Embet Ilen
Embet Ilen (c.1801 – 1851) was a high-born woman and political leader during the Zemene Mesafint in present-day Eritrea. The mother of Woldemichael Solomon, Embet Ilen "was without any doubt the most emancipated woman in Marab-Millash (highland Eritrea) in the nineteenth century."

Embet Ilen was given in marriage to Ayte Selomon, the eldest son of Kantiba Zar'ay, ruler of Hazzega. After acceding to office in the mid-1820s, Selemon attacked Tse'azzega. Swiftly defeated, he fled to Gura'e. After two unsuccessful attempts to avenge her husband's defeat, Ilen allied with Shum-Agame Subagadis, who appointed Ilen governor of Hamasen, but then himself died in 1831. Ilen kept her office by managing to ally with Wube Haile Maryam. In the late 1840s she gave up her regency to her son, Woldemichael Solomon. However, after being blamed for the murder of an old enemy, Kantiba Woldegaber, she was unable to find a safe place to live in exile.
Q189297
Zemene Mesafint
TIME
Q986
Eritrea
LOC
Q16885788
Woldemichael Solomon
PER
Q3699102
Marab-Millash
PER
Q2573438
highland Eritrea
LOC
None
Ayte Selomon
UNK
None
Kantiba Zar'ay
UNK
Q5687818
Hazzega
LOC
Q783364
Tse'azzega
LOC
Q16891987
Gura'e
LOC
Q7395817
Shum-Agame Subagadis
PER
Q1420568
Hamasen
UNK
Q26763823
Wube Haile Maryam
PER
Q16885788
Woldemichael Solomon
PER
None
Kantiba Woldegaber
UNK
Q24288426
Embet Ilen
PER
Q24288426
Embet Ilen
PER
Q24288426
Embet Ilen
PER
1851-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1851
DATE
1831-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1831
DATE
1840-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1840
DATE
+1801^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
1801
NUMBER
-1820^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
-1820
NUMBER
place of death
date of death