History of Bahir Dar

This article is about the historical background of Bahir Dar, the capital of Amhara Region in Ethiopia.

Blue Nile Falls Tis Issat near Bahir Dar

Account from travelers

Bahir Dar has been home to various monasteries around Amhara region. Its location at the mouth of the Blue Nile as well as its situation along the highway was linked to long distance trade route that linked northern and southern Ethiopia and gave importance to the city, allowing to frequently visited by European travellers. In 19th century, several European travellers visited the city with the first document about the town was written by Alexandria Edouard Blondeel, a Belgian consul who visited the area in 1842. He referred the city as small village.

The second written document is by French traveller Antoine D'Abbadie who visited it a year later. His brother Arnaud D'Abbadie also made similar visit, with both called Bahir Dar Qorat'a town. Walter Plowden, a British envoy to Ethiopia, made similar visits in the mid-1840s. Unlike the two brothers, he described Bahir Dar a rich local market where grains were exchanged for salt. Moreover, Plowden called Bahir Dar a "town" and it's people "town people".

D'Abbadie brothers and Plowden entere to Bahir Dar via reed boat; the former across the outlet of the Blue Nile and the latter across the lake itself. In the time, both observed political unrest between Ras Ali II of Begemder and Beru Goshu of Gojjam over possession of locality of Bahir Dar. This shows the importance of the city for Begemder and Gojjam by trade linking both land and water.

Due to growing trade, it was also visited by Italian travellers Carlo Piaggia and Mario Alamanni. Piaggia lived in Qorat'a from 1873 to 1874 while Alamanni visited Bahir Dar in 1889. Piaggia noted that Bahir Dar was located between Gojjam from north, had controlled the passage of trade at the mouth of the Blue Nile from the lake. Likewise, Alamanni viewed Bahir Dar among the principal community centers such as Gondar, Yifag, Darita, Qorat'a in the north and Debre Werq, Dima, Bure, Debre Markos and Basso in the south. Alamanni, unlike predecessor travellers, estimated the population of Bahir Dar in each local market center, which he thought to consist of 1,200 and 1,600 inhabitants.

1850s–1920

Bahir Dar became noticeable from he mid-1850s via local accounts. In 1856, Emperor Tewodros II visited Bahir Dar on his return from Shewan campaigns. It was also said that he left Bahir Dar for Begemder ten years later, crossing Blue Nile at Eger Bar. Likewise, Menelik II passed from Begemder to Shewa via Bahir Dar a number of times. He was said to have received by local clergymen. In conclusion, both native and foreign accounts confirmed the city strategically important. However not as local literature, who mentioned neither economic nor social activities of the settlement as external sources.

By the late 20th century, the interest of European powers in Ethiopia grew rapidly. The British and Italians wanted to absorb the trade linkage with their respective territories of Sudan and Eritrea, especially the British wanted the Lake Tana area more than other powers. They sought to construct a barrage at the outlet of the lake in order to develop the economy of Anglo-Egyptian Sudan territory. Thus, they sent various teams for studying Bahir Dar information. The first British expedition to Bahir Dar took place in 1902 led by M.C. Dupius and his companion A.J. Hayes. Dupius noted that the church Kidus Giyorgis was constructed by stone and lime while Hayes called the settlement a village. Moreover, Hayes extra accounts the life of inhabitants such as the cultivation of grain and fishing in the shallow waters of the Blue Nile were popular agricultural activities. Some people were undergoing their income by transporting people, goods, and pack animals across the Blue Nile across Begemder–Gojjam route via Kanfaro Abbay, along the mouth of the river from Lake Tana.

1920–1941

The most authenticate information was observed by the expedition in Lake Tana of the Grabham and Black mission (1920–21) from Britain. They saw local people grew maize, while wheat and barley were brought to the Bahir Dar market from surrounding highland plateau.

The Grabham and Black mission also observed profound trade activity at Bahir Dar with people from near and far flocking to its markets. In 1924, the Ethiopian government ordered the construction of a dam by the British across the outlet of Lake Tana. This was the time of modernization of Ethiopia; the dam was expected to become an important means of generating revenue.

Aerial view of Bahir Dar in 1938

Road construction has been controversial; while the Ethiopian government idealized road constructing between Bahir Dar with Addis Ababa via Debre Markos, the British wanted to link Bahir Dar with Sudan. The Ethiopian government did not agree because it was not supportive to centralize with Addis Ababa. The Ethiopian government also acknowledged an importance of road construction between Addis Ababa and Bahir Dar to enable dam building without external support.

In 1935, the road construction has been halted due to the Italian occupation. In May 1936, the Italian troops captured Bahir Dar. They founded that Bahir Dar was under monastic influence and decided Bahir Dar with urban measures concurrent to Gondar, Dessie, Adwa and similar cities. They decided to make military base and then civil administrative center of the whole southern region of Lake Tana, including the former autonomous Gojjam territories of Mecha, Yilmana Densa and Achefer.

In order to obtain full control, the Italian established a new town administration called the residenza. This urban administration was granted full legal rights to raise revenues by taxing the locality of Bahir Dar and its market. The measure created drastic changes in the relation between landlord (balabbats) and tenants and the monastery administration. The policy was reversal of the previous government and the Italian granted civil administration to the town and they could not pay tax or take advantage for the monastery administration. Conversely, the landlords and their tenants forced to pay tax for residenza.

The Italians improve Bahir Dar with modernized urban planning that superimposed the older structures and buildings. Land was allocated with different purposes such as administritive offices, army barracks, an airstrip and port facilities on the lake shore new residential and commercial zones became emerging. Furthermore, they also developed sewage system and the transportation primarily linking Lake Tana area, Zege, Qorat'a, Dagi and Gorgora. The Gorgora-Bahir Dar line has been the principal trade supply between Gondar and Bahir Dar.

1941–present

Bahir Dar raised into municipality in 1945. The head of the town administrative was Town Chief (shum), who was chief secretary of the office of the woreda. Since then, Bahir Dar also behaved municipal structure that was neither modeled the older system nor the Italian plan. Since then, the government imposed authority of the monastery leadership of Bahir Dar Giyorgis, entitling to tax collection over wider region of Abakabot. Landlords (balabbats) paid tax over estates to the monastery as they did before Italian occupation.

Between 1950s and 1960s, Bahir Dar was continuing urbanization, despite opposition from balabbats and clergy. At around 1950, Bahir Dar was considered a new capital of the Ethiopian Empire and made confusion to local land market, with consequent vast inflation in local land values. In 1956, Bahir Dar reinstated the recession, at this time being made a province and Shambal Aemiro Silase Ababa appointed as governor.

During the Ethiopian Civil War, in May 1988, the 603rd corp of the Third Revolutionary (TLA) made its headquarter at Bahir Dar. On 3–4 March 1990, the TLA abandoned Bahir Dar in disarray, blowing up nearby bridge to stop the TPLF/EPRDF advance to occupy the city. On 23 February 1991, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) took control the city as part of Operation Tewedros. Since 1990s the city grew as industrial zone and numerous investments, and became the capital of Amhara Region.

On 6–9 February 2007, the city hosted a National Investment Bazaar and Trade Fair to honor Millennium celebrations. On 22 June 2019, the Amhara Region coup d'état attempt was embroiled with coordinated assassinations of Amhara government officials in Bahir Dar and Addis Ababa. Victims of the assassination were President of Amhara Region Ambachew Mekonnen advisor Ezez Wassie, General Se'are Mekonnen along his aide Gizae Aberra and Amhara Region Attorney General Migbaru Kebede. On 24 June, the state media announced that General Asamnew Tsige was shot dead in Bahir Dar.

Sources

Early History of Bahir Dar Town: c.1900-1941