements from Mogadishu suffered considerable loses. This noble resistance caught the attention of Mohamed Abdulle Hassan, the charismatic Darawiish leader — who sent a lengthy message to the Bimal (Risaalat lil-Bimaal) in which he commended their efforts and proclaimed the necessity of waging Jihad against the colonial invaders. He attached a supplemental text entitled “Qam’ al-Mu’anidin” (Suppression of the Rebellious) that clarified the tenets of Saalihiya order, for which the leader ascribed to.[17]

Letter

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The clash of Danane in Banadir between the Italians and their dependencies and the Bimal

In his letter or risala lil-bimal Muhammad Abdulle Hassan praised the Bimal and tried to persuade the Bimal to join his Dervish movement. His letter to the Bimal was documented as the most extended exposition of his mind as a Muslim thinker and religious figure. The letter is til this day still preserved. It is said that the Bimal, thanks to their numerically powerful size, traditionally and religiously devoted fierce warriors and possession of much resources, intrigued Mahamed Abdulle Hassan. But not only that, the Bimal themselves had mounted an extensive and major resistance against the Italians, especially in the first decade of the 19th century. The Italians carried many expeditions against the powerful Bimal to try and pacify them. Because of this, the Bimal had all the reason to join the Dervish struggle. So, to win their support over, the Sayyid wrote a detailed theological statement to present to the Bimal tribe, who dominated the strategic Banaadir port of Merca and its surroundings.[18]

References

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  1. ^ a b Carpanelli & Scovazzi 2020, p. 88-89.
  2. ^ Mukhtar, M. H. (2003). Historical Dictionary of Somalia. United States: Scarecrow Press.
  3. ^ Kusow, Abdi (2004). Putting the Cart Before the Horse: Contested Nationalism and the Crisis of the Nation-state in Somalia. Red Sea Press. ISBN 978-1-56902-202-3.
  4. ^ Trevis, Giacomo (1903). Finazzo (ed.). Considerazioni sulla schiavitù. Vol. 2. p. 467‑472. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  5. ^ Antonio Cecchi, Wikipedia (Italian), accessed July 29, 2025.
  6. ^ Ciisa-Salwe, Cabdisalaam M. (1996-01-01). The collapse of the Somali state: the impact of the colonial legacy. HAAN. p. 19. ISBN 9781874209270.
  7. ^ Kusow, Abdi (2004). Putting the cart before the horse: contested nationalism and the crisis of the nation-state in Somalia. Red Sea Press. ISBN 9781569022023.
  8. ^ Kusow, Abdi (2004-01-01). Putting the cart before the horse: contested nationalism and the crisis of the nation-state in Somalia. Red Sea Press. p. 86. ISBN 9781569022023. the Bimal clan was the major element in the resistance. See: Gherardo Pantano, Nel Benadir: La Citta di Merca e la Regione Bimal
  9. ^ "1908, la blitzkrieg del Benadir. La campagna del Maggiore Di Giorgio". L'Italia Coloniale (in Italian). 2019-11-18. Retrieved 2022-06-15.
  10. ^ "24 aprile 1890: il riminese Carlo Zavagli ucciso in Somalia". ChiamamiCittà.it (in Italian). ChiamamiCittà. 24 April 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
  11. ^ "ChiamamiCittà – Registrazione al Tribunale di Rimini". ChiamamiCittà.it (in Italian). ChiamamiCittà. Retrieved 31 July 2025. Chiamamicitta.it è una testata registrata presso il Tribunale di Rimini – Reg. n. 1458/2016 del 29/07/2016
  12. ^ Finaldi, Giuseppe (2016). A History of Italian Colonialism, 1860–1907: Europe's Last Empire. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-138-69797-3.
  13. ^ Royle, Trevor (1997). The Last Days of the Raj. Penguin Books. p. 347. ISBN 9780719556869.
  14. ^ Robert L. Hess, Italian Colonialism in Somalia, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1966.
  15. ^ Kusow, Abdi (2004). Putting the Cart Before the Horse: Contested Nationalism and the Crisis of the Nation-state in Somalia. Red Sea Press. ISBN 978-1-56902-202-3.
  16. ^ The Shaping of Somali Society: Reconstructing the History of a Pastoral People, 1600-1900, p 228
  17. ^ a b Hess, Robert L. (1964-01-01). "The 'Mad Mullah' and Northern Somalia". The Journal of African History. 5 (3): 415–433, page 422. doi:10.1017/s0021853700005107. JSTOR 179976.
  18. ^ Samatar, Said S. (1992). In the Shadow of Conquest: Islam in Colonial Northeast Africa. The Red Sea Press. ISBN 978-0-932415-70-7.

Bibliography

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