| Sheikh Hassan Barsame | |
| Birth Date: | 1853 |
| Birth Place: | Shabeele, Somalia |
| Death Date: | 28 January 1928 |
| Death Place: | Mogadishu, Somalia |
| Organization: | Salihiyah |
| Known: | Anti-colonial resistance fighter |
Sheikh Hassan Barsame (so|Sheekh Xasan Barsane; ar|الشيخ حسن البرصمي; 1853 – 28 January 1927) was a Somali cleric and religious scholar. He was best known for having fought against Meneliks invasions during the early 1900's and having led the last major revolt against Italian colonial forces in the Banaadir region during the 1920's.[1]
Barsame was born 1853 in Ubaadi, a village 68 km west of Jowhar in the Middle Shebelle region of southern Somalia. He hailed from the Barsame tribe, a division of the larger Gaalje'el clans.
After memorizing the Quran during his youth, Barsane sought to further his religious education. He traveled to Mecca to perform the Hajj. Barsane stayed there for three years, meeting along the way Sheikh Mohammed Salih, the leader of the Salihiyah. Barsane thereafter joined Salih's movement.
During Meneliks invasions Barsane fought and defeated several thousand Abyssinian forces at Balad and Daafeet (Wanlaweyn district) in the early 1900's.[2] [3]
After World War I around 16,000 rifles were in the hands of the Somali population, with many in the hand of Sheikh Barsane.[4] The Governor of Italian Somaliland, Cesare Maria De Vecchi ordered Somalis to surrender their weapons during the 1920s. Barsane rejected De Vecchis orders and sent a letter to him in which he affirmed his abidance to Islamic Sharia and total rejection of Italian law.
The Sheikh and his men also fought various battles against Italian troops, including:[5]
The first expeditions against the Sheikh were unsuccessful[6] but after several bloody battles with colonial troops Sheikh Barsane was captured by the Italians during April 1924. He passed away in a Mogadishu prison in 1928.
During the Barre regime a high school in Mogadishu was named in Barsane's honor.