Sebastopol (mortar)
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![]() The Sebastopol in the Wollo Province | |
![]() | |
9°1′37.37″N 38°45′6.03″E / 9.0270472°N 38.7516750°E | |
Location | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
---|---|
Type | Monument |
Material | Bronze |
Completion date | 1868 |
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.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Sebastopol%2C_the_original_artillery_mortar_of_Emperor_Tewodros_II.jpg/220px-Sebastopol%2C_the_original_artillery_mortar_of_Emperor_Tewodros_II.jpg)
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]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/ET_Addis_asv2018-01_img36_Tewodros_Square.jpg/220px-ET_Addis_asv2018-01_img36_Tewodros_Square.jpg)
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,[citation needed] 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]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Tewodros_II_Sebastopol.jpg/220px-Tewodros_II_Sebastopol.jpg)
References[edit]
- ^ Ten Years in Abyssinia and Sixteen Years in Syria being the Autobiography of Theophilus Waldmeier pp. 93–96
- ^ Clapham, Christopher (March 2006). "Ethiopian Development: The Politics of Emulation" (PDF). Commonwealth & Comparative Politics. 44 (1). Routledge: 108–118. Retrieved 15 January 2017.
- ^ Ethiopian Tourist Guide website, Landmarks and Monuments in Addis Ababa Archived February 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine