Fitawrari

Fitawrari ( Ethiop . ፊትአውራሪ ) is one of the oldest military titles from the 14th century at the court of the emperors of Ethiopia . He means "the attacker at the head" and was either the leader of the vanguard troops or the commander-in-chief of the imperial troops. Fitawrari could also be the commander of the troops of the various provincial rulers. Around 1900, Emperor Menelik II combined the dignity of Fitawrari with the post of Minister of War . In terms of rank, this function was equated with that of a Ras in the imperial government . In addition to the Fitawrari appointed by the emperor, other high Ethiopian dignitaries, such as Ras, Dejazmach and Ligaba, had the right to appoint Fitawrari, although their rank was below the Fitawrari appointed by the emperor. These lower-ranking Fitawrari received the lesser dignity of a Balambara from the emperor when they entered his service.

Due to the complicated transcription from Amharic , the spelling of Ethiopian proper names can be different in different publications.