Plan of the Third Battle of Serbraxos - James Bruce - 1772

Plan of the Third Battle of Serbraxos, 23 May 1772. Copperplate engraving of James Bruce's 'Voyages to discover the source of the Nile, in the years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772 and 1773, London, 1790. James Bruce (1730-1794) was a Scottish explorer and travel writer who spent over 12 years in South America and Ethiopia. Engraved by Heath after an original drawing by Bruce.

The three battles of Sarbakusa were three military engagements in Ethiopia during the Zemene Mesafint that took place in May 1771. They pitted Wand Bewossen and Fasil of Damot against the forces of Emperor Tekle Haymanot II and Ras Mikael Sehul, with the former prevailing. This led to the end of Mikael Sehul's hegemony in imperial politics and the marginalization of Tekle Haymanot. According to James Bruce, the Meridazmach Amha Iyasus led 1,000 horsemen in support of Emperor Tekle Haymanot at Sarbakusa

James Bruce of Kinnaird (14 December 1730 – 27 April 1794) - was a Scottish traveller and travel writer who confirmed the source of the Blue Nile. He spent more than a dozen years in North Africa and Ethiopia and in 1770 became the first European to trace the origins of the Blue Nile from Egypt and Sudan.