Tekle Haymanot of Gojjam in Debre Markos
19th century In the early 1860s, Debre Markos (then Manqwarar) served as the seat of government for
mezegebu dawit, the governor of
Gojjam under Emperor
Tewodros II. In 1867, Tedla Gwalu’s houses were burned down by his rival,
Ras Adal Tessema, who then took control of the town and made it his capital. In 1869, Debre Markos then became the seat of the provincial ruler,
Ras Adal, who later assumed the name
Tekle Haymanot and title
Negus of
Gojjam. But the town suffered further destruction in 1877 when
Menelik II, King of
Shewa, captured it. Menelik's chronicler notes that Shewan chiefs wanted to burn Adal's palace, but Menelik dismissed it as a mere hut. Despite claims of Menelik sparing the building, it was possibly destroyed, with the Gojjammes later using the event to demolish a palace in Shewa. During the reign of Tekle Haymanot,
Richard Pankhurst notes, the population of Debre Markos "fluctuated greatly with the presence of absence of the army" of the Negus. Pankhurst further stated that when the Nigus (King) resided in the town, it had between 20,000 and 40,000 inhabitants; in his absence, between 5,000 and 6,000. The explorer
Pellegrino Matteucci arrived at what was at that time named Manqwarar on 3 June 1879, he found Ras Adal's restored palace atop a hill overlooking a vast area. Adal lived on the hill, separate from his soldiers, who camped in the valley below. His encampment was enclosed by a high wall with a single gate guarded by soldiers with spears. The largest building, 130 meters long and 10 meters high, had a thatched roof supported by 150 columns. It served as a general store, housing cannons and weapons, as well as ironware workshops. During Matteucci's visit, workers were constructing a carriage, having learned wheel-making from an Armenian who had previously worked with the Ras.
20th century In March 1900 an expedition led by
Percy Powell-Cotton visited Debre Markos and noted that ‘‘the town looked more like a town than
Menelik's capital." In 1906, Felix Rosen wrote admiringly of Debre Markos' many flowering bushes, which filled the air with the scent of honey. He noted that its idyllic footpaths, lined with blooming hedges, reminded him of
Lower Saxony or
England. The palace of
Nigus Tekle Haimanot was remodeled in 1926 by his son
Ras Hailu Tekle Haymanot, in the style of European buildings after his tour of Europe in the party of
Ras Tefari. In 1935, the town had postal, telegraph, and telephone service. The Italians arrived in Debre Markos on 20 May 1936. Through an interpreter,
Achille Starace, who had arrived by plane, told the surprised local inhabitants that he had come to free them from their slavery. Debre Markos was later isolated and practically besieged by a revolt in 1938. General
Ugo Cavallero, with sixty thousand men and supported by airplanes and tanks, had crushed the revolt by the end of May. A major
Italian fortification was located in the city during the existence of
Italian East Africa, and captured by the British
Gideon Force and Ethiopian
Arbegnoch (or Resistance Fighters) on 5 April 1941 during the
East African Campaign. In 1957, Nigus Tekle Haimanot School in Debre Markos was one of 9 provincial secondary schools in Ethiopia. The next year, the town was one of 27 places in Ethiopia ranked as a First Class Township. In 1960 a branch of the
Ethiopian Electric Light and Power Authority had started operation in Debre Markos. In 1968 locals in Debre Markos and surrounding districts rebelled against the regional administration after series of accumulated burdens on civilians. The final straw was an attempt to introduce a new agricultural income tax. The population resisted the tax assessors, sent the customary petitions to the emperor to reverse the order and, when no response was forthcoming, rose in rebellion. The rebellion was eventually put down by the national army. The locals however won their cause; the tax order was scrapped.
21st century In the national elections of 15 May 2005 the constituency of Debre Markos had 44 polling stations and 38,606 registered voters of whom 84% cast their votes.
Coalition for Unity and Democracy dominated with 19,620 votes represented by candidate Ato
Dereje Atinafu Dagachew. Far behind was the unpopular ruling
EPRDF regime with 7,626 votes represented by candidate Ato Webishet Lengerih Mebirate. The
United Ethiopian Democratic Forces party received 449 votes and two independent candidates 362 and 285 votes. The remaining 4,201 votes are not explained. After the national elections there were student demonstrations in Debre Markos and other towns in early June 2005.
Human Rights Watch obtained reports of mass arrests of students by police. == Geography ==