Ethiopian Warriorhood

<b>The history of the often-overlooked <i>chewa</i> Ethiopian warriors and their crucial role in defending their homeland against invasion as well as their strong influence on political identity and the social infrastructure.</b><br><b></b><br><b></b><br><br>Today best known for their role in defending Ethiopia from Italian invasion 1935-41 <i>chewa</i> warriors protected Ethiopia for centuries. Yet depicted by some 19th-century Western observers as little more than a horde of warmongers and later suppressed by Ethiopian monarchs who sought to create a centralized modern state their contribution has been neglected. Drawing on oral and written sources as well as the <i>zeraf</i> poetry through which theyexpressed themselves this book explores for the first time in depth the history practices and principles of warriorhood of the <i>chewa</i> and their wider influence on society and state. Often self-trained individuals who began by defending their communities by the end of the 19th century there were <i>chewa</i> warrior groups from almost all linguistic groups who fought together to resist foreign invaders. Some <i>chewa</i> enrolled in the service of the Ethiopian kings of kings who organized them as named corps that supplemented the formal defence of the state. Today <i>chewa</i> political identity which transcended social familial political and other groupings remains deeply rooted in Ethiopian society.