| Conflict: | Battle of Hirna |
| Date: | October 1886 |
| Place: | Hirna, Chercher, Emirate of Harar |
| Result: | Harari victory |
| Combatant1: | Shewa |
| Combatant2: | Emirate of Harar |
| Commander1: | Dejazmach Walda Gabriel |
| Commander2: | Bakri Salih |
The Battle of Hirna was an engagement fought in October 1886 between the Abyssinian army of Shewa under Dejazmach Walda Gabriel and officer Bakri Salih of the Emirate of Harar.[1] The Shewan forces were routed.[2] [3]
In response to king Menelik's orders to occupy the Emirate of Harar, in September 1886 Dejazmach Wolde Gabriel a general of Menelik invaded the Emirate of Harar and occupied the Chercher area at Hirna however his army would be ambushed by the Emirate's troops.[4]
According to Harold G. Marcus, his army "was in poor shape, reduced to a relatively small number by sickness and desertions." A night attack by Emir 'Abd Allah's army routed the Dejazmachs force, sending them fleeing westward towards the Awash River.[5] Ethiopian historian Bahru Zewde calls it a decisive victory for the emirate's troops.[6]
Menelik's informant Asme Giyorgis, conceded the initial push towards Harar by Walda Gabryiel was a failure as the Amir's soldiers used fireworks to startle his men, forcing a retreat.[7] Harari records report Walda Gabryiel's army were strategically pushed into a wheat field full of spikes which pierced their feet, immobilizing them.[8]