ORDER OF BATTLE // March 7, 1876
Battle of Gura
Estimated force strength by side, with confidence labels per surviving record.
Forces engaged
2 sides catalogued · combined 63,000 estimated
Khedivate of Egypt
13,000
Medium-confidence figure
Ethiopian Empire
50,000
Medium-confidence figure
Battle context
The Battle of Gura was the second and decisive major engagement of the Ethiopian–Egyptian War, fought near the town of Gura in Eritrea. The Egyptian force of 13,000, under Ratib Pasha, Loring, and Uthman Rifqi, suffered approximately 3,200 casualties against an Ethiopian army of 50,000 under Yohannes IV and his commanders. Ethiopian losses stood at roughly 1,800. The battle's designation as the decisive action of the war indicates it effectively settled the conflict's outcome in Ethiopia's favor, ending Egyptian ambitions of expansion into the region.
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