Coronation of Haile Selassie

It was on this day in 1930 that Haile Selassie was crowned, "Elect of God, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah and King of Kings of Ethiopia". His was one of the more troubled and eratic reigns of the 20th Century. He knew great hardship and also great admiration. For a time he was the most esteemed figure in a wave of anti-European nationalism that swept the continent of Africa as the colonial period came to an end and even in his own lifetime a new religion rose up that held him to be a living god. Yet, Haile Selassie was also one of the few monarchs to suffer the indignity of losing his throne twice, the last time to his own people and shortly thereafter losing his life as well. As Emperor, there was a time early on when Ethiopia commanded international sympathy, growing strength and even dreams of expanding to historic borders. He also knew war, defeat, exile and liberation followed by times of unrest, famine and hardship. It is safe to say that during his years on the throne Emperor Haile Selassie had seen it all, the extremes of good and bad alike. Probably no other African monarch of the 20th Century occupied such a pivotal position for world history.

In 1974, Princess Aida was seized at the palace at Mekele by revolutionary soldiers sent to arrest her husband. Ras Mangasha had escaped days earlier and would establish the Ethiopian Democratic Union (EDU) which would fight the Derg regime until the EDU fractured in 1977 between rival factions. Princess Aida however had decided to remain behind and share the fate of her grandfather, her mother, and her family. Princess Aida was among the women of the Imperial family who were incarcerated under te Derg for 14 years. Her brother Prince Rear Admiral Iskinder Desta was executed along with 62 other former officials on Friday November 23, 1974. Together with her mother Princess Tenagnework Haile Selassie, and her sisters Princesses Seble, Sophia and Hirut, were Princess Sara Gizaw Duchess of Harrar (Widow of Prince Makonnen Haile Selasssie), Princess Yeshashework Yilma (the Emperor’s niece by his elder brother), Princess Ijigayehu Asfaw Wossen (daughter of the Crown Prince) and Princess Zuriashwork Gebre Igziabiher (widow of Prince Asrate Kassa). These women were made to share a former storage room in the precincts of the notorious Akaki Prison known as “Alem Bekagn” which translates to “I am down with the world”. They shared mattresses on the floor and were forced to endure the light of a single light bulb that was never turned off during their entire imprisonment. Years of campaigning by their friends and relatives as well as human rights and humanitarian organizations around the world had little effect in convincing the Derg regime to release the women of the Imperial family. The Princesses were suddenly and unexpectedly released from prison in September 1988, followed a year later by the men of the family.

After their release, Princess Aida resumed her interrupted family life with her husband and children in exile. She returned to Ethiopia after the fall of the Derg and split her time between the suburbs of Washington DC and Addis Ababa.