Araya Selassie Yohannes
Encyclopedia
Araya Selassie Yohannes was an army commander
and a member of the Royal family
of the Ethiopian Empire
.
Araya Selassie Yohannes was born in Enderta
, Tigray
in 1867, the legitimate
son of Emperor
(Nəgusä Nägäst
) Yohannes IV of Ethiopia
. Mengesha Yohannes
was his illegitimate half brother.
In 1882, the fifteen-year-old Leul Araya Selassie Yohannes married six-year-old Leult
Zewditu, eldest daughter of Negus
Menelik of Shewa
. The marriage was political, having been arranged when Menelik agreed to submit to Yohannes' rule.
In 1883, Araya Selassie Yohannes was made Shum
of Wollo Province
and, in 1886, he was made Shum of Begemder Province
.
In 1885, Araya Selassie Yohannes fathered a son, Gugsa Araya Selassie
. The mother's identity is unknown.
In June 1888, while in Mek'ele
gathering an army for his father, Araya Selassie Yohannes died of smallpox
.
was divided between Ras Gugsa Araya Selassie, the son of Ras Araya Selassie Yohannes, and Ras Seyum Mangasha
, the son of Ras Mangasha Yohannes
. Gugsa Araya Selassie ruled the eastern half of Tigray and Seyum Mangasha ruled the western half.
The balance was initially in Gugsa Araya Sellassie's favor. Ras Seyum Mangasha, having married Lij
Iyasu's
half sister, was suspected of hiding the deposed Emperor designate in his home. Ras Gugsa Araya Selassie as the former stepson of Empress Zewditu was seen as more firmly in the anti-Iyasu camp. This was further cemented when Ras Gugsa Araya Selassie captured Lij Iyasu and handed him over to the central government. Gugsa Araya Selassie then married as his third wife, Leult Yeshashework Yilma
, the niece of Emperor Haile Selassie.
In 1935, the war with Italy and the occupation of Ethiopia
changed the balance in Tigray completely.
In 1947, after the death of Gugsa Araya Selassie, eastern Tigray Province was incorporated back into western Tigray. All of Tigray Province was then governed by Ras Seyum Mangasha. This was done rather than have any part of Tigray be ruled by the dishonored Ras Haile Selassie Gugsa
, the grandson of Araya Selassie Yohannes who openly supported the Italians during the invasion and occupation.
Army of the Ethiopian Empire
Armies of the Ethiopia have existed since earliest times. Ethiopia maintained a sizable contingent of her forces in her Sabbean Garrisons which expanded out to project power over colonies in Yemen and to protect Caravans or trade routes....
and a member of the Royal family
Royal family
A royal family is the extended family of a king or queen regnant. The term imperial family appropriately describes the extended family of an emperor or empress, while the terms "ducal family", "grand ducal family" or "princely family" are more appropriate to describe the relatives of a reigning...
of the Ethiopian Empire
Ethiopian Empire
The Ethiopian Empire also known as Abyssinia, covered a geographical area that the present-day northern half of Ethiopia and Eritrea covers, and included in its peripheries Zeila, Djibouti, Yemen and Western Saudi Arabia...
.
Biography
LeulEthiopian aristocratic and court titles
Until the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...
Araya Selassie Yohannes was born in Enderta
Enderta
Enderta may refer to:* Enderta province, a historic subdivision of Ethiopia* Enderta, a woreda within the Tigray Region of Ethiopia...
, Tigray
Tigray
Tigray may refer to:* Tigray Region* Tigray Province* Tigray people...
in 1867, the legitimate
Legitimacy (law)
At common law, legitimacy is the status of a child who is born to parents who are legally married to one another; and of a child who is born shortly after the parents' divorce. In canon and in civil law, the offspring of putative marriages have been considered legitimate children...
son of Emperor
Emperor of Ethiopia
The Emperor of Ethiopia was the hereditary ruler of Ethiopia until the abolition of the monarchy in 1974. The Emperor was the head of state and head of government, with ultimate executive, judicial and legislative power in that country...
(Nəgusä Nägäst
Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles
Until the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...
) Yohannes IV of Ethiopia
Yohannes IV of Ethiopia
Yohannes IV , born Lij Kassay Mercha Ge'ez, was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1872 until his death.-Early life:...
. Mengesha Yohannes
Ras Mengesha Yohannes
Mengesha Yohannes was the "natural" son of Emperor Yohannes IV of Ethiopia, Ras of Tigray, and, as a claimant of the Imperial throne, is often given the title of Leul. Ras Araya Selassie Yohannes was his older half brother.-Biography:Prior to the Battle of Metemma, Mengesha Yohannes was...
was his illegitimate half brother.
Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles
Until the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...
Zewditu, eldest daughter of Negus
Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles
Until the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...
Menelik of Shewa
Shewa
Shewa is a historical region of Ethiopia, formerly an autonomous kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire...
. The marriage was political, having been arranged when Menelik agreed to submit to Yohannes' rule.
In 1883, Araya Selassie Yohannes was made Shum
Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles
Until the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...
of Wollo Province
Wollo
Wollo was a historical region and province in the northeastern part of Ethiopia, with its capital city at Dessie. The province was named after the Wollo Oromo, who settled in this part of Ethiopia in the 17th century...
and, in 1886, he was made Shum of Begemder Province
Begemder
Begemder was a province in the northwestern part of Ethiopia. There are several proposed etymologies for this name...
.
In 1885, Araya Selassie Yohannes fathered a son, Gugsa Araya Selassie
Gugsa Araya Selassie
Gugsa Araya Selassie was an army commander and a member of the Royal family of the Ethiopian Empire.- Biography :Leul Gugsa Araya Selassie was the legitimate son of Ras Araya Selassie Yohannes...
. The mother's identity is unknown.
In June 1888, while in Mek'ele
Mek'ele
Mek'ele , also transliterated as Makale, is a city in northern Ethiopia and the capital of the Tigray Region. It is located some 650 kilometers north of the capital, Addis Ababa, at latitude and longitude with an elevation of 2084 meters above sea level...
gathering an army for his father, Araya Selassie Yohannes died of smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
.
Familial rivalry
Familial rivalry between the two lines of descent from Emperor Yohannes IV proved to be a difficult issue for Emperor Menelik II and his successors. Tigray ProvinceTigray Province
Tigray was a province of Ethiopia. The Tigray Region superseded the province with the adoption of the new constitution in 1995. The province of Tigre merged with its neighboring provinces, including Semien, Tembien, Agame and the prominent Enderta province and towards the end of 19th century it...
was divided between Ras Gugsa Araya Selassie, the son of Ras Araya Selassie Yohannes, and Ras Seyum Mangasha
Seyum Mangasha
Seyum Mangasha KBE was an army commander and a member of the Royal family of the Ethiopian Empire.-Biography:...
, the son of Ras Mangasha Yohannes
Ras Mengesha Yohannes
Mengesha Yohannes was the "natural" son of Emperor Yohannes IV of Ethiopia, Ras of Tigray, and, as a claimant of the Imperial throne, is often given the title of Leul. Ras Araya Selassie Yohannes was his older half brother.-Biography:Prior to the Battle of Metemma, Mengesha Yohannes was...
. Gugsa Araya Selassie ruled the eastern half of Tigray and Seyum Mangasha ruled the western half.
The balance was initially in Gugsa Araya Sellassie's favor. Ras Seyum Mangasha, having married Lij
Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles
Until the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...
Iyasu's
Iyasu V of Ethiopia
Iyasu V , also known as Lij Iyasu was the designated but uncrowned Emperor of Ethiopia . His baptismal name was Kifle Yaqob...
half sister, was suspected of hiding the deposed Emperor designate in his home. Ras Gugsa Araya Selassie as the former stepson of Empress Zewditu was seen as more firmly in the anti-Iyasu camp. This was further cemented when Ras Gugsa Araya Selassie captured Lij Iyasu and handed him over to the central government. Gugsa Araya Selassie then married as his third wife, Leult Yeshashework Yilma
Yeshashework Yilma
Princess Yeshashework Yilma was the daughter of Dejazmatch Yilma Makonnen, governor of Harar and niece of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. Her mother Woizero Aselefech was the niece of Empress Taitu Bitul, consort of Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia. Through her paternal great-grandmother, she...
, the niece of Emperor Haile Selassie.
In 1935, the war with Italy and the occupation of Ethiopia
Italian East Africa
Italian East Africa was an Italian colonial administrative subdivision established in 1936, resulting from the merger of the Ethiopian Empire with the old colonies of Italian Somaliland and Italian Eritrea. In August 1940, British Somaliland was conquered and annexed to Italian East Africa...
changed the balance in Tigray completely.
In 1947, after the death of Gugsa Araya Selassie, eastern Tigray Province was incorporated back into western Tigray. All of Tigray Province was then governed by Ras Seyum Mangasha. This was done rather than have any part of Tigray be ruled by the dishonored Ras Haile Selassie Gugsa
Haile Selassie Gugsa
Haile Selassie Gugsa was an army commander and a member of the Royal family of the Ethiopian Empire.- Biography :Haile Selassie Gugsa was the son of Leul Ras Gugsa Araya Selassie...
, the grandson of Araya Selassie Yohannes who openly supported the Italians during the invasion and occupation.
See also
- Monarchies of EthiopiaMonarchies of EthiopiaThis is a list of Monarchies that existed throughout the history of Ethiopia. This list is divided into kingdoms that were subdivisions of Ethiopia, and kingdoms that were later conquered by Ethiopia...
- Line of succession to the Ethiopian ThroneLine of succession to the Ethiopian ThroneThe line of succession to the Ethiopian throne is described in the first section of the 1955 Revised Constitution of Ethiopia.In brief, the title of Emperor may pass only through male descendants of HIM Haile Selassie I, through the oldest male line before the younger...
- Ethiopian aristocratic and court titlesEthiopian aristocratic and court titlesUntil the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...
- Mangasha YohannesRas Mengesha YohannesMengesha Yohannes was the "natural" son of Emperor Yohannes IV of Ethiopia, Ras of Tigray, and, as a claimant of the Imperial throne, is often given the title of Leul. Ras Araya Selassie Yohannes was his older half brother.-Biography:Prior to the Battle of Metemma, Mengesha Yohannes was...
- Half brother of Araya Selassie Yohannes