John Spencer (historian)
Encyclopedia
Dr. John H. Spencer was an American
historian. He attended Grinnell College
in Iowa
and Harvard College
in Massachusetts
. In 1935 in Paris
he was offered a job to represent and advice the Ethiopia
n government in the international legal matters, and during the Italian
occupation of Ethiopia and the Second Italo-Abyssinian War
he served as a legal advisor to Emperor Haile Selassie and accompanied him to the League of Nations
on June 30, 1936 to ask for assistance. In October 1937, Dr. Spencer travelled to the United States
and discussed the legal aspect of the Italy-Ethiopian conflict from 1934 to 1937, which appeared in the American Journal of International Law (Volume 31, 1937). In 1936 he left his position in the Ethiopian government and joined the United States Navy
, then the Department of State and the Department of Justice. After the defeat of the Italians in Africa, Spencer rejoined the Ethipoian government and was a principal administrator until 1943.
On December 19, 1944 he successfully negotiated Ethiopia from Britain
. Other negotiations and international conference in which Dr Spencer took an active role include: the Paris Peace Conference, where Ethiopia had some territorial claims about Ogden( the eastern part of Ethiopia which had a proximate with Somalia) and the present day of Eritrea ; the San Francisco Conference assembled to establish a United Nations, a prominent forum that deliberated for months and successfully created the new organization to succeed the old League of Nations; and later the negotiations that took place in Washington for the establishment of the Ethiopian Airlines.
Spencer continued to work as Ethiopias legal advisor until the late 1940s and published his work Ethiopia at Bay: A Personal Account of the Haile Selassie Years. He married in 1949 and had a daughter who survived him.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
historian. He attended Grinnell College
Grinnell College
Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, U.S. known for its strong tradition of social activism. It was founded in 1846, when a group of pioneer New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College....
in Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
and Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. In 1935 in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
he was offered a job to represent and advice the Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
n government in the international legal matters, and during the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
occupation of Ethiopia and the Second Italo-Abyssinian War
Second Italo-Abyssinian War
The Second Italo–Abyssinian War was a colonial war that started in October 1935 and ended in May 1936. The war was fought between the armed forces of the Kingdom of Italy and the armed forces of the Ethiopian Empire...
he served as a legal advisor to Emperor Haile Selassie and accompanied him to the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
on June 30, 1936 to ask for assistance. In October 1937, Dr. Spencer travelled to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and discussed the legal aspect of the Italy-Ethiopian conflict from 1934 to 1937, which appeared in the American Journal of International Law (Volume 31, 1937). In 1936 he left his position in the Ethiopian government and joined the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
, then the Department of State and the Department of Justice. After the defeat of the Italians in Africa, Spencer rejoined the Ethipoian government and was a principal administrator until 1943.
On December 19, 1944 he successfully negotiated Ethiopia from Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Other negotiations and international conference in which Dr Spencer took an active role include: the Paris Peace Conference, where Ethiopia had some territorial claims about Ogden( the eastern part of Ethiopia which had a proximate with Somalia) and the present day of Eritrea ; the San Francisco Conference assembled to establish a United Nations, a prominent forum that deliberated for months and successfully created the new organization to succeed the old League of Nations; and later the negotiations that took place in Washington for the establishment of the Ethiopian Airlines.
Spencer continued to work as Ethiopias legal advisor until the late 1940s and published his work Ethiopia at Bay: A Personal Account of the Haile Selassie Years. He married in 1949 and had a daughter who survived him.