The Embassy of the State of Israel in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Addis Abeba, presented a lecture by the Israeli professor Haggai Erlich.
Haggai Erlich is professor emeritus of Middle East and African history at Tel Aviv University. His numerous publications on Ethiopia include: “Islam, Christianity, and Politics Entwined” and “The Cross and the River: Ethiopia, Egypt, and the Nile”. He has published many books about Ethiopian History, the most famous one about Ras Alula Aba Nega.
During the lecture he presented his new book "HAILE SELASSIE AND THE WORLD: HIS RISE AND HIS FALL". With scholars far from agreement in their opinions of Ethiopia's Haile Selassie, the questions remain: Who was Haile Selassie? What was the secret of his survival across half a century--and how did he come to be a virtual exile in his own country, then murdered, the last emperor in a centuries-old dynasty? Haggai Erlich's Haile Selassie, full of fresh perspectives and insights, adds much to our understanding of the emperor. Drawing on new archival sources, as well as decades of research on Ethiopia, Erlich tells the multifaceted, sometimes tragic, story not only of a single individual, but also of modern Ethiopia both domestically and in world affairs.The lecture was attended by high level government officials, diplomats, representatives of international organizations and think-tanks, university professors and history enthusiasts.
The Lion of Judah and Jerusalem
The relation between Jerusalem and Haile Selassie began before the birth of the modern day State of Israel and even before Haile Selassie was king of Ethiopia. During the grand tour of Europe in 1924 the Emperor visited Jerusalem. His first stop was the Holy Sepulcher for which he had a particular attachment. In his book My Life and Ethiopia’s progress the Emperor wrote,” As by the chance of good fortune the festival of the Resurrection (Easter) was approaching, We thanked God for granting Us to see the light of the Easter festival. Afterwards, as We toured Jerusalem and its districts, We visited and kissed all the holy places”. He then spent ten days visiting significant holy and historic sites in Jerusalem and the rest of the country.
Jerusalem was a sanctuary to the Emperor and the Royal Family in his exile during the Italian invasion of Ethiopia. While in Jerusalem, he spent time with a community of Ethiopian monks, praying with them at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. He also contemplated his next steps in trying to restore his kingdom. After two-weeks, he departed first for England and then Geneva where he addressed the League of Nations on June 30, 1936.