Thread by @elshadai_g

A thread on Ethiopians in the Korean War:

During the Korean War, Emperor Haile Selassie sent troops known as the 'Ethiopian Kagnew Battalions' as part of the United Nations forces in the Korean War. All together 3,158 Ethiopians fought during the war.

“Kagnew” was the name of the war horse of Ras Makonnen, the father of Haile Selassie & Cousin to the Great Emperor Menelik II.

Ras Makonnen was one of the Generals during the first Italo-Ethiopian War and a hero at the Battle of Adwa.

Captain Mamo was a young officer in the Imperial Guard of Ethiopia at the time and vividly remembers seeing the Emperor as they were sent off. Emperor Haile Selassie gave each battalion a flag, and he ordered the troops to bring that flag back.

Captain Mamo stopped a Chinese offensive in its tracks at an impossible battle at Pork Chop Hill.

Colonal Irgetu and Lt. Mamo won the American Silver Star for gallantry and the highest award for Ethiopian gallantry and became a “Knights of the Order of Menelik.”

The Kagnews earned a reputation as fierce warriors. Suffering 121 killed and 536 wounded during the course of the conflict. Out of the 238 times they engaged the enemy be it aggressors or defenders they won every single time, all 238 battles! They were never bested in battle.

The enemy believed Ethiopians were superhuman b/c there never seemed to be dead bodies of the Kagnew soldiers since they had a reputation to never leave their dead behind. This earned them the respect of their American colleagues.

At the end of the war the Ethiopians were the only contingent that had no prisoners to collect. After the war, the Ethiopians- Living and dead- returned home to a hero’s welcome.

The people of Korea still honor the sacrifices made by the Ethiopian people today for their country. We must also pay homage to the heroes of our great nation Ethiopia. May Ethiopia and her people live forever.

💚💛❤️

Ethiopian soldiers of the Kagnew Battalions sitting in their WWII-era Willys Jeep 🚙

💚💛❤️