Agabe Jelani
The Revered Agabe Jelani | |
|---|---|
 Izugbe Isi Jelani (left) in 1973 | |
| Native name | Agabe Magad Indiro Jelani |
| Nickname(s) | "The Old Man" |
| Born | June 6, 1903 Okeosimiri, Alaoyi |
| Died | January 18, 1978 (aged 74) Okeosimiri, Alaoyi |
| Cremated | Okeosimiri National Memorial |
| Allegiance |  Colony of Alaọhụrụ Viceroyalty of Alaoyi Confederate Alaoyi |
| Service | Alaọhụrụ Militia Alannan Colonial Auxiliary Confederate Army |
| Years of Service | 1918-1921 (Alaọhụrụ Militia) 1921-1942 (Colonial Auxiliary) 1942-1978 (Confederate Army) |
| Rank on Death |  Izugbe Isi |
| Service number | NA-13791200-AJ |
| Conflicts | Great War Second Great War Inglaterran-Alaoyian Border Skirmishes Alaoyian Civil Conflict Third Great War |
| Spouse(s) | Igdba Jelani |
| Children | 3 |
Agabe Magad Indiro Jelani, usually shortened to Agabe Jelani (June 6th, 1903-January 18th, 1978) was an Alaoyian soldier who is notable due to his nearly 60 years of military service and is the only known individual to have fought in all three Great Wars.
Born in 1903, Jelani enlisted in his local colonial militia in early 1918 under a falsified name and forged documents that attested him to be 17, the minimum age for enlistment in the Alaọhụrụ Militia at the time. Jelani later recounted that his unusual hieght for his age helped lend credence to his fake name and documents. He served as an infantryman on the Galian Front of the First Great War, serving in the 212th Emperor's Rifles. He reenlisted in 1920 under his true name and, while admonished by his commander, was promoted. In 1921 the Alaọhụrụ Militia was merged with other colonial militias as the individual Alannan colonies were merged into the Viceroyalty of Alaoyi.
During the First Interwar Period Jelani remained in the new Alannan Colonial Auxiliary and under a system that promoted combat veterans to officer positions rose to rank of onyugbo, equivalent to captain, in the 20 years between his enlistment and the start of the Second Great War. While Jelani fighting in Alanna against Inglaterran forces in 1942, tensions between the Alaoyians and Alannans boiled over and Alaoyi rebelled and declared independence. Jelani chose to side with the Alaoyians and was promoted to Ọchịagha, the commander of a batallion, after his fighting retreat to Alaoyi. Jelani was placed under the command of Izugbe Aluni and fought at Okeosimiri in the closing days of the fight for Alaoyian independence. After the war ended in 1944, he was assigned to guard the border with Inglaterra and did not participate in most of the Alaoyian Civil Conflicts. In 1951, Jelani was promoted to Izugbe Obere, equivalent to a Bridgadier General. In this capacity, he deployed troops to Dweighland and was praised for his care in reducing civilian casualties and treating prisoners and enemy combatants as valid military personnel and not insurgents.
During the Second Interwar Period Jelani became a crucial part of the Alaoyian Confederacy's High Command and pioneered reforms in logistics and administration, areas the Confederate Army often struggled with. In 1975, when the Third Great War began, Jelani requested a combat command and was given control of the Alaoyian Third Army on the Inglaterran border. While suffering heavy casualities, Jelani's forces successfully halted the Inglaterran-Alannan advance in the Diash mountains.
Jelani would die in his sleep on January 18, 1978. Whle he would not live to see the eventual Alaoyian victory in the Third Great War, his defensive delaying actions are considered to have bought enough time for Alaoyi to consolidate its forces before counterattcking in 1978. In contrast to the reckless and constantly attacking styles used by some of his colleagues, Jelani used a much more defensive style that exploited the strengths of the Alaoyian forces while minimizing their weaknesses.