| Battle of Zeila (1517) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofSomali-Portuguese conflicts | |||||||
 16th century engraving depicting the Battle of Zeila in 1517 | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Portuguese Empire |  Adal Sultanate | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Lopo Soares de Albergaria | Unknown | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 34 ships | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Few or none | Unknown | ||||||
TheBattle of Zeila was an armed encounter that took place in the coastal city ofZeila, between the forces of theAdal Sultanate and those of thePortuguese Empire, under the command of the governor of IndiaLopo Soares de Albergaria. After a brief fight, the Portuguese captured and razed the city.
In 1517, thePortuguese governor of India Lopo Soares de Albergaria sailed a large armada to attackOttoman positions in theRed Sea. Having failed to capture Jeddah, short on water and supplies, the fleet withdrew, having called atKamaran Island before sailing to Zeila. At the time the Sultanate of Adal was involved with most of its forces in a war withEthiopia, a Portuguese ally, andMahfuz the governor ofZeila, had recently been killed.[1] Having been warned that the Portuguese fleet was incoming, the inhabitants evacuated all women and children, and a number of warriors remained behind to defend the city and the ships left behind. They gathered on the beaches to resist a Portuguese landing.[2] Seeing this, Albergaria determined to capture the city and landed a contingent of men.[2] The Portuguese wrote that "The city is of good size and flat, by the edge of the sea. It's made of stone and lime houses with terraced roofs like those of Aden. Its inhabitants areMoors and merchants of great trade and for the most part are black, men as well as children, and some white, and they treat each other well".[2]
Harassed by cannon-fire and taunted, the Portuguese under the command of Gaspar da Silva, Aires da Silva and António Ferreira Fogaça moved in to assault the city before the governor had landed, and when they realized there were few defenders they occupied it after a brief struggle. Though its governors initially resisted, the city was stormed, some of its inhabitants were killed in the streets, and large sections were set on fire. Among the captives was a Portuguese sailor, João Fernandes of Leça, who revealed that other Portuguese had previously engaged in the illicit sale of weapons to Zeila, a scandal compounded by the fact that these same arms were later used by the Adal Sultanate in war against the Ethiopian emperor (Prester John). In the ensuing campaign, the Sultan of Adal’s captain,Mahfuz of Zeila, challenged the Ethiopians to single combat but was slain by the Franciscan friar Gabriel Andres, whose victory triggered the rout of the Adal army. The triumph was celebrated at the Ethiopian court, commemorated in contemporary ballads, and later reported by Portuguese ambassador D. Rodrigo de Lima and the friar Francisco Alvares in hisItinerário.[2][3][4]