[2] Following a prior defeat at Beerdhiga, the British regrouped their forces in the Horn of Africa under new leadership, focusing their efforts against Sayid Mahamed Abdulle Hasan, a figure they referred to as the "Mad Mullah."
The first front, from Hobyo, consisted of 2,296 soldiers, including British and Boer troops from South Africa, as well as Somali, Yao, and Sikh fighters.
The second front moved from Berbera, passing through Buhodle, with a force of 1,745 soldiers, which included Somalis, Sudanese, Sikhs, and Yaos, alongside British Royal Engineers.
On April 15th, the British column reached Agaarweyne and set up a large defensive encampment, unaware that the Dervishes, led by Isman Boos, were preparing for a jihad to be launched at dawn.
However, the Dervishes, fully aware of the British maneuverers, had prepared meticulously, even deciding the type of horses to deploy during the heat of the day and the cooler hours of the morning.
[4][5] Many Dervishes who took part in the battle reported that the British left the army alone to fight, and tied themselves in pairs to leave and run away.
[6] On April 17th, according to accounts from the African survivors, after encountering Olivey roughly a mile from the camp, Plunkett united his forces with him.
[7] First came the horsemen, followed by riflemen on foot, and finally masses of spearmen, whose sheer momentum broke through the square despite the intense gunfire from maxims and rifles.
Nin la oran jirey Maxamuud Gurey ayaa gorgorkii dooxay, waxaana calooshiisii laga soo saaray 500 oo xiniinyo rag ah.
Inta dhabannada la qabsaday ayaa lays wada eegay oo waxa la yiri, ‘War maanta geyiga Soomaaliyeed wax weyn baa ka dhacay oo aan horay loo arkin bal aan war dhawrro A man called Mahamud Gurey dissected an eagle.
Everyone grabbed their own cheeks surprised and looked at one another and said "It seems that the lands of the Somalis have experienced an event of an extreme magnitude, the likes of which have never been seen before!
The soldiers who remained told us that it was the biggest defeat the English had ever suffered in the region, and that the Dervish were stronger than they had ever expected.”[14] He also remembered the words of the elders, who sang:[15] Raxanraadkiyo hawsha, kama raalli ahayne Rag baas bay damciyey, Rabbina wayla iraaday Geel baana raadi lahaa, waxba yaan rimaydiisyo Ratigiisa rareeriyo, Ramaggiisa kaxayne, Kol haddaan rubaddayda reerihii nabad geeyey Rabbiyow mahaddad!!
ahaan, Ruqe weeye farduu Rasaastoodu ma fiicna, Rabbigay talin maayo Rugtoodaynu galnaa, ninba reer ha kaxaysto Sow wixii na hor roorayee, Raggi ay qoranaysiyo Rogay gaalyada maaha eey!!!
Haji Saleh Guled, one of the prominent religious ulama in the area, sent a letter to the Sayyid after the Battle of Cagaarweyne, informing him of the victory.
The letter was written in Arabic:[16] قتلنا الابيض ستمائة ونيف * وجعلنا الباقين كالفراش المبثوث We killed more than six hundred whites, and made the rest like scattered moths.
But it had almost a Pyrrhic victory for the Dervishes; and the dead bodies lying in heaps around the spot where the square had stood were a grim monument to the gallant defenders.