BRUCE'S ETHIOPIAN TRAVELS On
5 April 1769, Bruce left Koseir (now Quseir) in Egypt to cross the Red Sea, intending
to learn more about it. Up to that time, British traders from India could only
go as far as Jiddah (Jedda). He traveled north along the coast to the mouth of
the Gulf of Suez, then down the coast of Arabia to Yanbo, then on to Jiddah, all
the time he obtained letters of assistance for his upcoming journey into Ethiopia.
Not going
directly to Ethiopia, he went south to the coast of Yemen and the Straits of Mandeb
to chart the southern Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, and after about two months
he headed north to Luheia in Yemen. Here he picked up his guide and headed across
to the port of Mitsiwa (Massawa). He was now at the end of the world that Europeans
knew.
Mid-eighteenth
century Ethiopia was similar to the Europe of the Dark Ages, closed and feudalistic,
where murder and war was the norm. At the time of Bruce’s arrival into Ethiopia,
there appeared to be two main political camps. One, the strong local governor,
Ras Michael -with a young Emperor under his wing, and two, the people in the South
called the Galla under a man named Fasil. Bruce was entering a hall of mirrors,
where things may not be what they appear, and any situation could rapidly deteriorate.
After two
months of continual political intrigue, Bruce was finally allowed leave the coast
and to begin his journey into the interior of Ethiopia. His next destination was
the city of Gondar. After three months of hardships and a painful journey through
this hostile land, he arrived in February 1770, where he was obliged to spend
his first three months living at court.
It was not until late May 1770 before Bruce made his first attempt to Lake Tana,
having to turn back to Gondar from torrential rains which would have trapped him
in a very hostile environment.
It would not
be until October 20, 1770, before Bruce would set out for what he thought was
the source of the Nile. This trip from Gondar to Lake Tana, though less than a
150 kilometres, contained that most dangerous obstacle - the rebel faction marching
in the opposite direction. Bruce met the leader of the rebels and after a few
audiences with the leader, and an impressive display of horsemanship, he ingratiated
himself with the rebels. The leader pledged his support for Bruce’s safety and
detailed some of his soldiers to travel with him. Finally, in early November 1770,
Bruce reached three springs that became a small river (Little Abbai) -the source
of the Blue Nile.
Bruce had
reached his quest. Later it was it determined that he was at least the third European
that had discovered the source of the Blue Nile -the true source of the
Nile River was the source of the White Nile). He spent five days mapping
the area, describing its flora and fauna. The area was called Ghish.
His journey
was only half completed for he still faced the precarious task of returning. On
November 10, Bruce left Ghish returning to Gondar; and yet another round of seemingly
endless civil war. The fact that Bruce was able to survive the various coups and
counter-coups was a testament to his diplomatic abilities.
Bruce was
a man who displayed his personal bravery whenever necessary, and was an unsurpassed
horseman and marksman. He was also a natural linquist and something of a doctor
-learned from his time in Algiers and Syria.
For a year,
Bruce was obliged to remained in Gondar assisting the Emperor survive the political
manouvering, his life in danger many times. By December 1771, things were stabilized
for the moment, and Bruce began his return home, possibly the most dangerous and
exhausting part of all of his travels.
It took the
better part of two months' journey to reach Hor Cacamoot (Gallabat), in Ras el
Fil, – "Valley of the Shadow of Death." An ominous name -as Bruce fell ill with
dysentery here. He stayed here for another two months before he could resume his
journey.
On March 18,
1772, Bruce and his party finally departed Ethiopia, en route to Sennar, the capital
of the Kingdom of the Funj. He travelled through the province of Atbara whose
Governor was the wiley Sheik Fidele. He then travelled through the burning Sudanese
lowlands, arriving in Sennar on the banks of the Blue Nile, four months later.
The Funj Kingdom
of Sennar was a strange and mysterious place. Indeed, some things in its history
are still uncertain; Bruce being the first traveler to give a reasonably clear
account of it to Europe.
In Sennar the courts of the sheiks kept up a barbaric sort of splendor, and the
king's authority enforced by a small well trained cavalry, the Black Horse, who
fought like medieval knights -in chain mail. Bruce wanted to move on, but once
again the king refused to let him go. Bruce ran out of goods and money, and was
forced to sell all but six links of his massive gold chain to buy food to keep
himself and his men alive.
After four
months, he managed to escape with his three Greeks, the old Turk, an unreliable
guide, and five camels. Ahead lay 1300 kilometres of unknown country, mostly desert
that separates Sennar from Egyptian Aswan. After passing the junction of the two
Niles and then Shandi (Shereiq) and Barbar, Bruce and his party reached the point
where the Nile turns west to make an 1200 kilometre loop before it turns north
again.
On 11 November
1772, rather than follow the great curve, they struck out on the direct but dangerous
route north across the desert toward Aswan, a distance of about 500 kilometres.
The men's shoes wore out and they trudged on through burning sand and over jagged
rock, barefooted, and in pain. There was no food for the camels. Whirlwinds and
the dreaded simoom (a violent, sand-laden wind of the desert) almost suffocated
them.
Bruce's feet
were so badly blistered and swollen that he could scarcely walk. As a last desperate
resort Bruce and his companions killed the camels and drained their stomachs to
replenish their water supplies. They set off on foot, leaving Bruce's instruments
and the records of his four years of travel.
The party
staggered on, and in the evening, when all hope seemed lost they heard the distant
sound of a cataract. Next morning, November 29, 1772, they limped into Aswan.
Despite his desperate condition, Bruce's first thought was for his papers. He
begged camels from the governor, retraced his steps, and found his baggage untouched.
From Aswan he went by boat to Cairo, sick and with feet so swollen that he could
not stand.
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