Zera Yacob Amha Selassie

This article is about the current Head of the Imperial House of Ethiopia. For the earlier Emperor who ruled as Constantine I, see Zara Yaqob. For the early modern philosopher, see Zera Yacob (philosopher).

Zera Yacob Amha Selassie (/ˈzɪərə jæˈkoʊb/; Geʽez: ዘርዐ ያዕቆብ አምሃ ሥላሴ; born 17 August 1953) is the grandson of Emperor Haile Selassie and son of Amha Selassie of the Ethiopian Empire. He has been head of the Imperial House of Ethiopia since 17 February 1997 as recognized by the Crown Council of Ethiopia.

Zera Jacob Amha Selassie
Tenure	17 February 1997 – present
Predecessor	Haile Selassie as Emperor of Ethiopia Amha Selassie as Emperor-in-exile of Ethiopia
Heir-Presumptive	Prince Mikael, Duke of Harar
Born	(1953-08-17) 17 August 1953 (age 71) Addis Ababa, Ethiopian Empire
Spouse	Nunu Getaneh (divorced)
Issue	1
Dynasty	House of Solomon
Father	Amha Selassie
Mother	Medferiashwork Abebe
Religion	Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo

He was designated as "acting crown prince" and heir presumptive in 1974 by the Emperor Haile Selassie I close to the end of his reign; however, the Empire was overthrown in the 1974 Ethiopian Revolution by the Derg. As a result, Yacob never became a ruling Emperor of Ethiopia. Ethiopia became a Federal Democratic Republic in 1991.

Biography

Zera Yacob attended Eton College and graduated from Exeter College, Oxford and Sandhurst.^[1] He was named Acting Crown Prince and heir presumptive to the Imperial throne of Ethiopia in 1974 by his grandfather, Emperor Haile Selassie, following his father's stroke a year earlier.^[2]

After the fall of the Ethiopian monarchy, Zera Yacob completed his studies at Oxford in the 1970s and worked briefly as a banker in the United States. He then moved to London and was married to Princess Nunu (née Getaneh), and later divorced. They had one daughter. He was named heir apparent by his father, who assumed the title of Emperor-in-exile at that time in April 1989 in London.^{[citation needed]}

In 1992 he accompanied his father Amha Selassie to Virginia, United States, where his father had a medical check-up. However, his father suffered a stroke and Zera Yacob stayed for two years. He then applied for a visa following his father's death in 1997. He had returned to London, England, where he had settled in a modest home on the Isle of Dogs.^[1]

Yacob has been the Executive Director of the Ethiopian Peace Foundation (EPF) since 2002.^{[citation needed]}

Honours

• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Lazarus (Orléans-French Royal Family)^[3]
• Knight Grand Cordon with Collar of the Imperial Order of St. Andrew (Russian Imperial Family)^[4]
• Knight Grand Collar of the Order of the Eagle of Georgia (Georgian Royal Family)^[5]

Ancestry

Ancestors of Zera Yacob Amha Selassie

8. Ras Mäkonnen Wäldä-Mika'él WoldeNelekot 4. Emperor Haile Selassie I 9. Woizero Yeshimebet Ali Abba Jifar 2. Amha Selassie, Crown Prince of Ethiopia 10. Dejazmach Asfaw Mikael, Jantirar of Ambassel 5. Itege Menen Asfaw 11. Woizero Sehin Mikael 1. Zera Yacob Amha Selassie, Crown Prince of Ethiopia[citation needed] 12. Fitawrari Damtew Ketema 6. Major-General Dejazmatch Abebe Damtew 3. Leult Medferiashwork Abebe 14. Ras Bitwodad Mangasha Atikam, Viceroy of Gojjam 7. Woizero Wosen Falesh 15. Woizero Sifrash Bizu Yifru

References

1. Cusick, James (23 October 2011). "Lost: one Lion Emperor, last seen in the Isle of Dogs". The Independent on Sunday. Archived from the original on 18 January 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
2. Charles Mohr (15 April 1974). "Haile Selassie Designates a Grandson as Eventual Successor". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
3. "Connaissance des Religions > Sommaires - 1985-1994". Cdr.religion.info. Archived from the original on 14 February 2012. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
4. "Imperial House". Archived from the original on 12 July 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
5. Studylib

External links

• The Crown Council of Ethiopia

Zera Yacob Amha Selassie House of Solomon Born: 17 August 1953
Titles in pretence
Preceded by Amha Selassie	— TITULAR — Emperor of Ethiopia 17 February 1997 – Present Reason for succession failure: Empire abolished in 1975	Incumbent Heir: Prince Amde Mikael Ijesus, Duke of Harar