Amha Selassie
Amha Selassie (Amharic: አምሃ ሥላሴ; Āmiha Šilasē; born Asfaw Wossen Tafari; 27 July 191617 January 1997) was Emperor-in-exile of Ethiopia. As son of Haile Selassie, he was Crown Prince and was proclaimed monarch three times. He was first proclaimed Emperor during an unsuccessful coup attempt against his father in December 1960, during which he alleged that he was detained and compelled to accept the title. After his father was deposed in a later coup, he was proclaimed King (not Emperor) in absentia by the Derg on 12 September 1974 in an act which he never accepted as legitimate and that ended in the abolition of the Ethiopian monarchy on 21 March 1975. He was again proclaimed Emperor in exile on 8 April 1989. This time he sanctioned the proclamation and accepted its legitimacy. After his accession, his full reign name was His Imperial Majesty Emperor Amha Selassie I, Elect of God, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah and King of Kings of Ethiopia. Biography He was born Asfaw Wossen Tafari, in the walled city of Harar, to Dejazmach Tafari Makonnen, then the governor of Harar and future Emperor of Ethiopia, and his wife Menen Asfaw, on 27 July 1916.