Sebastopol Artillery Mortar
The Sebastopol in the Wollo Province
9°1′37.37″N 38°45′6.03″E / 9.0270472°N 38.7516750°E / 9.0270472; 38.7516750
LocationAddis Ababa, Ethiopia
TypeMonument
MaterialBronze
Completion date1868

Sebastopol was the name of a large artillery mortar commissioned by the Ethiopian emperor Tewodros II (1818–1868). The name was taken from the Crimean town Sevastopol, the site of a battle during the Crimean War. The mortar weighed approximately 6.7 tons, and was capable of firing off half-ton artillery rounds.

Sebastopol, the original mortar of Emperor Tewodros II

In an attempt to speed up industrialisation, Tewodros had welcomed British and French officials and a group of German missionaries into his kingdom. In 1866, following a series of diplomatic misunderstandings and the king's increasingly erratic behaviour, all foreigners were taken prisoner. Tewodros ordered the artisan-missionaries, led by Theophilus Waldmeier, to construct a brass cannon capable of firing a 1,000 pounds (450 kg) cannon ball. It took seven months to construct and two furnace were built for the casting. When it was transported to Magdala a special road had to be built. At times 800 men were needed to move it; the 200 mile journey took six months.[1] Meanwhile the British government mounted an expedition to free the captives, which resulted in the Battle of Magdala.[2]

Sebastopol mortar monument. Tewodros Square, Addis Ababa

Although there are no records of the mortar being used in the battle it remains half-buried in the ground, on the plateau at Meqedela, near Amba Mariam. A bronze replica has been cast and displayed in the centre of a roundabout at Tewodros Square, Churchill Avenue, Addis Ababa.[3]

Tewodros II soldiers dragging the great Sebastopol cannon

References

  1. ↑ Ten Years in Abyssinia and Sixteen Years in Syria being the Autobiography of Theophilus Waldmeier pp. 93–96
  2. ↑ Clapham, Christopher (March 2006). "Ethiopian Development: The Politics of Emulation" (PDF). Commonwealth & Comparative Politics. Routledge. 44 (1): 108–118. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
  3. ↑ Ethiopian Tourist Guide website, Landmarks and Monuments in Addis Ababa Archived February 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
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