Amha Selassie
Amha Selassie አምሃ ሥላሴ | |
---|---|
House of Solomon (Shewan Branch) | |
Father | Haile Selassie |
Mother | Menen Asfaw |
Religion | Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo |
Amha Selassie (
Biography
He was born Asfaw Wossen Tafari, in the walled city of Harar, to Dejazmach Tafari Makonnen, then the governor of Harar and future Emperor of Ethiopia, and his wife Menen Asfaw, on 29 July 1916.[1]
Amha Selassie became
Following Emperor Haile Selassie's restoration in 1941, the Crown Prince returned to Ethiopia, and participated in the campaign to drive the Italian forces out of the city of
On the evening of 13 December 1960, the commander of the
At the age of 58 in late 1972, after his father Emperor Haile Selassie blamed him for hiding the realities of the famine in the region which he presided over as Duke (Wollo) from him, Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen suffered a massive stroke and was evacuated for medical treatment to London[8] and Switzerland.[1][9] He was accompanied by his wife and daughters. The stroke left him permanently paralyzed on one side and unable to walk, and also affected his speech. As Prince Asfaw Wossen was not expected to live, his son, Prince Zera Yacob, a student at Oxford at the time, was named "Acting Crown Prince" and "Heir Presumptive".[10]
Short reign
The so-called "short reign" of Amha Selassie in 1974 was in name only between the
Haile Selassie had never signed an abdication or renounced his status as Emperor. The military junta declared the Crown Prince "King" instead of "Emperor", but he never acknowledged the title nor accepted his father's dethronement. When the new government massacred 61 ex-officials of the Imperial government, Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen issued a strong denunciation that was broadcast on the BBC. The statement was issued in the name of "Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen" which indicated that he did not recognize the Derg's declaration of him as monarch in his father's place. He continued to use the title of Crown Prince during his exile until April 1989, when he finally assumed the title of Emperor with the regnal name of Amha Selassie I. His succession was back-dated, not to 12 September 1974, when his father was deposed, but to 27 August 1975, when his father died. He reiterated his view that all of the Derg regime's acts were illegitimate and illegal.[citation needed]
Life in exile
On 12 September 1974, the
However, the prince did not recognize this proclamation and did not return to Ethiopia. When he instead announced to the Ethiopian Embassy in London that he would be moving to that city shortly, the Embassy asked the Derg for instructions as to whether it should receive him as a king and head-of-state, or if it should receive him as crown prince upon his arrival in the United Kingdom. [citation needed] The Derg replied that he should be received as a simple citizen of Ethiopia and that no royal dignities were to be accorded to the prince or his family. The revolutionaries soon abolished the monarchy in March 1975, and crown prince Asfaw Wossen settled permanently in London, where several other members of the imperial family were already based. [citation needed] The other members of the imperial family who were still in Ethiopia at the time of the revolution were imprisoned, including Asfaw Wossen's father, the emperor, his daughter by his first marriage, Princess Ijigayehu, his sister Princess Tenagnework and many of his nephews, nieces, relatives and in-laws. In 1975, first his father, Emperor Haile Selassie, and then in January 1977, his daughter, Princess Ijigayehu, died in detention. Members of the Imperial family remained imprisoned until 1989 (for the women) and 1990 (for the men).
In April 1989, Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen was proclaimed "Emperor of Ethiopia" in exile, at his home in London by members of the
In 1991, with the fall of the Derg, and the coming to power of the EPRDF in Ethiopia, Amha Selassie founded the Moa Anbessa Monarchist Movement to promote a monarchial restoration in Ethiopia, and announced his intention to return to his country for a visit. However, following the disinterment of the remains of Emperor Haile Selassie, a dispute erupted between the imperial family and the new government over the status of a funeral that was planned for the late emperor. The government refused to give Haile Selassie a state funeral; consequently, the funeral, and the return of Amha Selassie, were indefinitely postponed.
Death
Amha Selassie died at the age of 82 on 17 January 1997, after long illnesses, in the US state of
Orders, decorations and honours
Orders and decorations
Amha Selassie was awarded numerous honours, including:
National
- Grand Cordon and Collar of the Order of Solomon (1930)
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Seal of Solomon
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Holy Trinity
- Grand Cordon of the Order of Menelik II
- Grand Cross and Collar of the Order of the Star of Ethiopia
- Distinguished Military Medal of Haile Selassie
Foreign
- Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold, military division (Belgium, 1958)
- Grand Cross of the Order of the Southern Cross (Brazil, 4 July 1958)
- Order of the Elephant (Denmark, 15 January 1970)
- Collar of the Order of Muhammad Ali (Egypt, 1932)
- Collar of the Order of the Nile (Egypt)
- Grand Cross of the Order of the Black Star (France, 30 October 1930)
- Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour (France, 2 January 1932)
- Grand Cross 1st Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Germany)
- Honorary Companion of the Order of the Star of Ghana (Ghana, 1970)
- Grand Cross of the Order of the Redeemer (Greece, 1959)
- Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus (Italy, 1932)
- Order of the Chrysanthemum (Japan)
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (Japan)
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of Jordan (Jordan, 1960)
- Grand Cordon National Order of the Cedar (Lebanon)
- Grand Cross of the Order of the Netherlands Lion (Netherlands, 7 November 1953)
- Order of St Olav(Norway, 1956)
- Grand Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (Poland, 30 October 1930)
- Order of the Star of Romania, 1st Class (Romania, 1967)
- Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic (Spain, 27 April 1971)[12]
- Commander Grand Cross of the Order of Vasa (Sweden, 9 January 1935)
- Royal Order of the Seraphim(Sweden, 15 November 1954)
- Grand Cordon Special Class of the Order of the White Elephant (Thailand, 1970)
- Grand Cordon Special Class of the Order of the Crown of Thailand (Thailand)
- Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (United Kingdom, 1958)
- Grand Cross of the Order of Pope Pius IX (Vatican, 1932)
Honorary military ranks
Amha Selassie held the following military ranks:[citation needed]
National
- Field Marshal, Imperial Ethiopian Army
- Admiral of the Fleet, Imperial Ethiopian Navy
- Marshal, Imperial Ethiopian Air Force
Ancestry
Ancestors of Amha Selassie | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
References
- ^ a b c d e Copley, Gregory. "A Brief Biography of His Imperial Majesty Emperor Amha Selassie I". Ethiopia Reaches Her Hand Unto God. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 21 March 2020 – via The Crown Council.
- ^ "Army Ultimatum Indicated". The New York Times. 16 December 1960. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
- ^ a b "Ethiopian Crown Prince Hears News of Succession on Radio". The New York Times. 13 September 1974. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
- ^ a b "Ethiopia's Military Government Abolishes Monarchy and Titles". The New York Times. 22 March 1975. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
- JSTOR 159330.
- ^ Last, Alex. "Witness History". BBC. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
- ^ Vukotic, Petar. "BBC Witness Interview with Asfa-Wossen Asserate about the 1960 Coup Attempt". Petar Vukotic. Retrieved 19 October 2021 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b c d e Orr, David (2 February 1997). "Funeral brings the royals back to Ethiopia". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2 October 2015. Retrieved 22 March 2020.
- ^ Lautze, Sue; Raven-Roberts, Angela; Erkine, Teshome (February 2009). "Humanitarian governance in the new millennium: an Ethiopian case study" (PDF). Humanitarian Policy Group: 12n8. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
- ^ Charles Mohr (15 April 1974). "Haile Selassie Designates a Grandson as Eventual Successor". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
- Independent on Sunday.
- ^ Hemeroteca ABC
External links
Media related to Amha Selassie I at Wikimedia Commons