A Victorian Gentleman and Ethiopian Nationalist: The Life and Times of Hakim Wärqenäh, Dr. Charles Martin 184701044X, 9781847010445

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Peter Garretson is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Middle East Center, Florida State University.

‘...an Ethiopian statesman, diplomat and reformer whose almost fairytale story has long awaited a biographer. Found as a child of three by Anglo-Indian troops on the battlefield of Magdala in 1868 he was taken to India where he became a doctor before eventually returning to his native land. This ground-breaking biography, on which Peter Garretson has spent almost a life-time, is a work of major importance. It opens up the Ethiopian political scene from Magdala in the nineteenth century to the fall of the Fascist Empire in the twentieth, and makes a memorable and fascinating read.’ – Richard Pankhurst

GARRETSON

Cover: Wärqenäh with his family and servants in Addis Ababa, c. 1920 (Photograph © and reprinted by permission of The Workeneh Family Foundation)

This is the first full biography of Hakim Wärqenäh Eshäté, or Dr. Charles Martin, a man of overlapping identities as a world citizen, a citizen of the British empire and an Ethiopian nationalist. He was a major progressive force in Ethiopia, played a significant role as a spokesman for the African diaspora during the 1930s, became an elder statesman in Ethiopia in the 1940s, and his extended family (and many of those he mentored) had a major impact on modern Ethiopian history.

A Victorian Gentleman & Ethiopian Nationalist

A Victorian Gentleman &Ethiopian Nationalist JAMES CURREY an imprint of Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF (GB) and 668 Mt Hope Ave, Rochester NY 14620-2731 (US) www.boydellandbrewer.com www.jamescurrey.com

The life & times of Hakim Wärqenäh, Dr. Charles Martin

PETER P. GARRETSON





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A Victorian Gentleman & Ethiopian Nationalist

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Other related James Currey titles

Alliance of the Colored Peoples:

Ethiopia & Japan before World War II J. CALVITT CLARKE III Ethiopia: The Last Two Frontiers JOHN MARKAKIS Pioneers of Change: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century BAHRU ZEWDE A History of Modern Ethiopia: 1855-1991 BAHRU ZEWDE Moving People in Ethiopia: Development, Displacement & the State ALULA PANKHURST & FRANÇOIS PIGUET (eds) Eritrea: A Dream Deferred GAIM KIBREAB Foundations of an African Civilisation: Aksum & the northern Horn, 1000 BC–AD 1300* DAVID W. PHILLIPSON

*forthcoming

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A Victorian Gentleman & Ethiopian Nationalist



The Life & Times of Hakim Wärqenäh, Dr. Charles Martin



PETER P. GARRETSON



Senior Lecturer in the Department of English University of the Western Cape



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James Currey is an imprint of Boydell and Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF (GB) www.jamescurrey.com and of Boydell & Brewer Inc. 668 Mt Hope Avenue, Rochester, NY 14620–2731 (US) www.boydellandbrewer.com

© Peter P. Garretson, 2012 First published 2012 1 2 3 4 5 16 15 14 13 12 All Rights Reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation no part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system, published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted, recorded or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright owner The right of Peter P. Garretson to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 The publisher has no responsibility for the continued existence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record is available on request from the British Library ISBN 978-1-84701-044-5 (James Currey cloth)

This publication is printed on acid-free paper Typeset in 10.5/12 pt Monotype Garamond by Long House Publishing Services, Cumbria, UK Printed and bound in Great Britain by CPI Group (UK) Ltd, Croydon CR0 4YY

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This book is dedicated to my wife, Rufina Alamo, for her endless support, patience & understanding

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Contents

List of Illustrations ix Transliteration x Note on the Ethiopian Calendar x Glossary  xi Acknowledgementsxiii

Introduction  1 Youth & education Ethiopia, India & Burma (1865–1896) 2 Return to Ethiopia  (1896–1901) 3 Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma (1901–1907)  4 Transitions in life

1 7

23

35

51 From Burma to England to Ethiopia (1907–1910)

vii

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Contents

5 A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma Marriage & political influence

73

(1910–1919)

6 Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa

101

(1919–1924)

7 An increased pace of modernization

124

(1924–1930)

8 International diplomacy, education & recruitment Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA and India (1927–1931) 9 Governor of a model province, Chärchär (1930–1935) 10 Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James

(1935–1936)

11 London & India  ‘So the whole thing is finished’ (1936–1942) 12 Ethiopia Family & elder statesman (1942–1952) Conclusion

153

173

204





Bibliography  Index 

237

276 301 304 311

viii

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List of Illustrations

Maps 1. Map of Ethiopia 2. Map of Burma

xiv xv

Table 9.1 Income of Chärchär Province, 1931–1934

176

Photographs 1.1 Wärqenäh six years old in India, 1871 6 3.1 Wärqenäh, holding a rifle, with friends in Burma at the turn of the century 50 6.1 Wärqenäh with his family and servants in Addis Ababa, c.1920105 10.1 Wärqenäh in uniform in his London legation study, c.1936 205 10.2 Good times with the emperor. Wärqenäh with the Emperor Haylä Sellasé and his family. Left to right, Princess Tsehay, Prince Mäkonnen, Wärqenäh, the emperor and the emperor’s heir, Asfa Wäsän. In background on right Wäldä Giyorgis 213 11.1 Memorial service for those killed in the Graziani massacre in 1937. Left to right, Foreign Minister Heruy, Wärqenäh, Ras Kassa & the emperor 238 11.2 Marriage of Astér Wärqenäh to Emmañu Yemär and Elsabét Wärqenäh to Tädla Haylé Zälläqä in Addis Ababa at Giyorgis Church, 1933 252 12.1 Wärqenäh in his signature cape 300 Source of illustrations. The photographs above are reprinted by kind permission of the Workeneh Family Foundation.

ix

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Transliteration

The Transliteration system is as follows: Vowels: 1st order = ä, 2nd order = u, 3rd order = i, 4th order = a, 5th order = é, 6th order = e and 7th order = o. Consonants: ch = the explosive variant of ‘ch’, p = the explosive variant of ‘p’, q = the explosive variant of ‘k’, t = the explosive variant of ‘t’, ts for the explosive variant of ‘s’, ñ = the second Amharic ‘n’ and germination is indicated by doubling consonants.



Note on the Ethiopian Calendar

The Ethiopian calendar differs a good deal from the Gregorian calendar. The years are seven to eight years later and the days of the month from six to eleven days later. This book uses dates from the Gregorian calendar and not the Ethiopian one.

x

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Glossary

Abba Abunä Afä Negus Ato

‘father’, reverend, title but also a term of respect for an elder title of the head of the Ethiopian church or ‘bishop’ ‘mouth of the king’, equivalent of the chief justice it is now the same as ‘Mr’, but during Menilek’s reign was the equivalent of Sir, usually reserved for important officials of the court Azaj chamberlain of the imperial court, head of a household Balambaras a military title of intermediate seniority Bäjerond treasurer Bitwäddäd ‘beloved’ or most favored courtier Blatta abbreviation of blattén géta, title for learned Däjazmach ‘commander of the door’, a senior military official Dergo pension in kind, regular food allowance from the court Echägé highest Ethiopian ecclesiastic position (until 1929), abbot of Däbrä Libanos Etégé queen or empress Fitawrari ‘commander of the spearhead’, title lower than Däjazmach, but of greater import when appointed by an emperor Gebbi palace or imperial palace Grazmach ‘commander of the left’ a military and later political title below Qäñazmach Hakim doctor or physician Käntiba originally mayor of Gondär, but became broader with time Léba shay ‘thief catcher’, a boy is used to search out a thief Lej ‘child’, title of a young nobleman in the court Mahbär a monthly gathering in honor of a saint; later similar to an NGO Näggadras ‘head of merchants’, originally head of a caravan, later head of customs Negus king Qäñazmach ‘commander of the right’ first a military and then political title below Fitawrari Ras ‘head’ highest military and political title after Negus xi

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Glossary Ras Betwäddäd a title combining the power of the Ras and the imperial favor of betwäddäd Tsähafé Te’ezaz head of the imperial scribes, keeper of the imperial seal and title of Minister of Pen after 1907 Wäyzäro now equivalent of Mrs. But pre WWII, equivalent to Lady Zämächa a raid or forceful gathering of tribute

xii

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Acknowledgements

The list of those whose help and encouragement was essential to the completion of this book is long, too long to include everyone and I do so very much hope that those not on this list will not take it amiss. All have my deepest heartfelt thanks. I am especially grateful to the Wärqenäh family who have not only given me access to the diary and autobiography of Hakim Wärqenäh but so much more. Elizabeth Deressa first asked if I would like to see them and became like a second mother to me in Addis Ababa. Mesfin Samuel has graciously taken the lead in answering my endless questions and helping throughout the long, long process of the book’s gestation. I could not have asked for a more helpful, gracious and patient friend. The Wärqenäh family as a whole have been remarkably generous with their time and encouragement and I would like to thank them all. It is also a great pleasure to thank the many students who have given their time and energy to help me with a task that stretched beyond a decade. Kinde Endeg Mihretie, has over the last few years been an inspiration and a great help and I will also always be deeply appreciative to the late Prof. Hussein Ahmed to whom I owe a great debt of gratitude. Over more than a decade most all of my students here in the United States have helped in numberless ways to move the project forward in particular Bryan St. Laurent, John Dunn, José Alvarez, David Crist, Jeanne-Marie Warzeski, Joanna Nielson, Brian Parkinson, Jonas Kauffeldt and Vicky Penziner Hightower. Last but not least, let me thank Doug Johnson for all that he has done. I need also to thank Florida State University for providing funds for me to travel and work in Ethiopia in 2001 and Strozier library who never complained at my all too numerous interlibrary loan requests and so much else. The Institute of Ethiopian Studies in Addis Ababa and the Department of History of Addis Ababa University were of immense help. The responsibility for any failings in this biography lies, of course, with me.

xiii

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Map 1 Ethiopia 1900–1950 xiv

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Map 2  Burma 1898–1919 xv

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Introduction

Hakim Wärqenäh Eshäté’s1 life was one full of change, often dramatic change. A statesman, administrator, author and Ethiopia’s first western trained physician, he was a major progressive influence on modern Ethiopian history. He played a significant role in influencing twentieth century medicine, education, diplomacy and economic development in Ethiopia. His appointment in 1935 as Ethiopian ambassador to London marked the climax of his career. Although born an Ethiopian, he spent most of his life outside his home country. He was a product of his Victorian upbringing and the British educational system - more international than national, living in many different countries but never wholly belonging in any of them. His search for his identity, and how he and others defined it, played a significant part in his life. Wärqenäh was born in Gondar, Ethiopia on October 22nd, 1865, a member of the northern Ethiopian elite who were in the process of being overthrown. As an infant he and his parents were imprisoned by Emperor Téwodros on an isolated plateau, Mäqdäla, in central Ethiopia. In 1868 when Britain invaded Ethiopia to free western hostages taken by Téwodros, the three-year-old Wärqenäh was abandoned on the field of battle. Colonel Charles Chamberlain of the 23rd Indian Pioneer Regiment of Rawalpindi, India picked him up and took him to India where he was brought up and educated. Colonel Chamberlain died three years later leaving the young boy in the care of another military figure, Colonel Charles Martin, who paid for his education at various missionary schools in India. As a result, the young Ethiopian was given the Anglo-Saxon name of Charles Martin and was heavily influenced by codes of Victorian morality. He would later refer to himself as a ‘prize’ picked up on the battlefield of Mäqdäla. During 1871, the boy was baptized and handed over to Mrs Robert Clark, wife of the English bishop of the Punjab. Wärqenäh then attended mission schools, a boarding school and in 1877 he began his medical studies at Lahore Medical College. He graduated third in the exam in 1882 with a Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery. His schooling would influence the rest   Most of this biography is based largely on Wärqenäh’s diary which is in the family’s possession, and thus references to it are only made in direct quotes. Hakim is the title given to a doctor in Ethiopia, see glossary. The family’s spelling of his name as Eshäté will be used in this book. 1

1

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Introduction of his life, laying the foundation for his future attempts to be a ‘gentleman’. At the same time he was an outsider, an ‘oriental’, who never really belonged to any one culture, be it Ethiopian, British, imperial, Indian or Burman. Bright, force­ful and motivated, he excelled in his studies and when he successfully completed his initial medical degree, he became the first western educated Ethiopian medical doctor. His professional education did not end on the Indian sub-continent, however, he pursued his aims further in higher education elwsewhere in the British Empire - in Scotland. His education was clearly not just vocational, instilling a preference for advancement based on merit, but it was also was based firmly on the foundation of a lifelong commitment to dialogue, tolerance and mediation. Throughout his long life, he moved among Christians, Muslims, Hindus and people of most of the world’s creeds and many of its nations. His attitudes and actions were committed to tolerance and living by the golden rule (‘do as you would be done by’), a motto he inscribed on the flyleaf of many of his diary volumes. He dedicated his life to instilling these principles into the hearts and lives of his superiors, colleagues, protégés, students, friends and children. From late 1889 to 1890, Wärqenäh went to Great Britain for graduate work at Edinburgh and Glasgow as he rightly judged his prospects for preferment in India to be limited. In 1891, he was appointed a Civil Surgeon in Burma and served in that capacity in several Burmese provinces. Up to this point he had largely been a product of the British Empire in his training and outlook, but major changes were in store for him. At the end of the nineteenth century, shortly after the Battle of Adwa of 1896, Wärqenäh decided to return to his native Ethiopia to care for the Ethiopian wounded. On the fifth day of the new century, he was officially presented to Emperor Menilek. Soon the emperor had given him a house to live in and a salary. Furthermore, his relatives came to his tent and dramatically recognized the boy, long lost at Mäqdäla. He learned his real name, Wärqenäh Eshäté and began to study Amharic and became familiar with the elite of Ethiopia. His pay became increasingly irregular, however, and he decided to return to Burma, which promised more stable financial arrangements. On his way he fortuitously met the head of a joint Anglo-Ethiopian mission which was coordinating Ethiopian and British actions against Muhammad Abdille Hassan of the Somalis, known as the ‘Mad Mullah’ by the British. He was of course neither mad nor a mullah. His participation in the anti-Somali campaigns was approved by the governor of the eastern province of Ethiopia, Ras Mäkonnen Wälda Mika’el (cousin of the Emperor Menilek and father of Emperor Haylä Sellasé). He served on two campaigns in Somaliland, often acting as a mediator between the Ethiopians and the British. Ras Mäkonnen awarded him with a grant of land for his services. It was during this period in 1899 that he started keeping a diary, a task he continued faithfully for the next fifty years and which is the basic source for this biography, which along with his unpublished autobiography allows for a detailed and nuanced account not only of his own life, but those of his family and aspects of the imperial court. 2

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Introduction Next Wärqenäh returned to Burma as a civil surgeon and served in many of its towns through 1907. By this time he had passed several official exams including ones in the Chinese and Kachin languages, adding to the half dozen languages he already knew. From November, 1907 to October, 1908 he undertook postgraduate work in London at Kings College London and the Skin College at Fitzroy Square. While there he became romantically involved with a British woman he had met in Burma and they had a son Téwodros (Theodore). His return to Ethiopia in 1908 aged 43, accelerated a process of redefining his identity which had begun in his 30s. Was he primarily a subject of the British Empire, or was he an Ethiopian? A progressive crusader for reform, especially in the eradication of slavery, he was faced with the dilemma of either adopting or rejecting his Ethiopian identity. This conflict took him years to resolve. He had only just begun to identify himself as an Ethiopian and had only just stopped referring to Ethiopia and Ethiopians as ‘them’. He did not distance himself properly from his British imperial identity, however, until Britain stabbed Ethiopia in the back at the time of the Italian invasion in the 1935. Only then did his defense of things British crumble and his Ethiopian nationalism emerge fully formed. His 1908–1913 stay in Ethiopia was a particularly significant period in his life. At first he was simply the resident doctor of the British legation in Addis Ababa. However, when Emperor Menilek’s treatment for tertiary syphilis reached a crisis, Wärqenäh was appointed his official doctor and immediately became an influential figure in the court. He soon married Qätsälä Wärq Tullu, which gave him an entré into the Ethiopian elite since she was not only a member of one of Ethiopia’s foremost Oromo families, but was closely related to the reigning Ethiopian royal family. Two sons were born to the couple (Benyam and Yuséf) and the foundations laid for one of modern Ethiopia’s most influential families. His wife’s influence at court not only rivaled his but after 1916 was probably greater. After Menilek’s incapacitation and the rise of Lej Iyasu as the major power at the center, the new ruler agreed to be godfather to the couple’s eldest boy. Life was becoming increasingly unstable, however, and Wärqenäh’s salary often remained unpaid, so he and his wife Qätsälä made the decision for him to return to Burma and serve there until he was eligible for his Indian civil service pension. He returned to Burma for six years, watched his family grow until he had fifteen children, and built upon his already wide contacts within Indian and British administration and society. By this point in his career he was a fairly senior member of the Burmese administration and would often temporarily take over the duties of the district commissioner and, in effect, serve as the governor of a sub-province. Thus he had broad and varied experience as an administrator at the local level in Burma, which would prove most valuable when he was appointed a governor of an Ethiopian province in 1930. Once World War I was over, the India Office agreed to his retirement and he returned to Ethiopia. In 1919 Ethiopia was at the height of the great influenza epidemic and Wärqenäh began another especially significant period of his life. Both of his wife’s parents died during the epidemic, she became the executor and head of 3

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Introduction her family and then he too became infected and very nearly died. She was closely related to the new Empress, Zäwditu, and to the future Emperor Haylä Sellasé’s wife, Mänän and thus played a very influential role in the court. From 1919 to 1935 Wärqenäh ran farms, flour mills, developed a mineral spring in Addis Ababa (Fel Weha), became involved in the running of a major Ethiopian printing press, helped run a gold and platinum concession, but practiced less medicine. He served as the first director of the regent’s principal school, the Täfäri Mäkonnen School, which quickly became the best secondary school in Ethiopia. He also helped found a school for girls, a school for former slaves and he founded ‘The Love and Service Organization’, or Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär, an organization which admitted dozens of Ethiopia’s brightest intellectuals and courtiers, who met weekly to discuss the major issues of the day, raise money for worthy causes and network to advance their pet schemes and careers. It began as an anti-slavery organization and helped to identify and train many progressives who started as his protégés. On top of that, he served as a diplomat, representing Ethiopia on a trip to the United States to obtain support for the construction of the projected dam on Lake Tana and also to recruit teachers for Ethiopia from the African-American community. He then went to India to recruit teachers, nurses, engineers and middle level managers, all of whom could be obtained at lesser salaries than European expatriates. A signal achievement was his authorship of Ethiopia’s first World Geography text book in Amharic which transformed Ethiopia’s perception of the world. He also served as president of the special mixed court in Ethiopia for foreigners. Of similar, if not greater importance, he was Ethiopia’s major campaigner against slavery and the slave trade. This was quite a portfolio of major projects and Wärqenäh was at the forefront of almost every progressive issue in Ethiopia from 1920 to 1935. His family too, became one of the most progressive in his country. He sent most of his children overseas to obtain a solid education unavailable in Ethiopia and none of his children had an arranged marriage but all were encouraged to marry for love. His family in many ways was a model for progressives in Ethiopia. From 1930 to 1935 he administered one of Ethiopia’s first model provinces, Chärchär. There he was able to implement locally many of the aims of progressive Ethiopians – building roads, fighting slavery and the slave trade, opening dispensaries and founding schools. Most importantly, however, he instituted in a systematic form, modern administration in provincial Ethiopia, including: young and educated salaried administrators, the eradication of bribery and made more progress toward the end of slavery and the slave trade than any other province in Ethiopia. He also introduced new plants and encouraged modern farming practices. He obtained land in the area and helped introduce trucks to transport produce, especially coffee, to the nearby railway. He was a popular governor but encountered difficulties working with the governor of the neighboring province of Harar. He had expected to report directly to Addis Ababa and not through Harar and had to fight to maintain his autonomy. The Danakil province was added to his brief and he proved to be popular among Muslim as well as Christian Ethiopians, establishing a model for Christian/ 4

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Introduction Muslim relations and for the administration of peripheral pastoral peoples. He clearly used his administrative experience from Burma effectively while he was a governor in Ethiopia. Between 1934 and 1935 he went through a very painful divorce from his wife and mother of 13 of his children and then was appointed Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St James, London. At the age of 70 he had reached the pinnacle of his career and for five years was an international figure, acting as one of Ethiopia’s major spokesmen on the world stage. He worked closely with the Emperor Haylä Sellasé and other Ethiopian diplomats abroad and went with the emperor to the League of Nations when the emperor gave his famous speech. He, with English as his native tongue, his British upbringing in India, his imperial administrative experience, and his long stays in Britain, was able to move more adroitly than almost any other Ethiopian in British circles and was recognized as the most talented of their fundraisers abroad for monies to be used for Ethiopia and against Mussolini. He worked closely with Sylvia Pankhurst, of suffragette fame, to present the Ethiopian side before, during and after the Italo-Ethiopian war, mobilizing British public opinion. He also met and worked with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Lugard, Lloyd George, Lady Gladstone, Lady Napier and many others of the British elite. Wärqenäh played a key role in mobilizing British opinion for Ethiopia. But after the Italian military conquest of Ethiopia, and the increasing threat of Hitler, the Ethiopian cause was doomed and donations to it fell to a trickle. The emperor, by now in exile in Bath, fell on hard financial times, and difficulties about money caused a growing rift between the two men. Nonetheless, Wärqenäh was clearly Ethiopia’s most effective diplomatic representative before World War II. In 1940, Wärqenäh retired to India aged 75 largely because it was cheaper and safer for him to live there with his younger children. His pension went further in India than it did in England. There he continued various activities, but at a less frenetic level, to keep the Ethiopian cause before the media and managed to meet with Nehru when he was imprisoned nearby. However, as soon as Ethiopia was liberated in 1941 he focused his energy on returning home, finally reaching there in 1942 while World War II was at its height. Wärqenäh’s last decade was passed in Addis Ababa. Most of his children had already returned from exile and the emperor restored him to favor. He lived out his last years as an elder statesman and was often consulted by the emperor and people of all walks of life. His children were close to the imperial family and his sons-in-law held high government positions. The vast bulk of his time was spent with his family, his friends and on private affairs. His family remained famous and influential for generations after his death. He died on October 8th, 1952, just shy of his 87th birthday.

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1.1  Wärqenäh six years old in India, 1871

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1 Youth & Education ETHIOPIA, INDIA & BURMA (1865–1896)

Ethiopia Wärqenäh Eshäté was born in Gondär, Ethiopia, on October 22, 1865 into an important Gondarine family, descended from Emperor Fasilidas (1632-1667).1 Fasilidas had founded Gondär and Wärqenäh’s immediate family remained there until the reign of Emperor Téwodros (1855–1868). His uncle, Aggedäw, was the Näggadras of Gondär (until the late nineteenth century) and the future Näggadras of Addis Ababa, an important and lucrative municipal and national position (literally, head of merchants), commensurate with his family’s influence in Ethiopia’s capital from the seventeenth to the mid-nineteenth century. Many members of his family were important merchants. Later these ties to important northern families increased his influence at Emperor Menilek’s court when he returned to Ethiopia in 1899. The decline of the Ethiopian monarchy in the late eighteenth century through to the middle of the nineteenth century led to the increased weakness of the emperor and the central government, while power shifted to the provinces and the regional nobles. The period has aptly been called ‘the era of the Princes.’ Most historians give credit to Emperor Téwodros for beginning the revival of central authority and at least the rhetoric of supporting modernization. Later in life Wärqenäh would contribute significantly to both. Wärqenäh’s autobiography gives some useful background in explaining these years. Theodore [Téwodros] was the son of Dejazmach (general) Kinfu, who was Governor of the province of Kuara. Theodore’s original name was Lij [title meaning a child of the nobility] Kassa and he was a very intelligent and exceptionally brave soldier of fortune. In his time the legitimate Emperors having degenerated into mere figureheads, all the provincial Governors became practically independent and began fighting each other for supremacy. Lij Kassa joined in this competition and being the best soldier and popular he gradually defeated most of the pretenders, and managed to get crowned as Emperor under the title of Theodore II, the tradition being that an Emperor of that name will be the mightiest Emperor of Ethiopia. But as he did not   See Autobiography of Wärqenäh which is in the family’s possession, p. 1. [Henceforth, Wärqenäh Autobiography]. See also New Times and Ethiopia News, #227 (7.9.40) [Henceforth, NTEN & date]. 1

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Youth & education happen to be the direct descendent of the legitimate Emperors, the people of the city of Gondar, especially, made some derogatory remarks about him in poetry. This so inflamed him that he burnt down the principal parts of the town and destroyed all the vineyards saying that it was the wine that that they drank from these, that made the Gondar citizens insolent. Having done this Theodore carried off the principal citizens to the fortress of Mägdäla where he killed some and put the others in confinement. Amongst these were my parents and relatives and of course, my little self of about three years.2

In 1868 a British imperial army, largely from India, called the Napier Expedi­ tion invaded Ethiopia to free foreign hostages held by the emperor of Ethiopia, Téwodros. The young Wärqenäh was effectively caught in the middle of an international conflict at a very tender age; and would remain caught between different cultures for the rest of his life. A contemporary account captures some of the spirit of the fortress during the climax of the imperial British Indian military campaign. The whole number of prisoners at Magdala [sic], exclusive of Europeans, was about 660; some were political offenders, others were common thieves and murderers, all chained and shut up together in one gaol [jail]. This consisted of 5 or 6 large huts in one enclosure at the south east corner of the town…The huts were crowded to excess, the air was poisonous, and the stench could not be endured. Many died of fever; 300 were put to death by Theodore four days before the fall of Magdala; 90 owed their liberty to the British army. The wives and daughters of some of them were permitted to live near them. These poor women became the prey of licentious soldiers.3

That Wärqenäh survived these conditions bears witness to his remarkably hardy constitution. In the autobiography he poignantly describes the dramatic events: On arrival of the expeditionary force at the foot of Magdala fortress, Theodore in … [a] sane moment sent all the European prisoners down to the General [General Napier, commanding the British-Indian troops]. It was extremely lucky as Theodore might have killed all of them before the troops could have got up to the top. However, although General Napier had luckily succeeded in his principal object of liberating the Europeans, he still decided to go up and capture Theodore, who had been deserted by all his troops and followers. However, when the General got up to the fort on Good Friday in 1868, he found Theodore dead on his bed, as he had committed suicide rather than fall alive in foreign hands. The place was found quite deserted, as every one had run down the hill except the Empress, the young Prince [the emperor’s son] and my little self, who were captured and taken down. My parents apparently thinking I was safe with a young aunt of mine, had rushed down the hill for their lives. But my aunt, seeing the foreign troops coming up, naturally got quite frightened and finding me a hefty boy of three years of age, too heavy to carry, she being only about fifteen years old, had left me to shift for myself and ran off for her own life. This she confessed to me on seeing her after thirty years,   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 1.   Roger Acton, The Abyssinian Expedition and the Life and Reign of King Theodore with 100 Illustrations… of the Illustrated London News (London, 1868), pp. 49-50. 2 3

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Ethiopia, India & Burma 1865–1896 on my return to my country, when the poor dear could not do enough for me in repentance for desertion of me.4

India He later described himself, not without a trace of bitterness, as a British ‘prize’ picked up on the battlefield and taken to India.5 He went on in his autobiography to say: I was taken over by a Colonel C. Chamberlain, who was the Commanding officer of the 23rd Pioneer Regiment. He very kindly adopted me and took me over to India to a frontier military station called Rawal Pindi, where I lived with him for about three years, when he suddenly died of cholera in 1871. The officers of the regiment not knowing what to do with me, had a consultation and decided to get rid of me by passing me on to some missionaries. So I was taken down to a place called Amritsar and handed over to the Principal of the C.M.S. [Church Mission Society of the Anglican Church] School there. This gentleman, not wanting to be saddled with a youngster of seven years of age, passed me on to his subordinate the Indian Headmaster of his school, who having half a dozen children of his own, passed me on to another Indian, a missionary preacher who having no children of his own, was very good to me. The missionaries, not knowing that I had already been baptized, as in Ethiopia boys were christened at the age of forty days and girls at eighty days, christened me again and gave me the name of Charles Martin. The first was Colonel Chamberlain’s Christian name, while the second was conferred on me by Colonel Martin, Commanding Officer of the 32 Pioneer Regiment, which was also stationed in Rawal Pindi, who had apparently known me while I was there and had now offered to pay for my up-keep. This he apparently did for a short time only. However, I was later taken over by the wife of the highly respected Secretary of the Christian Missions Society in the Punjab, by name, Reverend Robert Clark, who with his wife, were very kind to me.6

Thus Wärqenäh spent his formative years, 1868–1889, in India in the northern province of Punjab dominated by three major influences: the military, foreign missions and the medical profession. First, as we have seen, Colonel Charles Chamberlain, the commanding officer of the 23rd Sikh Pioneers, a prestigious unit of the Indian Army, returned to Northwest India (now Pakistan) with him. From the sources it doesn’t seem that he was formally adopted at this time, but the adoption of the sons of aristocratic foes had occurred previously in the Indian army.7 After Colonel Chamberlain died8, his early years were clearly 4  Wärqenäh Autobiography, pages 3-4. 5  NTEN, 7.9.40. See also George MacMunn, The History of the Sikh Pioneers (23rd, 32nd and 34th) (London, c.1935 ), pp. 167–192 [Henceforth, MacMunn]. 6  Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 4. 7  Oral information from my colleague Prof. Emeritus Bawa Singh, Dept. of History, Florida State University, April, 1995. See also, Sir Arthur Bryant, The Great Duke or Invincible General (Collins, 1971 ), p. 86 & Charles Allen, Soldier Sahibs: The Men who Made the North-West Frontier (London, Murray, 2000), pp. 173-174. 8  Letter to the author, from Mrs. Marion Harching of the National Army Museum London, enclosing a photocopy of his official army record. MacMunn, p. 531.

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Youth & education unsettled and he was shuffled from one person to another until he was sent to the Anglican mission school in Amritsar run by the Anglican Church Mission Society (CMS.). A further military influence came in the form of Col. W. J. Martin of the Indian army who agreed to support him and pay for his keep. His new name, Charles Martin was used by westerners instead of his original Ethiopian name, Wärqenäh Eshäté, or his baptismal name, Kidanä Maryam.9 Colonel Martin was a significant figure in the early history of Anglican missions on the Northwest frontier of India. His first career had been in the military where he rose to the rank of Colonel in the 32 Indian Pioneer regiment.10 However, he was a very religious man and attended the first meeting of the Punjab Church Mission Society (CMS) where he moved a resolution to set up an India wide organization of corresponding secretaries.11 Shortly thereafter he retired from the army and joined the CMS. Thus he became the first British officer in the Punjab to become a missionary and the first layman in the Punjab to join the CMS.12 This put him at the forefront of those of the British elite who were in favor of Christian evangelization. He was soon made treasurer of the Punjab Church Mission Society.13 He then launched a second career as the major organizer of the whole secular work of the Punjab CMS missions including: the keeping of accounts, carrying out of ordinary correspondence and managing of the Poor Fund. 14 This last position would have put him in a very strong position to subsidize the youthful Wärqenäh’s expenses, including his education and housing. Col. Martin is also said to have contributed substantial amounts of his own money to the mission. He was described as a ‘man of great faith and great prayer’.15 It would have been totally in character for him to support a needy and destitute child like Wärqenäh. It is, however, significant to note that neither he nor Chamberlain is mentioned, even once, in Wärqenäh’s diary, throughout its fiftyyear span, although, as we have seen, they appear briefly in his autobiography. In the 1850s Colonel Martin was one of three missionaries in the Punjab, two others, Robert Clark, and his future wife Elizabeth were to play a major part in Wärqenäh’s future. The CMS had both an orphanage and a school in Amritsar by 1868.16 Other than this little is known of Wärqenäh’s first years in India, before he began high school in Batala. Some time after 1870 Wärqenäh began to be influenced by three powerful personalities: Miss Tucker (also known as A.L.O.E.) and Robert and Elizabeth Clark. The Clarks, of course, are mentioned in the autobiography, but interestingly not Miss Tucker. In secondary school at Batala, Wärqenäh was 9  NTEN, 7.9.1940. 10 Ibid. 11 Reverend Robert Clark, The Missions of the Church Mission Society and the Church of England Zenana Missionary Society in the Punjab and Sindh (London, Church Mission Society, 1904), p. 34. [Henceforth, Clark, Missions]. 12  Ibid. and Henry Martyn Clark, Robert Clark of the Punjab: Pioneer and Missionary Statesman (New York, Ming H. Revell Company, 1907), pp. 114 & 128. [Henceforth, Henry Martyn Clark]. 13  Henry Martyn Clark, p 114. 14 Clark, Missions, p. 184; Henry Martyn Clark, p. 103. 15 Clark, Missions, p. 185. 16  Henry Martyn Clark, p. 256.

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Ethiopia, India & Burma 1865–1896 under the care of Miss Tucker. Once he was in the CMS school system he entered a new and self-contained world that seems to have deeply influenced him, laying the foundation for his upbringing as a ‘Victorian Gentleman’, but also that of an outsider who never really belonged to any one culture, be it Ethiopian, British, Imperial, Indian or Burman. This education would lay the foundation for his training as the first modern, western trained medical doctor in Ethiopian history. Miss Charlotte Maria Tucker seems to have been in particularly close contact with Wärqenäh throughout his years at Batala High School (1878–1882). These years are barely mentioned in his autobiography, although Batala and the friendships he made there recur often in the later years of his diary. Miss Tucker belonged to an old British family in India and came to India from Britain in 1875. As Robert Clark’s History of Missions in the Punjab notes, ‘Her influence for good was especially felt among the boys of the Baring [or Batala] High School.’17 Another contemporary missionary also notes, ‘Her influence among the boys in the Baring High School (a school for Indian Christian gentlemen’s children) gave to many of them an ideal of refinement and chivalry which had a marked effect upon their character. She was a kind of mother to the boys, inspiring them with school patriotism ... and setting before them the missionary vocation. Many of the present clergy of the Panjab are old Batala students.’18 Here too it was likely that he was exposed to the ‘Golden Rule’, ‘do as you would be done by’. Tadälä Betul also asserts that she also taught Wärqenäh Sanscrit and Urdu.19 She is credited with one hundred and fifty titles of Christian books (or tracts) and children’s stories while she was in India under her nom du plume, A.L.O.E (which stood for ‘A Lady of England’). Her values ‘which makes young men to be both Christians and gentlemen – which makes boys scorn to cheat or tell a lie, even at cricket’ probably had a strong influence on Wärqenäh.20 These were values Wärqenäh would hold throughout his life. A letter, written in November 1881 by the chaplain of the Bishop of Calcutta when the latter made an official visit to Batala, gives some further real insight into the high school and Wärqenäh. It deserves to be quoted at length, as the first contemporary primary source on Wärqenäh’s life.21 Here Mr. Baring, of the Amritsar Mission, established some few years ago a Christian Boys’ Boarding-school, renting for the purpose the grand old palace of Sher Singh…Since Mr. Baring’s departure for England on furlough, two years ago, the only European resident at Batála has been Miss Tucker ... who presides over the whole institution with all the tact and grace of a benevolent fairy. To see her indeed among the boys – now by the sick-bed of an invalid, now leading the singing at the 17  Clark, Missions (1904), p. 81. See also Miss Tucker, her entry in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, by Kimberly Reynolds (Oxford University Press, 2004-2011). See online edition. 18  C.F. Andrews, North India: Handbooks of English Church Expansion (Oxford, 1908), p.142. [Henceforth, Andrews]. 19  Taddässä Betul Kebrät, YäAzazh Hakim Wärqenäh Eshätu YäHeywät Tarik (Addis Ababa, 2009), p. 6. [Henceforth, Betul]. 20  Clark, Missions, p. 84. 21  Quoted in Clark, Missions, pp.69-70. The letter was written by the Rev. Brooke Deedes, chaplain of the Bishop of Calcutta (Dr E.R.Johnson) who visited Batala with the Bishop of Lahore (Dr T.V. French) in November, 1881.

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Youth & education daily worship in the little chapel… now setting her own words to stirring tunes, as ‘Batála’s Songs,’ to be sung in schoolboy chorus; sharing the feasts, the interests, the joys and sorrows of each and all, and withal insensibly forming and elevating their character, raising the tone and taste of the boyish society, as only the subtle influence of a Christian lady can do; and, to older and younger, the object of a warm personal affection and chivalrous deference, – to see this is indeed to realize, as it has probably seldom been realized, Charles Kingsley’s beautiful conception of the Fairy do-as-youwould-be-done-by among the Waterbabies. [T]he oldest boy in the school is an Abyssinian lad, picked up during the war as an orphan baby, to be made the soldiers pet, and then to find a home at Batála. 22 Of the remaining forty boys, of ages ranging from five to eighteen, six are Afghans, two or three are from Calcutta, two from Lucknow, the remainder mostly from one or other of the races and tongues found in the Punjab... In the palace itself the ground floor supplies hall, schoolrooms, chapel, and quarters for one or more masters. The first floor is in Miss Tucker’s occupation; while a large room on the roof is the dormitory for the elder boys [and thus probably Wärqenäh].

Miss Tucker also composed The Batala Boarding-school Songs, one which should be quoted since it surely throws some light on to Wärqenäh’s early upbringing.23 A BOY OF BATÁLA Generous and just, True to his trust; That’s what a boy of Batála should be. Eager to learn, Knowledge to earn; That’s what a boy of Batála should be. Steady, Aye ready; With heart to duty given Best blessing Possessing, A steadfast hope in heaven

Wärqenäh continued to give regular donations to his alma mater, the Batala School, for most of his life and stayed in contact with many of its graduates, visiting some on his trips to India. Some helped him in the 1930s to recruit professionals from India to work in Ethiopia.24 Miss Tucker may have had a significant influence on Wärqenäh’s life, but Bishop and Mrs Clark had a greater one, especially Mrs Elizabeth Clark. Although there are no references to him in the diary, there are dozens to her, mostly calling her ‘mother’. Robert Clark had a long and distinguished career as 22  My emphasis. The footnote in the text says ‘This was Charles Martin, L.F.P. & S. of the Glasgow University, now a surgeon in Burmah’ [1904]. 23  Clark, Missions, p. 80. 24  See a later chapter in the biography.

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Ethiopia, India & Burma 1865–1896 a missionary in India. His father was a Minister in Devon,25 where Robert was born in 1825. At first he went into a career in commerce but then changed his mind, entered Trinity College, Cambridge, graduated with a BA and joined the Church Mission Society in 1850. He arrived in Calcutta in 1852 and opened a school in Amritsar the same year, perhaps the one Wärqenäh would later attend. Having corresponded with his future wife for some time, he returned to England on leave and married Elizabeth Mary Browne in 1858 at Marylebone Church, London. They returned to India together and he became a major organizing force in the Punjab mission together with his friend Colonel Martin. The young couple lost their first two children to disease (1859 and 1865) and twice she had to return to Britain due to illness. He doggedly continued his mission work, mostly in the Punjab and increasingly advocated medical missions. Later in 1869 he helped found the Lahore Divinity College and in 1877 was made Bishop of Lahore and most of the Punjab. In 1882 he was made a fellow of the new University of the Punjab and he was to continue his work in the CMS until his death in 1900 at the age of 75. The Rev. C.F. Andrews said, ‘Clark was a born statesman and organizer…His mind was of the strong and somewhat narrow Evangelical type, and he had little of the refined idealism and devotion to the historic Church.’26 He had six sons (Robert, Henry, Tom, Hamlet, Donald and Stuart) and two daughters (Sybil and Dora), some adopted, the rest natural.27 When his wife was in Britain for extended periods, the children went with her and were largely educated in Britain. Wärqenäh never carried Clark’s name and as we have seen did not join his brothers and sisters in Britain. Yet he called Elizabeth Clark ‘mother’. His diary only indirectly reveals the tensions that these unusual relationships and upbringing had upon him. He would later describe meeting his sister Sybil for the first time as an adult in 1908.28 Yet he would grow closest to her and to a lesser degree to Hamlet and Stuart. He had occasional contact only with Henry, Donald and Dora, and virtually none that can be discerned with Tom. A large family has its own advantages and its own problems, but Wärqenäh clearly had a lonely and probably difficult childhood. His relationship with his adoptive mother, Elizabeth Browne Clark seems also to have been difficult, at least in so far as one can judge from his diary. While Robert Clark was raised in Devon, Elizabeth Browne grew up in Scotland. Her father obtained his medical degree at Edinburgh, and then went on to a successful medical career in Calcutta where he amassed a considerable fortune, before retiring to London.29 This provided Elizabeth with a family medical background which she carried on before her marriage by becoming a hospital worker and also a ‘Sister of St. John’ at Kings College Hospital, London. Later in India she began medical work in Pashawar and Kashmir, especially among 25  For this and the rest of the paragraph see Henry Martyn Clark, pp. 1, 27-29, 62, 103, 115, 119, 140, 152, 236, 248, 270, 282, 317, 335 & 356. 26  Andrews, p. 141.. 27  Henry Martyn Clark, pp. 321-323. His biography of his father Robert Clark contains this list of Robert’s sons. Wärqenäh, interestingly, was not included. 28  Wärqenäh Diary, 10.2.1908. [Henceforth, WD]. Her married name was Sybil Clark-Lloyd. 29  Henry Martyn Clark, p. 139.

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Youth & education women in the zenana (or women’s quarters of Indian homes).30 She would later draw on her family and personal background in medicine to write letters of introduction first to a friend to help Wärqenäh and then to an eminent surgeon and administrator in Edinburgh, Dr Russell, when he pursued his medical education there in 1889.31 One of Elizabeth Clark’s sons, Henry Martyn Clark (as an adopted Afghan), described her in 1904 as ‘endowed with rare talents and force of character’, and of her many gifts, one was a marvelous aptitude for languages, including ‘classical tongues’, French, German, Italian, Sanskrit and Urdu.32 Later Wärqenäh would also prove himself to be adept at languages. She was a lady of ‘high courage and unflinching resolution.’ She was also at the side of her husband, along with her sons Robert and Henry, when he died in May 1900. She then retired to Dehra Dun where she died on July 27th, 1907.33 It was during this last period that Wärqenäh’s diary gives the greatest insight into their relationship. The first reference to his adoptive mother in Wärqenäh’s diary came in September 1900 while he was in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, only a few months after his adoptive father Robert’s death. On returning from Ethiopia to his medical post in Burma, he stopped off to visit Elizabeth in 1903. ‘Mother received me cordially’ and had become ‘feeble and shaky’ he said.34 During this visit, which lasted one month, and over the next two years the diary focuses on her desire that he marry. He wished to marry an Indian Christian, she objected and insisted that he marry a white woman. He proposed to two of her recommended mates, both turned him down. The third woman Elizabeth suggested, he did not care for, misunderstandings resulted and Wärqenäh found it most difficult to extricate himself from this relationship. The year after Elizabeth’s death, he began a long and stormy relationship with an Englishwoman that eventually resulted in a child, Theodore, but not in marriage. Three years after Elizabeth’s death he married an Ethiopian, Qätsälä, a member of the Ethiopian nobility and together they had numerous children. Clearly Wärqenäh’s changing self identity and his desire to marry were closely bound together. Assessing Wärqenäh’s relationship with his adoptive mother Elizabeth is difficult to do. She seems to have had a longer lasting impact than any previous figure in his life, including Col. Chamberlain, Col. Martin, Robert Clark or Miss Tucker. The impact of meeting his birth relatives in Ethiopia in 1900 during this same period is also hard to assess. Suffice it to say, his childhood was a difficult one, Elizabeth was a major influence, but he decided finally to make Ethiopia, rather than India or Britain his permanent home and the center of his life, both professional and personal. However, ambivalence (surely not a coincidence) still remained later in life because in 1940 while Ethiopia was still under Italian occupation and London was being bombed, he went to retire in 30  Ibid., p. 257. 31  Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 5. 32  Ibid., pp. 140-141. 33  Email Correspondence with Philippa Bassett, Senior Archivist, University of Birmingham, March 12, 2009 from ‘manuscript register of additional information about missionaries.’ 34  WD, 13.9.1900.

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Ethiopia, India & Burma 1865–1896 India, his childhood home, and settled in the very town in which his adoptive father and mother had died, Dehra Dun. Enigmatically, Elizabeth Clark appears only cursorily in his autobiography. By 1882 Wärqenäh had graduated from Batala High School and decided to follow a medical career at Lahore Medical College. It has sometimes been said that people come to medicine because they are wounded; Wärqenäh seems to have been one such example. He registered as a medical student in 1882 and for the next four years studied the basic medical curriculum under the principal, Dr Brown. He took courses in: Anatomy, Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, Materia Medica, Pharmacy and Physiology. He then went on to study at the Mayo Hospital in Lahore from 1885 to 1887, taking courses in: Practice of Medicine, Clinical Medicine, Principles and Practice of Surgery, Clinical Surgery, Midwifery, Diseases of Women and Children and Medical Jurisprudence. He received his ‘Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery’ in 1887 graduating third in his class. His Indian certification for Assistant Surgeon was completed by serving his two years’ attendance, having charge of dispensaries in Government service at Batala dispensary, Gurdaspur.35 He was twenty two and was paid seven British pounds per month.36 At this time he observed, probably with good reason, that he was trapped in a low paying job and that ‘prospects in my grade were poor’. He resigned his position and decided to go to England and attempt to enter the Indian Medical Service.37

Britain His autobiography carries his story forward: With the little money I had saved in two years, I paid mine and a friend’s passage to England and arrived there in December 1889. When I arrived there I was taken up by a lady-friend of Mrs. Clark’s, to whom she had given me a letter of introduction. This lady [Miss Healey] very kindly promised to help me financially while I was doing my studies.38

Wärqenäh was fortunate that his adoptive mother (although he never refers to her as his mother in his autobiography) was able to help him to find him a way out of his dilemma. She wrote him, as we have seen, letters of introduction, especially to Dr Russell in Scotland, which enabled him to gain entrance to medical school in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and to take the necessary courses which certified him to practice in Britain and the empire. Thus he topped up his Indian degree with a diploma of LRCP (Licentiate of the Royal College of   This paragraph is based on correspondence with A.M. Stevenson, Assistant Archivist/Librarian of the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh, on March 2nd, 1989. Included was a photocopy entitled: ‘Final Examination: Schedule of the course of study for the Joint Qualifications in Medicine and Surgery of the Royal Colleges of Physicians and Surgeons of Edinburgh, and the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow.’ It was signed by C. Martin, Glasgow, April 17, 1890. See autobiography (on page 5) which also indicates that he graduated third. 36   NTEN, 7.9.1940. 37   Ibid. and Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 5. 38   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 5. 35

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Youth & education Physicians) and a LRCS (Licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons) and a F P & S (Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons) from the Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow in 1890, which made him more marketable when he later applied for a position on the Indian subcontinent. It should also be pointed out that Edinburgh Medical School was recognized as one of the world’s great centers of medicine in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.39 Furthermore, by the first half of the nineteenth century fully half of the Indian Medical Service was composed of Scotsmen.40 He would later return to Britain for further education, vacations and as ambassador for Ethiopia. Sadly, though, his bureaucratic difficulties were not over. Having completed this [his education in Edinburgh in 1890], I went to London and sent my name up for permission to sit in the competitive examination for the Indian Medical Service. However, to my surprise and disappointment, I was informed that not being a British born subject, I could not be allowed to sit for the examination. This of course was a terrible shock to me, when I realized that after all I had no national rights and privileges in this world and was really a waif and stray. Of course, I appealed to all the authorities I could think of, even to Her Majesty Queen Victoria, but without success. So I had to return to India sorrowfully, not having any money to buy and start a medical practice in England. By the kind help of my lady-friend Miss Healey, I got a medical billet on one of the British India Steamers, which enabled me to get back to India in January 1891, without paying passage money. On my arrival in Amritsar in the Punjab, I found a medical missionary friend of mine, Dr Henry Martyn Clark [actually his adoptive brother], very ill and anxious to get away to England on leave. So, I took over his work until his substitute arrived. In the meanwhile, I applied to the Surgeon General of the Government of India, for an appointment. To my surprise, I received a wire in reply, appointing me a district medical officer or Civil Surgeon in Burma.’41

Burma had a shortage of officers, particularly medical ones. He was now a proud member of the elite Indian Civil Service (ICS), the ultimate goal of his upbringing and education. Wärqenäh was a remarkably persistent and highly motivated young man.

Burma (1891–1896)

42

Wärqenäh’s seventeen years in Burma would give him a depth and breadth of experience which would later enable him to become the lead physician of the emperor of Ethiopia, but also laid the foundation of administrative experience and confidence that made him one of Ethiopia’s most progressive and successful governors. His varied postings throughout Burma developed not only his administrative talents and linguistic abilities, but also his creative capacity for   R.D. Lobban, Edinburgh and the Medical Revolution (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980), p.48.   John D. Comrie, History of Scottish Medicine, second edition, (London: Wellcome Historical Medical Museum, 1932), Vol. II, p. 759. [Henceforth, Comrie, Scottish Medicine]. 41   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 5-6. 42   The present government uses Myanmar rather than Burma. See Map 2 for place names. 39 40

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Ethiopia, India & Burma 1865–1896 tolerance and dialogue with different religions, ethnicities and socioeconomic levels of society throughout Burma. Wärqenäh’s professional career as a medical doctor was established while he served in Burma as a member of the Indian Civil Service from 1891 to 1919. He was posted to eleven different towns in virtually every part of Burma, from the malarial lowlands of the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean coastline, to the central plains and the northern highlands bordering China. Like his homeland of Ethiopia, Burma was and is extremely diverse with many climates, peoples, religions and languages. Wärqenäh spent forty years on the Indian subcontinent (23 in India and 17 in Burma) and only thirty-nine in Ethiopia. However, the bulk of his professional medical career was in Burma. Burma is surrounded on three sides by mountains and on the fourth by the Indian Ocean’s Bay of Bengal. Not quite as large as Ethiopia, it is about the size of France. To the north and west lie India and to the east are China and Thailand, but also Laos. The rainfall is heavy throughout the country except in the dry central region, known as the dry zone, where the annual rainfall is less than 30 inches. Dense forests cover the mountain slopes from which much teak is extracted, but the foundation of the economy was the production and export of rice, largely to the rest of India. The Irrawaddy River played a crucial role in unifying Burma and providing a major means of transportation throughout the country. As in Ethiopia, the center and capital (Rangoon) dominated the political and economic history of the entire country, including its periphery. There were basically three tiers to Burmese society. The British and other Westerners occupied the top administrative, managerial and professional positions. In the middle tier were Indians and Chinese; the Indians in particular dominated the lower levels of the medical profession. In the third and lowest tier were the Burmese, largely in the villages, most of whom were unwilling or unable to enter the modern sectors of the economy.43 These three tiers were clearly reflected in the medical profession in Burma. While Wärqenäh’s status was somewhat in question, he was basically part of the top tier. For twenty-eight years, from 1891 to 1919, Wärqenäh was a Civil Surgeon in the Indian Medical Service. As a civil surgeon he had a wide variety of responsibilities, as the chief medical and sanitary officer of a Burmese district or township.44 First, as the medical attendant he gave free treatment to the upper levels of government civil officials.45 Second, he was the sanitary officer of the whole district and as such was generally responsible for vaccination campaigns and other public health issues. Third, he was the medical officer of the hospital at the headquarters station and exercised general supervision over all the dispensaries in the district and their staffs. Fourth, he was often superintendent of the district jail or lunatic asylum, a very onerous and detailed but also lucrative duty. Fifth, he   F.M. Bunge, Burma: A Country Study (United States Government, 1983), pp. 29-30.   Wm. Wilfrid Webb, The Indian Medical Service: A guide for intending candidates for commissions, and for the junior officers of the service (London, 1890), pp. 105ff. 45   Bruce Gordon Seton & Major Jay Gould, The Indian Medical Service, Being a Synopsis of the rules and regulations regarding pay, promotion, pension, leave, examination, etc., in the Indian Medical Service, both military and civil (Calcutta, 1912), pp. 46-47. 43 44

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Youth & education was the official medical expert who advised judicial departments and the police. Sixth, he usually performed, and reported on, post mortem examinations and seventh, might look after a railway establishment, mill or a commercial enterprise and receive payment for this work. Finally, he was permitted to undertake private practice and receive payment for services rendered. This last privilege did not blossom until late in his career when he was able to serve in the richer and more established central areas of the country, rather than the poor periphery. The Medical and Public Health Departments in Burma brought benefits mostly to the European community, to the more educated Burmese and to the town-dwellers. In the rural areas vaccination came to be quite generally accepted, largely through the efforts of the medical service. Otherwise, according to F.S.V. Donnison,46 these departments made only a very slight contribution to the welfare of the majority of the people of Burma. They tried hard to spread western concepts of medicine and hygiene that were alien to most Burmese, and generally unacceptable to them. They also suffered from two major handicaps. First, most of their staff was Indian and not Burmese and secondly there was a shortage of funds. Individual doctors, like Dr. Wärqenäh, might occasionally rise above these difficulties and be personally popular among Burmese, showing that they were hard working and incorruptible, many others seem not to have done so. Doctors were not held in high esteem, either in England or India, and conditions of service often left much to be desired, but the Indian Medical Service did at least offer young recruits like Wärqenäh financial stability and upward mobility.47 Wärqenäh’s first tour of duty in Burma from 1891 to 1903 included eleven different postings with an average length of only seven months and was interrupted by two relatively short stays in Ethiopia (from 1899 to1902 and in 1903). Thus most of his early postings might be viewed as short apprenticeships, preparing him for future longer appointments, or as filling in for more senior white colleagues who had gone on leave. His last three postings, from 1904–1919, averaged forty months. Overall, he served first in lower Burma (1891–1895), then in upper or northern Burma (1895–1907) and finally in central Burma (1913–1919). Wärqenäh did not start keeping his diary until 1899, so it is hard to be specific about his first postings, except for his cursory comments about them in his autobiography.

Southern or lower Burma (1891–1895) His first posting from December 1891 to March, 189348 was at Thongwa, which is in the delta of the Irrawaddy River a few miles from the Bay of Bengal. It is just east of the capital of Burma, Rangoon, on a largely flat alluvial plain subject   F.S.V. Donnison, Public Administration in Burma: A Study of development during the British Connection (London, 1953), p. 44. 47   This section is based on, Mark Harrison, Public Health in British India: Anglo-Indian Preventive Medicine, 1859–1914 (Cambridge University Press, 1994), pp. 5-35. 48   Wärqenäh’s diary begins in 1900. So sources pre–1900 are secondary or his autobiography. 46

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Ethiopia, India & Burma 1865–1896 to periodic flooding and the impact of typhoons. Later in life Wärqenäh was not particularly complimentary of the place where he began his career in Burma. In that malarious [sic] district mosquitoes were so troublesome that even the cattle had to be protected against them by fires lit around them at night. The houses were like meat safes, all doors and windows covered with fine-mesh netting.49

The vast majority of the population spoke Burmese and was Buddhist, with significant minorities of Karens, Christians, Muslims and Hindus.50 As the Civil Surgeon Wärqenäh’s major responsibility was the supervision of the main hospital at Thongwa plus two others which then accommodated approximately 52 inpatients. As the medical and sanitary officer of the whole district he had a variety of responsibilities. Another surprise for me, was to be put in executive and medical charge of a big jail and also became the Treasury Officer of the district, in addition to my ordinary medical, sanitary and vaccination work all over the district, which I had to go around on inspection duty from time to time.51

Furthermore, he acted as vice president of the municipality, which included supervision of sanitary regulations for the district, for instance, the inspection of public latrines and the bazaar. He also went on regular tours to inspect regional dispensaries throughout the district. ‘All this [the extent of his responsibilities] of course, frightened me very much to start with, being an inexperienced young man of twenty-six years, but I got along alright anyhow’. Sylvia Pankhurst has a typically more robust description, ‘Only 26 years of age, the responsibility caused him some concern, but he rose to it with characteristic determination.’52 In 1893 he was sent to Tavoy but only for about four months. Like Thongwa it was in a district long under British rule, but its climate was better and not known for malaria. Almost everything was on a smaller scale. The only hospital in the district was in Tavoy town and in 1903 it had only 35 beds. Though brief, it was almost certainly a less onerous and more pleasant posting for the young doctor. He even bought some land in Tavoy and held on to it tenaciously for many years.53 ‘Tavoy was quite a nice place and I liked it so much that in partnership with the Treasury Officer, I bought a house there.’54 There too he passed examinations in accounting and book keeping which would remain one of his most useful acquired skills during his very active life.55 After only four months, in July 1893, he was appointed to Kyaukpyu, a port on the Bay of Bengal, where he would remain for a year.56   NTEN, 7.9.40.   The Imperial Gazetteer of India, (Today & Tomorrow’s Printers & Publishers, New Delhi, India, 1974), Vol. XVII, pp. 224-230, for the above and the following. [Henceforth, Imperial Gazetteer of India]. 51   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 6, for this and next reference. 52   NTEN, 7.9.1940. 53   See WD, 11.6.1908, 17.11.1913, 13.11.1914, plus half a dozen other references before, 6.10.1922, 25.10.1926, 31.1.1927, 9.8.1929 & 3.2.1930. 54   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 7. 55   Betul, pp. 11-12. 56   Imperial Gazetteer of India, Vol. XVI, pp. 61-68. 49 50

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Youth & education Kyaukpyu had been part of the once powerful kingdom of Arakan and was absorbed by the British Empire in 1826. The climate was notoriously unhealthy, ‘bowel diseases’ and malaria were common. As he points out in his autobiography: This district was the worst as far as malaria fever was concerned and was looked upon as a sort of penitentiary by the officers in Burma. However, I must explain, that I was not sent there as punishment, but simply because I happened to be the youngest in the service, so I had to take my turn of the charming place.57

The Arakanese made up the vast majority of the population with the Burmese speakers, Chins, Muslims, Christians and Hindus in the minority. This diverse province must have challenged his commitment to toleration, dialogue and treating all with equality. The town was smaller and Wärqenäh’s responsibilities correspondingly less in these and other areas. However, he used his extra time fruitfully, passing the Treasury regulations code exam and thus earning a government grant of £40. During this time, or perhaps over the next year, he also learned Burmese and acquired a further grant of £67. His mastery of Burmese would stand him in good stead throughout his career in Burma. The financial expertise, which he acquired while serving in Burma, was a great asset when he later became an entrepreneur in Ethiopia and then when he was appointed a governor of one of Ethiopia’s model provinces. The emperor demanded accountability and Wärqenäh regularly complied by presenting him with the financial accounts of all his different activities, providing the emperor written proof of his probity. After a year’s service in Kyaukpyu he was ‘struck down with malarial fever’58 and transferred to a district that had fewer medical problems for its administrators and a less crushing bureaucratic load. Thus in 1894 he moved to Pegu for his next post where he was in charge of medical service for about a year. Like Thongwa, Pegu was in the delta area of Lower Burma and had long been under British rule. Here the population was growing rapidly and the Buddhist Burmese were in the vast majority. However, although the hospital was smaller than in Thongwa and there was no jail, the municipality appears to have been much more active. The principal problems he addressed were the provision of a water supply, the organization of an adequate scheme of sanitation and the improvement of the drainage system. When he was made governor of the Ethiopian province of Chärchär, these were among the first problems that he attacked in its capital. His third posting, to Toungoo was brief, lasting only a month or so and only a small stepping stone in his career. More important were his next four appointments all to northern Burma, which had only just come under British civil administration. Now that he had served his apprenticeship in Southern Burma, he was sent to the much more challenging and diverse north to prove his mettle.

  Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 7.   Ibid.

57 58

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Ethiopia, India & Burma 1865–1896

Northern Burma His first posting in the north of Burma was Katha where he remained for two years (1895 to 1897), his longest posting to date and the third longest in his career in Burma. In 1896, as we shall see, he traveled to Ethiopia. From 1895 to 1907 he mostly lived in Burma north of Mandalay, except for several trips to Ethiopia. Upper Burma was added to the British empire as a result of the Third Burman war of 1885; the last fighting in the northern districts where he served occurred in 1898, but there were uprisings even as late as 1914 to 1915.59 He was among the first civil servants to replace the initial military occupation of northern Burma. At that time Upper Burma, especially north of Mandalay was regarded as a frontier area and Wärqenäh was one of a select few administrators involved in establishing its initial civilian administration and settlement. Katha was constituted as a district in 1887 and was a major port of call on the Irrawaddy River served by the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company, many of whose captains would become Wärqenäh’s personal friends. Historically, the area around the town was considered malarial by the locals and by the occupiers but after the British occupation its reputation improved. According to the contemporary gazetteer: The town is about half a mile long and a quarter of a mile broad. The houses are mostly built of bamboo and thatch roofing. What wooden houses there are are occupied by public servants, and there are only one or two brick houses. The majority of the inhabitants are Shans and Burmans.60

It had one civil hospital with 23 beds, the district had another civil hospital with 13 more beds and there were two railway dispensaries. Vaccination was not compulsory anywhere in the district. Thus, Wärqenäh may have had fewer responsibilities, since there was no municipality committee to chair and no mandatory vaccinations. However, to judge by the rest of his career, he almost certainly was an energetic and active civil surgeon in his new district and probably went on frequent tours throughout his district. Wärqenäh, as the next chapter will describe, traveled to Ethiopia in 1896 in the middle of his posting to Katha.

Summary & conclusions (1865–1896) The basic dynamic that most determined the nature of Wärqenäh’s youth was education. As an orphan whose early years were full of insecurity and rapid change, education, its routine and the security of a school’s community and discipline must surely have taken on special importance for him. He received, it seems clear, an elitist education in some of the best westernized schools in   Imperial Gazetteer of India, Vol. XXIII, p. 139. See also Dorothy Woodman, Making Burma (London, 1962), pp. 377 & 379 . 60   Ibid., p. 336. 59

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Youth & education India, a British ‘public school’ education designed by the imperial authorities for the sons of prominent and Christian Indians along British lines to advance the British empire in the Indian subcontinent. Their aim of producing a ‘gentleman and a scholar’ with a deep commitment to the British Empire seem, in Wärqenäh’s case, to have been mostly successful. Yet as an Ethiopian orphan he must never have really fit in, a fate not to be envied in a child’s early years and initial schooling, but which clearly helped to shape his future. His elementary schooling in a Church Missionary Society school, would have focused heavily on reading, writing and arithmetic. His education must have been solid because he proved to be particularly proficient in all three throughout his life. These, of course, were taught in English; he was surely the only early Ethiopian intellectual whose native language was English. During these years he developed a working knowledge of Latin and Greek, as well as learning some Hindustani and Arabic61 at this stage of his career, later he would learn several more languages. During his primary education, but perhaps more so during his secondary education at Batala, he was imbued with something further and just as important in the long run, the moral and ethical foundations of the evangelical ‘muscular Christianity’ so strongly ensconced in British public school education of the time. Here Miss Tucker, the guiding light of Batala High School and his adoptive mother, Elizabeth Browne Clark, must have played a major role in reinforcing the basic tenants of evangelical Anglicanism, including the ‘golden rule’. His diary reveals that he went regularly to church throughout these years, at least up to the death of his adoptive mother in 1907. Only later did a more secular outlook establish itself in his life. His overall education was a broad liberal arts one, fit for a gentleman typical of the Victorian British and imperial middle class of his time.   Interview with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 15 October, 2001.

61

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2 Return to Ethiopia (1896–1901)

On March 1, 1896 Ethiopia defeated the Italians at the Battle of Adwa, perhaps the single most important event in modern Ethiopian history. News penetrated even to the small town of Katha in northern Burma where Wärqenäh was district medical officer. Then and there he decided to return to Ethiopia in order to help take care of the casualties from the first war between Ethiopia and Italy. During the second war between these two very different countries from 1935 to 1941, he would play a much more significant role. In both wars, he was forced to think deeply about where his loyalties lay, whether to Britain and its empire or to Ethiopia. The Ethiopia of his infancy had changed dramatically. When Wärqenäh was picked up on the battleground in Mädäla in 1868, Emperor Téwodros had committed suicide, and the British had successfully invaded and conquered Ethiopia, then swiftly left. Four years of division and brutal civil war followed. Before Wärqenäh returned to Ethiopia thirty-one years later in 1899, Ethiopia had been ruled by three Emperors: Täklä Giyorgis (1868–1872), Yohannes (1872–1889) and Menilek (1889–1913).1 Täklä Giyorgis came from Lasta in central Ethiopia, Yohannes from Tegré in the north and Menilek from Shäwa in the south. Wärqenäh would become Menilek’s personal physician, but he neither knew nor had much contact with the other two emperors, although he named a son Téwodros. After Téwodros’s suicide, both Menilek and Täklä Giyorgis declared themselves emperor while Yohannes bided his time and strengthened his army. Yohannes had helped the British during their invasion and had been determined to eliminate his autocratic rival Téwodros. As the British withdrew after liberating the British captives, grateful for Yohannes’s aid, they left him a large cache of arms, ammunition and supplies. These gave him a decided edge in the struggles to come. In 1871 Yohannes first confronted Täklä Giyorgis and decisively defeated his larger army, depending on the superior arms and For this period of Ethiopian history the two best survey histories are: Bahru Zewde, A History of Modern Ethiopia, 1855–1991 (James Currey, 2001), [see especially chapters 1 & 2] and Harold Marcus, A History of Ethiopia (University of California Press, 2002). A more detailed and thorough survey of foreign policy during this period can be found in: Richard Caulk, ‘Between the Jaws of Hyenas’: A Diplomatic History of Ethiopia, 1876–1896 (2002). Most of this and the following chapters are based on Wärqenäh’s diary. 1

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 discipline of his own more experienced troops. Täklä Giyorgis was captured on the battlefield and died shortly thereafter in prison. It soon became clear, however, that Yohannes was planning a very different rule to his predecessors; in his domestic political policies, diplomacy and federalism were to take the place of domination and military might. War was a last resort, generally only against an invading foreign foe. In this Menilek would later follow his lead. Yohannes saw himself as first among equals and not as an autocratic ruler. Early on he treated Menilek with respect willing to grant him autonomy in his separate province of Shäwa, but insisting that Menilek recognize his suzerainty. Eventually Menilek would do so and even gave up his claim to be emperor of Ethiopia while Yohannes was alive. Yohannes focused his early energies on resisting the encroachments of foreign foes trying to invade and occupy Ethiopia: the Egyptians, the Sudanese Mahdists and the Italians. The Egyptians were the first major threat. Established on the coast of Eritrea on behalf of the Ottoman Empire, they began to push further and further into the highlands of Eritrea in the 1870s with the encouragement of the British. Egypt was defeated twice by the skilled armies of Yohannes at Gundet and Gura in 1875 and 1876, but it was hard for the emperor to win a favorable peace. Before peace was established, a new force arose in Northeast Africa to challenge Egypt and Ethiopia, the Mahdi of Sudan. Step by step the Mahdi, Muhammad Ahmad and his successor, Abdullahi, defeated the Egyptians and forced them to evacuate the Sudan, after the death of General Gordon in Khartoum in 1885. Yohannes extended his good offices to assist in the evacuation of the bankrupt Egyptians from Ethiopian territory in northern Ethiopia and Eritrea; after hard negotiations, the British and Egyptians agreed, allowing Ethiopia free access to Massawa the major port on the Red Sea. However, Britain reneged on her agreement and encouraged Italy to take over and rule the formerly occupied Egyptian lands in the Horn of Africa, Eritrea and Harar, after Egypt had withdrawn with Ethiopian assistance. Italy occupied Massawa in 1885 beginning a steady drift towards war, first with Yohannes and later with Menilek. While the Italians were threatening Yohannes and Ethiopia from the north, the Mahdists began to put pressure on Ethiopia to the west. They invaded and laid waste to much of the northwest of Ethiopia, sacking the old capital of Gondär in the 1880s. Many of Wärqenäh’s family (including his grandmother, aunt and half sister, respectively Alämnäsh Täklé, Täwabäch Wälda Täklé and Laqäch), who were major merchants and officials in the city, fled (for a second time) and took refuge in Addis Ababa, Menilek’s new capital in the province of Shäwa and the future capital of Ethiopia. The most prominent of his relatives, Näggadras Aggedäw, Wärqenäh’s uncle, was Addis Ababa’s first Näggadras, the equivalent of a mayor. Wärqenäh never visited Gondär, his birthplace, but would live much of his life and pass his final days in Addis Ababa. One of the provinces that the Egyptians evacuated was Harar, the major Muslim city of the Horn of Africa. After the Egyptians pulled out a local Harar family was able to take over with British and Italian acquiescence. In 1887 Menilek conquered it, asserting that he was reclaiming a former part of the 24

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 medieval Ethiopian Empire. Wärqenäh would spend a number of years in the city and its provinces after the turn of the century. A greater and growing threat came from the Italians in what is today Eritrea. They were clearly not satisfied with the hot and muggy lowlands of the coast and soon tried to expand to the healthy highlands of Ethiopia. In spite of the resistance of Yohannes and his generals, the Italians slowly advanced. As the Mahdist threat from the west grew, Yohannes, assaulted from two sides, had to eventually lead a major army against Mahdists where, just as he was about to win a decisive victory, he was shot and killed in the vanguard of his troops on Ethiopia’s wild western frontier with the Sudan. His leaderless army disintegrated and fled back to their homes. The beneficiaries of this Ethiopian disaster were the Italians and Menilek. The Italians continued their invasion and occupation of northern Ethiopia, while Menilek, now without any serious competitors in Ethiopia, declared himself emperor and consolidated his position as the dominant force in the Ethiopian empire. His victory over the Italians at Adwa on March 1st, 1896, with significant assistance from his cousin Mäkonnen (the governor of Harar) confirmed his position as Ethiopia’s undisputed leader and also established Ethiopia as one of the two independent countries on the continent of Africa. After Adwa the major world powers and some of the smaller ones, recognized Ethiopia’s independence and sent diplomatic representatives to Addis Ababa. In 1899 Wärqenäh would arrive in Addis Ababa with one of them, John Lane Harrington, Britain’s representative to the court of Menilek II. Hakim Wärqenäh’s return to Ethiopia was doubtless spurred on by the dramatic and bloody victory at Adwa. Adwa probably pushed him to explore his Ethiopian roots, and to identify surviving members of his birth family. His identity within the British Empire was firmly established, he now began gingerly to explore his Ethiopian past. Now thirty-one years old and established in a medical career in the Burmese government, he had barely passed through his probationary period, having served only five years and been recently appointed to Katha in north Burma. Going on extended leave to distant Africa was a fairly rash step for someone with his prospects. The pull to return to Ethiopia must have been very strong, especially when the reason for his return was linked to his medical career and caring for the wounded. He may, too, have become somewhat bored by his increasingly humdrum daily life in Burma. His autobiography reflects his disappointment upon arrival in Africa: [O]n hearing of the Italo-Ethiopian war [in 1896], I took three and a half months’ leave (privilege) and rushed off to Aden, and from there to Zeila in British Somaliland. In Zeila, I met Mr. J.L. Harrington, the District Commissioner, with whom I consulted regarding my trip inland to Addis Ababa. He told me that it was quite impossible to do so as the journey to the capital would take me six weeks to perform, while the country through which I have to pass being in a disturbed condition on account of the war, was not safe to travel through. This was a great disappointment to me, as the money I had spent on my journey and on the equipment was wasted.2   Wärqenäh autobiography, p. 8. Also New Times and Ethiopia News, Sept. 7, 1940, p. 2, confirms this. The ‘equipment’ included substantial amounts of medical supplies paid for and brought by Wärqenäh. 2

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 He lost most of his savings paying for the trip and was penalized financially for his late return to Burma. However, Capt. Harrington would later remember Wärqenäh, and when he was appointed to represent Britain at the Ethiopian Court in 1898, he told Emperor Menilek about Wärqenäh. The emperor later asked Harrington to write to Wärqenäh on his behalf, inviting him to return to Ethiopia in 1899.

A Burmese interlude (1896–1899) Meanwhile he returned briefly to Katha, before he was posted even further to the north in Burma, to Mogaung for a period of less than a year between 1897 and 1898. As he explained in his autobiography, ‘Here I had an easy time as there was no jail to look after’.3 After only eleven months, Wärqenäh was posted to Lashio from September 1898 to October 1899. This was to the southeast of Mogaung and northeast of Mandalay, relatively close to China. The British headquarters of the Northern Shan States was established there and the Burmese had also previously had their district headquarters there4. The Northern Shan States… Lashio… and the Southern Shan States, form the best part of the Burma Province, as on account of their being hilly countries the climate and the scenery are charming… [I]t was worth while as I got the usual reward of… about 67/- for passing the examination in the language, which I never spoke after leaving the States after a year’.5

The major drawback of the siting of the town was the lack of a reliable water supply. By 1904 a pipe water supply was in the course of construction. His tour of duty in Lashio was brought to an end by Menilek’s exciting invitation to come to Ethiopia.

Ethiopia & Addis Ababa (1899–1901) Wärqenäh, upon receiving Harrington’s letter with Menilek’s invitation, promptly applied for a longer leave of absence from his short posting in Lashio to go back to Africa for a second time. He left Burma in September 1899 and traveled to Ethiopia via Mandalay, Rangoon, Bombay, Aden, and finally Zayla on the coast of British Somaliland6. Zayla would play a significant role later in his life, as a diplomatic chip in Anglo-Italian-Ethiopian negotiations in the 1920s and 1930s. His diary, which he was to keep faithfully for over fifty years, begins with his departure from Zayla for Addis Ababa on November 11, 1899. It should be remembered that his was not a trip lightly undertaken. There were major   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 9.   See J. George Scott, Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan States (Rangoon, 1901), Part II, Vol. II, Pp. 18–19 [Henceforth, Gazetteer of Upper Burma] and Imperial Gazetteer of India, Vol. XVI, pp. 149-150 for this and the following. 5   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 9. 6   See Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 9. 3 4

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 financial costs and risks to be contemplated and overcome, for this was not an easy airplane flight or a short train ride. The trip from Zayla to Addis Ababa took over forty-five days and entailed first a caravan of camels and then another one of donkeys to Harar. Next a completely new caravan had to be hired to take him from Harar to Addis Ababa. He thanks Harrington, who was travelling to Addis Ababa at the same time, for his assistance and aid, but all was not smooth sailing. Accounts in his diary and autobiography are somewhat contradictory. First his diary: In Harrar I had some difficulty about my passport which Capt. Harrington on the 1st instance objected to obtain for me on account of some grievance of lack of respect shown to him by me. But eventually he obtained the formal permission from the Gov. [Government of Ethiopia] to my going on to Adis Ababa.7

[His autobiography is more diplomatic] It was very curious that I had some trouble when I wanted to leave Harrar as I was told that I could not leave for Addis Ababa unless I got the Emperor’s permission to do so, notwithstanding my telling the sub-Governor that I had been invited by the Emperor through Mr Harrington. To make matters more annoying, the latter through mischief, refused to get the necessary permit. However, after having had his fun, did get the necessary permit for me and suggested my leaving with him.8

One suspects a grievance (that was never made clear) was at the root of the problem. Wärqenäh’s later relations with Harrington seemed, on the whole, to have been distant. It was probably one of the many occasions when he encountered racial prejudice in his long life, but also did not want to focus on this negative in his autobiography. For the autobiography was probably aimed, at least partially at increasing sympathy for Ethiopia during the Italian occupation from 1935 to 1940. Wärqenäh had to negotiate between three distinct paths in his life: his role as an officer and gentleman of the British Empire; his Ethiopian birth and heritage, and his western education and outlook. With a conservative imperialist and racist like Harrington he had to tread rather carefully. Harrington too had to be very careful not to harm his relations with the Emperor Menilek, since the emperor had expressly asked him to facilitate Wärqenäh’s journey home to Ethiopia. Wärqenäh stopped briefly in Harar and then went on to Addis Ababa, where he arrived the day after Christmas. The change of climate and altitude brought on his second attack of malaria on the trip, as well as dysentery. According to his autobiography, ‘my old friend, the Burma fever, came along to keep me company.’9 He was flat on his back in his tent for five or six days.10 By the time he recovered the emperor had gone off to inspect his military arsenal in Bulga, a short trip to the east of Addis Ababa and Wärqenäh’s official presentation was put off until the emperor returned. Meanwhile, he became acquainted with the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa that his diary describes in a manner that warrants an extensive quote.   Wärqenäh Diary is in the family’s possession, 26.11.1899. [Henceforth, WD].   See Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 9. 9   See Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 23. 10   WD, 26.12.1899. 7 8

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 Adis Ababa [sic] consists of the Emperor’s palace situated on a low hill round which the town is spread out for 2 or 3 miles on the west and south west and for about a mile on the other sides. Except the principal and middle building in the palace which has stone walls and has a corrugated iron roof and the audience hall which has a tile roof the rest of the buildings in the town are all thatched with grass and have generally wooden or rather batten walls covered with mud… The outer fence of the palace is similarly built. Inner partitions are of loose stones. A chief ’s dwelling is not one large building but a collection of separate one room houses…One of which, the principal one, is used as the reception & dining room called the Adarash, another is used as bedroom & private room & called the ‘Ilfing’. The wife & family live in the latter house. Other buildings in the enclosure are used for various purposes as cook rooms, store room, servant’s quarters etc. Horses & mules as a rule have the honour [sic] of being stabled in the reception room or ‘Adarash’… The valley of Addis Ababa is about 20 miles in circumference [and] is intersected by [penciled correction illegible] streams running almost parallel to each other from north to south. These streams although narrow and shallow during the dry season become deep rushing torrents after a heavy shower of rain, so much so that two, three or more persons are carried away by and drowned in these streams every winter (rainy season)… [D]uring the dry season when the water in the streams is fordable… valuable bridges are closed to traffic!! There are no roads in Adis Ababa or any where else in Abyssinia, it being considered [a] useless waste of labour & money to make roads & bridges. Every one of any pretensions goes about on a mule which is more at home & accustomed to rough paths & puddles than to smooth & decent roads. The Emperor on being advised to make roads is reported to have answered that as his mule could go up a tree he did not see why he should trouble himself about roads. Convenience of the poor is no more worth consideration & bother than their lives are. Advantages of the wheel traffic & conveyance are evidently unknown at all events they are not appreciated. Labour is so cheap if it is ever paid for that it is considered easier & wiser to employ 20 men for carrying than bother about using a cart instead. Same lack of forethought & energy & business instinct is evident in every phase of Abyssinian life & method. Blind conservatism, utter want of energy & foresight constitute some of the chief characteristics of my people. Hence it is almost hopeless to persuade them to acquire useful knowledge & adopt sensible methods of business and carry out necessary & profitable improvements & reforms. Their lethargy is so pronounced & especially [deeply] seated that although they are avaricious & curious they’d rather beg & cadge in a shameless manner & exhibit great interest & pleasure in any thing new & ingenious than take the trouble to make a fortune & learn to do things themselves. They see Indians & Europeans making money under their very noses & in most cases with the Abyssinian capital, yet they prefer to sit idle & look on complacently.11

This last paragraph is one of the most important in Wärqenäh’s diary, since it is so long and frank. It clearly reveals the shock and shame he felt upon realizing how backward Ethiopia really was. However, he was careful not to reveal the depths of his feelings to his relations. Nor does any of this sharp criticism appear in his autobiography. He took out his frustrations and bile privately in his diary and there is no evidence that it went any further than that. In effect, he seems   WD, 26.12.1899. Abbreviations, etc. have been cleared up. This is one of the very few long descriptive entries in Wärqenäh’s diary. 11

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 to have followed the advice he would later give to his young Ethiopian protégés when they returned to Ethiopia for the first time after they had been educated in India or Burma: ‘I have advised them [his protégés] to be careful and not to pass criticisms about Abyssinia [sic] freely before other people as the Abyssinians will take offence [;] have told them to listen quietly but not to say much.’12 Bahru Zewde13 rightly emphasizes that in no other case, by any other Ethiop­ ian intellectual, was their ‘expression as strident and unsparing’ as Wärqenäh’s was in this case. Bahru compares him to a ‘disparaging traveler rather than a concerned citizen.’ But one should also remember that he was, at this point in his life, a citizen of the British Empire, bred if not born, and not yet an Ethiopian in sensibility. Unlike any other Ethiopian intellectual, he had not grown up from infancy in Ethiopia, but rather he had grown up in India within the British Empire. It would be a slow and painful process for him to shed his British imperial identity and re-acquire his birthright as an Ethiopian. This was a conscious choice. He could have continued his career in Burma and allowed himself to become assimilated into the British imperial identity, like so many of his Indian and Burmese colleagues (or like some of the Ethiopian students he brought to India).14 However, he eventually rejected this course of action. Instead, in 1910 he married an Ethiopian, Qätsälä Wärq and cast his lot with Ethiopia. From 1899 to 1910 he struggled to make up his mind, remaining unsure what road to take. Wärqenäh’s adoption of his Ethiopian identity took time and was a step by step process, from the initial culture shock of encountering his homeland for the first time in 1899 until his return home in 1919 and ultimately the crucible of the 1935–1941 war. After this searing indictment of Ethiopia and Ethiopians he returned to a calm, travelogue-like description of the palace of the Emperor of Ethiopia: On the west & a little distance from the principal building is the audience hall or ‘Saganad’ where the Emperor receives semi officially. It is an oblong hall built of stone & plastered & white washed in & out. Roof is covered with curved tiles the only roof of its kind in the town. It is a fairly capacious hall with a row of square wooden pillars running across it. Except for the few French & Persian carpets which are laid on the floor at the time of audience the room is perfectly bare & as an audience hall very poor & mean. Facing this on the other side of a small square is the clock tower which is square stumpy & insignificant building of its kind. The four dials facing the four sides are marked with Abyss[Abyssinian] numbers are about a couple of feet in diameter & have no glass cover & are very roughly executed. On the other south side of the tower in a separate enclosure is situated the new lofty ‘Adarash.’ It is only lately been finished & is a creditable building but it is not as neatly finished as it might have been. The gibir hall is the place where the Emperor feeds hundreds & sometimes thousands of his soldiers & officials. The hall is about 300 feet long & 150 ft broad and 50 ft high…. This hall is also available for big state functions & receptions.15   WD, 31.10.08.   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century (James Currey, 2002), pp 99-100. [Henceforth, Bahru Zewde, Pioneers]. 14   For Gäbrä Maryam see WD, 30.8.1903, 9.9.03, 19.12.03 & 14.12.1907. 15   WD, 26.12.1899. Abbreviations, etc. have been cleared up. 12 13

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 Within a few weeks he met two of the most powerful leaders of Ethiopia, Emperor Menilek and Abunä Matéwos, but it was not until May that he would meet the empress, Taytu. Wärqenäh was presented to the emperor by Capt. Harrington, but most of the interview was taken up with Harrington’s business and by the party Harrington had brought including the British explorer Mr. James J. Harrison and the famous hunter Major P.H.G. Powell-Cotton. Wärqenäh obviously enjoyed drafting his description of this auspicious day: Went to the Palace at 4 p.m. in dress clothes. Was presented to the Emperor by Harrington. The Emperor received us in the small reception hall. He was seated on a dais between two large pillars in the eastern fashion… His head & half of his forehead was covered with a white muslin cloth which was tied in a knot with the ends hanging as streamers at the back of the head. Over this he had a broad brimmed grey soft felt hat on. He had small chained ear drops in his ears & a ruby ring on the small finger of his left hand. The dais itself, and the floor round it was covered with Persian carpets. The Emperor is a dark well built man of about 50, over 5ft 8’ I should think in height. His face is pitted with small pox. He has large expressive eyes, rather blood shot eyes, largish mouth, thickish lips white good teeth very curly moustachios & beard. Although not a handsome man he has a very pleasant & intelligent face & a frank open brow. On our entering the hall each one of us was presented separately when we bowed & shook hands with H.M. [His Majesty] & were permitted to sit down in chairs arranged in a row in front of the dais. Most of the time was spent in talking about the travelling projects of Harrison’s party...Mr. Beru of the British legation was the interpreter. The interview I think lasted about an hour, at the end of which the party I shook hands & retired. Just before leaving the Emperor enquired about me & suggested that I should stay in Abyssinia. I asked for another interview to talk over the subject & he promised to arrange about it.16

Three days later, with the assistance of his interpreter and Amharic teacher, Wäldä Haymanot, he was introduced to the powerful head of the Ethiopian church, Abunä Matéwos: [V]isited Abuna Matheos [sic] in the morning. He is a fine looking man of about 50 years of age, stout fair & tall with a full beard. He was dressed in loose long voluminous black silk cloaks black silk round cap surmounted by a black silk mantle. On entering the room the Abuna extended me his hand to kiss & received me very graciously. Coffee & tea was served & after about an hour’s conversation I retired. His Beatitude promised to speak to the Emperor about me & promised every assistance in his power.17

Only many months later, was he granted an interview with the empress, largely because they were from adjacent regions in the north (she from Sämén and he from Bägemder) and she may have seen him as a potential political ally or pawn. Yesterday I was received by the Queen [Empress Taytu]. She was very gracious & kind & made me eat my breakfast or rather lunch before her. It (the lunch) was cooked & served in European fashion. The food was good but it was badly served. The attendants who were Abyssinian did not know anything about it. The Queen, although really nearly 60, looked very well, not older than 40 years. She is very fair & good looking & carries   WD, 5.1.1900. The abbreviations, etc. have been cleared up.   WD, 8.1.1900.

16 17

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 her age wonderfully well. As common people are not allowed admittance before Her Majesty I had to go alone without an interpreter. The Official Court interpreter by name Attanasius a Greek and servant of Ras Makunnen’s being unacquainted with English. I had a short conversation in my broken Amharic and then retired. Her Majesty was very complimentary & kind. My being Amhara (Gondar) man & Her Majesty being Amhara (Semein) too gives me some favour in Her Majesty’s eyes.18

At the end of March in 1900 came a climatic event which was to transform his life. It was much more briefly described in his diary than his arrival to Ethiopia or Addis Ababa, or his interviews with the emperor, the empress or the Abunä. The old lady who is supposed to be my grandmother (mother’s mother [Alämnäsh Täklé] and a young lady who claims to be my mother’s younger sister [Täwabäch Wäldä Täklé] and another girl who is suppd[supposed] to be my half sister [Laqäch] with some of their Gondar friends came. Mr. Beru happened to be in the house at the time. He interpreted. [He was the official interpreter of the British Legation]. They swear that I am the boy whom they lost in Magdala and as evidence of identity refer to a little [unclear word, perhaps dent or scar] in my right shin which however is not apparent. However, entertained them. I am supposed to be a Gondar man. My mother and father are dead but other relations who are all traders are alive. All these relations left Gondar after the last Dervish raid about 10 years ago and have been here since. They live about 3 miles from the town on the hill (Antoto) to the north west. It is a sort of Gondar colony and the inhabitants of the village called Atari Safar are mostly Gondar people and merchants. My supposed grandmother is a nun, and as a sign of her vow wears a white cap. It is not necessary for an Abyssinian nun to live in a convent. She can live with her family, all she is supposed to do is repeat the prayers and formula daily, fast strictly on all fast days, go to church regularly and tell her beads daily by the hours. Besides the ladies who paid me a visit I am supposed to have a good many male relations most of whom are merchants. One is a big official called Nagad Ras i.e. head of the merchants [Aggedäw].19

Later he went on to say in his autobiography: I moved my tents from the [British] Legation grounds and pitched them in the centre of the town, in order to be able to start my medical work at a place which would be convenient to both the patients and myself. While working here one day, I was surprised to see an old Ethiopian lady, with her attendants, walking back and forth in front of my tents, looking very hard at me. I therefore sent my interpreter to enquire what she wanted. On his return, he explained that the old lady wished to examine my arms and legs to look for some marks, as she suspected that I was her grandson whom she had lost at Magdala. This of course greatly interested me, so I invited her to examine my extremities, however, before doing so, she would first have to tell me what sort of marks she expected to find. She informed me that these marks consisted of a long scar on my left forearm and another birthmark on my right leg. On finding both of these marks in the right places, the old lady and her companions, went crazy with joy. They informed me that I was born in my ancestral home in Gondar to the daughter of the old lady, that both my parents were dead and   WD, 11.9.1900. See also his Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 32.   WD, 28-30. 3.1900

18 19

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 that my Ethiopian name was Warqneh, which meant ‘thou aret gold’. My baptismal name was Kidane-Mariam or ‘Covenant of Mary’ and that I was three years old when I was taken away. My father’s name was Eshetu and my mother was called Desta.20

Typical of Wärqenäh is the reserve with which he describes a major turning point in his life, very little emotion, a dry and largely detached description of an event which was to transform his life. However, his account in his autobiography was less skeptical and significantly different in tone. After 35 years he had suddenly rediscovered his birth family. For the rest of his life he would be closer and interact more with his Ethiopian family than his adoptive European family, although he would still keep in careful touch with the latter especially through correspondence. It is interesting to note that it took his Ethiopian family three months after his arrival in Addis Ababa before they approached him and recognized his existence.21 Nonetheless, this event slowly and tentatively marked the beginning of his long time commitment to Ethiopia and his Ethiopian family. His skepticism that he had really been recognized by the correct Ethiopian family is paralleled by his initial reluctance to embrace his Ethiopian identity. Wärqenäh had already begun to study Amharic at the end of January, 190022, and as we have seen, communicated with the empress in ‘broken Amharic.’ Daily interaction with his family must have sped up the process of learning this most difficult of languages, but his fluency never seems to have become that of a native speaker. He always had an accent, but could generally make himself understood. He understood Amharic better than he spoke it.23 That he started learning Amharic so eagerly seems to indicate a real desire to engage deeply with his Ethiopian roots. However, Amharic may well, after all, have been the seventh or eighth language that Wärqenäh had studied. Furthermore, from his first years in Ethiopia he was sorry that there was no geography written about Ethiopia or in Amharic. It would take him over twenty years to have it written and published.24 His Ethiopian family seems to have accepted him with open arms. To a merchant family, the fact that he appeared to have a significant amount of ready cash, direct access to the imperial family, the international community in Ethiopia and to foreign diplomats, clearly made him a most advantageous addition to his large extended family. Furthermore, he was soon recognized as a most eligible bachelor and there was at least one attempt to marry him off swiftly to help enhance the family fortunes.25 He was clearly a major addition and asset for his family, firmly rooted in capitalism and entrepreneurship. Not only had he had interviews with the emperor and empress, but he also had a steady salary from Burma and was soon negotiating with the emperor to be employed by the Ethiopian government. Almost immediately he began investing   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 26-28.   See WD from 25.11.1899 to March, 1900. 22   WD, 26.2.1900. 23   Interview with Däjazmach Zewdie Gabre Sellassie Addis Ababa October 1, 2001. See also Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, page 158. 24   Hakim Wärqenäh, YäAläm Je’ograpfi BäAmareñña (Addis Ababa, 1920), p. 9. 25   WD, 24.9.1900. 20 21

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 part of his new salary in the family trading activities, mainly in coffee and gold. Furthermore, as his reputation spread as a doctor, he cared for a wide variety of the rich and poor, Ethiopian nobility and the foreign elite in the capital, all of whom provided an extended network of contacts for himself and for his family. He even went on a short religious pilgrimage with his grandmother, aunt and half sister to the religious center of Zukwala. Over the long remaining years of his life he remained close to these three female relatives, but especially to his half sister Laqäch. His life had changed, but it is difficult to glean how much he was transformed from his rather reticent diary. Whatever the changes were, they came but slowly. After the initial euphoria of interviews with the emperor, empress and the Abun, the head of the Ethiopian church, and after his understated reunion with his Ethiopian family, Wärqenäh must have had something of a let down as he encountered the difficulties of daily life in Addis Ababa. These included the basic problems most anyone encounters when ‘relocating’: housing, food, money, and setting up a household. Each was different and perhaps more complicated than he had been used to in India and Burma. Ethiopia gave each a strange, indigenous twist. Housing and food provided the first and most essential challenge, although he had a certain amount of savings to tide him through his trip. He came with a tent, but lobbied long and hard with the emperor to get a permanent roof over his head. Yet for over three and a half months he lived rough in the tent he had brought for his trip, even though the emperor ordered that he be provided with a house within a few weeks of his arrival. However, Wärqenäh did not make life easy for anyone, since he rejected several houses as inadequate. Finally, on March 22nd, 1900 Menilek gave him a substantial, prestigious building to live in, the former home of a Ras. This seemed to have indicated that his status in Ethiopia and with the emperor was a good deal higher. He remained in Addis Ababa comfortably, for less than a year, until February, 1901. By then his salary had not been paid by the emperor for months, and he had decided to return to Burma. Food was a much easier problem to solve than a roof over his head. During his trip from the coast, he had brought some provisions and, of course, did some shooting of game along the way to augment ‘the pot.’ However, once he arrived in Addis Ababa, as an official guest of the emperor and a man of some standing, the imperial court provided him with essential provisions on a regular basis each week, a traditional institution called dergo.26 Salary and a regular income was a much more formidable hurdle for Wärqenäh to overcome after arriving in Addis Ababa. Wärqenäh had obtained a hard earned leave of several months from his permanent position in the Indian Civil Service. With Capt. Harrington’s assistance he sought a year’s leave of absence from the Indian Civil Service and a commitment from Emperor Menilek to give him a commensurate salary to serve the Ethiopian government. This was easier imagined than done. His salary per year in Burma amounted to about six thousand Maria   WD, 16.2.1900. See also Siegbert Uhlig, ed., Encyclopaedia Aethiopica (Wiesbaden, 2005), Vol. 2, pp 133134. [Henceforth, EAE] 26

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Return to Ethiopia 1896–1901 Theresa dollars (the money in circulation in Ethiopia), he first asked for $5,000 (which must have appalled the emperor) who counter-offered $1,000 per year. A long and difficult period of negotiation followed. Land and loans were craftily offered to sweeten the pot. In May, 1900 a meeting of minds seemed to have occurred and the emperor agreed to give him a salary of $2,000 per year. Things are rarely as easy as they might seem. Wärqenäh did not get his first three months salary until after five months had passed and never seems to have been paid any further salary by the emperor. Only in November of 1900 did the emperor agree to loan him $2,000 with which to trade, but he never seems to have actually received the loan. Finally, at the end of February 1901, came the break: ‘Went & saw Ilg. Went with him to the Gibbi. The King promised to give me my passport. He refused to pay my last quarters pay, he says he has no money to pay!!!’27 This forced Wärqenäh’s hand and shortly thereafter he decided to either return to Burma or try to get the assistance of Ras Mäkonnen in Harar so that he could remain in Ethiopia for a longer period of time. During the latter stages of these frustrating negotiations, Wärqenäh turned to his family for assistance and began trading in a small way through his Gondärine family connections. They dealt mainly in coffee, but also in gold and he used their long experience in trade which extended as far as Harar, Kafa and Gondär. Life as an entrepreneur would be a source of temptation throughout the rest of his life, but usually ended up in heartache and losses. Practicing his profession as a doctor was never easy, but Wärqenäh must have gotten some respite by trying to immerse himself in it and keep at bay the frustrations of daily life. After all he had originally come to Ethiopia to practice medicine and treat the sick and it must have been a relief to be able to get on with it. He treated a wide variety of patients, from the head of the Church, Abunä Matéwos (for gout), to the poorest servants and slaves. In between he treated aristocrats, foreign minorities and his family, when he largely dealt with the problems of pregnancy or with the eye problems endemic to Ethiopia. Mostly he gave his services gratis, for only his Armenian patients seem to have been willing to pay. However, it is important to note that long term relationships were built upon these initial medical contacts that were to provide him a network throughout Ethiopian society that were to hold him and his whole family in good stead for many decades to come. Although he rarely had more that three or four patients on any given day, he would make up to 15 visits a day and a total of 74 in one three month period. His return to the Harar and the coast in March of 1901 hardly qualified as a pleasure jaunt, but Wärqenäh clearly greatly enjoyed going on trek, whatever the reason might have been, especially when he could get in some ‘shooting’ on the way. His next few years would prove to be a good deal more exciting than he could have imagined.   WD, 28.2.1901.

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3 Campaigning in the Ogaden & Return to Burma (1901–1907)

There followed a unique period in Wärqenäh’s life, which happened quite by chance. After Emperor Menilek stopped paying his salary, he packed up to return to Burma. Ras Mäkonnen, the emperor’s cousin and ruler of the rich eastern Ethiopian province of Harar, raised the possibility of his staying and working in his province, but after Wärqenäh arrived in Harar that prospect slowly faded. Then fortuitously, he was asked to treat a sick Englishman recently arrived in Harar, a Major A. Hanbury-Tracy. Hanbury-Tracy shortly thereafter asked him to join a joint British-Ethiopian military expedition against Sayyid Muhammad Abdille Hasan, known incorrectly to the British as ‘the Mad Mullah’ (while Sayyid is an honorific title for a descendent of the Prophet Muhammad). Wärqenäh promptly agreed to serve as a medical doctor with the expedition, once he had been assured that he would be officially seconded from his position in Burma and paid an equivalent salary. Wärqenäh always tried to be very careful when it came to his salary and future pension. Before describing his participation in the First Expedition against Muhammad Abdille Hasan in 1901, it would perhaps, be useful to give some background on Ethiopian involvement in Harar and the Ogaden, Ethiopia’s easternmost provinces and the frontier with the Somalis of the Horn of Africa. Wärqenäh arrived in the province of Harar at a key point in its history. As we have seen, Emperor Menilek sent an expedition to conquer Harar in 1887, preempting possible Italian, French or British moves to conquer or control it. He claimed that since Ethiopia had controlled this area in medieval times, it was simply a question of reasserting Ethiopian sovereignty. After the withdrawal of Ethiopia from the Harar region in the sixteenth century Oromos and then Somalis moved into and competed for control over the region. The Egyptian occupation of Harar from 1875 to the 1880s had provided only a short interlude, but the Egyptians greatly expanded Harar’s commercial base, especially increasing its coffee production, during its occupation and encouraged foreigners to settle as traders in some numbers for the first time in its history. Menilek was determined to take control of Harar in the 1880s because it was the major centre of trade in the Horn of Africa. He hoped that its conquest would allow him to increase arms and other imports from the coast and from 35

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 the outside world. Its dominance would also enable him to play off the British, French and Italians against each other in his quest build up his military might against Emperor Yohannes or any other future foes. The final driving ambition was to obtain a port on the Red Sea or the Gulf of Aden. After his capture of the city of Harar in 1887, Emperor Menilek appointed his cousin Mäkonnen Wäldä Mika’él as his governor of the province. However, it took some time before the province was pacified. Resistance came from both Oromos and Somalis, but Somali resistance was to be the long-term problem. It wasn’t until 1888 that Mäkonnen was able to turn his attention to re-opening trade to the coast and focus on the pacification of Somalis in the lowland areas north and east of Harar. Military expeditions, in Amharic zämächa, were sent out against the lowland Somali clans of the Ogaden. Those that were ‘pacified’ were slowly forced to pay tribute and those who refused to pay tribute were subject to further zämächa. Beginning in 1895 and 1896 most of Mäkonnen’s troops were withdrawn from the Ogaden and only a few were left in Harar when Emperor Menilek assembled all available forces to resist the Italian invasion of the north which, as we have seen, led to the great Ethiopian victory at Adwa in 1896. However, the withdrawal of most of the province’s military garrisons lessened Ethiopian pressure on the Somalis and assisted in the rise of a new, and virulently anti-Ethiopian force in Somalia and the Ogaden, Sayyid Muhammad Abdille Hasan, recognized by many Somalis as the major founder of modern Somali nationalism. At the end of the nineteenth century, Sayyid Muhammad was reacting not only against Ethiopian depredations in the Ogaden, but also against British colonization of what was then British Somaliland and the Italians in Italian Somaliland. Sayyid Muhammad strongly objected to the British occupation of Somaliland and in September of 1899 was declared to be in revolt by the British administration in Somaliland. However, Ethiopian expansion was almost certainly a greater threat to Muhammad Abdille Hasan than the British. In fact the first major military confrontation of the Sayyid’s long career of resistance (1890s to 1920) was against the Ethiopians and not the British or Italians. In March 1900 his forces attacked the Ethiopian garrison at the Battle of Jijjiga and were repulsed with many casualties; this set the stage for the joint Anglo-Ethiopian expeditions in which Wärqenäh participated as a minor actor. There are fascinating similarities between the story of Muhammad Abdille Hasan (at the end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the twentieth century) and Somali-Ethiopian relations of the late twentieth and early twentyfirst century. During both periods, Ethiopia carried out very extensive military operations against the Somalis with the help of the world’s greatest military powers of the time – in the twentieth century Great Britain and in the twentyfirst the USA. In both the early 1900s and 2000s, Ethiopia invaded Somalia. Also during both periods the joint military campaigns led to a violent reaction by the Somalis. Furthermore, the first set of campaigns lasted for over twenty years (1899–1922). No one knows for sure how long the present conflicts in the Horn will continue. Wärqenäh played a small peripheral role at the beginning of the 36

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 twentieth century, but his actions were part of a much larger and very important historical process. The British were fearful of an attack by Sayyid Muhammad Abdille Hasan against their important port of Berbera and during 1900 and the beginning of 1901 worked with Emperor Menilek and Ras Mäkonnen to organize a joint Anglo-Ethiopian expedition to defeat the Sayyid. The British sent two officers, Majors Hanbury-Tracy and Ralph Cobbold, with an entourage of seventy-two men1, to act as a liaison with the British forces to the north. They were to join the Ethiopian force agreed upon by Menilek and under the command of Ras Mäkonnen’s officers. The two officers traveled to Harar to meet the Ras and it was thus that Wärqenäh met Hanbury-Tracy and treated his malaria and was then asked to join the force. This was the second major force that the Ethiopians had sent against Muhammad Abdille Hasan that year. Fitawrari Gäbré had for several frustrating months tried to find and capture Muhammad Abdille Hasan, but had been unsuccessful. The Ethiopians and the British quickly discovered that British Somaliland and the Ogaden where most Ethiopian Somalis lived were very well adapted for guerrilla warfare. Ethiopian and British methods of campaigning differed greatly. British warfare was in the European tradition and was supposed to be cheerfully ‘civilized’ with the military and civilian spheres carefully defined. Their military units were not to live off the land but depended on long logistical supply lines. Their forces were small, highly trained and depended on the latest military technology and disciplined firepower, especially artillery and the maxim gun (an early machine gun). Ethiopian military practice was in direct contrast to this and military expeditions followed centuries old tradition. An army could be raised on very short notice and included thousands of men who only took one month of the most basic supplies. They were expected to live off the land. I was informed that an Ethiopian soldier when he goes on an expedition, is given a month’s supply of grain as rations, about 120 lbs. for self, 100 lbs. for his wife and the same amount for his followers or dependents that he may happen to have. After the first supply of rations is finished he then draws further rations from the country he happens to be fighting or stationed in.2

Traditionally, in the inner circle of Ethiopian administration were those who paid regular taxes. Beyond that circle were those who paid annual tribute, who if they did not pay were subject to raids which enforced tribute in kind. Beyond the range of tribute these raids were sent out to conquer and pacify areas within (and sometimes beyond) the lands officially within the Ethiopian frontiers. The British, including the three officers, highly disapproved of Ethiopian methods. Parliamentary Papers: 1902, vol. LXIX, Africa No. 3(1902) ‘Correspondence respecting the Rising of Mullah Muhammed Abdullah in Somaliland and Consequent Military Operations, 1901–1902’ (CD1009), No. 5, Hanbury-Tracy to Marquess of Lansdowne, November 6, 1901, Enclosure 6, Medical Report by C. Martin, September 6, 1901, p. 58. See also for the same report, PRO/FO 403/3/899, p. 271, Inclosure 6, #`96, Medical Report by C. Martin. 2   Wärqenäh’s Autobiography in the family’s possession, pp. 48-49. [Henceforth, Wärqenäh Auto­ biography]. 1

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 The question was which was more successful in combating Muhammad Abdille Hasan.

1901 Campaign in the Ogaden On May 5th, 1901 Wärqenäh left Harar and arrived the next day in the garrison town (or kätämä) of Jijjiga, the main logistics center for the campaign. On the 11th of May the three officers left Jijjiga in order to await the main Ethiopian force further south where there was greater forage for their horses and baggage animals. This second Ethiopian expedition of 1901 was commanded by Qäñazmach Abanäbro who had fought together with Mäkonnen at the Battle of Adwa in 1896. His troops were less experienced and disciplined than those of his predecessor, Fitawrari Gäbré, and his title was less senior and prestigious.3 Furthermore, the troops were locally raised in the province of Harar and none seem to have been from Menilek’s, or Ras Mäkonnen’s personal elite forces. Initially Wärqenäh’s medical tasks were light and he got on personally quite well with his fellow officers. However, he would increasingly find himself acting as a mediator between the two officers and between them and the Ethiopian officers. Wärqenäh had no illusions concerning the role the liaison officers were expected to play by the British authorities. Tracy and Cobbold are naturally much cross with the interpreter for acting the ‘spy’ [he had written independently to Ras Mäkonnen about their actions]. It is funny that they themselves who are nothing better than spies (for what is an intelligence officer but a spy) should condemn an Abyssinian for spying on them for his Government!!!4

However, the initial stages of the campaign were relatively pleasant for all concerned. Rains had recently fallen and provisions were quite plentiful. Furthermore, ‘It is quite a surprise to see such hilly and green country in Somaliland. I expected to see nothing but sandy hillocks and barren desert’5. Somewhat later Major Cobbold took what may have been the very first film shot in the Horn of Africa, which Wärqnäh described as ‘cinomatograph’ of the Ethiopian army on the march.6 On the same day and for the next week they passed through highly cultivated areas where two dry riverbeds flowed together (Tug Jerrer and Tug Fanfan). The fields supported Islamic religious communities of hundreds of families distributed around the mausoleums of famous Somali religious Shaykhs. Within the week the army left this area where water and forage were plentiful and struck out into the Haud, a much less hospitable terrain where water was only to be found at infrequent wells and waterholes. The British insisted that the Ethiopian army go into the Haud in order to put greater pressure on the Somalis under Muhammad Abdille Hasan. At the beginning of June, 1901, the British had suffered their first defeat at his hands at the wells   In the traditional Ethiopian army a Fitawrari was an officer in charge of the vanguard of an army and senior to the Qäñazmach who commanded only the right wing of an army. See glossary. 4   Wärqenäh’s Diary, 14.5.1901. [Henceforth, WD]. 5   WD, 14.5.1901. 6   WD, 1.6.1901. No copies of this movie seem to have survived. 3

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 of Samala.7 It was in this region thirty-three years later that Ethiopia and Italy would fight over the Wal Wal waterhole leading to the Italo-Ethiopian war and eventually even World War II. The Ethiopian force of some 15,000 men suffered from increasingly severe medical problems from May to July 15th, 1901, largely caused by a shortage of water, supplies of which were more and more often polluted by the supporters of Muhammad Abdille Hasan. As the London Times described Somaliland at about this time, ‘The heat is terrific’.8 In his summary report Wärqenäh pointed out that he treated 494 cases, most of which, 122, were ‘bowel complaints, principally diarrhoea [sic] and dysentery’.9 He goes on to add: There is no doubt that the Abyssinians for lack of medical arrangements of their own were very grateful for the medical and surgical aid they received through the benevolence of the British Government; and I think it went a long way to dispel their prejudices and suspicions against the British officers. The officers of the force of the Ras himself were quite pleased and gratified at this proof of friendship and goodwill, and were very thankful for it.10

Not mentioned in his report, but clear from his diary is that Wärqenäh also treated numerous important Ethiopians, including: Ras Mäkonnen, Grazmach Gallé (an important officer on the campaign), Geromilato (the British vice consul in Harar), Ras Sebhat (a very important national figure), and various other high level officials and their wives. However, the Ethiopian column never engaged in any major battles and returned to Jijjiga and Harar sometime after the 22nd of June.11 Through mediation Wärqenäh played a significant role in the decision to return early from the expedition and not to extend it by heading south to raid the Webbi Shebelli river valley for food and forage. He acted as an intermediary between the Ethiopian commander, Abanäbro, his Ethiopian officers, the two British Officers and Ras Mäkonnen. The British officers took credit for the decision and the success of the mission themselves saying they were received ‘by command of Ras Mäkonnen with much honour and éclat’.12 More telling however, was the fact that Ras Mäkonnen was so pleased with Wärqenäh’s role in the campaign that he would later endow him with two separate land grants, the traditional Ethiopian expression of a job well done. Overall the British expedition against Muhammad Abdille Hasan was not very successful and so they promptly began organizing a second and larger expedition. The Ethiopians however, were much more pleased by the expedition. Muhammad Abdille Hasan was forced to leave Ethiopian territory, first retreating to Dolbahante lands in British Somaliland and then to Mudug   General Staff, War Office, Military Report on Somaliland, 1907 (London, 1907–1908), Volume I (Geographical, Descriptive and historical), pp. 129-130. 8   London Times, May 27, 1901. 9   Parliamentary Papers: 1902, vol. LXIX, Africa No. 3(1902) ‘Correspondence respecting the Rising of Mullah Muhammed Abdullah in Somaliland and Consequent Military Operations, 1901–1902’ (CD1009), No. 5, Hanbury-Tracy to Marquess of Lansdowne, November 6, 1901, Enclosure 6, Medical Report by C. Martin, September 6, 1901, pp. 58-60. The parallel FO, Foreign Office reference can be seen above. 10   Ibid. 11   London Times, 5 September, 1901. Dispatch by ‘Our Special Correspondent’, almost certainly Cobbold. 12   London Times, 19 October, 1901. See also Jardine, The Mad Mullah of Somaliland (London 1923). 7

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 in Italian Somaliland.13 For some time he ceased to be a real threat to Ethiopia and Ethiopian territory, a distinct plus. He had proved to be adept at using international boundaries (between Ethiopia, British Somaliland and Italian Somali­land) to his own advantage. These very same boundaries seem to be reemerging in the autonomous regions of Somalia of today.

Another Burmese interlude (1901–1902) In 1902 Wärqenäh returned to Burma for almost exactly one year from February, 1902 to February, 1903. He was given three short term appointments in north Burma, first to Myitkyna (for three months), next Kyaukse (for four months) and then back to Myitkyna for three months usually replacing medical officers who had gone on leave. As we shall see later in this chapter, Myitkyna was the only of these appointments where he stayed long enough to really settle in.

Campaigns in the Ogaden (1903) While Wärqenäh returned to Burma for the rest of 1902, the British in Somaliland sent a Second British Expedition against Sayyid Muhammad Abdille Hasan without an Ethiopian contingent. It is interesting to note that the most disastrous British reversal during all the campaigns against the Sayyid occurred during this period. The Battle of Erigo on October 6th 190214 took place in Italian Somaliland, but very close to the Ethiopian border. The British lost more officers and men than they did in any other battle. They also lost a maxim gun; a major blow to their prestige. The Sayyid was now established where the Ethiopian, British and Italian borders intersected; not a desirable outcome for the Ethiopians or the British. The third expedition of 1903 was a major effort aimed at resolving once and for all the problem of Muhammad Abdille Hasan. Planning for the Third Expedition began in December, 1902 and the Ethiopians and British again organized a joint campaign. This time the Italians were more deeply involved because of a planned naval landing at the port of Obbia in Italian Somaliland. The overall strategy was to surround Muhammad Abdille Hasan from three sides with the British coming from the North (British Somaliland), another British force landing at Obbia with Italian cooperation in the east and the Ethiopians blocking the western or southern escape of the Sayyid along the Webbi Shebelli River and its northeastern tributaries. Two Ethiopian forces were part of the plan, one to the north along the Jerer and Fanfan dry river courses and another force going further south on the Webbi Shebelli. Wärqenäh accompanied this last force. Now that the Sayyid was back in Ethiopia and a more serious threat, the Ethiopians were particularly concerned that he not cross the Webbi Shebelli River and bring the Oromo west of the Webbi   Lieutenant-Colonel H. Moyse-Bartlett, The King’s African Rifles: A Study in the Military History of East and Central Africa, 1890–1945 (Aldershot, 1956), p. 160. [Henceforth, Moyse-Bartlett]. 14   Moyse-Bartlett, p. 168. 13

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 Shebelli, many of them Muslims, into the conflict. This was a danger they were determined to avoid. Hanbury-Tracy, who had been the political officer in 1901, was replaced by Colonel Rochfort in the Anglo-Ethiopian liaison contingent which again included Cobbold and Wärqenäh. The Ethiopian force was a more experienced one, led by the more senior Fitawrari Gäbré. Once the Boer war in South Africa was basically over, it was a great deal easier to raise and send more British forces to Somaliland. The general British strategy was to depend largely on their own troops, but to make sure that Ethiopian forces were in place to prevent Muhammad Abdille Hasan from escaping to the west and south. Wärqenäh arrived in Harar in mid-February, 1903 having traveled to Dire Dawa on the railway for the first time. There he consulted with Cobbold and Ras Mäkonnen and met Colonel Rochfort for the first time. Together they traveled to Jijjiga to organize their caravan. It is clear from the diary that Wärqenäh found Cobbold difficult to get along with, but his relations with Rochfort were always most cordial. Cobbold thought Wärqenäh too ‘pro-Abyssinian’, while Wärqenäh thought Cobbold too pro-Somali. Rochfort tried to stay above these and other tensions. ‘Excepting shooting he does not seem to care about anything else and allows Cobbold to do everything and run the show.’15 Rochfort and HanburyTracy long remained friends of Wärqenäh; Cobbold much less so. Col. Rochfort went so far as to say about his friend Wärqenäh: ‘Being an Abyssinian by birth, and talking the language, his presence has been of great assistance to me, and I trust that this gentleman will be granted his pay and allowances according to his grading in the Burmah Medical Service.’16 To hear himself referred to as a ‘gentleman’ must have been most gratifying to Wärqenäh . He also maintained good relations with Fitawrari Gäbré throughout the campaign and, as had been the case on the 1901 expedition, would periodically act as a mediator. The campaign started off uneventfully and arrived at the Webbi Shebelli in late March.17 The river valley was very much a lowland malarial area, so Wärqenäh’s medical responsibilities increased, generally at least one hour a day was set aside to treat patients. ‘Sickness increasing in our camp and in the Abyssinian camp, fever, sores, diarrhea. I am getting between 40 and 50 patients a day.’ However, April 4, 1903 and the battle of Burhille, dramatically changed the humdrum routine of the campaign. This was the largest battle of the campaign for the Ethiopian forces and the largest battle in which Wärqenäh ever took part. Passed through thick bush & rocky ground along the foot of the range on the N [North]… Saw 2 Hawiya spies on the hill. Abyss [sic., Ethiopians] fired & killed one & wounded the other who was eventually captured. Passed over a plain & came on the river bank [the Webbi Shebelli river] being covered with bush, while we were having our breakfast, firing began at the watering place about 200 yds [yards] up the river where some of the Abyss [sic] who had gone to water their animals had discovered a large force said to be about 1200 of the Hawayas. Fighting immediately began &   WD, 4.3.1903.   Parliamentary Papers: 1902, vol. LXIX. Africa No. 3(1902) ‘Correspondence respecting the Rising of Mullah Muhammed Abdullah in Somaliland and Consequent Military Operations, 1901–1902’ (CD1009), No. 3, Hanbury-Tracy to Marquess of Lansdowne, June 22, 1901, p. 41. 17   WD, 22.3.1903. 15 16

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 continued in an irregular way for about an hour. The Fitawrari & the officers did not seem to know where the enemy was & what the position was. The Abyss [sic] fought singly & in small numbers against great odds & showed much courage & bravery. From one of the wounded Hawiya it was found that the tribes all round had collected to the number of 1200 & were expecting a force fr [from] Makuna down the Webbe to join them today. Their arrangement being to attack us tomorrow in the thick bush that we passed today… Some of the Hawiyas jumped into the river when attacked & were shot down, others showed fight & then fled to the N.E. [Northeast] with the Abyss pursuing. At least 300 of the Hawiya were killed. The soldiers are dissatisfied with the Fitawrari for allowing them to be taken by surprise… After & during the fight soldiers came in shouting before the Fitawrari proclaiming how many of the enemy they had killed & producing the belongings of the deceased as evidence, then… they made an obeisance & passed. Seven of the severely & dangerously wounded were brought to me in the afternoon & I had a good deal to do in dressg [dressing] their wounds till late in the evening.18

Thus Wärqenäh gave a fascinating account of the ‘fog of war’ and his role in a battle that caused many deaths and injuries among the followers of the Sayyid. At this stage in his life he did yet not see himself as an Ethiopian. Abyssinians were ‘they’ and not yet ‘us’. Later this self identification would change. Wärqenäh in the aftermath of the battle again played a major role in mediating between the British and Ethiopian leadership. It is most significant that after their victory the Ethiopians continued to advance down the Webbi Shebelli to Makuna, this would be the furthest Ethiopia ever advanced into what was then Italian Somaliland. There was no hint at the time of an Italian objection to this Ethiopian incursion. In the twenty-first century there were other Ethiopian incursions into Somalia in this same region. The British during the three expeditions against Muhammad Abdille Hasan had often entered Ethiopian territory, but had never allowed the Ethiopians to enter British territory. A second battle against the supporters of Muhammad Abdille Hasan took place on May 31th, 1903, but Wärqenäh does not feature it prominently in his diary. However, it is well described by his colleague Colonel Rochfort who said, ‘I think that the present Abyssinian force in this district has been effective in closing to the Mullah the watering places south of the Gerloguby-Galadi line.’19 After the battle Wärqenäh and the Ethiopian force returned north via the usual route of Faf and Daghabur to Jijjiga on July 1st, 1903. Wärqenäh then went on to Harar to meet with Ras Mäkonnen. Overall the expedition had been a successful one for the Ethiopians but not for the British. When the fighting was over and the hot, dry season and lack of water prevented further campaigning, the British were embarrassed to find that Sayyid Muhammad Abdille Hasan had slipped through the British lines and reestablished himself in the south-east of British Somaliland in the Nogal valley, from whence he could easily disappear into Italian Somaliland. The Sayyid still remained a thorn in British flesh. The Ethiopians could hardly have been more   WD, 4.4.1903.   London Times, July 1, 1903. See Colonel Rochfort’s letter from Biya Ado, June 6, under ‘Latest intelligence, The Somaliland Operations, Abyssinian Successes.’ 18 19

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 pleased. They had closed off much of the Ethiopian areas of the Ogaden and the Haud (including Wal Wal), as well as the Webbi Shebelli valley, as potential sources of re-supply of food, men and arms and were quite pleased to have the Sayyid far away from Ethiopian territory and no longer causing them a major problem. The best military authority on this period points out that the Ethiopians ‘thus exerted a pressure from the south that may have dictated his [Muhammad Abdille Hasan’s] subsequent movements.’20 Meanwhile, the British had suffered two further reverses at the battles of Gumburu (April 17, 1903) and Daratoleh (April 22, 1903)21 and had begun planning for the fourth expeditionary force. After the third expedition Wärqenäh returned to Harar to renew and strengthen his ties with Ras Mäkonnen and to visit the lands that the Ras had bestowed upon him in recognition of his services on the two expeditions on which he had participated. Ethiopian officials rarely received significant salaries from the emperor or the nobility, rather they were given land as a source of revenue. Wärqenäh received two land grants in the province of Harar, one in Jarso and the other in Errer. He put much more energy into the Jarso land, changing the classification of the land to a church-based land tenure (so taxes would be less), developing a system of irrigation for his tenants to increase agricultural yield and agreeing to buy the coffee produced by neighboring Oromo coffee growers in order to obtain a higher common price on the export market. Wärqenäh seemed to be progressing nicely as a ‘gentleman capitalist’ and even expressed interest in Major Cobbold’s offer of a loan to exploit concessions and land in Ethiopia, although this scheme never materialized. Later his Greek friend Zaphiro would act as his agent for the Jarso land while Wärqenäh was overseas.22 Wärqenäh was also steadily building an extensive network of friendships among western educated or ‘modernizer’ Ethiopians and foreigners permanently resident in Ethiopia. These friendships would remain important to him for the rest of his days. Much of the institutional memory he built up during his life, was contributed by these first friendships formed during his early years in Ethiopia. Some were influential Catholic Ethiopians, part of Ras Mäkonnen’s entourage, like Ato Märsha, an early governor of Gildessa, Ato Paulos, who had been governor of Gadaburka and Balchi, as well as Ato Wandi, a courtier of the Ras who intervened with him on Wärqenäh’s behalf and was a significant landowner near Harar. Beyond the catholic coterie of the Ras was a wider circle of friendships of some in and others out of favor with Menilek’s court like the translators Mika’él Berru, Daniel Engäda Dästa and Täklä Haymanot, while others were like the diplomat and Mayor of Gondär Gäbru Dästa, or Blatta Gäbrä Egzi’abehér and Ato Haylä Maryam Särabiyon. Wärqenäh also had a very diverse array of friendships among foreigners resident in Ethiopia. Many Indians were friends, perhaps as an outgrowth of his Indian upbringing. They were mostly merchants like Yusuf Ali and Indians in the firm of Coswajee C. Dinshaw, based in Bombay. He also grew to know many in the Armenian community, maybe because he had so long and carefully treated   Moyse-Bartlett, p. 182.   See Moyse-Bartlett, pp. 178 & 181. 22   WD, 1.8.1903. See also Betul, pp. 72-74. 20 21

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 the trader Karabiad’s abscessed liver. Karabaid’s brother-in-law Sarkis Terzian, another acquaintance of Wärqenäh. was also trader. His circle also included many Greeks, like Gerolimato and Zaphiro from his days in Harar and others like Gorgis and Attanasius in Addis Ababa. Zaphiro and especially his son Täfay, would become life long friends. Finally, his friendships included a number of Egyptians, especially those around the Egyptian orthodox bishop of Ethiopia, Abuna Matéwos. Much of Wärqenäh’s expertise on the Ethiopian court and the history of his native land was a product of these friendships, some close, others not; most were English speaking. However, Wärqenäh’s relationship with those in power was vital to his present and future prospects.

Wärqenäh’s relationship with Menilek, Empress Taytu, Ras Mäkonnen & Abunä Matéwos (1899–1903) During his first three years in Ethiopia Wärqenäh was never very close to Emperor Menilek and Empress Taytu, he had only a few long discussions with them, never seems to have given them really frank advice and generally they interacted with him through intermediaries in their court. His relationship with the third most powerful man in the empire, Abunä Matéwos, grew out of and built upon their close link as patient and doctor. They met each other many, many more times that Wärqenäh did with Ethiopia’s royalty, and had some very frank conversations when Wärqenäh gave pointed advice. His interactions with Ras Mäkonnen were not of the same caliber as Matéwos, but there seems to have been a dialogue and frankness to their friendship that very much eclipsed his relationship with the emperor and empress. Each relationship deserves to be focused on in turn, starting with the closest, that with Abunä Matéwos. Abunä Matéwos as the head of the Ethiopian church was the first powerful figure in Ethiopia with whom Wärqenäh had substantive conversations and got to know as a human being and friend. As we have seen they first met in January, 1900 and the Abun ‘promised every assistance in his power.’23 Over the next year and more, he would see Matéwos many more times than he would Menilek and became one of the several physicians the confirmed hypochondriac was determined to see. Wärqenäh’s non-medical advice seems to have been rarely followed although they always seem to have remained on amicable terms. Went over to the Abuna’s place to see an Egyptian adherent of his who is suffering from malarial fever... He promised to help me in explaining to the Emperor the advantages of education & the advisability to open schools. If he only kept his promise & gave all the help in his power what a lot might be done for the good & regeneration of Abyssinia, but I am afraid the Abuna for reasons of his own is not keen or even willing to bring that about. When ignorance is a blessing it would be a folly to change it for wisdom.24

In his autobiography Wärqenäh was more forceful in his criticism of Matéwos:   WD, 8.1.1900.   WD, 29.9.1900.

23 24

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 To my great disappointment, my advice to the Emperor to open schools in the country was forcibly set aside by the priests’ and the Abuna’s [opposition]. This made me beg the Emperor to permit me to leave the country, but he refused my request but said he would try to put down the opposition.25

Ethiopia’s first school along western lines, the Menilek School, was not established until seven years later with the emperor and Abunä Matéwos working together to achieve that important, though limited, reform. Overall, during this period, Wärqenäh’s relationship with the head of Ethiopia’s church was not only a medical one but clearly, despite occasional harsh words, one of friendship. He treated him for eye problems and gout and received as gifts a sheep or two. In 1901 in a typical comment Wärqenäh said: ‘He was friendly and affable as usual.’26 Wärqenäh and Ras Mäkonnen also seem to have gotten on very well, but clearly their views on reform and change were closer than those of Wärqenäh and the Abun. He spoke to the Ras more often than he did to the emperor or empress, but not as often as he did to the Abun. Education again was central to his thinking. [S]aw the Ras... Ras talked a lot about the backwardness of Abyssinia & his inability to do anything as the Emperor did not take his advice. He told me that his son was very clever & was learning French. He said he intends later on to send him to Europe [This was, of course the future Emperor Haylä Sellasé].27

Unlike Menilek or the Abun, Ras Mäkonnen gave Wärqenäh land in Ethiopia, in his province of Harar to enable him to live and have an income. He was also willing to loan him substantial amounts of money with which to trade; all this in order to try and persuade him to stay in Ethiopia. However, this did not bear fruit since he wouldn’t, or rather couldn’t give him a regular income commensurate with his Burma salary. [S]aw the Ras… Settled as follows. He cd [could] not give me any salary as he was afraid of the King taking offence at it. He was willing to lend me 5000/‑ d [dollars] to trade with & live on. And that if I wanted he’d give me a ‘Kalad’ of land more than one he cannot give to one person. A ‘Kalad’ appears to be about 45 acres.28

The Ras seemed much attached to Wärqenäh: Wished the Ras good bye this morning. He as before talked of his difficulty & fear on acct [account] of jealousy & hatred of some of his powerful enemies. He asserted that he was very fond of me & loved me & did not wish to part fr [from] me but that he was afraid to do much for me as it was likely to bring him into trouble with the King. He... asked me to tell him anything I wanted & he’ll attend to it.29

Furthermore, he trusted Wärqenäh since: ‘He wants me to take some of his letters to some people in India whom he had met in England at the Coronation.’30     27   28   29   30   25 26

Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 34. WD, 27.12.1901. WD, 14.7.1903. WD, 29.4.1901. WD, 9.12.1901. WD, 21.7.1903.

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 In his autobiography he said he was ‘very sorry’ to hear of Ras Mäkonnen’s death in 1906, praising him saying: ‘He was I think, the best chief of his time’31 Wärqenäh’s relationship with the emperor and empress was not nearly as close as with the emperor’s subordinates, Abunä Matéwos and Ras Mäkonnen. Nonetheless, it started on a very cordial note when he was officially presented to the emperor by the British diplomatic agent, Harrington. There was not time for a real conversation on that formal occasion, but the next day they met to speak at greater length. After long waiting saw the Emperor. Explained to him my position & objects etc. He asked me to stay in the country & promised his protection and favour. Ordered that I be provided with a house.32

There then followed a long period, of almost four months of negotiation, focused on how much his salary was to be. Neither really understood the other’s perspective. Wärqenäh was determined to receive a salary at least close to what he earned in Burma, for he needed to keep up the payments necessary for his pension, while Menilek thought Wärqenäh’s demands exorbitant, especially since few in Ethiopia received salaries (mostly they were only paid to foreign advisors) and Wärqenäh’s would be one of the very highest in the empire. Finally, just as Wärqenäh had about given up on the negotiations and was ready to leave, the emperor, judging his man well, appealed to his patriotism. Saw the Emperor. Told him that I had come to wish him goodbye & to get my passport. He blamed me for not loving my country & so forth & after much conversation I agreed to stay on for a year to enable the Emp.[Emperor Menilek] to see more of me & my work on condition that the Emperor will get the British Govt [Government] to lend him my services for that period. I was to get as remuneration during the time 2000/- dollars p.a. [per annum] & all rations. Relations jubilant.33

Wärqenäh’s decision to stay highlights his conflicting loyalties. We shall see how by 1903 his loyalty to Burma and the British Empire were clearly greater than his growing feelings of Ethiopian nationalism. So briefly, all seemed well and for three months he received his pay and daily Ethiopian food rations, generally referred to in Ethiopia as dergo. However, his pay suddenly stopped being paid and despite all his efforts was never resumed. After six months without pay, Wärqenäh reluctantly left for the coast, but as we have seen was fortunate enough to be attached to the British liaison group with the Ethiopian army fighting in the Ogaden against the Somali Muhammad Abdille Hasan. Menilek was ‘annoyed and angry’ towards Wärqenäh at first, but was later ‘affable’.34 Menilek was blunter in 1903 (when Wärqenäh would leave Ethiopia for five years) and said he was no Ethiopian but that ‘I was a British servant.’35 That must have been a bitter pill for Wärqenäh to swallow, but may very well have been closer to the truth than he was willing to admit.       34   35   31 32 33

Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 23. WD, 10.1.1900. WD, 7.5.1900. His yearly income in Burma was about 6,000 dollars per year. See WD, 4.11.1901 and 22.1.1901. WD, 24.11.1903.

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 Empress Taytu’s contact with Wärqenäh was more perfunctory. She received him well as we have seen above, but some eight months after her husband. Their both being Amhara does not seem to have gone very far. Beyond mutual ‘salutations’ and an exchange of correspondence there was little contact between the two from 1900 to 1903. This would significantly change when Wärqenäh returned to Ethiopia in 1908. Wärqenäh had clearly expected to remain in Ethiopia a further year and participate in the next and fourth Anglo-Ethiopian expedition against Muhammad Abdille Hasan. Why he did not go and instead returned to Burma in November, 1903 is not wholly clear. After the end of the third expedition Wärqenäh seemed to have been in most everyone’s good graces, especially of the Ethiopian leadership. Furthermore, he took care of all the difficult details of paying off all the members of the British contingent and all their servants, camel men and hangers on. He then went on to perform the onerous task of writing up and finalizing all the accounts for the British aspects of the expedition, really Colonel Rochfort’s task, but very ably performed by Wärqenäh. Then, at the last minute he was not invited to go on the Fourth Expedition which instead included a new group of three doctors, two Europeans and one Anglo-Indian. As he somewhat enigmatically notes in his diary, ‘I am to go on leave or go back to Burmah [sic]. He [Rochfort]...expresses himself to be sorry at my not going with him.’ The Fitawrari ‘is very friendly and is sorry to hear I am not going on expedition with him.’36 as was Ras Mäkonnen. So on November 26, 1903 he left Harar on his way to Burma taking with him four Ethiopian youngsters to be educated abroad. He would not return to Ethiopia until November, 1908. During Wärqenäh’s first relatively short stays in Ethiopia from 1899 to 1902 and in 1903 he did not develop a close relationship with the emperor or empress, that would only come during his stay from 1908 to 1913 and after 1919. But he did develop a certain intimacy with Ras Mäkonnen and the Abunä. Overall, he laid the foundations for much closer relationships in the future and also developed a supportive network of friends in Ethiopia and a deeper knowledge of its culture, customs and language. Overall his stints in Ethiopia at the dawn of the twentieth century, led him to begin to question his identity and where his true loyalties lay. Was he an Ethiopian as his new found relatives insisted, or was he really more loyal to the British crown as his upbringing in India and his job in Burma attested? By the end of 1903 he seems to have still firmly relied on his British and imperial ties. A major turning point would not come for seven more years.

Burma (1902–1907) Upon Wärqenäh’s return to Burma from the Ogaden in 1903, he was posted to Mytkyina (see Map 2), where he had two tours of duty, lasting together only five months, during 1902 and 1903; in between he served in Kyaukse for just over   WD, 9.11.1903 and 21.11.1903.

36

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 three months. As we have seen these were temporary postings punctuated by two years in Ethiopia. The district had only recently been occupied and ‘pacified’. Fighting had occurred before and after Wärqenäh’s tours of duty (1898 to 1900 and from 1914 to 1915)37. The town of Mytkyina had risen to importance only after the British occupation; prior to 1892 it was a small Shan village but was steadily increasing in importance.38 Wärqenäh was clearly a hard worker and conscientious about his job. His responsibilities included a large district with a civil and military hospital in Mytkiyina, which together had 30 patients when he arrived. There were also four other hospitals in the district and 13 outpost dispensaries under his jurisdiction. He had to perform a large number of operations in the hospitals and also spent a good deal of time treating his colleagues in the Indian Civil Service, their families as well as other Europeans in the district. There was no jail, which saved him some work nor did he have to deal with cholera or the plague. However, he must have had a good deal of trouble looking after the general sanitation of that unhealthy spot, especially during the rains. More onerous were the tours he had to regularly make and only a few are mentioned (later in his career he would do about 10 per year). These involved inspecting all the district dispensaries and making sure that his subordinates were doing a proper job. Most every day on tour he supervised vaccinations of the Burmese against small pox and made sure that public sanitation was adequately looked after. He also was responsible for inspecting existing buildings for faults and making recommendations concerning the building of new ones. Wärqenäh’s household at this time was probably not large for someone in medical service in Burma. Most unusual, for Burma, was the fact that he was supporting two young Ethiopians, Wändäm Agäññähu and Gäbrä Maryam whom he had brought with him to educate after his recent trip to Ethiopia. He had at least three Burmese servants and probably more: one was the cook, a second the syce, who took care of the horses and a third, his personal attendant. Several of his British colleagues had mistresses and he must have had one as well since his eldest child, Engäda was born in 1899.39 At various times he played polo, football and tennis. In between his two stints in Mytkyina, Wärqenäh was posted for three and a half months in 1902 to Kyaukse, a town and district just south of Mandalay40. It had a largely dry and healthy climate, except during the rainy season. Ninety-eight percent of the population was Buddhists, and Burmese made up 96 percent of the population. It had a hospital with 40 beds and the district a further one with 16 beds. His stint in Kyaukse, as we have seen, was a short one. His next posting was a good deal longer. In 1904 he was posted to Bhamo for almost four years, his last and longest posting to the north and also his second longest posting in   Imperial Gazetteer of India (Today and Tomorrow’s Printers and Publishers, New Delhi, India, 1974), Vol. XXIII, see pp. 134-137, 139-140, 143-144 and146-147. [Henceforth, Imperial Gazetteer]. 38   Imperial Gazetteer of India, p. 147. 39   WD. See inside of the front cover of his diary for 29.10.1920 to 16.8.1921 before the entry for 29.10.1920. It is part of a list of the birthdays of all his children at that time. 40   See Imperial Gazetteer, Vol. XII, pp. 68-82. 37

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Campaigning in the Ogaden & return to Burma 1901–1907 Burma. Large parts of the town have, historically, been subject to inundation, leaving stagnant pools long after the monsoon induced the river to rise. This has given Bhamo an unenviable reputation for malarial fevers, which only at the beginning of the twentieth century had been significantly changed and improved by drainage and improved sanitation. Judging by his diary, Wärqenäh quickly established his routine in Bhamo. Most every day of the week he inspected the civil hospital, the military hospital and the jail while working largely at the hospital. Each entailed large amounts of everyday administrative paper work, including an annual report, written at the beginning of each New Year. Later on in his life, when he was ruler of Chärchär province, he would become the first Ethiopian, to the surprise of the emperor, to write an annual report on his province. He regularly went on tour to inspect district dispensaries and the general sanitation of the district. Physically these trips (about ten each year) sound absolutely exhausting, but he seems to have quite enjoyed them. It should be added, however, that a major incentive might have been financial; he was paid an extra travel allowance plus expenses above and beyond his salary. On these trips he was also expected to carry out and verify vaccinations, at the end of the year write a vaccination report and also collate population statistics of births and deaths from the village headmen. Mostly the trips were on horseback, but one he made on an elephant. During his years in Bhamo he also passed two language examinations for which he received financial compensation of about 67 English pounds for each language.41 Wärqenäh’s facility with languages and his willingness to study and master them, greatly assisted his commitment to toleration and dialogue, especially the latter. Wärqenäh’s household was gradually growing. In 1904 he was supporting seven young Ethiopian men. Three were with him in Burma (Wäldä Maryam, Gäbrä Mädhen and Roba) and four he was having educated in India (Tädla, Fayesa, Daboch and Gäbré). He also seems to have been supporting a medical assistant from India, Ram Chander. He also had at least one child, a son, by his Burmese mistress Ma Me, who is never mentioned in his autobiography: Ma Me turned up with the kid [he refers thus to all his children when young]… The kid is about 8 now and is a bright looking fellow, his hair however is not like mine altho [sic] there is some likeness otherwise.42

Wärqenäh conscientiously supported his son and paid for his schooling throughout his short life. His name, Engäda, means stranger in Amharic. Ma Me would remain a member of his household for only a few more years.   WD, 21.6.07 & NTEN, 7.9.40. See also Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 24a.   WD, 5.4.07. Engäda, the child, is shortly afterwards taken away by his foster parents but returns to the household later in the year. 41 42

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3.1  Wärqenäh, holding a rifle, with friends in Burma at turn of the century

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4 Transitions in Life FROM BURMA TO ENGLAND TO ETHIOPIA (1907–1910)

Introduction A major transition occurred in Wärqenäh’s life from 1907 to 1910. Wärqenäh’s identity as a citizen of the British Empire, as a man who very much wanted to be assimilated into the imperial elite began to significantly change. This affected not only his intellectual and public life, but also, to a larger degree his private and family life. Major themes in the public and the private spheres of his life intersect during the years when he left for Britain on leave from his Burma position to further his education, until his marriage to an Ethiopian, Qätsälä Wärq Tullu in 1910. His private life would involve his Burmese family, his adoptive British family, a new family with Ethel Watts Fabricius and finally a family in Ethiopia. Publicly, he continued his medical training building on the foundations he had created in Lahore and Edinburgh. In England he continued his study of Amharic and Ethiopian history, and doggedly searched for a new medical position in the Horn of Africa. He also tried to exploit as many personal contacts as he could to raise capital for possible commercial ventures in Ethiopia. These efforts finally bore fruit when he secured a medical position in Ethiopia with the British diplomatic establishment in 1908. Significantly, he went on to become the lead physician to Emperor Menilek and a important figure in the Ethiopian court. On July 27th, 1907 Wärqenäh’s adoptive mother Elizabeth Browne Clark died1. She had been determined that he should marry a white woman approved by her, probably to further his career and assimilate more easily into the imperial elite. Following her advice he proposed to several women each of whom rejected him. Then the year Elizabeth died he met Ethel Fabricius and they had a tumultuous affair that resulted in a child, Téwodros (Theodore)2 followed swiftly by the breakup of their relationship. This propelled him into a much closer identification with Ethiopia and in July 1907, he ended his long relationship with his Burmese mistress, Ma Me. He continued to support a number of his   Email Correspondence with Philippa Bassett, Senior Archivist, University of Birmingham, March 12, 2009 from ‘manuscript register of additional information about missionaries.’ The major source for this chapter and its successors, is Wärqenäh’s diary. 2   It is important to note that starting with Téwodros, all Wärqenäh’s children received biblical names. 1

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Transitions in life Ethiopian protégés including Tädla Abäbayähu, one of his close Ethiopian relatives but none of the breaks with his four families was final. He continued a fairly close relationship with two of his adoptive siblings, Stuart and Hamlet, and built a much closer one later with his sister Sybil. He also continued for many years to support his two sons Engäda (the result of his relationship with Ma Me), and Ethel’s son Téwodros. Each complicated and enriched his life. Wärqenäh does not note his adoptive mother Elizabeth Clark’s death in his diary nor does he spend a good deal of time discussing his relationship with Ma Me, but he does focus a good deal on the steamy relationship with the young Ethel Fabricius which followed in 1907.

Ma Me: A Burmese affair It is not clear how long Ma Me had been his mistress, but the relationship must have gone back to at least the middle of 1898. Such relationships were common in British Burma of the time and Wärqenäh’s actions were almost certainly quite normal for that period of the British Empire in Burma. He clearly saw himself as a British officer and acted accordingly. The first direct reference to Ma Me in the diary was not until 1907, eight years after their son Engäda was born March 8th, 1899.3 Ma Me brought the child to see him in April, 1907 and Wärqenäh regularly sent money to her paying for Engäda’s support and schooling until 1919. The climax of his relationship with Ma Me came in July, 1907. Ma Me came … with the kid. Gave her a 100/- to buy clothes for the kid & told her that having heard of her disgraceful behaviour with some guards I meant to have nothing more to do with her.4

Wärqenäh continued to send her money, but so far as the diary indicates never saw her again. From 1907–1908 Ma Me seems to have been supported by and stayed with Wärqenäh’s good friend Plunkett, who finally dismissed her in 1908: ‘A letter fr [from] Plunkett. He says Ma Me has behaved very ungratefully & gone away fr [from] his wife without informing him & has been saying unkind things about him & his Mrs.’5 Wärqenäh continued to send Ma Me money for two more years, but then, judging from his diary, she seems to have disappeared from his life. There is no evidence that he ever took up another Burmese mistress, and his break with Ma Me appeared to be final, although he continued to support his son Engäda and would later accept him into his household and family. Was he cutting his ties with Ma Me and its ‘native’ connections to prepare for a new family with a white Englishwoman, Ethel? This pattern of involvement and then rejection based on the Victorian morals in which he had been raised would be repeated, with variations in his relationships with Qätsälä and Ethel.   See WD, 30.3.1907 and at the beginning of the ‘Diary from 20th Sept 1912 to 11 June 1916’ on the second page before its first diary entry for 28th August, 1913. This lists the birth dates of his sons Engäda, Benyam (Benjamin) and Yuséf (Joseph). This birth date is corroborated internally in Wärqenäh’s diary. 4   WD, 17.7.1907. 5   WD, 27.12.1908. 3

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910

Ethel: a British affair In his diary Wärqenäh is much more open about his relationship with Ethel Watts Fabricius and spends a great deal more time discussing and analyzing it than he does Ma Me’s. His relationships with Ma Me and Ethel are part and parcel of his dominant identity of that period of his life; Wärqenäh saw himself primarily as an officer of the British Empire in India and all that that entailed. However, it is important to note that his autobiography is absolutely silent about Ethel and this part of his life in London. His relationship with Ethel would last through 1940 and survive many painful ups and downs. They met in 1907 when her husband Mr. Fabricius, a ‘hide merchant boss’ came to Bhamo in northern Burma where Wärqenäh was stationed. He took her out for a drive in his carriage, the next day he treated her professionally for ‘dyspepsia’ and then every day for two weeks he took her with him on his rounds. They dined often. Took Mrs F.[Ethel Fabricius] out on my round to the jail & Hospl.[Hospital] She is apparently not very happy in her marriage Mr F. being an invalid & rather lazy & selfish man. She is only 23 & he is about 40 or so. She has been married 3 years & has no children. They & Murdock dine with me today.6

Mr. Fabricius and Wärqenäh were virtually the same age, nearly twenty years older than Ethel. In July, 1907 she wired Wärqenäh to say that she planned to return to England, this was the first time he refers to her as Ethel. Later she said that she was ‘very fed up with’ her husband.7 Wärqenäh managed to coordinate his leave with hers so that they would both be on the same boat back to England; their relationship had begun to heat up. Wärqenäh would later discover that Ethel came from a large, lower middle class, family who lived in London and that she had had numerous affairs before her marriage to Fabricius.8 They really got to know each other on their steamer trip back to England, a trip that presaged a long and stormy relationship. His diary entry on the first day of the trip was prophetic: Ethel & I had great discussions…about her really loving me…I have no doubt she is to a certain extent sincere but there does not appear to be the requisite warmth & sincerity one would expect in a heartfelt & absorbing love…. Well I’ll wait & see…I wish I did not love her as it is not likely to do me good or her either.9

During the trip their relationship went through a series of highs and lows. He is clearly in love with her, but worries that her love is not a ‘lasting one’.10 Once they arrived in London on August 13, 1907, their relationship entered a different phase. Initially they were both preoccupied with settling in and she in   WD, 30.4.1907. See January to July, 1907 in the Wärqenäh diary for the proceeding paragraph.   WD, 16.7.1907. 8   Tadäla Betul Kebrät, Yä’azaj Hakim Wärqenäh Eshätu Yäheywät Tarik (Addis Ababa, 2009). In his biography of Wärqenäh he claims that Ethel Fabricius was related to the British royal family. There is no evidence that I have found to support this assertion. [Henceforth, Betul]. 9   WD, 18.7.1907. 10   WD, 24.7.1907. 6 7

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Transitions in life particular with seeing family and friends. She was enjoying her return home and the London she loved, but he felt differently. A climax of sorts was reached in September when he told her in conversation that ‘I did not intend ever marrying and certainly not a woman with a past,’ but a few weeks later he bought her an expensive diamond ring and a bouquet of flowers.11 When he decided to return to Burma because his application for study leave was rejected, Ethel became ‘hysterical.’ On the eve of his departure they were both depressed, despite a nice supper at Frascati’s (a famous and favorite restaurant of theirs in central London) and had ‘some phiz to buck us up.’12 He left London for Burma but received a cable half way back at Port Said informing him that his study leave had been finally approved and returned to London. On the way back he discovered more about Ethel’s amorous affairs and decided not to tell her about his return, at least not right away. The key to his break with Ma Me and his concerns about Ethel, seem to have turned on whether they had been faithful to him. When he did see Ethel, at her insistence, after his return from Port Said, he told her he ‘did not care to have anything to do with her except as an ordinary friend’. She was determined that he should stay with her and her family and when he refused to do so: ‘She was violent in her speech.’13 Finally he stayed with her family from Christmas through to the New Year. It was almost certainly at this time that their son Theodore Téwodros was conceived. Before Christmas he bought her an expensive pendant and ruminated, ‘I think E [Ethel] does really care for me & love me & I feel more & more ashamed of myself for thinking of marrying a rich woman.’14 But then she inadvertently let slip that she had had yet another lover and Wärqenäh tried again to distance himself from her. He went so far as to say that ‘I could not honestly tell her that I loved her now & that it was better for us to give up the old relationship and be just ordinary friends’.15 For the next nine months Wärqenäh was largely able to stick to his resolve to maintain their relationship as merely one of friendship. He left Ethel’s family’s home but soon was faced with a stark decision. First Ethel’s husband Mr. Fabricius died and it became painfully clear that Ethel would not receive the comfortable inheritance she had expected. Thus Wärqenäh would have to help to support her financially. Second, On our return fr [from] the walk she took me up in her room & told me that her menses had not come on & asked me to marry her at once… Tried to explain to her how difficult it was for me to do that: but she got into temper – later she got very affectionate and tried to cajole me into promising that I would marry her, but luckily for me I did not give any promise. She promised that she will keep quite straight in the future and try her best to make me happy but I cannot rely on her promises a bit and I fear that as soon as she is safely married she will change completely to make my life a hell…Her husband is not yet a month in his grave, poor fellow…If I marry her,       14   15   11 12 13

See WD, 5.9.1907 & 25.9.1907. WD, 16.10.1907. WD, 25.11.1907. WD, 23.12.1907. WD, 3.1.1908.

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 I feel certain she will ruin me financially, physically, morally and socially. I cannot tie myself to a corpse for all my life. I cannot marry her under any circumstances. She will fume and taunt and then cajole but I must try & be strong and firm. Marrying her will be an absolute ruin.16

Despite all her pleas to get married he remained firm, but did support her and rented a home in Turnham Green for the two of them and their future child. Two of her sisters came to stay briefly and help before the birth, and one, Alice, would remain a faithful friend until her death after World War II, more faithful than Ethel or anyone else in her family. Téwodros (Theodore) Wärqenäh was born September 22, 1908 in London; named after the Ethiopian emperor who had been so brutal to his family. By this time Wärqenäh had decided to take up a position in the British Legation in Addis Ababa and set his departure date for mid-October. It was a tension charged summer and fall which exploded the day before his departure for Ethiopia. E [Ethel] met me in the hall, seeing a rose in my button hole she lost her temper completely & pulled it out, called me names & hit me on the head a severe blow. I lost my temper & slapped her on the face…She taunted me about my colour & nationality & behaved altogether like a low­down woman of the street. After a little while she recovered & asked my pardon & made me cry thro [through] her hysterical weeping & self accusation. I wanted to leave the house at once but she begged & prayed me not to go… [Then Ethel was] very contrite & ashamed of herself, so am I for having lost my temper & slapped her. We passed a fairly good night. But her most shocking behaviour has further estranged me & removed all delusions & pity & affection for her.17

Within two years Wärqenäh would marry an Ethiopian aristocrat, Qätsälä Tullu. Each time he found himself in a relationship with a woman whom he perceived to be unfaithful to him, he terminated the relationship. He would faithfully care for the children that resulted, paying their expenses and educating them. The option of an abortion seems never to have even been discussed. He held fast to his perception of the evangelical Christian morals of his Batala upbringing.

London: education & business Parallel to his convoluted private life, in the public sphere Wärqenäh aggressively pursued a variety of options. His major priority was to continue his medical education; he hoped this would be paid for by the Indian government as part of his professional development, which made it doubly sensible. Soon after his arrival in London and after the India Office denied his application for a salary increase and extra perks, by transferring him to ‘European service rules’, Wärqenäh looked more carefully into the possibility of getting ‘study leave’ for six months to pursue his medical education in Britain. He learned in London   WD, 16.2.1908.   WD, 14.10.1908.

16 17

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Transitions in life ‘that study leave is often granted to medical officers after ten or twelve years service in the colonies so as to enable them to study new and advanced medical methods of treatment and diagnosis, etc.’18 In October, 1907 his study leave was approved and he tried to start at London School of Tropical Medicine, having decided to remain in London (and stay close to Ethel) going against the India Office Surgeon General’s advice to pursue his studies in Edinburgh. However, the London School of Tropical Medicine had already started its session, so he went instead to King’s College in London for a course in Bacteriology which he regularly attended from November, 1907 to July 1908. He registered for a DPH (Diploma in Public Health) in November 1907, started a new term in January, 1908 under Professor Somerville and got a six month extension of his study leave in March.19 He worked hard on the DPH for nearly eight months, but it was clearly not hard enough, because Somerville urged him to give up ‘the idea of going up for an exam’ since he was insufficiently prepared. He followed this advice and received only a certificate from Somerville just before his return to Ethiopia.20 His autobiography blames his poor performance on his health and not on his personal affairs.21 Wärqenäh also tried to take advantage of medical training in London to advance his skills in various areas of medical technology. First, being fascinated by X-rays, he followed up and did some work and training with that equipment and then later delved into electric treatment and used it to try to cure or ameliorate the facial paralysis of Ethel’s sister, Louise. This experience would later hold him in good stead when he treated Emperor Menilek in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He treated her on four occasions at the London Skin Hospital with an application of ‘High Frequency sparks on Louise’s face’, an ‘electric bath’ and an ‘electric application to her face’.22 There is no evidence that it was effective. Finally, before his departure for Ethiopia he arranged to be given a tour of the London Hospital at White Chapel, the largest hospital in London, which must have given him further insights into cutting edge medical technology. At the same time as he improved his knowledge of medicine and its administration which would hold him in good stead for the rest of his career in Burma and Ethiopia, Wärqenäh tried to do the same with his knowledge of Amharic and French with varying degrees of success. He bought a French primer, but never seems to have gone much further than that. However he showed a better grasp of Amharic. In the same month, November, 1907, the War Office asked him to examine candidates in Amharic for the Chief Examiner of the Civil Service Commission; he later agreed, went to the British Museum to find materials with which to write the exam questions and sent the exam papers before the end of the year.23 In January he carried out the oral exam saying that the candidate ‘got 64 out of 120. Fairly good but pronunciation very     20   21   22   23   18 19

Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 25a. WD, 27.11.1907, 7.1.1908 & 14.3.1908. WD, 1.7.1908 & 1.10.1908. Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 25-26a. WD, 3.9.1908, 30.9.1908, 3.10.1908 & 7.10.1908. WD, 17.11.1907, 23.11.1907, 27.11.1907, 6.12.1907 and 13.12.1907.

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 bad.’24 He later returned to the British Museum to do research, especially on Ethiopian king lists. He also went to the London Society for the Promotion of Christianity Among Jews, examined their material in Amharic and had four boxes of books (amounting to about 1,000 in number), which he had sent to Ethiopia for distribution. Wärqenäh’s second major initiative was entrepreneurial. His diary is littered with money-making schemes, very few of which were successful; and those of 1907 & 1908 were no exception. Initially he used all his contacts to try to raise money to form a company to exploit his influence in Ethiopia. The largest number of contacts he approached in 1907 and 1908 dated from his days fighting the ‘Mad Mullah’ in Somalia. These included: General A.N. Rochfort, Colonel McClellan and his brother Gordon McClellan, Major A. Hanbury Tracy and Lieutenant-Colonel Ralph Cobbold. He also approached a variety of other moneyed men and they all promised to help, but none actually raised any money. Wärqenäh had a good deal of experience with failure on this front during these years and would, despite all his efforts throughout his life, never really have any entrepreneurial success with overseas capital. Throughout the whole depressing process, however, he still held fast to his ideals: Wrote to Mr. Bourke (Cobbold’s friend)…[told him] that I am willing to work with the French in their schemes & enterprises in Abyssinia as long as they are calculated to do good to the country & are in the interest & welfare of Abyssinia..25

He tried unsuccessfully to get various jobs in England, including ones in London hospitals and also with the French railway from Jibuti, despite his lack of French.

A doctor in Addis Ababa His final major effort did lead to employment in Addis Ababa; contacts from his stay in Ethiopia had proved to be key. Initially Wärqenäh made an appointment and went to the Foreign Office to explore the possibility of becoming a doctor for the British Legation in Addis Ababa; all the major foreign legations (France, Britain, Russia and Italy) had resident doctors as part of their staff in the capital. The interview was un­satisfactory. Clerk said there was no chance of my getting a Govt apptt [Government appointment] in Abyssinia… Clerk is a youngish looking man with an eye glass & apparently with a great idea of self importance. I did not like him & I do not think he liked me as I am afraid I showed any dislike in my face & manner.26

Middle-level British officials like Clerk were to cause him further difficulties. Over the next few months he received a cable from Harrington, the British representative in Addis Ababa, and a letter from Dr. W.A.M. Wakeman an AngloIndian and the acting doctor at the British legation. Wakeman planned to return to Britain for medical reasons and Wärqenäh hoped to replace him in Addis   WD, 21.1.1908. This judgment might quite fairly be applied to his own knowledge of Amharic.   WD, 27.2.1908. 26   WD, 11.2.1908. 24 25

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Transitions in life Ababa. Wärqenäh then turned to his biggest and most influential ally, General Rochfort (with whom he had worked during the British campaign against the Somalis) to intervene on his behalf. After many twists and turns and even an appeal up to the Foreign Minister, Gray, the appointment turned on Wärqenäh’s willingness to accept a lower salary, but still be seconded by the Foreign Office from the India Office. Furthermore, his pension contribution would be paid by the Foreign Office. After all these details had been ironed out, it was agreed that he would leave in mid-October and even be eligible for £100 in traveling expenses from the Foreign Office. He left for Addis Ababa on October 15, 1908. Earlier we saw the dramatic consequences of his departure to Ethiopia on his relationship with Ethel. In 1910 two years after returning to Addis Ababa he married Qätsälä Tullu, and that same year his correspondence with Ma Me and Ethel ended. Ma Me’s name never again appears in his diary and Ethel only reappears twenty-five years later. Wärqenäh may have been symbolically cutting some of his strongest ties with the British Empire, in terminating his relations with his Burmese and English mistresses.

Ethiopian homecoming (1908–1910) Wärqenäh left London in mid October, 1908, went by steamer through the Suez Canal arriving in Aden at the end of October, 1908. He crossed over to Jibuti and took the railway to Dire Dawa at the beginning of November. Spending a week or so in Harar and his lands in Jarso, he renewed contacts with friends and relatives and organized his caravan to go to Addis Ababa. Using his own resources and transport animals from his Jarso land, he significantly reduced the cost of over two weeks of trekking from Dire Dawa to Addis Ababa. Ethiopia had changed a good deal during his absence. The power of the emperor had grown significantly and Ethiopia had become a much more centralized state. Addis Ababa had replaced Harar as the empire’s major commercial center and now boasted more stone buildings and bridges. By 1908 Menilek was at the peak of his power dominating provincial nobles unlike any emperor for hundreds of years. No imperial successor would become as powerful until Emperor Haylä Sellasé after his coronation in 1930. By 1908 Ethiopia’s conquests were complete and the emperor concentrated on delimiting his borders and regulating his diplomatic relations with the major powers of the world, especially those who bordered Ethiopia. In 1906 he was angered to discover that Britain, Italy and France, in their tripartite agreement, had established spheres of influence over separate parts of Ethiopia without consulting him. But, nonetheless, the major powers in theory recognized Ethiopia’s sovereignty and each had permanent diplomatic representatives in Addis Ababa. In 1905 a diplomatic agreement was reached between Britain (in British Somaliland), Italy (in Italian Somaliland) and Sayyid Muhamad Abdille Hasan, in effect calling a truce in their conflict and allowing the Sayyid to reside in Northeastern Italian Somaliland with significant autonomy. Great Britain was essentially declaring a victory, which had not been actually achieved, and 58

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 withdrawing in order to cut costs in what was increasingly seen as an excessively expensive colonial enterprise (a familiar imperial tactic). However, the Ogaden and the Somali would long remain a significant issue in Ethiopian foreign policy and influential Ethiopians would often, in the coming years, turn to Wärqenäh for his advice in shaping Ethiopia’s diplomacy in this area of Ethiopia’s foreign affairs, especially in the 1930s. However, there were clouds gathering on the horizon. Ras Mäkonnen, a major supporter of Wärqenäh, died in 1906 and succession became more and more of a problem for the Ethiopian court and state. Menilek began to suffer increasing bouts of illness, especially after 1904, linked to his growing problems with syphilis, acquired in his youth. One result, particularly significant to Wärqenäh, was that each of the major powers with resident diplomats in Addis Ababa (including not only Great Britain, but also France, Italy, Russia and later Germany) tried to set up as part of their diplomatic tool kit a permanent medical officer at their legation in Addis Ababa. This was an increasingly common tactic in many parts of the Middle East and North Africa. The doctors not only took care of the ailments and illnesses of their own diplomats and treated local Ethiopians through a clinic, but also vied diplomatically to become the personal physician of the emperor during his medical travails. Proximity to the emperor meant enhanced influence and each foreign power coveted this insider position. Wärqenäh came to Addis Ababa in November 1908 for one year as the official replacement of Dr. Wakeman, the resident British physician who was about to go on leave. Thus, Wärqenäh’s first long stay in Ethiopia had a three-fold thrust medically. First, for almost a year, he was employed by the British as their legation medical officer to replace Wakeman. Next the Ethiopian government appointed him in 1909, at a generous salary, as their official doctor to take care of Emperor Menilek and finally at the beginning of 1910 when the emperor suffered his most debilitating and lasting stroke, Wärqenäh continued as a paid Ethiopian government medical employee. He also took on a variety of advisory tasks beyond his varied medical duties. Throughout, he continued to pursue a private practice with a wide variety of patients largely in Addis Ababa. After his arrival in Addis Ababa on November 27th, 1908, he first reported to the British legation now led by Lord Herbert Hervey, the official British diplomatic representative to the Ethiopian court. During his first day in the capital after seven years absence, he met Wakeman, the doctor he was to replace, and his old friend Mika’él Berru, the official translator for the British legation. Wärqenäh set up his tent waiting to officially take over the dispensary from Wakeman. He had another long wait under canvas, one month, which was however, not as long as during his initial stay in Addis Ababa in 1899. He also enjoyed resuming his favorite pastime, polo and ‘the first game of the year’ along with Lord Herbert, Berru, some local British businessmen and some of the Indian cavalry guarding the British Legation.27   WD, 30.11.1908.

27

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Transitions in life Mika’él Berru made an appointment for him to pay his compliments to the emperor, who received him ‘graciously’,28 and on the same day he met the emperor’s official doctor at that time, the Frenchman L’Herminier. The following day he went to pay his respects to another friend and influential leader in Ethiopia, the head of the Ethiopian church, Abunä Matéwos who ‘was very friendly.’29 Within a week or so he had met virtually all of his extended family in the capital and caught up with their various joys and woes, and also re-established links with other friends or acquaintances, either treating them as patients or dropping by to visit. These included those working at the Bank of Abyssinia and a broader range of traders and foreigners in the commercial area of Addis Ababa, the Arada. Some were British, others Armenians and Indians, Wärqenäh’s network was wide and varied. More important for his long-term career in Ethiopia was reconnecting with a broad range of influential Ethiopians. Again this involved seeing some as patients and others during his daily round. It was this wide network that makes for much of the uniqueness of Wärqenäh on the Addis Ababa and Ethiopian scene.

Surgeon & physician For the next seven months most of Wärqenäh’s considerable energies centered on his duties as the legation doctor and surgeon. His autobiography gives a good overall view: I discovered [in December, 1908] that in addition to treating the Legation sick I had also to visit and treat the sick from the other Legations, the Bank and the town as well as the Ethiopian chiefs. As the town was far from the British Legation, it also meant long rides for me. Further as there was no assistant or dispenser available, I had to do all the dispensary of medicines my self as I had had to do on the Somaliland expedition…. As the work was getting too heavy, I took [in 1909] one of my boys whom I had had educated in India as my assistant. He enthusiastically took to learning dispensary and soon became quite useful [this must have been Tädla Abäbayähu]. He worked with me for about five years while I was in Ethiopia and when I returned to Burma, he opened a chemist’s shop with the medicines, etc that I gave him and made a good living from it.30

Wärqenäh attended the legation dispensary Monday through Saturday (and often on Sunday) and cared for whoever turned up that particular morning. He was also paid an extra fee for taking care of the patients of the Russian legation while their doctor was on leave. He then took on the practice of the Bank and its employees, refusing to perform it for £5 per month, preferring to be paid by the visit, a more lucrative option. Through this arrangement he got better acquainted with the British who were in leadership positions in the Bank, mostly Scots, and their many Greek and Armenian clerks and other   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 32a.   WD, 1-2.12.1908. 30   Wärqenäh autobiography, p. 33a. 28 29

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 employees. He also acted as a major doctor for some of the Indian merchants in Addis Ababa, but also many Germans, Armenians, and others among the international community. He occasionally treated Abunä Matéwos and Ethiopians who thought that western medicine was an important alternative to traditional Ethiopian medicine, if not superior to it. Often he would treat Ethiopians without asking for payment. So much so that he treated over fiftyfour patients outside his clinic in one month alone (January, 1909) and generally delegated the onerous task of collecting medical fees to another Ethiopian assistant, whom he had trained in Burma, Gäbrä Mädhen. Throughout this period Gäbrä Mädhen acted as his medical assistant, delivering medicines, caring for less complicated cases and taking over for Wärqenäh when he was sick or unable to attend a patient. His other major assistant, among those he had sponsored overseas in India and Burma was Tädla Abäbayähu who as a close relative tended to assume non-medical chores for Wärqenäh like handling some of his financial affairs and acting on his behalf in the imperial court and in his relations with Ethiopian notables. Wärqenäh’s medical practice greatly assisted him in building closer friendsips and expanding his network of contacts, so essential to survival and influence in a country like Ethiopia. His long time friendship with Abunä Matéwos has already been touched on, but he also grew closer to Lej Bäyyänä Yemär who was the Minister of Posts, Telegraph and Telephones as well as being influential in the court. During 1909 and 1910 Lej Bäyyänä became a particularly important intermediary with the emperor and empress and probably Wärqenäh’s closest friend in Ethiopia during this period. This was based on the fact that he had saved his child’s life, while personally nursing it for an extended period of time. Wärqenäh was also able to broaden his relationship with Ethiopia’s rich and powerful because of his ready access to small pox serum from India and Burma. The vaccinations were so expensive only Ethiopia’s nobility or very rich could afford them. Wärqenäh vaccinated the children or younger relatives of many related to, Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis, Näggadras Haylä Giyorgis, Ras Täsämma and Ras Abatä Bayaläw. Generally, the vaccinations were not the first or only time that he met these men of power, but return visits were often required and he would then become further acquainted with family members or meet other influential people in their homes and compounds. Furthermore, he ‘Spoke to the Abuna about revising the Amharic bible but he was as usual shifty, helpless and unsatisfactory about it. He said he thought the translation was quite alright.’31 His medical practice also assisted him in broadening his circle among progressive and ‘modernizing’ Ethiopians. Some have already been encountered above, like Mika’él Berru and Blatta Gäbrä Egzi’abeher; others like Ato Wäldä Haymanot were friends from his first stay to Addis Ababa in 1899–1901. Wärqenäh also tried, without any immediate success, to write an arithmetic text and create a publishable map of Ethiopia during this period. Much more importantly he hired Wäldä Haymanot to translate a western World Geography text into Amharic, adding a substantial section on Ethiopia. This task would take   WD, 16.3.1909.

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Transitions in life decades before it was published in 1928, but was part of the foundation of the effort to modernize Ethiopia. Without doubt Wärqenäh’s World Geography would become a major part of his legacy, but will be examined in greater detail in a later chapter. His relations with some of his relatives became a bit rocky in 1908–1909. His brother-in-law, Boggalä, had had ‘bad luck’ in trade, losing his mules twice, which left him with a $1,000 debt to the Abyssinian bank at 15 percent interest. Discussions as to how Wärqenäh would be able to help reached a nadir in January, 1909 when he retracted a promise to buy some of Boggalä’s property because his brother-in-law had grossly overvalued it. Wärqenäh felt that Boggalä was ‘trying to do me in the eye...[and] trying to cheat me.’32 Wärqenäh’s fortunes would shortly change drastically for the better and his attitude toward owning land in Ethiopia, also changed substantially. Meanwhile, his relations with his fellow doctors in Addis Ababa improved even if, in the short term, his relations with some of his family did not. Overall, Wärqenäh worked hard to maintain a perhaps excessively professional relationship with the other doctors in Addis Ababa. This was almost certainly most appreciated by the other doctors, but rarely understood by Ethiopians. The main source of tension was that prominent Ethiopians who could afford medical care, like so many of the rich and leisured, enjoyed employing the services of more than one primary physician at one time. Wärqenäh refused to indulge these whims and insisted that if another doctor was the primary physician to an individual he would not treat or give out prescriptions. This insistence often led to bewilderment since the patients generally were quite willing to pay both physicians. However, as Wärqenäh was establishing his private practice in Addis Ababa the other half a dozen or so doctors must have appreciated his candor. One by one he met and then got to know these doctors in the capital. Those mentioned in the diary were: Lincoln De Castro (the major doctor at the Italian legation), Vitalien and his assistant L’Herminier, the two French doctors, and Dr. Mérab, a Georgian from the Caucasus, who was briefly a physician to the emperor, but then relied mainly on private practice. These were the major doctors in Addis Ababa who at the beginning of 1909 would play a role in Menilek’s worsening medical problems, although there were a number of other Italian, French and Greek physicians also practicing in Addis Ababa.

Wärqenäh as Emperor Menilek’s official physician Wärqenäh’s interview with Empress Taytu on July 19, 1909 marked a key turning point in his life. It set the stage for his long-term contract with the Ethiopian government appointing him initially as Menilek’s private physician and making him more influential in the Ethiopian court that he had ever been, or perhaps ever would be during his lifetime. After his interview with Empress Taytu he signed a three year contract with the Ethiopian government to become Emperor   WD, 29.1.1909.

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 Menilek’s official physician which included a salary of $600 per month and the understanding that he would be given a plot of land in a central Addis Ababa location on which to build a substantial home.33 This agreement gave Wärqenäh the kind of long-term security which helped lay the foundation for his marriage into a prominent Ethiopian noble family and gave him a solid position of influence and power within Ethiopia. It allowed him daily access to the heart of the Ethiopian imperial court, the chambers of the emperor and empress. To understand the dynamics of the court at this time it is necessary to step back and review the emperor’s medical background. When Wärqenäh returned to Ethiopia in 1908, it was clear that Emperor Menilek was suffering from tertiary syphilis. As an outgrowth of this condition he had suffered a number of strokes from at least 1904. The stroke on March 6, 1909 had been especially severe and Menilek became increasingly less active in state affairs.34 These strokes might temporarily incapacitate him, causing some paralysis but the emperor always seemed to recover, mostly because of his robust constitution. However, as we shall see Wärqenäh’s diary seems to indicate that the emperor was still actively involved in decision making for more than a year after his March, 1909 attack. Until July, 1909 Wärqenäh was only indirectly involved and would hear about the emperor’s medical condition second hand from others. However, from March 1909 the emperor and the empress began to send out feelers through their favorites in the court to try to get Wärqenäh more involved in the care of the emperor. His Ethiopian heritage was clearly an advantage. Since the beginning of the century French doctors, first Dr.Vitalien and, when he was away, Dr. L’Herminier were the emperor’s official physicians. The empress, and often others in the court, were generally keen on getting second opinions and involving other physicians in caring for the emperor. At various times this entailed bringing in traditional Ethiopian physicians, remedies or medications; at others bringing in new doctors like Mérab, the Russian physician or others. The introduction of yet another new doctor, a German, Dr. Steinkuhler, in April 1909 was especially important to our story since his failure and dismissal would open the way for Dr. Wärqenäh’s becoming Emperor Menilek’s lead physician. The German’s actions led to a crisis in the court, which happened at a time when Menilek was weakened physically and the empress became increasingly dominant. It was with her acquiescence that Wärqenäh took over full medical care of the emperor, while the empress and Menilek’s daughter Zäwditu managed the emperor’s day-to-day nursing. Dr. Steinkuhler arrived in the capital on of April 8th, 1909, and aggressively took over the day-to-day care of the emperor, sidelining the French physicians, L’Herminier and Vitalien. By the 15th of May, 1909 he was convinced that the emperor was being poisoned by someone in the court. This led to accusations against the empress and her party in the court that they were not taking care of the emperor properly. Wärqenäh’s autobiography summarizes the situation well:   WD, 16.6.1909 & 21.6.1809. See also July, 1909 and 25.12.1910.   Chris Prouty, Empress Taytu and Menilek II: Ethiopia, 1883–1910 (Red Sea Press, 1986), pp. 331ff. This is the best account of Menilek’s medical condition and the account given here is much indebted to it. 33 34

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Transitions in life On 14 July [1909], I was informed by an officer of the Palace that the Empress desired that I should treat the Emperor with Dr Stenkeller [sic], the German doctor, who was willing to cooperate with me. I readily consented to do so on condition that my services were secured from the British Government and then went with two palace officers to Dr. Stenkeller’s house and consulted with him and writing down that we were willing to treat the Emperor provided we were given complete control of His Majesty’s food and treatment and, that no one whom we could not trust would be allowed to approach him. This note was translated into Amharic, signed by us and handed to the palace officers for transmission to the Empress. Next a meeting of the Ministers, accompanied with the German doctor was held and the Emperor was interviewed and informed of the doctors’ statement, that as he had found poison in His Majesty’s urine he had refused to treat him unless he was given complete control. Two of the officers of the palace were put under arrest and a public inquiry set up.35

The empress struck back against her Ethiopian critics, the German diplomats who had sponsored Dr. Steinkuhler and against Steinkuhler himself. When Empress Taytu, after her interview with Wärqenäh on July 19th, turned to him for guidance, he again advised her to have a public inquest and publish the results. This in essence eventually took place when in November, 1909 and an official pamphlet (called Le Docteur Nouvellement Venu) was published giving the Ethiopian government perspective on the whole controversy.36 On July 22, the empress and the Ethiopian government sought the British government’s approval to takeover Wärqenäh’s services; on July 24th and 25th Steinkuhler saw and treated Menilek for the last time and on July 27th Wärqenäh became the emperor’s lead physician. Wärqenäh treated the emperor on a daily basis from July 1909 until March 1910. During this period he had unparalleled access to the most powerful figures in Ethiopia, in particular the Empress Taytu, but also virtually all the other leading figures of the court. His advice and insight were sought by many. Never again would he be closer to the center of power. It was during this period that he came into virtually daily contact with the most influential people in Ethiopia some of whom would remain on the national scene for the next fifteen years or more. Foremost was Empress Taytu, then Ras Täsämma, who was the tutor of the heir to the throne, Lej Iyasu (then only fourteen years old), holding one of the highest titles in the land Ras Betwäddäd and later became Regent. Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis, was at this time probably third in influence (after Taytu and Täsämma) and was Minister of War, with the largest army close to Addis Ababa. He and Täsämma were two of Menilek’s oldest and most loyal generals, determined to secure his legacy. Less powerful, but still extremely influential was Wärqenäh’s old friend, Abunä Matéwos, the head of the Ethiopian church. Wärqenäh always had an easy going relationship with Matéwos, treating him for numerous minor ailments. This regular access to the head of the Ethiopian church allowed him to get accurate information on the inner workings of the Ethiopian government   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 36a.   See Le Docteur Nouvellement Venu (Dire-Daoua, Impremerie St. Lazare,1909). [Henceforth, Le Docteur Nouvellement Venu]. 35 36

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 and its elite. Lesser figures with whom Wärqenäh became close at this time were: Princess Zäwditu, Menilek’s only surviving child, Ras Abatä and Lej Bäyyäna. The day Wärqenäh began his daily medical treatment of Emperor Menilek, the first, and abortive, attempt at a medical inquiry into the charges against the German Dr. Steinkuhler took place in the imperial palace. Present along with Dr. Wärqenäh were the two French doctors L’Herminier and Vitalien; Dr. Steinkuhler refused to attend. The second attempt at an inquiry, on August 17th, 1909, was somewhat more successful. More doctors at least attended including not only Wärqenäh, but also Vitalien, De Castro and Brielli (the Italian doctors)37 and Steinkuhler. Wärqenäh played a key role as a mediator, preventing Steinkuhler’s early exit. Beautiful bright morning. The Emperor went out to the Church of Gabriel... I staid back to attend the doctor’s meeting about the poisoning episode. Steinkuller & all the other doctors turned up, but the German doctor objected to the meeting because all the Abyssinian chiefs & officers were not also present as arranged. I took Ras Tasama, Mangacia [Ras Mängäsha] & Guksa [Ras Gugsa] down to the Ministers room to explain why the other Abyss [Abyssinian] chiefs were not present. They said that as the question was a medical one, presence of laymen was unnecessary but that after the doctors had discussed the matter their decision will be further discussed by a general assembly. Eventually it was agreed that Steinkuller was to send his report to all the doctors by tomorrow evening who were to write out their opinions & submit it to a general assembly. Steinkuller & Vitalien seemed very bitter against each other & growled at one another esp [especially] the former.38

The crisis would continue until Ras Täsämma declared the ‘doctor’ affair closed and Menilek refused to see Dr. Steinkuhler on September 21st, 1909. Steinkuhler returned to Germany but the whole incident had provided the increasingly numerous Ethiopian critics of Empress Taytu an opportunity to attack her. On July 19th, 1909 there was a key meeting with the emperor and empress: After lunch went & saw the Empress. She was very affable & looked very well & young for her age wh [which] is supposed to be about 70 odd. After a few personal inquiries as to whether married & had any children or not she referred to the question of poison found by the doctor. I told her that I had heard a good deal about it & wd [would] advise her to order a formal enquiry to be held by all the Ministers & other big officials of State. She said there was no one to be accused & nothing to enquire into as the Emperor was given to eat & drink by herself & was constantly watched by her. I argued the matter out with her & told her that in the interest of the State & as safeguard for herself she must order an inquiry or the people will think things & there will be a good deal of danger to her as the popular feeling was very much excited about it. She eventually said that an inquiry might be held by the Ministers &c in the Ministers room. The Empress said that she wanted me to stay in the country & treat the Emperor…We talked for about an hour. 39   Chris Prouty Rosenfeld, A Chronology of Menilek of Ethiopia, 1844–1913: Emperor of Ethiopia, 1889– 1913, Monograph No. 4 Occasional Papers Series, Committee on Ethiopian Studies (African Studies Center, Michigan State University, 1976), p. 246. 38   WD, 17.8.1909. 39   WD, 19.7.1909. 37

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Transitions in life That Wärqenäh persuaded the empress to hold an inquiry, albeit limited, may very well have been a high point in his career as an advisor to the Ethiopian emperor and his court. To set up such a commission to conduct an enquiry was extremely unusual in the Ethiopian context and a very advanced idea for its time. Although they would have many arguments over the treatment of Menilek, throughout this period and into the New Year Wärqenäh’s relationship with the empress was cordial as can be seen in their first interview after his return to Ethiopia. She was, however, also very cautious. I [Wärqenäh] began sleeping occasionaly [sic] in a room in the palace in order to give the Emperor massage treatment in the evening. This did him a lot of good and made his legs stronger. To my surprise, I was asked by the Empress to drink a little of any medicine myself, before I gave it to the Emperor or let one of the servants do so. At the same time, I took my meals with him to make sure that he was given the food I considered suitable for him.40

She agreed to his contract and was instrumental in assigning to him one of the largest and most prestigious houses in Addis Ababa, the one which belonged to Ras Mika’él but which, unfortunately was inhabited with fleas.41 She also provided him a room in the palace, where he stayed most every night for several months and then he moved into his temporary accommodations in Mika’él’s house, where he stayed until he had built his own mansion nearby. This was remarkably generous for a woman he had also described as: ‘full of conceit and conservatism’ and ‘a shifty customer.’42 Wärqenäh must have used his best bedside manner with the empress and remained on good terms until January, 1910. He mediated a dispute between the empress and the emperor43 and even persuaded her to forgive his cousin, Lej Zälläqä who had fallen out of favor a year or so before: The Emperor feeling very well. He went down to the throne room & gave a big feast principally to the priests. The Itegi [empress] also went down & sat in a screened room looking into the throne room. During the Gibbar I asked the Emperor to help me to get the Itegi to forgive Lij Zallaca. He readily agreed & sent word to the Itegi. She to my surprise also readily agreed & Zallaca was forgiven. I went over to the Itegi in her room & thanked her for it & afterwards presented Zallaca to her.44

Perhaps the major reason they got on so well together was that Wärqenäh appeared successful in treating the emperor. At first Wärqenäh in his diary describes him as follows: The Emperor looked into the room where we were talking but was sent away by the Empress. His limbs are very weak & he is not able to walk by himself. His right leg drags. But for all this his appearance was not bad. He recognized me & seemed pleased to see me & seemed anxious to come forward & talk to me.45     42   43   44   45   40 41

Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 37a. WD, 27.7.1909 WD, 4.9.1909 and 11.9.1909. WD, 17.8.1909. WD, 30.8.1909. WD, 19.7.1909.

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 Clearly during this crisis, the empress played a dominant role and she only allowed the emperor to peek into the room when important decisions were being made. However, at the beginning of August Wärqenäh said ‘his brain is exhausted’46 while later in August he was ‘better’ and ‘walked without support for some distance’.47 He continued to improve through the beginning of October. It seems clear that the empress during this period became more and more confident with his improvement and increasingly disregarded Wärqenäh’s careful instructions as to his care which would lead to a new crisis. Meanwhile, because of his new position in court, Wärqenäh was able to advise the emperor, empress and other influential Ethiopians. The next nine months was the period of his greatest influence. He also used some of his newly acquired power to feather his own nest. He first used his leverage, as we have seen, to get Ras Mika’él’s residence to live in temporarily. More importantly for the long pull, he persuaded the emperor and empress to give him a prime site, in central Addis Ababa48 on which to build what Americans would call ‘their dream house’. The house still stands today on the edge of Jan Hoy Méda (later a race course, airport and revolutionary parade ground), close to the palace and the commercial center of Addis Ababa. It was also used as a polo ground, Wärqenäh’s favorite sport. The emperor gave him a ‘caparisoned mule’ as a gift, a distinct and prestigious favor in the Ethiopian court.49 Wärqenäh employed this power not only on his own behalf but also to help his family, as we have seen, in restoring Zälläqä to imperial favor. He also used his ‘bully pulpit’ to give unsolicited advice to the emperor and empress: against bribery,50 and to be more flexible and less suspicious in delimiting Ethiopia’s boundaries.51 Neither seems to have had any discernable impact. They also asked for his advice in building a cartridge factory in Addis Ababa, trying to get the United States as a counterweight to British influence in this area.52 The United States was not very forthcoming and so this initiative also seems to have born no fruit. In mid-August Wärqenäh also tried to get permission to remove the imperial printing press from the Minister of the Pen, Gäbrä Sellasé and take over control over it. This lasted only two days and Empress Taytu supported the objections of Gäbrä Sellasé. Another instance where Wärqenäh’s advice was actually actively taken into consideration was over the status of Steinkhuler and some Germans at the court. In this instance, the empress asked his advice, which he freely gave, the emperor when told agreed, and then the empress consulted Ras Täsämma and the chief justice. They also agreed and then the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Näggadras Haylä Giyorgis was called in to implement the decision. This was one of the few times when Wärqenäh’s advice seems to have had a swift and tangible impact. However the most important and successful advise he gave was to have an open inquiry into the Steinkuhler doctor crisis     48   49   50   51   52   46 47

WD, 4.8. 1909. WD, 10.8.1909. WD, 4.8.1909. WD, 9.8.1909. WD, 4.8.1909. WD, 20.8.1909. WD, 27.8.1909.

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Transitions in life as mentioned above. Eventually publication of the Le Docteur Nouvellement Venu put an end to the political crisis about Dr. Steinkuhler’s charges that Menilek had been poisoned, was a step towards a more transparent government and was probably Ethiopia’s first major effort at international public relations .53 As long as the emperor’s health was improving albeit slowly, the empress on the whole followed Dr. Wärqenäh’s instructions. Where she often bypassed his rules was his ban of honey and ghee (clarified butter) in the imperial diet. She was convinced of the efficacy of these two sovereign cures of Ethiopian traditional medicine. Wärqenäh continued to point out, sometimes forcefully, that they were harmful to Menilek in his present condition and that each time he indulged he felt ‘low’ or his progressive improvement slowed. Empress Taytu paid little or no attention. In October Menilek’s health seemed to make some significant progress, he was able to ride his mule, eat one of his favorite delicacies, raw meat and the empress went even further and, against Wärqenäh’s advice, encouraged Menilek to observe an Ethiopian religious fast. This and other issues led to a serious argument between the empress and Wärqenäh. Gibbi [palace]. The Emp. [emperor] little better but not quite as well as he was before. I found that he had given up for sometime taking egg & milk in the morning as directed and had nothing to eat till about 10 A.M. I protested but the Queen said it was no use taking egg and milk and vegetables and living like a European. That he must eat & drink like an Abyssinian. I told her that she can make the Emp. do what she likes altogether & treat him & not have anything to do with me, we parted at loggerheads. She is very obstinate & trying.54 The following day the emperor ate very spicy Ethiopian food and what was worse had drunk strong wine. I fd [found] his pulse going at an awful rate, but he said he was feeling very well, while the Empress jeered at me for forcing him to drink milk & eat eggs like Europeans. I was of course very unhappy as I feared another stroke.55

The next day his fears proved only too true: Gibbi at 9 A.M. The Emp’s [emperor’s] had room closed. Did not get in till past midday & then I was sent for – found the Emp in a bad way. He has had another stroke of cerebral effusion & paralysis of the left side of face. He is unable to speak except a few words very indistinctly. The stroke is said to have come on in the morning about 7 AM when he was reading the bible.

Carefully reflecting on the evidence it seems clear that this stroke effectively ended any further active participation by Menilek in Ethiopia’s politics. The long term implications are better revealed in his autobiography: In the afternoon [of 27 October,1909], I was sent for and when I went in, I found the Emperor lying speechless and paralysed as a result of a second stroke of apoplexy. I did what I could to help him but his case was almost hopeless as far as recovery from paralysis was concerned. The Russian doctor came and saw him and suggested consultation of the medical men in the palace, but the Empress would not have it.   See Le Docteur Nouvellement Venu.   WD, 25.10.1909. Underlining was Wärqenäh’s. 55   WD, 26.10.1909. See also 27.10.1909. 53 54

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 Next day 28 October, we finally got her permission to call in a couple of doctors for consultation, but there was very little to be done except to keep up the Emperor’s strength by means of tonics and heart stimulants. When the principal Chiefs consulted me as to the Emperor’s condition, I told them that in my opinion, as he was not likely to recover, it was advisable for them to be prepared for eventualities. On this, they again proclaimed Lij Eyasu, in the Emperor’s name, as his successor and appointed Ras Tessema Nado as Lij Eyasu’s guardian until his majority.56

As Wärqenäh pointed out in his diary: ‘The Emperor the same, physically he is better but he is not making much progress mentally.’57 Occasionally he might indicate with a nod or incoherent noise his wishes, but from now on he remained paralyzed and unable to speak. As there was no perceptible improvement in his condition, Empress Taytu increasingly took on more and more power, effectively running the government herself. Täsämma was unable to intervene and assume power as regent, since Menilek was still alive. Three months would pass before Taytu’s excesses led to her overthrow.

Wärqenäh & Empress Taytu During this period, Wärqenäh’s status became more and more difficult. As Menilek’s condition stabilized and nothing further could be done for him medically, Wärqenäh had less and less to do during his twice daily visits to the emperor’s bedside. Thus he began to pursue other activities and slept in the palace less regularly. The empress then began with increasing vehemence to criticize him for doing nothing. First she ‘groused at my going home during the day and not sleeping at the Gibbi, but I told her that I did not think there was any necessity for it’.58 Later tension between them rose. The Emperor about the same. Made him sit in a chair from where he cd [could] look out….[The empress came &] was angry & said I was a fine ‘nurse’ to nurse the Emperor, not sleeping at the Gibbi & not staying here all the time. Told her there was no necessity for it as I cd do no good by doing so & the Emperor was not in a serious condition. Then came down quietly as I was afraid of saying too much. Went home at 5.30 p.m.59

Wärqenäh had already tried several times to get further work assigned to him, since caring for Menilek took less and less time and was no longer a full time job. However, he was absolutely determined to retain his government salary for which he had an ironclad contract, unless another job or jobs gave him a similar income. For approximately the next three months Empress Taytu and Wärqenäh argued fruitlessly about which job or jobs he should do. He was uneasy at removing someone else from an existing job and she often offered Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 40a.   WD, 12.11.1909. 58   WD, 13.11.1909. 59   WD, 30.11.09. Underlining is in the diary. 56  57

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Transitions in life him tasks he deemed unsuitable. Overall it is remarkable how suspicious she was of Wärqenäh. The Empress was very conservative and prejudiced against Europeans and their ways and methods, especially those of the British and American, simply because the latter two spoke English. For the same reason, I had my share of her disfavour and was only tolerated because the Chiefs [were] generally favourable to me.60

He did however give the empress and Ras Täsämma useful advice on various issues like the boundary commission and the railway concession. In two other instances whether his advice was or was not followed is less clear: Had a hot discussion with the Itegi [empress] about the Boundary Commission. I told her that they ought to have sent their men with the British Commission. She however cd [could] not see reason & only talked nonsense about the English having taken Abyss [Abyssinian] territory &c.61

In this case, it is fairly clear that no Ethiopian accompanied the boundary commission. She [Empress Taytu] talked about the railway & said she was sorry the concession had been signed & so much land given to the Company each side of the line. She was ... surprised when I told her they had given too much & made no provision against the Co.[railway company] using it for fortifying purposes. She got the concession & had it read. She then ordered Bajrond Mulla Geta to give me a copy of the concession in French & asked me to see if anything cd [could] be done.62

In this second case, Wärqenäh attended several meetings concerning the railroad, but there is no clear evidence that his advice was actually followed. However, Wärqenäh had raised a very significant point concerning the railway concession that it had given up too much Ethiopian land on either side of the railway tracks. Wärqenäh as an independent and largely objective observer had seen the concession with fresh eyes and given some cogent advice. Advisors in general tend to inhabit a nether land where they are never quite sure if it is their advice, or someone else’s that plays a key role in the final outcome or whether it has no impact at all. Wärqenäh’s support of reforms seems to have been even less effective than his political advice. First he advised the empress that: [They should] begin paying all their officials to try & stop taking bribes & presents by them. Also that they have regular taxation &c &c. But the advice did not seem to have much effect on them. The Emperor’s brain is exhausted while that of the Itegi is full of conceit & conservatism.63

Only when he was governor of Chärchär province in the 1930s was he able to successfully attack bribery and pay administrators. Later that month his advice seems to have had a similarly small impact. ‘Told the Emp: [emperor] & the Itagi   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 39a.   WD, 20.8.1909. 62   WD, 9.12.1909. 63   WD, 4.8.1909. 60 61

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From Burma to England to Ethiopia 1907–1910 [empress] that they were wrong in giving concessions & monopolies without due consideration.’64 There is no indication that this advice was followed either. Finally, somewhat over a week later the emperor gave Wärqenäh permission to take over the printing press in the palace compound, but the next day the empress countermanded the order. It would be nearly twenty years before Wärqenäh would play a major role in Ethiopia’s official government press. However, Wärqenäh found it difficult to work under Azaj Yeggäzu. Ras Täsämma agreed with him and relieved him of that task. Later the empress asked Wärqenäh’s advice about the rubber concession and talked about him taking it over, but nothing came of it. She then, suddenly presented him another task: [The empress] got angry with me this morning and said that I did not do anything about the Elastic and the gold [sic, this refers to the wild rubber and gold concessions in western Ethiopia]. Told her I could not do anything more unless I got some authority to do something. She packed me off to try the gold washing machine. Took it out to the shops and got it put up. Will wash the auriferous sand that they have got in the store, tomorrow. [The next day the empress] sent me down to the shops to work the gold washing machine…Worked it and found that some places where it leaks. The sand experimented with is very rich in gold.65

She also briefly tried to get him to take over the cartridge concession, a decades old project that never had, nor ever would, produce a single cartridge for Ethiopia. Thankfully this too proved to be a passing fancy of the empress, as did buying pure silver through the American ambassador in exchange for gold. Since his previous stroke in October, 1909, Wärqenäh had faithfully visited Emperor Menilek virtually every day. On January 19th, Wärqenäh feared that he had an incident with a ‘blood clot in the brain’ that caused him to be in ‘a very excited condition’. However, Empress Taytu ‘thinks he is better!’66 When, after the furore abated, he did not improve, the empress got more and more upset with Wärqenäh In the afternoon she sent me away saying that as I had nothing to do, I need not sit and watch but had better go home, was intending to sleep at the Gibbi but decided to go home after this.67

Wärqenäh’s dispute with the empress escalated. At the beginning of February she threatened to terminate his salary and a climax of sorts was reached at the end of February. Had a hot discussion with the Itegi about myself. She repeated the same thing about my having been engaged to attend the Emperor and that that being over now I could not be paid $600 p.m. [per month] for doing nothing. Told her that I did not ask to be engaged and did not ask for the contract for 3 years’ employment and that I was not God to cure everyone and that I did not undertake to cure the Emperor etc etc. She said she was not going to keep to the contract and that I should make another     66   67   64 65

WD, 7.8.1909. WD, 12.1.1909 and 13.1.1909. Underlining in the diary. WD, 19.1.1910. Underlining in the diary. WD, 23.1.1910.

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Transitions in life contract and do something else on reduced pay. Told her I was not going to do anything of the kind. I had my appointment [in Burma] to go to... Of course she has no leg to stand on but just wants to get rid of me by force.68

Shortly thereafter, Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis, a major figure in Ethiopian politics, but also one who excelled in working behind the scenes, counseled patience. In the afternoon went and saw the Fitaurari. He is ill with rheumatism. He preached patience and said that he will settle my affair as soon as he got alright. He said that most of the chiefs were agreed that the Emperor’s contract must hold good and that the Itegi will be told of their decision. 69

In mid-March Wärqenäh’s pay was stopped and he got more and more desperate. However, a few days later his close friend Lej Bäyyänä told him that there was a ‘conspiracy on foot’ to remove the empress from power.70 The resolution of this political crisis would give Wärqenäh several years of relative calm and stability during which major changes in his life took place, including: his marriage, making some basic decisions about his religious life, joining the masons and beginning a career of major construction projects in Addis Ababa.   WD, 25.2.1910. Underlining in text.   WD, 4.3.1910. Underlining in text. 70   WD, 20.3.1910. 68 69

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5 A Man of Substance in Ethiopia & Burma MARRIAGE & POLITICAL INFLUENCE (1910–1919)

Introduction The fall of Empress Taytu as the defacto leader of Ethiopia in March of 1910 was a major turning point nationally and in Wärqenäh’s life and fortunes. Menilek’s illness and Wärqenäh’s subsequent appointment to a three year government contract and assignment to care for the emperor had given Wärqenäh a degree of access to the highest levels of the Ethiopian elite that he had not previously enjoyed. He was able to interact on a daily and weekly basis with the most powerful people in Ethiopia. Privately, his personal position in Ethiopia had changed subtly but radically. He was no longer in the employ of a foreign government, Britain, but of the Ethiopian government. His social standing had improved parallel to his political influence. In a word, he became one of the most eligible bachelors in the imperial court and he was soon involved in marriage negotiations. Once he began to fall out of favor with the empress his contract with the government was jeopardized as was the source of his financial stability. After she fell from power her successor, the Regent Ras Bitwäddäd Täsämma trusted him and assured him that his contract would be honored. He could also rely on the support of two other major figures, Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis and Abunä Matéwos. These were three of the most powerful leaders of Ethiopia. Their power increased as did that of his close friend Lej Bäyyänä who was appointed Minister of Posts, Telegraph and Telephone in May of 1910 and his patient and ally Abatä Bayaläw was promoted to Ras a day later. Finally, Lej Iyasu’s influence increased and Wärqenäh’s relationship with him had steadily improved. His increased prestige on the Ethiopian national stage provided the foundation for three major interrelated developments in his personal life: his marriage, changes in his religious outlook and his first major construction project in Addis Ababa, a large new home. Despite major political changes on the national political scene all three would hold firm. 73

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma

Politics & power (1910–1913) Wärqenäh’s appointment as lead physician to the emperor in 1909 seemed to give him three years with substantial pay and a solid position in the Ethiopian court. But once the emperor had basically become a vegetable and no longer needed daily care his relationship with the empress became increasingly strained. In June 1910 he joined both the Masonic order in Addis Ababa and the prestigious Mika’él Mahbär (a monthly religiously based social gathering which included the emperor and prominent Ethiopians). Thus he became more involved in the social and religious life of the capital. More significantly, in October he married Wäyzäro Qätsälä Tullu an Ethiopian lady of impeccable royal lineage. However, within a year, by April 1911, the political scene was once again transformed by the death of Ras Täsämma who had always been a reliable Wärqenäh ally. Ras Abatä tried to replace him as regent but was out maneuvered by Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis, Abunä Matéwos and other ministers and rusticated to a distant province in the fortress of Mäqdäla. Lej Bäyyänä, Wärqenäh’s close friend was demoted for suspiciously close ties to Abatä, but the group of ministers as a whole continued to steadily grow in influence and strength, all of whom Wärqenäh knew and many of whom were generally allies. Lej Iyasu was, of course, the major beneficiary of these changes even though he was only fifteen years old. Although never crowned he was generally recognized as the de facto ruler since no new regent had been appointed. Initially there were other potential threats to his central role, but his father, Ras Mika’él of Wällo, put these to rest in November of 1911. He made a special trip to Addis Ababa and managed to persuade virtually every powerful lord in Ethiopia, except Abatä, to join him in Addis Ababa to pay homage to Iyasu. This action stabilized the political situation in Ethiopia substantially, but once Mika’él left, the influence of the ministers again reasserted itself. This was also encouraged by Iyasu’s increasing dislike of Addis Ababa and his desire to travel to distant parts of the empire. He wanted to be on his own, free from the unwanted advice and influence of Menilek’s old guard, and far away from the overwhelming burden of the daily bureaucratic grind in Addis Ababa. The ministers were thus left with the day to day responsibilities of administering the Ethiopian court and empire. Iyasu appointed Wärqenäh as the official doctor of one of the first of his slap dash forays into the hinterland. This trip, perhaps, marks a highpoint of sorts in Wärqenäh’s influence in Iyasu’s court, symbolized by Iyasu’s agreement to act as godfather to his baby son. However, Iyasu did not invite Wärqenäh on his next longer and more extensive trips to the provinces and Wärqenäh was unable to persuade him or his ministers to renew his contract or to obtain his services on loan from the British government. The upshot would be his departure from Ethiopia in June of 1913, just six months before Menilek finally died in December, 1913. He returned to Burma, working the necessary six years to receive his pension from 74

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 the India Office and then in 1919 returned to retirement in Addis Ababa with his rapidly growing family.

Marriage The most important event of Wärqenäh’s adult life was his marriage to Qätsälä Tullu. Throughout his previous six years in Ethiopia he had deflected or rejected numerous attempts to persuade him to marry. However, on this occasion he took the initiative and everything moved quite swiftly. Within just over two months the knot was tied. Qätsälä in 1910 was only fourteen years old. All of Wärqenäh’s relationships seem to have been with younger women; this time he was thirty-one years older than his bride. She was, however, very closely related to one of Ethiopia’s most famous generals, Ras Gobäna and this originally Oromo family had intermarried many times over with the Shoan royal family. For example, Qätsälä was closely related to Lej Iyasu and also to Wäyzäro Mänän, a future empress and wife of Emperor Haylä Sellasé, as well as to a remarkably large number of powerful members of Ethiopia’s court. Her influence in the highest circles of the Ethiopian court would steadily grow, eventually outstripping Wärqenäh’s. His autobiography gives a significantly different account than the one that emerges from his diary concerning the impetus that led to his marriage. As most of my people were suspicious of me on account of my foreign education, nurture and habits, some of my sensible friends advised me to marry an Ethiopian lady, so I began looking for one and at the same time asked the Ras’s [Ras Täsamä’s] opinion. He was delighted at the idea and strongly advised me to carry it through by marrying the young lady I had suggested, who happened to be the daughter of a Christian Oromo (commonly called Galla) chief by name Fitaurari Tullu.1

Wärqenäh met Fitawrari Tullu, the father of the bride, in mid-July, 1910. He was an important figure in the Ethiopian court and brother of one of Menilek’s generals, Ras Gobäna. Fitawrari Tullu had led a contingent of Oromo cavalry at the Battle of Adwa in 1896. All we know from his diary is that: ‘Fit Tullo called and had lunch. Rained heavily in the afternoon.’2 Two weeks later: Went to Fitaurari Tullu’s house on a visit of condolence…His wife Sabe Ifat was only in. He was away on duty with Lij Yasu & Ras Tasama who had gone on a visit to the French Minister. Waizaro Sabe Ifat was very friendly & insisted on my having some lunch with her. Saw her 2 daughters. They are fairly good looking young girls.3

Was all this purely by chance? According to family tradition, another daughter was originally put forward to be his wife. Wäyzäro Säbé Yefat’s lineage was much more impressive than her husband’s, since she was a member of the Shäwan royal family. There’s nothing further in the diary until exactly a week later:   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 42a.   WD, 10.7.1910. 3   WD, 28.7.1910. 1 2

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma Went to the Gibbi in the afternoon. Saw the Ras [Ras Täsämma] & told him about my idea of marrying Fitaurari Tullo’s daughter. He was pleased & said that I shd [should] send Bayana & Nagad Ras [sic.] Igazu as friends to ask for me.4

It was part of court etiquette that marriages within the elite had to be approved by the emperor or his representative, in this case the regent, Ras Täsämma. Once approved, the marriage moved ahead rapidly. The next day a representative of the Tullu household arrived to discuss the marriage settlements and the following day Wärqenäh decided to begin fasting in accordance with the traditions of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Many Ethiopian Orthodox families were unwilling to allow their daughters to marry a husband who did not keep the orthodox fasts. The following month, on September 9th, Wärqenäh sent his senior male relative, Ato Terunäh to settle the marriage agreement between the two families. In his autobiography, he adds that ‘we were kept waiting outside like beggars.’5 In many ways quite a modern looking pre-nuptial agreement was reached. In the afternoon went to Gibbi & with Lij Bayana & Ababa & Kantiba Walda Sadiq & Nagad Ras Tana Gasha & Ato Mazfan & Ato Taruneh & Ato Tafari & Ato Jambar & Ato Machael Beru & Fit Wasani went to Fit Tullu’s house. They kept us waiting outside for sometime & when Fit Wasani went in, Tullu said he had not arranged to settle the matter today. This was apparently all put on. After a while we went in & they made a little fuss. Then the business commenced. Ato Taruneh was appointed as my ‘father’ or representative & with him I stood up on my side Bayana, Tanagasha, Ababa, Beru, Mazfan, Tafari. Jambar &c in the other side Fit Wasani & Kantiba & some other people sat down as judges & witnesses, my representatives were then asked what had they come for & they said they possessed me. Then the question of monetary arrangements was discussed & my representatives told them that I was prepared to give half my pay ($300) for household expenses, the savings to be divided equally bet [between] me & my wife. She to have no interest or claim on my property wh [which] I possess now, but what we gain in the future to be divided equally. After some fuss & discussion the matter was settled & in the end Tullu formally said that he had given me his daughter & swore by the death of the Emperor.6

The day for the wedding was then set, and the agreement written down for signature. The preparations for the guests and the wedding feast were largely carried out by Lej Bäyyänä’s wife, Mulu Amabét and, once they were complete, the wedding took place on October 2nd, 1910. Went off with Ato Turuneh, Tafari, Jambar &c, Beru [,] Hannah [,] & other interpreters, wh [which] consisted of a crowd of about 60 people. Tullu wanted only about 40. On arrival we were put in tents where we got drinks first & lunch rather late afterwards. Turuneh & Beru took the presents to the Fit [Fitawrari Tullu] who was in the house. After eating we tried to get away soon with the girl but they delayed & it was not till 4.30 p.m. that the girl was given to us. On our departure we saw the Fit & Mrs Fit & formally saluted & wished them goodbye. On our way back the cavalcade became very large amounting to 200 or 300 people. There was a great deal of singing & dancing on the way & we slowly got home at dark. The girl was attended with 4   WD, 5.8.1910. Underlining in the diary.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 43a. 6   WD,12.9.1910. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 4 5

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 bridesmaids for whom I supplied clothes & mules & a mule for the bride. Great crowd we fd [found] on our arrival at home. Bayana attended to the guests during my absence. The feeding went on till midnight when the chiefs went away…. Went to bed at 1 A.M. when the girl was brought to the bed room by Beru after much resistance from her followers!7

Three days of feasting followed ending with Wärqenäh’s following comment, ‘The wife getting accustomed to the house. Appears to be a good quiet girl.’8 There were, however, further ramifications to Wärqenäh’s marriage. When I married, I was told by my father-in-law, that I must have a father confessor and follow his instructions in religious matters. The first and most difficult thing I was told to do was to fast regularly, which meant not having any meat, milk, eggs or any kind of food derived from animal source, twice a week, and for fifty-six days of the year.9

He only managed to keep the fast one year before being forced by ill health to give it up. When reflecting on his marriage twenty years later in his autobiography he wrote that, ‘The following feasting and dancing cost me a fairly large sum of money. However, I think it had a good effect in securing for me the confidence and friendship of many of my people.’10 Two years later, in January 1912, Wärqenäh married Qätsälä a second time, this time with a more binding Orthodox marriage at which they took communion together. They decided to strengthen their vows following the traditions of the Ethiopian Orthodox church after serious discussion and to make their ‘marriage most binding’. This additional marriage would have serious repercussions for Qätsälä when they divorced twenty three years later.11

Wärqenäh’s Jan Hoy Méda house Building his home was Wärqenäh’s first major construction project in Addis Ababa and Ethiopia and was part of a process of contributing to a more cosmopolitan capital. He was involved during his life in Ethiopia in a large number of construction projects. Some were private and some were public. The private projects included his homes, one on Jan Hoy Méda and later, after 1919, one in Shola on the outskirts of Addis Ababa. Others were public works built on behalf of the Ethiopian Government, like Täfäri Mäkonnen School, the beginning of the Jimma road and various other projects in Addis Ababa and Chärchär which he built in the late 1920s and 1930s. On his private projects Wärqenäh used his influence with the emperor, the empress and the court, to get as much assistance and favors as he possibly could to save himself money and effort. Other Ethiopian courtiers did the same or worse than he. One can not help but wonder however, whether getting so many resources from Menilek   WD, 2.10.1910. Wärqenäh’s underlining.   WD, 6.10.1910.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 46a. 10   Ibid., p. 44a. 11   WD, 27.2.1911, 3.10.1911 & 2.1.1912. 7 8 9

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma and the palace could be squared with his oft proclaimed strong belief in ‘fair play’. Nonetheless, his home on Jan Hoy Méda was to be one of the early stone built structures in Addis Ababa, after the palace, some churches and some of the legations and commercial trading houses. Wärqenäh first requested a major building site in Addis Ababa in June of 1909 as part of the negotiations for his government contract and salary. It was a month and a half before he persuaded Emperor Menilek and Empress Taytu to give him a prime site near the center of town, one of the most valuable empty lots in Addis Ababa and the empire. The lot overlooks Jan Hoy Méda (or the emperor’s field), the major parade ground and racecourse of pre revolutionary Addis Ababa. It is also near the imperial palace. Wärqenäh asked for the site which had originally belonged to Abunä Pétros, who had been under Emperor Yohannes the archbishop of Ethiopia. Empress Taytu had objected, but Menilek insisted and the land was given to Wärqenäh on the condition that he did not sell or give it away. Wärqenäh also persuaded the emperor to grant him a $10,000MTD loan, which was to come due in three years, to build his dream home.12 His new salary and prestigious, perhaps pretentious home, would help solidify Wärqenäh’s status as a significant figure on the Ethiopian scene. As time passed this debt grew substantially and caused many serious problems for Wärqenäh. It was a remarkably large sum of money when one considers that a few dollars was the regular annual salary of the Ethiopian soldier.13 After several months the foundation stone of the main building was finally laid, while Wärqenäh put together his team of engineers, contractors, masons and workers. The skilled workers were mainly internationals, many of them had been his patients, some would initiate him into the local Masonic Order. Turks, Greeks, Armenians, Syrians and Frenchmen played prominent roles as Wärqenäh used the building and the managerial skills he had developed as a medical officer for large Burmese provinces to build a home worthy of his ambitions. He carefully tested some of his workers skills by having them first build small outhouses or stables, before trusting them with the larger, more difficult and skilled jobs of the main house itself. The manual workers were largely Guragé and were generally hired on a daily basis. The head mason was a Greek, Christodulus Leedus, and he also employed Ethiopian masons. Wärqenäh was, in effect, physically modernizing Ethiopia. The foundations were begun in November and the foundation stone was laid on November 15, 1909: The foundation of the house filled up today as the first stone of the wall was laid this afternoon. Gave the workmen drink & others who came to the ground. Placed in the foundation stone sets of coins, stamps, the Emperor’s Proclamations re Lij Yasu being the heir apparent & a note describing me & the building of the house written by Lij Bayana & Balata Gabra Igziher.14   See WD, 14.8.1909, 17.8.1909 & 4.9.1909. The building still overlooks Jan Hoy Méda to this day.   Richard Pankhurst, Economic History of Ethiopia, 1800–1935 (Addis Ababa, 1968), p. 571. A soldier would be lucky to be paid anywhere from 4 to 15 dollars per year. 14   WD, 15.11.1909. Underlining by Wärqenäh. Gäbrä Egziabehér Dästa was a prominent Ethiopian intellectual and administrator, also known as Käntiba Gäbru. 12 13

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 The house would take nearly three years to complete, pushing him to the edge of bankruptcy. To complete his home he had to bring to bear all his skills not only as an administrator and builder, but also to mobilize his family and government contacts and depend on the help of his friends, household and his wide network of acquaintances and patients. Daily construction needed water, lime, stone and wood. Political ‘pull’ was necessary to get water during the dry season. Construction timber had to come from forests near Addis Aläm and political influence was very important to get permissions and a reasonable price. Furthermore, he often had to use his influence to get the government owned steam driven traction engines for free transport of the wood from the forests in the west. When he needed a large amount of labor, he turned to the Azaj or major domo of the palace to provide labor to raise the roof of the main banquet room of his new home. Perhaps his biggest financial and political struggle was to get expensive corrugated iron for the roof of his home. He eventually got them at government expense from their storage facilities. His house in many ways was more of a noble’s palace than a private home. Predictably, Menilek’s initial loan of $10,000 was not enough to finish his home and he had to take out a further loan from the Bank of Abyssinia of $5,000 at 12% interest per month. The home was an incredibly expensive undertaking and took an inordinate amount of his time and energy. The debts he had built up to complete his house and the financial headaches these caused him, played a major role in his decision to return to Burma in 1913. However, his home soon became something of an Addis Ababa landmark and is referred to by many, especially of the older generation as his home, although it was transferred to the government in 1913 and has remained with it ever since.

The role of his Mahbär & the masons Wärqenäh’s marriage and the building of his large home, seem to have had a substantial influence on his religious attitudes and actions. A fascinating conjunction also occurred in June of 1910. Within a little over two weeks Wärqenäh was initiated as a mason and joined a major Mahbär, a monthly gathering in honor of a saint, similar to a prestigious club, which included Emperor Menilek and Empress Taytu. The Mahbär, which met on St. Michael’s day, a monthly feast in the Ethiopian calendar, was more a social than religious gathering but had distinctly religious overtones. [We] had a Mahabar today…It is Machael Mahabar. The Abyssinians have societies in the name of difft [different] saints to wh [which] certain number belong as members. Each member gives a lunch in turn on the particular saint’s day. I have joined the Machael Society & my turn of feeding the members will come in Dec [December]. I was formally accepted as a member today the ceremony consisting of prayers & blessings by the priest of the Society.15

  WD, 19.6.1910.

15

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma Today they are often organized as self-help organizations and to hold family or friends together during rapidly changing times.16 During Menilek’s later years he held his Mahbär on St. Michael’s day which was his birthday as well. Lej Iyasu, the future ruler, and Näggadras Haylä Giyorgis, the future prime minister, also joined the same Mahbär. Wärqenäh continued to be a member of the Mahbär at least through 1911. As well as widening his circle of acquaintances and contacts, it must surely have impressed his new in-laws that he was upstanding and orthodox, Wärqenäh’s initiation as a mason in June, 1910 raises a number of interesting questions about his intellectual and religious life. On the one hand, his marriage to Qätsälä, taking up the burdens of fasting and membership of the St. Michael Mahbär seem to indicate a deeper commitment to the strictures of the Ethiopian Orthodox church, while joining the Masonic order, would seem to indicate quite the opposite. The masons have generally been seen as anti-clerical and were hardly compatible with the Orthodox Church’s beliefs. It is also interesting to note that Wärqenäh joined the Masonic order at the same time that he took up his trowel and began building his first house in Addis Ababa. His references to the Masonic order are short and do not elaborate on his reasons for joining: ‘This evening I was initiated as a mason.’17 Most of its members seem to have been Armenians, many of whom were already his patients or friends, like Sarkis Terzian, Hachadourian and Howiyan. Most of the rest were Frenchmen who had been or became his friends or patients (the Count de la Guibourgière, M. Forgeron, and M. Deynaud) or Greeks. He was soon promoted to the Second degree and then to the Third degree and was also appointed treasurer. During this period he traveled, curiously, two intellectual tracks simultaneously. On the one hand, he was a modern doctor and member of the masons, following a secular, western-type ideology. At the same time, in 1910 he joined a traditional Ethiopian Mahbär. Later in life, in 1926, he would come up with a creative synthesis of the two when he formed the Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär. The 1910 Mahbär was an association which basically brought individuals together for social interaction, albeit in Wärqenäh’s case with the elite of Ethiopia. There were no dues, other than providing the food for the feast about once a year. However, a major object was ‘mutual support’ and members might be called upon to support a needy member with ‘support and assistance both in cash and otherwise’18. A written petition was needed to enter and members would deliberate before accepting individuals. Wärqenäh would later incorporate these aspects of the Mahbär into his Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär. Aspects that he did not include were honorary priests as members, a religious ceremony was necessary for entrance and that female members were allowed to prepare the food, but not participate in the feast. They had to be represented by a male relative or servant.   See Siegbert Uhlig, ed. Encyclopaedia Aethiopica (Wiesbaden, 2007), Vol. 3, p. 649 [Henceforth, EAE] and also Stephanie Ancel, ‘Mahbar et sanbate; associations religieuses en Ethiopia,’ Aethiopica; International Journal of Ethiopian Studies, Vol. 8 (2005), pp. 95-111. 17   WD, 1.6.1910. Underlining in the diary. 18   The best description of a Mahbär can be found in EAE, p. 649. See also WD, 2.10.1900. 16

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 The Freemasons during this period had a distinct ideology into which Wärqenäh seems to have tapped. The origin of the modern masons went back to the Enlightenment and they represented the west and modernity. They were a significant, though often exaggerated, force in the later stages of the Ottoman Empire standing for reform and progress. In the Ethiopia of 1910 to 1913, when Wärqenäh was a prominent member, the lodge in Addis Ababa was made up largely of foreigners and Wärqenäh seems to have been the only Ethiopian member, certainly the only one mentioned in his diary. Wärqenäh first mentioned the masons in his diary when he was in London in 1907 when a friend H. Sylvester Williams asked if he would like to join the masons. Wärqenäh answered that he didn’t have the money to join right then but encouraged Williams to go ahead. He was duly proposed before the Liegh Lodge in London in 1908. Nothing further is noted on the subject in the diary, until he was initiated as a mason in Addis Ababa in 1910. Thus it is clear that there were substantial initiation and subscription fees. These would both be part of his Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär. However, the masons’ obsession with rank and promotion (Wärqenäh reached the third degree by 1911) were not included in his new Mahbär. Yet careful accounts of all the organization’s monies, accountability, were a central part of the masons and of his Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär.19 Considering the course of Wärqenäh’s life, his commitment to the masons during this period of his career does not seem to be out of character. Throughout his adult life he never was for long an active member of a mainline church. Once his adoptive mother died, he seems to have gone to church only occasionally. He always seems to have held strong ‘moral values’ that were not necessarily closely linked to a particular western or Orthodox Church. His strong belief in reason, his criticism of many clerics within the Ethiopian church all seem to be of a cloth with the basic beliefs of the Masonic order. It is fascinating, however, that he should join the masons at precisely the same time that he was trying to persuade his in-laws that he was religiously worthy of Wäyzäro Qätsälä Tullu’s hand. After 1913 there is no indication that he remained a mason, ever participated in the order again, or that he rejoined the Mika’él Mahbär. However, as we shall see in the next chapter, after his return to Ethiopia in the 1920s he formed the Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär. This combined elements of both the Mahbär and the masons to create what in many ways resembles a modern NGO (Non-Governmental Organization), especially since one of its basic aims was to abolish slavery and establish a school for young former slaves.

Wärqenäh’s role as an advisor & modernizer Wärqenäh’s wide range of contacts and acquaintances, enhanced by his extended family and links with the masons, his Mahbär and medical practice gave him a special opportunity to act as an advisor to the rich and powerful in Addis Ababa and Ethiopia. We have already seen several cases of Wärqenäh’s role as an   See below for fuller account of Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma advisor to Abunä Matéwos, Emperor Menilek, Empress Taytu and Ras Täsämma and will see below some examples with Lej Iyasu. However, very little of his advice seems to have actually been followed, except with Ras Täsämma and a few other cases with the less powerful. Attempts to advise Abunä Matéwos, who after all was quite a good friend, give some real insight into the difficulties of trying to advise courtiers of the Ethiopian court.

Abunä Matéwos (1910–1913) While Wärqenäh was in Ethiopia, Abunä Matéwos (a native born Egyptian) was among the powerful men in Ethiopia, his most consistent and reliable contact and source of information. Both were outsiders, and considered foreigners, and both had long term experience living abroad. They had a better grasp than did the indigenous Ethiopian power structure of the might of the colonial powers and their expectations for reform and modernization. Although Matéwos was a good deal more conservative than the liberal Wärqenäh, he still sought his advice. In turn Wärqenäh tried hard to counteract some of the church leader’s intolerant and conservative views. Personally, they were cordial, good friends. However, they could often disagree strongly on policy. The foundation of their relationship during this period, as it was at the begin­ ning of the century, lay in Wärqenäh’s profession as a doctor. Wärqenäh treated him for a variety of illnesses from the common cold to lumbago, influenza, stomach ailments and sore throat. This regular, almost weekly access to the head of the Ethiopian church made it much easier for Wärqenäh to obtain accurate information on the inner workings of the Ethiopian elite and government. Wärqenäh often tried, and sometimes succeeded, in using Matéwos as an intermediary with the emperor, empress and later the Regent Ras Täsämma and even Lej Iyasu. At times they agreed that the empress was ‘acting very foolishly’ during the political crisis in 1909 and later the Abun explained in some detail the whole story of the empress’s tactics. Later during another political crisis they discussed the Minister of War, Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis’s desire to crown Lej Iyasu as emperor. They both agreed that this would be unwise. Even later when the Regent, Ras Täsämma, was having problems, the Abun asked for his advice: Visited Abuna at his request. He talked confidentially about…the Ras [Ras Täsämma] & his difficulties. Asked my advice. Told him that he did have a good council of Ministry & shd [should] settle affairs after public & free discussion by them, that he shd [should] think less of his own interests & pocket & shd [should] be generous & free.20

The Abun also promised to intervene on Wärqenäh’s behalf with Lej Iyasu to bring them closer together. Wärqenäh’s relationship with Iyasu did improve the following year, but it is virtually impossible to know how useful Matéwos’s intervention was. Wärqenäh also gave advice on two major issues, education and religion, over which the head of the church had great influence. As noted above the Abun had   WD, 6.12.1910.

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 worked with the emperor to found the new Menilek II School in Addis Ababa and by 1910 was ready to show it off to the new regent, but also revealed a remarkable degree of intolerance against the Catholic Church: Went to the School with the Ras. A sort of examination was held. The boys seem to have made fair progress. The Abuna was there and very anxious he was to show off the work of the Coptic teachers. However I do not think they are doing as good work as they might. Their teaching of English is abominable on account of their awful pronunciation. After the Examination the Abuna delivered a speech to a few of us in which he abjured Ras Tasama to drive the Catholic Missionaries out of the country. He has taken oath to shut up all the church at the end of a fortnight if by that time the Ras fails to take a decisive step in this matter. He is an awfully ignorant and bigoted man and a curse to this country.21

He was also intolerant towards Protestants. Called on the Abuna…Told him that the Govt [Government] cd [could] not fairly order the closing of other schools as long as they were properly run. But he said it was necessary to do so to prevent other denomination[s] teaching their faith. Told him that I felt certain that by doing so the Abyssn Govt [Ethiopian government] will come into collision with other European powers. He was obstinate. We also talked about Alaka Taye.22

In neither of the areas of educational reform nor as a proponent of tolerance did Wärqenäh seem to make any significant progress. Thus they vehemently disagreed on education and tolerance, but still clearly remained on friendly terms personally. However, he also tried to persuade the head of the Ethiopian church to revise and improve the Amharic version of the Bible. He confronted him at least twice, according to his diary, on this issue: Spoke to the Abuna about revising the Amharic bible but he was as usual shifty, helpless & unsatisfactory about it. He said he thought the translation was quite alright23.

A year and six months later, he seemed to have changed his mind: ‘Called on the Abuna & spoke to him again about revising the Amharic bible. He said he will see about it.’24 However, there was no new revised edition of the Amharic bible until 1924, fourteen years later.25 At the time of Wärqenäh’s marriage their friendship proved to be remarkably advantageous. Once Wärqenäh had decided he wanted to marry Qätsälä Tullu, his father-in-law began to have second thoughts. The head of the church, on the other hand, was ‘pleased’ that Wärqenäh wanted to marry an Ethiopian. He then spoke on Wärqenäh’s behalf to the girl’s father, who ‘wants to know about my faith’.26 It turned out that many in the family had a similar concern, for Wärqenäh was considered a foreigner by many of them.     23   24   25   26   21 22

WD, 21.5.1910. WD, 17.2.1911. WD, 16.3.1909. WD, 9.9.1910. See EAE, Vol. 1, p. 575. WD, 21.8.1910 & 4.9.1910.

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma Ato Wandafrash, Qatala’s grandfather called & had lunch. He said that Fit [Fitawrari] Tullu was being worried by people for giving Qatala to me & asked me to get a letter from the Abuna in writing to say that he approves of me.27

The marriage seems to have gone ahead in good part because of the Abun’s vouching for Wärqenäh’s religious beliefs. Thus Wärqenäh’s relationship with the Abun was both personal and professional, but also had a political and power dynamic. Overall, however, very little of his advice to Matéwos seems to have been followed.

Ras Täsämma (1909–1913) Wärqenäh was probably more influential, albeit over a shorter period of years with the Regent Ras Täsämma than with Abunä Matéwos, Emperor Menilek or Empress Taytu. Yet his medical expertise did not form the foundation of his relationship with Täsämma as it had with the Emperor, Empress or Abunä Matéwos. Täsämma, before the overthrow of Taytu, was an active intermediary for Wärqenäh and when he came into his own after Taytu’s overthrow as the most powerful man in Ethiopia, he followed some of Wärqenäh’s advice in two aspects of his foreign policy as well as being an important ally to Wärqenäh personally, especially as regards his marriage. Ras Täsämma was a remarkably important intermediary for Wärqenäh with Emperor Menilek and Empress Taytu, before he took over the government of Ethiopia as regent in March, 1910. Täsämma came to trust Wärqenäh’s judgment and rely on him in crafting his policy towards Britain and Somaliland. [Went to see] Ras Tasama. He spoke to me about the evacuation of the Somaliland protectorate by the English. Told him that he had better write and put in claim for the territory and see what the English Government has to say.28

Later in advising the Regent again on this topic, Wärqenäh revealed a signifi­cant change in his core political beliefs: Wrote out and gave the Ras in writing what I thought about the British Somaliland wh [which] has just been evacuated. Told him that he shd [should] send a mission of condolence to England at once wh shd [which should] also undertake to discuss the question of transfer of the Somaliland by the B. Govt [British Government] to us.29

This is the first instance where Wärqenäh refers to Ethiopia or Ethiopians as us, rather than them. His Ethiopian nationalism had taken a very significant step. Furthermore, his advice was implemented a few months later. Saw the Ras at the Custom House where he was getting cartridge cases removed...He asked me to write to him about the British Somaliland suggesting that the best way of obtaining it now that the British have evacuated it. Played polo.

  WD, 3.12.1910.   WD, 17.5.1910. Underlining in diary. 29  WD, 3.6.1910. Underlining in diary. 27 28

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 Went to the Ras’s house in the afternoon. Saw him &... asked him about the Somaliland affair. He said he was trying to get the country & wd [would] send a mission for the purpose to England on King George’s coronation.30

The mission actually arrived in England in 1911 and included his friend Ato Heruy Wäldä Sellasé.31 This is probably one of the clearest instances of his advice having a significant impact on a major issue of national policy along with his advice to Empress Taytu to publish a public report on the Dr. Steinkuhler controversy, as described earlier. Täsämma also followed Wärqenäh’s advice on general matters, often asking for it in written form and especially trusted Wärqenäh’s judgment when it came to Menilek’s health problems. Overall, they seem to have been good personal friends: After the lunch spoke to the Ras... He was jocular & affable & I cd [could] not get him to speak seriously. He said for work I shd [should] just come occasionally & feel his & Lidj Yasu’s pulse.32

Wärqenäh took advantage of his proximity to power in a variety of ways. First, Täsämma’s willingness to be an intermediary during the end of Taytu’s period in power allowed him to maintain his position as physician to the Ethiopian court and after Taytu stopped his salary for two months, Täsämma was able to get it reinstated and also restore him his back pay. Wärqenäh promptly sent him a case of Canadian whiskey in gratitude. The most important assistance that Täsämma rendered Wärqenäh, however, was in facilitating his marriage to Qätsälä Tullu. When Wärqenäh told the Ras of his desire to marry Qätsälä, he ‘was pleased’ and gave him detailed advice as to which individuals he should send as intermediaries to his future father-in-law. Täsämma went even further in helping his friend going so far as to vouch for him to her mother and other relatives. They thought of Wärqenäh as a foreigner and wanted Ras Täsämma’s permission in writing before they would agree to the marriage. Thus it took the intervention of two of Wärqenäh’s most powerful friends to gain the trust and agreement of his future in-laws to his marriage, the Regent of Ethiopia, Ras Täsämma, and the head of the Ethiopian church Abunä Matéwos. Wärqenäh also used his influence with Ras Täsämma in at least two other instances to help a family member and himself. First, he obtained permission from Täsämma for his cousin, Lej Zälläqä to gain regular access to Täsämma and his court. He also persuaded Täsämma to initiate the process to give him a concession in a nearby forest to gather the wood he needed for his various construction projects. Ras Täsämma’s sudden death in April 1911 brought this relationship to an end and Wärqenäh, trying to shore up his future contacts, turned his attention to the new ruler of Ethiopia the youthful fifteen year old Lej Iyasu.   WD, 31.5.1910, underlining in diary and 11.8.1910.   See EAE, Vol. 3, p. 20. 32   WD, 12.7.1910. 30 31

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma Wärqenäh’s role as an advisor to the Ethiopian court, as we have seen, included various occasions when his actions helped to modernize Ethiopia. However, as a modernizer Wärqenäh’s greatest contributions were, perhaps, not often immediately or readily apparent. Yes, he built a modern home on edge of Jan Hoy Méda, but had little real impact on Menilek, Taytu or Abunä Matéwos. His influence was probably more on an individual level, during discussions and exchanges with the small circle of modernizers in the court or on its periphery. Many were his patients, others were good friends (like Mika’él Berru and Heruy) while others just dropped by to chat or ask advice. The most well known were Mika’él Berru (long time dragoman or translator at the British legation), Ato Heruy Wäldä Sellasé (later Foreign Minister and close to Emperor Haylä Sellasé) and Käntiba Gäbru.33 Wärqenäh was also an important link, probably, between them and the internationals in Addis Ababa, Armenians, Greeks, Frenchmen, Indians and British. Wärqenäh was especially close to some in the Armenian community, like Sarkis and Hachadourian, and with the major Indian merchants in Addis Ababa. He was also well known to various foreign families who had married into the Ethiopian aristocracy, like the Schimpers and the Halls.34According to his autobiography Wärqenäh played a major role in easing Täsämma’s final days: In February 1911, Ras Tessema, who was an old man, took ill with a nervous breakdown [described in his diary as ‘brain fag’], due to over work and heavy responsibilities, on account of his ignorance and being unaccustomed to hard, complicated work. I had to visit him every day, but when his illness continued for weeks, I got my colleagues to help me. However, after all our efforts, the Ras suddenly died on the night of 10 April and his body was immediately taken to the monastery of Debra Libanos for burial.35

Wärqenäh as a mediator Closely related to his role as an advisor and modernizer, was his role as a mediator both for those within in his family and those outside it. There are a large number of times when Wärqenäh interceded as a go-between to try to sort out his family’s problems and disputes. A few examples show the range and variety of his involvement with his family. He had played this role in his first period in Ethiopia, from 1899–1903 and would continue to do so the rest of his life. In 1912 he intervened to help smooth over marital difficulties between Fitawrari Tullu and his wife Sabé Yefat. He intervened on behalf of a relative in a legal dispute by going straight to the head of the Ethiopian legal system, the Afä Negus. He reconciled family members to those with whom they were no longer   These figures appear regularly in Wärqenäh’s diary. Others who appear less often were Ato Haylä Maryam, Wäldä Haymanot, Ato Mika’él (the interpreter from Ankober), Ato Hanna (another interpreter), Ato Wandi (a longtime Ethiopian catholic), Yohannes (Cederqvist’s interpreter) and Ato Zawga, the interpreter at the French legation. 34   On the Halls, see EAE, Vol. 2, pp. 979-980 and in WD see especially, 11.12.1908. For Schimpers see WD, 12.7.1910 and 6.5.1911. See also, Bahru Zewde’s, Pioneers, passim. 35   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 45a. 33

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 on speaking terms and intervened to allow them to return to the imperial court after they had fallen from favor. He also acted as intermediary for friends and acquaintances. In 1911 he presented a letter which was basically a petition from Schimper (a long time German resident in Ethiopia) to Lej Iyasu and also protested the ‘ill treatment’ of some foreigners in the capital to the proper authorities. He also acted as a mediator to the poor and powerless, not just for his own family and friends. In 1913 he allowed a runaway slave to take refuge in his home and then tried to present his case to the higher authorities. In this way he helped those with no access to the court to at least have their grievances heard. This was a role that had begun in a small way when he was in Ethiopia at the beginning of the century and would continue throughout 1908–1913 and when he returned to Ethiopia in 1919, right through until the very end of his life.

Family After his return to Ethiopia in 1908 Wärqenäh’s role in his family was much the same as it had been previously from 1900 to 1903. His Gondarine relatives remained a fairly fractious lot, and he often had to intervene in personal disputes and marital difficulties. He also disbursed small loans to those who seemed in need, though perhaps not as often as he had done in the past. He and Ato Terunäh seemed to be the most respected of the elders of the family, but during this period in Ethiopia (1908–1913), Wärqenäh stayed clear of investing in any family commercial activities. Through his marriage with Qätsälä, he naturally inherited a wholly new family, much more powerful and widely connected than his own. The ramifications of this marriage alliance would not really become clear until his return to Ethiopia in 1919. Another fascinating aspect of his household and family was that he included in it a miniature school. Two families sent sons to live and be brought up in his household, Lej Bäyyänä and Näggadras Wändäm Aggäñähu. Later when he left for Burma three young Ethiopians from different families were sent with him to be educated overseas: Yohannes, Sämäñ and Alämayähu. Education remained a major priority for Wärqenäh throughout his life: for himself, his family, friends and for Ethiopia. But he also had time for pastimes like polo, tennis, photography and gardening.

Wärqenäh’s relationship with Lej Iyasu Wärqenäh’s departure from Ethiopia in 1913 was hastened by the ups and downs in his relationship with Lej Iyasu, particularly the downs. The relationship between Wärqenäh and Iyasu, Emperor Menilek’s heir, is the most enigmatic of all his relationships with those in power. He was never quite sure if he was in favor or not. He gave advice but it does not seem that it was taken and yet he received his 87

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma salary up until his contract with the Ethiopian government expired. Iyasu never gave Wärqenäh any land. At times he seemed to be genuinely affectionate and at others rather difficult. Overall, Wärqenäh’s major coup seems to have been that he persuaded Iyasu to be godfather to his eldest son. Wärqenäh’s overall assessment of Iyasu in his autobiography is most revealing: On 28 May [1911], I was surprised to hear that some of the chiefs and officers had…informed him that as he was still very young, he should not interfere in the administration of the country, which would be taken in hand by a Council of Regency of high officials for the time being. Of course the Prince was quite taken aback, but quietly acceded to the proposal, however, later on the advice of his self seeking friends, he stood out for full power. After a lot of conferences between the two parties in the case, the Prince’s side succeeded and full regal powers were assumed by the Prince, who was then only sixteen years of age and a very wild character at that. The result of this, was that the self-seeking wicked advisers of his, kept the Prince employed in mischevious [sic] ways, while they usurped all the power for themselves. Eventually, the dissipation he indulged in sent the Prince half crazy and caused his final fall.36

Like many of Ethiopia’s leaders before him, Iyasu’s first relationship with Wärqenäh was as his patient, but his health seemed to have been largely under the supervision of Italian doctors in his early years. As a teenager he had his foot and leg ‘dressed’ by Wärqenäh, later he was vaccinated and once even treated for possible poisoning. Throughout his reign Wärqenäh periodically gave Iyasu advice, about education, liquor, women, foreigners and politics but none of it ever seems to have made any impression whatsoever. Some examples were: Went to the Gibbi [palace]. Sat near Lij Yasu at his request & spoke to him about his indifference to education. Advised him strongly & also pointed out to him the danger of indulging in drink & women. He said he avoided the indulgences. Wrote to Lij Eyasu as Emperor...advising him to try to get Berbera. Wrote to Lij Eyasu advising despatch of a Red Cross Mission to France to treat the wounded in connection with Mrs Doughty-Wylie Hospital. Offered Qatsala’s services to show the earnestness of my advice.37

Iyasu was the first ruler of Ethiopia to whom Wärqenäh wrote offering advice. First he wrote to his wife, Qätsälä that she should advise Iyasu to support the Allies in World War I and not the Germans. Later he wrote to the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, who would be more likely to follow his advice on education than Iyasu: ‘Wrote ... to Haila Gorgis strongly advising the latter to specially attend to the education of the country.’38 On another occasion he said: ‘Went to the Gibbi for Gibbar [banquet]. Ras [Täsämma] afterwards said I had better come & vaccinate Lij Yasu & see him occasionally [sic].’39 He later vaccinated him, it was not successful, probably because the imported serum had become ineffective, and an Italian doctor     38   39   36 37

Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 45a-46a. WD, 17.7.1910, 10.4.1914 & 13.12.1914. WD, 29.8.1915. Underlining Wärqenäh’s. WD, 31.7.1910.

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 tried again on another occasion. This too must not have ‘taken’ because there is another record of a vaccination in September of that year. Despite all these pinpricks, Iyasu was ‘very affectionate’ and Ras Täsämma asked Wärqenäh to draw up a timetable for Iyasu to follow.40 There is no evidence he ever took this advice. Wärqenäh still had some responsibilities for his health:. Was sent for by Ras Tasama thro [through] Lij Yasu. When I saw him he showed me some mixture wh [which] the Dentist had been applying to his gums & wh [which] the Ras thought was doing him harm. Told him I cd [could] not tell what the Mixture contained. So he made me wait till the Dentist came to see him. Waited till 5 p.m. when the dentist came saw him apply the mixture & fd [found] out that it contained iodoform & Ether. The Ras is very suspicious. The Dentist (a Greek) at the end asked that his affair be settled with regard to his pay. Arranged that the ministers shd [should] discuss his case on Thursday next & that I shd [should] be present. 41

After Ras Täsämma’s death Wärqenäh’s relations with Iyasu were initially good. He persuaded him to accept his relative Lej Zälläqä as one of his personal attendants. This was the third time that Wärqenäh had furthered Zälläqä’s career, having previously reconciled him with Empress Taytu and then had him admitted to Ras Täsämma’s court. Wärqenäh’s new home was slowly rising to overlook Iyasu’s playground for his favorite game, gugs, perhaps best described as an Ethiopian form of polo. Fortuitously for Wärqenäh, Iyasu would often drop by to see him at his new home after finishing one of his games. However, for reasons that are not wholly clear Wärqenäh fell out of favor for about six months. The major reason was probably because of his close friendship with Lej Bäyyänä who was implicated in Ras Abatä’s attempt to usurp power and was imprisoned for a while before he was cleared. During most of this period Wärqenäh had difficulties in his relationship with Iyasu. Saw Lij Yasu, asked him for a traction engine but he said he wd [would] inquire. As he has not been as friendly as usual, asked him what had I done to displease but he wdn’t [would not] reply & went away to his house quietly.42

During this period, Wärqenäh still treated him without incident, but Iyasu was increasingly causing most everybody in the court significant problems. Eyasu rude & angry because Dad Marid told him that I prevented Walda Gorgis[,] the Hospital dresser[,] to go & see his relation who is sick a days journey from here. Told Eyasu that that was not true. The boy is losing his head. Dagafu came over & said he had spoken to Lij Eyasu about me & that he had told him to remind him about me when he (L. Eyasu) attended the Ministers meeting so that he will arrange to have me kept back from going to India. Dagafu also told me about L.E.’s [Lej Iyasu’s] wild doings in the evening. Going out to prostitute’s houses & running about practically alone.43     42   43   40 41

WD, 1.9.1910. WD, 14.8.1910. WD, 8.7.1911. WD, 18.8.1911 & 7.1.1912.

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma Wärqenäh got so concerned that he asked powerful friends in the court to intercede for him to help restore him to favor including Abunä Matéwos. Their efforts may very well have been successful, because a reconciliation of sorts took place in late January, 1912. Yesterday eveng [evening] went to the Race Course to give Lij Eyasu a copy of the letter wh [[which] I wrote to him & the Ministers & gave to Haila Gorgis to give. The latter not having shown the letter to Lij Eyasu went over to give a copy. Lij Eyasu was very affable & friendly & made me play polo with him…Lij Eyasu also asked me to go & see him at his house & told Mukriya to see that I was not stopped from going in. Hachadourian came over to congratulate me on having heard of my reconciliation with Lij Eyasu...I called at Lij Eyasu’s house but cd [could] not see him.44

Wärqenäh’s return to grace with the mercurial Iyasu came just in time for him to be included as the official doctor on the expedition in the first of Iyasu’s soon to be infamous trips into the hinterlands of Ethiopia. It lasted from February 17th to May 13th, 1912. This trip may have marked the period in Wärqenäh’s life when he was most in favor with the monarch and his proximity to power was the greatest. However, his tangible rewards were few for such an arduous and difficult journey. For a man of 47 years, the physical hardships of keeping up with a hormonally charged teenager of 15 were formidable. Fortunately, his most consistent patient was Telahun, Iyasu’s favorite at that time, who had a variety of eye and foot ailments that kept Wärqenäh quite busy. On occasion he treated villagers on the way and clearly had a pretty busy time treating over three hundred sick on the trip.45 The trip came to a poignant and symbolic climax. The entry in Wärqenäh’s diary is baldly factual, as usual. On the 16th of April, 1912, the party visited Mäqdäla and treated its recent prisoner, Ras Abatä, Wärqenäh’s friend who had recently been sequestered for his attempted usurpation of Iyasu’s power. Wärqenäh does not reflect on his own imprisonment there (some forty years before), nor on the death of his parents or his exile in India. Went to Magdala with the Prince [Lej Iyasu] just a few people were only allowed to accompany, about 30…Visited the church of Mariam, then visited Salamge and the church of Sallasi. In the former church King Theodore was buried [sic], but lately his bones have been taken away by his son to Quarra his native country. Saw some of Theodore’s mortars and a very large gun which are lying about. Saw the precipice over which the King used to throw people over by scores when angry. Saw Arogi and the small flat hillock of Falle just below Salamge. Saw the site of the house in which Theodore shot himself after the taking of the fortress by the English. At lunch I got a chance to talk to Prince and asked him to be the baby’s godfather. He agreed. Asked him also to write a nice letter to Qatala and to inquire by telephone if Haila Gorgis has asked the British Minister to get permission for retaining my services. He promised to do both.46   WD, 28.1.1912.   Wärqenäh Autobiography p. 47a.   WD, 16-17.4.1912. Underlining in the diary. His autobiography is hardly more introspective. He only goes so far as to say, ‘It was, of course, very interesting to me to see the place from where I was taken away 47 years ago.’ See p. 48a. 44 45 46

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 Wärqenäh certainly picked the right time and place to ask Lej Iyasu to grant him this great mark of favor. It would have been hard for his ruler under the circumstances to refuse. Twenty four years later this godson Yuséf would be murdered in Addis Ababa by the troops of Benito Mussolini. Even if Iyasu promised something it could take great deal of time and effort to have the promise fulfilled. After their return to Addis Ababa in May, Iyasu suddenly decided on another trip, this time to southwestern Ethiopia. Wärqenäh was not ordered to be the doctor on this trip and thankfully remained in Addis Ababa with his wife and newborn son. Iyasu had prevented him from returning for the birth, and delayed officiating at his baptism. He was not being at all helpful in solving his financial problems, in extending his contract, or getting British permission for him to stay in Ethiopia. The latter was essential in maintaining payments on his pension and retaining any future job in Burma where he could continue to accumulate the years necessary for a pension. While Iyasu was away carrying out his infamous slave raid in the southwest, Wärqenäh suddenly suffered a virulent inflammation of the eye in December, 1912 which lasted until early 1913 and resulted in the loss of his left eye. He did not fully recover until the end of February, 1913. He did not see Iyasu until February, following his late January return from his expedition. After Iyasu’s many further delays, the christening of Wärqenäh’s eldest son did not take place until the February 25th, 1913, ten months after Iyasu’s original promise at Mäqdäla. ‘[Yuséf] christened today. Lij Eyasu being his God-father. Lots of guests fed. In the afternoon Lij Eyasu came over and had dinner with some of his officers.’47 After a great deal of effort and prodding Wärqenäh managed to get his salary paid regularly. However, he was never successful in getting Iyasu to request the British to extend his contract to work at the medical clinic in the British legation. Nor was Iyasu particularly helpful in Wärqenäh’s long and tortuous negotiations to get significant government help on a loan he needed to pay off the debts he had incurred in building his home on the site given to him by Emperor Menilek. These two failures to get financial assistance forced him to leave Ethiopia in 1913, and to return to Burma where he had steady and lucrative employment. Wärqenäh throughout the period from 1911 to 1913 was never able to ensure that he remained consistently in Iyasu’s favor. He continued to try to get Iyasu to intervene and to sort out his affairs, again and again Iyasu would prevaricate, promise to do so, or simply avoid Wärqenäh. Qätsälä also tried to persuade the headstrong teenager. Went to Lij Eyasu’s house. He was not visible even till 10 A.M. and was said to be asleep! No meeting of ministers so my business not settled. Having arranged about Qatala and her mother seeing Lij Eyasu today at 3 p.m... Qatala talked freely and well to Lij Eyasu regarding the sale of my house and confounded Nagad Ras Haila Gorgis [the Prime Minister] who was present, on the subject. Lij Eyasu ordered Haila Gorgis to settle about it on Thursday next at the Minister’s meeting and to let him know the   WD, 25.2.1913.

47

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma decision. I went to Lij Eyasu’s house later….Did not speak to Lij Eyasu only saw him from a distance.48

None of Wärqenäh’s three priorities, essential to his continued residence in Ethiopia, were being seriously addressed by Iyasu. The court was getting increasingly fed up with Iyasu: ‘People very sick with Lij Eyasu on account of his wild and irresponsible behaviour.’49 In May 1913 he went off on another trip to get away from Addis Ababa and its crushing responsibilities. Wärqenäh was never able to get Iyasu and the ministers to agree to a variety of essential issues: first, to get British permission for him to stay in Ethiopia, second, the continuation of his contract for $600 a month, third, a concession or land that would allow him to maintain sufficient income to pay for his house expenses and his pension contributions, nor, finally, the financial expenses overseas necessary to educate his two sons (Téwodros and Engäda). So finally he compromised on a payment for the home he had so laboriously built, not the $45,000 plus he had bargained hard for but for $40,000 and the promise for a new site. This cash allowed him to settle his outstanding debts, especially to the Bank of Abyssinia on the eve of his departure. Since Iyasu had refused permission for Qätsälä to leave he went without his family but took three Ethiopian boys whom he had promised to educate abroad. Wärqenäh’s relationship with Iyasu was often close and yet always enigmatic. Overall though, virtually none of Wärqenäh’s advice to Iyasu was accepted.

Wärqenäh’s role as a doctor Being a doctor was at the core of Wärqenäh’s identity and this profession was what dominated his career until his retirement in Ethiopia in 1919. As we have seen Wärqenäh returned to Ethiopia in 1908 with an appointment to be the official doctor for the British legation in Addis Ababa. This position lasted almost a year until the Ethiopian government asked for his services to treat Menilek and he was given a three year appointment in late 1909. Then after Menilek’s worsening medical condition in 1910 resulted in his becoming non compus mentis, Wärqenäh no longer had a full time job taking care of the emperor but still had his iron clad government contract. The empress, Ras Täsämma and the government ministers tried unsuccessfully to find him various permanent jobs to do for the government, one of which was working at Ethiopia’s major hospital, the Menilek Hospital in Addis Ababa. As the West Indian doctor, by name Vitalien, who was in charge of the Government hospital, was leaving the country, I was ordered by Ras Tessema, to take charge of the Menelik Hospital. Of course I did so and attended the hospital every day, but it meant working under great difficulties as there were no trained assistants attached to the institution. I had l’Herminier as my colleague, but as he was taken seriously ill, I

  WD, 4.3.1913.   WD, 21.3.1913.

48 49

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 was left quite alone and often had to request the Legation surgeons to assist when I had to do a serious operation.50

Wärqenäh’s role in the Menilek hospital was never clarified, but he never wished to act as its top administrator and only did so briefly as a temporary measure. However, he continued to be an occasional surgeon at the hospital and perform operations on government officials, their relatives and also on ordinary Ethiopian citizens, while first Dr. Vitalien and then Doctors L’Herminier and Rousseau were the hospital’s top administrators. Although the empress, the regent and some of the ministers at various times seem to have wanted Wärqenäh to lead the administration of the hospital, others wanted the duties to be split between him and the French doctors. The dispute was long and sometimes rancorous. However it seems clear that it was the French who continuously controlled the hospital. Wärqenäh did not want the dispute to become personal (he seems to have had amicable relations with all of the doctors), and Wärqenäh refused to be an administrator unless his responsibilities were very clearly defined. So from 1910 to his departure in 1913 he ended up as the hospital’s administrator only when all the French doctors were away, sick or on leave, from September to October 1911. After the end of 1911 he was rarely involved with the hospital. His trip to Wällo with Lej Iyasu and then the loss of the sight in one eye may have contributed to a lessening of his role there. Wärqenäh was almost certainly relieved not to have to administer the hospital, because it is clear that there was constant infighting between the Ethiopian staff and the French administrators. The major problem was a common one in Ethiopia, the irregular payment of salaries. Throughout his five years in Ethiopia, the bulk of Wärqenäh’s medical role in Ethiopia was focused on the treatment of individual patients. After his stint in the British legation clinic, he traveled all over the capital in all weathers visiting and treating a remarkably wide range of patients. If their ailments were severe he would perform operations in the Menilek hospital, otherwise he would treat them in their homes. Occasionally he opened his home and took in those needing constant round the clock care, nursing them himself. After he was no longer the British legation doctor he had a wider variety of patients, often hard to categorize, but falling into several broad ranging groups. Some were members of his own family and others close friends; these he rarely charged. A great many were Ethiopians who were members of the court who Menilek, Taytu, Täsämma or a prominent minister asked him to treat. He might have been ‘ordered’ to do so, but since he sometimes refused, generally with a common sense reason, ‘ask’ probably better describes the situation. This group of patients reads like a who’s who of the rich and powerful of Ethiopian society. Finally, there were his fee paying patients who were mainly rich foreigners, Indian and Armenian traders, and a number of British expatriates. Each group will now be briefly explored. Virtually every family member who became ill he treated personally, not only his wife and her relatives, but his own family no matter how distantly related. He also treated close friends, such as the fairly affluent British and Indian expatriates   Wärqenäh Autobiography p. 44a.

50

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma whom he charged. Others, like his close friend Lej Bäyyänä and his wife Mulu Amabét, and their whole family, he treated at no cost. However, with the latter you can’t be sure if they might have been considered members of the court and therefore part of his duties or not. His remarkably diligent care of Bäyyänä’s daughter who was sick most of her five year life, and the long period he kept the small child in his home to nurse up to her death, reveals a devotion above and beyond the call of duty. Most numerous, without a doubt, was his large group of Ethiopian patients. Some he would turn to during his difficulties with the government; all would make up an almost unique network that he had started to build during his previous stay in Ethiopia and would dramatically grow during his five year residence in Addis Ababa from 1908–1913. At one time or another he treated a great number of the most powerful members of the Shäwan court, or their families, from 1908–1913. A selection gives a fairly good overall impression since Menilek’s court was an aging one. Thus he treated not only Emperor Menilek and the empress, but also the regent, Ras Täsämma, Lej Iyasu, Abunä Matéwos (the head of the church) and Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis (the minister of war). Some others were relations of Ras Täsämma and Taytu’s sister. Less powerful in the court but still very influential were: the Afä Negus (Chief Justice) and his wife; minister of the pen, Aläqa Gäbrä Sellasé and Telahun51 who became a Bitwäddäd or favorite of Lej Iyasu. Other prominent patients at court were Däjazmach and later Ras Abatä, Däjazmach Berru, Däjazmach Balcha, Däjazmach Täfäri (the future Haylä Sellasé) and Däjazmach Gäbrä Egzi’abeher (the ruler of the province of Wälläga). Wärqenäh was also occasionally asked to travel out to the provinces to treat prominent members of the court, Wäzäro Tsähay Wärq, for example, the daughter of Menilek’s favorite uncle, Ras Dargé. Without doubt this is a remarkable list of influential and powerful Ethiopians. Finally, Wärqenäh had an interesting variety of fee-paying patients. The largest number was almost certainly from the English-speaking community of the capital including prominent Indian traders and British expatriates. The Indian traders included: Muhammad Ali, his agent Jiwaji, Faizullah Akbar and Ghaleb. Others were from the capital’s Armenian community, his friend Hachadourian whom he treated for a chronic illness once a month, another old friend Sarkis Terzian and his family and Howiyan a government engineer. He also had the editor of Ethiopia’s first newspaper, Cavadia, as a patient. A last group were British expatriates such as Humphrys, Foot, Law and Walker. He treated all of them and most of their relations and/or retainers, although he often had difficulty extracting money from them. He often delegated that task, especially to Ethiopians to his assistants Gäbrä Mädhen and Tädla Abäbayähu. Wärqenäh was always the consummate professional as a doctor and during this period he seems to have relished his job and performed it with great devotion. However, by June 1913, events in Wärqenäh’s life had reached a crisis   WD, See 1912. Wärqenäh treated him many times during the trip to Wällo in 1912, but also his brother, wife and other relations. 51

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 point. It was clear that his position and influence in the Ethiopian courts was now quite weak. Furthermore, his contract with the Ethiopian Government had not and never would be renewed. On top of that in December 1912, his eye became infected after he had performed an operation, and soon thereafter he lost the sight in his left eye. His health was undermined and he was determined to go on leave in order to recover and get proper treatment for his lost eye. Thus, as we have seen, he wound up his affairs in Addis Ababa sorting out his financial difficulties and left for Burma in June, 1913. He left his wife and baby child behind as she ‘was in too delicate a condition to travel at the time’52 and took with him three Ethiopians to educate.

Burma (1913–1919) After returning from his longest stay so far in Ethiopia (1908–1913), Wärqenäh was posted, according to his autobiography, to Minbu from July 1913 to November 1914. Here instead of a district jail, I had to look after the lunatic asylum in addition to my medical work. On the day I took over charge, the Asylum had 111 lunatics in different stages of lunacy, some of whom were quite intelligent and interesting … As usual, I had to inspect the hospitals and the vaccination work, as well as the sanitation in the district every month.53

According to the gazetteers the climate in Minbu district generally was good, although in one part of the district the ‘fever is of a most dangerous form and appears to enfeeble the constitution for life’.54 The district had been at peace since 188955 and over 90% of the people in the district spoke Burmese. The British District Commissioner for Minbu was critical of the previous civil surgeon whom he described as ‘lazy’ and ‘apathetic’ and Wärqenäh quickly showed how energetic and thorough he could be. Soon after his arrival, cholera was reported in the town and he quickly took precautions to successfully contain it. He went on frequent tours throughout the province, performing vaccinations and gathering statistics on: vaccinations, births and deaths. While on tour he was active in ‘preaching’ about sanitation, fever and cholera to raise awareness and improve the basic health of the ordinary Burman. He was also assiduous in his inspections of not only the hospitals and the lunatic asylum under him, but also the local slaughter house, cemetery and organizing latrines for the local bazaar. He found that the ‘latrines [are] in an awful state’ at the local Anglo Vernacular High School. He also was careful in writing the annual reports for Minbu which included: the annual budget, the hospital report, the asylum report, and the sanitary report. Monthly plague reports were an added administrative burden.     54   55   52 53

Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 51a. Ibid., pp. 51a-52a. Upper Burma Gazetteer, Scott, Part II, Vol. II (1901), p. 301. Ibid., p. 310.

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma Again Wärqenäh showed himself to be a man of regular habits. His daily routine included his work days at the hospital, punctuated by inspections of the two hospitals and the lunatic asylum. He developed fruitful working relationships with his Burman subordinates and British superiors. Wärqenäh played tennis and snookers regularly but only occasionally went to church. An avid hunter, he went out shooting frequently and once bagged two elephants. His diary doesn’t elaborate, but, for Wärqenäh, his autobiography waxes lyrical on his hunting prowess.56 Even in the absence of his wife and children, Wärqenäh maintained a substan­ tial household. When he moved to his next post in 1914 he commented that he had five servants, two dogs and two ponies while at Minbu. When he returned from Ethiopia in 1913 he brought three Ethiopians with him, Yohannes, Sämäñ and Alämayähu. They remained with him as his companions and servants, but also to be educated in the ways of the west. Yohannes helped him in the translation he had undertaken of an Amharic Geography, while Alämayähu was jockey when one of his horses ran in a major Burmese horse race. Wärqenäh also reconnected with his Burmese son, Engädä, and invited him to come and spend his school vacation with him in September 1913. ‘Ingada arrived. He has grown up and can speak English fairly well but in a thorough Eurasian fashion. He was 15 years old on March 8th last. He is very quiet and submissive but very keen on football. He is in the 6th standard [equivalent to the 12th grade in the USA] and goes up for his exam in November.’57 Wärqenäh continued to regularly pay his school fees at St Mathews School in Moulmein and later to St. Peters School in Mandalay. Wärqenäh assiduously provided for and educated all of his sons. The declaration of World War I barely caused a ripple in his daily routine and is only rarely mentioned in his dairy, although in its later stages he spends a remarkably large amount of time raising money for war bonds and assuming the burdens of fellow officers who had gone to join the front.Next Wärqenäh was assigned to Myingyan, his last appointment in Burma, from October 1914 to August 1919; his wife and Ethiopian children joined him there on April 25th, 1915. Here, in addition to the medical work, I had to take charge of a large central jail, which had 1200 prisoners. This of course, meant pretty hard work, as it took about seven hours to inspect all the prisoners medically on Sundays, to discharge old and admit new convicts…daily. Of course there was a big establishment of jailors and subordinates, but one had to superintend every thing carefully, as the jailors and the guards were subject to serious temptations. I was pleased to get a chance of playing polo again in this place.58

Wärqenäh was in Myingyan longer than in any other posting during his Indian Civil Service career. According to the gazetteers, the climate of Myingyan was ‘dry and healthy’.59 Clearly Wärqenäh had enough clout and seniority to secure     58   59   56 57

Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 53a. WD, 5.9.13. Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 54a. Imperial Gazetteer of India, Vol. XXIII, p. 121.

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 this plum position, more appropriate to bring up his growing family, in a safe and relatively healthy environment. This was the most developed province to which Wärqenäh was posted during his career in the Indian Civil Service. Wärqenäh found Myingyan preferable to Minbu because the housing allocation was much better and the workload was likely to be lighter, important considerations since he expected his wife and family to join him there soon. ‘Went to the Hospital. It is a very small and poor place for the size of the town, only about 30 patients mostly police cases...My house is quite big and quite decent after the Minbu house and the great thing is that it is free. Smell of bat’s excreta is the only draw back.’60 However, it was six months before Wärqenäh’s wife joined him in Myingyan and meanwhile, after dealing with the bat problem, he had settled into a somewhat different routine, with many new and some old colleagues In Myingyan there was a sudden plague scare. He had to write many plague reports, educate the Burmese on the link between rats and the plague and once even had to shut down the bazaar for two days to clean it, because of dead rats and possible plague. His responsibilities also increased when the district commissioner was away from Myingyan and he became the senior administrator. Furthermore, during World War I, Turkish prisoners were incarcerated in the jail and he had to attend on some of their executions. Further routine duties included the many annual reports and the regular tours he made throughout the province and to the dispensaries. Linked with the war effort were several other extra tasks. He was asked and eventually agreed to give a regular series of First Aid Lectures in the town and the district, in effect ‘propaganda’, about sanitation. Second, he organized a number of horse-races each year to raise money for the war effort. Gambling was very popular in Burma but strictly controlled by the British. However, for these races, restrictions were lifted and the profits were spent on war bonds.

Qätsälä joins Wärqenäh in Burma In 1914 Wärqenäh finally persuaded Iyasu to allow his wife, Qätsälä, to join him in Burma. She, however, played a major role in Addis Ababa, using her family connections to reunite her with her husband. Wrote to Prince Lij Eyasu, and begged him to allow my wife to come out to me and, at the same time, strongly advised him not to have anything to do with Germany, as I had heard that he was showing sympathy towards her…Advised the Prince to give every assistance he could to the allies, Great Britain, France and Russia. Also told him I could not return to Ethiopia at the time, as he wanted me to do, on account of the war, which necessitated my carrying on with my work in Burma. Also wrote to the Prince’s principal advisor and friend, and asked him to advise the Prince to show sympathy towards the British and French and arrange to send some help.

  WD, 7.11.1914.

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma After a lot of trouble, my wife got Prince Eyasu’s permission to leave Ethiopia and come to me. She left on 26 March 1915, and after a serious risk of being attacked by German submarines, which were attacking steamers in the Indian Ocean, she luckily arrived safely in Myingyan on 25 April, with our elder son, a maid-servant and one of the boys I had educated. They were very much interested in the country and especially the Burmans. On account of the heavy work, but particularly on account of the very trying climate, attacks of fever, colds and piles, my health got so undermined, that I had to give up playing polo for some time. Occurrences of plague and cholera epidemics, as well as examinations of a large number of volunteers and soldiers, men for the Labor Corps, who were going off to the war, added to my regular work, to say nothing of my social duties in the shape of Secretaryship of the Club and of the Race Club, which I had started.61

Qätsälä came with their eldest Ethiopian son Yuséf (Joseph), having left the younger Benyam (Benjamin) with his grandparents. Her family, especially her mother was concerned, if they took both the boys, that they might never return to Ethiopia and the family line might then be extinguished.62 Wärqenäh also brought his son Téwodros (Theodore) to Myingyan in 1916; he had been born in England in 1908, and Wärqenäh tried to unite him with the rest of his family in Myingyan. The few references to him in Wärqenäh’s diary don’t reveal him having any significant difficulties in settling in with his father’s family. Nor is there any mention of Qätsälä’s relationship with Téwodros, or Theo as he was generally called. It could not have been an easy adjustment for either Téwodros or his stepmother. His first day was not auspicious. ‘He is quite sturdy and well built, but seems badly brought up. Has an awful cockney accent. Had to give him a beating in the afternoon for not coming when called to have his tea.’63 He and the rest of the ‘boys’ even went on tour with their father in 1916. Earlier that year Wärqenäh and Qätsälä’s first daughter, Astér (Esther), was born, and she was soon followed by two younger sisters, Elsabét (Elizabeth or Elsie) and Sara. An ayah, or Burmese nurse, was engaged to take care of the babies. Engäda was clearly still a member of the household, if somewhat peripheral since he was mostly away at school. He came home to visit but only on Christmas vacations, while his father regularly paid his tuition and he was sent to a new school in Maymyo in 1916 where he passed his high school finals in 1919. Now at the age of 20 and with a high school diploma in hand, his future must have become one of Wärqenäh’s serious concerns. In the short term he was sent to a local mill to ‘learn something’, other options that were discussed were taking a course in mechanical engineering in Bombay’s Victoria Technical Institute or to enter the civil police. Wärqenäh’s diary entry about him is explicit, ‘Ingada does not like joining the police’ 64 and the next to last entry in the diary about him says that, ‘Ingada left early this   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 54-55a.   Yä Wäyzäro Qätsälä Tullu Acher Tarik. In possession of the family and the author. 63   WD, 9.2.1916. 64   WD, 1.3.1919. 61 62

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Marriage & political influence 1910–1919 morning to go and see his foster parents.’65 The final mention of Engäda in the diary notes that he died in 1922 and is part of a list Wärqenäh included at the beginning of each of his later diary books, including the dates of birth and death of his children and grandchildren. There was no further mention of him or his death. It is especially revealing that he was never mentioned in Wärqenäh’s autobiography. Wärqenäh’s social life in Myingyan was one of the most varied and extensive of the periods that he was in Burma. Once his wife joined him, they went on the social round visiting the homes of other members of the Indian Civil Service much more often than he had done as a bachelor. He regularly played polo, but no longer snooker, and regularly attended nearby horse races. A relatively new activity was gardening. However, in 1918 he became increasingly run down and developed a severe case of piles. Being very ill with bleeding hemorrhoids, I was obliged to submit to an operation on 8 July, by my assistant. However, as he did not do the operation properly, I had to undergo the operation three times in a week, which caused chloroform poisoning and very nearly finished me. I had to finally send for the Civil Surgeon…from the adjacent district to come and help me. After much suffering, I recovered a little and gradually got better… However, after a week, contracted an attack of influenza which of course added to my ill-health and suffering and made it very difficult to attend to my multifarious duties. But on account of the deficiency of medical officers due to the War, I could not go on leave and had to carry on as well as I could. To add to my troubles, my wife and children also suffered a good deal from malarial fever and influenza.66

Overall however, Qätsälä seems to have thrived in this exotic Burmese setting. Her family was energetic and growing and she successfully adjusted to the small town colonial society. While Wärqenäh taught her English and Mathematics in Burma, she taught him Oromo and improved his Amharic, assisting also in translating his book, the World Geography. She also learned some Hindustani. Her improved English encouraged her greater involvement in the routine and busy social life of Myinyan. Furthermore, she was exposed to a more economically developed and westernized country than Ethiopia and must have learned much with each passing week. During her five-year stay in Burma, Qätsälä further developed her skills in the ways of the west. She worked with the Burmese Red Cross and was trained in nursing and midwifery67, surely one of the first Ethiopian women to acquire these skills. Qätsälä was also a great believer in dialogue and toleration, not only adjusting to Burma with great aplomb, but also accepting as her own Wärqenäh’s two out of wedlock sons. All these accomplishments were to hold her in good stead in her future interactions with the western diplomatic community in Addis Ababa after 1919. Wärqenäh’s chance to leave Burma early and return to Ethiopia with his family came suddenly:

  WD, 28.4.1919.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 56a. 67   Yä Wäyzäro Qätsälä Tullu Acher Tarik. 65 66

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A man of substance in Ethiopia & Burma [T]he inspector General of Jails came to Myingyan for inspection and seeing me in a very bad state of health, immediately wired and arranged that I go before a Medical Board and be given sick leave. In pursuance of this, my relief arrived on 19 August and I handed over charge of the jail and hospital on 21 August, and of the Race Club and of the special Club, on the following day and left Myingyan on 24 August 1919.68

Almost immediately they returned home to Ethiopia.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 57a.

68

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6 Return of a Progressive to Addis Ababa

(1919–1924)

Hakim Wärqenäh and Qätsälä’s return to Ethiopia in 1919, which should have been a joyous occasion, turned out, to be a time of death, sickness and pain. While traveling home from Burma Wärqenäh was informed that Qätsälä’s mother had died and upon arrival in Ethiopia that her father had also passed away. This must have been a devastating shock to them both. Their first few days and weeks back in Addis Ababa were filled with preparations for funerals and memorials but also a most symbolic act, the freeing of their family’s slaves. Within a few months Wärqenäh himself became gravely ill with influenza and hovered near death. His recovery was slow, relapses occurred and it was not until April 1920, that he had fully recovered. The post-World War I Influenza Epidemic had hit his family very hard indeed. All these shocks seem to have driven Wärqenäh, at the age of 54, to reevaluate his life and focus on what would be most important in guiding him through his remaining years. Four priorities came to the fore: first, the security of his ever growing family (and the paramountcy of giving his children a solid western education); second, leaving a permanent legacy by freeing the family’s slaves; third, constructing permanent buildings in the form of bricks and mortar; and finally, focusing on reforming and modernizing Ethiopia, especially in the area of education. In the last months of 1919 and throughout most of the first half of 1920 his major priorities were to recover from illness and establish a home in Addis Ababa for his family. A brief survey of major events in Ethiopia which affected Wärqenäh and his family after six years in Burma follows. As we saw, Emperor Menilek died in 1913 shortly after Wärqenäh left Ethiopia, but Lej Iyasu was firmly in power and would rule until 1916. The centralized state that Menilek had ably expanded and consolidated slowly weakened during Iyasu’s haphazard rule, a rule dominated by his cronies among the ministers in Addis Ababa and by the nobility that largely controlled the provinces beyond the capital. When Iyasu tried to reassert control and delegate more power to his younger friends, including some Muslim figures, those who had been in power, pushed back. They were assisted in their opposition to Iyasu by the major foreign powers in Ethiopia – the British, the 101

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 French and the Italians -- who feared Iyasu’s increasingly serious flirtation with their enemies Germany and the Ottoman Empire during World War I. In 1916 opposition to Iyasu came to a head and he was overthrown and imprisoned, but fears that he would escape continued. Two of Wärqenäh’s friends, Fitawrari Häbtä Giyorgis and Abunä Matéwos were deeply involved, as were two other figures with whom he had yet to build a fruitful relationship, Ras Täfäri (the future Haylä Sellasé) and Zäwditu, Menilek’s sole surviving child. In 1916 Zäwditu was crowned as empress, and Täfäri as heir to the throne. Wärqenäh promptly wrote from Burma to congratulate and advise them. Overall however, the Ethiopian government was largely paralyzed for many years after 1916 as two main factions competed for control, with the old guard holding the balance of power. Wärqenäh’s autobiography summarized the situation: I found that there were two Government parties, one consisting of old conservatives who were attached to the Empress and the other party, consisting of younger and more progressive men who were attached to the Regent Ras Tefferi. Some men of the conservative party, had the insolence to bring false accusations against the Ras, for which they were eventually punished. Under the circumstances, it did not appear that there was any chance of my being able to do any service to the Government, so I just carried on with my medical practice and private undertakings.1

The conservative party, perhaps faction would be a better word, included the empress, Fitawrari Häbtä Giyorgis, Abunä Matéwos and many other generals and administrators of the Menilek period, while the progressives included not only Ras Täfäri but a small and growing number of lesser figures, mainly western educated to one degree or another and some aristocrats like Täfäri’s cousin Emeru. Wärqenäh and Qätsäla allied themselves with the latter. Thus when Iyasu was overthrown in 1916 and the old guard, those who had been given power by Menilek, mainly Shoan nobles and generals who had risen by merit through the ranks, again dominated Ethiopian politics. They jockeyed with each other and also with Täfäri to gain their ends. Täfäri only slowly and painfully increased his power at the center. One of the images his contemporaries used was that of a spider slowly weaving his web, seeing it partially destroyed again and again, but ever focused on his final goal to become the most powerful man in Ethiopia, its emperor. Only by 1924 was he secure enough to contemplate leaving Ethiopia to embark on a long cherished trip to Europe, the first time an Ethiopian emperor had left Ethiopian soil. In 1926 two of his major conservative foes died (Fitawrari Häbtä Giyorgis, Abunä Matéwos) which allowed him to substantially increase his power, especially when he took over the Fitawrari’s army, the largest in Ethiopia. The next two stages in the building of his web were his 1928 coronation as Negus (King) and finally his 1930 coronation as emperor. Upon the death of Empress Zäwditu, Ras Täfäri became Emperor Haylä Sellasé. His climb to the top of ‘the greasy pole’ had been slow and calculating, but ultimately successful.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 59-60a.

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 Wärqenäh played only a peripheral role in this classic political and economic struggle. But as he became more and more powerful, Täfäri increasingly turned to Wärqenäh to assist him in achieving his secondary agenda, modernization. Thus Wärqenäh would play a key role in educational, medical, social and infra­structural reforms, especially in the issues so important to the world powers, the abolition of slavery and the slave trade. However, Wärqenäh’s influence grew slowly and didn’t really begin in earnest until after Täfäri’s return from his 1924 trip overseas. Initially Wärqenäh focused mostly on his family and its immediate needs.

Family When Wärqenäh left Burma in 1919, he was optimistic and full of hope,since he was returning home to a changed Ethiopia and a growing and maturing family. But he clearly went through a real crisis in his life brought on by his near death experience. On account of the cold and high altitude, I caught a severe attack of influenza on 2 December, which eventually developed into pneumonia. The [British] Legation Surgeon, by name Dr. Sharp, began treating me. My condition got very serious, but it got better by 21 December and I began improving slowly…However, my heart being affected, on account of getting further attacks of influenza and an attack of pleurisy and malarial fever, I remained an invalid for about six months and could do no work to speak of. On account of the altitude of Addis Ababa…the action of my heart continued to be irregular for a long time.2

Added to his own health problems were the death of both of his wife’s parents within the year, the death of one of his grandmothers and then the death of his wife’s grandfather. Within the following year or so, his Burmese son Engäda, a baby daughter, and Alämayähu (one of the three Ethiopian youngsters he had taken with him to Burma to educate) had also passed away. Furthermore, in October 1920 Wärqenäh officially retired from the Indian Civil Service (the most prestigious bureaucracy in the British Empire) at the age of fifty five. His feelings of mortality were perhaps best summarized during the early part of his serious illness in one of the few emotionally charged passages in his diary. Talked matters over with Qätsälä re the future of the children. She said that she had definitely made up her mind not to marry again and that in case of my death she will remain unmarried and bring up our children. This greatly relieves my mind and I feel very contented. May the dear girl have the strength to carry out her resolution. In this case it relieves me from making an elaborate will. I can leave all to Qätsälä without any reservation or fear for the children. Went out for a longish walk in the Compound.3

However, Wärqenäh’s concerns were not only about his own and his wife’s extended family in Ethiopia but also a very symbolic act, a matter of principle for both Wärqenäh and Qätsälä.   Ibid., p. 60a.   WD, 27.12.1919.

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 I formally set all the Fitaurari’s slaves numbering thirty, free, but they refused to leave the house and in fact, complained against me for driving them out of their house and home into the street. Of course, I explained to them that they were at liberty to stay but as paid servants.4

Freeing his slaves does not seem to have been part of Fitawrari Tullu’s will, so Wärqenäh and Qätsälä’s emancipation of their slaves should be seen within the Ethiopian context as a dramatic, radical and historic act. Other Ethiopians had freed their slaves after their deaths, but not as a symbolic act in the prime of their lives. Just before they freed their slaves, the formal act marking the passing of a generation in Qätsälä’s family had occurred. On the 40th day after the death of my father-in-law, Fitaurari Tullu, according to the custom a feast called ‘Taskar’ was given for the priests…Early in the morning on the following day, the will of the deceased was read before a crowd of witnesses. According to the father-in-laws will, the bulk of the Fitaurari’s property was left to my wife and my second son Benjamin, who had been left with his grandparents when my wife went to Burma. My wife was also appointed the head of the Fitaurari’s family, which consisted of two sons and three daughters. A few days later, my mother-in-laws ‘Taskar’ feast was given and her will was read. Then the ceremony of handing back the Fitaurari’s charger, mule, shield, rifle, decorations, uniform called ‘wagiqa’ etc., received by him from the Government, had to be returned to the Government, by the heir.5

His own immediate family soon began to grow beyond those who had been left behind in Ethiopia and those he brought back with him from Burma. He now had with him in Ethiopia six children: Téwodros, Yuséf, Astér, Elsabét and Sara who had been with him and Qätsälä in Burma and Benyam who had stayed behind with her parents in Addis Ababa. Soon after the couple’s arrival back in Addis Ababa (in February 1920) there was a collective christening of those children born overseas: Téwodros, Astér, Elsabét and Sara. Each was united with a well connected aristocratic godfather or godmother in traditional Ethiopian fashion.6 Wärqenäh and Qätsälä had four more children in the next five years, but only two of them survived infancy, Rebqa (Rebecca) and Sosena (Susie). The joy of birth was balanced with the pain of death. Wärqenäh put aside all his other activities to nurse Qätsälä for about a month during her serious illness from October through November, 1922.7 Another indication that family clearly came first in Wärqenäh’s mind and heart, were his actions whenever any of his children became at all ill. He personally nursed them, and there is no indication that he allowed any other doctor to take care of his children or his wife. Another clear proof of how important his family was to him was the significance he gave to education in Ethiopia as a whole and to a superior   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 59a.   Ibid., pp. 58-59a. 6   WD, 7.2.1920. 1) Theodore/Téwodros (Christened 7.2.1919) Godfather Mäsfän (a close relative of Wärqenäh’s). 2) Esther/Astér (Christened 7.2.1919). Godmother Abunäsh (Ras Damse’s wife). 3) Elizabeth/Elsabét (Christened 7.2.1919) Godmother Gétänäsh (Ras Abbatä’s wife and sister of Abunäsh) and 4) Sara (Christened 7.2.1919) Godmother Ehätä Maryam (Fitawrari Wänd Herad’s wife). 7   WD, see October and November, 1922. 4 5

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924

6.1   Wärqenäh with his family and servants in Addis Ababa, c.1920

education for his children. In one of his early meetings with Ras Täfäri he ‘spoke about [the need of] having a decent school’ in Addis Ababa.8 Nothing was done and the only existing government school, the first school with a westernized curriculum, the Menilek School, was not up to Wärqenäh’s standards. As he said in his autobiography: My advice to establish a good school which I put forward, had not been acted on yet, although it had been approved. The school which had been set up by Emperor Menelik was in existence, but was not doing good work at all under the inefficient Egyptian teachers, put in by the ignorant and obstructive Egyptian Archbishop who was bitterly against enlightenment and progress.9

Soon afterwards, Wärqenäh began to teach his boys himself on a regular basis with the assistance of British nannies and tutors. Before 1925 the focus was largely on his sons, but consideration was also given to his daughters. As Elsabét Déréssa said: As a small child my father, Dr. Workeneh Martin, set up a small school within the premises of our home, where I, my brothers and sisters and a number of other Ethiopian children were schooled. Our teacher for many subjects was Sister Mary Lane, whom my father had recruited for this purpose from the United Kingdom.10   WD, 10.1.1920.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 61a. 10   Elizabeth Workeneh, 1917-2000. Kebret Wäyzäro Elsabét Wärqenäh, 1910–1993. Mot Dämäna Hono Menem Bigaredat Yehew Tabäraläch Elsi Läeña Hewät (Addis Ababa, 2000). 8 9

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 In April, 1923 he had his sons write to the Ras about the future of their education. Saw the Ras…He said that he had received my boys’ letter to him asking him to send them to school and said that he had decided to educate them as his own sons and will send them to the Victoria College Alexandria and will write to Lord Allenby about it. Thanked him for it.11

Later the Ras expanded on this theme: The Ras...says that it will be a pleasure for him to educate the boys at his own expense and he [is] sorry to learn that I consider it a heavy burden on him. He also says that I am welcome to send my boys to school in England if I prefer it to America or Belgium.12

By this time Ras Täfäri knew the Wärqenäh children well since their children regularly played together. Initially the Ras and Wärqenäh had attempted to organize the three boys’ education with the help of the British diplomatic representative in Addis Ababa, Russell but this led nowhere. Fortunately and perhaps with some foresight, Wärqenäh had successfully made other arrangements on his own. Three years before he had written to his adoptive sister Sybil Clark-Lloyd and through her he had identified a school he deemed to be acceptable and together they had made arrangements for his three eldest boys (Téwodros, Yuséf and Benyam) to enroll in Trent College, Leicester in June 1924. Sybil went to a great deal of trouble to help her adoptive brother, spending many days buying the boys’ ‘kit’, putting them up in London and doubtless helping them to adjust to a new and very different culture. She would continue to be the person on the spot to take care of the myriad details of their education, including arrangements for their vacations for the next several years and organizing for the payment of their fees.

Wärqenäh – master builder Some time after his return from Burma Wärqenäh began a series of construction projects once it became clear that the palatial residence he had built on Jan Hoy Méda would not be returned to him or to his family. His projects started modestly with small buildings on his wife’s property in Shola, on Addis Ababa’s eastern outskirts which they had inherited from her father. They reached a climax with major projects for the Ethiopian government like the Täfäri Mäkonnen School in 1925 and the extensive building campaign he would carry out as governor of Chärchär province (1930–1935). To begin with however, he was focused on establishing a home for his growing family. When he returned from Burma, his first priority was to regain the majestic home he had built on the city’s racecourse, usually known as Jan Hoy Méda. However, Empress Zäwditu and Ras Täfäri were reluctant to give up a building that they had found so useful for official government use. Wärqenäh and   WD, 19.4.1923. Wärqenäh’s underlining.   WD, 5.10.1923. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 Qätsälä would expend tremendous effort and patience over several years to try, unsuccessfully, to get it back. Temporarily, they moved into the vacated town home of his old friend Lej Bäyyänä Yemär and eventually their family settled into her parents’ old home in Shola. Meanwhile Wärqenäh and his family, after September 1920, often spent time in his Arada house (in the center of town) which he expanded for his own and his family’s use. He had bought the land from his own Gondär family. Increasingly he needed a residence in the center of town because he found it difficult and exhausting to ride long distances to work each day from Shola which was on the outskirts of Addis Ababa about three miles from the center of the city. Shortly after making his Arada home habitable, Wärqenäh began to build a more extensive home at Shola in 1920 which would comfortably house his whole family and, more importantly for Wärqenäh, reduce the danger of contracting contagious deceases in the built up urban area. Construction took over three years. He seemed to enjoy the role of master builder, mobilizing and organizing skilled and unskilled workers and carefully and critically inspecting their progress and work. As he had done so often before as a civil surgeon supervising work in Burma, he was swift in condemnation of shoddy work and quick to have it torn down and rebuilt. Within a year or so he had created a cadre of skilled masons, carpenters and other workers who were an eclectic mixture of Ethiopians, Chinese, Greeks, Armenians and Indians. The unskilled labor was mostly Guragé. This workforce was reminiscent of the one he had pulled together to build his Jan Hoy Méda house ten years before, but it was much larger, more diverse and lasted longer. Many of the workers moved from one construction project to the next from the Arada house to Shola, and then on to Aqaqi and the Jimma road. He took this expertise to his third major construction project, and the only money maker of the bunch, to the newly purchased property on the Aqaqi River. Bought in March, 1921 with the help of Ras Täfäri, it contained two flour mills, and some irrigated land capable of producing several crops a year. There being much delay in giving me suitable work in Government service…I decided to buy two flour mills belonging to the Ras, which he wished to dispose of. I was given information about this by one of my boys [whom he had educated in India], who had helped the Ras in the purchase of the mills, which were worked by water power. They were situated on the Akaki River, about five miles out of town and had about fifty acres of land around them. The price of the mills being $18,000 – (about £2,000.- at the rate of exchange at that time), I had to borrow from the Bank of Abyssinia at 10% interest, which of course was exorbitant, but as the Bank had the monopoly, it could do as it liked. However, the Ras and his Consort very kindly lent me $10,000.- between them which greatly relieved me of the heavy bank interest. Having one of my boys whom I had educated in India available, I put him in charge of the mills and continued to get about 20% net profit for a long time, until some other mills were put up, when naturally the profits went down. These mills, with all my land and house property and mineral concessions were annexed by the Italian authorities on their entering in Addis Ababa in 1936.13   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 61-62a.

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 He expanded the existing facilities and built an extra bedroom and bathroom, stables and a restaurant for those who came to grind grain, especially the merchants who provided a large portion of his profits. These profits seem to have provided enough income to cover much of the money needed for the household and many other expenses for his whole family at least until he obtained a regular paying job from the Ethiopian government in 1923 at the Fel Weha hot springs. He also grew significant crops of tef and gesho on his Aqaqi property. Perhaps most important, however, was that he thoroughly enjoyed his extended stays at Lemlem, as he increasingly called it. He felt healthier there, his asthma seemed to affect him less at Lemlem, and he even hired a special gardener to take care of his favorite flowers, exotic trees imported from overseas and later on a small orchard of fruit trees mainly imported from India. Wärqenäh also built some stores on commercial property he owned in central Addis Ababa and also helped Qätsälä improve her properties, especially the ones near Addis Aläm.

The Fel Weha Spa In 1923, once the major construction at Shola had been completed, Wärqenäh for the first time put his talent for building to use directly for the Ethiopian government. At Ras Täfäri’s request he took over the administration of the Fel Weha hot springs at the center of Addis Ababa. He improved the facilities constructing separate baths for both rich and poor patrons, men and women and for the sick. He also carried out a major overhaul of Fel Weha finances putting them on a sound and lucrative basis. His government work at Fel Weha would later be followed by even larger projects. Wärqenäh’s work at Fel Weha exemplifies the varied talent that Täfäri Mäkonnen would utilize over the next decade or so. First, Wärqenäh was slowly becoming a master builder, as we have seen especially during his career in Burma and in the house he built on Jan Hoy Méda and second, he was a very talented financial administrator and accountant. Thirdly, he was very adept at mobilizing talent, bringing people together and getting them focused on projects to modernize and improve Ethiopia and its capital. Finally, he showed at Fel Weha how he was able to include his family and protegés in the project and advance and train them while acting on the Ethiopian government’s behalf.14 His autobiography gives a good overall view of his involvement with Addis Ababa’s thermal bath. The hot springs bubble out of the earth over an area of about an acre and pour out boiling water containing sulphur [sic] and alkalies [sic]. The water is consequently very useful for rheumatic affections and skin diseases of all kinds. When I took over, there was just a miserable wooden fence around the place, and a small bath for officials and a few small huts here and there, where the people bathed. There was a small office where the men in charge collected money from the bathers. In this way about $300.- per month was collected.   For background see especially Richard Pankhurst, ‘The Thermal Baths of Traditional Ethiopia’, Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences, Vol. 41 (1986), pp. 308-318 for the above and what background follows. See the entry on Finfinnee in EAE, p. 544. 14

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 Immediately after taking over, I got the loan of an engineer from the Government to make out the plans of the kind of baths I wanted to build and, having obtained a preliminary grant of $3,000.-, I at once began the construction. First of all I had to build a reservoir over the main springs for the collection of sufficient water from the mineral springs, from where it was conveyed by pipes to different baths. A stone wall was then built all round the baths and buildings, to enable the porters, who were engaged by me to keep control over the bathers and to prevent thefts, especially at night. Further I engaged one of my boys, whom I had educated in Burma, as my Assistant and a couple of other assistant clerks to keep the accounts and supervise the place. I had one big house put up, with dozens of separate baths in separate rooms. One side of the building for men and the other for women. As these were eventually found to be insufficient, two more buildings had to be put up. Separate baths were built for those suffering from contagious diseases. A well was sunk for the supply of cold water, which was conveyed to each bath, for use when necessary.15

By the time he handed over the administration of the baths in 1931 he had increased the revenue from approximately $4,500 a year to $30,000 a year.16

Relations with the court & the ruling family Power and influence in Ethiopian history have basically depended on proximity to the emperor. From 1916 to 1928 the situation was made more complex by a division of power. During this period Zäwditu was the empress and titular head of state but turned over to Täfäri the day to day administration of the empire. Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis had the most powerful army in Ethiopia and these three were the dominant leaders of Ethiopia. Abunä Matéwos, was a lesser center of power as the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. After 1919 Wärqenäh depended largely on Ras Täfäri, but also made overtures to Empress Zäwditu. His contacts with Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis were sparse and the two became quite distant. However, Wärqenäh and his immediate family’s influence in the court were not very extensive (his parents and family as we have seen were largely from the northern province of Gondär). During his previous periods in Ethiopia at the beginning of the century and from 1908–1913 he had never had close relations with either Ras Täfäri or Empress Zawditu. True, he had had close relations with Emperor Menilek and Ras Mäkonnen, but they had both passed away. His relations with Abunä Matéwos were much more distant after 1919 up to the Abunä’s death in 1926. He never regained the intimacy of his previous stay in Ethiopia (1908–1913). It was his wife Qätsälä and her influential Shäwan relatives who had closer ties than he did with those most powerful in the Ethiopian court. More often than not it was through his wife that Wärqenäh gained influence. They formed a remarkable couple, each with their own strengths. She depended on her close personal and family ties with the empress and with Ras Täfäri’s wife, the future Empress Mänän. He   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 66-67a.   These figures were calculated from the WD, 7.11.1923 and WD, 27.3.1935.

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 contributed his extensive knowledge of the west and his talents as a progressive and modernizer. His relative linguistic weakness in spoken or written Amharic was balanced by her fluency. Together they formed a formidable partnership. Däjazmach Zäwdé Gäbrä Sellasé gave a cogent assessment of Qätsälä: When she came back [in 1919] she was a very different person from many of the ladies [in the court]…She was, well, modernized much more. She knew English better than any Ethiopian woman of her time…She was extremely sociable, and very outgoing…and in that way very different from the common ladies around here, I mean in Ethiopia…But, unfortunately, this country is a man’s world and ladies are expected to be in the back ground...She was more tactful [than Wärqenäh]… he was more straightforward…She was much more flexible and she knew the limitations, and through tact she could achieve more.17

Although Wärqenäh was received by Ras Täfäri and the empress soon after his arrival, it would be several years before he became anything like a close advisor and rebuild his influence in the Ethiopian court as a modernizer. Qätsälä on the other hand soon regained her position as an intimate of Wäyzäro Mänän and the empress, doing their hair in the latest global fashion and receiving a special decoration from Mänän18. Qätsälä enjoyed the daily routine of regular attendance at court (called däj tenat in Amharic), Wärqenäh soon grew frustrated with this ritual, regarding it as an enormous waste of time. Absent his marriage to Qätsälä, Wärqenäh’s influence and importance in Ethiopian history would have been much smaller.

Wärqenäh & Täfäri Soon after his arrival in Addis Ababa in 1919, an ‘affable’ Ras Täfäri received Wärqenäh.19 However, it was quite some time before he had a substantive conversation with him. He had been in Burma for six years and needed to build a closer relationship with the new rulers. Inevitably, because of Wärqenäh’s shortage of funds, he had to turn to Täfäri to help him financially. This dependence on him led to a complex intertwining of their interests and priorities. Wärqenäh was still regarded by many in the Ethiopian court as more of a foreigner than an Ethiopian. It took time for Täfäri to really trust him and this was when Qätsälä’s influence came to the fore. Täfäri and Wäyzäro Mänän were related to and had known Qätsälä Tullu, for most of their lives. They needed Wärqenäh’s expertise and counsel, but also had to make sure that he would obey their priorities and traditions and remain under their control. Thus slowly Täfäri entrusted Wärqenäh with increasingly significant jobs, some paid and others not. Most of these tasks took advantage of the expertise he had learned overseas. In Ethiopia land was the major yardstick of judging a person’s wealth and power, but Wärqenäh never owned much land and, as we shall see was given little by   Interview with Däjazmach Zäwdé Gäbrä Sellasé, Addis Ababa, October 1, 2001.   WD, Qätsälä did Mänän’s hair frequently throughout the 1920s. She was decorated by her on September 16, 1920 and also during the coronation in November 1930. 19   WD, 21.10.1919. 17 18

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 Täfäri in comparison with other members of the court. However, he was given some jobs, some loans, and, more importantly, concessions which allowed him to earn a larger income. The most important of these, a concession for gold and platinum, was to come later, after 1924. Each however, tied him closer and closer to the emperor. These ties would unravel towards the end of his career because of a divorce and financial complications. Shortly after they returned to Ethiopia in 1919, Wärqenäh had slowly gained the requisite permissions, first to enter the outer enclosure and then the inner enclosure of the palace to gain physical access to Täfäri. Only then could he fully ‘attend’ the court and thus perform the vital däj tenat. However, it was not until 1922–1923 that he would play a significant role as advisor and confidant, when Ethiopian slavery was publicly criticized in the Westminster Gazette, a British paper, and Ethiopia sought entrance to the League of Nations. He wrote a measured response on the slavery issue, which was later published in the Westminster Gazette and gained widespread praise in Ethiopian and British circles. He researched it carefully and consulted with both the empress and the Ras. This helped lead to his advice being sought on a variety of other major issues of the day including the major problem of the entrance into the League of Nations. About the end of 1923, the question of Ethiopia joining the League of Nations was brought up. The Empress was very keen to do so in order to safe-guard the integrity of Ethiopia. The Ras being doubtful about it, asked my humble opinion on the subject. I told him that in my opinion, it was advisable to wait and see how the League worked before joining it. However, the Empress insisted on it and Ethiopia, after some difficulty became a member. It was curious that while Great Britain was opposed to her admission, Italy strongly supported Ethiopia’s application. While it was Italy, which twelve years later, after Ethiopia had progressed in every way, and had issued a proclamation against slavery on 16 September 1923, tried to make out that Ethiopia was not fit to be a member of the League, simply because Mussolini wanted to invade and annex her, which he eventually did against the Covenant.20

The rather long delay in his gaining the confidence of Ras Täfäri may have been due to the intense focus that both Wärqenäh and his wife put on trying to get compensation for the large house he had built beside the race course before his departure in 1913. This compensation had been promised by Iyasu and his prime minister, Haylä Giyorgis, but took many years before being paid out.21 It also seems clear that the tensions between Ras Täfäri and Empress Zäwditu further exacerbated the problem. It took great perseverance on Wärqenäh’s part, but more especially by Qätsälä, before the dispute was brought to a mutually acceptable solution. Clearly Wärqenäh and Täfäri became closer during and after their 1924 trip to England. It is especially important to try to understand Qätsälä’s role, if one is to wishes to put Wärqenäh’s influence in context.

  Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 65a.   WD, 5.1.1923. It came as a cancellation of previous debts and a payment of $12,000.

20 21

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Wärqenäh, Qätsälä & Mänän Qätsälä’s role and her friendship with Wäyzäro Mänän, reveals a fascinating parallel feminine court in action in Addis Ababa. Wärqenäh had significantly greater access to Mänän than he did to Empress Zäwditu, although not as much as to Täfäri. She played a greater role in terms of land, concession and loan acquisition but less in helping him to get work. She was almost certainly more influenced by his advice than Empress Zäwditu, although less so than her husband. However, the vast majority of this access and influence was exercised through Wärqenäh’s wife Qätsälä. The relationship between Mänän and Qätsälä is a striking one, and it is clear that Wärqenäh took advantage of it to forward his aims. However, Qätsälä was the prime mover and the major reason that Wärqenäh had any influence at all with Mänän, and through her with Täfäri. Although Mänän did not nearly have the influence of her husband in terms of Wärqenäh acquiring land, a job or a concession, she was a good deal more forthcoming in these areas than Empress Zäwditu. In terms of new jobs for Wärqenäh she seems to have played the least role, but may have been quite influential in advising and persuading the emperor to do what she and Qätsälä desired. However, as regards her influence on land, loans and concessions she played a larger role than Empress Zäwditu. Mänän at first, in 1920, tried to play the role of intermediary with Zäwditu and her husband in trying to get Qätsälä and Wärqenäh’s home back, but was unsuccessful. However, she did offer them a loan to help pay for a new home and also became involved as a partner and source of capital for the gold and platinum mine that Wärqenäh and Déréssa had obtained from Täfäri and the Ethiopian government in the western province of Wälläga after 1925. The latter allowed Wärqenäh to make money and pay for household expenses, pay off loans and help fund his children’s education, in effect it was a major supplement to his salary. Thus Mänän played a key role in Wärqenäh’s relationship with Täfäri and the empress. Mänän also sought Wärqenäh’s advice on a goodly number of occasions. The following quotes give a flavor of their relationship: Qatsala had a good long conversation with Waizaro Manan and told her about the way I was treated yesterday and all about our affairs and difficulties. She has promised to speak to the Ras about all these. Qatsala highly praises Waizaro Manan for her intelligence, desire for knowledge and education, for her cleanliness and refined manners and for kindliness and absence of vanity.22 [Saw] Waizaro Manan. Had a long conversation with her about Burma’s British colonial Administration and other matters. She is very intelligent and has a thirst for information and as far as I can see longs for improvement.23 As Waizaro Manan asked Qatsala to ask me to go and examine her went to the Ras’ house with Qatsala and examined W.M.[Wäyzäro Mänän] She is about 8 months in   WD, 25.4.1920.   WD, 21.6.1920. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

22 23

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 pregnancy, told her she has to wait for delivery for another month and half. Talked with her about the present political condition of the country. She told us that the present trouble is about the country joining the league of nations [sic]. The Ras is opposed to it but the Empress with a strong advice from the French Minister insists on it. The people in general have no idea about the matter and are practically indifferent. On account of the difference of opinion between the Ras and the Empress their relations at present are rather strained.24

Qätsälä readily had access to Mänän, while she was doing her hair, or accompanying her children when they played with Mänän’s sons and daughters. When access to Ras Täfäri was difficult or denied, a hint by Qätsälä to Mänän to bring the issue before her husband could often help to remove a possible roadblock. Ras Täfäri’s invitation that she accompany Mänän on her pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1923, something that could hardly be refused, cemented Qätsälä’s relationship with Mänän and led to further honors like attendance at a christening one of their children. However, the autobiography’s account emphasizes Mänän’s rather than Täfäri’s role. As Waizero Manen, the Ras’s consort, was very anxious to go to Jerusalem, the Ras asked me to allow my wife to go with her, as my wife knew English and had been to India and Burma with me, but as she was nursing a six months baby, it was rather inconvenient for her to go at that time. However, as the Ras’s wife wanted to be in Jerusalem for Easter, and there was no other suitable lady to go with her, I had to let my wife go on the 14 March 1923.25

Wärqenäh & Empress Zäwditu From 1916 to 1930 Wärqenäh had a better relationship with Täfäri than he did with Zäwditu and his advice clearly had a greater impact. Although Zäwditu was the titular ruler of Ethiopia during that period, Täfäri acted rather like an executive officer with Zäwditu having the final word. In all the three key areas of land, work and advice, Wärqenäh’s influence was far less. In terms of getting rights to land, the bedrock of influence in Ethiopia, Zäwditu refused to allow him to get back possession of the magnificent home he had built in Addis Ababa on the edge of the imperial race course, despite more than two years of constant effort. All the combined efforts of Wärqenäh and his wife Qätsälä were able to achieve were a few acres of land, mostly waste land, in Arussi that Zäwditu allowed him to buy26. Furthermore, it was clear that Täfäri was the major force in making the purchase happen. It needs to be emphasized that Wärqenäh was not given the land, but had to purchase it. As for him getting a paid government job, again the initiative was taken by Täfäri, but final approval and veto power, was exercised by Zäwditu. This was clearly the case with his job at Fel Weha and as a justice for the Mixed Courts after 1924.   WD, 13.8.1923.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 64a-65a. 26   WD, 27.10.1922. See also Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 87. 24 25

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 As regards his guidance, whether it was accepted and how often it was offered, it is clear that Wärqenäh’s access to the empress was far less than his access to Täfäri and that when he gave advice it was only rarely accepted. His access to Zäwditu also seems to have been less than to Menilek, Taytu, or Iyasu. Yet it needs to be pointed out that this was partially balanced by the access that his wife Qätsälä had to the empress. She saw the empress on a fairly regular basis in the parallel women’s court and when she was taking the baths in Fel Weha which had been newly renovated by Wärqenäh. Qätsälä had grown up as a member of the Ethiopian court in Addis Ababa and thus had known Empress Zäwditu most of her life. She not only did the empress’s hair on occasion but also advised her on her clothes and other matters, especially when she was to meet with foreigners. Some have said that since Zäwditu never had children she considered her love for Qätsälä as if she had been her own child. Wärqenäh’s first attempt to influence the Empress Zäwditu came in 1916– 1917, soon after her accession to the throne. He wrote to congratulate her and to give advice. It was some years later that he encouraged her to build a woman’s hospital in Addis Ababa, but she didn’t follow his advice. A woman’s hospital would have to wait until one was founded after her death by the Empress Mänän. It is interesting to note that whenever he spoke to her, Wärqenäh spoke in Amharic without a translator, his Amharic having substantially improved: She [the empress] was in a very amiable frame of mind and spoke to me affably and complained about my not going to see her often. Told her I should be glad to do so if I had her permission. She immediately called Fit [Fitawrari] Walda Gabriel and told him to let me come and see her whenever I went to the gibbi. 27

The only occasions on which Wärqenäh used this access to try and influence the empress was on the issue of slavery, talking to her on several occasions about it from 1922 to 1926. Overall he only spoke to her four times from 1920 to 1924. His advice was not followed and he left frustrated. Went to the Empress’ gibbi and had a long private conversation with her re the slavery and raiding etc, in the country. Advised her to emancipate all the slaves by a public proclamation but she said it will cause such a lot of trouble in the country and consequent upheaval that she dare not do it… Told her that she must buck up and do something, otherwise keeping quiet and letting things go on as they are will very likely cause an immense trouble with the European powers. She is quite hopeless, no brains and no backbone.28 Went to the Gibbi as arranged and saw the Empress. Had a long conversation with her bout slavery and other subjects. She received me in a room which should be used as a bath room and not as a reception room!!! She is hopelessly ignorant and helpless and is not likely to do any good to the country. She told me that she had lately heard that Dad Marid Abta Mariam had sold some slaves to a European and had strongly admonished the Dad Däjazmach, who by the way has just gone back to his province.29

  WD, 5.3.1921. Wärqenäh’s underlining.   WD, 7.6.1922. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 29   WD, 17.7.1922. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 27 28

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 It was, however, through Qätsälä’s influence that a monthly ration of corn was allocated by the palace to their family and she also managed to persuade the empress to take better care of sanitation in the palace grounds. More importantly, she persuaded the empress to help found and build a church, St. Mika’él at Shola, in honor of Qätsälä’s father. The empress regularly attended it on its saints’ days and contributed to its priests’ upkeep, all very much according to the traditions of the Ethiopian court. Clearly Qätsälä was much more talented and effective at court politics, especially when manipulating the levers of power and influence in Ethiopian politics through the parallel court of the empress. Wärqenäh may have known the West better than his wife, but there’s no doubt that she knew more about Ethiopia and its court. He would put his skills to work to their mutual advantage once more when he accompanied Ras Täfäri to England on his ‘grand tour’ of Western Europe in 1924.

Wärqenäh’s role as a modernizer & an advisor For some years after Wärqenäh’s return to Ethiopia from Burma, his advice was sought only on minor issues. First he tried to speak out to Täfäri about ‘cruel’ punishments meted out by Ethiopian justice including, branding and cutting off of hands and feet for theft. Next he advised Täfäri on the possibility of getting the dynamo of the disused and useless cartridge factory fixed so that it could be used to produce electricity. Then he advised on improving the postal service and establishing the Red Cross in Ethiopia. It is hard to find evidence on how, or if, his advice was followed on any of these issues, so often the fate of advice freely given. However, in 1921 things began to change, especially when his advice and aid were needed in his area of greatest expertise, as a medical professional. Wärqenäh still occasionally acted in small ways as a personal physician to Ras Täfäri (who already had a trusted personal physician, Zervos), but more importantly, at the Ras’s personal request, he also stepped in during an emergency as acting head of Addis Ababa’s major hospital from April to July of 1921. Later the Ras asked his advice on building a new hospital and, as a result of their discussions a philosophical disagreement between the two emerged. The Ras wanted the hospital to be run on a commercial basis, while Wärqenäh strongly disagreed, affirming that medical aid should be given gratis. Significantly, when the Ras began to lose confidence in Dr. Lambie (largely because he had ‘written some rude things about him in one of the American papers’30) he turned to Wärqenäh for advice and for a more detailed and comprehensive agreement on the new Hospital which Lambie was building. Wärqenäh thought the hospital was too elaborate. Within a month there was a crisis on another issue, slavery, where Wärqenäh’s expertise as a modernizer would come to the fore and his advice and writing skills in English would give him national and even some international prominence. Wärqenäh also had international credibility since he had freed his slaves.   WD, 28.5.1923.

30

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Slavery Slavery during this period became a major issue of modern Ethiopian history, playing a significant role in diplomacy, especially in Ethiopia’s negotiations to enter the League of Nations and in the buildup to the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in 1935. Wärqenäh came to be seen as one of Ethiopia’s major spokesmen on this key issue. Bahru Zewde goes so far as to say that ‘Hakim Wärqenäh emerged as the leader of the crusade against slavery.’31 In his diary, he mentions slavery often and described its impact on Ethiopia occasionally, but did not act publicly until 1919 when he joined with his wife in emancipating all the slaves that had belonged to their family.32 In January 1922 a British newspaper, The Westminster Gazette, published a series of three articles on slavery and the arms trade by two correspondents. After first reading them in late April, Wärqenäh brought up the subject when he next saw the Ras. He was very affable and friendly. Told him that I was thinking of writing a reply to Major Darley and to Sharp’s strictures on Abyssinia in connection with slavery and wanted his permission to do so. He said he would be pleased if I did so. Told him that something should be done on the part of the Government to show that something was being done to reduce [and] eventually stop slavery in the country. He said that issuing of a proclamation on that subject was under consideration and he will let me know when the matter is settled. He seems quite sore about Darley and Sharp’s letter to the papers.33

While writing a rebuttal to the three articles Wärqenäh saw the Ras and asked him directly if the most damaging charges were true, such as receiving 120 slaves as a present, ‘the other day’ and if a servant was hanged for stealing an orange from the palace. These and many other charges were denied by Täfäri. Wärqenäh also discussed slavery with the Empress Zäwditu and made other stringent inquiries in Addis Ababa. Helped by his friends in the British Legation and in Britain, he was able to get his rebuttal published in the same Westminster Gazette in August 1922.34 A few quotes might help to give a flavor of this articulate article. Sir, – I have read the three articles on slave trading and raiding, etc., etc., in Abyssinia ... with special interest and attention. As the writers have brought Ethiopia and its present Government before the bar of the civilised nations of Europe and America, I think it nothing but fair that you should allow me to show that there are many extenuating circumstances.

He follows with a point by point rebuttal of the major points made on slavery in Ethiopia in the three articles. However, he also highlights the major underlying linkage between the issue of slavery and the issue of arms imports into Ethiopia     33   34   31 32

Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, p. 128. WD, 30.10.1919. WD, 4.5.1922. Wärqenäh’s underlining. See Westminster Gazette, 18.1.1923, 19.1.1923 & 20.1.1923. Ibid.

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 pointed out in the articles, a vital security issue for Africa’s last independent country. Your correspondents strongly maintain that possession of firearms by the Abyssinians is the cause of the widespread slavery in the country, and therefore they advise that importation of all arms and ammunition must be prohibited. I do not think firearms are the main cause of slavery, for there were slaves and slave raids before the introduction of firearms in the country... Prohibition of firearms was not the measure employed to stop slave raiding by the Europeans in former times, but it was education and enlightened public opinion that made the people give up the evil practice. Hence the main object of the prohibition of firearms and ammunition does not appear to be the abolition of slavery in the country, but the secret and political policy to make the people helpless and defenceless against foreign aggression and annexation.’35

A proclamation abolishing slavery was promulgated, a year later, on the 15th of September 1923, after much internal discussion by the elite of Ethiopia. Wärqenäh played a significant role in the policy discussions leading to that decision. The issues of slavery and arms imports into Ethiopia were closely intertwined with other major issues of the 1920s, like Ethiopia’s entry into the League of Nations, and her relations with the great powers, like Britain, that surrounded her. However, slavery as a major issue for Wärqenäh would reemerge after 1924. From 1923 onwards Wärqenäh’s views were now often heard in the highest circles of the Ethiopian government and court. For instance, in June and August of 1923 he had extensive discussions with the Ras about Ethiopia and the League of Nations, bringing to bear his wide knowledge of world affairs and good relations with British diplomats in Addis Ababa. Ethiopia’s policy towards Lake Tana, the proposed barrage across its mouth and the Nile waters were the focus of discussions later that year and during the beginning of 1924. Wärqenäh, however, back in the early 1920s, suggested a subtle diplomatic tactic of using the Lake Tana negotiations with Britain as a chip to get the British to give Ethiopia access to one of her ports in British Somaliland.36 Other major issues of the period were the problem of arms imports for Ethiopia and the future of the Bank of Abyssinia. Wärqenäh had some advice on this last issue in early 1923. Ras Täfäri also asked for Wärqenäh’s advice on one of the major legal cases of the period between two figures of national importance, Muhammad Ali, Ethiopia’s richest and most powerful merchant, and the former Prime Minister, Näggadras Haylä Giyorgis. Wärqenäh continued to be asked for advice on more minor problems like the need for more piasters for change, problems in Addis Ababa’s municipality and more importantly the need for a new school. Many issues on which he advised the Ras highlighted his advocacy for the poor. For instance, he advised that smaller denominations of coins should be made more widely available to help the poor. Furthermore, Wärqenäh was a great believer in petitions throughout his life. These he wrote to the Ras not only on behalf of   Ibid.   WD, 19.10.1923.

35 36

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 his family and friends but also on behalf of the poor and powerless so that their concerns might actually be dealt with. A highpoint in his role as an advisor to Ras would come when he joined him in London in 1924 to help negotiate the complexities of his official visit to the United Kingdom, as we shall see below. It is interesting to note that he joined the Ras in England late, after the Ras’s visits to Italy and other European countries, because, with the Ras’s approval, he had delayed his departure in order to attend his wife for the birth of their son Isaac. His family was a higher priority than attendance on the Ras.

1924: with Ras Täfäri in England Wärqenäh’s previous two trips to Britain, from 1889 to 1891 and 1907 to 1908, were primarily undertaken to further his medical education. This time his priorities were: his family, continuing his sons’ education and most importantly to assist Ras Täfäri in England in any way he could while he was on his grand tour of Europe. Furthermore, his own health was an important consideration and he was determined to have it thoroughly checked out. He also planned to conduct some business, reconnect with family members and also catch up with his wide network of family and friends. He was a remarkably busy man during his three month long trip. His acquaintance, C.F. Rey sums up Wärqenäh in a letter written about this time: ‘He is an able and well educated man, fully alive to the backwardness and shortcomings of his own people, and intensely anxious to remedy them; he realizes that education is the essential preliminary.’37 Family considerations were paramount, however. As we have seen Täfäri had already agreed to pay for his three sons’ (Téwodros, Yuséf and Benyam, respectively 16, 12 and 11 years old) overseas education and had approached British diplomats for assistance. This had led nowhere. Meanwhile Sybil ClarkLloyd, Wärqenäh’s adoptive sister, had at her brother’s request investigated a variety of possibilities. Finally they focused on Trent College and he paid for the boys’ registration. Téwodros was to go to Trent College, while Yuséf and Benyam were registered in Bramcote Hall (which was a preparatory school for Trent College). All had been home schooled by Wärqenäh and it was a testament to his teaching skills that all of them were admitted and did well academically. Even after these preparations had been made family concerns continued to influence his trip, Wärqenäh and his sons finally left Addis Ababa on June 4th, 1924 and were met in London at Victoria Station on June 22nd by Sybil Clark-Lloyd. She took charge of all the myriad details necessary to prepare the boys for prep school, but the three boys must have been quite a handful. She supervised five whirlwind days of shopping for their ‘kit’ visiting major London department stores for each of the many items of clothing and other necessities listed by Trent College, in order to prepare them for the rest of the academic year. On June 28th Wärqenäh   Rhodes House. Box 2/1. C.F. Rey to Jones, 19.4.1925.

37

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 took his sons north to Leicestershire by train. The diary never directly discusses why Trent College was selected, but it should be pointed out that Wärqenäh was throughout his life an advocate of practical and vocational education. None of his children ever pursued a classical education which might have prepared them for Oxford and Cambridge as had been the case for Heruy’s sons, Fäqadä-Sellasé and Siraq.38 His strong educational preference for his sons was that they study something practical, like engineering, not Latin or Greek. When he arrived at Trent College, however, to check on his children he had a rude surprise. I find that Theo [Téwodros] is to sleep in Featherstone’s [the school master’s] house always as apparently they have a school rule that all foreign coloured boys should sleep with one or the other masters house and not with the English boys in the common dormitory.[underlined in red] At present Featherstone has 2 black boys from Uganda and a Burmese boy while the headmaster has 2 Siamese boys sleeping in his house.39

He spoke to the Headmaster, Mr. Tucker about this the next day: I spoke to him about making a distinction in the case of foreign boys as regards their sleeping place. He said he personally had no prejudice but some of the parents of the English boys had, so for their sake he is obliged to made a distinction. However, as Theo has better sleeping accommodation than the other boys I let the matter drop.40

The boys happily continued their education for the next three years and the two youngest were to go on to become engineers. Sybil was keen to help his family in any way she could and took on the responsibility of being the intermediary in making the inevitable payments for the boys’ education. This was done with a special Bank of Egypt account opened by Täfäri, through which Täfäri’s and Wärqenäh’s monies would be paid and then forwarded to Trent College. She also opened her country home to the boys as a refuge during their school vacations. Her residence in Bala, Wales reminded Wärqenäh very much of Ethiopia with its lakes and hills. Beginning with her major contribution helping with his sons’ education at this time, Wärqenäh would become closer to Sybil than to any of the other brothers and sisters in his adoptive family of which there were many. Her untimely death in 1930 would be a severe blow. She had played and would continue to play a key role in the education of his sons and daughters. The second major priority of his trip, of course, was to attend on Ras Täfäri in England and give him the best possible advice. There were four major areas where his expertise was most sought: his health, relations with the Bank of Abyssinia and its ruling body the National Bank of Egypt, helping conduct an interview with the British Prime Minister, James Ramsay McDonald and finally on issues of protocol. Although the diary never goes so far as to say it outright, Ras Täfäri was something of a hypochondriac. During the first few days that Täfäri was in London he had Wärqenäh make the arrangements to see a doctor and then interpret for him. A few days later, Wärqenäh arranged for Täfäri to be x-rayed on four different occasions.   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, p. 87.   WD, 28.6.1924. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 40   WD, 29.6.1924. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 38 39

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 After the final x-ray, Wärqenäh noted ‘Went with the Ras to the x ray man. He took an x ray picture of right side of his loin where the Ras says he feels pain when he sits up a longtime. To my mind it looks an awful waste of money and time.’41 The final report by Dr. Christopherson, an American, was negative. ‘Dr Christopherson brought the x ray photographs and his reports, nothing abnormal found except slight congenital defect in the 1st and 2nd ribs and in lumbar vertebra.’42 Wärqenäh had performed an important service to Täfäri, but he made three other contributions which were more significant, less personal and more of a diplomatic nature. Most important, perhaps, was the interview with the Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald on the same day that Dr. Christopherson gave a clean bill of health to the future emperor. [W]ent with the Ras to 10 Downing street and saw Prime Minister Mr MacDonald and interpreted for the Ras who spoke about the trouble with Russell the minister who has apparently complained to the Foreign Office saying that the Ras has been rude to him. The Ras denied having done anything of the sort and asked the Prime Minister Mr McDonald to look into the matter and to give him a copy of the communication made to the Ras verbally in connection with Russell’s complaint. The Ras, Balata Hirui and myself were the only persons present at the interview as the Ras did not want Zaphiro or Home or Mallet to be present.43

Wärqenäh’s presence was vital since he may have been the only member of Täfäri’s entourage who had sufficient command of English to be an intermediary at this high level. Largely because of an impasse in the British and Egyptian negotiations over the Nile River waters and the barrage the British desired at Lake Tana, the British seemed to be set on humiliating the Ras in order to get their way. The British minister in Addis Ababa had played a key role in this policy, and Täfäri was determined to go to the top of the British government to get satisfaction. He did not want any of the British diplomats fluent in Amharic (Zaphiro or Home) to twist his words in translation or others, like Mallet, to cloud the issue and thus turned to Wärqenäh for help and assistance. Clearly he did not think his future minster of foreign affairs, Heruy Wäldä Sellasé was up to the task. Another key diplomatic aim of the mission was to tackle the problems caused by the Bank of Abyssinia. It was established in 1905 in Addis Ababa under the authority of the National Bank of Egypt and was dominated by the British since its founding. Ethiopians increasingly wanted to gain a greater degree of control over its operations, partly as a basic question of sovereignty, but also be able to have greater control over their own economy. Wärqenäh had long had dealings with the bank, going back to 1908 and thus knew its personnel and problems intimately. Before the trip he had discussed the bank and its charter with both Ras Täfäri and the governor of the Bank of Abyssinia, C.S.Collier. Wärqenäh believed the bank’s monopoly was disadvantageous to Ethiopia and Täfäri was   WD, 15.7.1924. Wärqenäh’s underlining.   WD, 18.7.1924. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 43   Ibid. Zaphiro was the British ‘Oriental Secretary’ or British translator in Addis Ababa and Home and Mallet were more senior British diplomats. Underlining in the diary. 41 42

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 anxious to buy up all its shares and make it into a national bank thus taking over complete control of the bank.44 Wärqenäh advised possible modifications of the bank’s charter. Once they reached London, Täfäri ordered Wärqenäh to organize a meeting with the governor of the controlling National Bank of Egypt, Sir Bertram Hornsby. I did the interpreting. The Ras offered £80,000 for the Bank of Abyssinia, which Hornsby said was not enough. Then he raised to £100,000 which Hornsby said was also not enough as their original share amounted to £120,000.The Ras asked him to get the affair settled as soon as possible but Hornsby said it could not be finished one way or another under three months as all the Directors had to be consulted and also the share holders.45

Hornsby was unable to make subsequent appointments while the emperor was in Britain and so the Bank of Abyssinia would not be finally bought out until 1930.46 A final area where Wärqenäh was of some assistance to Ras Täfäri during his 1924 trip to Britain was in the minefield of protocol from the beginning with his departure from Addis Ababa through to his visit to the United Kingdom. When Täfäri left Addis Ababa the British Minister, Russell, refused to give the customary farewell good wishes at the railway station. Various versions emerged to explain this lapse. First, Wäyzäro Mänän asked Wärqenäh to go to the British Legation to ‘find out what has really happened’47 and Wärqenäh went the next day: Went to the British legation. Saw the Minister. He told me that he did not go to the station to see the Ras off as he was angry with the Ras for refusing to give permission for the Englishman to go to Arusi to shoot. But the Minister had sent Bullock the Consul and Zaphiro to represent him at the Railway Station. The Minster said that on account of his absenting himself from the station the Ras had sent a wire to the F.O. complaining about it and asking for an explanation and threatening not to visit England if no explanation was forthcoming.48

Wärqenäh was opposed to Täfäri following this course of action, but his advice was not followed. Considering what would happen later in the trip a com­bina­tion of racism, calculated insult and humiliation would seems to best fit the facts.49 Upon his arrival in London Ras Täfäri expressed his displeasure to Wärqenäh: Went straight to 2 Albert Gate where the Ras and his party are housed. Saw him, he was unhappy as the house is not of the best and because the King did not go to the station to receive him as in Italy, Belgium and France and because they have a common iron bedstead for the Rases and others to sleep on. He was received at   See Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 70a.   Ibid. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 46   See Schaeffer, Charles George H. ‘Enclavistic Capitalism in Ethiopia, 1906–1936: A Study of Currency, Banking, and Informal Credit Networks’ (PhD. Dissertation, University of Chicago, 1990), Vol II, pp. 215 and 222-227. Schaeffer does not include any discussion of this 1924 attempt to buy out the Bank of Abyssinia. 47   WD, 24.4.1924. 48   WD, 25.4.1924. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 49   See Haggai Erlich, “Ethiopia and Egypt - Ras Tafari in Cairo, 1924”, Aethiopica, 1 (1998), pp. 82ff & Marcus, Haile Sellassie I, pp. 60-68, for background, especially the events during Täfäri’s trip to Jerusalem. 44 45

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 Victoria station by the Duke of York. Saw Home [a British Consul in Ethiopia] when I came down and told him what I thought about the Ras’s reception. He said it was very difficult to find accommodation and they did the best they could.50

The next day Ras Täfäri, was still upset. The Ras again complained of his poor reception and told me that he had been asked to go and see the King this morning in his crown and special clothes and was told that the King was paying him his return visit in civilian clothes. The Ras has refused to go wearing his crown. The Duke of York with an escort of the life guard came to 2 Albert Gate and after a little conversation took the Ras in a State carriage to Buckingham Palace to see the King.51

The diary is unclear whether Wärqenäh gave Täfäri any further advice but he was most pleased that Täfäri later agreed to introduce him to the British monarch who Wärqenäh thought was ‘very kind and affable’ during the introduction.52 Wärqenäh does not comment on George V’s commitment to return the crown of ‘Emperor Theodore’ of Ethiopia. This was a crown he might have seen as a child when held captive in Mäqdäla before he was picked up on the battlefield, an ‘orphan’, and taken by the British officer Chamberlain to India. Wärqenäh not only advised and assisted Ras Täfäri, but also assisted many of the Ethiopian aristocrats in his entourage. Wärqenäh helped three of the nobles personally. He took Ras Haylu and Ras Kasa to Wilkinsons, where Haylu bought 3,000 sword blades as well as a silver chalice for one of his churches, spending over £3,000 while Ras Kasa bought only 130 sword blades. Ras Nadäw, on the other hand, he took to the bank to cash a £2,000 draft and to go see the Industrial Show at Wembley. These were minor services but showed that Wärqenäh was happy not only to serve Ras Täfäri but also most anyone in the Ethiopian court. Thus we have seen that Wärqenäh’s 1924 trip to England had two major priorities, his family responsibilities, especially the education of his boys and secondly advising Täfäri and his court. There were also other lesser priorities which, nonetheless, took up a good deal of his time and were important in their own right. The most important of these was undoubtedly his own health. Wärqenäh had been concerned about his overall health since his serious illness in 1919-1920 and had curtailed any heavy physical exercise like polo. After his arrival, at Sybil’s insistence, he went to see her private doctor: ‘He thinks I have nothing seriously wrong with me’, he noted in his diary and felt that he didn’t need to see a specialist.53 His next priority was to conduct some business affairs, for himself, for his Ethiopian government job with the Fel Wäha hot springs, and for Fitawrari Déréssa Amanté, an increasingly close friend. He bought unspecified supplies for Fel Wäha, and inquired with a variety of companies on Déréssa’s behalf about mica, rosin and turpentine, but mostly his inquires and purchases were for himself, his family and the numerous construction projects he had in progress   WD, 7.7.1924. Wärqenäh’s underlining. This is also confirmed by Marcus, Harold. Haile Sellassie I: The Formative Years, 1892-1936 (Red Sea Press, 1998), pp. 65ff. 51   WD, 8.7.1924. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 52   WD, 18.7.1924. 53   WD, 1.7.1924. 50

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Return of a progressive to Addis Ababa 1919–1924 in Addis Ababa. These ranged from cement, pipes, pumps to raise water, door locks and handles, electric generators, a handloom, wallpaper and medical drugs. Wärqenäh went to a large number of stores, comparing prices and quality, a process he seems to have thoroughly enjoyed. He also clearly enjoyed reconnecting with members of his far-flung family. As we have seen, Sybil, his adoptive sister, played a key role in organizing the education of his sons in England, but it was also through her that he was able to see his adoptive brother Stuart and his wife and sons again. He would remain in closer contact with this part of his family until well after World War II. He also reestablished contact with Theodore’s mother’s family, but not with his son’s mother Ethel. Whereas Wärqenäh remained estranged from Ethel, he maintained a regular correspondence with Ethel’s sister, Alice, and to a lesser degree with another sister Louise and their mother Mrs Watts. Especially after Wärqenäh’s return to Ethiopia in 1919, he increasingly turned to Alice to do odd jobs for him in England, asking her to send to Ethiopia English news papers and journals (like the Illustrated London News, The Graphic and the African World). Nothing seemed too small or odd but that Wärqenäh could turn to Alice for assistance. After asking her initially for assistance in his boys’ education, he later turned exclusively to Sybil for that more weighty task. However, after he arrived in England in 1924, he saw her often, took her out to the theatre on numerous occasions. They regularly exchanged Christmas presents for years until her death after World War II. Finally Wärqenäh also took the opportunity of his extended visit in England to renew friendships and acquaintances with many of whom he had known throughout his life. They included friends from Burma, India and his days in the Ogaden. He was very good at maintaining contact and most were more than willing to help him in his various endeavors. He also met Mrs. Hannah Holland for the first time and she would remain a close friend and colleague before, during and after his ambassadorship in England. While I was in London, I met a fine and pretty lady who told me she had Ethiopian blood in her, as her grand-mother who was a pure Ethiopian lady, had married Captain Bell a Naval Officer, who had gone to and settled in Ethiopia during Emperor Theodor’s time. Captain Bell’s daughter married Reverend Waldemyer, who was a missionary in the country… The lady was now married to a retired military office by name Captain Holland, who was now working as a musical conductor. These new friends continued to be very friendly and helpful to me every time I visited England.54

Wärqenäh’s 1924 trip to England marked the beginning of the most substantial phase of his contribution to Ethiopian diplomacy. He assisted Täfäri in his negotiations with British Prime Minister Ramsey MacDonald on the major issues confronting Ethiopian foreign policy and was also introduced to King George V. Later in his career as a diplomat he would meet with President Calvin Coolidge of the United States, and the future prime minister of India, Pandit Nehru. It would be difficult to identify another Ethiopian, other than the emperor, who met with more distinguished world figures.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 71a.

54

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7 An Increased Pace of Modernization (1924–1930)

After Wärqenäh’s return from his trip with Regent Täfäri to England, he played a larger and more important role in the modernization of Ethiopia and was clearly much closer to the Regent as an increasingly trusted advisor and administrator. Qätsälä was also much closer to Wäyzäro Mänän after they had been on pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1923. Täfäri entrusted Wärqenäh with more than seven significant modernizing tasks. These were: first, as principal of Täfäri Mäkonnen School (1925); second, as a founder and the leading member of the Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär (Love and Service Association) in 1926 and its school for slaves; third, as financial director of Berhanenna Sälam Press (1926); fourth as publisher of his World Geography, fifth as ‘supervisor’ for building a road from Addis Ababa to Jimma, sixth as President of the Special Court of Ethiopia in 1928 (sometimes known as the Mixed Court) and finally as co-holder of a platinum and gold concession in Wällägga. These jobs were added to his continuing and onerous responsibilities (especially in overseeing all their financial affairs) as Director of the Fel Weha Baths and also of the Bét Sayda Hospital. Most of these responsibilities would come to an end with his appointment in late 1930 as Governor of Chärchär province in Harar. However, he still continued to spend a large amount of time, before and after his Chärchär appointment, advising Täfäri on foreign and domestic matters, caring for his own large family and also carrying on increasingly extensive business affairs. The latter especially included a new gold and platinum concession he shared with Blatta Déréssa in the province of Wällägga. For a man in his sixties and in increasingly poor health, all this work would eventually become too crushing a burden to bear and influenced his decision to accept an appointment as governor of Chärchär in 1930. Each duty drew on the many western skills that he had acquired, including management, accounting methods, engineering and building abilities, organizational, educational and medical abilities. Wärqenäh’s identity was rapidly expanding beyond being just a doctor to a virtual jack of all progressive trades. In this chapter the emphasis will be on his major domestic priorities, while the next chapter will be devoted to his international outreach, including three overseas trips to England, the USA and India. A major reason for Ethiopia’s increasing focus on a more progressive agenda was the steady growth in Täfäri’s 124

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 power and his growing ability to outflank the conservatives. In December 1926 two of his most powerful conservative foes, Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis, the Minister of War and Abunä Matéwos both died. Thus Täfäri had more influence on the appointment of a new head of the Ethiopian church, and was able to take over most of Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis’s army and some of his lands, reassigning much of them to himself or his allies. Thus two of the empress’s main supporters were removed. His next major step came in 1928 when Täfäri was crowned Negus or King, which gave him increased clout. Finally, in 1930 came two climactic events. The empress’s former husband and ally, Ras Gugsa, the ruler of a large part of the north of Ethiopia, rebelled and was decisively defeated by Täfäri and his allies. The empress died shortly afterwards, and Täfäri seized his opportunity to be crowned ‘King of Kings’, emperor and become the most powerful man in Ethiopia. Now he had a good deal more power and flexibility to implement his agenda. Throughout these years Täfäri’s primary goal was to centralize power in his own hands. Modernization was especially pushed if it enhanced his power, otherwise the progressive urge was not as strong. The Täfäri Mäkonnen School is a fascinating example. Without doubt a modern westernizing school was progressive, but clearly a major aim, in Täfäri’s eyes, was to produce loyal bureaucrats who would be ready and able to centralize Ethiopia’s administration under his watchful eye.

Täfäri Mäkonnen School (TMS) & education Of all Wärqenäh’s varied occupations from 1919 to 1935, the most demanding was as superintendent of the Täfäri Mäkonnen School (henceforth TMS). Running the school took tremendous energy and it is absolutely remarkable, at the age of sixty that he was able to carry out that job as well as his myriad other responsibilities. TMS was a pet project of Täfäri, and was set up to compete with and overtake Ethiopia’s first ‘modern’ school, the Menilek School.1 Täfäri turned to Wärqenäh to build and run the new school, partly because of his experience and gravitas, but also to provide a counter weight in the vital balance between the competing English and French pressures working on the educational system and the process of modernization in Ethiopia. The French were determined that the language of instruction at both Menilek School and TMS should be French, the countervailing pressure for English was not nearly as strong. Wärqenäh would for five long years bear the brunt of this ‘linguistic war’. He was also determined that education should not be narrowly focused just on academics, but should also have a major impact on the character and morals of its students as well. Furthermore, he worked very hard to make sure that vocational education should be a significant alternative at the new school. Each one of these priorities entailed a major struggle and together they made his task a long and frustrating one. However, the greatest burden, so painfully true for virtually every administrative position, was the selection and management of personnel. His diary reveals in   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century (James Currey, Addis Ababa, 2002), p. 25. [Henceforth, Bahru Zewde, Pioneers]. 1

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 excruciating detail the difficulties he experienced in hiring teachers and then mediating their conflicts and disputes. He clearly found this the most frustrating, exhausting and infuriating part of his job, especially in dealing with the French teachers whose culture was so very different from his own. However, Wärqenäh saw education as Ethiopia’s most important priority and he never wavered in his absolute commitment to it. Qätsälä was of significant assistance to him throughout, helping him in every possible way, but especially when he was away travelling, she acted in his stead. From his earliest years in Ethiopia he advocated education as an essential ingredient for Ethiopian development. His advice to Menilek, Taytu, Iyasu and Abunä Matéwos, may have influenced or been partially responsible for the founding of the Menilek School in 1908, but he played no role in its administration. Once Täfäri returned from his trip to Europe in 1924, education was put on the fast track and he turned to Wärqenäh as his most experienced western administrator and modernizer to take on this vital task. During a conversation with the Ras [Ras Täfäri], I suggested his opening a school in his name. He approved of the idea, but said he could not think of anyone who could run it for him. On offering my humble services, he was pleased and we decided to set up a school as soon as possible. I suggested this idea, as the Government school established by Emperor Menilik and called after his name, was run inefficiently by uneducated Egyptian teachers and was in any case, not sufficient for the needs of the town and its surroundings, as it had no boarding facilities. The proof of its inefficiency could be seen, as up to 1925, after 18 years work, not a single decently educated pupil could be put forward… The problem regarding the opening of the school, was due to the jealousy of the Abuna, who persuaded the Empress to show her disapproval by refusing to go to the opening of the school ceremony. However, the difficulty was eventually got over and the Empress came, and thereafter came to the school every year…until I gave up the supervision of the school…in 1930.2

The role of Täfäri, first as Ras then as Negus (or King, 1928–1930), and finally as emperor (1930–1974), was the essential key to the founding, building and funding of TMS.3 Täfäri and Wärqenäh had discussed education many times over the years before 1925 and they were in basic agreement in their educational approach and ideology. Some quotes from Wärqenäh’s speeches are revealing. For all of you students gathered here today [for the inauguration of TMS] … I would like to impress upon you that knowledge is beneficial for mankind. Knowledge is an assured and durable asset, which cannot be alienated by any force. She [knowledge] does not threaten to undo the foundational laws of heaven and earth, rather she offers the inheritance of the heavenly kingdom of God to ones heart. She is a protector in time of ones troubles and needs. May God help you reach her and get hold of her.  Autobiography of Hakim Wärqenäh is in the possession of the family, see p. 72a. [Henceforth, Wärqenäh Autobiography] 3   To the author’s knowledge TMS was never directly mentioned in the emperor’s autobiography, nor is education given a major role in his priorities. On page 69 instruction in foreign languages is focused on but not education generally, see Edward Ullendorff trans., The Autobiography of Emperor Haile Sellassie: My Life and Ethiopia’s Progress (Oxford University Press, 1976). His contemporary speeches in the Berhanenna & Sälam newspaper are a clearer reflection of his views than his autobiography. 2

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 And I entreat each and every one of you to repay and support this school, by your gifts and talents when you come of age, as she is going to raise you up by feeding and nourishing you from the fountain of knowledge, for she is the instrument of the development of our country, so that she expands and does not shrink and gets stronger, not weaker. On behalf of Our Heir Apparent [on the occasion of the opening of TMS], who out of his immense generosity and benevolence opened this school, so that the children of our country would grow up acquiring knowledge and wisdom, I am pleased to welcome and congratulate the students of this school. Esteemed fellows, education is highly desirable for our country. For this reason, one or two schools are hardly enough for the 12 or 15 million people of our country. However, we hope that the rich people of our country will follow the example set by hour Heir Apparent, and open schools at different parts of our country, so that, at least a few thousand of our children will acquire education… No individual nation can survive for long without basic knowledge. It will either lag behind or advance forward. If that nation lags behind, it will be overtaken by a stronger nation. The reason behind the success of the Japanese to successfully defend their independence is their mastery of knowledge and education in due time.4

They both agreed that education was one of Ethiopia’s highest priorities; both regarded their own western education as a seminal influence. Both saw education as a key to modernization and development. Furthermore, they agreed that education and patriotism were closely intertwined and that inculcation of the love of country through education was also extremely important. Furthermore, religion and a Christian education were essential. However, they also seem to have differed somewhat in emphasis. Both were emphatic in making sure Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity formed the bedrock of education, including highlighting the importance of the ‘golden rule’ (‘do as you would be done by’ from the New Testament) as the lodestar for a young life. However, Wärqenäh was also keen to include aspects of his own education in India especially inculcating the ‘muscular Christianity’ in which he had been brought up. This was the same ideology prevalent in the nineteenth-century Victorian prep schools of Britain and the empire, values closely linked to the British Empire and its needs. ‘Muscular Christianity’ was a significant departure from the ethos of the Menilek School and a major contribution that Wärqenäh brought to modern Ethiopian education. Second, within a few years he initiated at TMS a major emphasis on vocational education. Täfäri in these early years rarely if ever mentions vocational education, while the background to this initiative is sometimes apparent in Wärqenäh’s life experience, especially of course in the nature of his medical education and how he educated his sons. He brought up this priority again and again in the late 1920s pushing Täfäri to fund and support it. Roots for it can be seen in Emperor Menilek’s emphasis on the practical, but it was never as clear a strand in Täfäri’s upbringing and educational agenda. Wärqenäh was absolutely determined that an option be   See these speeches in Tadäla Betul Kebrät, Yä’azaj Hakim Wärqenäh Eshätu Yäheywät Tarik (Addis Ababa, 2009), pp. 114-118. [Henceforth, Betul]. I would like to thank Kinde Endeg Mihretie for this translation. 4

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 created at TMS for students to learn a practical skill that would allow them to get a real world job after leaving TMS, for instance, as a carpenter, mechanic or weaver. Furthermore, vocational education became the dominant thrust of the slave school which he also established in the late 1920s and later a major theme in the schools he founded in Chärchär province. It was never quite clear how much Täfäri and Wärqenäh disagreed on the ‘linguistic war’ of French versus English at TMS. During his five years as principal Wärqenäh won some battles and lost others, remarkably enough the topic is still a controversial one with an oral informant denying the existence of any tension.5 Täfäri set up the very administrative structure of TMS with this problem in mind. At the head of the institution was the superintendent and reporting to him was the Director, Wärqenäh was appointed superintendent in 1925 and the Frenchman M. Guillon was appointed Director.6 From 1925 until the Italian takeover of Addis Ababa in 1936 the superintendent was always an Ethiopian and the director, except for one very brief period, a French speaker or Frenchman. Täfäri tried to carefully balance the two factions, but the diplomatic pressures for a French language curriculum were greater than those for an English curriculum. Throughout the 1920s and up to 1936, there seem always to have been more students in the French stream than the English stream. Only after the Liberation of Ethiopia would English language instruction outstrip French. Furthermore, before 1935 the French legation exerted more pressure on Täfäri than the British legation did and so Wärqenäh was left exposed as the major advocate for English language instruction in Ethiopia. After he left TMS to become governor of Chärchär province in 1931 his Ethiopian successor as superintendent did not have the same ready access to the emperor that Wärqenäh had had nor did he have the same gravitas. Thus he was unable to maintain the same kind of relatively favorable balance between French and English that Wärqenäh had managed from 1925 to 1930. Wärqenäh was Ethiopia’s best advocate for English language instruction, as the emperor bowed to the imperatives of national and international politics and the need to maintain French support in his international diplomacy. Täfäri, however, never wavered in his strong support of education as a major priority. In fact, the TMS was in some ways almost an extension of his very court. The students were invited to his palace at Christmas and given presents and on a number of occasions the students were fed from the Ras’s kitchens especially soon after it was founded. He regularly attended the end of the academic year prize giving ceremonies, personally awarding the prizes; later, once he was emperor, he invited the students to his birthday party at which they would put on a theatrical performance. To Tafari the TMS was a showcase in his drive to modernize Ethiopia and important visiting dignitaries would be given   Interview with Emanuel Abraham, Addis Ababa, October 2, 2001. He strongly denied this conflict in my interview with him. 6   Mersé Hazän Wäldä Qirqos, ‘Käyähutena Käsämahut Bänegestä Zäwditu Zämänä’, Ms. #2062-B at the Institute of Ethiopian Studies, pp. 279-287 [Henceforth, Mersé Hazän, Ms.] and Sylvia Pankhurst, Ethiopia: A Cultural History (Lalibela House, Essex, 1959), pp. 587-8. [Henceforth, Sylvia Pankhurst, Cultural History]. 5

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 a personal tour of the school by its principal, Wärqenäh, whether they were Ethiopian nobility like Ras Gugsa or Däjazmach Habtä Maryam or even his wife Mänän. He also hosted foreign dignitaries like the Duke d’Abruzzi, a Rothschild, Bishop Gwynne of Jerusalem, a visiting consul from Holland or Japan, or the League of Nations representative. Here was one concrete way that all could see the progress Ethiopia had already made. Täfäri backed this up by significantly funding the school through his own financial resources7, although, as we shall see both he and Wärqenäh worked hard to secure other sources of funding. However, as in so many other areas Täfäri’s micromanaging could be infuriating to the superintendent of the school as well as his constant intervention in the day to day operation of TMS. At one point, in total frustration, Wärqenäh exclaimed that Täfäri’s myriad rules for TMS were ‘unworkable’8, at another Täfäri personally wrote an Ethiopian diplomat in Paris to recruit French teachers, at another he cancelled a student play because he thought it ‘too strong’ (scripts had to be censored in advance).9 Yet this micromanaging could also lead, in the early years, to his wife Wäyzäro Mänän personally supervising and providing from the palace all the food for the students at TMS.10 Micromanaging had both advantages and disadvantages. Overall, TMS had a strong faculty and rising numbers of students under Wärqe­ näh’s leadership. The original faculty, which focused on teaching languages (especially French, English and Amharic), included M. Guillon who was director under Wärqenäh and a teacher of French language and literature and was assisted by M. Paul Laburdari and Ato Taweqä Habtä Wäld Abba Täfäri. Thus there were three teachers of French, while English only had two: Ato Efrém Täweldä Mädhen and Ato Mängäsha Käffälä, while Ato Märsé Hazän taught Amharic. Art was taught by M. Papazian and Music by M. Nalbandian.11 The number of students steadily increased until 1930–31 but decreased after Wärqenäh’s departure. At the beginning of the first year of TMS there were thirty two students12, a number which steadily increased to 184 and then reached 200 in 1931–1932. There were always more boarders than day students.13 Other issues that absorbed large amounts of Wärqenäh’s time and energy were: funding, recruitment of teachers, Ethiopians studying abroad, vocational education, keeping accounts and carrying on the building campaign at TMS. Funding TMS was a constant struggle to make ends meet. Täfäri was the major driving force who supplied the vast bulk of the financing, from erecting the original basic buildings of the school14 which were very substantial amounts, to providing the basic yearly funding which allowed the institution to function. The   Sylvia Pankhurst, Cultural History, see pp. 586-592.   WD, 24.11.1926.   WD, 7.7.1928. 10   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, p. 26. See also Sylvia Pankhurst, Cultural History, p. 588. 11   Märsé Hazän Ms, pp. 411-412. 12   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 72a-73a. 13   Richard Pankhurst, ‘The Foundation of Education, Printing, Newspapers, Book Production, Libraries and Literacy in Ethiopia’, Ethiopian Observer, Vol. 6, p. 267. [Henceforth, Pankhurst, Foundations]. 14   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 72a. 7 8 9

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 average yearly expenditure of TMS was about $83,300.15 Whenever more money was needed, Wärqenäh would go directly to Täfäri and the money would usually be forthcoming, with the occasional delay: £3,000 in 1926, a transfer from Bét Sayda Hospital in 1927, or an infusion of cash in 1928. Individual donations were common from a wide variety of individuals including: Abba Weqaw Berru($300), the Duke d’Abruzzi ($1,000), Ras Haylu ($1,000), and Ras Seyum ($500). More revenue was generated at special theatrical performances put on by the students and faculty of the school, usually at least once a year. The one in June 1927 cleared over $2,000. Wärqenäh would later use these fundraising techniques for other causes like his school for freed slaves and for the defense of Ethiopia when he was ambassador to Great Britain (1935–1941). However, it is clear that all the fundraising efforts put together were tiny in comparison with the overall yearly budget, which was basically allotted by Täfäri. Another significant activity integral to the success of the TMS was the recruit­ ment of faculty for the school. Here Wärqenäh’s efforts were truly transnational, he recruited in Great Britain, the United States, India and Egypt. Most of the initiatives did not immediately bear fruit but later significant numbers of teachers would come from the United States, especially African Americans and also many from India. Other teachers of English were recruited locally in Ethiopia and Addis Ababa. Internationally, he took almost every opportunity he could to recruit. While he was in New York in 1927 he sent two Ethiopian students at Muskingam College a list of the people required and then later went to their college in Ohio and publicly urged African-American students while they were in chapel to go and teach in Ethiopia. Similarly he recruited in Philadelphia and New York. Later that same year in England he met with the Bishop of Salisbury (who was expected to become the next Archbishop of Canterbury), the Secretary General of the Church Mission Society and administrators at the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, to encourage them to send or recommend teachers of English for Ethiopia. But it was through a British friend, Devine, that he was able to recruit two ‘splendid teachers’ in England, including Mr. Orr.16 During his trip to India in late 1929 and early 1930 he was more successful, bringing back with him teachers when he returned to Ethiopia who soon began teaching at TMS. One English teacher was brought from Egypt, Gordon Grant. When there was a last minute shortage of teachers Wärqenäh often recruited teachers locally, mostly from the Armenian community. In one case he temporarily hired his son Téwodros. It was not a success, but not everyone is born to teach. Wärqenäh was remarkably energetic and persistent in recruiting and it paid off, making TMS the best school in Ethiopia. Teachers are the heart and soul of any academic endeavor. Wärqenäh also worked hard to send his best students, whether English and French speakers, overseas for the higher education they could not find in Ethiopia. In 1924 only 25 students were sent overseas, but by 1934 the number had risen to 200.17 A significant number were the responsibility of Wärqenäh and   Pankhurst, Foundation, p.267.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 88a.   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, p. 79.

15 16 17

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 his work at TMS. In 1926 he managed to send twelve TMS graduates overseas to Lebanon. Virtually all these students, it should be recalled, were educated at the personal expense of Täfäri. When in 1926 twelve students were sent for further education to Beirut from TMS, the numbers were carefully balanced between English speakers and French speakers, 6 to the English speaking American College of Beirut and six to the French Mission Laique. Furthermore, TMS was responsible for paying the tuition and expenses of students like Basha Wäräd and Mälaku Bäyän in the United States. It is unclear how many other students were Wärqenäh’s responsibility. However, in January 1929 this policy was changed and the Ministry of Education became responsible for overseas students’ tuition. As a result fewer got their stipends and tuition on time and many suffered grievously.18 Overall, the evidence is clear that during the time that Wärqenäh was responsible for obtaining and paying the money for students expenses overseas, his system worked well. After responsibility was transferred to the Ministry of Education, it did not. Another major Wärqenäh responsibility was construction projects on the TMS campus. In his autobiography he says that after their return from England in 1924, he suggested the idea of building a new school and Täfäri concurred. After settling the question of setting up a new school I immediately set to work and wrote out the rules and regulations for both a boarding and day school and saw that the necessary school building, on a suitable site, was soon put up. The Ras being quite enthusiastic about it, all the necessary buildings were ready in about six months…It was finally formerly [sic] opened with thirty-two students, on 2 May 1925.19

In 1926 he built two new buildings to house the vocational education initiatives of TMS and in 1928 had new quarters built for school faculty. He also built latrines, a platform for a new water supply and made plans for building a second story on the existing school structure. Wärqenäh always enjoyed constructing buildings; the very process seemed to give him great pleasure. Inevitably there were a great number of other smaller tasks that were part of his job as the chief executive officer of a major national school. He persuaded Täfäri to give scholarships to needy students, purchased books for the school, gave a feast for his students, performed the laborious task of keeping the accounts for TMS, and consulted with Täfäri about the new uniforms he wished to have the boys wear. He also investigated the need and price of generators and an electric plant for the school and advised the regent about which ones to purchase. His tasks as principal were prodigious and diverse. TMS was not the only educational initiative that Wärqenäh undertook. In his autobiography he described an unsuccessful attempt to also, at about the same time, found a girl’s school in Addis Ababa. After starting the boys school, I began agitating about starting a school for girls. Hoping that the Empress might help me in this, I approached her on the subject. However, she would not listen to my proposal, saying that she did not approve of the girls being taught by Catholic or Protestant teachers. Failing with the Empress, I tried   WD, 2.1.1929. Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, pp. 79-80. Also passim in diary, 1920s–1930s.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 72a.

18 19

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 the British Minister, and asked him to get me some help from the British government for this important work and, if possible, for a women’s hospital also. I pointed out that doing this would not only be doing an important charitable work, but would also be helpful in increasing the British influence amongst the Ethiopians. However, the Minister informed me that it was against the policy of the Foreign Office to give any help to countries which were not directly under the British administration.20

Overall Wärqenäh’s tenure at TMS was one of his greatest contributions to Ethiopia and had a long-term impact on its modernization and intellectual development. Finally, TMS stood as a symbol and model for the expansion of education throughout Ethiopia. Wärqenäh was seminal in the development of three schools, TMS, a vocational school for freed slaves in Addis Ababa (which will be described in the next section) and after the end of his tenure at TMS he founded a new school in Asbä Täfari the district capital of the province of which he was made governor. He also encouraged the foundation and expansion of other schools in his province. Finally, he ran an informal school in his household throughout most of his life there. Education was a deeply engrained priority, nationally, at the provincial level, within Addis Ababa and for the members of his own family and was among the highest of his priorities.

Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär – Love & Service Association Wärqenäh is perhaps most well known in Ethiopia for his devotion to the Täfäri Mäkonnen School and as a medical doctor, but the Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär that he founded, gives a wider sense of his overall philosophy as a progressive, as an intellectual and as a human being. He firmly believed in the current British ideology of ‘muscular Christianity’, an inheritance of the Victorian era in which he was brought up in India and which formed an important part of the foundation of his commitment to Täfäri Mäkonnen School. Moreover, the association he founded in 1926 reveals a more fully rounded and softer aspect of his outlook focusing on service. He saw this new association, as a departure, something quite new in Ethiopian Society, but still firmly grounded in its Christianity and culture. It emphasized, as its title suggests, love and service, as well as Ethiopian patriotism. However, it was also an outgrowth, as we have seen, of Wärqenäh’s experience with the old Ethiopian association of the Mahbär and the western Masons. In today’s world it could be seen as Ethiopia’s first international NGO (Non Governmental Organization), one of its first organizations helping to build Ethiopia’s civil society. As he points out in his autobiography: As it appeared to me that it would be a good idea to get the young men, especially those who had some education, together in a cooperative association, I made out a plan for it, but it was quite a new idea, I showed the rules, etc. I had made to the Ras [Täfäri], and got his sanction to set up an Association under the title of ‘Love and   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 73a-73a. See also Rhodes House Box 2/1, Martin to Rey, 6.3.1925.

20

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 Service Association’. The young men took very kindly to it and in a short time I had quite a large membership, including some ladies, under my presidency.21

The association was founded in February, 1926 through the efforts of a core group22, the leading lights of which were: Wärqenäh, Mäsfän Qälämwärq, Mängäsha Käffälä and Märsé Hazän. In the background, encouraging and suggesting, was Ras Täfäri whose formal approval was essential to the association’s legal foundation. Täfäri was not the initiator of the Mahbär, but after he agreed to its being founded, he entrusted Wärqenäh with its leadership. While in his diary entries Wärqenäh emphasized that the members ‘took an oath to work together loyally and honestly’23, in an article he submitted to Berhanenna Sälam newspaper in 1926, he gives a longer and more detailed description of their aims.24 First, he described it as an association of mutual aid and counsel, with its members living pure and honest Christian lives. Second, its members should always be ready to serve their country, Ethiopia. He saw the ‘golden rule’ of the New Testament uniting its members and playing a central role, so that they would do unto others, as they would have others do unto them. Furthermore, seven words were key: faith, liberty, love, service, purity, honesty and unity. The association’s first specific and practical aim was to tackle the problem of slavery in Ethiopia, through the emancipation of slaves, and more especially by requiring each member to free all their slaves. Wärqenäh had already freed his family’s slaves in 1919. No new member could join the association unless they agreed to free their slaves. Within a few months of the founding of the association a school for freed slaves was established. Wärqenäh discussed his project with the British minister, Bentinck, and told him that $10,000 had already been raised for the school, with $3,000 from Täfäri (as well as a site for the school) and $2,000 from the empress. He tried to raise money also from the French and German ministers, but each refused because neither’s language was designated the language of instruction. The British minister promised to enquire from his government and the Italian minister was similarly sympathetic. No money was ever forthcoming from either. Thus despite all the heated rhetoric internationally about Ethiopia and slavery, not one country stepped forward to help finance Ethiopia’s first school for freed slaves. Ethiopians were left to do it on their own with Wärqenäh leading the way. The Mahbär has a long history in Ethiopia; traditionally it was and is a social and religious organization, meeting on its Saint’s day and gathering its members for a meal, an enjoyable social occasion once a month.25 As we have seen Wärqenäh had in the early twentieth century been a member of one of Emperor Menilek’s Mahbär. It is fascinating to observe, first, that Wärqenäh’s new association met regularly, on virtually every Sunday and Wärqenäh went whenever possible. He had not gone regularly to church for many years. Second, while he had been an active member of the Freemasonry society in Addis Ababa from 1910 to   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 76a.   Märsé Hazän, pp. 336-337.   WD, 14.2.1926. 24   Berhanenna Sälam Newspaper, Vol. II, #25. [Henceforth, B & S]. 25   See Siegbert Uhlig, Encyclopaedia Aethiopica (Wiesbaden, 2007), Vol. 3, pp. 649-650. [Henceforth, EAE]. 21 22 23

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 1913, there is virtually no mention of Freemasonry in his diary after 1913. The Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär seems to have, in many significant ways taken the place of both Freemasonry and regular church attendance. Furthermore, the Christian emphasis of the Mahbär seems to resonate back to his early Christian upbringing at Batala High School. His emphasis on slavery and emancipation also resonates throughout his life, going back to his advice to Emperor Menilek and Empress Taytu at the beginning of the twentieth century. Qätsälä played a significant role in the association throughout and was its most prominent female member. A further early aim of the association, according to one of the very few secondary sources on the Mahbär, Marsé Hazän26, was to counteract European propaganda against slavery in Ethiopia and this was one of the early reasons for the Crown Prince Täfäri’s and others support of the association. Support within Ethiopia’s educated elite was impressive including: merchants, government employees and noblemen. Within a few months there were 30 members and among the nobility were: Däjazmach Gétachäw , Fitawrari Gäbrä Maryam Gari, Fitawrari Haylé Wäldä Rufé, Tsähafé Te’ezaz Wäldä Mäsqäl Tariku, Fitawrari Amdé Habtä Selassé and Näggadras Tafäsä Habtä Mika’él. Early leaders of the association, who were elected by majority vote from among the membership were: Hakim Wärqenäh (as President), Ato Käbbärä Haylä Sellasé (as Vice President) and Lej Mäsfän Qälämwärq (as Secretary). The Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär grew rapidly during its first two years or so, starting with 7 at the beginning of 1926, increasing to 28 by February (1926) and reaching 84 by the end of 192727. After reaching this plateau its membership seems to have declined. When Wärqenäh was appointed governor of Chärchär province in 1930, its membership had declined to 56 and Wärqenäh handed over its presidency to Fitawrari Haylé Wäldä Rufé. The statistics for the number of slaves freed by the association are not as abundant. However, it seems at least 600 to 700 slaves were freed within a year of the founding of the association.28 The most notable practical achievement of the association was the founding and financing of what started out as a school for liberated slaves, mainly children. Later its responsibilities would be expanded to include orphans and the poor. From the beginning it was seen as a vocational school, a ‘tech school’ or ‘handicraft school’ when referred to in his diary. Wärqenäh’s basic idea was to prepare the former child slaves for a profession with basic reading, writing and arithmetic skills that would make them independent. Funding of the Mahbär and the new slave school was a real challenge. The government, Ras Täfäri, and the nobility were willing to help, but the bulk of the funding depended on members of the Mahbär themselves. The major sources of money were threefold: donations, special fundraisers and subscriptions, similar in many ways to funding for the Täfäri Mäkonnen School but without a major contribution each year from Täfäri. An external source of funding, the Anti-Slavery and Aborigines Protection Society, seemed in the early years to have been a heartening possibility. When Wärqenäh traveled to London in 1927 and visited their headquarters, they   For this and the following Marsé Hazän Ms., Pp. 336-337.   B & S, Vol. IV, #1. 28   B & S, Vol. II, #20, articles by ‘Dr. Martin’ and YäKätäma Wäré. 26 27

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 promised to give an initial substantial donation and supplement it with a regular yearly subvention. However, this money would only be given ‘provided that’ an official British diplomatic representative ‘could be allowed to occupy a position on the committee of the school.’29 There’s no evidence that the Anti-Slavery Society ever funded the Mahbär’s school. Nearly all the funding of the Mahbär came from within Ethiopia, except for one contribution from the visiting Italian noble, the Duke d’Abruzzi of 1,000 Maria Theresa Dollars (MTD) with no strings attached. The two other large donations were from Ras Täfäri (2,000 MTD) and the Slave Courts (2,000 MTD), most other donations were much smaller 100 MTD or less. A major source of revenue were fundraisers, the two largest were theatrical productions, usually at a local hotel, often with Täfäri Mäkonnen School students as the actors of what seem to have been short morality skits. One of these performances raised 10,000 MTD in 1926 for the mahbär and another raised 2,000 dollars in 1927 for the slave school. As the donations received from the members and friends of our ‘Love and Service Association’ were not sufficient to enable me to carry on the school for the emancipated slave and orphan children, I thought of giving a theatrical performance to collect some money, but as this short of frivolity [sic] had never been attempted before, I had to obtain the Regent’s permission to carry out my plan. After making a few alterations in my program and the plot of the performance, he consented to it…The alterations were made, as some of the speeches and items in the performance against slavery, bribery and conservatism were considered too strong for most of the old chiefs. However, our members, with the assistance of some students from the Regent’s School, carried through the performance magnificently and, from this and from the bazaar, which was held after the performance, as well as large donations from the Empress, the Regent and other well to do friends, we made over £1,000 [c$10,000]which enabled us to carry on the school for some time. When our funds were nearly exhausted, we again had performances and carried on.

To give a flavor of the performance, the titles of a few of the skits might be in order: 2. Slave children calling on Ethiopia for their emancipation and help… 4. a youngster asking his conservative father to let him go and learn. Father refuses, the youngster runs away and comes back after some years, educated and enlightened to his father’s surprise. 5. A skit on a rich and lazy Ethiopian officer leading a luxurious and lazy life and doing no work… 8. Showing how some times, bribery is taken by some official through their wives and servants.30

It is interesting to speculate what influence these theatrical performances had on the growth of the theater and full length plays in Addis Ababa and Ethiopia. Another substantial source of revenue, this time regular ongoing revenue, was the subscriptions by each member of the Mahbär of $2 per month (some like   FO 371/16101/9197 Annual Report for 1931 by S. Barton, Addis Ababa, 20.1.1932, p. 30.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 79a-80a. See also WD, 1.6.1926.

29 30

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 Wärqenäh however, gave more). Although some of the money raised must have been spent to support the weekly refreshments during their Sunday meetings and some was set aside to buy land for a headquarters for the Mahbär, most of these revenues seem to have gone to support the school for liberated slaves. The school was set up as a direct outgrowth of the Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär, soon after Täfäri said he wanted such a school and after he had carefully scrutinized its regulations and agreed to participate in its fundraiser theatrical show. The first two slave children were brought to the school, two boys, in August of 1926 and they were almost certainly taken care of at Wärqenäh and Qätsälä’s home at Shola. Within three months Lej Eshäté Shäwa Rägb was appointed as the head of the school and Marsé Hazän as the secretary of the Mahbär to care for the school. By the end of 1927 the number of children in the school had reached 4431 and shortly afterwards Lady Buxton, of the famous British Antislavery family, had paid the school a visit.32 The school only became fully stabilized when it received land and a permanent building in 1927. Empress Zäwditu gave the site and a building which had formerly been a home for the poor near the Fel Weha Hot Springs. Official visits by the League of Nations representative and by Negus Täfäri followed in 1929 marking the highpoint of the school’s early history. By the end of 1929, however, significant problems had developed at the school with its administrator named Yaréd and a replacement had to be appointed in August, Abba Gäbrä Egziabeher.33 Later, as he points out in his autobiography, The school was made into a technical school by teaching the boys weaving, carpentry, silversmiths and blacksmiths work, while the girls were taught cooking, sewing, knitting and spinning. We obtained a fine house with large premises, close to the Fil Waha (the mineral bath) for the school. The house had been built by the Government with a view to making it into a leper asylum, but as most of the lepers disappeared and as the few who could be found strongly resisted being put into isolation, the house was never used…On my leaving Addis Ababa for the Chercher province [in 1931] the school was taken over by the Government.34

It later ‘became quite a big institution, as poor orphans were also admitted.’35 In conclusion it should be said that both the Mahbär and the school were very important initiatives. By the 1930s the school was not only educating former slaves but also orphans and poor children. Although their numbers were not very large, both had set an example for Ethiopia and the school had helped placate international opinion on the slavery issue. The Mahbär, under Wärqenäh’s leadership, had helped many Ethiopian progressives to develop a certain solidarity, especially those who were younger and wielded less influence. Wärqenäh had personally intervened on many occasions to reconcile disputes among members, help those out of work and intervene with higher authorities. He also provided access to the Regent Täfäri to present petitions and help to   B & S, Vol IV, #1, Tahesas 26, 1920.   WD, 18.1.1928.   See WD, 6.10.1929, 27.4.1930 & 29.8.1920. 34   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 80. 35   Ibid., p. 77a. 31 32 33

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 resolve problems. Wärqenäh played an absolutely key role in both the Mahbär and the school as did his wife Qätsälä. The association was also very important in the slow development of civil society in Ethiopian history. His protégés in the organization spread far and wide in Ethiopia. Furthermore the Mahbär was indigenous in thought, word and deed and probably Ethiopia’s first NGO and international humanitarian organization. During the same period Wärqenäh also played a significant role in strengthening the position of another, already existing civil institution, the Berhanenna Sälam Press.

Berhanenna Sälam Press Sometime after Ras Täfäri’s return from his tour of Europe in 1924, he ordered Wärqenäh to take over control of Berhanenna Sälam Press.36 However, unlike the Täfäri Mäkonnen School or the Fel Weha Baths, these new responsibilities did not entail extensive day-to-day duties. Here again Täfäri was taking advantage of Wärqenäh’s skills as a manager and accountant to sort out financial problems at the press, in order to put it on a sounder footing. He was also seeking Wärqenäh’s advice for a permanent site for the press outside his palace compound. The Regent asked me to look after the printing press also. I found the press located in an isolated building and in need of many necessary articles. The receipts barely covered the expenditures. However, in course of time, I got the press shifted into a new and commodious house and obtained all the necessary appliances which made it quite a useful and paying concern.37

The press had been founded in 1923 by Täfäri on his own palace grounds and he had appointed Ato Gäbrä Kristos as the director of the all Ethiopian staff. 38 For Täfäri the Berhanenna Sälam Press was the most important press in Ethiopia. It not only published the most influential Ethiopian newspaper, Berhanenna Sälam (Light and Peace), where Wärqenäh and most Ethiopian progressives published, but it was the major publisher of Ethiopian books, religious and secular. Later it printed and distributed Wärqenäh’s most important publication, a World Geography. In June of 1926 Wärqenäh made his first visit to the press: Went to the Printing Press and had a long talk with Ato Gabra Christos [sic] the Director. He told me that the monthly income was about 500-600 dollars and expenses about 500/-. The building is very poor and unsuitable and not in a good position. Paper and lots of other things are wanted. Told Gabra Christos to make out a statement of his needs and I will then approach the Ras on the subject.39

Within a few years the press was moved from the palace to near the Bét Sayda Hospital and then to its present site near the center of Addis Ababa. Wärqenäh   WD, 22.6.1926. See this entry for this and the following.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 80a. 38   See Pankhurst, Economic History, p. 679, Pankhurst, Foundation, VI, #3, p. 269. See emperor’s autobiography, page 67. See also James De Lorenzi, ‘Printed Words, Imperial Journeys, and Global Scholars: Historiography and Cosmopolitanism in the Red Sea World, 1800–1935’ (PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 2008), passim for general background, but especially chapter 3, pp. 55-84. 39   WD, 23.6.1926. 36 37

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 seems to have played a significant role in these moves, putting up the new buildings, and also in helping to train Gäbrä Kristos in modern accounting and management. He lobbied Täfäri to increase Gäbrä Kristos’s pay and that of the workers at the press, bought paper, envelopes and a variety of other materials for the press while in Paris. He also helped settle internal disputes at the press and between the press and its enemies, as well as buying a new printing plant and overseeing its financial affairs. Finally, at the end of 1930 he handed over authority of the press to Gäbrä Kristos after his appointment as governor of Chärchär province.

Publication of Wärqenäh’s World Geography Closely linked to his tenure as financial controller of the Berhanenna Sälam Press was the publication of Wärqenäh’s only book, World Geography (YäAläm Je’ograpfi), in Amharic in 1928.40 It had a very long gestation but would never have seen the light of day had it not been for Wärqenäh’s key position at the press and his close relationship with Täfäri. The World Geography was a major highlight of Wärqenäh’s career and probably his single most important intellectual contribution to Ethiopia after Täfäri Mäkonnen School. The project of writing a geography of the world in Amharic had begun in 1909 when the first translations were initiated by Wärqenäh’s friend and translator, Ato Wäldä Haymanot under Wärqenäh’s careful supervision. However, Wärqenäh found that: ‘I am afraid he [Wäldä Haymanot] is not a satisfactory fellow to get any work out of. He is lazy & very anxious to make all he can out of me. He has no real love for the work.’41 Wärqenäh then seems to have recruited Heruy Wäldä Sellasé paying him as well for the task, but unfortunately Heruy and Wäldä Haymanot then got into a ‘row’ over the translation and Ato Wändi had to be brought in to mediate. The translation work seems to have stopped in September 1910. Before his departure for Burma in 1913 Wärqenäh sent Käntiba Wäldä Sadeq a rough copy of what had so far been done on the translation of the geography and later, while in Burma Wärqenäh carried out some corrections on the manuscript with his assistant Yohannes. The World Geography is then not mentioned in Wärqenäh’s diary for ten years (1913–1923), when he loaned a copy to Aläqa Tayé.42 One can, perhaps, speculate why there was such a gap between these initial substantial efforts and the actual publication date in 1928. When Wärqenäh left Ethiopia in 1913, the manuscript must have been quite well along towards publication. However, once he was living in Burma (1913–1919) it would have been more or less impossible to see it through an Amharic press in Ethiopia. Furthermore, once World War I was over, the peace agreements which followed the war made wholesale changes in the boundaries and make-up of a great many European, African, Middle Eastern and Asian countries. This would have entailed a substantial revision of the manuscript. This final stage began in July   Hakim Wärqenäh, YäAläm Je’ograpfi BäAmareññna (Addis Ababa, 1920).   WD, 7.3.1909. 42   WD, 1.1.1923. 40 41

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 1926 when he began a close collaboration on the project with Märsé Hazän. The diary describes a period of intense effort, greater than at any previous time, from July 1926 to July 1927 when many revisions and translations were undertaken. Wärqenäh and Märsé Hazän clearly spent many, many hours together on the manuscript and it appears to have been a truly collaborative effort. In July 1926, Wärqenäh mentions that he was using an old edition of Hugh’s 1910 ‘advanced geography’ for ‘reference’ while doing the translation and revision.43 In March 1927 Täfäri ordered 3,000 copies of the geography to be printed and within four months Märsé Hazän was carefully working on the proofs at Berhanenna Sälam Press. Africa had been finished in 1926, South America and Iceland in January 1928 and the introduction in April of 1928. Finally in June, 1928 Gäbrä Kristos brought Wärqenäh an actual printed copy of the Geography. The blow by blow account of the slow completion of the geography that is found in Wärqenäh’s diary, reveals, beyond any doubt, that Wärqenäh was the driving force behind its completion. He kept the various translators on task, carefully meeting with them, reviewing their progress, paying them by the number of hours they worked. Thus three of Ethiopia’s foremost intellectuals and progressives (Wärqenäh, Heruy and Märsé Hazän) played a major role in the work which would become a standard text in the Täfäri Mäkonnen School curriculum and would influence generations of Ethiopian school children and intellectuals. Furthermore, as has been recently pointed out, Wärqenäh and the geography had a significant impact on the modernization of Amharic, especially in the ‘accommodation’ of ‘alien concepts of science and technology’ into Amharic. The geography influenced how new words were created in Amharic to be used for various foreign words and concepts not already present.44 Wärqenäh’s geography was one of the major intellectual contributions of his life. Wärqenäh’s World Geography is more than 335 pages long, with extra large pages. That it was made a basic instructional text for geography at Täfäri Mäkonnen School is of great importance to its impact on Ethiopia. To begin with it counteracted the world view of Ethiopian Orthodox Christians who, following the Bible strictly, saw Jerusalem as the center of the universe and of the world. Wärqenäh’s book after a short introduction, begins with a lengthy section, entitled ‘Astronomical Geography’, which carefully explains that the sun, and not the earth, is the center of the universe. This was modernization on a very basic level. The geography then goes on to focus on the different continents of the world: first Africa, then Asia, third Europe and then the Americas. The Middle East does not have a separate section and Africa gets equal space to the other continents. Nor, in Africa, does Wärqenäh begin with Ethiopia or even East Africa. South Africa comes first. Ethiopia is carefully and judiciously put in context. It is interesting to speculate whether this initial focus on Ethiopia’s position in Africa may have helped to lay the foundation for its post-World War II shift in identity from being a country more closely linked to Africa than   WD 29.7.1926. Searching for this publication has proved to be fruitless.   See Amsalu Aklilu, ‘Early Ethiopian Writers as Modernizers of Amharic’, Afrika und Ubersee, Band 17, (1999), pp. 283-296. 43 44

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 the Middle East. In describing Ethiopia he gives a very good overall view of his homeland focusing on its different provinces, bodies of water, peoples and flora and fauna. He then goes on to give a balanced description of the rest of the world describing Asia, the Americas and Oceana, each given equal time in comparison with Europe. Thus his World Geography goes a long way towards countering a Euro-centric world view.

The Road to Jimma Another role that Wärqenäh would assume as a modernizer in the 1920s was that of road builder. By the mid–1920s Wärqenäh had been involved in repairing or building a variety of roads and bridges in Addis Ababa, but these were all on a relatively small scale. In comparison the project of supervising the building of a road from the capital, Addis Ababa, to Jimma, about 300 kilometers away was a gigantic task. Jimma was the largest city and trading center of the southwest of Ethiopia. Roads would be a major factor in expanding trade to the south and west, especially the truck traffic bringing coffee from Ethiopia’s major area of production to the rail head in Addis Ababa.45 Furthermore, the road made it much easier and cheaper to bring in food stuffs grown locally around Addis Ababa into the capital from the areas just to south and west, especially the Aqaqi watershed and Guragéland. Thus in the longer term Ethiopians, and some foreigners, Armenians for example, began to find it profitable to grow various foodstuffs in the surroundings of Addis Ababa, especially in its southwestern suburbs to sell in the capital’s various local markets. The road proved to be a major engine of economic growth. During a speech welcoming the Empress Mänän to inspect a completed bridge on the Jimma road, Wärqenäh justified his labors in the following way: In our country, unless many schools are erected and roads constructed in every district, it is impossible to achieve the development and civilization of the country… There is no one who does not understand that while our country is so rich, instead of exporting our surplus, the fact is that the country is buying cereals from abroad due to the lack of roads and railway lines for cars and trains. In every province of the periphery…the cereal is consumed by pests. However, because of the lack of [good] delivery roads, when our people are starving, we are obliged to purchase cereals from abroad, where roads are [already] constructed.46

One significant spur to building the road came from the increased number of cars imported into Ethiopia by Täfäri and his entourage after their trip to Europe in 1924.47 There were few decent roads in the country and Täfäri and others wanted more. The only existing paved stretch of road in the country was the one from Addis Ababa to Addis Aläm a small town about 30 kilometers   See Charles McClellan, ‘Land, Labor and Coffee: The South’s Role in Ethiopian Self-reliance, 1889– 1935’, African Economic History, #9 (1980), pp. 69-83, especially pp. 78-79. [Henceforth, McClellan, Land, Labor & Coffee]. 46   B & S, Vol. VI, #23, Gänbot 28, 1922 EC. 47   Pankhurst, Economic History, p. 290. 45

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 to the west, built by Emperor Menilek at the turn of the century. In 1926 during a conversation with Täfäri ‘he told me he was going to have the road to Jimma made and that I was to do it’. This seems to have been the first time that Wärqenäh had heard about his role in the proposed road to Jimma. It took some time before construction actually began. In 1927 Täfäri was still considering using Wärqenäh and he ‘said he wanted me here [in Addis Ababa and not in Wälläga working on his gold concession] as he was again thinking of making the road to Jimma!’ Later Täfäri agreed to Wärqenäh’s suggestion to divide the Addis Ababa to Gambéla Road Concession into two sections under two construction and transport concessions. Construction of the road to Jimma did not actually begin until 1928.48 Funding, as with most any project in Ethiopia, was a major problem. The vast bulk of the money for the Jimma road, from 1928 to1930, was supplied by Täfäri. Wärqenäh’s diary entries during this period may not be exhaustive but do show $50,000 being promised by Ethiopian nobility while Täfäri directly or through his son gave $220,000 and a further $30,000 via his representative Tädäsä Mäshäsha, a total of a quarter of a million Maria Theresa dollars.49 However, it should be noted that at least a part of the expenses for the initial section of the road up to the boundary of Addis Ababa on the Aqaqi River was contributed by the municipality.50 A major turning point in the funding of the road came in April 1928, when it was decided to divide the concession into two segments. Däjazmach Dästa Damtu was to build the road from Jiren (Jimma) to Käfa and then to Goré and Wärqenäh was to build the Addis Ababa to Jimma section.51 Later, the regulations governing the concession were also published with shares to be sold up to 20 million dollars and a Board of Directors to be established.52 In September, 1930 the first meeting of the Jimma Road Company was held with Wärqenäh presiding over a committee made up of: Afä Negus Aragawi, Ligaba Wädajé, Fitawrari Tasso, Ras Haylu, with Tädäsä Mäshäsha, among others acting for Täfäri. The actual construction of the road began near the railway station and proceeded smoothly until the road reached a swampy area ‘draining a large area of soft, black, volcanic soil, which was, during the rains quite impassable.’53 In the initial stages of building the road Wärqenäh was assisted by M. Castagna, an Ethiopian Government engineer he had known for many years. Castagna, among other things, had built St. Georges Church for Emperor Menilek in the center of town. Later he was assisted by the British engineer Jack Bartleet (until he left to carry out his primary mission working on the gold concession), two Greek contractors Cristo and Stephanos and two Indian engineers he had brought from   WD, 2.2.1926, 29.3.1927, 18.7.1927 & 11.1.1928. The above quotes come respectively from these dates. 49   WD, 15.1.1928, 8.12.1928, 22.3.1929, 25.6.1929,17.7.1929, 8.5.1930, 28.5.1930 & 17.9.1930. 50   WD, 3,3,1928 and more especially see, 28.4.1928. 51   B & S, Vol. VI, #27 (26 Säné, 1922 EC). 52   B & S, Vol. VI, # 29 (10 Hamlé, 1922 EC). 53   E.J.Bartleet, In the Land of Sheba (Cornish Brothers Ltd, Birmingham, 1934), p. 24. [Henceforth, Bartleet]. 48

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 India, Basant Singh and Melvill54. Two Ethiopians, Badalu and Ammañu Yemär, who were members of the ‘Love and Service association’ supervised the works. Guragé workers did the actual heavy lifting and were the ones responsible for most of the labor. It is important to point out that in this context they were paid laborers, not slaves. Bartleet provides the best contemporary description of the project.55 Täfäri came regularly to inspect the progress of the road, made with these new methods.56 Once begun and funded, the construction of the road itself went relatively smoothly, delay came, however, in construction of the bridges, many had to be built over the Aqaqi and its tributaries. Wärqenäh subcontracted each bridge to a different builder and each cost a substantial amount of money. In August 1929 the road up to the Aqaqi bridge was finished and in May 1930 the Regent Täfäri officially opened the bridges over the small and big Aqaqi rivers. Important to its completion was a concession that Täfäri gave Wärqenäh in 1929 to use and exploit a lime deposit in Geja in Guragéland that could be widely used in the construction of his building projects. By the end of 1930 several more bridges had been finished and inspected by Wärqenäh. Having finished the three large bridges on the Addis Ababa-Jimma road, I invited the Emperor to formally open and name them with his own, the Empress’s and the Crown Prince’s names and to then have tea at my mills. He graciously accepted the invitation, came on 28 May with all the big chiefs in town, and appreciated the road and bridge work that had been done. The Chiefs were so pleased, that they all took shares in the ‘Addis Ababa-Jimma Road Company’, to the extent of $50,000 (about 5,000 pounds).57

When he handed over supervision and moved to his next major job as governor of Chärchär in 1931, five bridges had been finished and the Jimma road was completed past the Awash River. In December 1930 David Hall and Tädäsä Mäshäsha took over from Wärqenäh. The British, curiously, expected that within a year or so the road to Jimma would be completed,58 but it would take much longer, not really until the Italian Occupation period (1935–1941). Wärqenäh’s completion of a very difficult portion of the Jimma road in just two years was a major achievement. From this time on, many other road projects were initiated or completed. The Jimma road started by Wärqenäh significantly helped to increase the amount of coffee exported from Ethiopia. With the decline of ivory exports during the beginning of the twentieth century, coffee took over as Ethiopia’s major export.59 Not only was Wärqenäh extremely talented at organizing and completing construction projects but he really seemed to enjoy the challenge of each and every project. His great organizational abilities enabled him to bring together workers and supervisors of many national and ethnic backgrounds, focus them at the task at hand and then actually achieve the   For Bartleet see his book, In the Land of Sheba, especially pages 23-28 and WD 22.4.1928-25.4.1928 for example. For the rest see 22.4.1918, 24.5.1928, 28.5.1928, 20.6.1928. 55   Bartleet, p. 25 56   Bartleet, p. 28. WD 11.5.1928 & 28.5.1930. 57   Wärqenäh autobiography, p. 96a. 58   FO 371/16101/9197 Annual Report for 1931, S. Barton to Sir John Simon, 20/1/1932, p. 6. 59   McClellan, Land, Labor and Coffee, pp. 67-83. 54

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 goals he had set. The next task assigned to him by the Regent was less practical and much harder to achieve.

Special Court The fifth role with a modernizing thrust that Wärqenäh assumed in the late 1920s was as President of the Special Court of Ethiopia. Margery Perham has ably and briefly described this unique Ethiopian court: [A] court known as the Special Court, in which the consul concerned sat with an Ethiopian judge as president, tried cases between Ethiopians and foreigners according to the law of the defendant. Appeals from judgements given in this court were supposed to be heard by the Emperor’s court, in which the consul of the parties involved was invited to attend as an observer. Beyond this court there was no appeal except through diplomatic action by the legation of the aggrieved party. Cases between members of the same foreign nationality went to the court of their consul... The application of the terms of this treaty [the Klobukowski treaty of 1906] was frequently the subject of dispute, and agreement on the principles of its application was never reached.60

Wärqenäh was appointed as President of the Special Court in June 1928 and shortly thereafter given the title of Azaj and an ‘official uniform’. It was the first time he was given a formal appointment to a position in the Ethiopian administration despite his advancing age and worry about his asthma. It would add four hours work each morning going over appeal cases from lower courts.61 The Special Court was a significant priority for Täfäri and was placed fourth in his list of thirty-two ‘major works’ in the internal administration of Ethiopia,62 while the chronicle of Iyasu’s and Zäwditu’s reign placed it third in its list of the fifteen major reforms.63 That Täfäri set aside Saturday as the day to examine Special Court cases shows how high a priority the court was. Heinrich Scholler has a somewhat different perspective on the Special Court as an engine of modernization when he pointed out that: ‘The judge-made-law of the Special Court must, therefore, be considered the first modern Ethiopian law, although this was some decades before the new codifications after World War II.’64 He also has gone on to say that the court was ‘instrumental in modernizing Ethiopian law’, in ‘developing Ethiopian common law’ and in ‘developing a modern Ethiopian legal language.’65   Margery Perham, The Government of Ethiopia (London, 1947), p.151.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 89a. 62   See the emperor’s autobiography, pp. 65-67. 63  Aleqa Gebre-Igziabiher Elyas, Piety and Politics: The Chronicle of Abéto Iyasu and Empress Zewditu of Ethiopia (1909–1930). Edited and translated by Reidulf K. Molvaer. Studien Zur Kurlturkunde 104 (Rudiger Koppe Verlag Koln, 1994), p. 458. For the following sentence see page 500. 64   See Heinrich Scholler, ‘The Special Court of Ethiopia 1922–1936: Mixed Jurisdiction As an Instrument of Legal Development’, Proceedings of the Seventh International Congress of Ethiopian Studies (1982), edited by Sven Rubensen, pp. 381-392. [Henceforth, Scholler, proceedings.] 65   Heinrich Scholler, The Special Court of Ethiopia, 1920–1925 (Stuttgart, 1985). See his foreword to the book. [Henceforth, Scholler, Special Court]. 60 61

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 Wärqenäh was among the most qualified presidents appointed to the court. There was a serious lack of qualified individuals in Ethiopia who had experience in: Ethiopian law, international law and the laws of the ten different consular courts in Ethiopia. The largest number of cases came from the British or British protected community in Addis Ababa. British consular law in Ethiopia was based on the laws of British India and Wärqenäh had great experience over almost twenty years in India and Burma administering British colonial Indian law. Beyond that he had had personal experience with foreigners’ litigation in Ethiopia during his pervious stays in Ethiopia and before his appointment to head the court in 1928. Some of the more revealing entries in Wärqenäh’s diary concern his appointment to the Special Court and the title that accompanied it: Qatsala came and told me that W. [Wäyzäro] Manan had sent her to ask if I would accept the appointment of Judge of the Mixed Court. Told her to tell W. Manan that in the present state of my health and not knowing anything about law I did not think I’d be able to do a Judge’s work. However if the A.W.[Täfäri, or Alga Wärash or heir] thinks I will be of some use I’ll do my best. Later the A.W. himself spoke to me on the subject in the presence of Fit [Fitawrari ] Amdé and the matter was settled. After waiting sometime [in the palace] Fit Amde came and said that he wanted my advice or view on the subject of the official title that I should get as judge of the Special Court. I told him that it was for the Government to decide which title will give sufficient prestige and dignity to the office.66

At the end of 1930 Ato Chärnät replaced Wärqenäh as President of the Special Court,67 when the emperor appointed Wärqenäh as the new governor of Chärchär province. Wärqenäh was widely praised for his integrity as a judge, but it was clear to many that his increasing asthma attacks were adversely affecting his ability to perform efficiently as judge. He looked forward with some anticipation to the lower altitude in Chärchär to ease his affliction. Nonetheless, more than two years as a judge had been very rewarding, especially when compared with his fellow presidents of the Special Court. He was probably one of the best, if not the very best, of the twelve presidents of the Special Court of Ethiopia up to that time. According to his son Yohannes he was particularly known for his swift judgments.68

Wälläga Concession The Wälläga Concession for gold and platinum in western Wälläga along the Birbir river was one of the most profitable business enterprises Wärqenäh ever undertook and was achieved through a close partnership with Fitawrari (and later Blatta) Déréssa. It was also a remarkably revealing episode in understanding the relationship between Wärqenäh and his ruler Täfäri. The Wälläga Concession, however, was not just of importance to Wärqenäh, but was significant regionally   WD, 1.7.1928. Wärqenäh’s underlining.   Scholler, Special Court, p. 81. 68   Interview with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa,10.10.2001. 66 67

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 (in Wälläga and Southwestern Ethiopia). It had an impact nationally on Ethiopia, and later had international ramifications first, with Britain and France, and later with Italy and the United States, initially in the Italo-Ethiopian dispute and then during the first stages of the Italo-Ethiopian War. To understand all these different perspectives, it is necessary first to look at the background of gold and mineral concessions in Ethiopia, and then at Wärqenäh’s role in them. Ethiopia has had a long history of concession seekers and adventurers trying to get rich quick by trying to exploit her mineral wealth. However, it was only after her victory over Italy at the Battle of Adwa in 1896 that concession hunters came in really large numbers. Very few concessions had a lasting impact, like the Jibuti to Addis Ababa railway and Bank of Abyssinia concessions69 Many mineral concessions were given in the gold bearing regions of western Ethiopia but none made any real profits until the twentieth century. Local governors and some of their subjects made some significant profits, but few of the foreign concessions. The only really lucrative foreign concession was held by Alberto Prasso, while the concession held Wärqenäh and Déréssa concession provided Prasso with his only real competition in Ethiopia. Regional Ethiopian rulers like Shaykh Khojali in the Bela Shangul and Hamdan Abu Shok in the borderlands of Gojjam with Sudan, continued to extract gold in the traditional manner from the late 19th century to the end of their careers. Only Prasso and Wärqenäh implemented more modern methods of extracting and exporting a new commodity, platinum beginning in the late 1920s in an area that was often referred to as Yabdo or Yubdo. These two concession holders were the driving forces in early twentiethcentury mining of gold and platinum in Ethiopia and were major examples of its modernization. However, the emperor determined the rules of the game and almost certainly kept most of the profits. Prasso first arrived in Addis Ababa in 1902, after more than a decade of adventure around the world trying to make his fortune in the gold fields of California, Canada, Alaska, South Africa and Rhodesia.70 With his accumulated capital of about £2,000 he had money to spend to try to gain access to Ethiopian nobility and the Emperor Menilek. Sometime during the early twentieth century, Prasso, although already married to an Italian, acquired an Ethiopian mistress who probably played a significant role in strengthening his support in the Ethiopian court. She was the mother of his son Adolfo who graduated from the University of London as a mining engineer and would become the on-the-ground manager of his concessions.71 One source says his mother was a ‘Slave woman given by the late Governor of this province to his father’,72 while another said Prasso’s Ethiopian wife was ‘said to be of the royal house’.73 Only in 1924 did he obtain   Bahru Zewde, ‘Concessions and Concession-Hunters in Post-Adwa Ethiopia: The case of Arnold Holz’, Africa, Vol. 45, #33, pp. 365-368 for this and following. 70   Alberto Prasso, Raccolta di Scritti e Documenti Relativi ad Alberto Prasso e alle sue Scoperte di Giacimenti Minerari nell’Ovest Etiopico (Roma, 1939), pp. 17-43 & 93-117 for this and following. [Henceforth, Prasso, Raccolta] 71   CRO, Khartoum, BNP 1/60/428 Extract H.B.M. Consul Gore to H.M. Minister, Addis Ababa, 20.8.1929. 72   Ibid. 73   CRO, Khartoum, BNP 1/60/428 Abyssinian Intelligence, Personalities. Personnel of Societé Minière des Concessions Prasso en Abyssinie. A/Governor, Fung Province to Director of Intelligence, Singa 69

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 the vital concession to exploit the Birbir river valley from Empress Zäwditu and Regent Täfäri.74 Sometime in the early 1920s he, or perhaps his partner M. Zappa, discovered platinum along the Birbir River. They would be locked in a long legal battle over the concession until the mid–1930s.75 Once it was clear that there was platinum in commercial quantities and that the concession would be a most lucrative one, the Ethiopian government gave out more concessions and the legal wrangles multiplied. However, each of the concessions required that the concessionaire could not transfer his concession to another and also that, within a certain stipulated number of years, the concession had to be actively taken up and actually produce platinum and profits. The key, of course, was capital. For the concession to be effectively worked, capital was needed for modern machinery and methods. Both Prasso and Wärqenäh had great difficulty raising it. Each also used allies in the provinces and in Addis Ababa to support their legal cases in the capital and raise labor and support on the ground in Wälläga. Prasso depended on his long-term contacts with provincial rulers in the west and southwest,76 while Wärqenäh depended on Fit. Déréssa, whose ancestral lands were close to the Birbir river platinum deposits. Wärqenäh’s description in his autobiography of the concession is revealing. A Galla [sic] friend of mine from Wallega [Déréssa], got me samples of platinum and gold minerals for analysis. Later, I received a very satisfactory report and got a concession from the Government to exploit there. As I could not get permission to go and work it, I employed an Italian [Zappa] who had been in the country for about 30 years and had some mining experience, to extract platinum and gold from the river Bibir, where these metals were in alluvial deposit…The natives of Wallega had been getting gold by washing the alluvial deposit, but not knowing anything about platinum, they had just been throwing it away as useless stuff. Later, when they heard about it being very valuable, they called it black gold. Both my partner and I having no capital, we just got some gold, but more platinum, by employing a couple of hundred Gallas to wash the mineral out in a rudimentary fashion, which of course meant very poor return, to say nothing of the amount that was stolen. Later I brought out from England, a qualified mining engineer to work the mines, but he did not stay long enough to do any good. If I had gone out myself and used a dredger or two, I believe I would have made a very profitable business of it. However, I suppose the Italians would now [1936– 1941] make a good profit out of it, if robbery and plunder can bring good luck.77

There were, it seems, a number of keys to Wärqenäh’s acquiring his concession in 1926. Most important was Wärqenäh’s and Qätsälä’s close relationship with Täfäri, which was closer than that of Fit. Déréssa. Wärqenäh in fact used his influence to get Déréssa access to the inner court of the empress and Täfäri. Next it could hardly be a coincidence that he got his concession the very year Täfäri’s old guard rival Fitawrari Habtä Giyorgis died, opening the way for 18/1/1928. 74   Prasso, Raccolta, pp. 272-273. 75   See WD, 20.2.1929 & 10.12.1929. See Bartleet, p. 111 as well. See also Frank E. Hayter, Gold of Ethiopia (London, 1936), Pp. 16-20 where he is almost certainly referring to Prasso and Zappa. 76   Prasso, Raccolta, p. 97. 77   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 75a-76a.

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 Täfäri to gain greater control over Ethiopia’s mineral wealth. It seems clear that Prasso’s concession was largely dependent on the support of Empress Zäwditu and her faction in court, including his and her provincial allies in western Ethiopia. Wärqenäh’s support came from the competing Täfäri faction and his support on the ground from Fit. Déréssa. Each side also needed capital for the necessary new equipment and skilled labor to build sluices and import ‘cradles’ and ‘toms’(which were specialized equipment imported on the Addis Ababa to Jibuti railway)78 as well as money to pay a small army of laborers. Furthermore, only part of the revenue came from the concession’s own excavations and panning, quite a good deal more came from ‘tributaries’ who were local laborers who came to sell gold and platinum on their own account. Prasso claimed this platinum was ‘stolen’ by local workers79 while Prasso’s concession clearly stated that he had ‘no right to prevent the people of the country to extract platinum on their own and sell it to anyone they like.’80 The tension between the two concessions continued, but during this period Täfäri’s power was slowly increasing, first with his coronation as king in 1928, then the death of Ras Nadäw in 1929 and finally his imperial coronation in 1930. Once he was emperor, the empress’s old faction were no longer serious competitors and he was able to get a firmer hand on the levers of power to make sure that more of the revenue from the newly profitable platinum mines would flow directly through his own hands. One cannot, however, escape the impression that Täfäri was manipulating the situation, playing the two concessions off, one against the other, to his own advantage using classic ‘divide and rule’ tactics. In 1927 we know that Wärqenäh and Déréssa had agreed that Täfäri was to get one-third of the profits of their concession. It is unclear whether a similar agreement had been made by Täfäri with Prasso. There was also a long ongoing legal case between Zappa and Prasso; Täfäri was the final judge. Zappa had left his partnership with Prasso and became on at least two occasions the on the spot manager of Wärqenäh’s concession. Furthermore, Täfäri refused to allow Wärqenäh to go to Wälläga to see the situation there for himself, to take over hands-on management of his concession. Up to 1930 it seems as if Prasso mostly paid royalties to Zäwditu or her faction and not to Täfäri. After her death, Täfäri took over this revenue for himself. Täfäri’s role in the platinum concession is a fascinating, complicated and clearly lucrative. The situation was further complicated by the fact that his wife Wäyzäro Mänän for some years supplied a portion of the capital (via loans) for Wärqenäh’s concession and a portion of the profits. Later, without Wärqenäh’s knowledge, she handed over her portion to her husband. Täfäri also seems to have used diplomacy to his advantage. Wärqenäh claimed that the French diplomatic representative got a 5 percent cut of profits from Prasso. Later in 1928, Täfäri advised Wärqenäh that he might have to cancel his concession because the French were making such vehement   See Bartleet, pp. 78-79.   CRO Khartoum, BNP 1/60/428 Extract H.B.M. Consul Gore to H.M. Minister, Addis Ababa, 20.8.1929. 80   WD, 15.7.1926. 78 79

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 complaints against it. Keeping the two companies competing against each other was in Täfäri’s interest, leaving him in a position to manipulate the two almost at will. Täfäri was a major source of capital to Wärqenäh, Déréssa and perhaps Prasso. The question then arises of exactly how much platinum was produced and how much was it worth. There is no clear answer but the amounts were substantial. Prasso81 clearly produced a great deal more than Wärqenäh and Déréssa but each also made a large amount of money from their concessions. The total world production of platinum in 1925 was 4,750 kilograms82 and Ethiopia’s (Prasso’s and Wärqenäh’s) production was only a small fraction (about one twelfth) of the overall output. This was an impressive figure for such an underdeveloped land as Ethiopia. From 1925 to 1935 Prasso’s mines always outproduced Wärqenäh’s, probably at a ratio of more than ten to one. Nonetheless, Wärqenäh’s and Déréssa’s concession was lucrative judging by the amounts of platinum Wärqenäh sold in London and the fact that between 1927 and 1930 they received at least three large offers of money and shares from foreigners to buy out their concession. Each was refused.83 Later, as we shall see, Wärqenäh tried to use his concession during the crisis with Italy as collateral to purchase arms for Ethiopia. Upon their occupation of Ethiopia in 1936 the Italians took over control of all of Ethiopia’s gold mines, dispossessing Wärqenäh, Déréssa and Prasso. After the Liberation of Ethiopia in 1941, as we shall see in the last chapter, Wärqenäh doggedly and unsuccessfully strove to regain his concession. However, the emperor allowed control of the mines to remain in Wärqenäh’s family’s hands for some years.

Wärqenäh’s advice on & involvement in a wide array of issues So far seven of Wärqenäh’s major domestic modernization projects have been explored, each aided or initiated by Täfäri, and helped by his growing power and the decline of the old guard. Thus the Täfäri Mäkonnen School, the Love and Service Association, the slave school, Berhanenna Sälam Press, his book the Geography of the World, the Jimma road, the Special Court and his mineral concession, all became the focus of Wärqenäh’s prodigious talents. Yet it needs to be pointed out that these did not encompass the full extent of his efforts. There were also many other areas where he had a significant impact, especially as an advisor and enabler which will now be explored.

  See Prasso, Raccolta, especially pp. 88 & 262. There are discrepancies in this source, but in the author’s opinion the figures below are the best available. 82   Percy A. Wagner, The Platinum Deposits and Mines of South Africa (London, 1929), p. 3. Wagner on p. 9 lists prices per troy ounce. In shillings as: 1925 (498 shillings), 1926 (467), 1927 (320) and 1928 (335). 83   See WD, 23.4.1927, 1.5.1927, 27.5.1927, 20-21.5.1930 and 8.9.1930. 81

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 Slavery The first and most important area was the eradication of slavery and the slave trade which began in 1919 with the freeing of the family slaves and continued as a major priority until his appointment as minister to London. Wärqenäh’s role in the abolition of slavery came to the fore again in 1926, as we have seen in the previous chapter when Täfäri asked him to respond to an attack on Ethiopia and its slavery and slave trade in a 1923 article in the Westminster Gazette. Bahru Zewde goes so far as to say that, ‘In the mid–1920s, Hakim Wärqenäh emerged as the leader of the crusade against slavery [in Ethiopia]’84 In July, 1926 Berhanenna Sälam newspaper published a powerful article by Wärqenäh attacking slavery.85 In this article he emphasized that Emperor Menilek’s abolition declaration in the nineteenth century should finally be honored or it would probably lead to major problems with the League of Nations and with European powers. Wärqenäh attacked slavery from four basic angles. First, it went against basic Christian ethics. Second it wasted money and was like killing the goose with the golden eggs. Third, it caused diplomatic problems with the great powers and finally it could lead to military intervention by foreign powers in Ethiopia. Bahru Zewde goes on to say that this article provoked such displeasure from Täfäri ‘that Wärqenäh was forced to recant in a rather humiliating fashion in the following issue’. Wärqenäh’s diary gives a different account of this episode. The Ras said he wanted to talk to me about my article on slavery which appeared in the Birhan na Salam last Thursday. He said that it had caused a good deal of commotion and indignation amongst the officers. He said he was sorry I had it printed without consulting him. Told him that I quite realised that the Amharic construction and phraseology was not correct and proper which was due to Efraim failing to correct it but that the ideas and statement of facts I thought was quite correct. He agreed with me in this but said it was too strongly worded. He suggested that I write a letter in the paper to soften the effect of my previous letter and said that he would write one too and that we could then concoct a suitable letter out of the two drafts tomorrow evening and have it put in the paper printed next Thursday.86 Wrote out the letter of explanation and apology with the help of Qatsala and Masfan… Qatsala read my letter to him and then he read the one he had written. After consultation parts from each letter were incorporated and the letter finished.87

In the second article in Berhanenna Sälam he apologized for his first article saying that the slave trade had been ended by Menilek’s decree. He went on to say that he was sorry for provoking the nobility and the public with his article, but reminding them of his previous 1923 article defending Ethiopia as regards slavery and the slave trade. The overall outcome was that Wärqenäh stopped writing any further letters focusing on the media and to Berhanenna Sälam. In effect he stopped talking and writing and instead concentrated on acting. After this episode he put his considerable energies into his service organization Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär (Love and Service Association). Its members now were freeing   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, p. 128.   Berhanenna Sälam, 1.7.1926. 86   WD, 6.7.1926. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 87   WD, 7.7.1926. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 84 85

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 their slaves and they raised money to support the new school for former slaves. His second major outlet for freeing slaves would be his actions as governor of Chärchär province from 1930–1935 when he was probably the most active and successful governor in Ethiopia fighting slavery and the slave trade, as we shall see in the next chapter. Second, Wärqenäh on numerous occasions gave Täfäri advice on general administrative reform. Spoke about the very unsatisfactory state of administration of different provinces in the country. He [Täfäri] said the affair seem to be hopeless as his advice and even that of Ras Kasa tendered conjointly by them was not taken by the Empress and Fit Habta Giorgis.88 Wrote [the Emperor] telling him that unless we gave evidence of our earnest desire to make quick progress in education and justice and civilized behaviour and administration there was not much hope of my being successful in gaining British friendship and help and diplomatic support etc.89

These two quotes from his diary in 1926 and 1935 give a general idea of Wärqenäh’s concerns and the ongoing nature of the problems endemic in Ethiopian administration. Often during his meetings with the emperor he would discuss administration in general, only getting an opportunity when he was governor of Chärchär to put his ideas into practice. He spoke too of the ‘difficult state of the country’ advising the emperor to ‘go over the country and settle matters personally on the spot.’90 Overall he tried to get the emperor to follow the motto established before the war by his Mahbär: ‘Asked him if he was keeping his promise of being truthful, honest and just, he said he is doing it as far as he can! We did not have very affable conversation.’91 Third, Wärqenäh was always a strong believer in freedom of religion. He lobbied consistently for this throughout his life, as well as being a strong advocate for free bibles in Ethiopian languages. He was never shy in his advocacy. Wärqenäh also sought to open Ethiopia up to foreign missions, especially because of their commitment to education and medical assistance and persuaded the emperor to allow the entry of foreign missionaries into Chärchär province, especially important since it was largely Muslim. Furthermore, he supported the presence in Ethiopia and Addis Ababa of the British and Foreign Bible Society, which advocated and administered the free distribution of bibles. He may have been instrumental in persuading the emperor to support them, despite the opposition of the empress and the Abun. In addition he strongly supported freedom of religion in the press as well as orthodox Russians who were in exile in Ethiopia after the Russian revolution. Wärqenäh’s regular access to the emperor allowed him to raise these and other issues on many occasions. Fourth, he advised Täfäri on the need for impartial justice. His major impact on the law and on the emperor’s perception and reform thereof, came through his position as a judge on the Mixed Courts and his regular interaction with     90   91   88 89

WD, 5.3.1926. Wärqenäh’s underlining. WD, 31.3.1935. WD, 10.6.1943 and 30.9.1943. WD 16.11.1944. See also 30.9.1943.

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 the emperor concerning the individual cases before it and the actions of his fellow judges. However, he also gave the emperor general advice and sometimes tried to convey to him the views of ordinary Ethiopians. ‘Told him the public complained of lack of justice and a fair deal’92 He also advocated leniency in the law for Muslims and women.93 Wärqenäh always felt very strongly about fairness and the law especially as regards minorities, perhaps because of his experience in Burma. The fifth major issue which would frequently be raised with the emperor was the military and military preparedness. Despite his lack of military expertise, Wärqenäh was more involved in things military than one would have thought. He gave advice to the emperor on military reform on a number of occasions and was involved in investigating the possibility of getting arms during his diplomatic trip to the USA in 1927. He also advised the emperor on how to arm the imperial bodyguard, trying to get contracts in one instance for one of his Indian friends, Roshan Baig. Finally, he made sure during his long career to bring a variety of other problems to the emperor’s attention. These included the growing evils of: alcohol, begging, bribery, smoking, and tobacco94. Each were topics of long conversations with the emperor or were communicated by letter or petition. The above is just a sample of the many issues in which Wärqenäh immersed himself and then tried to communicate to the emperor. Some of his advice doubtless had a goodly effect and other times the emperor paid little attention. Wärqenäh was rarely shy in giving advice. Wärqenäh’s & Qätsälä’s Relations with Empress Zäwditu & Wäyzäro Mänän Throughout the late 1920s Qätsälä played a most significant role at Wärqenäh’s elbow, helping and encouraging him, but also performing a much more sub­ stantive role when she used her personal influence with Täfäri, but more especially with Wäyzäro Mänän and the empress. With Empress Zäwditu, Qätsälä was often at Wärqenäh’s side when he met with the empress. Sent Qatsala to the gibbi with my paper on Slavery to read to the Queen [underlined in red]. On her return Qatsala said that the Queen was pleased with it and asked her to give her a copy of it so that she might read [it] to the chiefs and consult with them on the subject.95

It is unclear exactly what the impact of his advice was, but it doesn’t seem to have made much difference. Overall, however, she seems to have felt kindly towards him. He ‘went to the Gibbi [palace] with Qatsala and wished the Nagist [empress] good-bye. She was very affable and praised me a lot to her uncle Dad Abta Mariam who was there.’96 During her fourteen year reign she appointed   WD 23.3.1934.   WD 30.5.1931 & 14.8.1932. 94   WD, for alcohol see: 14.2.1929 & 30.5.1930 for begging, 14.8.1943, for bribery, 15.7.1926 & 31.1.1918, for robbery, 5.5.1942 & for smoking and tobacco 15.7.1926 & 16.9.1942. 95   WD 17.3.1926. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 96   WD 23.7.1927. 92 93

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An increased pace of modernization 1924–1930 him to only two jobs (head of the Fel Weha baths and justice of the Mixed Courts) and only gave him two minor decorations97. Täfäri would do significantly more than that. However, she did do him and his wife some minor favors: for example, giving him timber for his Shola home, as well as planks, and on one occasion a large amount of butter and most importantly a monthly portion of grain. Most of these favors, however, were really given to his wife rather than to him. It was almost certainly through Qätsälä’s influence that the empress helped pay for their children’s education and gave money for Täfäri Mäkonnen School and the slave school. Wärqenäh’s advice did not have much influence with Empress Zäwditu, while Qätsälä had much more. The same clearly was also true in his relationship with Wäyzäro Mänän, as we have already seen and shall also see further in the next chapter. However, on a lighter note, Wärqenäh was persuaded, despite his skepticism about such frivolities, to translate a horoscope from a western newspaper for Wäyzäro Mänän: ‘Stayed home and did translation work with Marse Hazan translating Asfao Wasan [Asfa Wäsän] and Makonen’s horoscopes for W. Manan.’98 Overall when Emperor Haylä Sellasé appointed Wärqenäh governor of Chärchär after his coronation, virtually all of his modernization initiatives were turned over to other Ethiopians to carry out so that he could focus on his many duties as governor of a prosperous and dynamic province. The transition was bitter sweet. It was a severe wrench handing over charge of the different works which I had started, to officers whom I could not absolutely trust to carry on well, in fact as it happened, I was sorry to learn later, that the Tefferi Makonnen School, the thermal baths, the Slave School, the Addis Ababa-Jimma road, the ‘Love and Service’ Association and even the Special Court were not as well managed and administered as they should have been. Of course this was principally due to lack of knowledge and experience on the part of the young officers.99

However, before moving on to the next major stage of his career, his tenure as a governor of Chärchär province from 1930–1935, we need to address the international ramifications of his career from 1925 to 1931.   WD 20.3.1926 & 1.7.1928.   WD 21.7.1926. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 99   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 98a. 97 98

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8 International Diplomacy, Education & Recruitment WÄRQENÄH IN BRITAIN, THE USA & INDIA (1927–1931)

Wärqenäh’s 1927 trip to Britain & USA The 1927 trip to England and the USA, the 1929 & 1931 trips to England and the 1930 trip to India, all reveal Wärqenäh’s broad global range. He had traveled widely throughout his life and knew a remarkable range of individuals in most parts of the world. All three trips involved using his lifelong collection of friends and contacts. His 1927 trip focused on diplomacy, which was also important in his other trips. Most, except for his 1930 trip to India, also had education at their center. During all of the trips he made a large number of purchases for his family or his various projects or for the Ethiopian government. Two trips, in 1927 to the USA and in 1930 to India, involved recruiting professionals to work in Ethiopia. With the Great Depression Wärqenäh and Täfäri both sought to lower their costs by recruiting African Americans from the USA and Christian Indians from South Asia. In 1927 Ras Täfäri decided to send Wärqenäh to Britain and the United States on a combined diplomatic and educational mission. Characteristically, as with Wärqenäh’s 1924 trip to Britain, personal and national priorities were intertwined. Diplomatically Täfäri skillfully used Wärqenäh to further drive a wedge between England and Italy by reaching out to the United States to find an engineering company to build a dam or rather a barrage, across the Nile at Lake Tana. He also asked him to purchase arms in the USA. And on a personal level, he agreed to pay for Wärqenäh’s trip to England so that he could enroll not only the three eldest Wärqenäh daughters in British schools, but also Täfäri’s daughter Tsehay and the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Heruy Wäldä Sellasé’s daughter Amsala. His autobiography sets the background diplomatically. On 21 January 1926, the Ras received a letter from the British Legation informing him of the agreement which the British and Italian governments had made in regard to securing concessions from the Ethiopian government. The British [plan was] for building a dam on the Blue Nile at Lake Tsana and the Italian [one] to build a railway from Asmara, in their Eritrea colony, to a town called Lugh on the border of the Italian Somaliland in the south.

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment On receiving this letter, the Ras, who showed it to me, was quite taken aback and asked me to talk over the matter with the British Minister, which I did, and was assured that here was no intention of putting any pressure on the Ethiopian government, but that the agreement was just made to prevent the two parties from interfering with each other in their request for concessions. Although this did not sound as a very satisfactory explanation, I requested the Ras not to be vexed but wait till a copy of the agreement had been seen. However, the Ras persisted in writing a letter of protest in reply to the letter from the Minister.1

A somewhat more detailed and variant account comes from Wärqenäh’s diary. The Ras was unreasonable in his attitude and view about the agreement and maintained notwithstanding my arguments that the British were unfriendly to us. Told him that his unreasonable attitude of suspicion of the English was regrettable… Waizaro Manan was present during our discussion and she seemed to agree with me in my views.2

Later in June, 1926, Wärqenäh went even further and called the agreement ‘a disgraceful document’.3 The 1925-1926 Anglo-Italian Accord had been nego­tia­ ted by the British and the Italians behind Ethiopia’s back and without con­sulting her. It turned out to be quite a miscalculation by them, because Täfäri successfully turned to the League of Nations for redress and the two major powers had to back off, at least a little. As is clear from Wärqenäh’s second quote, although he tries to put a good spin on his actions, he had been too pro-British and Täfäri acted more in line with Ethiopia’s basic interests. However, it is important to note a degree of irony here. Later in this chapter we shall see the British criticize Wärqenäh strongly despite his pro-British stands over many, many years. The British could have hardly asked for a more vocal and articulate ally. Typically, preparations for the trip were made at the last minute but there was one dramatic change just before the day of departure. Initially, it seems, the major aim was for Wärqenäh to take Täfäri’s eldest son and heir, Asfa Wäsän, to England to get a western education. However, a few months later in April 1927, Täfäri decided to hire a tutor for his son and to have him remain in Ethiopia. He charged Wärqenäh with meeting with this tutor in England instead of taking his heir to England for an overseas education. In June, 1927 the possibility of Wärqenäh’s trip emerged again, when he asked Täfäri if the regent might be persuaded to send Wärqenäh’s daughters to England to further their education. Then a further aim was added, the possibility of hiring African-American teachers in the USA. As principal of Täfäri Mäkonnen School, Wärqenäh (and also Täfäri) realized that a new source of western teachers for Ethiopia’s premier secondary school was much needed. Within ten days the regent had agreed to send the girls and also to pay all the expenses himself, since he could not persuade the empress and the Ethiopian Government to do so. Within a month, Täfäri had further broadened the scope of Wärqenäh’s proposed trip, adding on a diplomatic mission to the USA, contemplating contact with President Coolidge.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 74a-75a.   WD, 22.1.1926. Underlining the author’s. 3   WD, 9.6.1926. 1 2

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 The day before Wärqenäh’s planned departure, Täfäri suddenly decided to send his favorite daughter, Tsehay, to be educated in England. They set off full of enthusiasm only to discover part way to Jibuti that Tsehay had forgotten her passport. Wärqenäh had to telephone Addis Ababa to have another special train put on to bring them that vital document. It seems clear that the initial thrust of this important diplomatic mission was a personal one, to further the education of Wärqenäh’s daughters (his 1924 trip had revolved around the education of his sons). It then expanded to include the education of members of Täfäri’s and other nobles’ families. The diplomatic aspects of the mission, of course, had a long history, in which Wärqenäh had been involved off and on for many years. The two major diplomatic priorities of Wärqenäh’s trip were to further the regent’s foreign policy goals concerning the dam on Lake Tana and to develop Ethiopia’s relations with the United States. Wärqenäh had been involved with Ethiopia’s relations with the USA far longer than he had on deliberations concerning the Tana Dam. He had been friends with Dr. Love, the first American Minister to Ethiopia before World War I and had cared for him during his last illness.4 Later he had acted as a go-between for the regent with US arms traders. While in the USA he followed up on arms purchases and tried to hasten the appointment of a new US minister to Ethiopia. Regarding the negotiations over the Lake Tana dam, Wärqenäh had not been intimately involved in that diplomacy, but as we have seen had often acted as an intermediary or mediator in Täfäri’s relations with the British. Nonetheless, he was handed the Lake Tana brief only one week before his departure and was expected not only to find an American engineering company willing to undertake the construction of a dam on Lake Tana, but also meet with President Coolidge and the US Secretary of State. On July 25, 1927 a train, specially ordered by the regent, left Addis Ababa for Jibuti to meet an ocean liner which would take the largely female party to France and on to England. ‘Waizaro Manan also came over [to say goodbye] and cried a lot on parting with her daughter. She of course begged me to look after her’.5 The regent’s daughter was accompanied, not only by a companion (Miss Hall), but also three of Wärqenäh’s daughters, Astér, Elsabét and Sara, Amsala (Heruy Wäldä Sellasé’s daughter) and the son of a prominent member of the court, all to be taken to Europe to be educated. The girls were all under twelve and proved to be quite a handful for the good doctor. In the large hold, carefully packed in his baggage was a golden shield that the regent wished Wärqenäh to give to President Coolidge. During the voyage Wärqenäh carefully translated (from Amharic to English) the official letter from the regent to President Coolidge and another to King George of England on behalf of his daughter. His assistant and protégé, Mäsfän Qälämwärq helped him with these translations. Wärqenäh had educated Mäsfän in his home and taught him English. In England the focus was placed on the education of the children and finalizing what schools they would attend in the fall. Wärqenäh was assisted by   WD, Love died in January 1913.   WD, 25.7.1927.

4 5

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment his adoptive sister Sybil in making all the arrangements. He also handled the publicity surrounding Tsehay and made sure to meet with the tutor who had been selected to go to Ethiopia to educate Täfäri’s eldest son and heir Asfa Wäsän. Finally, before leaving for the USA, Wärqenäh wrote a long report to the Regent describing his actions and asking that the Ethiopian Foreign Office be sure to send a formal letter to the US State Department to declare his mission an official one of the Government of Ethiopia.

Visit to the United States (1927) On August 24th, 1927, Wärqenäh and Mäsfän left London for New York city aboard the Anchor liner, California. For the first time in his diary, Wärqenäh discusses a clear instance of racial discrimination; initially he was not allowed to have breakfast in the first class salon and then for later meals he was given a table separated from the rest of the first class passengers. As he so succinctly said: ‘This appears to be the beginning of colour distinction.’6 He was met in New York harbor by a Mr. Juttner and later worked closely with Harrison Osborne. He was given an introduction to Juttner by an American journalist he had met and assisted in Addis Ababa, Mr. MacCreagh, and Juttner knew Osborne who had been a ‘government attorney’ and had connections in the US State Department.7 Independently of MacCreagh, his old friend Mrs. Holland, put him in touch with members of her own family, the Waldemeiers who were also in New York. They confirmed the reliability of the contacts Wärqenäh had made through MacCreagh. Harrison Osborne, it seems, facilitated organizing Wärqenäh’s meeting with the Secretary of State, Frank Billings Kellogg, within twelve days of landing in the USA. Kellogg in turn made possible the meeting with President Coolidge. Thus, within a few days of arrival, Wärqenäh’s global connections were greatly assisting him in his diplomatic mission. This was an historic meeting for very few Ethiopians had met with the US President and none as Ethiopia’s formal diplomatic representative. Wärqenäh found Kellogg to be ‘very affable’ but also, as a physician, noted that: ‘The Secretary is very feeble due to old age and has paralysis agitans’8, a reference to his Parkinson’s disease. The first item on their agenda was the Lake Tana dam. ‘He told us that the State department will have no objection to our arranging for a loan to build the Tana dam and was interested in the project’, he had no idea where Lake Tana was and had to have it pointed out on a map by Wärqenäh. The next important item to be discussed was the importation of arms into Ethiopia. The Secretary of State could see no problem with the US selling Ethiopia arms, unless Ethiopia was one of the countries prohibited by the Geneva Convention or by Treaty. On these points he did not seem to be very well informed, nor did his advisors. The third major ‘question of sending a minister [to Ethiopia] was settled’ and he was just looking for ‘a good and   WD, 25.8.1927.   WD, 7.9.1927. 8   WD, 14.9.1927 for this and the rest of the paragraph. 6 7

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 suitable man’. By the time Wärqenäh’s trip ended, Mr. Addison E. Southard was appointed to be the US representative to Ethiopia. He also arranged for a meeting with President Coolidge giving Kellogg Täfäri’s letter, its translation and the draft of the speech he planned to give at his meeting with the President. That night Wärqenäh happily wrote in his diary: ‘So today has been a fine day in every way.’ His first round of meetings in Washington had gone about as well as could possibly be wished. While waiting for the scheduled meeting with the president, Wärqenäh, characteristically, was not idle. Mr Shaw, one of Kellogg’s assistants, had made arrangements for Wärqenäh to go: first to the Bureau of Mines (where Wärqenäh made sure to get all pamphlets on mines of relevance to him and his platinum holdings), next to meet with the surgeon general (who also arranged for him to see the Rockefeller Institute in New York and possibly Rockefeller himself) and finally for a long tour of the Library of Congress. He also went to the government printing office, asked them to send him a catalog of books and later he was to write to them asking for any books or documents he might want. Next he went to the Agriculture Department and saw Dr. William A. Taylor who ‘took notes of the seeds and plants I wanted and said he will send them to me.’9 On September 17, 1927 he met with President Coolidge: Went at 10 o’clock to the ‘White House’ as arranged and saw President Calvin Coolidge who was very affable and promised help and support. Read my speech and presented the gold shield to him. He made a short speech in reply and his satisfaction in meeting me and said he was sympathetically interested in my mission to the U.S. and hoped I will be successful in accomplishing them with the assistance of the United States bankers. I asked him to write a private letter to the A.W. [Alga Wärash, that is, Täfäri] advising the Ethiopia Government to try hard to remove the blemish of domestic slavery from the fair name of Ethiopia, because I thought that a friendly advice from the President would help and strengthen the hands of the Government. He told his secretary to draft such a letter for his signature.10

This meeting marked a climax of Wärqenäh’s budding diplomatic career. He had achieved a remarkable amount in a very brief time. But it was also characteristic that he would, apparently without consulting with Täfäri, focus on slavery to prod his ruler to move more swiftly in dealing with this issue so vital to Ethiopia. The British were later stunned that he had been able to meet with the President of the United States. He was well on his way to realizing the diplomatic goals set by Ras Täfäri of the Ethiopian government. On his return to New York he followed up on the issues of Lake Tana and Arms imports; he spent about an equal amount of his time on each issue, but to little avail on the latter. The day after his return to New York City he met with Wall Street bankers and with officials of the J.G. White Engineering Corporation (perhaps today’s equivalent would be the Halliburton Company). His many meetings with bankers in the United States led nowhere, but his reception by the White Company was   WD, 16.9.1927.   WD, 17.9.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

9

10

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment a good deal more encouraging. After initial discussions they ‘seemed very much interested in the matter’11; discussions and negotiations continued until just before his departure. They would stay in touch with each other until after the Italian invasion of Ethiopia and through the 1940s. An agreement was hammered out during a series of meetings before his departure. A first draft of an agreement was completed in early October, but Wärqenäh found the next draft ‘absolutely unacceptable’. However by October 24th a new agreement was reached. We discussed and wrote out a new agreement re the dam, gist of which is that J.G. White Corporation will build the dam at their own expense for which they will get a concession say for 30 years in which period they will recover their money, interest and profits. Also wrote out a form of the concession.12

It had previously been agreed that the White Company would raise the necessary funds to build the dam and the road (about $20 million) plus 10 percent profit which would be paid for by selling the water from the dam to the British in the Sudan and Egypt. Wärqenäh made clear that the agreement with the White Company would not be signed until British agreement had been reached. Wärqenäh had proved to be a hard and skillful bargainer, basically achieving all the goals set for him by the regent and the Ethiopian government. Later the British press and government over-reacted in variance with the actual facts. Before his return to Britain and the diplomatic furor that accompanied it, Wärqenäh worked hard to finalize the other aims of his mission to the United States. After the Lake Tana dam, the next most import aim of his diplomatic mission to the United States was to find an alternative source of arms for Ethiopia, outside of Europe and Great Britain. Wärqenäh had previously met and corresponded most often with the Hambleton Arms Company, first when one of their representatives came to Addis Ababa in January 1927 and Täfäri delegated him to carry on discussions with them. A figure of a $100,000 loan was discussed but Hambleton Company wanted to be designated as the official Ethiopian fiscal agent in America. Ethiopia would not agree to this. In June of that year, Täfäri decided to delay further negotiations until he could ask the advice of the expected US appointment of a Minister to the Ethiopian court. Soon after arriving in New York, Wärqenäh wrote to Hambleton, mainly focusing on the price of their arms and ammunition. Meanwhile, Wärqenäh comparison shopped with Remington and Thompson machine gun representatives. During all these discussions a recurring problem arose, how to be sure that the importation of weapons would not be blocked by the British, French or Italians. Again, Täfäri and Wärqenäh were trying to use the United States as a lever against the great powers that surrounded Ethiopia and who prevented, in this case, the importation of the arms she so desperately needed. Thus a second trip to Washington and a further meeting with the Secretary of State Kellogg was arranged focusing on the arms importation issue and following up on the appointment of a US diplomatic representative in Addis Ababa. Wärqenäh met   WD, 20.9.1927.   WD, 23.10.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

11 12

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 a second time with the US secretary of state and a variety of other officials in the State Department, the result of which was a great deal of conflicting advice. It seems obvious that the United States administrators really did not have a thorough knowledge of the arms issue as it applied to Ethiopia. However, they were very keen on expanding US trade and exports. US ideology at that time was an ‘open door’ policy on which other great powers prevaricated. The only really practical result of the day’s meetings was that Wärqenäh was informed that Mr Addison E. Southard had been appointed US diplomatic representative to Ethiopia. It seems clear that Wärqenäh played a role in hastening his appointment, which could easily have taken much longer to accomplish. In the end, Wärqenäh would only make a symbolic purchase of 10 Thompson machine guns on behalf of Täfäri, probably to use them as a test case to assure that future imports of arms from the USA were possible, despite import restrictions imposed by the British, French and Italians. These arms were held up in Jibuti and led to many years of frustrating negotiations for Wärqenäh. Education and recruiting English-speaking teachers for Ethiopia was his third major priority after Lake Tana and arms imports. As we have seen, as principal of Täfäri Mäkonnen School he had had great difficulty recruiting and retaining British citizens and never had any success with white Americans. However, he and the regent had high hopes of attracting African Americans to teach in Ethiopia. The regent had already sent three Ethiopians to be educated in the USA at Muskingam College in New Concord, Ohio. Wärqenäh had taken one of its professors, H. A. Kelsay round Täfäri Mäkonnen School earlier in the year and now, during his US mission visited Muskingam and met with the Ethiopian students, including Mälaku Bäyän, and also with Kelsay who ‘promised to try to get me some reliable coloured men’13. He also talked to the co-educational student body of about 1400 students during chapel to encourage some of them to go to Ethiopia. One had already been to Sayo in Western Ethiopia. It is unclear if any of these particular students took up his offer, but Wärqenäh’s efforts soon expanded to encouraging a variety of African-American technocrats to go to Ethiopia. He kept up his recruiting efforts throughout his stay in the USA meeting with African Americans not only from New Concord, but also New York, Philadelphia, Tuskegee and Washington DC. He was particularly active in Harlem, meeting with Arthur Schomberg, Kincle Jones and Mr and Mrs Johnson (both of the Urban League) and others. The New York World devoted most of an article to his visit, describing him as a ‘distinguished visitor’ from Africa: Dr. Wargneh C. Martin, Abyssinia’s [sic] Envoy Extraordinary... Brought greetings to American Negroes [sic] from Ras Tafari, Prince Regent of the empire...Dr. Martin expressed astonishment over the heights the race has attained in such large urban centers as New York... In conveying Ras Tafari’s greetings Dr. Martin said the Prince Regent welcomed to Abyssinia Negroes from America who are skilled artisans. Admission was made that   WD, 16.10.27.

13

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment for centuries the country has not kept pace with the times, but the information was imparted that new customs are to be adopted and progressive policies projected.14

Return to Britain (1927) However, by the end of October the time had come to leave the US and return to Britain. The trip via Boston took somewhat longer than a week. During the voyage Wärqenäh and his secretary, Mäsfän, caught up on their correspondence and wrote a report to Täfäri. White Company publicly broke the news about their negotiations concerning the dam at Lake Tana while Wärqenäh was at sea.15 His arrival in Great Britain at Liverpool then became something of a media event. As soon as the steamer was tied 7 or 8 news paper reporters came on board and begged to interview me regarding the Tsana dam. Told them all in short that nothing has yet been settled about the construction of the dam and that I was to submit my report about my negotiations in America to the Ethiopian Government who will if they approve discuss the question with British Government wh [which] want a dam to be built for efficiently irrigating part of the Sudan. That if the British Government did not want water, dam will not be constructed.16

Wärqenäh, after meeting with the reporters and the Egyptian consul went first to Chester to see to his responsibilities regarding his children and Täfäri’s daughter Tsehay. Only then did he go on to London, to focus on his diplomatic mission for the Ethiopian government. Overall his trip was covered not only by major British and American newspapers, but even merited a mention in an article by William L. Langer in Foreign Affairs, one of the most prestigious of US foreign policy publications.17 In London he would pursue, as we shall see, a wide variety of different priorities, with the diplomacy of the Tana dam coming first. Second, he continued to look into the problem of importing arms into Ethiopia; third was the issue of education, for his and Täfäri’s children. Fourth, he continued to promote Ethiopia’s case before the media and also meet with important British personalities. Finally, on a more personal level he reconnected with his adoptive family and continued to expand and strengthen his network of contacts in Great Britain. First, in carrying out Täfäri’s directives, he went to the Foreign Office to deal with Täfäri’s Tana initiative and concerns about Täfäri’s children’s education. There are two basically contradictory accounts of Tana issue: one from his diary and the second in the Foreign Office official files. First his diary: Went to the F.O. …After talking about Revd [Reverend] Wells, the man who wants to be Asfao Wasan’s [Ras Täfäri’s son] tutor, Murray asked about my visit to America re   New York World, 20.11.1927.   WD, 5.11.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 16   WD, 7.11.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 17   William L. Langer, ‘The Struggle for the Nile’, Foreign Affairs, 1936, p. 271. 14 15

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 the Tsana dam. Told him about my visit. He said it was discourteous of the Abyssinian Government to send me to inquire about building the dam without informing the Minister and thro him the British Government. He further said that according to the Emperor Menelik’s promise given in exchange of notes which are as binding as the treaty on the subject, the construction of the dam could not be given to anyone else but the British Government and their subjects. Told him that I was not aware of any such obligation. He said the British Government will ask the Abyssinian Government for an explanation on the matter. He gave me Revered R. Wells address, The Vicarage, Beaconsfield and asked me to write to him and see him.18

Later he lunched with Ramsay McDonald. A meeting was arranged by a journalist friend. I went to Howard Hotel. Had lunch with Graham Scott and Mr Ramsay MacDonald, the late [sic.] labour Prime Minister. Explained to the latter our political position and the difficulties we were labouring under. He appeared much interested and said that the British F.O. was much to blame for their policy.19

These meetings were given a different spin by the officials of the Foreign Office. Two memos deal with Wärqenäh’s visit; one will be quoted at length. I [M. Patrick of the Foreign Office] went to the House of Commons last night to discuss the question of a visit by Dr. Martin, the Abyssinian, to the Secretary of State. It will be remembered that Dr. Martin had already asked to be received but had been informed that the Secretary of State regretted that the number of his engagements did not permit of this. Mr. Ramsay MacDonald had informed Mr. Locker-Lampson that he had recently seen Dr. Martin. It appears that the latter had made a number of complaints... Dr. Martin appears further to have suggested to Mr. Ramsay MacDonald that Abyssinian raids into the northern portion of Kenya were largely due to our having encroached upon what was formerly a neutral zone, along the frontier, unoccupied by either side. We have no precise information here in contradiction of this statement, but I have no doubt that it is quite untrue... Finally, Dr. Martin seems to have told Mr. Ramsay MacDonald that he was treated by Mr. Murray and myself not only with curtness, but almost with rudeness. This is not the case. Dr. Martin was personally received here with perfect courtesy…. Dr. Martin’s attitude was evasive and unconvincing. He denied all knowledge of the exchange of notes…and, when shown the quotation in Mr. Bentinck’s note to Ras Taffari, denied knowledge of that also. This can hardly have been true. He finally admitted, however, that if the notes in question were binding, the Abyssinian Government had no business to have sent him to America.... The Egyptian Department, therefore, are convinced that it would be a great mistake if Dr. Martin were honoured with an interview with the Secretary of State. Personally Dr. Martin’s behaviour has been unsatisfactory in the extreme. He had come over here, bearing a letter to the King, to solicit our help in arranging for the education of five small Abyssinian girls, help which we were ready to give. But this ostensibly friendly mission was merely an incident in his journey to America, the object of which was to present us with a fait accompli in the matter of Tsana, and to purchase in the United States as large a quantity of arms and ammunition as he could   WD, 11.11.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining.   WD, 22.11.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

18 19

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment lay his hands on, although he knew that we should be most strongly opposed to any such transaction… Dr. Martin, of course, has no official standing whatsoever, and it would, we believe, be a mistake, by receiving him formally, to do anything which might add to Ras Taffari’s already exaggerated self-importance, or to suggest that we are prepared to condone his sharp practice.20

There is a stark contrast between the two accounts. It is remarkable that the Foreign Office would treat Wärqenäh, by all accounts the most pro-British high ranking member of the Ethiopian court, in such a condescending fashion. First of all, to address some of the points brought up in Foreign Office memo, the diary does not indicate that Wärqenäh ever saw either the 1902 exchange of notes or Bentinck’s note. There is no evidence in the diary or elsewhere that Täfäri ever shared this correspondence with Wärqenäh. Second, as we have seen the goals of Wärqenäh’s mission to Britain and the USA grew like Topsy, and priorities were added one by one by Täfäri onto the original aim of taking his daughters to England to be educated. Third, the Foreign Office claim that he had ‘no official status’ was quite untrue. These difficulties may well have hastened the dispatch of permanent Ethiopian diplomatic representative to France, Britain and Italy. However, it is also quite possible that it was Täfäri who was double dealing and using Wärqenäh in his diplomacy without giving him all the facts. It is interesting to speculate whether racism played a role in the Foreign Office memo and, furthermore, to what degree the Foreign Office was embarrassed by Täfäri and Wärqenäh outmaneuvering them and whether this too influenced their actions. Finally, it should be pointed out that it may very well be true that the contacts Wärqenäh had with the Foreign Office and British officials in 1927 marks the beginning of tension between him and the Foreign Office that would last his whole career. He had close friendships with many British officials in the Foreign Office and throughout British society. However, many upper level officials in the Foreign Office as a whole seem to have regarded him with disdain and suspicion. It is important to note that in contrast to those of the US government, British officers appear to have been more racist.

Arms & contacts in Britain Wärqenäh’s next priority as in the USA was to purchase arms for Täfäri and for Ethiopia. He was soon in touch with Mr A. Fleming and Company who were contractors to the British government. They were keen to sell him the 70 rifles and ammunition he had requested (and for which they had got British government approval) and also wanted to sell 8 mountain guns, originally valued at £150,000 but now available for £20,000. Later the Foreign Office was ‘favorably’ considering approving his arms imports and so after he left England and was in Paris, he sent a ‘formal order’ for the arms and ammunition (but not   PRO 371/12352/8899, pp. 221-224, M. Patrick to Mr Ronald, FO, 23.11.1927. See also PRO 371/12352/8899, pp. 240-243 JLL [Mr Locker-Lampson] to the Secretary of State, 23.11.1927. 20

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 the mountain guns) having already sent Fleming the money for the order.21 Those 70 guns may have been for private use on his platinum mines or for Täfäri, but overall were probably purchased to test the ability of Ethiopia to import arms through French, British or Italian colonies. They ended up sequestered in Jibuti. Another major achievement of his trip was the contacts he made and developed with important individuals and organizations in Great Britain. Wärqenäh’s contacts, personal and business, knew no boundaries and spanned many continents, including Africa, Asia, Europe and America. Some of these contacts were religious and the most important was with the Archbishop of Salisbury, the future Archbishop of Canterbury. They had tea at Westminster Abbey and the archbishop agreed that there was ‘a great need of England doing something towards educating Ethiopians. He appeared interested and said he will try and do what he could’.22 Wärqenäh later met the Secretary General of the Church Mission Society and the Reverend Waddy of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, both key institutions in the missionary outreach of protestant churches in the United Kingdom. Another society with strong religious backing whose support Wärqenäh courted was the Antislavery and Aborigines Protection Society, the secretary of which, Buxton, had invited him to visit but was not in. Wärqenäh saw the next most important official. He also met with Lloyd George (the former prime minister), Anthony Rothschild (of the famous banking family) and many others. This was a most impressive array of influential figures and organizations that Wärqenäh attempted to mobilize on Ethiopia’s behalf and would lay the foundation for future similar, but more ambitious efforts when he was Ethiopia’s representative to the court of St James from 1935 to 1940. His efforts to court the media, especially newspapers, were similarly impressive. At various times in November 1927 he was interviewed by or met with representatives of: the London Observer, Reuters, the Daily News, The Egyptian News Agency, The Sphere, the Daily Express, The Nation & Athenaeum.

Education (1927) A fourth major priority of Wärqenäh’s trip to England was the initial cause of his trip, the education of the daughters of Ethiopia’s elite including his three daughters and those of Ras Täfäri and the future foreign minister, Heruy. Wärqenäh was also charged with looking into the hiring of a British tutor for Täfäri’s heir, Asfa Wäsän. It seems that the empress and the old guard of Ethiopian leadership opposed Täfäri’s efforts to try to educate his heir overseas. Women in his family were seen as being of lesser importance and thus did not invoke opposition. After Wärqenäh’s return to England from the USA he met with Wells, the Foreign Office recommended tutor for Asfa Wäsän, only to find that there were some serious problems with Täfäri’s plans. First of all, Asfa Wäsän was already too old to be able to go to a prestigious British public school, and second, that Wells was too busy to tutor him. Wells was ready to   See WD, 15.11.1927, 24-25.11.1927 & 1-2.12.1927.   WD, 18.11.1927.

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment recommend a friend of his to take on the tutoring tasks, but the costs turned out to be substantial. Eventually, Ras Täfäri preferred to select a tutor he knew more about, who was already in Addis Ababa and cost a good deal less. In the long run Asfa Wäsän never received a really solid education and thus, many would argue, was never adequately prepared to succeed his father. Tsehay, like her older brother Asfa Wäsän did not receive a British education, also under similarly complicated conditions, again involving Wärqenäh. Täfäri initially wrote a revealing letter to King George V of England about Tsehay: With due deference I tender my Salutations to Your Majesty As it is known that English up-bringing of children and scholars is the best, I have already sent some boys for their education to England, but as it is necessary that our girls should also be educated I am now sending five girls, of whom one is my own daughter, for their education. I have sent my daughter that while she benefits by it herself it might also serve as an example and encouragement to the prominent men of my country. Knowing that Your Majesty is interested in Ethiopia I am sending my daughter to Your Majesty’s country trusting that Your Majesty will take an interest in her and be kind to her.23

She was then brought to England with Wärqenäh’s daughters for her education. After their arrival in England in 1927, the tensions between Ethiopia and Great Britain came to bear on Tsehay and her education and Täfäri eventually decided to remove her from England and have her privately educated in Switzerland. Ironically, she would end up with a better education than her brother, the heir to the throne. It seems a pity that the British Foreign Office allowed politics to affect the education of the young Tsehay, perhaps the most talented of the future emperor’s children. Wärqenäh also focused on the education of his own children, the eldest being Téwodros.

Téwodros Wärqenäh Like his father he had a rather difficult childhood. Born out of wedlock in Turnham Green, London in 1908, he had been abandoned by his mother and was largely taken care of by his aunt, Alice Watts. Then he was sent away to Thanat Lodge from 1910 to 1916. All of his expenses were paid for by his father. Then once Qätsälä joined Wärqenäh in Burma, he sent for his son who then travelled alone from London to Burma at the age of eight. The day of his arrival must have been traumatic. ‘Theo turned up at 9 A.M….He is quite sturdy and well built but seems badly brought up. Has an awful cockney accent. Had to give him a beating in the afternoon for not coming when called to have his tea.’24 While in Burma from 1916 to 1919, he seems to have been fully accepted into the Wärqenäh family by his stepmother Qätsälä along with his younger brother Yuséf (who was three) and the young baby sisters Astér and Elsabét. Wärqenäh’s   PRO/FO 371/12352/8899 Tafari Makonnen to H.M. King George V, 24.7.1927.   WD, 9.2.1916. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 Burmese son also visited when on vacation from his school. He was given a pony, and went to the circus on occasion. The family was uprooted in 1919 and returned to Addis Ababa, where he stayed until he went back to England for schooling in 1924. He was baptized in Addis Ababa in 1919 and his God father was Mäsfän Qälämwärq, his father’s cousin who remained a friend for much of his life. While in Ethiopia he was home schooled by his father, along with his younger brothers and sisters. During his teens, his father used him on odd jobs as a messenger and to collect various rents on his houses and revenues from the mills in Lemlem. But he also was accepted in court and invested with traditional robes by Empress Zäwditu in 1922. In 1924 he accompanied his father and younger siblings to England to further his education. His two younger brothers went to preparatory school at Bramcote Hall, while Theo went straight to Trent College next door.25 He did not do particularly well at school, although he eventually completed the course and went on to engineering school at Camborne. When Wärqenäh returned to England in 1927, he found ‘Theo has grown into quite a handy young man’,26 but he firmly desired to end his schooling. He did not pursue a career in engineering which must have been quite a disappointment to Wärqenäh, who allowed him to return to Ethiopia. Back in Ethiopia from 1927 to 1937 he never settled firmly into any one job but worked only for brief periods at Täfäri Mäkonnen School, the Jimma road, on the Wälläga mines and as Wärqenäh’s assistant in Chärchär. He also went for a short time to Kenya trying to become a translator and briefly assisted the J.G. White mission on the Tana dam project. He basically failed at each and every job, despite his father’s leadership role in most of them. However he did become a member of Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär and his father gave him his own separate house to live in. When he decided to get married, his father deemed his wife ‘unsuitable.’ His father criticized him as ‘ungrateful’ and later in 1934 as a ‘worthless fellow’. Clearly Téwodros never quite measured up to his father’s extremely high standards and Wärqenäh placed his hopes no longer on the shoulders of his oldest son, but on his two younger brothers, Yuséf and Benyam. Meanwhile in 1927, Wärqenäh’s daughters were quite enjoying their education in finishing schools in the south of England, supervised under the watchful eye of Sybil. Of his three boys, only Téwodros was having difficulties. So, one of his major priorities for his overseas mission, education, was largely accomplished. However, on a personal level he still needed to make contact with friends and family and also do a great deal of shopping for his family, for his business interests and for the government of Ethiopia. Besides seeing a good deal of his children in England, he also renewed contacts with his adoptive family. He was closest to Sybil who was his major contact in Great Britain and took care of most of the details for the education of his children, as well as Amsala and Tsehay. She, in effect, was his financial agent in Europe and on occasion also acted as such for   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 69a. WD, 13.8.1927.

25

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment Ras Täfäri. She also acted for Wärqenäh in many of his dealings with Johnson and Mathey in connection with the sale of platinum from his mines in Ethiopia, as well as a variety of other smaller tasks. His adoptive brother Stuart played a key role in organizing his meeting with the Archbishop of Salisbury. While Sybil was his major contact and agent in Great Britain, during this trip he also grew to rely on two more recently acquired friends, Mrs Holland and Graham Scott. Mrs Holland was part of the extended Waldemeier family which Wärqenäh’s family must surely have known when members of both families were held captive by Emperor Téwodros in Mäqdäla in the 1860s. During this trip he also met Graham Scott, a journalist and sometime advisor to the Georgian government in the Caucasus who also wished to become an advisor to the Ethiopian government. He helped organize Wärqenäh’s meetings with Ramsay McDonald, the editor of the Daily News, and Lloyd George. Graham Scott may also have been the first to suggest the formation of a Friends of Abyssinian society. Furthermore, an old friend from his days in Burma and Somaliland, Col. Passingham introduced him to Anthony Rothschild. Wärqenäh’s network of contacts proved to stretch right round the world. Another significant aim of his 1927 trip was to buy articles unobtainable in Ethiopia; it is really quite remarkable how many different items for such a wide variety of people and organizations Wärqenäh bought on this trip. The largest number of purchases were made for Täfäri Mäkonnen School, including apparel, looms, yarn and scientific equipment. He also purchased a wide variety of articles for the hospital, Fel Weha Baths, Berhanenna Sälam Printing Press and for a veterinary surgeon in Addis Ababa.

Transiting Egypt & church politics (1927) He left London in December, stayed briefly in Paris and went on to Egypt. Once he arrived in Egypt, he was destined to play a role in Egyptian and Ethiopian Orthodox Church politics. Wärqenäh’s trip to the USA and his negotiations with J.G. White Company about the Nile had probably upset the Egyptians even more than it had the Foreign Office. When he arrived in England he had in fact first met with an Egyptian before he had met with a British diplomat in order to discuss the Tana dam negotiations. He followed this up with numerous meetings with a prominent Egyptian journalist and Copt, Kyriakos Mikhail. [I]nterviewed Kyriakos Michail a Copt who runs the Egyptian News Agency… He said we need not take an ignorant Abuna but could insist that a man of our choice be sent. He said he will write in the Egyptian news papers on this and other subjects which I had explained to him as regards our good and friendly feelings towards Egypt…Told him to impress on the Egyptian people that we had no idea to harm them in connection with their water-supply from the Blue Nile.27

Clearly Wärqenäh was becoming increasingly adept at playing the diplomatic game and carrying out Täfäri’s instructions, by using both formal diplomatic   WD, 13.11.1927 & 24.11.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining..

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 channels and the media at the same time. While steaming toward Port Said he received two cables, one from the Anglican Bishop for Egypt asking him to meet his chaplain upon his arrival and another from the Coptic priest at Port Said asking Wärqenäh to receive him. His day in Port Said during his return to Ethiopia by ship, proved to be a busy one: Wrote out a speech to deliver if necessary before the Copts, telling them of the previous Abunas sent us, not being best type of men. 2ndly, criticize them for usurpation of our possessions in the ‘holy land’. Finished my article about the dam explaining how for 3 main reasons the concession of constructing the dam could not be given to the British Government. 1st ‘concession’ being a cession on account of its perpetuity. 2nd giving this concession would oblige the British Government to press us to give the railway concession to the Italians in accordance with the last Anglo-Italian agreement. 3rd the necessity for the employment of foreign subjects in constructing the dam would lead to rows between them and the natives and the resultant difficulty and embarrassment to the Ethiopian Government. ... Arrived Port Said …the Coptic elders came on board to receive me. Bishop Gwynne’s chaplain Johnson Wilts came and delivered a long letter from the Bishop re the proposed election of Abuna Hanna Salama of Khartum as Patriarch. The Bishop speaks very highly of the candidate and wants me to wire to the A.W. [Alga Wärash, or the heir to the throne Täfäri] asking him to wire his approval of the Abuna’s election…. The Bishop also asked me to see Rev Ibrahim Luka, whom Mr Wilts introduced to me separately and privately. I read my proposed speech to Luka and Wilts and explained our views with regard to the Abuna who might be sent to us. Luka spoke to me in English which he does fairly well and told me how suitable a man Abuna Hanna Salama was... There was quite half a dozen more Coptic elders who called… we had tea where the Governor of the place came and saw me. ..Gave interviews to the Press men and explained the dam question and the object of my mission to America to them.28

This entry reveals that Wärqenäh had been thrust into the middle of very delicate negotiations over the selection of a new Egyptian head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. After Abunä Matéwos’s death in 1926, it took some three years before a new Abun was appointed, Abunä Qérellos. Täfäri used Wärqenäh’s talents in 1927 to help in his efforts to get a favorable candidate from the Egyptian Coptic church to head the Ethiopian Orthodox church. It is unclear exactly what impact these efforts had. Furthermore, Wärqenäh was a major center of interest for the Egyptian press and deep Egyptian concerns about Lake Tana and the allocation of the Nile waters. Wärqenäh continued his trip and arrived home in Addis Ababa on December 20, 1927 after a successful mission, despite Foreign Office caveats to the contrary. After Wärqenäh’s return to Addis Ababa, he continued to play a substantial role in the Nile river negotiations, as his autobiography points out: When I went and saw the Prince [Täfäri] after my arrival, he showed me the rude letter he had received from Sir Austin Chamberlain, regarding the Tsana dam episode. Further, I found that the French were hurt at the Prince [for] sending his daughter for education to England instead of to France….   WD, 12.12.1927. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

28

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment I saw the Prince Regent, who told me that he also had received a satisfactory letter from the Foreign Office regarding the construction of the dam. I discussed the matter with the American Minister and arranged that the Engineering firm should arrange to send engineers to do the necessary surveying of the road to the lake, of the place itself and where the dam would be built.29

Thus in the longer term Wärqenäh’s mission to the USA would appear to have been a success. The Tana dam was on schedule to be built and his diplomacy, despite a British fit, had progressed favorably. However, factors beyond Wärqenäh’s control, like the Great Depression and Britain’s increasing skittishness about the possibility of alienating Mussolini and driving him into the arms of Hitler, slowed the Tana dam initiative in the mid–1930s. In short the dam was never built during his lifetime. However, today, in 2011, a dam to control the Niles waters and produce hydroelectric power is again in the forefront of the diplomacy of international waterways and of Ethiopia. The issues are similar, like irrigation, hydroelectric power, control of the waters of the Nile, but have only grown more serious with the tremendous growth in population in Ethiopia. Had Britain acted more expeditiently in the interests of the people of Northeast Africa in the 1930s, the problems today would not be so serious. However, Wärqenäh’s next two trips to England in 1928 and 1931 focused more on education and less on diplomacy.

1928 trip to England Unlike his 1927 mission, Wärqenäh’s 1928 trip was basically private and his wife Qätsälä’s first visit to England. Its main aim was educational – to settle their daughters and sons in good British schools. The empress had kindly given them £200 towards the trip because Qätsälä was especially keen to go as she had not seen her sons for over four years.30 But the trip also had secondary diplomatic aims and dealt with issues connected with Täfäri Mäkonnen School, his book World Geography, his general health, his mine in Wälläga and finally to check on Täfäri’s daughter Tsehay. Needless to say, he also took the opportunity to see members of his extended family and to renew or extend his transnational web of personal contacts. They left Addis Ababa in mid-August 1928 and stayed abroad for over two months, returning to Ethiopia in October. Both Wärqenäh and Qätsälä were determined that as many as possible of their sons and daughters should have a solid education in the best possible schools in England. Some of the girls, were privately tutored at a house outside London, Hearstcote, under the watchful eye of Sybil.31 The others were educated at ‘Vine in Hampshire’, a fine old British girls’ finishing school that claimed that Queen Elizabeth had slept there.32 He further investigated the possibility of educating his daughters at Sherborne     31   32   29 30

Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 87a-88a. Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 89a. WD, 4.9.1928. Tsehay had left twelve days before to continue her education in Switzerland. WD, 6.9.1928.

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 School in Dorsetshire. He also visited his boys, Yuséf and Benyam in their school in Trent and found them happily playing rugby and considered fine sportsmen at their school. Convinced that all his children’s education was well underway, Wärqenäh focused on two of his other educational priorities, Täfäri Mäkonnen School and his book on geography. While in England, Wärqenäh conscientiously met with the British teachers who were contracted to go to Addis Ababa and teach at Täfäri Mäkonnen School. Lesser priorities during the trip were Ethiopian diplomacy and following up details in connection with his mine in Wälläga. He went to the British Foreign Office for one day and met with J. Murray and also saw Waterlow, the new ambassador to Ethiopia, for the first time. Furthermore, while in London, he made a visit to Johnson and Matthey to sell the gold and platinum production from his Wälläga mine, obtaining a check for £112. He also took the opportunity to visit various doctors, making sure that he had a clean bill of health and a new monocle. On his way home he took a detour to Switzerland to visit Tsehay, the daughter of Negus Täfäri, in order to be able to report to his ruler about his daughter’s health and well being. Täfäri always made sure to have multiple independent reports on what was important to him both politically and personally. Wärqenäh arrived on October 28: At St Legier village station found Tsahai with Miss Flad…Tsahai took us into Flad’s house where we met Mrs and Mr Flad and were cordially received. I had long conversation with Flad…He…was born in Abyssinia and taken to Germany in 1868 when 5 years old. Tsahai looks alright and is happy. She says she likes being with the Flads. Miss Flad about 18 years old looks after her and teaches her.33

Täfäri would later purchase a house in nearby Vevey. Wärqenäh continued on to Marseille, Egypt and Jibuti and reached Addis Ababa on November 14, 1928. Later in 1931 he travelled to England to bring his daughters back and sort out his financial affairs after the death of Sybil Clark-Lloyd.

Some conclusions: Diplomacy with Britain & the United States Wärqenäh’s advice had the greatest impact, without a doubt, on relations with Great Britain. Here is where he had the greatest expertise. Throughout the 1930s his counsel was generally pro-British, at least when seen in the context of the Ethiopian court. Wärqenäh was an Ethiopian nationalist, but was more suspicious of France and Italy than he was of the British. While he was in Ethiopia his advice was especially sought on the contested international issue of the waters of the Nile, the role of a dam at Lake Tana and the associated issue of the possibility of Ethiopia’s obtaining a port in British Somaliland. Slavery was a related and vital issue. The other major problem came during World   WD, 28.10.1928. Author’s underlining.

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment War II, the negotiations over Anglo-Ethiopian relations as defined by the two Anglo-Ethiopian Treaties of the 1940s. Lesser issues were arms and personality clashes with individual British representatives. Wärqenäh’s role as Ethiopia’s minister to Great Britain from 1935 to 1940 represented the high point of his influence. However, James McCann clarifies the prewar dynamics of the Lake Tana negotiations between Täfäri and the British in a very thought-provoking article.34 The negotiations went, in effect, through two distinct phases, 1922 to 1930 and 1930 to 1935. During the first phase Täfäri was not yet emperor or the dominant force in Ethiopian politics and therefore remained very conscious of Ethiopian sovereignty, aware of his own weaknesses in the shade of the old guard. Therefore, he was reluctant to make the significant concessions necessary for successful negotiations about Lake Tana. Thus you had a situation where the British were basically pushing hard for an agreement, but Täfäri was not. In contrast, from 1930 to 1935 the opposite applied. Täfäri was now firmly in power and eager for an agreement with the British, but now the British were reluctant. The major reason for this was that the economic impact of the dam had changed drastically with the advent of the Great Depression. The Sudan and Egypt, with declining cotton exports, no longer needed more water for irrigation. Furthermore, international politics were rapidly changing in the Horn of Africa with the looming probability of an Italian invasion of Ethiopia. This had persuaded the British to wait and not push hard for an agreement with Ethiopia over Lake Tana. They foresaw an Italian victory over Ethiopia and predicted that their interests would be better served negotiating with Italy, rather than with Ethiopia. Wärqenäh’s involvement in Ethiopian and British negotiations over the Nile stretched back to the early 1920s and he remained an advisor of note on it through the 1940s. Täfäri looked to the League of Nations in negotiations over the Nile but also wished to get access to the Red Sea via the port of Assäb in Eritrea from the Italians. Wärqenäh, as we shall see in a later chapter, suggested a more subtle tactic of using the Lake Tana negotiations with Britain as a chip to get the British to give Ethiopia access to one of her ports in British Somaliland. This latter gambit would resurface in the mid–1930s. Ethiopia’s relations with the United States overlapped in several crucial ways with those with Great Britain. The emperor and Wärqenäh saw the USA as a very useful counterweight to the British, especially in the Lake Tana dam negotiations. Basically they were trying to play the one off against the other. Wärqenäh’s diplomatic initiative to the United States in 1927 as we have seen was crucial to this strategy, but he also continued to play a role with the US as well up to 1935, but not in the 1940s. Similarly, Wärqenäh was also sent to the US to explore the possibility of bypassing British, Italian and French sanctions against arms by buying and shipping them from the United States. In 1927 Wärqenäh looked into purchase options, but he and the emperor were never able to successfully import significant numbers of arms, despite the arms dealers’  James McCann, ‘Ethiopia, Britain, and Negotiations for the Lake Tana Dam, 1922–1935,’ The International Journal of African Historical Studies, 15, 4 (1981), pp. 667-699. 34

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Wärqenäh in Britain, the USA & India 1927–1931 enthusiasm for doing so. British, French and Italian control of the vital ports ended up making that impossible, despite all Ethiopian efforts. While in the United States, Wärqenäh also actively pursued the possibility of large loans for arms purchases and for the development of Ethiopia. Neither of these panned out. He was somewhat more successful in attracting African Americans to come to Ethiopia as teachers and professionals, but more would come after World War II than before.

Trip to India (1929–1930) Täfäri not only took advantage of Wärqenäh’s skills to further his aims in the West, in Britain and the USA, but also employed him in the East. He was sent to India largely to recruit professionals to help modernize Ethiopia. It was one of his longer trips outside of Ethiopia, lasting over three months and had been planned by both Wärqenäh and Täfäri for at least three years. Throughout the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, India had been a major trading partner of Ethiopia, and one of her two largest importers.35 Täfäri knew Wärqenäh to be the one person in his court with the most knowledge about India, and the one most likely to be able to recruit the professionals Ethiopia needed. As he said in his autobiography, ‘As teachers for schools, some doctors, nurses, engineers, etc. were needed, on consultation on the subject [with Täfäri], it was decided that I should go to India and bring some back.’36 As we have seen Wärqenäh had been brought up and educated in India and had worked for nearly two decades in one of its provinces. He had long known most of the Indian traders in Ethiopia and had a wide network of colleagues, friends and acquaintances throughout India, many of them Indian Christians who were thought to be able to more easily adapt to Ethiopian culture and the Christian ruling elite. Soon after his arrival in India in late December 1929, Wärqenäh focused on hiring professionals in the areas of engineering, health and education. He advertised the positions in the major national periodicals like the Indian New Statesman, and then traveled to the major centers of Bombay, Lahore, New Delhi and Calcutta, and also Ambala and Allahabad to interview candidates. By the time of his return home in March 1930 he had interviewed dozens upon dozens of candidates and hired twenty-four individuals to go to Ethiopia.37 Most of the successful candidates were Christian, and many were related to Wärqenäh’s friends or acquaintances in India. There were at least two educators, two doctors, one nurse, one tailor and the rest were mostly employed in mining, road building, or some type of engineering work. All were personally interviewed by Wärqenäh and most traveled with him back to Ethiopia in March 1930. They proved less expensive than European and American professionals, but most left Ethiopia   Harold Marcus, Haile Sellassie I: The Formative Years, 1892–1936 (Red Sea Press, 1998), p. 86.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 92a. 37   Ibid., p. 95a. 35 36

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International diplomacy, education & recruitment before the end of their contracts. Southard, the US Minister to Ethiopia, described some of the difficulties of the Indian doctors and nurses. [Many] have not so far been accepted in any of the present hospitals of the capital city and who are accordingly very unhappy... But existing hospitals are all under white direction which has opposed the admission of these Indians as members of their staffs.38

Another aim of the trip was to purchase items requested by Täfäri. In late January, 1930 Wärqenäh visited the Muir cotton mills and bought the new Negus 9 tents, rugs and ground sheets for his work on the Jimma road and for his ruler. He also bought some gifts for the regent and for Empress Mänän. Furthermore, he extended his network of contacts, meeting with Ethiopia’s largest trader, Mohammad Ali, and the sheriff of Bombay while in the commercial center of India. He also saw many acquaintances from his school days in India as well as friends and colleagues from his many years in Burma. This assisted him in his task of recruiting, many recommending family members. It should also be recalled that his trip was in the midst of the Great Depression and like today, many were absolutely desperate for jobs. Many would later be of assistance to him when he returned to India in the early 1940s. Wärqenäh’s recruiting trip was not a long term success. Many were hired, but few stayed the course for the full length of their contracts to assist Ethiopia in its development. However, one of Wärqenäh’s greatest contributions to Ethiopia’s development came during the next stage in his career with his appointment as the governor of the province of Chärchär.   SD – N- 884.01 A/8 p. 6. Southard to Secretary of State, July 30, 1930.

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9 Governor of a Model Province, Chärchär (1930–1935)

When Wärqenäh was appointed as governor of Chärchär province by Emperor Haylä Sellasé, he approached his new responsibility with energy and enthusiasm, despite his sixty-five years. One of the emperor’s major goals after his coronation in 1930 was to improve local administration and he began by focusing on improving the administration of a small number of ‘model provinces’, of which Chärchär was one. That Chärchär has been described as a ‘most notable example’ of a model province1 is due to the efforts of two successive governors: Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat and Azaj Wärqenäh. Täklä Hawaryat had laid a foundation upon which Wärqenäh built, expanding and solidifying the previous administration’s achievements. Wärqenäh’s priorities for progressive change were broadly two, moral changes and basic reforms. His first task was to eliminate bribery and promote honesty and tolerance in government. The first he attacked by urging all his administrators to take an oath and the second by trying to set an example from the top to improve relations with Oromos and Muslims. He then focused on the classic reforms needed for modernization. First and most important was reforming the bureaucracy; he appointed a number of young, educated and highly qualified men to his administration. Second, he cracked down hard on slavery and the slave trade. Third, he systematically followed through on earlier reforms, expanding the road network of his province and linking them to the railroad. Fourth, he successfully expanded the reach of the province into the neighboring Adal lowlands and finally, he founded or improved schools, hospitals and clinics throughout his province. An important key to his success was his ability to report directly to the emperor. This was a privilege which he fought hard to maintain but often he had to deal with interference from the neighboring powerhouse province of Harar.

Geography of Chärchär Chärchär lies on the western edge of Harar province and is dominated by Muslim Oromo, mostly Oborra and Ittuu. The Chärchär Mountains provide the spine of   Bahru Zewde, A History of Modern Ethiopia (James Currey, 2001), pp. 145-146.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 the province with the tributaries to the west flowing into the Awash river and the tributaries to the east flowing into the Webbi Shebelle river. Half way through Wärqenäh’s governorship, lowland areas to the west including a portion of the western Awash River basin were added to his province. These areas included some Afar (‘Adohyammara and ‘Asahyammara, the major division of the Afar), Oromo (Ittuu and Karrayyuu) and Somali (mainly Hawiye and Issa or Ciisa) peoples along the Ethiopia to Jibuti railway tracks and especially near its stations at Méso and Afdam. Thus by the end of Wärqenäh’s tenure, his province was at the center of a flashpoint of four major ethnic groups, the Afar, Oromo and Somali, all under the rule of the Amhara. Many of these groups were pastoral and much diplomacy and mediation was necessary to keep the peace between them. The major cash crop of Chärchär was coffee, although there was a good deal of Chat (a mild narcotic), skins, grain and salt being exported. However, as with the national economy it was coffee that predominated. Wärqenäh played a major role in improving transportation by road in the province in order to increase coffee exports and revenue for his and the national treasury.

Background: previous administrations in ∆201 While Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat laid the foundation of the modern administration of Chärchär, some say that even before his administration of the province in the 1920s, that it was Lej Iyasu through HasibYdlibi who initiated the idea of a model province. According to Bahru Zewde2 Iyasu ‘began a new organization on the lines of the one introduced by Ydlibi in Dire Dawa…The prince’s idea was to get the whole province working well under a new system, and then use it as an example … throughout the country.’ Later, as outlined by Bahru Zewde, the emperor would adopt the ‘new system’ of government idea to Chärchär (for Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat and Wärqenäh) and also use it on two other provinces, Guma and Gera in the West of Ethiopia and Jijjiga in the east. It was Täklä Hawaryat, however, who began the actual modernization of Chärchär. He selected the actual site of the capitol, Asbä Täfäri, and built the first rough road to link it to the railroad. He organized the first municipality, including its police, water supplies and market. Asbä Täfäri’s first buildings were erected by his administration. However, by the time Wärqenäh became governor much had fallen into disrepair. A much more difficult task was to try to transform Chärchär’s land tenure system. Täklä Hawaryat took on the Näftäña who had long been the great landowners in the region and tried to undercut their power with the assistance of Prince Tafari. It was a major struggle and he seems to have been largely successful. Thus that was one battle that Wärqenäh did not have to face when he first arrived in his new province. Richard Pankhurst lists five major steps initiated by Täklä Hawaryat and finalized by Wärqenäh in land reform in Chärchär.3 First, the Mälkäña’s or Amhara riflemen (often referred   May Ydlibi, With Ethiopian Rulers: A Biography of Hasib Ydlibi (Addis Ababa Press, 2006), p. 253.   Richard Pankhurst, Economic History of Ethiopia, 1800-1935 (Addis Ababa, 1968), pp. 178-179 and Richard Pankhurst, State and Land in Ethiopian History (Addis Ababa, 1966), pp. 200-201. 2 3

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 to as Näftäña) were removed and transferred to Harar where they were given pensions. Thus peasants had no obligations except to the state. One result of Täklä Hawaryat’s administration was the almost complete elimination of the Mälkäña and Näftäña. This would open the way to the end of all payments except those in cash. Second, the government structure was reorganized and each province divided into more rational units or wäräda. Third, special legislation was passed to have land measurement with chains instead of ropes, but often the traditional measurement was maintained. Fourth and most important, all taxation had to be paid in cash, replacing the payments in kind preferred by the Mälkäña. The old system generally led to more profit for them and it was the peasants who generally suffered. Good land was supposed to be taxed at a higher rate than poor land. Often peasants were taxed at the older rates and new settlers at new lower rates. Many disputes resulted which had to be taken to Addis Ababa and were often not quickly or easily resolved. Finally, a 1931 Imperial decree prohibited government employees from getting land without the governor’s approval; thus giving him significant additional power. Overall then, Täklä Hawaryat got the process of significant land reform going, but he was heavily attacked and had to often leave the province to go to Addis Ababa to defend himself. Thus his policies and their implementation suffered during his last years as governor of his province. In fact, there are two separate theories as to why he was finally dismissed from his post and imprisoned. One theory held that it was because of the opposition to him by the Mälkäña and that the emperor decided in their favor and the other that he was imprisoned because of accusations of his supposed Bolshevik leanings4. Finally, Täklä Hawaryat seems to have done little to attack slavery or the slave trade, while Wärqenäh would carry out transformative reform in his province. When Wärqenäh was appointed to the province, he had a great deal more administrative experience than Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat. He had spent twenty odd years in South Asia, slowly rising through the ranks of the elite bureaucracy of the British Empire, the Indian Civil Service. He started in India heading up a lowly dispensary and ended up in Burma as one of its top provincial administrators. His experience as we have seen was far broader than just being a medical doctor but included a wide variety of skills including: sanitation, construction, road building, standing in for governors of large provinces, financial and linguistic expertise. He had also, in Addis Ababa, discussed and honed his ideas of administration with fellow Ethiopian intellectuals to adapt them to Ethiopia and its norms. In addition, he eventually persuaded the emperor to give him discretion to spend a significant amount of the provinces’ revenues on its schools, roads and medical needs. Furthermore, he brought some unique perspectives to his tasks as governor including the background of his Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär or NGO, which provided not only a pool of like minded reforming protégés, but also a new intellectual approach to administration in Ethiopia. He believed most firmly in: the abolition of slavery (and the slave   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia (James Currey, 2002), pp. 61-62. Bahru Zewde emphasizes a complex mix of causes for his departure from his province. [Henceforth, Bahru Zewde, Pioneers] 4

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 trade), applying strict moral standards in administration, as well as a belief in toleration and dialogue (which he would especially implement with the Muslim community in Chärchär) and finally a determination to protect minorities and eradicate bribery in his new province. Many of his protégés in Chärchär would, in the future, become prominent in the emperor’s post-liberation governments, especially Bitwädäd Zewdé Gäbrä Heywät and General Abatä Dägäfä.

Wärqenäh & his relations with the emperor Before his appointment, Wärqenäh thought he had obtained the emperor’s firm commitment that he would report directly to him. The previous governor of Harar, Däjazmach Emeru (later Ras), had been transferred to the province of Wällo in 1929, and then after some time Däjazmach Gäbrä Maryam Gari was appointed governor in 1930. Wärqenäh’s autobiography provides some useful background. [O]n consultation with some friends, I understood that by going to Chercher I would have to work under the Governor of the whole of the Harrar Province. Disliking this arrangement, I wrote to the Emperor, but he informed me that as Chercher was only nominally under the Governor of Harrar, he would arrange that I would in no way be interfered with by the Governor of Harrar. His Majesty further informed me that he was sending me especially to Asba Tefferi, the headquarters of Chercher, in consideration of my health, as the place being lower in altitude, would very likely suit me. Hearing this, I thanked His Majesty.5

Gäbrä Mariam never really accepted this loss of power and it is likely that the emperor used the tension between the two for his own ends. Wärqenäh was never really able to establish his autonomy to his own satisfaction. He had further difficulties with Abba Shawäl Zäsé who was Gäbrä Mariam’s subordinate for the Awash basin. Time and again Wärqenäh appealed to the emperor for his autonomy and would be reassured, but instances of interference continued. An observation about the emperor by a previous governor, Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat is a propos: ‘He [the emperor] is not constant. First he gives you free rein with angelic benevolence. Then he secretly creates all sorts of obstacles. That is his distinctive trait.’6 Finally, in 1934 Gäbrä Mariam was promoted to the position of minister of the interior in Addis Ababa and the emperor appointed his twelve-year-old son, Mäkonnen as Harar’s new governor. The time now seemed propitious for Wärqenäh to consolidate his position, but by this time his divorce had become a major distraction and then in 1935 Wärqenäh was appointed Ethiopia’s minister to Great Britain. Disputes between Wärqenäh and Harar revolved around payment of taxes, appointments of local officials and his status in the Awash lowlands. Both Abba Shawäl and Gäbrä Mariam were keen on expanding their influence over the lucrative tax revenues of Chärchär and the possibilities of obtaining booty   Wärqenäh’s Autobiography is in the family’s possession, p. 98. [Henceforth, Wärqenäh Autobiography]   See Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, p. 61. Here he cites Täklä Hawaryat’s autobiography, Volume II, p. 38.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 by raiding the lowland pastoral peoples and their flocks. Wärqenäh, however, wanted to implement his new progressive agenda of modern administration, the maintenance of peace, coexistence and dialogue. In this Wärqenäh had the emperor’s support and slowly consolidated his control in Chärchär. Symbols of his increasing power were his ability to control the appointment of local näggadras, taking over custom revenues (including those on the railway) and also over its post and telegraph personnel and revenues. Overall, Wärqenäh was little affected by the emperor’s role in national affairs. The 1930 coronation which had firmly established the emperor’s dominant role at the center, hardly appears in Wärqenäh’s diary or autobiography. He had very little input in it or the 1931 constitution. Furthermore, the fall of Ras Haylu, the prominent governor of Gojjam province (due to his intrigue with Lej Iyasu) barely stirred the placid waters of Chärchär’s daily life. However, the fall of Abba Jibar (the rule of the province of Jimma) and the confiscation of his lands did have a small impact on Wärqenäh, since the emperor let him take over some of Abba Jifar’s former lands in Chärchär so that he could successfully grow cotton on them. Wärqenäh not only complained to the emperor about interference from Harar, but also, on at least two occasions, threatened to resign if he didn’t obtain real autonomy. However, the emperor always seemed to be able to outmaneuver him, either by prevaricating, or distracting Wärqenäh by offering him another and perhaps more profitable province to rule (Fitawrari Tasso’s land). Wärqenäh never followed through on his threats to resign, but his eventual appointment as minister to London came soon after one of his tussles over his autonomy. Table 9.1 Income of Chärchär Province (1931–1934) 1931

$126,678 TOTAL $13,678 HIM Kitchen expenses [mad bét] $10,000 Sent to National Bank of Egypt for Medicines $3,000 paid to gwada [treasury] for Gojjam church and for medicines

$100,000 for Buying Bank of Abyssinia 1932

$ 85,049 TOTAL $13,678 to pay kitchen expenses [mad bét]

1933

$101,312 TOTAL

1934

$ 31,000 TOTAL

TOTAL (1931–1934)

$344,039

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 One aspect of a Wärqenäh administration in Chärchär that was attractive to the emperor was the very significant amounts of money that he was able to send to the emperor from his province. Wärqenäh’s diary provides the details below. The emperor not only saw Chärchär as a model for Ethiopia’s future provincial administration, especially in curbing the slave trade and slavery, but also as a lucrative source of tax revenue for his own personal and national agenda.

General survey of Chärchär’s administration under Wärqenäh Däjazmach Zewde Gabre-Sellassie once succinctly summarized the major changes that Ethiopia’s new generation of administrators wished to achieve in the new model provinces: changing the courts, building roads, improving sanitation, education, clinics and expanding coffee exports.7 All these were the aims of Wärqenäh and his new administrators in Chärchär. Wärqenäh was at the top of the hierarchy as governor (sometimes referred to as Abägaz), able to get direct access to the emperor. His second in command, or director, was officially appointed by the emperor, but each one was agreed to jointly. Careful reading of the Wärqenäh diary shows that there was a loose cabinet of about eight members to whom Wärqenäh generally turned for advice and it was this decision-making group that he variously referred to as his chelot, or majlis. The majis met rarely while the chelot generally met twice a week. They included the Director (or Mekettel Abägaz), the Commanding Officer (Yäwätadär Halafi), the Treasury Officer (Yägemja Bét Shum), the Head of the Merchants (or Näggadras), the Anti-Slavery Judge (Yäbariya Nätsa Dagnnät Halafi ), the Qadi (or Muslim judge) and the Head of Public Works (Yämängäd Sera Halafi ). They would together deal with the major legal appeals, as well as the significant political and economic issues that arose. Parallel and often overlapping were the four areas where legal appeals went, in most instances, directly to Wärqenäh, that is cases dealing with: Muslims and Islamic law (the shariyah), slaves and the slave trade, the emperor’s gult or royal land and gädam or church lands. Four other areas were directly under Wärqenäh’s purview: direct individual petitions addressed to him, provincial schools (which his secretary Emmanuel Abraham personally supervised), hospitals and dispensaries whose heads he personally appointed and his personal secretaries whom he selected. Later, in 1933 and 1934 the emperor added new districts or wäräda, to his province, Adal and Karrayyuu which gave new scope for administrative innovations. Not all of his officers, in fact way fewer than half, were his protégés, those he had trained, influenced or known for lengthy periods of time. Most he inherited or were appointed by the emperor. However, it was almost certainly the youngest and most progressive administrative body in the empire. Each major player now deserves to be looked   Interview with Däjazmach Zewde Gabre-Sellassie, Addis Ababa, October 1, 2001.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 at in turn, beginning with his two directors, Lej Mäsfän Qälämwärq (1930-1932) and Lej Sayfu Mika’él (1930-1935) who were his seconds in command. Lej Mäsfän was of gentle birth, his father was Däjazmach Qäläm Wärq a high official in the imperial court and their two families were closely intertwined. The Däjazmach in 1910 gave his son to Wärqenäh to bring up. Mäsfän had helped Wärqenäh conduct legal cases in the court in the 1920s, been a key member in the foundation of the Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär, worked for his mentor in Fel Weha Baths (to get administrative experience) and then he had been Wärqenäh’s private secretary on his trip to the United States in 1927. He married a sister of Ras Gétachäw, was seen as up and coming in the court and Empress Zäwditu as a reward appointed him sub governor of Jijjiga in 1928. The next year, according to British diplomatic sources8 he was made Director of Jijjiga and the following year he was appointed as Director of Chärchär under Wärqenäh. He was clearly on the fast track because he was made director of the whole of the Ogaden three years later in 1933. The Italians tragically cut short his career when they killed this young progressive during the war. Mäsfän had helped persuade Wärqenäh to accept the governorship of Chärchär, and was sent there before Wärqenäh arrived by the emperor to ‘keep things going’. He was a faithful and efficient ‘strong right arm’ for Wärqenäh. He is, perhaps, the clearest example of one of Wärqenäh’s protégés brought in to beef up the administration of Chärchär. It is important to note that the emperor never appointed one of Wärqenäh’s enemies as the Director of Chärchär, as a way to ‘divide and rule’ (as was so common in his administration of the rest of the empire), both Mäsfän and Sayfu were close friends of Wärqenäh. Usually if the emperor appointed a traditionalist as governor, he would appoint a progressive or western educated governor, or vice versa. Each would be sure to keep an eye on the other, report to the emperor and then he would be able to decide which to support. After all, the emperor’s first priority was to increase his own power. The emperor appointed Lej Sayfu Mika’él as Lej Mäsfän’s successor as director of Chärchär in 1932. Although Sayfu seems not to have had any contact with Wärqenäh before 1932 he would marry Wärqenäh’s daughter Sara two years later and become one of his closest associates. He was clearly in favor with the emperor since in the 1920s he had put him in charge of one of his estates in Chärchär. Zewde Gabre-Sellassie said that Wärqenäh ‘had very good fortune knowing somebody called Sayfu Mikael who was very, very popular, the uncle of Kebbede Mikael’.9 Käbbädä Mikaél became one of Ethiopia’s most famous authors with the publication of his novel Feqr Eskä Mäqabär. However, Sayfu later submitted to the Italians and was shortly thereafter divorced by Sara. He never again attained a high position in the Ethiopian court. Yet before the war he was a bright shining star in the administration and adept at acquiring land and influence.   FO 371/20940/6640 Records of Leading Personalities in Abyssinia, May 4, 1937, p. 18.   Interview with Däjazmach Zewde Gabre-Sellassie, Addis Ababa, October 1, 2001. Käbbäda Mika’él was later one of Ethiopia’s most famous authors and an outstanding representative of Ethiopia’s political and intellectual elite, see Siegbert Uhlig, editor, Encyclopaedia Aethiopiaca (Wiesbaden, 2007), Vol. III, p. 315. 8 9

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 Another prominent member of the cabinet was Lej Abbäbä Dägäfu another young Ethiopian enjoying imperial favor and Wärqenäh’s military officer in Chärchär. According to Wärqenäh’s diary of August 28, 1932: Ababa Dagafu has come with me to take charge of the soldiers here and to drill them. He has had a military training in France and was one of my School boys in the Tafari Makonnen School. I had sent him to Beyrout [sic, Beirut] with 11 other boys from where he went to Paris later.

The scholarship to Lebanon was one determined jointly by the emperor and Wärqenäh. Throughout his time in Chärchär, he was efficient and successful, catching bandits and tracking down lawbreakers. But most important was that he and his soldiers were the dominant military force in the province, assuring that there was no resurgence of the power of the Näftäña. Military force had been finally been completely transferred from local land lords in Chärchär to the central government. Wärqenäh recommended him for promotion and honors which he eventually received from the emperor. After the war he was promoted to Colonel and later General.10 He was a frequent member of Wärqenäh’s chelot and majlis. His predecessor Ato Gäbrä Amlak had not won Wärqenäh’s favor and Abbäbä had been appointed in his stead by the emperor. The military officer was one of the more important positions in the province. His military contingent received new rifles and a maxim gun in 1934 and as the crisis with Italy gathered steam he organized large sports events that included shooting practice and military type drilling. In 1935 he accompanied another officer (posted to Adal land) to try to track down the Adal killer of a Frenchman in a notorious diplomatic incident. They successfully captured him, but were then surrounded by hostile Adal kinsmen. Abbäbä maintained his cool, and emerged victorious. It was then that the emperor agreed to decorate and give a title to the dashing young officer. He and Emmanuel Abraham were among the most successful of Wärqenäh’s Chärchär protégés. The third major member of the cabinet was the head of the merchants and major economic figure of Chärchär, Näggadras Keflé Dadi. He also seems to have been of some significance, since his other title at the time was Lej and had been a follower of Ras Haylu Täklä Haymanot of Gojjam.11 At the emperor’s order he had been employed in the Addis Ababa Municipality in 1930 and then transferred to Chärchär as the local Näggadras. He was an extremely energetic individual and a major Wärqenäh ally and later protégé. He supported him strongly throughout his nearly four years of service in Chärchär, both as Näggadras and later after 1932 as the magistrate for slave cases. Eventually he was raised to the rank of imperial Näggadras and promoted as Näggadras to the larger and more prestigious province of Arussi. After the Liberation in 1941 he was further promoted to Däjazmach. He was an ardent reformer on many fronts other than economics and trade. Not only was he very active in slavery reform and suppressing the slave trade, but he also supported education and the   Tadäsä Betul Kebrät, Azaj Hakim Wärqenäh Eshätu (Addis Ababa, 2009), p. 175. [Henceforth, Betul].   Emmanuel Abraham, Reminiscences of my Life (Oslo, 1995), pp. 23-24. [Henceforth, Emmanuel, Remin­ is­cences] 10 11

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 Asbä Täfäri school (even to the extent of subscribing to contribute 10 Maria Teresa Dollars a month). He also helped to set up the new administration in Adal land. He was close to Wärqenäh socially and dined with him often. Most telling, perhaps, he was one of very few Ethiopians that Wärqenäh listed as a refugee that he was willing to support in India during his retirement and pay for his removal and transport from Italian custody. Keflé had been condemned for many years to the notorious Italian concentration camp for Ethiopians in Isiolo in Italian Somalia. None of the rest of Wärqenäh’s cabinet or majlis had been associated with him in any significant way before his governorship began in 1931 including the fourth major member of his cabinet, Qäñazmach Bälachäw Radé. He was the only remaining member of the Chärchär administration that Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat had warned against. For the first year Wärqenäh had some ‘problems’ with him and asked the emperor to transfer him elsewhere. However, he continued to attend chelot and work on cases throughout 1934. He was even invited to Wärqenäh’s home. When he was finally transferred in 1934 his successor was an even worse judge. Bälachäw had perhaps been the least capable of Wärqenäh’s core team. The fifth major member of his cabinet was Ahmad Ali Tasé, the Qadi, or chief Muslim judge in Chärchär province. As Qadi both before and after Wärqenäh’s tenure as governor, he was a regular member of his majlis or chelot. He was one of the most important local leaders of the Oromo, the local dominant ethnic group in Chärchär, and also had a good deal of influence within Oromo, Somali and Afar tribes surrounding Chärchär province. He seems to have been the only Oromo member of the majlis or chelot and was clearly the highest ranking Oromo of Chärchär’s administration. He remained loyal and helpful to Wärqenäh throughout his governorship. Wärqenäh was trying to live up to his oath and commitment to tolerance and dialogue with the Qadi and the Islamic community in his province. In turn Wärqenäh introduced him to the emperor and helped get him promoted from Balambaras to Grazmach. Despite their very different backgrounds and religion, there appears to have been little tension between them and instead a strong common bond, focused on maintaining a civilized dialogue and an atmosphere of toleration. With only a few exceptions, Wärqenäh upheld his judgments and respected the shariyah law which the Qadi administered. A sixth and always active member of the cabinet was Haylé Kulach, the Treasurer (or ) of Chärchär who in 1931 was a Qäñazmach, but by 1942 was a Grazmach. Initially, Wärqenäh had ‘trouble’ with Haylé who he inherited as treasurer, because he ‘did not get on’ with the assistant treasurer appointed by Wärqenäh. Wärqenäh thought that Haylé’s assistant (whom he had appointed) was ‘cleverer’ and thus Haylé was ‘jealous of him’. Within six months of arriving in Chärchär, Wärqenäh was still trying to remove Haylé but he remained in office throughout Wärqenäh’s governorship. However, he later successfully requested that the emperor reward him with a grant of madäriya land in 1933. He was a competent, if not particularly distinguished judge and bureaucrat, serving in both the chelot and majlis of Chärchär. The treasury was a key appointment, 181

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 especially when the emperor insisted on the accounts being checked and he may very well have insisted on using Haylé as one way to keep tabs on Wärqenäh. The seventh member of the cabinet was the slavery judge (Yäbariya Nätsa Dagnnät Halafi). Initially this was a certain Haylä Maryam who served for a little over one year and about whom little is known. He was replaced by one of Wärqenäh’s close allies, Näggadras Keflé Dadi in May of 1932. Keflé was a much more active member of the cabinet and as the slavery judge. He went out into the farthest reaches of the province to find and capture illegal slave dealers bringing them back to Asbä Täfäri to be prosecuted. He added the duties of slavery judge to those as the province’s Näggadras and was one of Wärqenäh’s most active and energetic administrators, as we have seen. The final member of the cabinet was Mättafäriya Wedé, an administrator recommended to Wärqenäh by Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat who held no title, although he had worked on a government farm and continued to do so. He was practical, energetic and entrepreneurial. He was appointed the head of the ‘Public Works Office’ (or Yämängäd Sera Halafi) in 1931 and was a major implementer of Wärqenäh’s ambitious building and road construction agenda in Asbä Täfäri and throughout the province along with a broad array of assistants, as we shall see. He did his utmost to successfully carry out Wärqenäh’s ambitious construction aims. After the liberation in 1941 he became a businessman of note. Besides these eight ‘officers’ who took care of the bulk of the everyday, ‘nuts and bolts’ administration of the province, so that only appeals came to Wärqenäh’s desk, there was another set of responsibilities that partially overlapped with those. These included two specific functions already explored, the slave court and the Qadi’s court (court for Muslims), as well as two extra duties, taking appeals from gädam and gult. Gult referred to land whose revenue was directly controlled by the emperor, but whose legal cases Wärqenäh took on appeal, only two or three instances were listed in the diary. Gädam were monastic landholdings in Ethiopia under an abbot. Occasionally the emperor asked Wärqenäh to take on their legal appeals. Only five are listed in the diary. In one case, the Assabot gädam, the emperor appears to have appointed the abbot himself. That is most interesting since it went against the practice in most of northern Ethiopia. Wärqenäh also appointed his personal secretaries who undertook a large amount of correspondence, especially in Amharic, and carried out a wide range of other duties for him. Foremost among them, of course, was Emmanuel Abraham, but he also used on occasion Keflé Dadi, Alämayähu Täna Gasha and on occasion his son Theodore. It was they who assisted him most in dealing with the petitions that were direct appeals to Wärqenäh from the people of his province. These he encouraged but by his last year as governor they had become a veritable flood and took up a great deal of his and his secretary’s time. He had earlier created a form that had to be filled out which included the appeal and he would have this read out by one of his secretaries in the evening after office hours were over. He would then decide what action if any was to be taken and give instructions to his secretaries on how to respond. Many, 182

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 many hours were taken up by the seemingly endless petitions. According to his diary, sessions dealing with petitions were greater in number than any others. In 1931 he had 18 sessions on petitions, in 1932 he had 8, in 1932 he had 8 again and in 1934 a whopping 186. In Ethiopia petitions were a very important part of government. Wärqenäh’s attitude to petitions in Chärchär was a radical departure from previous Ethiopian practice. Virtually all of Ethiopia’s previous governors carefully filtered all petitions through particular members of their court, usually the Elfeñ Askälkay (or the chamberlain). This official would only allow petitions that he thought to be important and/or those who had given him a sufficiently large bribe. Wärqenäh, on the other hand, allowed direct access to his person to virtually anyone who wrote out a petition. This was a real departure from previous practice and most unusual in the Ethiopian context. However, the number of petitions became so large and many were so frivolous that Wärqenäh was forced to charge a nominal fee for the official petition form to restore order to the process. Wärqenäh felt very strongly that individual wrongs should be swiftly and justly addressed. He felt he should use any influence he had to the best of his ability for all, be they rich or poor, strong or weak, friend or foe. He tended to favor the poor and the weak throughout his life. Overall, Wärqenäh put together an extremely talented administrative team, probably more talented than in any other province in Ethiopia. Most had some western education, and if they didn’t they shared Wärqenäh’s work ethic and basic philosophy. He only had four years to make an impact on Chärchär, a far shorter period than Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat. However, as Zewde Gabre-Sellassie said his rule in Chärchär was ‘Very important. I mean he was a very enlightened person… and I think in terms of modernization, in terms of encouraging education, in terms of straightening out the adminis­ tration, his contributions was tremendous… Chärchär…[was] supposed to be a model.’12 The challenges he faced when he first arrived were great, especially in Asbä Täfäri: To begin with, I found that the town was established in a narrow valley with very little level ground to build on, and only had a population of about 3,000 souls. There were no roads, bridges or decent buildings and only a half a dozen small shops trade being very poor. The hospital had just been opened by one of the Indian doctors whom I had sent from Addis Ababa. There was no school, except a small Roman Catholic Mission institution. There was no water supply or any other conveniences. My own accommodations consisted of a tiny bedroom and a public hall. The quarters for my assistant or the ‘Director’ as he is called, were also miserable and insufficient. There were a fair number of rooms for the principal offices but the Treasury building was insufficient, especially as the place was also occupied by about a dozen prisoners, who were in irons, for not having paid their land tax. There was sufficient accommodations for the Courts, but the prison was in a very poor state of repairs and accommodation.13 Interview with Däjazmach Zewde Gabre-Sellassie, Addis Ababa, October 1, 2001.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 99.

12  13

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935

Other important reforms & changes The most important change during Wärqenäh’s administration was that it was much more activist and responsive, almost certainly than any other Ethiopian province. Primarily, this was possible because of the new and dynamic set of administrators that he had brought to his province. One measure of activism is the sheer volume of legal cases and petitions during his tenure as governor. There is no way to measure the number of regular cases and appeals through the chelot,14 but in the other areas a rough estimate is possible from citations in his diary to the sessions that he spent going over appellate cases. Slavery cases were the largest in number (125), next came cases from the Qadi’s court (10), then the gädam cases (about four) and then the gult cases (two or three). Overshadowing all of these were the sessions he spent personally going over petitions. Other significant administrative reforms included four that seemed to have grown out of his administrative experience in Burma. He instituted the first annual provincial reports in Ethiopia. These had been a regular feature of his career in Burma and surveyed all significant activity in his province over the previous year. As we have seen, he had already begun to write annual reports for his work on the Fel Weha Baths. These can be marvelous resources for the historian, but none seem to have survived for Chärchär. Second he carried out regular inspection tours of his whole province, not only to keep in personal touch with developments but also to hear appeals personally and take immediate action. Swift justice was always a hallmark of Wärqenäh’s administrative style. He also set up a town council in Asbä Täfäri and a provincial council for the whole province that increased access to those in power and also transparency. The first town council was an ad hoc gathering in Asbä Täfäri that Wärqenäh referred to as a ‘meeting’ in his diary in November, 1931. The ‘city elders’ discussed a variety of issues including stray animals (a perennial problem), enhancement of land tax (it was raised), donations to improve the roads and the schools and finally it was decided to have a ‘mass meeting of the town people’. As he said in his autobiography, ‘As a beginning to the formation of a Provincial Council, I first set up an Asbe Tefferi Committee, in which the town affair[s] were discussed and settled. The people were quite pleased with the new privilege to take part in the administration of their province.’15 There were more promises of donations for the school and for improved roads. The first ‘General public meeting of the town people’ was hold in November 1933 and tried to find further financial resources for the Asbä Täfäri water supply, the hospital and roads. Wärqenäh also told the meeting he wanted them to choose ten town ‘councillors’ to form a town council. Also in 1933 Wärqenäh, after the Danakil were added to his province held regular similar meetings with the elders and large groups of Afar, Somali and Oromo.   Wärqenäh held court twice a week which would work out to about 350 to 400 sessions for the length of his governorship. 15   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 112. 14

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 The next year in 1934 Wärqenäh went ever further: As an experiment, I had instituted a Provincial Council for consultation on provincial affairs to which representatives were sent from different districts. The people were a bit surprised in the beginning, but they soon began taking interest in it and were helpful with their advices [sic] and suggestions.16

According to his diary the issues discussed were tax difficulties, especially land tax and fair compensation for the elders who were administrators. The Council consisted of ‘priests, Burkas, elders from Tullo, Kuni, Chiro and Masala waradas’. One suggestion was that the Burkas, local chiefs, should get more than one gasha (a measure of land) for their services. Finally, Wärqenäh in 1931, tried to set a higher moral standard to Ethiopian governance by insisting that all his officers and administrators take an oath. On hearing that some of the officers were taking bribes, I took advantage of the occasion of a public commemoration of the Emperor’s birthday, when all the officers had collected, by giving a speech, in which I denounced the practice of bribery and corruption and then, as an example, I took the first oath never to take bribes and promised to be just, honest and straight. Afterwards, I got each officer to take the same oath. This I was glad to learn, had quite a good effect and there was much improvement in the general administration of the province.17

This reform was not part of Burmese administration, but would seem to be an outgrowth of his NGO, the Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär (the Love and Service Organization). Wärqenäh as a builder in Chärchär Wärqenäh started a major building campaign soon after arriving as governor of Chärchär province since he found ‘no decent buildings’ in Asbä Täfäri when he arrived18. He started work immediately, improving the water system of the capital of his province, Asbä Täfäri. He made plans for the long term improvement of the whole town and soon initiated road and bridge building to improve transportation within the town and from the town to the railway. He later extended his efforts to building schools, hospitals, clinics and churches. All of this was made possible because Chärchär was a relatively rich province, one of the richest in Ethiopia, and because he had strong support from the emperor. Furthermore, he was able to persuade many of the people of Chärchär province to donate time and money to carry out many of his projects. Wärqenäh used the expertise he had gained in Burma and then honed in Addis Ababa since his return in 1919 in carrying out his campaign. Some of the skilled labor he had trained in Addis Ababa he brought to Asbä Täfäri to assist him and his administrative staff. He also used volunteer local labor, as well as prisoners to do some of the work.   Ibid., p. 117.   Ibid., p. 103. 18   Ibid., p. 99. 16 17

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 When Wärqenäh first arrived in Asbä Täfäri, he found that the town had some very basic problems: ‘The town site is badly chosen as it has no level ground and is covered with hills. It is [a] very small town at present without any roads.’19 His campaign began in Asbä Täfäri and following his instincts as a doctor, Wärqenäh made improvement of its water system his first priority. Clean and plentiful sources of water are at the core of improving health and sanitation in the developing world. Wärqenäh was way ahead of his times in not only realizing this, but implementing it tirelessly. The water supply of Asbä Täfäri – When he first arrived he found that there was ‘a good deal of difficulty about water’20 and that because of the scarcity, water was ‘sold at half [a] piastre per tin both for washing and drinking’21. Wärqenäh then carried out a comprehensive search throughout the whole area surrounding Asbä Täfäri looking for possible sources of water for the town. At least six different localities were investigated, some as far as ten kilometers away. Once the emperor had approved further expenditures he ordered the installation of iron piping. By October 1933, the town water and reservoir system passed inspection and all seemed well. However, he continued his efforts to further improve the water system through 1933 and 1934 up to his departure to London. As he pointed out in his autobiography, ‘pumps, pipes and reserves’ were the essence of his policy. He also successfully solicited contributions to improve the water supply from the influential and rich of Asbä Täfäri.22 While he was working to improve the vital water system of Asbä Täfäri, Wärqenäh also carried out a broad campaign of road building throughout most of the province of Chärchär with Asbä Täfäri as the hub. Infrastructure and roads were key to development in rural Ethiopia. Road building As we have seen Wärqenäh had been deeply involved in road building during the 1920s both within Addis Ababa and to Jimma. In Chärchär he continued this major emphasis on improving Ethiopia’s infrastructure and basic road system. Later the Italians would build on the foundations he had laid and take credit for the improvements for themselves after their conquest of Chärchär and Ethiopia. Wärqenäh was responsible for introducing the first truck and the first car to Asbä Täfäri as well as the first paved or metalled road. The major thrust for these modernizations was clearly to increase the export of coffee and other raw materials from this key province. However, it may well have been the enthusiasm of his subjects, especially after they witnessed the arrival of the first car and truck in Chärchär, which provided much of the impetus and financing necessary for the rapid expansion of roads in their province. Wärqenäh first focused on improving the road from Asbä Täfäri to the town of Méso, a major stop on the Addis Ababa to Jibuti railway. It is symbolic that when he first arrived to take up his governorship in January 1931, he had to travel     21   22   19 20

WD, 23.1.1931. WD, 30.1.1931. WD, 26.1.1931. Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 100 and 116.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 from the rail head to Asbä Täfäri by mule. By May of 1931 significant parts of the road had been rebuilt and repaired, but it was still ‘not good enough for a car’ and heavy imports to Asbä Täfäri were still carried by camel.23 However, the emperor gave him a truck, car and driver in mid 1931 which speeded up the road building process. The completion of the road and the arrival of the first car and ‘lorry’ in Asbä Täfäri in June 1931 caused a ‘good deal of excitement in town’24. By the end of the month the truck was bringing mail and corrugated iron from Méso and returning with a full cargo of coffee. The key to making the road building project successful was the driving need to export coffee more cheaply and efficiently. This seems to have been achieved in the early 1930s in Chärchär province. Work on improving, and shortening, the road continued throughout his tenure in Chärchär. New bridges were built and the section in Asbä Täfäri was even paved. The next important step was to extend the road system within the province so that trucks could be used to transport more of the province’s coffee crop. Wärqenäh’s skill in combining the efforts of government and merchant, of the public and private spheres, to improve Chärchär’s infrastructure was most significant in the development of his province. By the end of 1932 sixty miles of roads had been completed at no expense to the province. Local leaders had recruited the labor and Wärqenäh only provided some bullocks for the workers to eat in celebration. After improving the road to the railhead, Wärqenäh focused on the road from Asbä Täfäri towards Arsi province, through the towns of Qunni, Badessa and Galamso. The road to Qunni was probably built first because it led past one of the emperor’s government farms. It was finished in March 1933 and the road reached Badessa and Galamsso by April of the same year. According to his autobiography: The Emperor … told me to arrange for his visit to the Belgian company’s coffee farm on the boundry [sic] of my province. This was done to the entire satisfaction of His Majesty’s order, especially as he was able to go through my province in a motor car which was an innovation. He had an enthusiastic reception all along the route and at Asbe Tefferi [sic] and was pleased with my new house, where he stayed a day and a night.25

The Badessa section of the road was perhaps finished so quickly because the inhabitants of the Awraja worked on it so assiduously. The road from Asbä Täfäri to Hirna and on to the railway tracks was finished by mid-July 1933, but was largely organized and built by one of his regional sub-governors. This would facilitate the opening up of the whole eastern portion of Chärchär province, linking it more closely with the richest province in Ethiopia, its neighbor Harar. The final major road-building project was a road right into the land of Adals, started in 1934. It stretched from Méso to Kurtum. The road construction was not as difficult as in the highlands, since the land was flatter and drier and fewer bridges were necessary. Local Adal and Hawiye chiefs were asked to help in   WD, 12.5.1931 and 13.6.1931.   WD, 8.5.1931 & 21.6.1931. 25   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 115. 23 24

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 the construction and at least part of the road was completed by mid-August 1934. Wärqenäh’s diary notes that on the 15th of August 1934 he ordered that the road be finished and telephone lines be stretched to the end of the road. However, there is no further indication as to whether his orders were carried out. Furthermore, there is clear indication that the roads once built, were maintained and that other feeder roads were constructed. By the end of his governorship Wärqenäh was responsible for bringing at least four government lorries and two cars to his province. Local merchants then began to import more. This was a major stimulus to the import and export trade and to increase income for the province through higher tax revenues. Finally, it should be pointed out that, at least in Chärchär province, the Italians, despite their reputation for extensive road building, really did not greatly expand on the system that Wärqenäh had established during his governorship. It may well be, at least in selected parts of Ethiopia, like the model province of Chärchär, that the Italians got a good deal of propaganda value for ‘modernizations’ which had actually occurred during Haylä Sellasé’s reign. In the particular case of Chärchär the credit for the modernization should have gone to Hakim Wärqenäh. Schools – Besides reforming and developing the administration of Chärchär one of Wärqenäh’s major initiatives in Chärchär was in education. It was clearly a higher priority than his old profession of medicine and medical care. The most important driving force for education in Chärchär was Wärqenäh, but coming a close second was Emmanuel Abraham. Government schools were opened not only in Asbä Täfäri, but also throughout the province. The province of Chärchär may have had more regional schools and more schools per head of population than anywhere in Ethiopia, except, of course for Addis Ababa. It also had an international teaching staff including Indians, African Americans as well as Ethiopians. Before Wärqenäh arrived in 1931 there was only one small Roman Catholic school in Asbä Täfäri. First he focused on founding a government school there before branching out to the rest of the province. Wärqenäh began to build his school in the capital of his province in March 1931 and later added teachers living quarters by converting old male military barracks. He initially tried out some teachers from India, but this did not work out and then in November 1931 he hired Emmanuel Abraham, one of his former students at Täfäri Mäkonnen School to set the school on a sounder foundation26. The school opened for classes in December 1931 with four classrooms all built adjacent to Wärqenäh’s residence (just as had been the case with the first Ethiopian school for slaves in Addis Ababa). Later he added seven more rooms and an extra building for students who were boarders27 and brought in Pawlos Badamé, another of his former students from Täfäri Mäkonnen School as a teacher,.28 During the first year the number of students grew to 18 with two teachers. A site for a permanent school was selected in July 1931 and stones were gathered for building, later   See Emmanuel, Reminiscences, pp. 25-28, for a very good account of the history of the school and also an interview with him held in Addis Ababa, October 2, 2001. 27   Emmanuel, Reminiscences, pp.25-27. 28   Betul, p. 161. 26

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 temporary buildings were added on the permanent site and finally, in October, 1934 the foundations of the new school were finally laid. The school in the capital was more firmly established in 1932 as was indicated by Wärqenäh’s diary entry for July 23, 1932: Holiday being H.M.’s [His Majesty, the Emperor’s] birthday…The school boys gave a small performance in Amharic and sang a good many songs and made speeches and gave a resume of the History of Ethiopia and altogether did remarkably well for their 7 months training. I made a couple of speeches….All the officers, clerks and principal town people attended, also soldiers. Kifle gave away about 30/- in prizes to the boys. I also gave…Others also gave, all amounting about $450/-

By this time Amharic, Ge’ez, English, maths and drama were being taught and since Chärchär was a largely Oromo speaking province, it must have been most helpful that Emmanuel Abraham was a native Oromo speaker. Wärqenäh brought books from England to teach English, but in the first year Emmanuel only had a blackboard to aid him. Wärqenäh also brought in two African Americans to teach, Mr. Morris, who taught vocational education, and Mr Aron Jackson who taught sports and scouting.29 Because of the lack of teachers he also had to turn to the older students to help with the younger ones. However, as each year passed Wärqenäh was able to raise more and more private monies from the rich of the local community to aid in the advancement of education. On one occasion $2,000 was raised. By 1933 and 1934 schools had been opened in Hirna, Badema and Galamso and Emmanuel went to inspect them to make sure that high standards were being maintained and adequate facilities were available. By 1934 seven new teachers were hired for the province and a new school was opened by missionaries in the sub province of Adal. Demand continued to grow so in 1934 ‘To help the young men engaged in business and anxious to learn more, I opened a night school, which was well attended’.30 By the time that Wärqenäh left the province there were classes from the first to the sixth grade. Besides academic courses, vocational needs were addressed with classes in carpentry, shoe making and weaving. Emmanuel Abraham summed up the impact of the Chärchär schools: There is one thing I should mention here, the recollection of which still gives me immense pleasure. Although several of the young men in my class had to sacrifice their lives for the love of country during the Italian war of aggression, many survived the fascist massacres and were able, at a time when shortage of personnel was most acute after the liberation [in 1941], to hold in course of time positions of responsibility in the government as ambassadors, generals, colonels, secretaries, section heads, teachers and in other capacities. Many of the pupils in the other forms also gave appreciable service in clerical, accounting, administrative and teaching positions in Harar Province, especially in Chercher District.31   Ibid, p. 166.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 119. 31   Emmanuel Abraham, Reminiscences, p. 28. 29 30

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 Wärqenäh, too, later in the 1940s was greatly pleased to have former Chärchär students come to visit him in his home in Addis Ababa. It was a shame that after Wärqenäh laid such a firm foundation for education in Chärchär that the Italian invasion and occupation would destroy so much that he had created with such great toil and effort. Hospitals and Dispensaries – Less was done by Wärqenäh in the area of hospitals and dispensaries than he had been able to do in terms of the building of roads and the expansion of education. Asbä Täfäri already had a hospital building, but many improvements needed to be made. As he said in his diary, ‘Inspected the Hospital. Medicines nearly finished, patients outdoors, daily average about 10. The building supposed to have been built for a hotel! Badly constructed.’32 He brought in new doctors and by 1932, had expanded the hospital but also had trouble with turnover among the Indian doctors. In 1934 further major improvements were made and in that same year the emperor inspected the hospital and approved of the progress. Wärqenäh was also instrumental in improving medical care in other parts of Chärchär province including Méso and Badessa where dispensaries were established by the end of his tenure as governor. A dispensary was also opened in the Adal country in 1934 by missionaries. It is not wholly clear how much medical care improved in his province during his tenure, because there is little evidence of what existed before he came. However as with education, medicine was very close to his heart and it is probable that he significantly improved medical care in Chärchär and a good deal of evidence that he took an immense amount of care in assuring that capable doctors and medical personnel were appointed. Wärqenäh was probably responsible for one of the best records for any province in Ethiopia at that time, in terms of expanding medical care within one province. Trade & Agriculture Wärqenäh also worked very hard to expand trade and improve agriculture in Chärchär. As we have seen one of his major priorities was to improve the roads in his province and the markets in various regional centers to increase trade and especially the trade in coffee. The emperor also permitted Chärchär to export grain, livestock and salt, all secondary to coffee but increasingly important products. A particular concern of his was agriculture, improving existing crops and adding new ones. Wärqenäh as we have seen from his love of his Aqaqi farm, Lämläm, was particularly devoted to plants, be they flowers, fruiting trees or shrubs, or cash crops. In Chärchär he had much wider scope to pursue these interests. He brought in several agricultural experts to improve agriculture in his province. One was a Greek ‘to make a survey and report on the possibilities and methods of agriculture’ and also his friend Professor Ismail ‘brought me quite a lot of seeds and plants from India to my great satisfaction’.33 In 1931 he planted fruit trees (including lemons and mangos), sugar cane and cotton, with   WD, 31.1.1931.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 102 and 119. There are also many references in diary.

32 33

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 seeds from Egypt, the West Indies, India and Mauritius. Many of these plants would later spread throughout Ethiopia. He also introduced sisal to the Danakil depression. Perhaps, his own words express this better: I was pleased to see my experiments in growing a variety of cotton, sugar-cane, oil­seeds, pepper, Areca nut, as well as different kinds of fruit and vegetables was successful, but unfortunately the cinchona seeds did not take. On my presenting some of the sugar and sweets which I had made to the Emperor, he gave me a concession to manufacture sugar on a large scale.34

In 1934 he brought in further cotton seeds from Egypt and the West Indies. It would be fascinating to know whether his experiments in cotton and sugar, especially at Wanji35, helped to establish the foundations for the later massive expansion of these two commodities in the Awash River basin after World War II.

Slavery & the slave trade in Chärchär As we have seen Wärqenäh had long campaigned against slavery and the slave trade in Ethiopia and now that he was governor of Chärchär he had the power and ability to implement some of his most cherished ideals. The evidence points towards his being highly successful at attacking both problems in Chärchär. There were a number of key factors that allowed him to do so. First was the support of the Emperor Haylä Sellasé and the laws against slavery and the slave trade passed in 1923/1924 and in 1931.36 These formed the legal basis for pursuing and convicting slave traders and trying to free or ameliorate the condition of slaves in his province. Structurally other factors also played a significant role, the growth of coffee as a major cash crop export and the closely related slow growth of a money economy in Ethiopia, especially in model provinces, like Chärchär, had a major impact undermining slavery as an institution. Chärchär had been exporting coffee for a very long time and the process towards monetization had also preceded his tenure as governor. During Fitawrari Täklä Hawaryat’s time as governor, some government officials were paid and lived on their salaries, and so, unlike other provinces in Ethiopia, did not have to depend on raiding and gathering their subjects for sale as slaves at the end service, in order to support and enrich themselves. All these factors contributed towards making Chärchär a province which had a favorable foundation for eradicating the slave trade and stamping out slavery. So, soon after Wärqenäh arrived in Chärchär he presided over slaves’ cases appealed from judges of the slave courts in his province.37 In one case in particular he overruled a slave judge with whom he disagreed, and gave a slave   Ibid, p. 111.   Betul, p. 149. 36   See especially the articles by Suzanne Myers, ‘Britain and the Suppression of Slavery in Ethiopia’, Slavery & Abolition, Vol. 18, #3(1977), Pp. 257-288 and Jon Edwards, ‘Slavery, the Slave Trade and Economic Reorganization of Ethiopia, 1916-1935’, African Economic History, #11 (1982), pp. 3-14. 37   WD, 9.6.1931, 23.6.1931 & 17.6.1933. 34 35

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 his certificate of emancipation.38 In another case he gave a slave girl her liberty, after she had been in custody for three months39. In another case he freed two slave boys and then placed them in his new school in the capital of the province. Finding jobs for former slaves was something Wärqenäh clearly thought was of great importance because he also provided jobs in Asbä Täfäri for two other former slaves who had trained as carpenters in his school for freed slaves in Addis Ababa. As he points out in his autobiography: There being a large number of slaves cases to deal with…I had to appoint a special judge to go through the preliminary examinations and then to send them on to me. During my tenure in office, hundreds of slaves were emancipated.40

Emperor Haylä Sellasé’s slaves in Chärchär province also provide a fascinating insight via his diary into the fate of slaves in his province. Wrote to H.M. [His Majesty] about his slaves here whom he wants sent to Addis Ababa. Told him to think over the matter again as the old slaves about 50 of them who (most of them) belonged to his father and some of whom are born here are free now according to the rules.41

Within about a week the emperor, having changed his mind, wrote back to ask that the slaves not be sent: ‘This made me quite pleased and made the slaves extremely happy.’ Two months later during an interview with him the emperor ordered that: ‘The old slaves were to be given pension in money and made to work on the Government farm.’ The national institution of slavery in the form of the emperor’s personal slaves, some inherited from his father Ras Mäkonnen, were with one verbal order to a governor, transformed from slaves to moneyed pensioners, but now also required to work on the fields of one of his estates. This is a small but insightful vignette. Having looked at Wärqenäh’s personal initiative concerning slaves in his province, it is instructive to look at the role of the slave judges in Chärchär province who reported to him. Soon after taking over the province, he tried to reassign or ask the emperor for new judges. At first he was not successful. The emperor did, however, send out officials from the slave bureau in Addis Ababa to inspect the progress he had made in Chärchär. Wärqenäh, was nonetheless determined to make a more substantial impact on slavery and the slave trade in Chärchär and so had the previous judge replaced with one of his own loyal appointees, Keflé. He was a more talented and energetic administrator who actively hunted down slave traders. So in late 1932 he sent Lej Keflé with some soldiers towards the border with the neighboring province of Balé, where he captured some slave raiders and slaves and sent them to Wärqenäh to be examined and tried. Later Lej Keflé asked for ten more soldiers to continue searching for slaves and slave traders. Thus, the number of sessions where Wärqenäh reviewed at least several slave cases at one time (according to his diary) grew rapidly from 1931 to 1935 (1931 ‘ 11 sessions; 1932 ‘ 14 sessions; 1933 ‘ 32 sessions and 1935     40   41   38 39

WD, 30.4.1932. WD, 30.4.1932. Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 106. WD, 4.6.1932.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 ‘ 55 sessions). He generally reviewed slave cases once a week, but from 1932 to 1935 often did so several times a week. Overall, he was probably responsible for freeing more slaves and educating them, than any other governor in this period.42 By the time of his departure in 1935 it was clear that Wärqenäh’s active antislavery policies were effective and that on the eve of the Italian invasion in 1935 slavery and the slave trade were under control, despite Italian propaganda to the contrary. De Halpert, the emperor’s advisor on slavery, cites Chärchär as one of the three provinces in Ethiopia where the emperor’s policies against slavery and the slave trade were most effective.43 In many areas of Ethiopia, especially in the Southwest, anti-slavery successes grew to be less and less effective after the 1930 coronation, while Wärqenäh was probably the most active and effective governor against slavery and the slave trade in the whole of Ethiopia during this period. Wärqenäh’s policy and actions seem to quite clearly indicate that this was one of the most important areas that contributed towards Wärqenäh’s making Chärchär one of the most, and perhaps the most, successful model province in Ethiopia. Besides slavery and the slave trade, another major success was the expansion of his provincial administration into the neighboring Awash river basin.

The expansion of Chärchär’s administration into the Lowlands Wärqenäh was a driving force behind the expansion of Chärchär’s administration into its adjoining lowlands in the Awash valley, on either side of the Addis Ababa to Jibuti railway. Only the support of the emperor would allow Wärqenäh and Chärchär to take over the administration of this large area of land. The competition over the lowlands was between Chärchär and the rulers in Harar and Ankobär (which had administration over some of the lowland Karrayyuu), with Harar being very much in the stronger position. The expansion would go through five distinct stages before the Italian invasion and the take-over led to a new bureaucracy and new administrative boundaries and structures. Ethiopia’s relationship with these lowlands, generally referred to as the land of the Adals or the Danakil, was a very long and troubled one. The Ethiopian elite, which surrounded the emperor, was largely composed of highland Amharic speakers who feared the lowland and its diseases. Control over the centuries had generally been maintained by periodic raids or zämächa which were launched to gather tribute. Furthermore, the lowlanders were virtually all Muslims and the religious divide was a formidable one. Wärqenäh’s position was that toleration and fairness should guide the policy of the central government towards these lowland minorities. This enlightened policy towards Muslims in particular may have been influenced by British policy in Burma towards their Muslim minorities as well as Wärqenäh’s own philosophical views.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 106.   De Halpert papers, Rhodes House Oxford, S, 1459(1), p. 49.

42 43

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 There were three major ethnic groups overlapping each other in the lowland areas of the Awash river basin which was eventually added to Wärqenäh’s province by the emperor. The largest were the Oromo and the Afar with the Somali tribes being a good deal smaller. The two major subgroups of the Oromo were the Oborra and the Ittuu. The Ittuu (one of whose subgroups were the Karrayyuu) were the largest group in the lowlands and were mostly pastoralist cattle keepers. The Afar, often called Danakil or Adal by the highland Amhara, should more properly be referred to as Dankali. They were divided into two major and unstable tribal coalitions called the Adohyammara and the Asahyammara. The most numerous Somali group, with whom Wärqenäh dealt, were the Hawiye. Overall they were the largest of all the Somali clans, but were outnumbered in Jibuti and its surroundings by the Issa. Wärqenäh’s unenviable task was to reconcile not only these three large ethnic groups, but also the competing factions and clans within each of them. All had been raided by highland Amhara for a very long time. In his autobiography Wärqenäh gives an overall description of the new addition to his province. In compliance with the Emperor’s order, I went to Addis Ababa on 12 January 1933, when I was favoured with an increase in my salary and by the addition of the Adal country to my provincial administration. The Adal country was to the north east of Chercher and Harrar provinces and is inhabited by some wild and wandering tribes who were nominally Mohamedans [sic]. The Government had left them alone to carry on in their wild lives, except that once in a while, small expeditions were sent out there to collect taxes, in the shape of cattle, sheep and butter. The country was quite unsafe to travel in, except under the protection of an armed escort. The administration of this part of the country was quite an interesting undertaking for me, as I believed that with tact and kindness, it would not be impossible ot civilize and improve the wild tribes. This proved to be correct after a short time.44

During the first five stages this difficult historical relationship was much to the fore. From his appointment in 1930 until late 1932 Wärqenäh lobbied and agitated for expansion. The local ‘Adals’, especially those around the train station of Afdam found the Harar administration of Däjazmach Abba Shäwal ‘unsatisfactory’ and ‘not giving justice’45 and asked to be transferred to Wärqenäh’s jurisdiction. Furthermore, Wärqenäh gained much information about the lowlands from some of the new educated appointments to his administration. There were a large number of petitions against Abba Shäwal’s administration, including one which ‘asked to prevent [an] expedition going to their country’46 which was basically a cattle raid into the lowlands. Various Adal elders said they were prepared to get reconciled and end feuds, if they were transferred out of Abba Shäwal’s administration and into Wärqenäh’s province. Finally, in August 1932, the emperor’s position began to change and he said: ‘[I]t is proposed to put Adal country under Chärchär province when matter is settled with Abba Shawal’, Wärqenäh promptly began to write a report and letters   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 112.   WD, 29.3.1931 and 6.4.1931. 46   WD, 25.6.1931. 44 45

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 to the emperor about ‘Adal administration’.47 Thus began the second stage (from August, 1932 to February, 1933) when the final decision was made to hand over the lowlands to Chärchär’s administration. In January, 1933 ‘the administration of the Adal country’ was handed over to Wärqenäh,48 but it would take almost another month for obstruction from Harar to be cleared away at a fascinating meeting Wärqenäh held with the emperor. [W]ent to the Gibbi [palace] and saw H.M. [His Majesty, the emperor]. Talked about the dam [at Lake Tana] and then talked about other matters. As Abba Shawal refuses to hand over charge of Adal administration, told this to H.M., he immediately sent a wire to Dad Gabra Mariam and told him to see that change of Adal country was handed over to me at once.

After this direct and forceful intervention of the emperor, the imple­ mentation of Wärqenäh’s expansion of Chärchär’s administration into the lowlands progressed relatively smoothly. He was assisted in setting up his administration by two of his young and upcoming officers, Näggadras Keflé and Färrädä Altasab. First he received some of the local leaders, or balabbat, at his offices in Asbä Täfäri, recognized their authority and bestowed on them ‘official clothes’.49 Next he insisted on going ‘on tour’ to the lowlands, to Afdam where he was received almost like royalty. First is a selection from his diary and then, another from the newspaper Berhanenna Sälam, including a reported speech by an Adal elder. [H]eld a meeting of the Etus and Dankalis and Haweyas etc. Read my speech. Some of the elders of the Dabina and Waima tribes came forward and said they had settled their cases and differences with their opponents. Got them to swear that they will not hide bad characters, cases of theft and murder but will hand them up for judgement. An Etu elder (Ayajé) complained of thefts and murder against the Adals. His accusations turned out to be result of thefts committed by the Etus, a small boy of about 10 was produced by the Adals who had been castrated by an Etu a year or so ago. Ayajé was made to give a guarantee to produce the culprit… A prisoner of the tribe was produced who had been given up for trying to steal a camel and shooting a man while doing so. The young man confessed his crime and the elders present condemned him. The prisoner to be sent to Asaba Tafari…Gave bullocks to the Dankalis and Etus to eat…. Gave the Somalis a bullock to eat.50 [The Adal leader said] While your honor could have ordered us from Asbä Täfäri to come there, and you had had the power to capture and arrest the trouble maker[s], who disturb by imposing slavery, and while you could have attacked him by force, the fact that you instead have come all the way down here…so that our offspring could increase, your livelihood expands and we can live in peace. And as for the administration, the fact that our payment of tax is being made through receipt and the abandonment of the extra money we pay as presents has pleased us very much.51

  WD, 4.8.1932, 20.8.1932 & 20.9.1932.   WD, 14.1.1933 & 20.1.1933.   WD, 21.3.1933 & 26.3.1933. 50   WD, 11.7.1933. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 51   Berhanenna Sälam Newspaper, IX, #34 (1925 E.C.). 47 48 49

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 A few days later, an official tribal gathering or ‘majlis’ was held where eleven measures were put forward by Wärqenäh for the future administration of the lowlands. He suggested, for instance, four yearly meetings in the highlands or in the lowlands to discuss mutual concerns. He then asked that they give up the eating of chat, and that orphans be given to him to bring up. Furthermore Adal (or Dankali) women were not to require a future husband to prove he had killed before marriage would be considered. Finally, he offered rewards for learning Amharic or finding oil or other minerals. These steps sound very much like common and accepted British colonial policies and procedures, with which Wärqenäh was very familiar from his many years in Burma. About one year after his first tour he went on tour for a second time in 1934. This time he left the area of regular central government administration near the railways, and traveled about 200 kilometers into the lowlands where his assistants had built a road, set up telephone and telegraph service and founded a new administrative center. Here a school and dispensary were set up which were run by British Churchman’s Mission’s missionaries, including Douglas O’Hanlon, Stanley Matters and Colin MacCaine. He later obtained permission from the emperor to extract salt from this area. Throughout this period Wärqenäh’s major administrator in the Afar country was Färrädä Altasab. He met with Afar leaders, helped to settle disputes, built roads, introduced the British missionaries and helped them to set up a school and medical dispensary. Finally, he wrote a report to Wärqenäh and to the emperor in 1936 describing the development and progress of the administration of these important lowlands, today one of Ethiopia key agricultural centers. By this time the Afar were becoming more active in trade, selling cattle and buying imported goods. They also seem to have begun to pay some taxes. The fifth and final stage included the emperor’s addition of the Oromo Karrayyuu people to Wärqenäh’s provincial administration in May 1935. The Karrayyuu who were added were largely west of the Awash River. This occurred as Wärqenäh was leaving for England and just before the Italian invasion and there was really not enough time for it to be fully implemented. In conclusion, one might speculate that one of the reasons that the emperor strongly supported Wärqenäh’s major reforms in Chärchär, and especially his expansion into Adal country, was part of his overall strategy on the eve of the Italo-Ethiopian war to bring frontiers and borderlands, on all of Ethiopia’s borders, under better and more efficient administration in order to counteract foreign, and especially Italian, criticism. The major thrust of this policy, of course, was his expansion into the Ogaden. Perhaps Chärchär’s administration of its lowlands, bordering on French and British territory was part of this policy writ small. Wärqenäh’s reforms in Chärchär were brought to an end by a family crisis. His loss of trust in his wife Qätsälä and a messy divorce ensued. This would lead to his desire to get away from Ethiopia and start anew overseas in a new job and new locale.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935

Wärqenäh’s divorce from Qätsälä During the last year of his governorship of Chärchär, Wärqenäh divorced Qätsälä his wife of twenty-five years. No divorce is easy, but this seems to have been an especially bitter one and was still recalled seventy years later as a ‘disaster’.52 It had a very heavy impact on his family, but also on his career and his relations with the emperor and empress. It clearly was a major cause in the emperor’s appointment of him as ambassador to Britain. After his divorce, Wärqenäh never seems to have had the same confidence or access to the imperial couple and the divorce soured his relations with both his rulers, but perhaps especially with Empress Mänän. The rigidity of his gentleman’s moral code was clearly delineated during this crisis. Ethiopia’s traditional attitudes toward infidelity, especially by aristocratic women, were very different from the Victorian code under which Wärqenäh had grown up. Clearly there was a double standard, however. Women were not judged by the same rules as men, which was made manifest in Wärqenäh’s own life. However, before his divorce, his family experienced a series of joyous, high profile marriages. At the double marriage of two of his daughters in November 1933, Astér (Esther) and Elsabét (Elizabeth), he gave an important speech, which is found on page 253 below. Among other things it shows him to be have been a pioneer in Ethiopian history in his opposition to arranged marriages.53 Wärqenäh’s daughters married two progressive young Ethiopians: Astér to Fitawrari Emmañu Yemär (an assistant in the Finance Ministry, a member of Wärqenäh’s family and his close ally in the coming divorce) and Elsabét to Major Tädla Haylé Zälläqä, Ethiopia’s Consul in Eritrea. He was a promising Ethiopian intellectual who was destined to be killed in northern Ethiopia in the struggle against the Italian invasion. The next year Sara Wärqenäh married Lej Sayfu Mikaél. Sayfu had been in charge of one of the emperor’s estates in Chärchär and then in 1932 was appointed Director of the province (replacing Mäsfän), reporting directly to Wärqenäh. He was promoted to governor of Chärchär when Wärqenäh left for England. However, after the Italians conquered Ethiopia he became a collaborator and quickly submitted. None of the three marriages would survive the Italo-Ethiopian war. Before his own marriage Wärqenäh by his own account in his diary had a long series of affairs which had already resulted in two children out of wedlock, Ma Me bore him his eldest son Engäda and Ethel Fabricius who gave him his second son, Theodore in 1908. His diary documents at least two other affairs, but no further children. Wärqenäh and Qätsälä were married in 1910 and they were clearly very happy together. There were some rough spots, but there are very few marriages without them. It was a patriarchal household. Wärqenäh, thirty-five years   Interview with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, October 15, 2001.   Bernhanenna Sälam newspaper, November 21, 1926. See also, Betul, pp. 179-180.

52 53

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 older than Qätsälä, made virtually all the important and final decisions. About five months after their marriage, he became ‘worried over her behavior’ and confronted her about an ‘old sweetheart’, one of her father’s clerks. A few days later there was a reconciliation and they decided to strengthen their marriage vows54. Thus in January 1912 they took communion together which ‘according to Abyssinian law makes our marriage most binding.’55 At times Wärqenäh had a short temper, especially when Qätsälä didn’t have his lunch ready on time or hadn’t kept the home accounts properly. He punished her harshly as a result. On another occasion if she did not do as she was told, especially in preparing food as he wished it, he would go and eat in the hotel in the center of town. Since the food was so terrible there this tactic rarely lasted for very long. Overall Wärqenäh was a jealous husband and constantly concerned about his wife’s fidelity. However, his devotion to her, despite all this, seems to have been prodigious. He personally nursed her through many, many illnesses. When at all possible he was there to deliver their children and they had, after all, thirteen children together. Until their divorce they were a remarkably effective team and his political clout within the Ethiopian context, after their divorce, was very much reduced. Their separation for almost two years from June, 1913 to April, 1915, must have put a significant strain on their marriage, but living together in Burma for four years (1915-1919), may have helped to strengthen the bonds between them. Living together in a foreign land generally either strengthens a marriage or seriously weakens it. Qätsälä probably gained a far greater appreciation of what Wärqenäh’s life had been like, learned much about the way the British Empire worked and increased her knowledge of English. Yet there are relatively few references to Qätsälä in Wärqenäh’s diary during their four years together in Burma (1915-1919). Furthermore, she accepted both of Wärqenäh’s illegitimate children into her household in Burma, without demure. Overall she adapted remarkably well to what must have been to her a most exotic and strange land, not to mention the birth of three of her children (Astér, Elsabét and Sara), without her family or friends near. Their marriage survived some very serious strains and crises. Perhaps the worst strain to their marriage came in 1919, when Qätsälä, upon her return to Ethiopia and Addis Ababa, learned that both her parents had died during the great flu epidemic of that year. That the couple survived this absolutely crushing blow was truly remarkable. However, they did survive and from all that one can judge the years from 1910 to the early 1930 they were very content together.

Divorce: growing suspicions (1930–1934) From 1930 to 1934, Wärqenäh’s suspicions about Qätsälä’s actions grew and grew, but don’t seem to have focused on any one individual. His separation   WD, 25.2.1911 & 27.2.1911.   WD, 2.1.1912.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 from her while he was governor of Chärchär may have exacerbated the situation, moreover the diary indicates several instances when their relations became strained. Eventually, shame and disgrace on quite a large scale were the result. Wärqenäh left to take up his new appointment in Chärchär in January 1930. Later, in August 1934, he said after going through his diary, ‘I notice that they [Qätsälä and Täfäsä56] began to get familiar during my absence in England in the middle of December 1931 when I went to bring the girls home.’57 Furthermore, during the Divorce Commission he noted that: ‘Some of Qatsala’s letters to me were read, to show them that I had been advising her since 1923(1930) to behave herself.’58 The earliest indication of this in the diary came in May, 1931, ‘Told her I’ll try and think of a convenient way to give her liberty so that she might do as she liked.’59 Later in 1932 his suspicions about her seemed to grow slowly. In February, 1932 he notes: ‘There is a curious fact that Tafasa and Qatsala are extremely friendly and the funny position is that she addresses him as ‘thou’ while he addresses her as ‘You’.’60 Another clearer indication of his feelings towards his wife were written down in his diary a month later: ‘Qatsala spoke to me again about my being vexed with her. Gave her no reply as she well knows the reasons. She cried.’61 Wärqenäh again reveals some suspicion of Täfäsä in May: This morning at about 8.30 there was telephone inquiry from Fit Tafassa’s house from Qatsala who was said to be there, asking me when I was going to Hirna. The message was brought to me by Tasama while I was in the latrine. I told him to say I was waiting for the new Director and to inquire why the inquiry was being made. The answer was just for nothing particular!62

Yet some months later Täfäsä acted as godfather at the baptism of Wärqenäh’s son. Then for more than a year nothing of note happened and Täfäsä seems to have been on friendly relations with Wärqenäh and yet, at times, Wärqenäh was upset with Qätsälä. ‘Had an unpleasant discussion with Qatsala regarding her conduct and my dissatisfaction about it. She cried over it and said that there was no reason for me to be dissatisfied.’63 During 1934 Wärqenäh’s concerns about Qätsälä actions escalated. In April ‘Had serious talk with Qatsala regarding the waste of money and thereby incurring heavy liabilities due solely to her extravagance and carelessness. It is   Täfäsä Habtä Mikaél (1900-1963/4) was a grandson of Menilek’s famous general Däjazmach Gärmamé. He was chief of police for the railway and then in 1927 made Näggadras of Goré. From the early 1930s he was involved with the Wälläga gold concession for the emperor and Mänän. When Wärqenäh was appointed to rule Chärchär he took over the administration of the building of the Jimma road. In 1931 he was appointed Acting Minister of Public Works and then Director of the State Bank. Thus he was a key member of the emperor’s administration. 57   WD, 11.8.1934. 58   WD, 13.3.1934. 59   WD, 31.5.1931. 60   WD, 7.2.1932. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 61   WD, 16.3.1932. 62   WD, 7.5.1932. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 63   WD, 10.9.1933. 56

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 so sad, what a failure she has been.’64 However, balancing these negatives was the fact that Täfäsä acted on behalf of the Wärqenäh’s daughter Sara when she was married to Sayfu Mikaél and there was a dispute over the marriage contract. A significant turning point in their relationship occurred in August of 1934, when Wärqenäh’s suspicions about Qätsälä and Täfäsä coalesced after Wärqenäh had a conversation with his son Téwodros. [Rest of entry marked heavily in margin in pencil]...In the afternoon while writing the important letter to Qatsala found out casually from Theo [Téwodros] that he had seen her in a compromising condition (in her bedroom with the man’s arms round her), also that almost all the servants had seen her from time to time while being kissed and while alone in her bedroom with him.65

It is important to note that Wärqenäh relied so strongly on Téwodros’s word and evidence, over Qätsälä’s, when he was also so dissatisfied with him as a son. From this point on, a divorce seems to have become more and more likely, if not inevitable. After his conversation with Téwodros, Wärqenäh began to systematically go through his diary and to collect evidence against his wife, increasingly splitting his family and household into two bitter factions. Parallel to the threat of divorce was the impact of the worldwide depression. The Great Depression exacerbated problems which had been deepening in the family finances, as we have seen elsewhere. Initially, Wärqenäh focused on a letter he sent to Qätsälä the day after his conversation with Téwodros, ‘asking her to swear if she is innocent as she says she is’. He went on to tell her that ‘she was not to come’ to Chärchär until she signed the oath he had sent her.66 Téwodros and Emmañu were, increasingly, his major allies and informants in gathering evidence against Qätsälä. In fact Emmañu often appears to have been strongly in favor of the divorce from the beginning for personal and family reasons. Wrote…Qatsala…Told her there was no use her trying to befool me by trying to argue and flatter me uselessly... Gave Theo [Téwodros] a note appointing him and Balambaras Ammanyu my agents and ‘Faj’ [legal representative] in connection with Qatsala and T’s [Täfäsä’s] case in case of need. He hopes to get more evidence and to find out the truth of the matter… Wrote a draft in reply to Qatsala’s letter telling her that … by her refusal to swear to her innocence I feel concerned that she must be guilty. This being the case let God judge her for ruining her own name and that of the family.67

Two days later Emmañu was urging Wärqenäh to write to the emperor about Qätsälä, he demurred saying he would wait until he had ‘absolute proof ’.68 By the next month Wärqenäh was thinking seriously of liquidating most of his   See WD, 2.4.1934 & 6.4.1934.   WD, 10.8.1934. 66   WD, 11.8.1934, 16.8.1934 & 25.8.1934. 67   WD, 5.9.1934 (the first part of the quote) & 8.9.1934 (the second part of the quote). Wärqenäh’s underlining. 68   See WD, 9.9.1934 & 10.9.1934. 64 65

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 properties to pay off his debts; his divorce and the Great Depression were becoming more and more intertwined. Meanwhile, he dismissed Qätsälä’s assertion that she was ‘going mad with grief ’.69 By December, since she refused to sign the oath he prescribed, he wrote: At the end of my letter just put in a note telling her not to write about reconciliation etc as that question is settled so she should only write about family affairs [and] not bother me about our trouble which I hope will soon be settled by our definite and complete separation soon.70

The end of 1934 and beginning of 1935 marked another turning point. Wärqenäh seemed to have made up his mind by then that the divorce appeared inevitable -- ‘the question is settled’ and reconciliation most unlikely. In January he terminated their joint bank account in the Bank of Ethiopia and on the same day he sought out the emperor in the palace, broached the subject of the divorce with him personally for the first time and showed him some of the evidence he had gathered. The emperor ‘said he had heard a lot about their [Qätsälä and Täfäsä] doings but said that Qatsala had sworn to him that she was innocent. He said he will think over the matter and speak to me about it when we next meet.’71 Three days later he met with the emperor: Saw H.M. [His Majesty] in the house which was built for the Duke of Abruzzi. He suggested my engaging a good advocate to prosecute for me before the commission which he would appoint to go into the case (Qatsala’s) if I decided to prosecute and not to let the matter drop. Told him I did not want to drop the matter but that I did not want to prosecute before a Commission as it will take an unconscionably long time and what was worse there was very little hope of a straight judgement being given by the commission and further that I did not want to put up the children as witnesses against their mother in front of a commission and asked H.M. to go into the case himself. He said he will think over it and let me know tomorrow after midday after the chilot.72

Wärqenäh definitely did not ‘let the matter drop’. He pursued it vigorously for the next six months, would force his children to testify before a commission and insisted on the emperor making a final judgment. A few weeks later, on only one of numerous occasions, the emperor tried to dissuade him from his path. Saw H.M [His Majesty], he gave me back my prosecution statement re Q. & T [Qätsälä and Täfäsä] and said I could either let the matter drop or prosecute before a commission members of which I could choose. Told him in my opinion it will be detrimental to the pubic interest if the culprits were not punished, but the question of choosing members of a commission which will go thru the case I told him I’ll think about it. He said there was no shame in the country about adultery and fornication and mentioned W. Zauditu’s (late Empress’s) case how she was caught in the act in the palace while committing adultery with Dad Oobé [ Däjazmach Webé] and nothing much was done.73       72   73   69 70 71

WD, 28.10.1934. WD, 13.12.1934. WD, 28.1.1935 WD, 31.1.1935. Wärqenäh’s underlining. WD, 13.2.1935. Wärqenäh’s underlining.

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 A few days later, when Wärqenäh met with the empress, she asked him to get ‘reconciled’ with Qätsälä; they discussed the matter for some time and then ‘the matter was dropped’.74 Throughout the divorce, it was clear that both the emperor and empress wanted the couple to reconcile and that Wärqenäh remained the major obstacle. The Divorce Commission met for the first time in late February 1934 after some negotiation over its makeup, while Ato Mäshäsha Zäwäldé was selected as Wärqenäh’s representative before the commission and Amdä Mäskäl was selected for Qätsälä. The commission took two months to come to the first of two judgements. All three would appear before the commission during its proceedings (Wärqenäh, Qätsälä and Täfäsä), and the diary indicates that both Wärqenäh and Qätsälä appealed personally to the emperor, while giving a detailed description of its progress. Predictably, Wärqenäh grew frustrated at the commission’s slow and deliberate speed, commenting at one point, ‘Commission did not sit today. Lazy loons.’75 On April 7th, 1935 the commission delivered its first judgement (later revised). It was very much in Wärqenäh’s favor. ‘Qatsala is to suffer 6 months confinement in Wäyzäro Abbonäsh’s house’, secondly, she was ‘to relinquish all claims to our property… There was deal of crying and a lot of talking by her.’76 So, by this judgement she had to give up to Wärqenäh much land and property they had held in common. Qätsälä had to sign an oath that ‘she has no more claim on my property except land given her by her father.’77 Some household goods, it seems were divided through agreement. Later in the month Qätsälä and Täfäsä appealed the case to the emperor but in the following month the emperor sent the case to the ‘chief priests for their judgement!’ assuring Wärqenäh that ‘he had ordered Nabrid Aragawi to finish it quickly.’78 The judgment of the second commission was read in mid-May. Qätsälä’s sentence was significantly changed: [I]n the case of Q. [Qätsälä] the second Commission while upholding the sentence of 6 months confinement, changed the portion about her losing all share in my property to her taking one half my property out of which she was to pay me back one half as damages or rather as repayment of expenses incurred by Q.[Qätsälä] in feeding and entertaining Tafasa! At the end of the reading of the judgement I read out my speech in connection with the subject and told the Commission that I was going to refer their judgment to H.M. for final orders.79

The judgment of the first commission was upheld as far as it concerned Fitawrari Täfäsä, condemning him to two years of imprisonment and a 2,400/  WD, 15.2.1935. The empress urged Wärqenäh on many occasions after this to be reconciled with his wife. He adamantly refused to do so. 75   WD, 26.3.1935. 76   WD, 7.4.1935. 77   WD, 10.4.1935. 78   See WD, 23.4 and 9.5.1935. The Neburä’ed was a title of the head of the Church of Zion in Aksum. 79   WD, 17.5.1935. Wärqenäh’s underlining. 74

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Governor of a model province, Chärchär 1930–1935 fine.80 On the next day both Qätsälä and Täfäsä had been put in chains, Qätsälä ‘on her hand while Tafasa has leg irons ...put on him.’81 What the emperor’s ‘final orders’ actually were has not been possible to ascertain. However, Wärqenäh left for England on June 22nd, hurried on by the emperor. Within a year the Italians had invaded Ethiopia, conquered Addis Ababa, confiscated all the lands of both Wärqenäh and Qätsälä ending any further appeals. Qätsälä remained in Ethiopia until she was sent to prison in Italy during the war. Wärqenäh continued his career in London as Ethiopian ambassador (1935-1940). In conclusion it should be noted that Wärqenäh tended over his long life to flee when faced with major personal problems. When his mistress Ma Me badgered him in 1907 about his son Engäda, he deserted her and left for Britain with Ethel Watts Fabricius. After deciding he could not marry Ethel, he first delivered their son Téwodros, and then left for Ethiopia. In both cases their infidelity had been a major cause for his desertion. Now, with Qätsälä and his departure for London, came the third case. Wärqenäh would never marry again, but it was not for lack of trying, as we shall see. For in 1935 he was appointed as Ethiopian Minister to Britain and his whole life was transformed by his move, and his new, demanding job.   Täfäsä largely disappears from the family’s affairs for over ten years. Interestingly he reappears briefly in Wärqenäh’s diary in 1945 when he kindly brings him home in his car when Wärqenäh is stranded at the palace. Wärqenäh then invites Täfäsä and his daughter (who had been brought up in Wärqenäh’s household) to dine. Later Wärqenäh keeps in touch with the daughter. 81   See WD, 17.5.1935 and 18.5.1935, 80

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10 Ethiopian Ambassador to the Court of St. James

(1935–1936)

The period of the Italian invasion of Ethiopia from 1935 to 1940, marks the climax of Wärqenäh’s career. From his arrival in London in July, 1935 he proved to be a hard working and talented ambassador for Ethiopia who not only transformed Ethiopia’s relationship with Great Britain but also mobilized a wider, global audience encompassing: the British Empire (especially India), Europe, Africa, the worldwide African Diaspora and the Middle East. He was at the center of Ethiopia’s efforts to counter Italian propaganda and played a significant role in the Ethiopian negotiations to raise money via loans to pay for the arms to resist Italy’s invasion. A strong case can be made for Wärqenäh’s being Ethiopia’s most effective ambassador before World War II. During his early tenure as ambassador he had close relations with Emperor Haylä Sellassé, but they became increasingly strained, as we shall see. A good deal of his time was focused on his family, on caring for his four youngest children ( brought with him from Ethiopia after his divorce) and also members of his extended adoptive family and the family of his eldest son’s mother. Throughout this period he had a greater impact globally than in any other period of his life. One of the most fascinating aspects of his ambassadorship was his ability not only to mobilize British public opinion in support of Ethiopia, but also to raise significant amounts of money to support her cause. He probably raised more money overseas for Ethiopia than any other single individual (except the emperor), in Europe, the United States, the West Indies, and Africa. Predictably money would prove to be the major reason he fell out of favor with the emperor.

The Ethiopian background to Wärqenäh’s appointment to London in 1935 As we have seen in earlier chapters Wärqenäh had significant previous experience as a diplomat and in representing Ethiopia’s interests overseas. As the world crisis worsened in 1934 and 1935, a period that many historians see as a prelude to World War II, Wärqenäh kept himself carefully informed of the regional and 204

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936

10.1 Wärqenäh in uniform in his London legation study, c.1936. The two large portraits above the mantel are of Emperor Haylä Sellasé and Empress Mänän of Ethiopia. 205

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 international situation. He also heard about the confrontation between Italy and Ethiopia at Wal Wal while governor in Asbä Täfäri through international and private sources of information (including one of his protégés).1 During this crisis Wärqenäh was appointed to represent Ethiopia in London and before he left Ethiopia the emperor used him as an intermediary with the British: ‘[The emperor] asked me to go and see Barton [Sir Sidney Barton, the British ambassador in Ethiopia] and find out if we would not get a loan from the British government to buy war material.’ The next day he met with Sir Sidney Barton, a good friend but found, ‘I could not make any head way with him about loan’, but also discussed ‘about giving us a port [at Zayla] and said that he was told to tell me [from Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald] that a good deal has been done and is being done in connection with my suggestion [about Zayla].’2 Furthermore, Wärqenäh had over the years developed good working relationships with the British and some foreign press, including most London Times correspondents in Ethiopia and with Kyriakos Mikhail, ‘press correspondent for Egypt in London’.3 Wärqenäh’s appointment as Ethiopian ambassador to London, was discussed with the emperor in February, and became a reality in March 1935 (although he did not leave for London until June). He made the original suggestion, asking the emperor to ‘give me leave to go on travel in foreign parts so as to get over the grief ’ of his divorce. A few days later the emperor ‘asked if I would go to London and Geneva on political business. Told him I was ready to go where ever he wanted me to go on country’s business.’4 On March 7th he ordered Wärqenäh to go to London and gave him the ministerial uniform of a Däjazmach, the most senior Ethiopian title he would ever bear. Later, consideration was even given to his being accredited to the USA as well. His departure was delayed by his long drawn out divorce proceedings, but he finally left Addis Ababa for London on June 22, 1935. From March to June he was brought up to speed on the overall diplomatic situation by the emperor, the foreign minister, Heruy, and by various foreign diplomatic representatives in Addis Ababa. As was his wont, he gave the emperor his overall assessment of the situation: [In a letter] I have pointed out in brief some of our faults and failings and told H.M. [His Majesty, the emperor] that unless real honest attempt is made to establish schools all over the country and our conduct improves also our administration I have very little hope of success in getting England interested in us and securing a loan and a port. I have also told him that in my opinion it will be better for me to put Dr. instead of Azaz in front of my name on my visiting card because the latter is only a title for the steward of the gibbi.5   Wärqenäh diary in the family’s possession, 5.12.1934, 16.12.1934 & 20.12.1934. [Henceforth, WD]   See WD, 28-29.1.1935.   WD, 11.2.1935. He also knew a long series of Times correspondents in Addis Ababa. 4   WD, 14 & 17.2.1935. 5   WD, 2.4.1935. Qätsälä and probably also Wärqenäh, according to one of their servants, Mamo Habtä Wäld, never felt that Wärqenäh had been given a sufficiently prestigious title by the emperor, ‘I remember as a child Qätsälä saying that ‘While people like Heruy are named Blatta, Wärqenäh the educated doctor should be named Azaj…This is a kitchen title’.’ 1 2 3

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 The tension between the modern and the traditional is always fascinating in the Ethiopian context. Much of June was spent in the practical preparations for the years he would spend in England and organizing for his four young children to accompany him on the trip and the others he would leave behind. On June 21st he wished the emperor goodbye. Talked matter over with H.M. [His Majesty, the emperor] He was very affable and graciously kissed me on wishing me farewell. Then we went and said good-bye to the etege [the empress]...[Later Wärqenäh was given] the letter of congratulations for the Duke of Kent and a discourse to be delivered before the King.6

On June 22nd, 1935 Wärqenäh left Ethiopia for his new appointment; it would be almost seven years before he returned to Ethiopia. Accompanying him were four of his children, Yohannes, Samuél, Liya and Dawit, and also his nephew Abatä Boggalä and his secretary Emmanuel Abraham. In Paris he met briefly with Bäjirond Täklä Hawaryat who had previously been Ethiopia’s representative in both London and Paris. In general, his trip had been a restful one, but from the moment he arrived in London he was taken up in a great whirl of activity.

Global & diplomatic background to the 1935 crisis In order to understand Wärqenäh’s tenure as ambassador to the Court of St James, some background on Ethiopia’s position on the international diplomatic scene in 1935 is necessary. Most scholars see 1935 and the international crisis surrounding Italy’s invasion of Ethiopia in October 1935 as one of the major steps leading to the outbreak of World War II. Some see the conflict as Mussolini’s seeking revenge for the Italian defeat in 1896 at the Battle of Adwa. It is clear, however, that Menilek’s foreign policy after Adwa set the stage for the policies of his successors. As we have seen, the Tripartite Agreement (1906) between Britain, France and Italy, divided Ethiopia into three spheres of influence. World War I prevented these great powers from fully exploiting those spheres, Italy in particular was determined to build up her influence on the ground, but had to delay her initiatives until after the 1919 Peace of Versailles. In 1923 Ethiopia gained entrance into the League of Nations mostly with the support of France, and to a lesser extent by Italy. Britain was opposed to Ethiopian entrance on the grounds, basically, that she was insufficiently ‘civilized’. Ethiopia soon took advantage of her League of Nations membership when Italy and Britain signed an Accord in 1925. These accords in essence maintained the French sphere, but reduced the British sphere (largely focusing only on British interests in the Nile and Lake Tana) while expanding the Italian sphere by including Italy’s right to join its colonies of Eritrea and Somalia with a railway west of Addis Ababa. Most importantly Italy was given much more economic influence throughout Ethiopia and especially in the west of Ethiopia. Ethiopia was not consulted   WD, 21.6.1935.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 during the negotiations leading to the accords. The future emperor took clever advantage of her membership in the League of Nations to appeal the 1925-1926 Accord to the League and thus forced Britain and Italy to back off somewhat. Meanwhile Wärqenäh had been prominent internationally in 1927 while he was negotiating on Emperor Haylä Sellasé’s behalf in the USA to build a dam across the Blue Nile at Lake Tana. From 1935 to 1940 he would loom much larger on the international scene as Ethiopian Ambassador to Great Britain. As we saw in a previous chapter, in 1927 Wärqenäh was sent to the United States to find a US company that would undertake to finance and build the Tana dam. This ran into major British, Sudanese and Egyptian (and also Italian) opposition and would not be built until after World War II. Thus Ethiopian relations with Britain remained luke warm, even testy, after 1923, while France throughout the 1920s had been Ethiopia’s most reliable ally Improved Italian relations with Ethiopia reached a peak with the 1928 Treaty of Friendship between the two countries, raising Ethiopian hopes for an outlet to the sea via a free port at Assäb. There was a brief honeymoon in their relations before it became increasingly clear that Italy would never provide even a modicum of access, let alone free access to the Red Sea. In the late 1920s Italy developed a parallel and increasingly aggressive foreign policy towards Ethiopia. This was driven largely by Mussolini and his foreign office, rather than (at least initially) his men on the spot, Italian diplomats in Addis Ababa. Meanwhile, the emperor focused more and more on Zayla as a possible Ethiopian outlet to the sea through British Somaliland, using Wärqenäh as one of his intermediaries. After 1925 Italy ‘vacillated between two policies – friendly cooperation and calculated subversion’.7 The latter included an on and off policy often referred to as the ‘peripheral policy’ which largely entailed encouraging aristocrats in northern Ethiopia, who were alienated from the central government, to actively support the Italians, but also included trying to undermine Ethiopian support among Somalis in the eastern province of Harär. The Italian-Ethiopian Treaty of Friendship and Arbitration of 1928 leaned toward cooperation, but only briefly. It did, however, establish a mechanism for arbitration of disputes between the two countries. Italy did not really have a coherent policy towards Ethiopia from the late 1920s until about 1933. In 1932 & 1933 the peripheral policy was supported more systematically and increasingly included a more forward policy in the south with the Italians encroaching on Somali speaking minorities in the Ethiopian Ogaden.8 Symbolic of a more aggressive Italian policy towards Ethiopia was the removal in 1930 of the longtime Italian ambassador to Ethiopia, Guiliano Cora. Hereafter successive Italian ambassadors had short tenures and more and more were of a fascist, anti-Ethiopian bent. From 1930 to 1932 there was really no coherent Italian policy towards Ethiopia and British policy was really in stalemate so far as its major priority, the Tana dam and the Nile waters were concerned.   George W. Baer. The Coming of the Italian-Ethiopian War (Harvard University Press, 1967), p. 18. [Hence­ forth, Baer, Coming of the Italian-Ethiopian War]. 8   Ibid., pp. 18-24 and chapter 2. 7

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 In 1932 Italy purged most of the foreign office of pro-Ethiopian diplomats and four new consulates were opened in the North (Gondär, Adwa, Däsé and Däbrä Marqos) which were used more to acquire local intelligence of use for a future Italian invasion rather than for diplomatic or economic purposes. In 1933 veteran Italian general and minister of colonies, De Bono said that this ‘was the year in which we began to think in concrete terms of the measures to be taken in case of conflict with Ethiopia’. Mussolini asked him what he would need and De Bono crisply replied ‘money, chief…lots of money’. ‘Money will not be lacking’ retorted the Duce.9 By mid-year 1934 Mussolini had increasingly focused on Italy’s colonies in the Horn of Africa, Eritrea and Somalia. He was frustrated with Italy’s lack of progress in its foreign policy in Europe, as well as with the impact of the depression on Italy. He hoped a forward and adventurous policy in Ethiopia would shift the spotlight away from Italy’s problems in Europe and make him appear to be dynamic, rather than weak and vacillating. By the end of 1934 it was increasingly clear that the Duce was simply looking for a casus belli to go to war with Ethiopia. For some time his foreign office, but more particularly his colonial governors in the Horn of Africa and his consuls in Ethiopia, had been following his policy of subversion (or ‘peripheral policy’) of undermining the loyalty of Ethiopia’s governors along the Italian borders with bribes and other inducements. A minor skirmish between Italian and Ethiopian forces at the isolated waterholes of Wal Wal near where the Ethiopian, British and Italian borders intersected provided him with the excuse he was looking for to go to war with Ethiopia. The clash came in a military confrontation on 5 December 1934. With hind­ sight historians have no doubt whatsoever that the Italians were deep inside Ethiopian territory (about sixty miles deep) and had been for years. The reorganization and modernization of Ethiopia that deeply engaged the emperor, especially after his 1930 coronation, was finally reaching all the way to its furthest frontiers in the most eastern corner of his empire. Wärqnäh’s appointment to the model province of Chärchär in 1930, marked the focus on Harär province as a center of modernization, another sub-province, Jijjiga (the logistical center for the expedition to Wal Wal), was a second model province where one of his protégés, Mäsfän Qälämwärq, was made governor. Mussolini with his extrava­ gant demands for Ethiopian reparations magnified this skirmish into a major world crisis. From December 1934 until the October 1935 outbreak of war, almost ten months after Wal Wal, three questions engrossed a large number of policy makers worldwide and also ordinary Europeans. First, would Mussolini invade Ethiopia? Second, if he did invade, how would the League of Nations and the world react, and finally, might this lead to a war in Europe? The reality was that England and France dominated the League of Nations and wanted to use it to keep the balance of power in Europe and in their overseas empires. A challenge to the League was therefore a challenge to Britain and France. If Italy was deemed the   Anthony Mockler, Haile Selassie’s War (Oxford, 1984), pp. 41-42.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 aggressor in Ethiopia and defied the League, then force or persuasion would be needed to keep her in line. Their major fear was that the balance of power in Europe would be upset if Italy then allied herself with the growing power of Germany. The French were especially mesmerized by Germany’s growing threat and , they were moving more and more towards a private understanding with Italy in return for Italian support against Germany, thus giving Italy a free hand in Ethiopia. French public opinion seemed to be equally divided on the rights and wrongs of the dispute. In England, on the other hand, the vast majority of the public were strongly against Fascist Italy, led by the left politically, and the stalwart Sylvia Pankhurst in particular. She was part of a venerable Victorian tradition of agitation by upper middle-class British ladies going back to Florence Nightingale who were a thorn in the side of the British bureaucracy. Early in the conflict she allied herself closely with Wärqenäh. For Mussolini there was only minority support in Britain mainly from the radical right wing and some Catholic journalists, bureaucrats and members of parliament. Sylvia was a great organizer of committees and rallies and wrote a prodigious number of letters to newspapers and others of influence. She was especially deplored by British diplomats who tended on the whole to be remarkably friendly with Fascist Italy. The bottom line was that the British and French governments were so afraid of a German-Italian alliance that dumping their support for Ethiopia was not seriously questioned in their foreign offices by 1934-1935. A favorable balance of power was much more important than legal documents or even treaties supporting a small black country in the wilds of Africa. Being ‘politically correct’ was not a phenomenon of the 1930s and such racism was not frowned upon. Ethiopia in late 1935 or the spring of 1936 had little or no chance of overcoming Italy or preventing the take-over of Addis Ababa. She had no more realistic chance of defeating Italy than Iraq had of defeating the ‘shock and awe’ of the United States army in 1991 or 2003. Italian technology, especially her air superiority and her willingness to extensively use her large stocks of poison gas during her campaigns in Ethiopia, made it extremely unlikely that Ethiopia would be able to win on the conventional battle field. Many at the time, of course, felt otherwise, including veteran Ethiopian generals and Hakim Wärqenäh. Defeat on the battle field was inevitable, but guerilla warfare would prove to be Italy’s Achilles’ heel. Wärqenäh, along with many others on the British left (and in the early days Britain’s center politically), strongly believed that diplomacy would work to Ethiopia’s advantage. There was still a strong belief in the efficacy of international law, international treaties and the power of the League of Nations. Wärqenäh also believed that more arms shipments to Ethiopia could prevent Italian victories and the conquest of Addis Ababa. Since the Ethiopian treasury was largely depleted and Ethiopia’s wealth was virtually exhausted by1936, he focused on getting the vital loans necessary to import significant arms to Ethiopia and its armies. More on that later.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936

Global events of 1935–1940 When Wärqenäh arrived in London in July of 1935 the major focus of British and European politics was on the ‘Peace Ballot’ of June 27th. Its results were announced by Lord Cecil, one of Ethiopia’s staunchest supporters in the 1930s, and were distinctly embarrassing for the British political establishment, revealing a chasm between the British government of the time and the British people, especially on the morality of their foreign policy. The British Foreign Office and parliament were distinctly out of step with the wishes of the British people, but were able, basically, to act as they desired. The referendum on the League of Nations revealed massive majorities in support of the League and of possible sanctions which provided a big boost for Ethiopia and clearly showed that Britain, or at least the British people, more strongly supported Ethiopia than any other country in Europe or the Americas. Yet British policy still prohibited the export of arms to Ethiopia and declined to give her any kind of major loan. In July Ethiopia refused to become a protectorate as Italy wished and partly on Wärqenäh’s advice the emperor agreed to approve the Geneva conventions which provided the foundation for future Red Cross activities in Ethiopia. Wärqenäh continued to be part of active negotiations at this time to get international loans to allow for the purchase of arms and helped in the background on the three power negotiations between Italy, France and Britain to arrive at a compromise to prevent the outbreak of war between Ethiopia and Italy, especially those that included a possible Ethiopian outlet to the sea at Zayla in British Somaliland. By the beginning of September, an arbitration board held that neither side, Ethiopian or Italian, was to blame for the clash at Wal Wal the previous year. Overall, the Italians had successfully manipulated Britain, France and the League of Nations to delay any substantive action against them, before their invasion of Ethiopia. On October 3, 1935 the Italians invaded Ethiopia and most observers at the time expected the war to be long, lasting two or three years or more. There was no declaration of war by Italy, a practice that was to become more common during the Cold War after World War II. It took the League of Nations four days to declare Italy the aggressor and several more to vote for sanctions. As Wärqenäh pointed out in his autobiography: [T]he question of ‘sanctions’ against Italy came up before the League and fifty states sanctioned the application of economic sanctions against the aggressor state member [Italy]…Further the embargo on armaments was lifted from Ethiopia and was put on Italy. This was alright enough as routine procedure, but it had no deterrent effect on the aggressor while the lifting of [the] embargo now was of no help to Ethiopia, as she could not raise funds in a hurry for the purchase of armaments and the lack of a sea-port of her own, made it very difficult to import them. The sanctions were after all of no use in stopping aggression.10   Warqenah’s Autobiography in the family’s possession, pp. 135-137. [Henceforth, Wärqenäh Auto­ biography 10

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 The sanctions on imports and exports were not actually put into effect on Italy until November 18th, and even then key imports, like oil, gasoline, coal, cotton and steel, were not substantively included. Mussolini cleverly used the imposition of sanctions to rally the Italian nation around him against what he called foreign interference in its internal affairs. Still Mussolini worried that Italy’s economy was being affected and replaced General De Bono by General Badoglio as the high commissioner of Italian East Africa and overall military commander in order to accelerate the Italian conquest of Ethiopia. He also gave him a free hand to use chemical warfare against the Ethiopians as he saw fit. It was also during the months that followed that the Italians exploited the controversy over the use of ‘dum dum’ or soft nosed bullets to Ethiopia’s disadvantage, trying to obfuscate charges of the use of ‘poison gas’ or weapons of mass destruction. However, the major diplomatic initiative of December and late 1935 was the Hoare-Laval Plan which was yet another attempt by Britain and France to arrive at a compromise to end the Italo-Ethiopian conflict, as Wärqenäh said: This plan of ‘kindly arbitration’ between Ethiopia and Italy, although entitled [the] Hoare-Laval plan, was really the wily Laval scheme to secure Italy as a future ally of France against the dreaded enemy Germany, the British Foreign Secretary being just a weak supporter…The Hoare-Laval plan was strongly criticised [sic] by all the reasonable newspapers and absolutely condemned by the honest and justice loving British public...Of course, the Emperor, notwithstanding his being strongly advised to accept the plan, totally refused to accept it and it was said that Signor Mussolini had also refused to do so.11

Ethiopia in December 1935 and January 1936 carried out its most successful offensive against the Italians, but it stalled against the superior Italian forces and a general retreat resulted. At the same time the inept League of Nations still had not taken action on imposing oil sanctions on Italy and decided for delay by referring the matter to a ‘council of experts’. Ethiopia’s position was getting increasingly desperate as the spring wore on. In February the emperor requested a British Protectorate and then in March his ambassadors in Italy (Afä Wärq) and France (Wäldä Maryam) urged him to conduct peace talks. Ethiopia’s defeat at the Battle of Ashangi on March 31, 1935 marked the end of her conduct of conventional warfare, but the transfer to guerrilla warfare was slow and unsteady. After the emperor’s return to Addis Ababa he made the decision to leave Ethiopia on May 2nd and go to Geneva to put Ethiopia’s case to the League of Nations in person. On May 5th the Italians occupied Addis Ababa and four days later formally annexed it with Mussolini’s declaration of an empire in Italian East Africa. General Badoglio was appointed Viceroy of Ethiopia on May 9th and then was replaced by General Graziani as Marshall and overall military commander on May 22. Many said the war was over and Ethiopia conquered. However, the ‘Patriots’ resistance had begun and two thirds of Ethiopia was still under Ethiopian control. Most Europeans and many British wrongly thought that the conflict was over. In fact it had only just begun as a guerilla war.   Ibid., pp. 137-138.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936

10.2 Good times with the emperor. Wärqenäh with the Emperor Haylä Sellasé and his family. Left to right, Princess Tsehay, Prince Mäkonnen, Wärqenäh, the emperor and the ­emperor’s heir, Asfa Wäsän. In background on right Wäldä Giyorgis

On June 3rd, 1935 the emperor arrived in London and as the conflict entered a new phase, the role of Wärqenäh in Ethiopian diplomacy within Britain, Europe and the world significantly changed. In retrospect it appears that sometime after the emperor’s arrival the British began to follow a two track policy towards Ethiopia and the emperor. First was the public policy of appeasement of both Germany and Italy and ignoring Ethiopia, but then the British began to see a possible profit in keeping the emperor in exile in England. If Italy sided with Germany and declared war on Britain and her allies, then they would have an ace in the hole, the emperor, to use to mobilize Ethiopian resistance against the Italians in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa. On June 11 General Graziani replaced Badoglio as the Second Viceroy of Ethiopia and at the end of June the emperor gave his famous speech at the Assembly of the League of Nations, accusing Italy of using poison gas and illegal means of warfare, attacking the states who had allowed force to win over law and appealing to the small nations of the world and especially Europe who were about to be overwhelmed by the fascist powers. His appeals were ignored and within a week on July 4, 1936 the League lifted sanctions and refused to give Ethiopia a £10 million loan. When this was finalized on July 7th, Wärqenäh wrote despairingly in his diary ‘so the whole thing is finished’. The League’s ending of sanctions meant that the League was basically doomed And the beginning of the Spanish Civil War in late July was another major blow. Yet in Ethiopia the resistance grew stronger. 213

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 Internationally, Ethiopia remained accredited to the League of Nations while two of its three major diplomats (Wäldä Maryam in France and Afä Wärq in Italy) defected to the Italian side. Only Wärqenäh remained steadfast to the Ethiopian cause among her major diplomats, negotiating only very briefly with the Italians. The emperor’s negotiations with the Italians lasted much longer. Ethiopia’s international standing became more and more precarious as the ItaloGerman Agreement was signed on October 22, 1936. Germany was the first to give de jure recognition of the Italian empire on October 24 and the Axis was declared on November 1st. At the end of December Britain and France down graded their legations in Addis Ababa into consulates, another blow to Ethiopia’s international standing. The major military development in Ethiopia was the surrender of Ras Emeru to the Italians on December 21st ending conventional warfare. The nadir of Ethiopia’s fortunes was from 1937 to 1939. Britain grew closer to Italy and distanced herself from Ethiopia. On February 19 the attempted assassination of General Graziani led to a massacre of more than 10,000 Ethiopians in Addis Ababa. As we shall see, this had a major impact on Wärqenäh and his family. Later in December 1937 Italy left the League of Nations, softened its policy somewhat towards Ethiopians and appointed a new viceroy of Italian East Africa, the Duke D’Aosta. The British recognized Italian sovereignty over Ethiopia in April 1938 and Anthony Eden resigned. The official status of the Ethiopian legation in London was terminated but Wärqenäh continued to act as the major representative of Ethiopia in Britain after the emperor. In 1939 the Nazi Soviet Pact was signed and Germany invaded Poland. Then Britain finally declared war on Germany. Ethiopia’s position was transformed in 1940, when Italy declared war on Britain and France on June 10th. The emperor left England to go to the Sudan and organize the resistance in Ethiopia which left Wärqenäh free to leave Britain and try to go into retirement in India. Not until April 1942 would he be able to return to Ethiopia.

Wärqenäh’s specific role in global diplomacy Throughout the crisis it was clear that Ethiopia’s major hope for support against an increasingly bellicose Italy was Great Britain. Thus Wärqenäh’s appointment to the Court of St. James was vital to Emperor Haylä Sellasé’s foreign policy. London was central to mobilizing support for Ethiopia against Italy. France had been Ethiopia’s major champion in the struggle to enter the League of Nations in 1923, but now, fearful of the rising power of Germany and German-Italian cooperation, France was unwilling to risk alienating Italy. Great Britain was still recognized as the world’s pre-eminent power and the emperor still had hopes that she would support Ethiopia in her hour of need. In the summer of 1935 he turned to Wärqenäh to mobilize support in Britain and her empire for the continuation of Ethiopia’s existence and independence. Wärqenäh’s priorities were, first to stimulate support in Britain and its empire; second, to raise money 214

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 by donations and third to use these funds and loans to purchase arms and support humanitarian aid for Ethiopia. Wärqenäh had some success in all three of these priorities. He effectively mobilized widespread support through his personal connections and through a variety of media taking advantage of the fact that Ethiopia had more support in Britain than probably anywhere else in the world. He was Ethiopia’s major spokesman in Britain raising funds from individual donations. Initially, he made progress mainly in supporting humanitarian causes, like medical assistance for Ethiopia, and later for refugees. However, it was much more difficult to get loans and money to purchase arms. Wärqenäh spearheaded Ethiopian diplomacy in Great Britain from July 1935 when he took up his position, until the emperor arrived in Britain in June 1936. Initially he met with the British foreign minister, and then more regularly with middle level foreign office personnel. Later, after the appointment of Anthony Eden as minister without portfolio for League of Nations affairs, he met many times with him concerning Britain’s foreign relations with Ethiopia. After Emperor Haylä Sellasé arrived in London, the emperor took over control of the upper level meetings. Soon thereafter, Wärqenäh met with Sir Samuel Hoare. They had a ‘long conversation’ and ‘He ordered that Campbell and another officer in the F.O. [Foreign Office] should communicate with me and help me in every way’. Wärqenäh immediately brought up the whole difficult issue of permits for the sale and purchase of armaments, and not for the first time, delaying tactics were employed by the British. The position on arms was somewhat clarified later in the month: Called to the F.O… [Their] decision, ‘for the present’, is that transit of arms thro [through] British territory or protectorate is to be permitted in accordance with arms convention of 1930 [partially illegible] but permits for exportation of arms from this country will not be given neither to Italy nor to Ethiopia. France it is said is going to do the same. Spoke plainly to Sir L. [Lancelot Oliphant] on this subject and about other unjust dealings with Ethiopia.12

Italian & great power diplomacy having successfully thwarted Ethiopia on the issue of the arms trade to Ethiopia, Wärqenäh turned to the issue of loans, to obtain the money desperately needed to buy arms from private sources since they could not be purchased from governments belonging to the League of Nations. Italy of course could easily manufacture its own arms, while Ethiopia did not have the industrial capacity to do so. She could only purchase arms from private contractors. Thus his accusation that the British, French & USA were ‘unjust’ in their policy towards Ethiopia. The British government also said that British law was against British subjects being enlisted in the Ethiopian army for active service and that ‘About [a] loan for us [Ethiopia] he said the [the British government] did not take part in such matters and it was, esp [especially] difficult now as fear of war was imminent.’13   WD, 15.7.1935 & WD, 25.7.1935. For this and above see also WD, 18.7.35 for further delays.   WD, 2.8.1935. This was untrue since loans had been made to some of the new Eastern European countries after World War I. 12 13

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 At a later meeting with Campbell’s replacement as head of the foreign office Egyptian and Ethiopian department: [T]he man spoke to me about my speech which I made on the 3d. He especially mentioned my statement that the Italians needed emancipation far more than our slaves. He said that Mussolini had complained about it. He said that the statement altho [although] right could not be made by a Minister accredited to the court of St. James’s. He said it was against etiquette for a minister to make public speeches. Told him if it is so I am sorry, for otherwise I shall be doing nothing for my country, however if it is against diplomatic custom I won’t make any more speeches.14

Wärqenäh now increasingly turned to others to give speeches all over Britain on Ethiopia’s behalf. Only after Italy had invaded Ethiopia at the beginning of October, were sanctions lifted against Ethiopia by the League of Nations and by Great Britain. Wärqenäh was then designated, along with Emperor Haylä Sellasé as one of the individuals authorized to sign permits for importing arms into Ethiopia. However, since the Ethiopian government was very short of money, Britain’s refusal to extend credit was a major blow. [I] went to the F.O. [Foreign Office]… Had a heart to heart and frank conversation with him [Scrivener, a middle level Foreign Office official] and told him how the B.Govt [British government] had done us down by putting the embargo on us and now refusing to give us armaments on credit. Told him to write and refuse giving us the arms. Also told him that the F.O. had not replied to my inquiry if the Treasury had any objection to our being given a loan.15

The refusal of any government in the world to give Ethiopia credit to buy arms put the Ethiopians at a great disadvantage in their struggle with Italy. As we shall see later, Wärqenäh would go so far as to put up his own property as security for a loan. Only by using his gold and platinum mines in Western Ethiopia might he be able to raise something like sufficient capital to help Ethiopia to purchase a significant number of arms. Britain and the Foreign Office would basically do nothing to help. Curiously, as we shall see, only Nazi Germany gave Ethiopia credit, loans and arms. Even in his meetings with Anthony Eden, the new secretary of state for foreign affairs, who would for a generation or more of Ethiopians be seen as their major champion in Europe, nothing in real material terms was done for Ethiopia. Wärqenäh met with Eden numerous times, before the emperor’s arrival in London. The first meeting was pro forma, but in the second some substantive issues were discussed. Went to F.O. at 11 AM and saw Mr. Eden. Spoke to him about the embargo on public loan to us. He said it is prohibited to all but he said private loan might be arranged. I also spoke to him about arms and ammunition having been denied us on credit. Also told that if we got some aroplanes [sic] and some more arms and ammunition we would finish the war without any other Power being obliged to get implicated in it.16   WD, 5.9.1935. Underlining in the diary.   WD, 29.10.1935. 16   WD, 20.2.1936. 14 15

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 Again, it was clear that Eden did little to assist Ethiopia. In their next meeting Wärqenäh tried to persuade Eden to create a British-Ethiopian alliance, ‘as it will be beneficial to both sides’.17 This idea went nowhere. In their final meeting before the arrival of the emperor, Eden saw no objection to Wärqenäh’s idea of importing arms to western Ethiopia via the British territory of the Sudan, which would have been a significant coup for Ethiopia. However, the Sudan Government never allowed this to happen. Also brought up in many of his meetings with Eden was one of Wärqenäh’s pet projects, the education of the Ethiopian crown prince in Britain with the involvement of the British government and the British royal family. There was some hope of success on this front, but Italy’s defeat of Ethiopia ended that initiative. Besides the more high profile, and sometimes glamorous and headline grabbing duties of diplomacy, Wärqenäh also had to deal with its more cere­ monial aspects. These included his accreditation as ambassador: Went to Buckingham Palace at 3.30. Saw the King [,] presented my letter of credence… and presented the Chain of Solomon. The King was very affable and talked for about 20 minutes in friendly and familiar way. From his presence went straight and saw the Queen and presented to her the chain of Saba (Sheba). She was very pleasant and gracious also.18

During his first weeks and months as minister Wärqenäh went to the various embassies and legations, as well as to the offices of major British officials in London to leave his card, announcing his address and contact information. His duties were many such as attending the Afghani national day at their legation or watching the annual army review at Aldershot. 19 Wärqenäh was also adept at personally undertaking diplomatic initiatives. He worked with a Colonel Ryan who promised to persuade De Valera, the president of the executive council of Ireland, to deliver to the Pope an appeal Wärqenäh had written. Ryan hoped that De Valera would get the Pope to pass on the appeal to Mussolini. Wärqenäh had ‘written an appeal to the King of Italy asking him to prevent Mussolini from plunging his country and Abyssinia in an awful war’.20 However, nothing concrete ever seems to have come from this effort. Wärqenäh had tremendous energy and followed up on most every lead which he thought would help Ethiopia.

Arms & loans Wärqenäh’s most high profile and publicized initiative involved the possibility of a major loan to Ethiopia. Francis W. Rickett, Leo Jahuda Chertok and Rappaport were the major players in a possible oil concession to the USA.

    19   20   17 18

WD, 6.3.1936. WD, 25.7.1935. WD, 13.7.1935. WD, 20.8.1935. See also 21.8.1935, 22.8.1935 & 28.8.1935.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 On 31 August [1935]...the world was startled by the announcement from Addis Ababa that Haile Selassie had signed, on the day before, a petroleum concession that gave a seventy-five-year exclusive right of exploration and development in the eastern half of Ethiopia to an American firm.21

The men behind the concession were the emperor and Francis W. Rickett. It caused an international uproar, hitting the headlines of most international newspapers. In many ways it symbolically summarized the whole EthiopianItalian crisis. The Italians and French immediately drew the conclusion that it was a move by Britain and the USA to keep Ethiopia for themselves while excluding Italy. The British, to counteract this reaction truthfully denied any knowledge of Rickett’s transaction. In fact the concession was a clever diplomatic move by the emperor, first, to try to get the United States more deeply involved in the Ethiopian crisis, and second, to try to get desperately needed money. It was one of about six initiatives by Ethiopia to obtain loans to purchase arms. The United States quickly announced that it had not been consulted on the Rickett concession and was unwilling to extend protection and soon headlines and world interest focused elsewhere. At first the Rickett concession seemed to be yet another flash in the pan. However, Leo Chertok and others continued to pursue the idea of a concession in return for a major loan and Wärqenäh played a significant role in these negotiations. Slowly the focus shifted from an Ethiopia-wide petroleum concession to using Wärqenäh’s Wälläga gold concession as collateral. Wärqenäh first heard of the Rickett’s concession through the press on September 1st, 1935 and met Leo Chertok four days later: Chertok the Yankee is making a lot of fuss about his having been promised a concession on his lending us £200000/-. His pal Rapaport called. Told him to cable to Chartok [sic] to come with the money if he has got it and talk matters over here with me. 22

Later negotiations began in earnest with Chertok: Chartok [sic] and Rapaport turned up and we had a long conversation. The former says he can supply us with arms and ammunition and aroplanes [sic] against the loan of $A[American]1,000,000\-. He gave me a list of what he can supply. Told him to give me a full account tomarrow morning showing the prices of different articles and to supply Mauser rifles and ammunition instead of ‘Springfield’. Rapaport is going off to America tomarrow morning.23

Negotiations continued thick and furious for the rest of the month, but nothing was finalized through the beginning of 1936. Nothing of substance, in fact, ever came of this loan, but Chertok periodically revived his claims to the concession, although he had never fulfilled his part of the bargain with Wärqenäh in the time allotted in the original agreement in July 1935. However, Chertok went so far as to claim Wärqenäh’s concession in Wälläga as late as

  Baer, Coming of the Italian-Ethiopian War, pp. 295-296. See pp. 296-298 for following discussion as well.   WD, 4.9.1935. 23   WD, 20.9.1935. 21 22

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 1947. This, however, may have only been a tactic to block Sinclair Oil from initiating an oil concession in Ethiopia in the post World War II period.24 Obtaining arms were (and are) inextricably intertwined with getting credit to purchase them. Wärqenäh worked hard to obtain loans so that Ethiopia could buy the arms needed to more effectively resist Italy. Then, once arms were obtained, a way had to be found to actually import them into Ethiopia, since Italy, France and Britain tenaciously tried to prevent this. Key to obtaining arms was having the money to purchase those arms. The importance of the link between the two has rarely been explored in the context of the Italo-Ethiopian war. One reason that Ethiopia was defeated was that she did not have the capital to buy weapons and was unable to get loans from major or minor powers to do so. The emperor didn’t have much capital and nor did the Ethiopian treasury. By July 1935 both sources were ‘exhausted’.25 Steer incorrectly states that Ethiopia delayed getting a loan until late summer of 1935.26 Ethiopia made arms purchases from January to July, before she ran out of money, but very few arms ever reached Ethiopia. More importantly, so far as Wärqenäh was concerned, he was asked to try and get a loan from the British as early as February 8, according to his diary. He was still in Addis Ababa and followed up on a direct order from the emperor. [The British ambassador] said he received my letter re the loan. Said the only security that Government could give would be the Customs but… the customs could not be accepted as security. . . He, Barton, asked me if I’d give them permission to examine my mines also [as possible basis for a loan]. Told him yes.

So the emperor had made attempts to get loans from Europe before late summer, and according to Wärqenäh’s diary of March, 29th, 1935 arms purchases in Europe were ongoing, despite his fears that Ethiopia would be accused of ‘aggressive intentions’ by Italy. Italy of course could manufacture her own arms while Ethiopia could not. Yet even when Ethiopia was able to successfully purchase arms there was a wide spread embargo against importing them. A few got through, but by July 1935 Italy got agreement from both large and small countries in Europe not to sell arms to Ethiopia. France added strictures against exporting arms and even if they were exported France stopped them from using the railway at Ethiopia’s major port at Jibuti in French Somaliland. The British would not give export licenses and also prevented the transit of arms through British Somaliland and the Sudan. Thus Ethiopia was checkmated at every turn. George Baer goes so far as to say that: ‘Dr. Martin was sent as minister to London at the end of July [1935] expressly to raise funds or to get credit from the English. He had no success.’ First there is no evidence in Wärqenäh’s diary or in any other Ethiopian source that he was ‘expressly’ sent to raise funds, and second, he did raise substantial funds from the British public. The British government in power at the time was largely pro-Italian, both for pragmatic   An overall summary of the case can be found in the US State Department files at 88.6363/5-547, AF - Mr. Chase to AF - Mr. Palmer, May 5, 1947. 25   Baer, Coming of the Italian-Ethiopian War, p. 226. 26   G. L. Steer, Caesar in Abyssinia (London, 1936), pp. 124-127. [Henceforth, Steer, Caesar in Abyssinia]. 24

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 and ideological reasons. An Ethiopian ambassador could hardly be expected to persuade it to act otherwise. It is a fact of the interwar period that most small countries in Europe (and outside it) were trying to get loans and credit to purchase arms as tensions rose. Very, very few, if any, were successful in doing so. That Ethiopia, not only a small country, but one of only two black African members of the League of Nations, should be thought to have a realistic chance to raise a loan in Europe at that point is history, was not only disingenuous, but quite unrealistic, especially when considering the widespread racism in the British elite and Foreign Office. Ironically, the only significant source of arms for Ethiopia in the build up to war was from Nazi Germany. As the emperor pointed out in an interview in Le Figaro in 1959, Germany was the ‘only nation’ that gave real support by sending actual arms shipments to Ethiopia. These helped Ethiopia to prolong the war and later ‘greatly aided’ the guerrilla campaign27. Wärqenäh knew most of the major players who supported the Ethiopian cause in Germany, especially Major Hans Steffen, who worked for the Aussenpolitisches Amt (APA – Foreign Policy Office of the National Socialist German Workers Party); the Ethiopian consul general in Berlin, Curt M. Prüfer, a former German minister to Ethiopia (and deputy director for Anglo-American and Oriental affairs in the foreign ministry), and David Hall, the emperor’s personal emissary in Europe to obtain arms and loans. Wärqenäh had known many members of the Hall family ever since he had returned to Ethiopia. Hall was of German Ethiopian parentage and is mentioned in Wärqenäh’s diary in July 1935, ‘Hall called and told me that he had been commissioned to negotiate for purchase of arms in different countries but had no idea how to fund money to pay for it.’28 According to research by Ed Westermann it was about this time, while Hall was in Germany, that he approached Prüfer and through him requested three million Reichsmarks as a loan to purchase arms from Germany. This request was then approved by Hitler29. Germany’s official policy in the ItaloEthiopian conflict was strict neutrality and this was the policy of the German foreign office. However, Hitler also wished Italy’s conflict in Ethiopia to be as protracted as possible, though still end successfully. This would allow Germany greater room for maneuver in Europe and lead to less of an Italian threat to Austria since many of Italy’s troops would be committed to Ethiopia.30 Thus while the German foreign office was officially neutral, Ethiopia received aid through the APA, a parallel Foreign Policy Office of the NSDAP (Germany’s Socialist party).31 Throughout these negotiations Wärqenäh was in close touch with Hall. On December 27th a steamer with   See Le Figaro (Paris), March 26, 1959. See also Ed Westermann, ‘The most Unlikely of Allies: Hitler and Haile Selassie and the Defense of Ethiopia, 1935-36’, in Girding for Battle: The Arms Trade in a Global Perspective, 1815-1940 (Praeger, 1999), edited by Donald J. Stoker Jr. and Jonathan A. Grant, p. 170. For this and the section below see Westermann’s very able article, pp. 155-175. [Henceforth, Westermann] 28   WD, 27.7.1935. 29   Westermann, pp. 165-66. 30   Ibid., 171. 31   Ibid., 155 27

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 the arms aboard, left Europe for Ethiopia, but then was held up in Berbera, a port in British Somaliland.32 The next day Wärqenäh went to the British Foreign Office to intervene to try and get the British to release the arms. He appears to have succeeded with the assistance of his friends Steffen and Mr. Schwimmer, the latter a friend and former Austrian ambassador to Ethiopia. The Foreign Office official assigned to take care of Ethiopian matters, Peterson, promised to ‘finish the matter’.33 Thus, partly through Wärqenäh’s efforts Ethiopia received its only steamer load of weapons from a major power. Few of his other efforts were quite as successful as this one, but the Nazi Germans were the only power who actually loaned Ethiopia a significant amount of money for arms. Nonetheless, Wärqenäh continued to persevere in trying to obtain money and loans in order to buy more arms for Ethiopia. If Ethiopia could get loans and arms from Germany, surely it was worth the effort to try to do the same from other powers. Overall, Wärqenäh was involved in four major attempts by Ethiopia to obtain loans. The first three have just been described, one from the British government (which was denied), a second from Ricketts and his cronies (which went nowhere) and a third from Nazi Germany which was successful. The fourth, from the League of Nations we shall encounter shortly in the next chapter. Wärqenäh was also deeply involved in trying to get land locked Ethiopia access to a sea port so that she could import the few arms that she was able to purchase.

A port for Ethiopia: Zayla In the unlikely event that any of Wärqenäh’s or others’ efforts to obtain a loan had been successful, a port under Ethiopian control had become more and more of a necessity, because the widespread embargo by the great powers prevented any arms from being imported into Ethiopia. Wärqenäh had long been involved in efforts to negotiate Ethiopian access to or ownership of the port of Zayla which was on the Gulf of Aden and under British control within the Protectorate of British Somaliland. He seems to have laid some of the foundations for the British-Ethiopian negotiations going back to the early 1930s and the arrival of Sir Sidney Barton as Britain’s ambassador. His own awareness of Zayla’s importance as a possible port probably went back to his first arrival in Zayla and Africa in 1899 and his later involvement with the campaigns against Muhammad Abdille Hasan. According to his diary and at the emperor’s insistence, he saw the British ambassador several times in November 1932 (November 16, 17 and 18) and had a ‘long talk [with Ambassador Sidney Barton] about the British Government giving us Zeila [Zayla] as our port.’34 On June 12, 1933 he again   WD, 27.12.1935 & 12.1.1936.   WD, 14.1.1936. 34   Angelo Del Boca, Gli Italiani in Africa Orientale: La Conquista dell’Impero (Roma, 1979), p. 243. [Henceforth, Del Boca, La Conquista]. 32 33

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 talked with Sir Sidney. ‘He has promised to speak about giving us an opening on the sea near Zeila’ and recommended that Wärqenäh write a letter to the British Prime Minister Ramsay McDonald which would be sent in the official British diplomatic pouch. George Baer confirmed that the emperor had been long considering possible Zayla options even in 1934. According to Baer, the Ethiopians would be given a corridor of land which would provide access to the sea at Zayla, in exchange for Ethiopian lands bordering British Somaliland in the Ogaden. This would be advantageous to the British since it would increase the size and importance of British Somaliland. It would be good for Ethiopia in not only providing them with a port, but also a buffer against Italian expansion. Baer mentions three possible corridors which merited consideration.35 On January 29th, Ambassador Barton told Wärqenäh that he had heard from Ramsay MacDonald that ‘a good deal has been done and is being done in connection with my suggestion.’ However, three months later the emperor complained to Wärqenäh that the ‘British [were] not keeping their promise with regard to ceding Zeila [Zayla]’. Later Zayla continued to figure in high level diplomatic negotiations between Britain, France and Italy; first during the three power negotiations from August 15 to 18, 1935, when Mussolini rejected the Zayla option and then later in December at the Hoare Laval talks when this happened again. Thereafter, Zayla, a sleepy, minor port on the Gulf of Aden, slipped quietly out of the spotlight of history. Wärqenäh had played a significant role, but really only during the initial negotiations. However, his diplomacy had helped to nudge it towards the center of the diplomatic game. He also played a more major role in other negotiations with Britain and Italy.

Spies, the Italian Secret Service, & dum dum bullets The 1935 to 1936 controversy over ‘dum dum’ bullets reveals some fascinating aspects of the use and misuse of propaganda during the Italo-Ethiopian war and Wärqenäh’s involvement in it. Dum dum bullets were soft nose bullets that were banned by the Geneva conventions. They expanded on impact and caused horrific wounds. The first reference to them in Wärqenäh diary came on October 18, 1935 when he wrote a short note for the papers accusing Italy of using poison gas and dum dum bullets against Ethiopia. Early on in the war the Italians tried to link the two as parallel atrocities in the public mind, although the differing magnitude of their impact was grotesquely different. One was a weapon of mass destruction killing tens of thousands (or more), the other, a common ammunition often used in hunting big game animals that maimed or killed at most only a few hundred. The second major reference to dum dums in the Wärqenäh diary comes a year later on April 30:   Baer, Coming of the Italian-Ethiopian War, pp. 51-52.

35

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 F.O… told me about a man who goes by different names one of wh [which] being Mezler under wh [which] he saw me about the beginning of this month and offered us arms and ammunition in return for trading concession in Ethiopia. He turns out to be an Italian spy who has been informing them that dum dum (soft nose) bullets are purchased by us from Birmingham. While we were talking Sir Edward H. Tindal Atkinson, Director General of prosecution was called in and we talked on the subject. In the end it was decided that he was to come to the Legation with me and see the papers. He came and we looked up the Import licence(copy) and found to my great dismay that soft nose bullets had been put in. Sir Edward took Mezler’s letter to me.

Thus the British government let the Ethiopians and the press to continue to believe that the Ethiopians had been at fault. In actuality, as the British archives, and British diplomatic memoirs reveal, the use of dum dum bullets was common in virtually all wars and, furthermore, the Italian secret service had gone so far as to plant evidence in order to introduce a red herring which would distract attention from the Italian use of poison gas. My immediate concern lay with the noisy Italian charges that we had supplied the Ethiopians with soft-nosed, or dum-dum, bullets. An individual rejoicing in half a dozen appellations, had as far back as in the early autumn of 1935 persuaded the Ethiopian Minister, Martin, to allow him to supply samples of various types of smallarm ammunition. In obtaining these samples from a Birmingham firm, [he] had got them to include a packet of soft-nosed cartridges of the type used by hunters for certain big game animals, such as elephants. This packet of dum-dums he had delivered to the Italian Military Attaché in London, who had immediately sent them to Rome. [The British secret service documented all of this] In due course Eden made his statement, the Italian Military Attaché was recalled to Rome. We never heard any more about British dum-dum bullets… [The Italian secret service officer] was not prosecuted and I have never heard of him since.36

Both sources agree that dum dums were often used by both sides and especially in Ethiopia. Local Ethiopians had obtained over the years this kind of ammunition from the thousands of sportsmen who had hunted in Ethiopia since the nineteenth century. The link between dum dums and poison gas was and is a spurious one, a clever Italian gambit. Tens of thousands more soldiers and civilians died through the intentional and wide spread use of gas by the Italians. To claim that it was used in retaliation for the use of dum dums and thus legitimize its use, even tangentially, is and was misleading.37 The Italian Secret Service was involved in a far wider range of activities than just propaganda about dum dum bullets. According to Baer, ‘The Italians [in the 1930s] had the best secret service in Europe, reading 70 or 80 codes...   Geoffrey Thompson, Front-Line Diplomat (London, 1959), pp. 110-111. See also PRO FO 371/19175/ J9971/1/1 Memo: Italo-Ethiopian dispute. ‘Alleged use of dum-dum bullets by Ethiopia, 31 Dec. 1935.’ See also, Series of League of Nations Publications. VII Political 1936. VII.7. Official. League of Nations. Dispute Between Ethiopia and Italy. Communication from the Italian Government, Received by League of Nations on May 11, 1936. Suvich to Secretary General League of Nations, Rome, April 30,1936. ‘Use of Dum Dum Bullets by the Ethiopian Troops. Protest by the Italian Government to the League of Nations.’ 37   See Alberto Sbacchi. Legacy of Bitterness: Ethiopian and Fascist Italy, 1935-1941 (Red Sea Press, 1997), p.65, for a relatively recent example. 36

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 intercepting up to 16,000 messages a year’, but were not able to see all dispatches sent by Ethiopia. However, ‘every official radio message the Ethiopians sent during the war was immediately intercepted and decoded.’38 In October, 1936, Wärqenäh was personally approached by the Italian Secret Service to try to get him to collaborate with the Italians. Mr. Marius G. Delicio called this afternoon…. When I asked what did they want to talk to me about D[elicio] said that they want to give me plenty of money, a good position and all my property if I’ll submit to Italy. Also they said that it was now too late to arrange about the western part of Ethiopia as the conquest of Ethiopia had been recognized by Germany. I had a long conversation with D and told him in short I did not want anything for myself but if western Ethiopia is left to us with full independence I am prepared to talk on the subject. Eventually he said he will write a letter to me and bring it tomorrow afternoon.39

Further important letters were then exchanged with the Italians in Paris and Wärqenäh sent one with his secretary, Emmanuel Abraham. The Italian proposals were ‘quite unacceptable’ to Wärqenäh and he never met or contacted Mr. Delicios again. Wärqenäh’s negotiations with the Italians occurred within a wider context. The emperor, his son, various Ethiopian diplomats and patriots all negotiated with the Italians at various times. Before these negotiations the major Ethiopian diplomats in Paris and Rome (Wäldä Maryam and Afä Wärq) both submitted to the Italians. Both before and after Wärqenäh’s negotiations the emperor and his son negotiated extensively with the Italians, although neither submitted. It is, perhaps, to Wärqenäh’s credit that he only negotiated once, beginning in October, 1936, made clear he did not have his self-interest as a priority and, when significant pro-Ethiopian concessions were not forthcoming, Wärqenäh quickly terminated the negotiations. The emperor continued negotiating with the Italians via various intermediaries until April 1938 and his son and heir, Asfaw Wäsän, even longer.40 It is clear that the emperor was toying with the Italians and probably did not intend to surrender.

Wärqenäh compared to other contemporary Ethiopian diplomats In 1935 before the war with Italy, Ethiopian diplomats could contemplate four plum appointments and a variety of more minor ones. Paris, London, Geneva (to the League of Nations) and Rome were the major appointments and Ankara, Port Said, Asmara & Jibuti were other possibilities. Paris was clearly the most important post until the 1935 crisis with Italy, when London emerged as the center of Ethiopian diplomacy overseas. None of Wärqenäh’s predecessors in   George W. Baer, Test Case: Italy, Ethiopia and the League of Nations (Hoover Institution Press, 1976), p. 10.   WD, 28.10.1936. 40   Alberto Sbacchi, ‘Secret Talks for the Submission of Haile Selassie and Prince Asfaw Wassen, 19361939,’ International Journal of African Historical Studies, Vol 7, #4 (1974), pp. 668-680. 38 39

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 London had particularly distinguished themselves. After surveying the achieve­ ments of all of Ethiopia’s overseas Ministers and Chargé d’Affaires, Wärqenäh clearly emerges as the most talented, effective and prominent. Judith Emeru, one of Ethiopia’s foremost diplomats after World War II, confirmed this in an interview saying that Wärqenäh was the ‘most capable’ of Ethiopia’s pre-WWII ambassadors.41 Until 1928 diplomatic appointments were made on an ad hoc and temporary basis, lasting only for the specific diplomatic mission decided upon by the emperor. Only in 1928 were Ethiopian diplomats sent to one particular country for an extended period and to be resident there as the representative of the Ethiopian government. Three were sent by Negus Täfäri Mäkonnen in 1928/1929: Näggadras Mäkonnen Endalkachäw (who didn’t know English) to London, Ras Gétachäw Abatä to Paris and Däjazmach Mängäsha Webé to Rome and the League of Nations. Mäkonnen was young and trained in foreign languages while Mängäsha and Gétachäw were members of the old guard. None lasted very long, a year or so, and two left under the cloud of a scandal, Mäkonnen for an affair with Wäyzäro Yäshäshwärq, Täfäri’s half sister and Mängäsha Webé for an impressive accumulation of debt.42 Näggadras Zälläqä Agedäw, Wärqenäh’s cousin, took over in Paris, London and Geneva but like his predecessors he was largely ineffective and left after about a year. He knew French but little English. They were replaced by an older generation with more experience, gravitas and international experience (especially in languages) from 1932 to 1935, including Bäjerond Täklä Hawaryat, Näggadras Afä Wärq Gäbrä Yäsus and Azaj Wärqenäh. These three were among the most prominent progressives and modernizers of their time, rising head and shoulders above their predecessors. Näggadras Afä Wärq Gäbrä Yäsus was appointed first in 1932 to represent Ethiopia in Italy. His experience there was long and distinguished. He almost certainly knew Italian better than any other living Ethiopian and was married to an Italian. He had long been a distinguished progressive and modernizer, but perhaps was most famous as a trailblazer in Ethiopian literature and language. He served for about two years in Italy, longer than any of his predecessors. However, there had often been doubts as to where his loyalties lay ever since he had sided with Italy during the Battle of Adwa in 1896 and later bought into Mussolini’s ‘civilizing mission’ justifying his invasion of Ethiopia. As Däjazmach Zewde Gabre-Sellassie once said, it was ‘beyond me’ how Afä Wärq was appointed by the emperor as ambassador to Rome, considering his divided loyalty between Italy and Ethiopia after Adwa43. The final and most damning mark against him was that he defected to the Italians for a second time and became a collaborator in 1936 after the conquest of Addis Ababa. Bäjerond Täklä Hawaryat’s career as a diplomat was very different; there was never, ever any question of his loyalty to Ethiopia. His reputation as a progressive   Interview with Judith Emeru, Addis Ababa, October 28, 2001.   Del Boca, Gli Italiani, La Conquista, p. 195. 43   Interview with Däjazmach Zewde Gabre-Sellassie, Addis Ababa, October 1, 2001. 41 42

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 and modernizer was by 1932 truly impressive.44 He was sent by Ras Mäkonnen to be educated in Russia and went to a Russian military school and later served in the administration of Addis Ababa and the railway. After 1916 he was raised to the rank of Fitawrari and given the model province of Jijjiga to rule, followed by the governorship of Chärchär where he preceded Wärqenäh. The climax of his career came when the emperor appointed him to draft Ethiopia’s first constitution in 1931. He was the first western educated progressive Ethiopian to rise to ministerial level when he was appointed Bäjerond and minister of finance. However, he clashed with the emperor over policy and soon found himself in Europe as a diplomat in 1932. In Bahru Zewde’s words this was strong evidence that he ‘was too independent and self-willed for the emperor’s taste’ and so this was a way to ‘remove him form the center stage’. He was appointed to cover three diplomatic positions, Paris, London and the League of Nations in 1932. He clearly focused his energies on representing Ethiopia at the League, but he left Europe soon after the outbreak of war between Italy and Ethiopia in October 1935. Trained as a warrior rather than as a diplomat, he soon decided that the conflict between Ethiopia and Italy was going to be resolved by war rather than by diplomacy. As Däjazmach Zäwdé Gäbrä Sellasé has pointed out, Täklä Hawaryat understood better than Wärqenäh or the emperor, the limitations of the League of Nations and collective security. He returned to Ethiopia to fight the Italians after their invasion in October, 1935. For ‘if you are not capable [of fighting] yourself, no one is going to share the burden’45. Täklä Hawaryat had given up on diplomacy and peacemaking, Wärqenäh had not. He realized it was an imperfect instrument, but used it more effectively than Täklä Hawaryat, Afä Wärq or any earlier Ethiopian diplomat. Ajaz Wärqenäh on the other hand represented Ethiopia in London for over five years. He had as strong a claim as a modernizer or progressive as either Afä Wärq Gäbrä Yäsus or Täklä Hawaryat, remained loyal to his country and worked hard and long to further its interests in Europe. More than any of his contemporaries he built relationships with his counterparts in the diplomatic round, forged alliances with a wide variety of factions, parties and NGOs in Britain and during both success and failure kept doggedly trying to advance Ethiopia’s interests in any way he could. He stands head and shoulders above any of his peers as Ethiopia’s foremost diplomat before World War II.

Administration of London legation Wärqenäh only had a very small staff to help him administer the Ethiopian Legation in London, so throughout his five years in London he depended heavily on volunteers. That the legation functioned so smoothly was largely due to the great efforts of Emmanuel Abraham and also to Hannah Holland   See Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, pp. 57-64. Täklä Hawaryat was replaced by Wäldä Maryam Ayyälä who lasted only a year as representative to the League and ambassador to France, before he, like Afä Wärq Gäbrä Yäsus, defected to the Italians. 45   Interview with Däjazmach Zewde Gabre-Sellassie, Addis Ababa, October 1, 2001. 44

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 (né Hannah Waldemier) who acted as hostess for Wärqenäh for most of his years in London. However the kingpin of the administration of the legation was Emmanuel, Wärqenäh’s secretary in Chärchär and former student and teacher at Täfäri Mäkonnen School. After the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in October 1935, the volume of work increased tremendously, and Wärqenäh had to bring in help for Emmanuel. Initially he hired Reginald Zaphiro (also known as Täsfay) who was the son of his old friend Zaphiro (Oriental secretary at the British Legation in Addis Ababa before the war). He was educated in England, but according to Emmanuel was young, ‘had no experience in office work and was not hard-working’46. However, he was personable, good with people and especially talented at answering questions over the telephone, an activity that caused Wärqenäh difficulty because of his increasing deafness. According to Wärqenäh’s diary he only worked at the legation from July to December 1935 and was then sent to help the Ethiopian cause in America. He never seems to have played an active role in the Ethiopian legation after his return. Following Zaphiro’s departure to the USA Wärqenäh managed to get the assistance of Una Marson, who was a significant Jamaican intellectual and very experienced in office work. She too stayed less than a year before she returned home, fearing a nervous breakdown from overwork.47 The bulk of the day to day, nuts and bolts work of the legation remained as always in the hands of Emmanuel. Hannah Holland was another dependable workhorse in the administration of the legation. She had first met Wärqenäh in 1924, but her father Theophilus Waldmeier had been a missionary in Ethiopia during the reign of Emperor Téwodros. She claimed the title ‘Princess Asfa Yelma’ which was never challenged by the emperor. She was also the author of the first biography of the emperor.48 She acted as hostess for the divorced Wärqenäh at the Ethiopian legation from December 1935 to about March 1938. Her obituary in the London Times notes: Her charm of manner and gifts as a hostess won her many friends and admirers among potentates and diplomats of Ethiopia and the Near East. But it was her simple kindness and goodness of heart which most endeared her to those who knew her best. 49

Her knowledge of Arabic and many European languages was especially important in her role as hostess, as was the help of her husband Algernon Omar Holland as an unofficial press secretary for the legation. Both volunteered many long hours in the legation assisting its administration in innumerable ways. Later, after Great Britain no longer officially recognized the existence of the legation, even if Wärqenäh tried to continue carrying out his duties, Ethel Fabricius, the   Emmanuel Abraham, Reminiscences of my Life (Oslo, 1995), pp. 33-34. [Henceforth, Emmanuel, Reminiscences]. 47   Delia Jarrett-Macauley, The Life of Una Marson, 1905-1965 (Manchester University Press, 1998), pp. 99-105. 48   Princess Asfa Yilma, Haile Selassie: Emperor of Ethiopia with a brief account of the History of Ethiopia including the origins of the Present Struggle and a Description of the Country and its Peoples (London, 1936). 49   See her obituary in the London Times, October 8, 1946 and also Siegbert Uhlig, Encyclopaedia Aethiopica (Wiesbaden, 2003), Vol. 1, pp. 367-368 [Henceforth, EAE] 46

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 mother of his son Téwodros took over the duties of hostess for Wärqenäh. Others who played an important role as helping in the legation were Wärqenäh’s sons Yuséf and Benyam (before their departure for Ethiopia on October 17, 1936) and a group of women volunteers. In the early months there was a tremendous crush of work which almost overwhelmed Emmanuel and Wärqenäh, but they managed to keep an even keel and carry out the most important of their tasks. The volunteers and friends included, besides those mentioned above, a very wide variety of men and women. Some of those involved were: Sylvia Pankhurst (of whom more in the next chapter), the politician Philip Noel-Baker, Stanley Jevons, the feminists Isabel Fry and Phillippa Fawcett, Canon Donaldson the prominent politician Eleanor Rathbone, Vicountess Gladstone, the Deans of Westminster and Canterbury, Nancy Cunard, Vyvyan Adams, Sir Norman Angell, Lord Robert Cecil, Sir Hesketh Bell, the author Enid Starkie, the reporter George Steer, Vera Brittain, and even the emperor’s daughter Tsähay, among many, many others.

Wärqenäh’s role in the mobilization of British public support In many ways Wärqenäh’s whole life can be seen as preparing him for his role as Ethiopian Minister to Great Britain from 1935 to 1940, the climax of his career. From the day of his arrival in London, he took advantage of the many contacts he had made and the relationships he had built throughout his life to mobilize support for Ethiopia during one of the greatest crises in her history. An argument could be made that it was the most serious crisis to Ethiopia’s existence since Ahmed Gragn and the sixteenth century. There was no infrastructure for Ethiopian diplomacy in Great Britain, so he built first on his wide circle of contacts and his reputation as a gentleman and one who had served the British Empire in Burma for many years. The Italo-Ethiopian crisis was constantly in the news and on the front pages of newspapers after the Wal Wal crisis in December 1934 through 1936. Wärqenäh from the time he arrived in London turned to the friendships and networks that he had developed through his long life, to increase support for his homeland. About five different but often inter-related networks made up the bulk of Wärqenäh’s personal contacts. These included: first, his long time contacts with Englishmen from his long sojourn in Ethiopia; second, his contacts from his years in India and Burma; third and fourth the additional independent networks of his friends, especially Kyriakos Mikhael and Hannah Holland; and finally links inherited from his adoptive family, especially those in the religious establishment. Just as important was his public role as Ethiopian Minister to Great Britain which would lead him to other networks like those with Africans and African Americans. This was probably more important than any one of the five networks, but not as important, perhaps, as a combination of some of them. 228

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 His contacts from his many years in Ethiopia were wide and varied, stretching across broad swathes of British society and are highlighted throughout his diary. Some were diplomats like British ministers Claude Russell and Winterlow in Addis Ababa or Mr. Schwirmer (the former Austrian Consul), other British military or religious leaders like the Gwynnes, Cobbold or Major Cavendish Bentinck. He reconnected with the Buxton family whom he had met in relation to the slavery issue in Ethiopia and they in turn put him in touch with the prominent lawyer Stanley Jevons. He also exploited businessmen he knew like Williamson and Foot, or former missionaries like some of the Buxtons or Dr. Thomas Lambie. Some were doctors (Bryce-Sharp) or adventurers like Hayter, others scions of famous families like Wilfred Thesiger. Wärqenäh’s personal relationships were global and indiscriminate. Another group were more homogeneous, his friends and colleagues from India and Burma. They generally sought him out to express their support and sympathy for the Ethiopian cause and included fellow medical professionals, officers and administrators in Burma, men of the cloth, and men who had served with the ‘flotilla’ or ships that plied the famed Irrawady river in Burma (today Myanmar). Two individual friends, Kyriakos Mikhail and Hannah Holland, were very useful to Wärqenäh in introducing him to a wider circle who would be of assistance to the Ethiopian cause. Kyriakos Mikhail, a Coptic Christian Egyptian and press officer for the Egyptian Legation in London approached Wärqenäh soon after his arrival and was especially helpful in introducing him to influential Egyptians and those in British government circles sympathetic to Egypt. Through him he gained access to the broad network of British and Middle Eastern supporters of Egypt in Britain. Wärqenäh regularly went to Kyriakos’s informal Sunday lunches at his home where he met a wide variety of influential Egyptians mainly Egyptian Copts, sympathetic to the Ethiopian cause. Some were WAFD party Ministers, others Egyptian intellectuals or lawyers and through Kyriakos he even met the editor of Al-Ahram, the major Egyptian newspaper. It should be made clear that altruism was not at the top of Kyriakos’s agenda. He seems to have represented the interests of the Egyptian WAFD party which supported the Ethiopian cause against that of Italy. They were directly opposed to those that pushed the more radical Islamic agenda that might today be seen as similar to ‘Political Islam’. Kyriakos, and especially the Christian group within the WAFD party, were adherents to a more diverse and inclusive policy, opposed to Italy and the fascists. They were pro-Ethiopian and more tolerant. Furthermore, Kyriakos took the lead in organizing meetings at the House of Commons and through his contacts introduced Wärqenäh to a number of British members of parliament and the press covering the House. He even went so far as to help Wärqenäh organize several major public meetings, one of the Nile Association at the Hyde Park Hotel and another of the Abyssinian Association which drew large numbers of the public. He also facilitated Wärqenäh’s interaction with Egyptian nobility and high religious officials by helping him draft letters to them and having some of these letters published in sympathetic Egyptian newspapers. Somewhat more sinister, but perhaps just as important, was when he served as a liaison in 229

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 introducing members of the Italian and British secret service to the Ethiopian minister. Finally, Kyriakos played a key role in getting Wärqenäh in touch with Arab diplomats and with pro-Arab British organizations, like the Palestine Arab League and its dynamic administrator, Miss Farquharson. Kyriakos Mikail very significantly broadened Wärqenäh’s circle strengthening Ethiopia’s ties with a key ally in the Middle East and Africa and giving her a sharper edge in her diplomacy in that area. Miss Farquharson was closely associated with Kyriakos and was the director of the Palestine Arab League. She played a significant role in founding the Abyssinian Association and organizing various demonstrations and receptions, often making sure that Wärqenäh participated and sometimes played a leading role in them. Hannah Holland was a very different kind of influence; her major impact on Wärqenäh was personal, but she also introduced him to a very different circle of people. Most were figures in society or the arts, but also included influential newspapermen from Fleet Street, and important officials of the Red Cross. Finally, he was assisted less often by his adoptive family and especially his adoptive brother Stuart. Stuart, for instance, organized a fundraising event for Ethiopia in his parish in a Tonbridge Wells. A closer look at his own immediate family will be touched on later.

Wärqenäh & the press Wärqenäh also played a major role in mobilizing and informing the British and imperial press about Ethiopia and its cause. As soon as he arrived in London, the demands of the British press were insistent and constant: ‘Telephone going almost every 5 or 10 minutes – people howling for interviews.’50 The requests for interviews were varied both within Great Britain and without. The British Press included: The Telegraph, The Times, The Morning Post, the Manchester Guardian, the Daily Herald, the Christian Herald and the News Chronicle. The international press which interviewed him included: Africa Scope (from South Africa), a Canadian paper based in Toronto, the Christian Science Monitor, Al-Ahram (of Egypt), the Empire News, Reuters, AP, an Australian paper, a United States and Indian paper. A distinct drop off of press interviews occurred after the British Foreign Office strongly advised him as an ambassador against granting interviews to ‘ordinary newspaper correspondents’. He continued, however, to grant interviews to more high brow weekly, monthly and quarterly journals. Among them were: the Near East and India Journal, the Strand, the New Statesman and Nation and the Referee.51 Thus Wärqenäh tried to manipulate a wide variety of the world’s press, most came to him for information and quotes, some came via his extensive network of British, US and Indian contacts. Wärqenäh also concentrated especially on three outlets to get the word out to the more narrowly focused segments of the public and to assist him in getting more grist for the news mill. These were Kyriakos Mikhail, Haji Farah   WD, 9.7.1935 this was his underlining and it was also marked in red. See also WD, 6.7.1935 & 7.7.1935.   WD, 16.7.1935, 17.7.1935, 19.7.1935, 31.7.1935 & 12.4.1936.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 and Sylvia Pankhurst. First, as we have already seen, he closely cooperated with Kyriakos Mikhail and thus had assistance from Egypt. Kyriakos helped him produce and edit copies of a pamphlet entitled ‘Italian Atrocities’. More than a thousand copies were printed and sent to Ethiopia, where, unfortunately they were discovered by a pro-Italian ship captain and thrown into the sea before they could be distributed among Italian troops in Ethiopia.52 Wärqenäh worked hard to reach out to Somalis in the Horn of Africa especially through Haji Farah who wrote pro-Ethiopian articles in Arabic and send them to Somali chiefs. He also was able to get from him anti-fascist pictures to use against the invading Italians. The most important of Ethiopia’s and his supporters was Sylvia Pankhurst of whom we shall hear more in the next chapter.

NGOs & interest groups: the Red Cross, RSPCA & the Masons Women played a more important role with NGOs (non-governmental organiza­ tions) than they did with the press and propaganda. These included: the Red Cross, the masons, church organizations, the RSPCA (the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Britain) and many others. Exploiting his numerous personal and institutional contacts, Wärqenäh organized, attended or persuaded others to attend a wide variety of gatherings that focused on the Ethiopian crisis. The web included major international NGOs and smaller ones that were regional or only in the London area. Most of the NGO events he attended himself, but others he delegated to friends or family members. Some of the major international NGOs events he went to, included: the Red Cross, the RSPCA and the Masons. Wärqenäh had many interactions with the Red Cross, especially when helping to organize the ambulances that were financed by Britain to serve the Ethiopian forces on the northern and southern fronts against the Italians. The British Red Cross Ambulance – Wärqenäh played a significant role in the creation and funding of the British Red Cross ambulance that went to Ethiopia in the Fall of 1935. However, the driving force behind it was John Melly, a charismatic British doctor who had traveled to Ethiopia the year before with a dream of founding Ethiopia’s first teaching hospital. He had persuaded the emperor to back this, but not Wärqenäh. As the threat of an Italian invasion became more and more likely, Melly wisely returned to Britain, determined on realizing a new dream – a completely outfitted mobile field hospital to care for the wounded and dying on the Ethiopian side in Mussolini’s war. What was to become the best outfitted ‘ambulance’ in Ethiopia was desperately needed by the Ethiopian forces which had virtually no medical services at all, in total contrast the lavish medical services for the invading Italian army. Wärqenäh first heard of Melly’s new plans, as his diary reveals, on July 8, 1935:   WD, see especially WD 12.10.1935, 14.11.1935 & 11.1.1936. The title, Haji, meaning that he had been to Mecca on the Haj. 52

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 Then interviewed Dr. Mally [sic, Melly] who told me how he was working hard to send out a ‘Red Cross’ Cmp[company] to Abyssinia for wh [which] he hoped to raise, 100,000/ and enlist thru International Red Cross Society sufficient men and material for Red Cross work. He particularly asked me to get the Emperor to sign the Geneva Convention and to send it back soon.

Wärqenäh cabled the emperor who soon thereafter signed the convention, his eyes firmly fixed on the necessity of the European and world powers favorably judging his cause. Melly had considerable difficulty at first raising money for his cause, largely because of the delaying tactics of the British Foreign Office: [W]ent…to Lord Lugard’s house and had tea there and discussed the question of forming a Red Cross Corps for Ethiopia in case of war. Apparently there is a difficulty about it as the Govt [British Government] objects to its formation because it will make it appear that war was immanent. It was decided that for the present the scheme be kept as a private enterprise and that I should receive the subscription and put the money in the Bank.53

Thus an independent private committee was founded, the B.A.S.E. (the British Ambulance Service in Ethiopia) and the money raised for it was to be supervised by Ajaz Wärqenäh, who was trusted by all sides. As Melly explained in a contemporary article in The Lancet, the foremost medical journal of its time, It is for this reason – because Ethiopia has virtually no means of looking after her casualties – that an ambulance service for Ethiopia is in the process of being formed…[A] number of people most of whom have had personal knowledge of the country and can consequently visualise the more vividly the appalling prospects, formed themselves into a committee to organize medical assistance for Ethiopia in case of war… the organisation will work in close cooperation with the Ethiopian Red Cross… If war breaks out and the British Red Cross Society should decide to take action, it is proposed that the ambulance service now being formed should be incorporated with them in whatever way they may think best…Further, the Ethiopian Minister in London [Wärqnäh] has given his assurance of full authorization by the Ethiopian government.54

Thus Wärqenäh played a key role when Italy invaded Ethiopia and then, and only then, would the British Government allow the B.A.S.E. to publicly raise funds for the ambulance. Melly estimated that £70,000 was necessary as a minimum, while his goal was £100,000. A radio broadcast alone brought in £27,000 and two major fundraisers (as described in Wärqenäh’s diary on October 31, 1935 and December 12, 1935) brought in more. At the R.A. [Royal Albert] Hall the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Osmo Lang presided at the meeting held about Ethiopia and to raise a subscription for the Red Cross. Sir Austin Chamberlain, Mr. Herbert Morris (Socialist M.P.), Lady Violet Bonham Carter and Lord Cecil made speeches. All supported our cause and condemned Italy or rather Mussolini for going to war against us. I was given a seat on the platform….   WD, 3.8.1939.   John M. Melly, ‘An Ambulance Service for Ethiopia’, The Lancet, Sept. 14, 1935, pp. 632-633.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 I … went to the Mansion House at about 3.30 p.m. rather late to attend a meeting held to ask for help for the 2nd Red Cross Ambulance unit for Ethiopia. Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Lugard, Sir Austen Chamberlain and Mrs Sandford addressed the meeting. Mrs. S. told the people about Ethiopia. The Archbishop and other expressed their disgust at the rumoured ‘peace plan [the Hoare-Laval pact].’

The British ambulances had a great deal of high powered support from some of the most influential leaders of Britain. Melly left in November 1935, with the ambulance corps, truly a massive undertaking filling two steamers that went into the field with about one hundred men. At the last minute, the emperor insisted that he go to the northern front (and not the southern front as originally planned) which included some of the most rugged terrain in Ethiopia where a only rough road reached Desse while the rest of the road north to the battle front was still being constructed. It would take two months before the road was finished and Melly’s ambulance corps was able to get close to the front line. The trucks designed for mobility in the south only slowed the progress of the ambulance corps in the north. Mules would have been a better option in northern Ethiopia. Meanwhile another link with the Wärqenäh family was forged. Wärqenäh’s two sons, Yuséf and Benyam, had left for Ethiopia a few weeks before Melly and in late December, 1935 Melly obtained permission from the emperor to make Yuséf the permanent Ethiopian representative to the British ambulance. He joined it in the field in January and quickly became deeply involved in its activities, trying to smooth a way through a myriad of local difficulties. Melly’s published letters document Yuséf ’s presence with the ambulance unit right up to its dramatic bombing by the Italians on the fourth of March 1936,55 when five Ethiopian patients were killed, two trucks burnt and 35 tents damaged or destroyed as well as a great deal of medical and surgical equipment.56 Other Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) – the RSPCA & the Masons – The RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was only briefly involved before the Italian takeover of Ethiopia and with Wärqenäh’s assistance tried to establish a hospital for animals in Ethiopia. Furthermore, Wärqenäh was to be given a silver medal by the society, while the emperor was to receive a silver medal through the British Foreign Office with an ‘illuminated and beautifully written certificate’.57 Somewhat earlier Wärqenäh had met at least three times with masons during his first year or so in London, relying on his long previous association with them. The first occasion was in December 1935, when he went to the ‘Ladies Festival’ given in the ‘New Empire Rooms’ in the Trocadero Restaurant by the Greenford Masonic Lodge no 4909 Society under the chairmanship of W. Bro. [Worshipful Brother] J.E. Hodgkins, Worshipful Master.

  Kathleen Nelson and Alan Sullivan, editors, John Melly of Ethiopia (London, no date) pp. 180-206.   Rainer Baudendistel, Between Bombs and Good Intentions: The Red Cross and the Italo-Ethiopian War, 19351936 (New York, 2006), p. 327. 57   WD, 4.2.1936 & 10.2.36. 55 56

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 There was reception at 6, then banquet then dance. There were quite a large number of ladies and gentlemen present about 300. It was a very jolly entertainment. They were very considerate to me and drank my health and asked me for my autograph.58

He next met some three months later with the Pattern Makers Worshipful Company who had also invited the Lord Mayor of London. There were some 120 men at the dinner and Wärqenäh was given the seat of honor at the right hand of the Lord Mayor. When Wärqenäh’s name was mentioned a very hearty ‘sympathy’ was expressed by the gathering for Ethiopia. The final Masonic gathering he attended was a ‘women’s Masonic meeting’.59 He also attended another major NGO meeting later in 1936, when he ‘went to Albert Hall and attended a big meeting of the L.[League] of Nations union re Ethiopia.’60 It seems particularly striking that the role of women among the masons was as large as Wärqenäh’s diary indicates. Many other less well known NGOs were grist to his mill, ranging from functions at the Royal Institute of International Affairs and the Women’s International League against Imperialism to the Ceylon Students Association, or from the Royal Geographical Club and the Lyceum Club to the Nile Association, the Indian Social Club or the Near and Middle East Society. These were all events he attended, as he did many, many church gatherings. He sent staff, family or friends to represent him or Ethiopia at other meetings. The most active staff member of the Legation was Emanuel Abraham who represented Wärqenäh at the League against Imperialism and the Friends of Abyssinia Association, while his eldest son Joseph also attended various events. His younger children on occasion also attended functions and sometimes sang the Ethiopian national anthem. Among his friends the most energetic speakers in the early years were Christine Sandford,61 Sylvia Pankhurst, Miss Hanema Beiyann Khoury and Hannah Holland, significantly all women.

Africans & African Americans Another area where Wärqenäh took a good deal of initiative was in Ethiopia’s relations with the Black Diaspora, especially in Great Britain, the USA, the Caribbean and Africa. He was at the center of a web of diaspora contacts in London, but in many ways his greatest involvement was with African Americans. He had extensive contacts with a wide range among the rich and the poor. Overall Africans and African Americans were the most consistent supporters of Ethiopia from the Battle of Adwa in 1896 to the end of World War II. However, the support was intellectual and psychological, rather than material. In Europe, United States, South American and Asian support waxed and waned, while African, African American and Coptic Egyptian support remained consistently strong. One wedge issue that the Italians tried to exploit was the charge of     60   61   58 59

WD, 4.12.1935. WD, 16.3.1936 & 23.4.1936. WD, 8.5.1936. WD, 17.3.1936 & 16.1.1936.

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 Ethiopian racism against African Americans, though not, interestingly enough, against Africans. Italian publicity for scholars like Carleton Coon62 and others was widely disseminated despite the emperor’s denials. The real fear, of course, was that the Italian invasion would spark a worldwide race war by black against whites, or in the terminology of the time the ‘colored races’ against whites and Caucasians. These were especially hollow charges against Wärqenäh. He had not only actively recruited many African Americans to work in Ethiopia but several of his offspring would later marry African Americans. He socialized extensively with African Americans from the 1920s until his death and they were many of his children’s’ nurses and teachers from Ada Bastian to the Fords. Yet racism was a good wedge issue for the Italians and they exploited it exultantly. Whereas Europeans and Americans in the interwar years (be they liberals socialists, democrats or anti-fascists) , wavered in their support for Ethiopia, Africans remained Ethiopia’s staunchest allies. West Africans, black South Africans and Egyptian Copts had little power financially or politically, but their support was the most consistent throughout the interwar years and during World War II. In the case of the Copts, religious solidarity and a common Orthodox Christian worldview probably played the greatest role, but with them and the rest of Africa, a common experience of colonialism and racism, as well as admiration for the only African nation to survive the European ‘scramble for Africa’ were major considerations. Some of Wärqenäh’s most memorable meetings were with the wives, or former wives of major figures on the Caribbean and American scene, Paul Robeson and Marcus Garvey. He met first with Mrs Robeson and it is not clear what the exact results were of these meetings, but he mentioned at least one in his diary: ‘Wife of Paul Robeson the singer called. She talked an awful lot about negroes [sic]. She herself is quite fair and well-educated.’ 63 He had more meetings with the former wife of Marcus Garvey; the first was the most memorable: Interviews given, especially to…Mrs Garvey a very stout woman who brought with her a negroe [sic] doctor of philosophy by name Higgins [sic, Willis N. Huggins]who has just come from America as agent of the negroes there who are anxious to help Ethiopia. He is going from here to Paris and Geneva and back with a report. He is arranging to act under the auspices of the ‘Friends of Abyssinia’ Association of wh [which] Mrs. G.[Garvey] is the Secy [Secretary]. Gave Higgins a note of introduction to Bajerond Tak. H. [Täklä Haymanot, Ethiopian Minister to France] and also general one to say that he is working for Ethiopia with my knowledge.64

Wärqenäh and Mrs Garvey met several more times and she spoke on Ethiopia’s behalf at least one meeting in Hyde Park, London. She also wanted to ‘go to America and collect money for us’. After consulting with colleagues Wärqenäh refused to give her his permission or official Ethiopian approval   See Carleton Coon, Measuring Ethiopia and Flight into Arabia (London, 1936), p. 148. He was an anthropologist at Harvard and later during WWII an intelligence officer with the OSS. 63   WD, 6.8.35. 64   WD, 7.8.1935. 62

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Ethiopian ambassador to the Court of St. James 1935–1936 for anything dealing with the raising of money.65 At the time of the crisis, collecting money for the Ethiopian cause in the United States was carried out by a wide variety of causes and individuals – not all of them were, in today’s jargon ‘transparent’. Many were, to put it bluntly, self-seeking. It is clear from the diary that Wärqenäh did not particularly trust Mrs Garvey or Huggins. Overall, Wärqenäh’s interactions with the Black Diaspora were very rich and varied. They did not lead to raising any significant amounts of money, or loans, but signify how widely Wärqenäh’s influence and reputation had spread. Wärqenäh’s involvement with the Black African diaspora stretched from the 1920s up to his death in 1952 but now let us focus on his life from July 1936.   WD, 28.8.35, 31.8.35, 10.9.35 & 1.3.36.

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11 London & India

‘SO THE WHOLE THING IS FINISHED’ (1936–1942)

The turning point in Wärqenäh’s ambassadorship to Great Britain and in Ethiopia’s relationship with Italy came in July 1936. The League of Nations lifted sanctions on Italy, refused to give Ethiopia a loan and the Spanish Civil War began, shifting world attention from Ethiopia to Spain. Ethiopia’s global prominence in the newspaper headlines declined significantly and Wärqenäh increasingly lost favor in the emperor’s eyes. Wärqenäh still struggled mightily to put Ethiopia’s case forward as strongly as he could, but blow after blow hurt her cause on all fronts. The tide only began to turn when Italy declared war on Britain in 1940 and the emperor was transformed from a liability into an asset for the British and their empire. However, by then the emperor and Wärqenäh had become distant and Wärqenäh soon thereafter retired in exile to India. He still defended the Ethiopian cause, putting heart and soul into the effort, but his lifelong belief in the League of Nations and that Britain would in the end do right by Ethiopia had been shaken to the core. On June 11, 1936 General Graziani replaced Badoglio as the second viceroy of Ethiopia and at the end of June the emperor gave his famous speech at the Assembly of the League of Nations, accusing Italy of using poison gas and illegal means of warfare, attacking the states who had allowed force to win over law and appealing to the small nations of the world and especially Europe who were about to be overwhelmed by the fascist powers. His appeals were ignored and within a week, on July 4 1936, the League lifted sanctions and refused to give Ethiopia a £10 million loan. When sanctions were finalized on July 5th, Wärqenäh wrote despairingly in his diary ‘so the whole thing is finished’. The League’s lifting of sanctions implied the de facto recognition of the Italian occupation and left the League a humiliated organization. The start of the Spanish Civil War in late July was another nail in its coffin. Meanwhile back in Ethiopia, the Ethiopian resisters, called the arbäña (or in the plural, arbäñoch), were growing in strength; they surrounded and besieged Addis Ababa and active resistance spread throughout most of Ethiopia. The Italians retaliated with the execution of one of the bishops of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and a desperate defense of their new capital. Worldwide, however, Ethiopia’s increasing resistance went virtually unnoticed. In London the emperor, increasingly short of cash, began 237

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London & India

11.1  Memorial service for those killed in the Graziani massacre in 1937. Left to right, Foreign Minister Heruy, Wärqenäh, Ras Kassa & the emperor

to put pressure on Wärqenäh, who still controlled the financial resources, to give him money. This would lead to increasing tension between the two. But throughout it all Wärqenäh remained steadfast, playing a leadership role in the struggle against Italy. Ethiopia was still recognized by the League of Nations but two of its three major diplomats (Wäldä Maryam in France and Afä Wärq in Italy) defected to the Italians, while as we have seen, only Wärqenäh remained faithful to Ethiopia among her major diplomats. The Italo-German Agreement was signed on October 22, 1936 and the Axis was declared on November 1st. In December Britain and France downgraded their Legations in Addis Ababa into consulates, greatly damaging Ethiopia internationally. Then Ras Emeru surrendered to the Italians on December 21st marking the end of conventional warfare and the hand over of the resistance to regional guerrilla forces. 1937 to 1939 marked the extreme low point for the Ethiopian cause. In January 1937 Britain and Italy signed a ‘Gentleman’s agreement’ as step by step, she distanced herself from her ties with Ethiopia, but did not wholly break them. The February 19th attempted assassination of Graziani in Addis Ababa led to an orgy of killing with more than 10,000 slaughtered by the Italians. This crushing blow to Wärqenäh’s family took months and years to unfold since it took a very long time for him to find out who in his family had been killed and 238

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 who imprisoned by the Italians. It was followed two months later by another massacre at one of Ethiopia’s most sacred site, Däbrä Libanos. These two events increased Ethiopian support for guerilla warfare against the Italians. Alternatively, one could say that Ethiopian nationalism was only strengthened by Italy’s attempts to crush Ethiopian resistance. At this stage in the struggle, separate secret negotiations for the submission of the emperor, his son and Wärqenäh began. Later in December 1937 Italy left the League of Nations and a new viceroy of Ethiopia and Italian East Africa was appointed by Mussolini. By this appointment he was recognizing that the hard line, brutal military suppression of Ethiopia was not working (the modern parallel would be the surge in Iraq or Afghanistan) and that a more diplomatic, velvet covered fist, under the new viceroy the Duke D’Aosta was started. 1938 held further trials for Ethiopia. Both the emperor and his son continued negotiating with the Italians, while Wärqenäh’s dealings with them ended quickly with his refusal to cooperate. Anthony Eden resigned as foreign minister over the British treaty that recognized Italian sovereignty over Ethiopia on April 16, 1938. This also terminated the official status of the Ethiopian legation in London and Wärqenäh’s position as ambassador. However, Ethiopia continued to protest recognition of the Italian empire at the League of Nations in Geneva. Britain’s agonizing step by step process of increasing support for Italy continued with her de jure recognition of the Italian Empire and its annexation of Ethiopia. Wärqenäh’s reaction was instructive: On 16 November 1938, the Government of Great Britain entered into agree­ment with the Italian Government, in which they recognized the sovereignty of Italy over Ethiopia, while the patriots of the country were still fighting in practically all areas, and were in possession of about half of the country. Compare this with the states of Czeko-Slavakia [sic] and Poland, whose ‘Govern­ments’ were carried on in England and France, although their countries had been completely taken over by Germany and part of Poland by Russia.1

Within a month British courts recognized that the king of Italy inherited Ethio­pian rights to various businesses and their monies, including tele­com­ munications and other businesses. 1939 continued this earlier somber trend. In August the Nazi Soviet Pact was signed and shortly thereafter Germany invaded Poland and Britain finally declared war on Germany, but not Italy, so the emperor remained in political limbo. The second option, however, of using the emperor against the Italians in Ethiopia became a more and more viable card to play in the dangerous diplomatic game of World War II. It also encouraged Ethiopian patriot resistance. When Germany’s air war against Britain began, it impacted Wärqenäh personally since his tenants in a building he had purchased fled London and his financial position deteriorated badly. This marked the low point of Wärqenäh’s life in Britain. Ethiopia’s fortunes improved dramatically in 1940, but Wärqenäh’s did not.   Wärqenäh’s Autobiography in the possession of the family, p. 154. [Henceforth, Wärqenäh Auto­ biography]. 1

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London & India On 10 June 1940, Italy declared war on the Allies which, although ‘an ill wind’ was bound ‘to blow good to someone’, which in this case happened to be Ethiopia, which recovered in the course of time, through the help of Great Britain, her independence on 5 May, 1941, exactly after five years of Italian slavery.2

Italy’s declaration of war led almost immediately to Britain’s beginning to exercise its second option of using the emperor’s legitimacy in Ethiopia against the Italians. The emperor’s initially secret departure, of which Wärqenäh was ignorant, starkly revealed his estrangement from the emperor, but led three months later to his departure to retirement in India. His last days in Britain were bitter and India did not prove much better. He would not return to Ethiopia until April 1942.

Finances, family, the emperor & departure for India A series of four issues dominated Wärqenäh’s last few years in London, embittering his relationship with the emperor and delaying his departure for India. These included his financial situation and that of the Ethiopian Legation, his relationship with the emperor, his departure for India and his deep concern for his family, especially his four youngest children and their education. The taproot of his problems, as is so often the case in life, was money and how to support himself (and his young family) and how this intersected with his relations with the emperor and the emperor’s entourage in exile. Wärqenäh’s finances were complicated and opaque, as had been the case throughout his life. When he left Ethiopia in 1935 he was deeply in debt and as minister he depended largely on his none too generous salary (2,000 dollars a month) and a yearly allowance of 25,000 francs. Relative stability was replaced by deep uncertainty when Italy conquered Addis Ababa in May of 1936. As a result both his salary and allowances were soon cut off. He and the Ethiopian Legation then had to increasingly depend on voluntary contributions to the Ethiopian cause, largely given by the British public. Wärqenäh’s efforts were key in raising these funds, but the amounts raised and disbursed are not clear from existing sources. Six funds existed at various times: the Defence Fund (the largest and most contested), the Consular Fund, the Loan Fund, the Red Cross Fund (which may have included the stamp account), the Relief Fund (which may have been part of the Defence Fund) and later the Fund of Mercy. Substantial amounts of these funds and some of Wärqenäh’s own money went into the purchase of leases and freeholds of two properties in London – 5 and 8 Prince’s Gate, beautiful homes just off Hyde Park, spacious with several floors and a garden in the back. Each was large enough to accommodate his large family as well as the core legation staff, a servant or two and house guests. Since the two homes were on Hyde Park, they were centrally located, prestigious and genteel.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 158.

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 The Ethiopian legation moved into 8 Prince’s Gate in December 1935 from 13 Elm Park Gardens, a more humble abode which had previously housed Ethiopian diplomats in London. 8 Prince’s Gate was leased for just over a year, when Wärqenäh purchased the nearby 5 Prince’s Gate which was more spacious. The financing of these two transactions is not wholly clear, but were to cause Wärqenäh, the emperor and his entourage significant problems for over a decade. When 8 Prince’s Gate was sold, about £4,750 was left in profit which was then used towards the purchase of 5 Prince’s Gate. A further £2,102 odd was needed for the new property, which cost approximately £8,000. About £2,000 came from the Defense Fund, £1,200 from the Loan Fund and £700 from the Consular fund, if the costs of the two properties are added together. Exactly how much came from Wärqenäh’s personal income is not clear, initially perhaps about £1,000. He later said that he paid back the monies which had come from the Defense, Loan and Consular accounts. The core of the misunderstanding between the emperor and Wärqenäh arose over these amounts and more especially that 5 Prince’s Gate was eventually sold in May 1936 for the princely sum of £11,000. Thus a very significant profit was made after only a very short time. As we shall see, Wärqenäh stubbornly insisted that he should control the profits from these transactions (and few people could be as stubborn as Wärqenäh), while the emperor and his advisors (in particular Wäldä Giyorgis) were determined that the profits should go to the emperor. Wärqenäh would claim that the profits were needed to educate his young children and that he would distribute the rest to Ethiopian refugees. The emperor, Wäldä Giyorgis and his former banker, Collier, insisted that the profit should accrue to the emperor. The dispute over the finances of the two legation buildings (numbers 5 and 8 Prince’s Gate) was protracted and became intertwined with Wärqenäh’s desire to leave for India, and to have enough financial resources to retire and to educate his daughter and three sons there. Before the finalization of the sale of 5 Prince’s Gate in August 1936, the emperor, asked his friend and former banker, C.S. Collier (head of the Bank of Abyssinia and later the Bank of Ethiopia) to look into purchase of the new legation. Wärqenäh was advised by his lawyer, Mr. Gardiner, that the building could not be sold without his agreement. The emperor’s next move was to order Wärqenäh to hand over to him the remaining money in the contribution accounts under his care: the defence account (with £2,400), the loan account (with £1,237/10/2) and the stamp account (with £143/18/6). However, the emperor still wanted to retrieve some of the profit that he thought had been made from the sale of 5 Prince’s Gate (which he was convinced had been paid for from the Defence Fund). As Wärqenäh’s diary explains on October 8, 1937: Had long talk with the Emperor (Ras Kasa was present) about my going to India. The Emperor said he did not want me to go as it will spoil the Ethiopian cause here etc. I again told him that I could not stay on account of the lack of funds… [E]ventually brought up the question about the money I made by buying and selling the houses. Explained to him the whole matter which as a matter of fact I had already done that by letter on his arrival in England. Further it is couple or 3 months when there was a

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London & India discussion on the subject with Collier and Walda Giorgis. The Emperor now brings up the matter with the view to keep me here [in London] in connection with it! The usual under-hand trick.

He went into further detail somewhat later in his diary on October 31st: Hirui [Heruy, the Ethiopian Foreign Minister who went into exile with the emperor] again spoke to me about my request to go to India. He said the Emperor wanted me to give something from the money (profit) I made by selling no 8 & 5 [8 and 5 Princes Gate]. Told him I cannot give away any more as I have been spending on the legation out of it. He seemed to have an idea that I bought the house (8) [8 Princes Gate] with the ‘D’ [Defense] Fund money and that I did not pay any taxes as the house belonged to the Legation. Told him he was mistaken as I did not buy the first house with the ‘D’ Fund money. I only borrowed a little and paid it back sometime ago. Also that I have paid the municipal tax and also rent of the house (5) [5 Princes Gate]. He said the Emperor had an idea that I bought out of the D Fund money and paid no taxes. Collier apparently gave them this information. Hirui [Heruy] has promised to settle the matter by informing the Emperor.

The dispute between the emperor and Wärqenäh thus partly revolved around their individual interpretations of the word ‘borrow’. Be that as it may, Wärqenäh was trapped in England and could not leave without the emperor’s permission. In India, his pension would go further and educational costs for his children would be less. Furthermore, he was convinced that the emperor’s entourage (and especially Wäldä Giyorgis) were likely to use any money they might get from Wärqenäh for uses other than those envisaged by the British donors, i.e., for humanitarian purposes. Wärqenäh was determined to do his utmost to prevent this. According to his diary on the 25th of November: Wrote to the Emperor about my going to India and about the money which I made by buying and selling no 8 & 5 [Princes Gate 8 and 5]. Told him I did not see any way to give the money up to him as I got it by a fair and honest transaction and because I want it to bring up my children. But if he wants to take it away by force I beg him to take the necessary action he wishes to take as soon as possible so that I may be able to leave this country as soon as possible.

The emperor never took legal action against Wärqenäh, probably because his minister was so highly regarded by the British public that there would most likely have been a backlash against the emperor. To provide some of the income he needed, Wärqenäh decided to invest most of the profit in two ventures. First, in July 1937, he put £6,000 into real estate shares with the City and Suburban Building Society and then later in May 1938 he bought some small rental properties at 100 Palace Gardens Terrace for about £700. They both initially brought in solid, if modest incomes, but both would become a heavy albatross in the long term. As per Wärqenäh’s instructions the City and Suburban money was tied up in a trust for the education of his children and when he left for India he wasn’t able to extricate much of his money. Even worse, his tenants quickly vacated the Palace Gardens Terrace apartments as soon a ‘the blitz’ began and German bombs began to rain down on London in 1940. Several bombs in fact actually damaged the building. Yes, Wärqenäh was unlucky, but as so often in his 242

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 life he did not invest cautiously or wisely. Eventually, as we shall see, he would lose most of his City and Suburban investment, to the society’s mismanagement and to pay off the expensive taxes on the unoccupied apartments during the rest of the war. It was a slow and agonizing financial melt down. By late 1939, his financial resources were so meager that he could not even afford steamer tickets to India. A ‘deus ex machina’ was necessary to extricate him from his predicament. In June, 1939, he was informed by a friend in the British Foreign Office, Major Cavendish Bentinck, the brother of a former British Minister to Addis Ababa, that an ‘anonymous donor’ was willing to give him £1,000 to pay for his travel and other pressing expenses, so that he could leave Britain and retire in India. However, he still did not have the emperor’s permission to do so. That changed dramatically in July 1940. To verify the report about the Emperor having left London [to go to the Sudan and Ethiopia] went to Bath… They [the Empress and her eldest son and heir] were all very kind and attentive but wouldn’t say anything about the Emperor until we retired in the drawing room after lunch when they told me that the Emperor had suddenly left home with just a suitcase with T’Ezaz and Walda Gorgis 28 days ago. They had heard from the Secretary of F.A [Foreign Affairs] to say that they were alright in Sudan. They were very shy about saying much as they were required by the British Government to keep the Emperor’s departure secret. All the time we were talking Abba Hanna [the Emperor’s father confessor and eminence gris] stood there listening to what was being said…. In a round about way I discovered that the Emperor had made his office in charge of Walda Giorgis as Legation Office. The Empress remembered my asking the Emperor sometime ago if he had done so but he flatly denied. The Empress was rather ashamed of this incident. Told them (the Empress and her children who were present all the time) that since I had been treated in such a shabby way I must leave for India as soon as I can get away.3

After these revelations, Wärqenäh felt that he was at liberty to do as he pleased and it was now possible for him to wind up his affairs in England and go into retirement in India. It took nearly two months to get his finances in order and to obtain steamer passage to India. Such tickets were very difficult to obtain during the height of submarine warfare and the blitz, but Wärqenäh’s stubborn persistence helped to make it possible. He left for India, via South Africa on September 13, 1940.

Summary of Wärqenäh’s relations with the emperor

For any member of the Ethiopian imperial court their relationship with the emperor was paramount. Whether they were in favor with the emperor or not determined to a large degree their power and influence; this was true for Wärqenäh as it was for any other Ethiopian aristocrat, intellectual or administrator. Whether the emperor favored Wärqenäh during his tenure in London seemed to be particularly dependent on money and access to it. Several important threads, however, were intertwined: his divorce, money from the sale of the legation   WD, 21.7.1940.

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London & India building and the income from the various fund raising projects that Wärqenäh headed. He left Ethiopia, in essence, under a cloud because of his divorce from Qätsälä, for she would always remain closer to the empress and emperor than he. Yet the emperor strongly supported his appointment to Britain and his stay in London started well. Once the emperor arrived in London their relationship began to change for the worse. Money seems to have been at the root of the problem. First, the emperor challenged Wärqenäh on who should benefit from the sale of the Ethiopian Legation building. Next he tried to gain direct control of the various subscription funds that Wärqenäh had raised largely from ordinary people (especially the ‘Defense Fund’ and the ‘Loan Fund’). In both cases the emperor imposed his will largely through Wäldä Giyorgis, his right hand man in exile. Wärqenäh resisted as best he could, but predictably lost out on all fronts. During his exile the emperor was cash poor and Wärqenäh had created the only major sources of income. Thus the emperor ruthlessly used Wäldä Giyorgis to gain access to and to manipulate these monies, despite Wärqenäh’s pleas based on morality both professional and personal. The profit Wärqenäh received from selling the house at Princes Gate (the site of the Legation) legally belonged to him, because the building had been purchased in his name. Thus the emperor could not gain direct access to the profit. However, he managed to do so indirectly. First he threatened Wärqenäh through Wäldä Giyorgis and then he refused permission for Wärqenäh to leave England for India. Thus the profit from the sale of the legation was slowly consumed by Wärqenäh’s expenses in running the Legation and in paying for his family. By the time he left for India in 1940, his financial resources were exhausted and he had to depend on an anonymous benefactor to pay the fare for his and his family’s trip to India. The dispute between Wärqenäh and the emperor would sour their relationship for some years. Where the truth lay in the dispute has been impossible to disentangle, especially from the scattered financial details. Each side felt the other was in the wrong. However, by 1940 no major Ethiopian figure seems to have still been on Wärqenäh’s side in the dispute. Wärqenäh desperately felt that he needed the money to pay for his young children’s education. On the other hand, the record of the emperor, along with Wäldä Giyorgis, had been consistently fraught with controversy in their financial matters. As for the different funds, the emperor had them transferred one by one to a commission dominated by Wäldä Giyorgis. New funds by public subscription were raised under closer imperial control and out of Wärqenäh’s purview. The emperor, as usual, outmaneuvered Wärqenäh. The loyal retainer never returned to a position of major influence. Money played a larger role in Wärqenäh’s relationship with the emperor from 1935 to 1940 than in any previous or subsequent period of his life. Claims that the emperor was obsessed with money seem to be confirmed by his relationship with Wärqenäh during this period, but these were also the most poverty stricken years of his life. Perhaps, the emperor was more focused on money after his exile than before for this very reason. 244

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 Overall it is most difficult to assign blame in this dispute between the emperor and Wärqenäh because the finances of the affair are murky, anything but transparent. However, a basic moral question was being contested. Did Wärqenäh have the right to use the money from the sale of the legation at a time of supreme national crisis in Ethiopian history? It seems that he did use some monies and then invested other monies unwisely, so that it could never be used for Ethiopia’s overall benefit. Yet the tide of fortunes between Ethiopia and Italy turned and the fate of the legation money did not have a long term negative impact on Ethiopia or the emperor. Eventually, after the Liberation the emperor seems to have forgiven Wärqenäh, invited him to return to Ethiopia and offered him various positions of importance in Ethiopia’s government. Shouldn’t this be seen as a magnanimous gesture on his part?

Wärqenäh family From late 1936 to 1940 Wärqenäh was able to focus more and more on his family which was always at the core of his being, but it was an increasingly fractured family. The sons and daughters of his nuclear family were of supreme importance to him. He had sacrificed much for them over his long lifetime, and a major reason for his appointment to London had been to get away from Addis Ababa so that he could recover from his divorce and bring up his youngest children as he saw fit. But it is important to point out that during his five years in London he was in closer contact with his three disparate families than during any other period of his life. First, of his nuclear family he had six of his children with him; second, he regularly saw members of his adoptive family, the descendents of Bishop Clark of the Punjab, India and third, he rebuilt closer ties with the mother of his eldest son, Ethel Fabricius and her family. He left Ethiopia with custody of his four youngest children: Yohannes (John), Samuél (Charlie), Liya (Leah) and Dawit (David) who in 1935 ranged in age from nine to three. In London he was joined by sons Yuséf (Joseph) and Benyam (Benjamin) who were 25 and 23; while leaving behind in Ethiopia his divorced wife Qätsälä Wärq, his eldest son Téwodros who was 27 and his four daughters: Astér (Esther – 19), Elsabét (Elizabeth – 18), Sara (Sarah – 17), Rebqa (Rebecca – 14) and Sosena (Suzie – 13), all good Biblical names. Bringing up four such young children is more than difficult, doing it as a single parent had to be a remarkable challenge. In Ethiopia he had had an extended family (and many servants) on which to depend for help, in London he had to very quickly create a solid support group to help with the children, because soon after his arrival in London he was confronted with a ferociously heavy work load in his job as ambassador of Ethiopia to the Court of St. James. He brought with him a small core of dedicated followers to aid him in the task. These included a nurse, Ada Bastian, Bäyänäch an Ethiopian servant and cook, a nephew (Abatä Boggalä) and finally his former student and assistant in Chärchär, Emmanuel Abraham. All pitched in to varying degrees to help Wärqenäh, but he also got a great deal of assistance from friends he made in London. Thus family (including his two 245

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London & India older sons, Joseph and Benjamin), plus old and new friends stepped forward to help Wärqenäh raise his family. This wider circle was led by the two hostesses who helped him most in London, Hannah Holland (from 1938 to March 1938) and then Ethel Fabricius from March, 1937 until he left England in 1940. Hannah was greatly assisted by her husband Omar. The wider circle was also made up of other, largely women supporters, who assisted Wärqenäh at the Ethiopian legation and also helped in taking care of his children. Some took them on weekend trips, others picked them up from school or took them to the cinema. It was definitely an unusual upbringing for the four youngsters. Although his nuclear family was of the greatest importance to Wärqenäh, he was also still linked tangentially with his two other families. They largely gave him only moral support and he met with members of them occasionally, usually for tea or a meal. Téwodros’s mother, Ethel would play the most important role during his stay in England, but mostly after March 1938 when she succeeded Mrs. Holland as his hostess. Ethel largely ran his household and took day-to-day care of his children from 1938 to 1940 although she never again saw her son Téwodros after he left England for Burma during World War I. Wärqenäh also, on a fairly regular basis took her mother and sister out for lunch or tea at posh hotels. His third family, descendents of his adoptive father Bishop Robert Clark, he saw less frequently but loyally stayed in touch with his ‘brother’ Stuart and the widow and children of another ‘brother’ Hamlet. All appear regularly in his diary. Stuart was the most important figure of this group and would remain in faithful correspondence with his brother until Wärqenäh’s death. As we saw Wärqenäh visited Stuart and gave a lecture to his parishioners. Wärqenäh also managed to get him an audience with the emperor. In many ways Wärqenäh had been closer to Stuart’s sister Sybil and brother Hamlet, but both had died before they were able to see their brother ensconced as Ethiopia’s ambassador to the Court of St. James in 1935. Wärqenäh’s family life had been full of tragedy, from his kidnapping in 1865, to the death of two of his children in infancy, to his agonizing divorce. The most brutal blow, however, was the execution of his two sons, Benyam and Yuséf by the Italians in February of 1937. He was informed of their death one month later, but for six more long months had to also assume that his eldest son, Téwodros, along with his wife and four daughters had also been killed by the Italians. The death of his sons clearly was a tremendous blow, but there are only hints of its impact in his often emotionless diary. His British upbringing and education ensured that he would maintain the expected Victorian stoicism. Yuséf & Benyam Wärqenäh (1912–1937) Yuséf and Benyam (Joseph and Benjamin) were clearly their father’s favorite sons. Téwodros never lived up to his father’s expectations, especially after he refused to continue to study engineering at Cranbourne. Yuséf and Benyam seem to have grown up almost as twins and largely followed parallel lives and 246

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 deaths despite their many differences. They were brought up bilingual in English and Amharic and taught by their father as young boys, then went on to boarding school and college in England where they did well academically. Both studied engineering at their father’s insistence. Both helped their father as assistants in the Ethiopian legation and patriotically returned to Ethiopia to fight after war with Italy commenced. Both were mercilessly executed by the Italians. Yuséf was born in 1912, the first of thirteen children born to Wärqenäh and Qätsälä, while Benyam was born about one year later. After many tribulations, Wärqenäh persuaded Ethiopia’s ruler, Lej Iyasu to agree to be Yuséf ’s godfather, a most prestigious accomplishment in the hierarchical Ethiopian court. Yuséf ’s and Benyam’s lives diverged again in 1915 as Qätsälä prepared to leave Ethiopia to join her husband in Burma. Her parents insisted that one of the two sons remain with them in Ethiopia, fearing that Fitawrari Tullu’s line might be extinguished should something happen to the family on their long international journey. Therefore, the elder son, Yuséf, was to accompany his mother to Burma and Benyam was to remain in Addis Ababa. Thus when Wärqenäh and his family returned to Ethiopia in 1919 to discover both of Qätsälä’s parents had died in the great ‘Spanish Flu’ epidemic, it was Benyam and not Yuséf who was named in their will as the co-inheritor of the family’s lands and possessions. Benyam had to return his grandfather’s rifle at an official court ceremony in 1919 and then appointed his uncle to take his place when called up to military service in 1920, not his elder brother Yuséf. Both Yuséf and Benyam went to play regularly with Ras Täfäri’s children from 1919–1924 and were thus favored members of the court. The eldest child of both parents, Princess Tänagnä Wärq and Yuséf were born in the same year, 1912. The future emperor and his Empress Mänän had six children between 1912 and 1931 and Wärqenäh and Qätsälä had thirteen children between 1912 and 1932. Princess Tsähay became especially close to Astér, Elsabét and Sara (partly because they were educated overseas at the same time) and Prince Mäkonnen later became a very good friend of Yohannes. Both Yuséf and Benyam were invested with official court robes in 1922 and both were taken to England in 1924 by their father to further their education. Both went to Trent College initially and then on to Loughborough College in order to become engineers. Both were very active in sports and Yuséf even became captain of his College cricket team.4 Their ever critical father, however, who saw them play in a cricket match, noted in his diary that ‘They are not good at it yet.’5 While they both went to the same schools, Benyam seemed set all the while on an engineering career. Yuséf, like so many undergraduates are wont to do, changed his mind rather often: in 1929 he was thinking of doing law, in 1930 he contemplated going to LSE (the London School of Economics) and studying finance. By 1931 both were focused on Engineering (Yuséf on Aeronautical engineering and Benyam on Electrical Engineering) when their father laid down the law and insisted that Yuséf be enrolled in Chemical Engineering and Benyam   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century (James Currey, 2002), p. 86. [Henceforth, Bahru, Pioneers]. 5   WD 5.9.1928. 4

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London & India in Civil Engineering at Loughborough College. Each time their father came to England he visited his two sons. During their vacations they were taken care of by his adoptive sister, Sybil. After her death, his adoptive brother Stuart and friend Mr. Passingham took up this task for him. However, it was the Emperor Haylä Sellasé who did the heavy lifting and paid for most of the educational expenses for the two boys. First Wärqenäh kept track of all the expenses while in Ethiopia, while in England first Sybil and then Mrs. Passingham took care of the myriad details in England. Both ran practical errands for their father, investigating prices and doing research on potential purchases like cement, porcelain, machinery of different kinds and apparatuses for boring. When Wärqenäh took up his diplomatic post in London in 1935 they both joined their father in London and helped out as assistants in the Ethiopian Legation. Yuséf took on more public responsibilities representing his father at various functions, like meetings of the League against Imperialism and the African Society and also helped carry out talks with the Krupp arms company of Germany. Benyam seems to have spent more private time with his father going on several long walks with him to Hyde Park, but also acting as an intermediary with Chertok and Rappaport. Both helped take care of their four youngest siblings and various other tasks in the household. In October, 1935 it was decided that they should return to Ethiopia to help there in the struggle. A small farewell dinner was given for them with about nine close friends. It was only at this last moment that Wärqenäh discovered that, ‘Joe [Yuséf ] and Princess Betty appear to have fallen in love with each other’.6 She was the daughter of the Muslim Raja of Rampur State and a British mother. This would be the last time that she, his father and their friends would see him or his brother alive. They travelled carrying over a hundred gas masks for the war in Ethiopia, but stopped off in Egypt in Port Said and in Cairo. There they were given a generous reception and picked up further help sent by Egyptians for wounded Ethiopian soldiers. When they reached Ethiopia they travelled to Addis Ababa and stayed with their mother. Within a month or so, the emperor sent Yuséf to be his official permanent liaison officer with the British Ambulance mobile hospital which had already left for Northern Ethiopian front. He went to the front in mid-February, and John Melly described him as ‘thoroughly europeanised and a good fellow’.7 Overall he was with the Ambulance less than a month before the emperor called him back in February. He flew back to Addis Ababa with the Red Cross official Marcel Junod. The next time that Yuséf and Benyam appear in the written record was during the last hectic days after the emperor returned, defeated, to Addis Ababa from the front. George Steer, the great London Times reporter, best told the story of the emperor’s last days in Addis Ababa before his exile. The Imperial Council met, dominated by Ras Kassa, and recommended that the emperor leave Ethiopia. The younger generation of Ethiopians educated overseas tried vainly to catch the emperor’s attention and give their advice at the imperial palace:   WD, 16.10.1936.   Kathleeen Nelson and Alan Sullivan, editors, John Melly of Ethiopia (London, n.d [c.1937]), p. 175.

6 7

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 In the heavy silence…Little Sirak Herrouy [a son of Ethiopia’s Foreign Minister], wearing an overcoat and…muffler against his asthma, leant against a pillar: George, his brother, of Trinity College, Cambridge, in riding breeches, against another. Both waiting silent. Dr. Martin’s sons [Yuséf and Benyam] were there, in khaki, their motor bicycles parked in the yard outside… All the young Ethiopians stood around, waiting, doing nothing, talking very little. Suddenly everyone stiffened. One of the two doors in the pavilion opened. Palace servants, bare-footed and their shammas drawn over the sword-arm, ran out to clear the porch. The Emperor followed. He was dressed in khaki as a general. His aspect froze my blood. Vigour had left the face, and as he walked forward he did not seem to know where he was putting his feet. His body was crumpled up, his shoulder drooped: the orders on his tunic concealed a hollow, not a chest… For hours the Empress lectured the Emperor… Ras Kassa, noble head and talkative tongue, was called into the Emperor’s somber chamber. Selecting the easiest chair, he crossed his legs for a long sitting, and opened his Nestorian preamble. The young Ethiopians outside grumbled a little more, then melted away into the dark. ‘We shall never see the Emperor,’ they said, ‘now that Kassa has got in.’ They never did. I [George Steer] said good-bye to Sirak, George, the Martins, Ayenna Birru, to some of them for the last time, I fancy. They were all young men educated abroad and they did their duty. With a premonition of regret I looked out after them into the blackness of Addis Ababa thinly pierced with flame even now.8

The emperor finally sent orders that the two young Wärqenähs were to go to western Ethiopia and join the resistance to the Italians there under the leadership of Ras Emeru. Wärqenäh wrote Benyam and ‘asked him to take photos and write articles on important subjects.’9 While they wrote back to say they have had an awful journey from AA [Addis Ababa] to Nkempti fighting the brigands all along. Ben says they are forming an army and have formed a committee of seven of which he is president to help in governing the country between river Gibbe to Sudan. He says they have got 300 well trained soldiers and are recruiting more and bring them from different places and people. They want me to help them with money and arms. I have advised Ben to go down to the Birbir river and collect all the gold and platinum he can get [from the Wärqenäh mining concession].10

Thus Wärqenäh’s diary makes several important points. Most important is that Benyam was asserting that he was president of the ‘Black Lions’ and not Alämäwärq Bäyyänä as indicated by Bahru Zewde.11 This was a very important group ideologically and militarily, that pointed the way for future Ethiopian generations. Militarily they were not victors, but were forced to surrender to the Italians with their leader Ras Emeru in December, 1936. They too were taken to Addis Ababa but were to suffer a very different fate than their leader.

  George L. Steer, Caesar in Abyssinia (London, 1936), pp. 367-369.   WD, 29.2.1936. 10   WD, 12.7.1936. 11   See Bahru Zewde, Pioneers, p. 88. 8 9

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London & India Both of them according to Bahru were put to work in Italy’s central workshops in Addis Ababa, ORMA garage.12 According to Wärqenäh’s son Yohannes: Joseph and Ben…were largely responsible for their own deaths. As young men they fought with Ras Imru and naively surrendered to the Italians. They were victims of their education and thought that the Italians were civilized. They took up jobs, after house arrest in Addis Ababa at the Itege hotel and on the road to Dessie. After the Graziani massacre, Qatsala tried to persuade them to leave Addis [Ababa] and join Ras Ababa Aragay. They decided to stay, because of their education and trust in the Italians. At night they were arrested and then shot.13

After the attempted assassination of General Graziani in February 1937, there was a general massacre during which ‘western educated’ and ‘modernized’ Ethiopians were most likely to be victimized. According to another source they were grabbed from their family home in Shola at the eastern end of Addis Ababa by some ‘banda’, Tigrean-speaking Ethiopians collaborating with the Italians with an Italian officer. They were then taken to an isolated thatched hut and after a few days killed. Qätsälä did not hear of their fate for four or five months and no funeral or proper memorial was allowed by the Italians.14 Meanwhile Qätsälä had taken refuge in the British Legation in Addis Ababa with two of her daughters, Sosena and Rebqa. They were then sent into exile to Italy by the Italians, where they were jointed by Qätsälä’s other daughters, Astér, Elsabét and Sara, as well as some other family members. They remained there for some three years. Astér, Elsabét & Sara The three eldest sisters, born within two years of each other, grew up rather like triplets, although each was very, very much a distinct individual. All three were born in Burma, in Myingyan. Returned to Ethiopia they were christened in Sellasé (Trinity) church together, all with aristocratic god mothers, married to powerful Ethiopian nobles. From 1920 to 1927 they were home schooled by their father and thus were bilingual in English and Amharic. All went to England to further their education. Later they would add Italian and French to their linguistic arsenal. All later acted as their father’s assistants at one time or another, translating, drafting letters in English or acting on his behalf on complicated family affairs. Each was to have a high profile wedding. Astér (Esther), the eldest was born in 1916, Elsabét (Elizabeth or Elsie) in 1917 and Sara in 1918. Between 1920 and 1927 they often played with the similarly aged children of Ras Täfäri and Wäyzäro Mänän with their son and heir Asfaw Wäsän (born 1916), Princess Tsähay (born 1920) and Princess Zänäbä Wärq (born 1918). In 1923 all three Wärqenäh daughters received golden ‘bangles’ from Ras Täräri and Wäyzäro Mänän, a distinct honor in the Ethiopian court. In 1927 they all set off for further schooling in England joined at the last minute by their friends Tsähay and Amsalä (the daughter of the future Foreign Minister   Ibid., p. 86   Interview with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, November 5, 2001. 14   Interview with Ato Mamo Habtä Wäld, in Aqaqi in south of Addis Ababa, October 11, 2001. 12 13

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 Heruy Wäldä Sellasé). Astér went to the prestigious British finishing school, Sherborne, while Elsabét and Sara went to Wadhurst, because they were still too young for Sherborne. While in England, and especially on vacations from their boarding schools, they were cared for first by Sybil (Wärqenäh’s adoptive sister) and after her death by Mrs. Passingham, a good family friend. Both their parents visited them in 1928 to make sure that they were doing well. Largely because of the Great Depression and lack of funds, the girls were brought back to Ethiopia in 1931 after four years of schooling. It is most probable that no other Ethiopian family had given their daughters quite so much western education. However, Elsabét for one always felt that she could have become an engineer but her father never gave her the opportunity to do so.15 All three proved to be so cosmopolitan as to be able to slip seamlessly from their own to other cultures. Their sophistication and modernity attracted the matrimonial interests of the second generation of educated Ethiopian intellectuals. Upon their return to Addis Ababa, the triplets were first expected to pay their respects to the newly crowned emperor and empress. They also continued their musical education under the tutelage of Mr. Ford, an accomplished AfricanAmerican musician. Furthermore, when officials from the British anti-slavery society came on an official mission to Ethiopia to investigate the status of slavery, Miss Scott, the daughter of Lord Pollard, was pleased to discover that she and Wärqenäh’s daughter Astér shared the same finishing school, Sherborne. All three daughters became fixtures of the Addis Ababa international social scene, attending various diplomatic functions, especially those organized by the British at their Legation which was close to their home in Shola on the eastern edge of Addis Ababa. They also often visited the province of Chärchär where their father was governor and which gloried in an attractive clutch of young, able bachelor administrators. Beginning in 1929, came a whole series of suitors who approached Wärqenäh seeking the hand of one or another of his daughters. A rapid series of weddings would follow. Wärqenäh saw fit, however, to admonish his daughter’s actions, As Elsie and Sarah do not want to be sent back to Addis Ababa as I intended doing they gave me their promise that they would behave more like ladies and sensible girls in the future and not like irresponsible little girls.16

Balambaras Emmañu asked for Astér’s hand, Zäwdé Bäyyänä (through Basha Wäräd) sought first Sara’s and then Astér’s hand. Life became rather complex. Qätsälä and Wärqenäh laid down some ground rules on November 12th, 1932. Basheh Ward called this evening to again discuss about his relation Zaudi Bayana’s proposal for Sara. Told B.W. the young French Engineer (Z.B.) should make friends with the girls and win the regard and affection of the girl he wants to marry. Told him we would have no objection if he Z.B. can get the girl’s consent.17

  Interview with Sofia Deressa, Addis Ababa, 16 October, 2001.   WD, 26.3.1933. Underlining by Wärqenäh. 17   WD, 12.11.1932. Underlining by Wärqenäh. 15 16

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London & India

11.2  Marriage of Astér Wärqenäh to Emmañu Yemär & Elsabét Wärqenäh to Tädla Haylé Zälläqä in Addis Ababa at Giyorgis Church, 1933

Two of the three were married in November 1933, a major highlight of the Ethiopian social scene. Astér married Emmañu Yemär, Wärqenäh’s former assistant and now Director of the Treasury, while Elsabét married Tedla Haylé who had just been appointed Ethiopian Consul to Eritrea. He was a significant Ethiopian intellectual of the second generation with an MA from the University of Antwerp, and a rising star in the Ethiopian Foreign Office. Thus both these daughters had married well into aristocratic families, but also to promising educated intellectuals who looked to the future. He describes the dual marriage ceremony of November 20,1933 in his diary: We all went to Church very early in the morning (at 6 A.M.). Went thro [through] the marriage ceremony and came back home at about 9.30. Ras Kasa came, also British Charge d’Affaires…British Consul,…Belgian Minister, Italian, German and American Ministers also came to Church and then to the house. There were a good many ladies, also Collier and Wright, Drs Pollock and Hanner, Buxton…and Dr. Halpert. After partaking of the wedding cake and other refreshments some of the Ministers had to leave as they had other engagements. Later there was lunch which those (about 20) who remained partook of. Qatsala fed hundreds of men and women (including Abyssinian officers and ladies) in the tents. The feasting went on till 5 in the afternoon when after speeches of good wishes and drinking of health, the brides and bride-grooms left for their homes. Feasting, singing and dancing however went on till past mid night at our place.18   WD, 19-20,11.1933. Underlining by Wärqenäh.

18

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 During the marriages Wärqenäh gave the following speech, which, among other things shows the couple to be pioneers in Ethiopian history in his opposit­ ion to arranged marriages. My beloved Daughters: There are three stages in our life span, birth, marriage and death. Birth and death happen without our will. Marriage is however, voluntary. Traditional societies consider marriage as compulsory. They give children in marriage based on the arrangement of parents, without asking the consent of the children to be wedded. The responsibility for failure in this kind of marriage should fall on the parents. As for us, we did not consider it our responsibility to arrange these kinds of marriages. So our daughters have chosen their own fiancées and asked us to prepare this wedding. In case the marriage does not work, you will take the responsibility… May God be with you so that your husbands will be your dedicated lovers and be faithful to you. May he assist you to lead an honest life. May he bless you with long life, wealth and children. Nonetheless, my beloved daughters, it is of no use to you to be rich and live a long life unless you lead your life with honesty and integrity. Attend to your reputation and be role models amongst your neighbors. Make sure not to disappoint your parents. Let our blessing and our good wishes be always with you.19

Eight months later the last of the three, Sara, married Säyfu Mikaél. Sara’s wedding came off early this morning at St George cathedral. I went at about 7 but the ceremony started before that. No rain this morning. The communion service took an unconsciably [sic] long time. Esther fainted at the end of it. After the ceremony we came home and Sefu went to his temporary abode (in Ato Gabra Egziher’s Francois house)… Bajrond Zallaca, Fit Tafasa, Tsahafi T’Ezaz Haile, Kanyaz Latbalu and some others came in the afternoon. The Tsahafi Taizaz and Kanyaz Lat Balu brought the marriage contract from Sefu. Lot of persons at dinner, did not go to bed till 11 p.m.20

Despite all the high hopes, the festivities and good wishes, none of the three marriages survived the war with Italy. Esther divorced Emmañu, the Italians killed Tädla Haylé (Elsabét’s husband) in 1936 and Sara divorced Säyfu Mikaél in 1936. Before the outbreak of war, pain and anger struck at the core of the Wärqenäh family, with the divorce of Wärqenäh and Qätsälä. It affected each of the three sisters differently. Each eventually took the side of her mother, rather than her father. Elsabét was affected least since she had to join her husband in Asmara, was far away from the events in Addis Ababa and therefore out of the direct line of fire. Astér prevaricated as long as possible, trying to act as a mediator, but ended up not supporting her father. Sara, too, tried to sit on the fence as long as she could and somehow remained closer to her father longer than her two sisters. It must have been traumatic for all of them. Once Wärqenäh left for Britain, daily life calmed for a while, but within a year, the Italian advance came closer and closer and the fall of Addis Ababa a more and more likely outcome.

  Bernhanenna Sälam newspaper, November 21, 1926. See also, Betul, pp. 179-180.   WD, 14.7.1934. Underlining by Wärqenäh.

19 20

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London & India The Wärqenäh Family in Italy As the Italians approached Addis Ababa in May of 1936 looting broke out and many in the city were killed. Benyam and Yuséf Wärqenäh had already gone west to join those resisting the Italians, leaving Qätsälä and her daughters to take refuge from the violence in the British Legation. After a month or so they were able to return to their home in Shola which had been stripped of everything moveable by the looters. A tense life under Italian occupation continued for several months before there was another crisis. The Italians looked on Qätsälä and her family with great suspicion because of what they considered her husband’s outspokenness and his pointed attacks on Italy and Mussolini. The situation became much worse after the attempted assassination of Marshal Graziani, the Italian Viceroy of Ethiopia in February of 1937. As we have seen the whole family was rounded up by the Italians and Benyam and Yuséf were killed. This time the Italians sent all the family remaining in Ethiopia into detention camps in Italy. First they were taken to Asinara, an island off the very northern tip of Sardinia. Téwodros would remain there until the allied occupation of Italy in 1944, when he was freed and managed after a struggle to get back to Ethiopia. Qätsälä and her daughters were after a few months moved to Mercogliano, near Naples, under less rigorous security. According to Alberto Sbacchi, ‘Older people, women and children who were considered harmless, were accommodated at Mercogliano (Avellino).’21 Wärqenäh’s family, a party of seven, included Qätsälä, their grandson Fäqadä Sellasé, their five daughters (Astér, Elsabét, Sara, Rebqa and Sosena) and also another close family member, Roman Wärq, brought up with Astér, Elsabét and Sara. About 100 men women and children were held in Mercogliano in 1937 under very difficult conditions. Money, food, clothing and medical services were in short supply in the concentration camp but all of them managed to survive. However, the situation in the concentration camps for Ethiopians in Eritrea and Somalia were much, much worse. It was not until after 1940 that Wärqenäh was able to get reliable news of their fate. In June 1938 Attilio Teruzzi, an early fascist and under-secretary of Italian East Africa, ordered that all women and children should be returned to Ethiopia. ‘Mussolini … didn’t want to see any more ‘niggers’ on the streets of Italy’. He also declared that an exception must be made for Wärqenäh’s family who were to be kept in Italy.22 Sometime in early 1939 after three years in the concentration camps, the family was released to return to Addis Ababa and Ethiopia, all but Téwodros who had five more years of prison before him. The defeat of the Italians and the Liberation of Ethiopia would follow in little over two years. As Elsabét said in 1976, she left school while young and married and then was imprisoned in Italy for three years where she was able to learn Italian.23 Most of   Sbacchi Alberto. Legacy of Bitterness: Ethiopian and Fascist Italy, 1935–1941 (Red Sea Press, 1997), p. 128.   Ibid., pp. 134-135. See also Angelo Del Boca, Gli Italiani in Africa Orientale: La Caduta dell’Impero (Roma, 1982), p. 256. 23   ‘Elizabeth Workeneh, 1917-2000’ a pamphlet produced at the time of the funeral, in the family’s possession. 21 22

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 the Wärqenähs learned Italian and most were less anti-Italian than their father after end of the war. All three sisters, along with their mother returned to Addis Ababa and Shola in 1940 and shortly thereafter both Astér and Elsabét remarried. Astér married Bäfäqadu Wäldä Mikaél, who was an assistant minister in the Ministry of Finance and Elsabét married Yelma Déréssa, who was director general in the Ministry of Finance. Both of these marriages lasted throughout their lives. Sara, however, did not remarry, although she came close to doing so. All three sisters got in touch with their father in India as soon as they could and upon his return visited him often in his old age. Astér took the lead in acting as a mediator between her father and mother, and also in assisting her father in his financial affairs, especially affairs dealing with land, taxes and rents. Elsabét was the second most involved of the daughters, but as in the past was most often out of the country. Sara stayed longest in her father’s home, but did not play the leadership role of her older sisters. Astér had seven children, Elsabét six and Sara none. Two of the sisters, Astér and Elsabét became major power centers in the family, partly because of their husbands’ prominence, but mostly because of their own leadership skills and the respect in which they were held by their families and Ethiopian society as a whole. However, we should now return to the major thread of this biography, London and the mid–1930s.

Sylvia Pankhurst Sylvia Pankhurst was, almost certainly at this time, Wärqenäh’s and the emperor’s closest and most effective ally in promoting Ethiopia’s cause. Her paper, New Times and Ethiopia News, which she founded and with almost superhuman energy regularly published, was the most important propaganda instrument for Ethiopia’s cause in the English-speaking world. Sylvia also introduced Wärqenäh to her wide and able network of influential, as well as ordinary people, who had followed her lead for decades. Her help and her network played a major role in Wärqenäh’s influence and money raising activities. Her support for Ethiopia was potent and lasted until her death in 1960. Sylvia Pankhurst was the daughter of the famous suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst and played a key role in the movement for the Votes for Women. She was much more left wing than her sisters and mother and made a name for herself among progressives during and after World War I; so much so that she was sometimes called the ‘grande dame’ of the Popular Front.24 Her methods of agitation for the Ethiopian cause had their roots in the Pankhurst family’s campaign for woman’s suffrage and she saw the Ethiopian struggle as a continuation of her earlier struggles.25 Her interest in Ethiopia really only developed with the Wal Wal incident of December 5th, 1934, after which she   David Mitchell, The Fighting Pankhursts: A Study in Tenacity (New York, 1967), p. 236.   Richard Pankhurst, Sylvia Pankhurst: Counsel for Ethiopia. A Biographical Essay on Ethiopian, Anti-Fascist and Anti-Colonialist History, 1934–1960 (Hollywood, 2003), pp. 2-8. Most of this section depends heavily on this source. [Henceforth, Pankhurst, Counsel]. 24 25

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London & India wrote to Wärqenäh and became increasingly deeply involved. However, her interest in Ethiopia went back to her deep commitment to Italy (which began in childhood) and to anti-fascism in the 1920s. These were deepened by her close lifelong relationship with the anti-fascist Silvio Corio who was the father of her son Richard Pankhurst. Initially, she carried out a letter writing campaign against fascism in Italy, Europe, Britain and Ethiopia. Many British and American papers published her letters to the editor. Then she organized a massive demonstration at Trafalgar Square in support of Ethiopia. After the Italian invasion she was convinced that Ethiopia’s side in the dispute needed to be more forcefully argued publicly and so she wrote on several occasions to Wärqenäh to tell him so. He didn’t have enough time to carry out such a major campaign. First, he was too busy with his diplomatic duties and second, the British government put significant pressure on him to stop such activities. As we have seen in the previous chapter, the Foreign Office scolded Wärqenäh, claiming that it was against etiquette for an accredited diplomat ‘to make public speeches.’26 As long as the Italo-Ethiopian war continued, the major newspapers and journals continued to cover the conflict and the world-wide diplomatic controversy that surrounded it. But once Italy took Addis Ababa and made the case that the war was over, Sylvia Pankhurst feared that Italian actions and their impact on Ethiopia would largely disappear from the news. She was determined not to desert a cause once the going became difficult. This seems to have been the major reason that she began New Times and Ethiopia News when she did. Thus on May 5th, 1936, the very day Addis Ababa fell to the Italians and also the day of Sylvia Pankhurst’s birth (fifty-four years before), she founded the new newspaper.27 It was welcomed by at least six different constituencies: former suffragettes, anti-fascists and anti-Nazis, supporters of the League of Nations, Ethiopians in exile, former European visitors to Ethiopia, and increasing numbers of anti-colonialists. The paper soon reached a distribution of about 10,000 including British MPs, foreign ambassadors, masons, unions, the major political parties, many churches and a very large number of ordinary British. Sylvia Pankhurst continued publishing New Times and Ethiopia News until it was replaced by the monthly Ethiopian Observer. Some of the other major contributors were Silvio Corio (co-editor who often wrote under the nom du plume of Crastinus or Luce), Prof Angelo Crespi (a major anti-fascist figure who lived in exile in Italy), Prof. Gaetano Salvemini (one of Italy’s greatest historians), Count Carl von Rosen (a Swedish aristocrat and post WWII founder of Ethiopia’s air force), General Eric Virgin (another Swede & one of the emperor’s foreign advisors). There were many others, too many to list. In effect Sylvia acted as the emperor and Wärqenäh’s right hand when it came to trumpeting Ethiopia’s case before the world. It was their collaboration and his initial financial aid that was vital in its birth. However, long term, Mrs. Pankhurst saw her role as being the spokesman of the emperor. She wrote more of the text,   WD, 5.9.1935.   Richard Pankhurst, Counsel, pages 8 & 15.

26 27

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 articles and editorials than any other single individual, while Wärqenäh may very well have come second, with his regular featured articles. Sylvia Pankhurst was a loyal supporter of Wärqenäh throughout his life and they made a formidable team in defending Ethiopia and its reputation. Furthermore, Sylvia remained loyal to Wärqenäh through thick and thin, despite his many ups and downs. She also worked very closely with the Abyssinian Association.

The Abyssinian Association Wärqenäh played a significant role in creating the Abyssinian Association which represented the major institutionalized NGO (non governmental organization) supporting the Ethiopian cause in Britain. It too raised some money, but this was directly controlled by neither Wärqenäh nor the emperor. In April 1936, according to his diary, he recruited Stanley Jevons to the cause and then used his Egyptian contacts (Kyriakos Mikhael and Miss Farquharson) to organize the first meeting of the Abyssinian Association, under the auspices of the Nile Society. Wärqenäh provided the money (£20) for the first meeting from the Defense and Loan funds. According to Wärqenäh this first meeting did not go smoothly: Went to the Hyde Park Hotel at 5 p.m. and delivered a lecture under the auspices of the Nile Society. After me Admiral Taylor M.P. made a rotten speech partly an apology for Italy. After this man who was hooted, another M.P. by name Vivian Adams made a good speech, after him Mr. Mander M.P. then Miss Farquharson and the Chairman Lord Lamington made speeches. There was a big audience about 700 persons.28

Shortly thereafter, the association had high hopes of increasing their influence: In the afternoon Prof Jevans with Sir George Paish …called. They suggested calling on the Archbishop of Canterbury and asking him to advise the King to call the Emperor to dinner and to give him accommodation in Buckingham Palace and to recognize him as Emperor - agreed to Mr Paish doing so.29

The president of the Abyssinian Association was Sir George Paish and Stanley Jevons played a major role, usually as its executive secretary. Thus upon the emperor’s arrival in Britain the Abyssinian Association ‘delivered an address of welcome’ and helped swell the ‘great crowds’ at the port of Southampton and Waterloo train station in London. Each year the association held garden parties, a reception and generally one large meeting. They also had dues with which they were able to fund various Ethiopian causes. Again Wärqenäh played a key role in advancing Ethiopian interests, both through publicity and finances. The major meeting of 1936 was held on the seventh of December, ‘[W]ent to Caxton Hall to attend a meeting of the Abyssinian Association. 6 speakers spoke on the subject of Gas warfare and Treaty violation.’ By the next year there were three centers of the Abyssinian Association in Great Britain. The first and most   WD, 11.5.1936.   WD, 27.5.1936.

28 29

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London & India important was in London, but there were also branches in Brighton and in the north of Britain. The Scots were always particularly supportative of Ethiopia during the 1930s. The next more successful annual meeting was on May 24th, 1937: [W]ent to the meeting arranged by the ‘Abyssinian Association’ at the Central Hall, Westminster. Lady Layton was in the chair. Mr. [illegible] Adams, Prof. Jevons, Dr Mand Royden and a Mr. Wood and a Major Nathan and Bishop of Kingston delivered fine speeches and a resolution was passed calling on the League of Nations and the British Government not to drive out Ethiopia from the League and not to recognize Italian conquest of Ethiopia. There were only about a couple of hundred persons present who received me with great enthusiasm and acclamation.

During 1938 the association seems to have become better organized and held two major meetings with a larger attendance. The first notably included Paul Robeson as a speaker, while the second had more speakers than other Annual Abyssinian Association meetings. Later at 7.45 [May 6th] I went to the Central Hall Westminster and attended a protest meeting against recognition of the Italian ‘conquest’ of Ethiopia. The meeting was arranged by the Abyssinian Association and was badly managed as not even half the hall was occupied. There were about a couple or 300 audience.

The final ‘Annual Meeting’ of the Abyssinian Association was at Kingsway Hall, London, 1940 and the occasion was a farewell reception for Wärqenäh. Once Wärqenäh had helped establish the association it functioned smoothly for many years, first under the presidency of Sir George Paish and then later under Mr. Beauford Palmer. Stanley Jevons seems to have continued to play a key role as he would later under its successor organization, the Anglo-Ethiopian Society which still prospers today.

Refugees Wärqenäh was also at the center of the international effort to help Ethiopian refugees. The League of Nations, despite the massive efforts to help refugees after WWI, seems to have done virtually nothing to help Ethiopia and Ethiopians in the mid–1930s. Refugees in the less developed world were not a priority until after World War II. Europeans were important, but Africans were not in the years between WWI and WWII. No evidence has been found that any of the world’s ‘developed’ nations raised any significant amounts of money, nor were they willing to loan Ethiopia money to help with her refugee problems. Britain became involved, administratively, in dealing with Ethiopian refugees in her colonies that had borders with Ethiopia (Sudan, Kenya and British Somaliland) and perhaps in Yemen, but nothing beyond that. Wärqenäh was most deeply involved in raising private funds in Britain and in helping with the growing number of refugees in Sudan and British Somaliland. He also planned to purchase land in India on which Ethiopian refugees might settle, since most experts expected the Italian occupation of Ethiopia to be a long lasting affair. 258

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 However, long term, virtually nothing would come of his efforts to support Ethiopian refugees in India. Wärqenäh, as we have seen, was involved in humanitarian efforts most of his life. At the beginning of the twentieth century he committed much of his considerable energy to: the Red Cross, anti-slavery campaigns, education of former slaves, health and hospitals, efforts to curb the abuse of animals and many other causes. His humanitarian activities as the new minister representing Ethiopia in the United Kingdom went through several stages. Soon after his arrival in London (after the incident at Wal Wal but before the Italian take-over of Addis Ababa), he emphasized that the problems with orphaned children were more important issue than civilian or military refugees. However, once Addis Ababa and then Harar had fallen, the problems of large numbers of refugees in British Somaliland and the Sudan, became the most serious issues. ‘Following the money’ by focusing on fundraising efforts makes this clear. As we have seen, the largest amounts of money that were raised internationally were not for refugees but for the Red Cross ambulances. However, the Red Cross effort ended with the Italian takeover of Addis Ababa in May 1936. The emphasis then slowly switched to refugees. According to Wärqenäh’s diary, the first monies, about £1,000 were disbursed in January 1937 to Aden, Berbera, Jibuti and British Somaliland. Then in March 1937 a meeting was held in Caxton Hall in London organized by Mrs. Napier to raise more funds for Ethiopian refugees. Three months later Mrs. Napier was disappointed that only a further £1,000 had been raised. The next significant fund raising event, especially for Ethiopian refugees, was not held until October 1938 more than a year later. Rather than a large meeting it was a dinner, but was attended by the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Noel Baker. The next year, 1939 saw two new committees formed to raise funds for Ethiopian refugees, one under the leadership of Wärqenäh’s friend A. J. Siggins and then in February 1940 the emperor delegated all refugee work to Prof. Herbert Stanley Jevons (except for the initiatives in India, which were led by Wärqenäh). Wärqenäh’s efforts from 1936 to 1938 focused largely on the Sudan and British Somaliland. Egypt, Yemen and Jibuti are occasionally mentioned in his diary, but really only in passing. Later they were concerned almost exclusively with India. Sudan was the initial priority for Wärqenäh, partly because so many Ethiopians fled westward after the Italians entered Addis Ababa, but mostly because his two sons Yuséf and Benyam helped organize Ethiopian resistance against the Italians in Western Ethiopia and their major link with the outside world was through the Sudan. Furthermore, Wärqenäh’s close friend and co-owner of their gold and platinum concession in Wälläga, Fitawrari Déréssa, escaped from the Italians and fled into the Sudan. He asked for and received Wärqenäh’s aid while he was in exile in the Sudan. Then in April 1936 a former British Consul in Western Ethiopia, H.C. Hawkins discussed with him the possibility of establishing a ‘city of refuge for Abyssinian refugees, men women and children in the Sudan’. Wärqenäh did not think it feasible but passed on the scheme to the emperor. Nothing came of it. During 1936 and 1937 large numbers of Ethiopian refugees 259

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London & India fled to the Sudan where they were assisted largely by the Sudanese Government, but also by the funds Wärqenäh had raised. Wärqenäh seems to have been more involved in refugee work in British Somaliland than he was in the Sudan. By mid-April 1937, Wärqenäh spoke to officials in the British Foreign Office about 1,300 Ethiopian refugees who had recently crossed into British Somaliland, especially from Harar province. Later that month, he had clothing and money sent to the refugees there through missionaries he had known while governor of Chärchär province who were now based in Somaliland. At the same time a new society was formed for collecting funds for these refugees and Wärqenäh helped to send doctors and medicines to them. He was also involved the following year in trying to prevent the British Somaliland authorities from sending their Ethiopian refugees back to Ethiopia. Wärqenäh was involved longer and more deeply in the issue of Ethiopian refugees in India than in any other part of the world. This largely occurred because of his desire to retire to India and he felt it was his duty to help Ethiopian refugees to settle in India where he had a wide network of contacts and possible financing to help them. He felt that once in India he could personally intervene on their behalf. He first went into detail in his diary about his plans for India in a conversation with Ethiopia’s Foreign Minister Heruy Wäldä Sellasé in September 1937: Told him I wanted to go and buy some land to help some Ethiopian refugees and to educate my children and live cheaply. Also told him if the Emperor wanted me to do something on the way in connection with refugees I was ready to serve.

The next year he continued working on going to India, saying that he planned to retire in Dehra Dun in the foothills of the Himalayas where his adoptive mother and father had died. He came up with various schemes to finance settling Ethiopian refugees in India. Initially he planned to use some of the profits that had been made from the sale of the Ethiopian legation in London, later he tried appealing to well off Indians of his acquaintance, and finally he tried to raise a £10,000 loan in Britain, either from the government or from private sources. None were successful. Ultimately the only refugees Wärqenäh was able to assist in India were a few close family members.

Wärqenäh, his ideology, political views & the major themes of his writings During Wärqenäh’s five years in London his ideology and political views went through significant change and development. During the 1920s and 1930s, as we have seen, he was a Liberal, staunch supporter of the League of Nations and probably the greatest defender of Britain among Ethiopian intellectuals. However, unlike Afä Wärq Gäbrä Yäsus his views changed as time passed. While his belief in the ‘golden rule’ never wavered, his views on race and imperialism underwent significant change. At the very core, in his heart, 260

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 morality was pre-eminent. The ‘golden rule’ drove both his public and private actions, something that comes through strikingly in his diary, his speeches and published articles from 1935 to 1940s. Most prominent as well is an oldfashioned British middle-class sense of justice and fair play. Intellectually Wärqenäh’s articles and speeches focused on a whole range of major themes during his ambassadorship in London from 1935 to 1940. His major focus was on the ‘Golden Rule’, along with the need for fair play, toleration and being a ‘gentleman’ in politics. At the same time he emphasized Ethiopian nationalism while depending on Britain and the League of Nations to do the ‘right thing.’ Neither racism, the ‘clash of color’, nor imperialism were initially major themes, but slowly gained more and more prominence. As the Wal Wal crisis turned to open conflict and Britain and the League proved to be more and more ineffectual in resolving the crisis, Wärqenäh became more and more critical of the British, questioning the League more harshly and moved further left ideologically accusing the European powers of imperialism. Wärqenäh also developed several powerful arguments with which to confront the Italians during their invasion of Ethiopia. The first, and most common, was to compare Italy to a ‘thief ’ who was ‘robbing’ an innocent Ethiopia while the rest of the world stood by and did nothing. The second was more novel, used medical parallels based on his medical background. He compared Italy and Mussolini to a disease which would spread uncontrolled throughout the world unless it was swiftly controlled and then eradicated. The world did not listen and would pay the price. All these themes and arguments are clearly and copiously expressed in his speeches and in articles in New Times and Ethiopia News, to a far greater degree than scholarship has so far explored. The ‘Golden Rule’ This was the major theme on which he focused while ambassador and appears consistently in his speeches and published articles. Suffused throughout was an emphasis on what was Christian and ‘civilized’ personally and nationally. Italy’s concentration on its ‘civilizing mission’ was directly countered by Wärqenäh’s questioning whether its actions were in fact civilized. In other words, he asked, who was more civilized, the aggressor state Italy, or Ethiopia? Ethiopia was clearly following the dictates of the League of Nations. The first example occurred in one of Wärqenäh’s earliest speeches: [W]hy won’t they [Italians] follow the most elementary and yet the most fundamental rule of all good religions and conduct, viz. ‘Do as you would be done by’ or as we would say, ‘Don’t do to others what you would not like done to you’.30

He also returned forcefully to this theme after his ambassadorship at the Court of St. James had ended: [Italy’s declaration of war on Great Britain] has ...forced on some Powers the oppor­ tunity to make amends as far as possible for the serious error committed a few years   Wärqenäh family private papers in Addis Ababa. See file on speeches. ‘Speech delivered after a dinner given by Mr. Rhys Davis M.P. in the House of Commons on July 22nd, 1935 by Azaj Warqneh Martin.’ 30

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London & India ago in sacrificing high principles for an ill-conceived self-interest, forgetting for a time ‘The Golden Rule’.31 If the ‘Golden Rule’ is not adhered to as our guiding principle, then surely there will be no real peace and prosperity.32

Nationalism Wärqenäh’s Ethiopian nationalism is an even more consistent theme throughout his speeches, articles and even letters to the editor. More often than not it is stated implicitly, rather than explicitly, but nonetheless it permeates all his writing. An early example of this sentiment came in a speech he gave to the Nile Society in London and then later in the newspaper New Times and Ethiopia News: In conclusion, Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to submit that all we Ethio­pians want is impartial justice and to get permission to obtain the means with which to defend ourselves against aggression. We don’t want any other nations to get embroiled in war or other difficulties on our behalf, for we feel certain that with the favour of our just Creator and the sympathy and prayers of our well-wishers, given a fair fight we shall not fail to defeat anyone who unjustly tries to take our beloved country and independence. Anyway, if we don’t succeed we shall certainly not live to be any one’s slaves, that is as certain as I have the honour to stand before you.33

Further sentiments expressing his Ethiopian nationalism occur in his writing from 1937 to 1943 accentuating it as a driving force in his intellectual life.34 Racism Racism was not raised as often as the ‘Golden Rule’, nationalism or imperialism by Wärqenäh but is nevertheless a prominent theme in his speeches and writing. The coloured nations of the world will say, and say it with bitterness and with truth, that the European nations are not impartial but favour each other at the expense of justice to the coloured people….that this crime would never be tolerated if the nation thus attacked were European.35

A month or so later he put his case more forcefully. I wish to draw your attention to the fact that this diabolic method of warfare which is being practised by Italy in Ethiopia is a serious menace to the whole of Europe and white people, for while the backward and coloured races are quite ready to fight a fair fight man to man in defence of their country and interests, they cannot understand this diabolic method of killing their wives, children and cattle by means of poison   See New Times and Ethiopia News, June 14, 1941, ‘Ethiopia’s Future’ by Dr. Martin. [Henceforth, NTEN]. 32   NTEN December 6, 1941. See also Wärqenäh family private papers, ‘Lecture delivered October 14th, 1935 at the Bank Buildings in 9 St. James Street where Miss Farquharson had a reception in my honor.’ See also NTEN 23.5.1936, 20.2.1937, 7.11.1936. 33   Wärqenäh family private papers in Addis Ababa. See file on speeches. ‘HIS EXCELLENCY the ETHIOPIAN MINISTER’S Speech made on the 3rd September, 1935 at the meeting held by the Nile Society.’ See the last page. 34   See for instance NTEN 20.11.1937,10.5.1941 & 8.5.1943. 35   Wärqenäh family private papers in Addis Ababa. See file on speeches. ‘HIS EXCELLENCY the ETHIOPIAN MINISTER’S Speech made on the 3rd September, 1935 at the meeting held by the Nile Society.’ 31

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 gas bombs. Therefore I warn you that this will create such serious animosity and ill-feeling between the coloured and white races that there will be no peace between them for years to come. Allow me to tell you that Italy is not only trying to kill off the Ethiopians but is incidentally killing off all hope of good will in the world.36

Discrimination and race were lifelong themes in Wärqenäh’s life and he returned to them often in his public statements.37 As we shall see shortly he was willing to attack imperialism forcefully, but rarely, if ever, used class analysis. From his writings it is clear that race trumped class, for he was basically too conservative to ever take a solidly socialist or Marxist stand, much less attack class divisions in Britain. Imperialism Imperialism was a regular political theme during the same period and continued to appear throughout the 1930s and 1940s, becoming more strident as the years passed. Wärqenäh knew all the old jingoistic buttons and was adept at pushing them. Interestingly enough the word imperialism occurs only rarely in Wärqenäh’s diary, but very much more in his speeches and articles. In his first two years as ambassador Wärqenäh refers to imperialism only three times and each time it is not prominent and used to buttress a subsidiary argument.38 For instance, in a speech in October 1935 he refers to the ‘cruel imperialistic ambition’ of Italy.39 However, by 1937 Wärqenäh wrote an article entitled ‘Imperialism versus Peace’ where his attack on imperialism is forceful. The article begins: I do not think any sensible unprejudiced person will deny that one of the principal causes which militate against the peace of this world is imperialism, which, in plain language, means taking away by force and fraud from weaker nations or peoples their country and liberty. Imperialism, in short is political robbery on a large scale.... The apologists of imperialism try to maintain that European imperialism had done a world of good to the backward and uncivilised peoples whose countries they have generously taken over. This is as much to say that so long as you have allowed the owner, whose house and home you have forcibly taken, sufficient food to eat, so that he may live and continue to slave for you, you have done no harm.40

Later in his career, after he returned to Ethiopia he used stronger language and, for the first time directly attacked England. Pacifism Pacifism was an argument that Wärqenäh used rarely and only after conflict had begun with Italy did he speak directly against pacifism. Intellectually he agreed   Wärqenäh family papers in Addis Ababa. See file on speeches: ‘Lecture delivered October 14, 1935 at Bank Buildings in 9 St. James Street where Miss Farquharson had a reception in my honour’. 37   See also: NTEN 13.6.1936; 23.1.37; 14.8.37 and 14.9.40. 38   See for instance NTEN 22.8.1936. 39   Wärqenäh family private papers in Addis Ababa. See file on speeches. ‘Lecture delivered October 14th, 1935 at the Bank Buildings in 9 St. James Street where Miss Farquharson had a reception in my honor.’ 40   NTEN January 2, 1937, ‘Imperialism versus Peace’ p. 3. 36

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London & India with pacifism in abstract principle, but realistically it was not within him a deep conviction41 and he had difficulty understanding how it could be for others: In my opinion, Peace with honour is the best policy in this world, and can only be attained by immediate and efficient resistance to wickedness and rapacity. Whatever the pacifist non-resister may say of it, the fact remains that evil and illness, being unfortunate facts of our present state of evolution, we must maintain our struggle against them, or the result will be utter disaster to the world.42

He could also be more bitter and intense in his arguments as he said in 1936.43 Some selfish rich people and some bigoted pacifists will take exception to my saying that, if need be, force must be used to suppress crime and lawlessness. That this is quite a correct view, however, can easily be proved by putting some of the enthusiastic and idealistic pacifists in a country where there is no proper police and judicial administration.

Overall, the Golden Rule, nationalism and race play a larger role in his rhetoric than imperialism or pacifism. In so very many ways Wärqenäh was quite con­ serva­tive and traditional; it was really only Italy’s blatant invasion of Ethiopia and England’s standing aside and doing very little that drove him to the rhetorical heights we have just explored.

Major arguments used by Wärqenäh from 1935 to the 1940s Wärqenäh not only directly addressed the major issues of his day (nationalism, racism, fascism, imperialism and pacifism) but also used some quite original and idiosyncratic arguments to rouse public opinion against Italy. These included comparing Italy to a robber and using medical analogies to clarify the impact of Italy’s aggression. Italy as robber The first, most consistent and common analogy used by Wärqenäh throughout his speeches and articles, was to compare Italy to a criminal or robber; thus apply­ ing personal morality to international affairs. This is also his major argument against imperialism which was often powerful and moving. He uses this analogy from 1935 to the 1940s, changing it somewhat with the changing fortunes of war. It is quite incomprehensible to me how a just and honest judge can condemn an indisputably criminal act one day and after sometime can condone the act, recognize it as just and can make friends with the condemned criminal. All this under the plea that   For instance, in his diary he never indicates any propensity towards this position.   NTEN 22nd August, 1936, p. 1. ‘Peace With Honour’. See also, NTEN 1st August, 1936, page 1. ‘Ethiopia To-day’. 43   See for instance, NTEN 22nd May, 1936. 41 42

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 he is a realist and the crime has been successfully accomplished. If success and realism exonerate a political crime and the bold aggressor why punish ordinary criminals?44

Once Italy had occupied and conquered most of Ethiopia’s towns (but not its countryside) circumstances had changed and now Italy sought not just ‘de facto’ recognition of her conquest, but also ‘de jure’ recognition. It is then that Wärqenäh’s argument is more sophisticated. Suppose a powerful robber or brigand attacked the rightful owner of an estate and occupied it for some time. I take it that the brigand is de facto in possession of the estate or property, but of course not de jure, i.e., justly and legally. That being the position, has the brigand any right to claim all moneys, loans or profits owing to the victim personally, or, even as the head or representative of some institution or business? Has the brigand any right whatsoever in a court of justice, except to be ‘hauled over the coals’ for his evil deed, if the judge has any power to do so? To my mind by the above simple example being on all fours with the position of Ethiopia at present, the aggressor [Italy] does not seem to have any claim whatsoever. However, I shall be glad to be corrected if I am mistaken in my opinion and argument.45

Finally, he developed the same argument to apply to the post-conflict situation, after Italy’s defeat in 1941, arguing against the possibility of Italy maintaining control of Eritrea or Italian Somaliland after World War II was over: ‘It would be a mistake to merely drive a robber out of a house, yet leave him in possession of the entrances thereto [that is the ports of Assäb and Massawa]’.46 Wärqenäh used the analogy of the criminal consistently over such a long period from 1935 to 1938,47 which seems to indicate that it was most persuasive. Use of medical analogies Less predictable as an argument and also very convincing were the medical analogies that Wärqenäh used in his speeches and articles. He did not use this set of analogies as often, but increasingly applied them after the crisis with Italy crept into its second year, began to spread to Spain (and other parts of Europe) and as he got more confident in his role as a major propagandist for Ethiopia. He did not use a medical analogy in his early speeches, before the establishment of New Times and Ethiopia News but only after he had written over a dozen articles for the news magazine.48 Here are a few examples of his rhetoric. A proof is before us now, vide, the trouble in Spain, which would not have occurred if, disregarding fear and all selfish considerations, the germ of the pestilence had been nipped in the bud.   Wärqenäh family private papers in Addis Ababa. See file on speeches. ‘Speech delivered by CWM [Charles Warqneh Martin] on the 16th Sep 1935 in Chesterfield Salon in 27B Charles St., Berkeley Sq. W. 1.’ 45   NTEN, 6th November, 1937. ‘‘De Facto’ & De Jure’’. 46   NTEN, 14th June, 1941. ‘Ethiopia’s Future.’ See also 10.5.1941 for the argument phrased somewhat differently. 47   Other brief references, usually as a subsidiary argument, can be found in NTEN in the issues of: 1.8.1936; 22.8.1936; 22.5.1937; 11.9.1937; 18.9.1937; 26.2.1938 & 21.5.1938. 48   NTEN, August 29th, 1936. ‘Common Justice versus High Politics’. See also NTEN, 26.9.36, 1.5.37, 19.6.37 and 27.11.37. 44

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London & India It will certainly be much more difficult to stamp out the pestilence now that it has got a clear start and has become strong and wide-spread; but done it must be, and that without delay, else the result I am afraid will be much more serious than that of 1914 (which God forbid).49

Wärqenäh’s changing views on Britain & the League of Nations Finally, in order to understand the changes over time of Wärqenäh’s ideas and views, it is instructive to trace his attitudes towards the League of Nations and Great Britain from 1935 to 1943. Wärqenäh had been a staunch defender of Britain his whole life, he was a creature of the empire and his upbringing within it had forged very strongly supportive views. From the time he first arrived in Ethiopia in 1899 and throughout his long residence in his homeland he strongly defended the British, especially against the intrigues of the French. He was probably Britain’s strongest supporter among Ethiopia’s elite. Intertwined with his support of Great Britain was his support of the League of Nations. From the earliest days of the conception of the League by Wilson during World War I he supported its ideals. While France and Italy first supported Ethiopia’s entry, Wärqenäh saw Great Britain’s role as key in the long term importance of collective security to Ethiopia’s very existence, especially after the crisis of Wal Wal. When the League prevaricated and delayed and finally betrayed Ethiopia, Wärqenäh still held on to the hope that Britain would be ‘just’ and ‘fair’. Thus he still hoped for British support for Ethiopia even after his trust in the League waned. Furthermore, his trust in the British people, as distinct from the British government, outlasted the Italian invasion, occupation and defeat. He lost faith in the League and its leadership, but not in its basic concept and ideals. His speeches and articles are eloquent in pressing his case. His speeches showed great faith in the League until the Arbitration board decided that neither side, Italy or Ethiopia was to blame in the Wal Wal incident: ‘In conclusion I must point out that whatever further unjust step is taken by the League of Nations the Ethiopians will still continue to fight to the bitter end.’50 After the Italians invaded Ethiopia on October 3, 1935, Wärqenäh still looked to the League to take action to stop Italy’s aggression, to impose effective sanctions, to stop the use of chemical warfare, to stop the bombing of civilians and Red Cross units, and to help to bring the conflict to an end.51 The title of his first article in New Times and Ethiopia News in May 1936 is indicative, ‘We Trusted the League’. We only ask fair play.

  NTEN, June 19, 1937, page 2. ‘Better Late Than Never’.   Wärqenäh family private papers in Addis Ababa. See file on speeches. ‘Speech delivered by CWM [Charles Warqneh Martin] on the 16th Sep 1935 in Chesterfield Salon in 27B Charles St., Berkeley Sq. W. 1.’ 51   See Wärqenäh family private papers in Addis Ababa. ‘QUESTIONS WHICH MIGHT BE ASKED’, Suggestions distributed amongst the members of Parliament on 30 March ‘36. See also ibid., ‘Speech Delivered by H.E. the Ethiopian Minister in London at the Nile Society Meeting at Park Lane Hotel on May 11th, 1936.’ 49 50

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 The League of Nations is the embodiment of the nations of the world. It should see that justice is done and not leave the victims of aggression to be destroyed, merely to spare itself trouble and difficulty....52

This article makes clear that the roles of the League and Britain intertwine in the Ethiopian crisis and then he goes on to compare the League to an insurance company that defaults. The title of Wärqenäh’s next article, ‘Nero Fiddled While Rome Burned’, dramatically points out that ‘The League of Nations has been talking while Ethiopia burned.’53 He advocated major change in the League as the title of a later article makes clear: ‘Reformation of the League of Nations.’ A League of Nations was no doubt a splendid conception. It is to be regretted that, like many other idealistic schemes, it has not become a practical and efficient institution to secure the main object for which it was created.54

At the end of 1936 the actions of the League and Britain were especially intertwined. I dare say you remember that it was on account of the timid and vacillating policy of the League of Nations under the leadership of the British Government that Ethiopia was eventually let down and was delivered up into the hands of a powerful and cruel aggressor. For had not the Emperor and the people of Ethiopia put their whole trust in the Covenant of the League which some of the British ministers firmly and repeatedly asserted would be upheld and respected by the British Government, had Britain not imposed an unfair arms embargo, and had she and the League not refused to render financial help, Ethiopia would not have been crushed and overrun by the aggressor to the shame and dishonour of the League. Had we not been misled we could have easily stopped the aggressor in the beginning before he had accumulated an enormous amount of armaments and soldiers on her frontier.55

Wärqenäh, Great Britain & the British People While Wärqenäh continued strong in his belief in and support for the ideals of the League, he also continued, throughout his life, to believe in the British people. In his view they and not the British government strongly supported the Ethiopian cause. However, the Italian invasion and the British government’s actions seem to have deeply shaken his faith in the British government and the British establishment. The 1930s were a watershed in his attitude towards Britain. In May of 1936 when Wärqenäh turned for support to Britain after the emperor was forced to flee Ethiopia as Italy was on the verge of capturing Addis Ababa. We hear much of the sympathy of Europe for Ethiopia; above all the sympathy of Britain. If that sympathy is practical, sufficient help will be available to enable Ethiopia to vanquish her enemy without difficulty.

    54   55   52 53

NTEN,16.5.1936. NTEN, 23.5.1935, page 1. NTEN, 12.9.1936, ‘Reformation of the League of Nations’, page 5. Ibid., 19.12.1936, page 5. ‘Martin at Caxton Hall’.

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London & India The Emperor of Ethiopia is coming to Britain. He has heard of the great support of the British people for his country’s cause. Let us see how this great support will be practically shown.56

Through the beginning of July Wärqenäh retained his faith in Britain57, but by July 1936 he began to make a distinction between the British people’s continuing support and the British government’s lack thereof. [L]et me tell you that it was I who was principally the man who had been praising, of course truthfully, among the Ethiopian people, the virtues and trustworthiness of my life-long friends the British people; of their love of justice and fair play and of their tradition to help the weak and the innocent. Now you can imagine how unhappy and disappointed I have been to see the name and prestige of my old benefactors being now discredited.58 [In a speech in the Westminster Palace Rooms on December 6, 1936 he said:] Please pardon me for saying so: I think many people have good reason for complaining against the British people, who, though they are a democratic and fair-minded people, have calmly permitted the League of Nations to be made almost useless and have allowed, first, the Chinese, then the Spanish and the Ethiopian peoples to be so cruelly invaded and massacred.59

The final chapter in Wärqenäh’s relationship with British government can be seen in his cutting criticism of the Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement and Military Convention of 1942.60 This is a protest on behalf of the people of Ethiopia, and my own humble criticism of the ‘Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement’ and ‘the Military Convention’ attached thereto. While the people of Ethiopia are of course very grateful to Britain for the valuable help given to them in defeating the ‘Common Enemy,’ and in driving him out of their country, they very much regret to observe that the special credit due to Great Britain for helping Ethiopia has been much discounted by the facts.

Wärqenäh goes on to unstintingly attack Britain in detail on both these measures, accusing her of ‘betrayal’, ‘Violating the League of Nations’ Covenant and breaking Britain’s word of honour’, ‘helping Italian aggression’, ‘allowing poison gas to be conveyed to Africa and used by the aggressor on defenseless Ethiopian men, women and children’, and ‘racial discrimination’ among many other charges. It would be hard to find another Ethiopian who publicly and consistently defended the cause of Ethiopia so compellingly as Wärqenäh from 1935 to 1942. His articles in New Times and Ethiopia News, some sixty-two of them, are a sustained body of published work by a major Ethiopian progressive that have often been overlooked by scholars. His speeches are passionate and persuasive, retaining until today their power and freshness.       59   60   56 57 58

NTEN, 6.6.1936, page 1. ‘Wait and See While Murder is Done’. See for instance NTEN, 13.6.1936. NTEN 27.11.1937, page 7. ‘Eloquent Home Truths’. NTEN, 15th February, 1941, page 1. ‘A Letter from Dr. Martin’. See NTEN, 8th May, 1943, page 2. ‘To the Justice Loving People of Britain’ for the quotes below.

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942

India, an uneasy retirement (1940–1942) Wärqenäh left for India after a long and difficult tour of duty in England, first as Ethiopia’s official diplomatic representative and then in a much more nebulous position when his accreditation was removed. The many and various reasons have already been explored. Once he reached India, he settled in quickly and quietly. At times he preferred to retire to India because it was less expensive and his pension would go further in India than in Britain. Furthermore, in 1940, virtually no one foresaw the swift fall of the Italian Empire of East Africa. Considering his seventy five years, Wärqenäh must have foreseen a long, perhaps life long, sojourn in India with a return to Ethiopia a very uncertain proposition. His major focus was on educating his children and carefully controlling his finances so that he would have enough to support his family members, many still in Italian prisons, whose release he was trying to obtain. However, he continued to act as a spokesman for Ethiopia and tried to maintain and expand his wide circle of friends and contacts, despite increasingly nagging and debilitating health problems. His autobiography is quite explicit about his reasons for leaving: To my great surprise and relief…the Foreign Office [of Great Britain] sent me the cheque for £1,000 – which was said to be a gift from an anonymouse [sic] donor, to help me to go to India. This made me decide to leave London as soon as possible and go to a place where I could leave cheaply as a common gentleman, than do in London as a deserted Minister.61

Trip from Great Britain to India Wärqenäh finally left Britain via Liverpool in September 1940 travelling by ship past South Africa and the Cape of Good Hope before arriving in Bombay at the end of October. He took with him his youngest children, Yohannes, Samuél, Liya and Dawit and also his nephew Abatä Boggalä. During the trip he worked on his autobiography and wrote drafts of speeches he planned to give and articles he hoped to publish in India. By this time Yohannes was old enough to help with his autobiography and typed a good deal of it. Throughout his time in India he was able to spend a good deal more time with his children than had been possible in England. The demands on his time there had been prodigious. After a busy few days of media exposure in Bombay, he hurried on to settle in at Dehra Dun a beautiful retirement town in the foothills of the Himalayas. For many years it has been known as a significant tourist and educational center with famous primary and secondary schools as well as centers of higher education. The British during the colonial period built some beautiful hill stations in these foothills, like Mussurie. Here they would come during the heat of the summer to take refuge in the cool highlands that reminded many of the Lake District of North England. By the time that Wärqenäh arrived, it was a major center for retiring British colonial administrators and military officers. Furthermore, both   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 159.

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London & India his adoptive parents, Robert and Elizabeth Clark, retired, died and were buried there. His old friend and college professor in Lahore, Professor Ismail, put him in touch with Sardar Khan who helped him with all the details of settling in with his young family in Dehra Dun and beginning his life anew. They spent a great deal of effort and time finding a house, renting it, furnishing it and sorting out all the details of running a household. Finding the right kind of light bulbs, curiously enough, was one of the more persistent problems, whether Swedish, British or local. However, his major aim was to find good schools for his children and dependents. Wärqenäh tried hard, in his usual fashion to pinch pennies and save money. His only income was his pension from his days working in Burma. The £1,000 anonymous gift from the United Kingdom had been spent on paying his expenses in Britain and on the steamer tickets to India. He placed Abatä in a school first, a local mission school, and only obtained places for his own children in the New Year. After a good deal of searching, research and investigation he settled on the prestigious Col. Brown’s School for his two sons, Yohannes and Samuél and St Thomas School for his daughter Liya. The younger Dawit was largely educated at home. Many years later Yohannes would remember his days at Col. Brown’s school with a fondness tinged with sharp memories of strict discipline.62 Wärqenäh insisted that all the children remain in school right up to the last possible minute, before their return to Ethiopia. Education always remained the major priority for Wärqenäh. He had sacrificed much for his children’s education. Second only to spending time with his family, tending to their illnesses, seeing to their education and fulfillment, Wärqenäh spent a good deal of his time acting as a major spokesman for Ethiopia in India between 1940 and 1942. It hardly needs pointing out that India was still a British colony until she became independent in 1947. He continued to try to defend Ethiopia’s interests as he saw them, speaking out on virtually every opportunity that presented itself. A large amount of his time was spent acting as a spokesman for Ethiopia. Most of his speeches were given in the first few months of his sojourn in India, he then concentrated on writing articles. During his last six or seven months in India he did neither, focusing on surmounting the bureaucratic hurdles that he needed to overcome in order to leave India and return to Ethiopia. His biggest flurry of public activity came during his first few months in India. While on the high seas he drafted articles, first for the South African press (which never seem to have seen the light of day) and then for the Indian press, before he arrived in Bombay. These he seems to have used when being interviewed by a wide variety of journalists after his arrival including: the Times of India, Reuters, the News Chronicle, the Bombay Chronicle, the Morning Standard, and the Sunday Standard. However, he probably reached his broadest audience when he read a statement on All India Radio at the beginning of November 1940.63 His diary entry for this day is revealing:   Interview with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, September 24, 2001.   WD, 5.11.1940 for this and following quote. Underlining Wärqenäh’s.

62 63

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 I broadcast my statement at 8.30 p.m. In my statement the Director asked me to delete the reference to the betrayal of Abyssinia by the League and also the suggestion to raise a voluntary Indian force to fight the Italians in East Africa. He told me that the Government had prohibited the raising of volunteer troops.

The next day he gave a speech on Ethiopia to the Indian Foreign Affairs Association in Bombay which was later published in the Modern Times of Madras, while the Statesman of Delhi published his letter to the editor64. Soon after his arrival in Dehra Dun he spoke to very different, local audiences including however, the cream of the hill station’s society. First he spoke at the local Doon College, then the Civil Guards Club and finally the local Rotary Club, all during December 1940. After this burst of speechifying he concentrated during the first eight months of 1941 on trying to publish his articles in the local, regional and British press. He sent them to a variety of local newspapers, including those in Lahore, regionally he sent them not only to those listed above but also the Madras Times. Besides the Manchester Guardian and the News Chronicle he also sent articles in Britain to Sylvia Pankhurst’s New Times and Ethiopia News. Locally only the Civil and Military Gazetteer published notes from his articles, as well as the Statesman and the Times Illustrated. The Hindustani Times saw fit to publish an editorial in support of Wärqenäh’s views that had appeared earlier in another paper. In Britain only the New Times and Ethiopia News published his articles. Wärqenäh was so disgusted with the Manchester Guardian (today’s Guardian) for refusing virtually all his articles that he cancelled his subscription. He was also careful to send copies of his articles, published and unpublished to important figures of his acquaintance including Mr Noel-Baker, Lord Snell, Prof. Jevons and Lloyd George. Through these public speeches and articles, along with his comments on them in his diary, a distinct shift in his views becomes more and more apparent. He was increasingly willing to condemn British imperialism and more and more likely to question British motives towards Ethiopia during and after the reconquest. He was especially angered about British and the Commonwealth’s racism against Ethiopia and suspicious that Britain sought to transform Ethiopia into another colony. As he points out in his autobiography on p.158: On 8 May, I received the joyful news that the Emperor had entered Addis Ababa as an honoured guest on 5th of the month, exactly on the day five years before, when the Italian forces had entered the town. With regard to ‘Ethiopia’s future’, I wrote an article which was published in the Manchester Guardian on 8 July 1941. In it I stated that ‘as the future prospects of Ethiopia since the Emperor Haile Selassie and his brave subjects are doing and will continue to do their utmost in fighting for their ancient independence of their country, without being called upon to make any sacrifice in return for the well deserved assistance, which is being rendered to them now. So in connection with this, I would like to make certain proposals that would help in preventing a future disaster, as a result of the failure to follow a straight forward and just policy.’

  WD, 6.11.1940, 18.11.1940 & 19.11.1940.

64

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London & India In my opinion, Ethiopia deserves not only a half-hearted justice, but also a suitable compensation for the horrible atrocities which were allowed by the League of Nations. I would therefore suggest that an assurance be given to His Majesty the Emperor that, in addition to the whole of Ethiopia as it was before the Italian aggression, the ports of Massawa and Assab and the coast between them should also be handed over to the Ethiopian Government as well as the province of Hamasen, now called Eritrea, all of which in reality, are a part of the ancient Empire of Ethiopia. I have taken the liberty to put forward these proposals, as I firmly believe that they would be helpful towards attaining peace and will at the same time enhance the reputation and prestige of the British Government and the British people.’

Wärqenäh also met with a number of major figures in India during his stay and discussed his views with them at length. Sir Abdul Qadir even held a ‘charming dinner’ in his honor: At dinner there were 7 gentlemen out of whom there were 2 Nawabs and there were 3 ladies. All the guests were Indian. The Indian poet whom I saw in England was there and he sang some of his poetry after dinner. Sir and Lady Abdul Qadir treated me as the principal guest and were very friendly. The dinner was splendid and the guests were very sympathetic towards Abyssinia. Returned home in Sir Abdul Q.’s car at 11.30 in which the poet went afterwards to his house in the model town.65

However, perhaps his most illustrious contact was with Nehru, the future prime minister of India: At about 4 p.m. went to the district Jail and saw Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru who is confined there for making speeches against cooperation in the War. Had long conversation with him and told him that it appeared to me very impractical and even unwise of the highly educated Indian gentlemen to assume the ‘Satayagraha’ or opposition attitude in the present case as it cannot do any good to the country and was absolutely against the general interest of the world. He of course maintained that as the British government have treated them [‘us’ crossed out] badly and in the case of this war had neglected to consult them he did not see why the Indians should be forced to go through the trials of the War…Had tea with him.66

His slip in referring to the Indians as ‘us’ is a fascinating one. His autobiography & self-justification Wärqenäh also spent a good deal of time and energy on his autobiography and organizing and putting in order his financial records for the emperor’s scrutiny, especially after Ethiopia was liberated and it became more and more likely that he would be able to return to Ethiopia. Throughout 1940 and 1941 Wärqenäh continued working on his autobiography. A goodly portion of it must have been written during this period and he refers on numerous occasions in his diary to going back to certain years of his diary to check facts and important   WD, 15.2.1941. See Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 162.   WD, 5.12.1940. Underlining in diary.

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 events. He is clearly concerned about his legacy, defending his life as he lived it and the actions he took. One particular area on which he focuses was the money he raised to help Ethiopia from 1935 to 1940 and checking the lists of donations and errors in them to justify his acts to himself, the donors, the world and perhaps, most particularly to the emperor. He spent an inordinate amount of time going through the long lists of donors, separating male from female donors, going through each list alphabetically from ‘A’ to ‘W’ and typing up reports of his findings. The emperor’s criticism of Wärqenäh’s handling of donations to Ethiopia in Britain had been a major reason for his falling out of favor and Wärqenäh seemed determined to exonerate himself by making the donor lists as transparent as possible. Health Now 75 years old, Wärqenäh’s health had continued to be a significant problem, but did not often prevent him from leading a full and vigorous life. His hypochondria was still notable, but his increasing age alone was forcing him to slow down the pace of his life. His trip to India seemed remarkably free of any significant health problems, although seasickness was sometimes a problem. He spent far more time caring for the health of his children than he did for his own. During 1941 a wide range of ailments tended towards the chronic including, heart irregularities, catarrh, gout, eye problems and incontinence. In late 1941 a long bout of fever, probably malaria, put him out of action for a while. But his constitution was remarkably strong, so that by January 1942, in the midst of tumultuous preparations to return to Ethiopia, he firmly announced in his diary that his health was ‘good’. Was he just so busy that his hypochondria had to subside for a while?

Return to Ethiopia (1941–1942) As we have seen Wärqenäh hoped his stay in India would be temporary, but made sure that his children’s educational needs would be seen to carefully. Once Italy declared war on the allies in June 1940, Wärqenäh must have realized that his chances of returning to Ethiopia relatively soon had increased significantly, although no one seems to have foreseen how quickly the Liberation of Ethiopia would occur. Especially after the Emperor Haylä Sellasé’s return to Ethiopia in January 1941 and the rapid liberation of Ethiopia from Italian rule, Wärqenäh began to think more and more seriously about organizing his return home. First he wrote to the viceroy of India trying to obtain an interview; it was declined on the grounds that the viceroy was ‘too busy’.67 Later the External Department of the Government of India answered one of his many letters with a refusal to give him permission to travel to the United Kingdom or to Ethiopia ‘because of the   WD, 12.1.1941 & 19.2.1941.

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London & India present situation.’68 He protested, saying that he and his family ‘are practically being condemned to internment.’69 Further correspondence obtained no relief and no permission to travel, leading Wärqenäh to note in his diary, ‘Here is [the] British sense of justice of these days.’70 Wärqenäh was not an individual who gave up easily, so he next decided to try to use his network of contacts and friends. The eldest son of his closest Indian friend, Prof. Ismail, was Parvez who was Deputy Commissioner in Simla. In mid July 1941, Wärqenäh traveled to Simla to see them both, so that they could go over all his correspondence and see what could be done. Parvez ‘promised to have the matter settled for me.’71 He later found out that the Government of India had referred the matter of a travel permit for Wärqenäh to the British government. Wärqenäh had already written to the British Foreign Office and the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs ‘to instruct Government of India to facilitate my early return to Ethiopia’.72 Up to this point, Wärqenäh seems to have been convinced that it was the India Office who was preventing his return to Ethiopia. Now he seems to have begun to seriously consider that it was the British Government who was responsible. In fact, it was Emperor Haylä Sellasé who was to blame for preventing his return to Ethiopia, something that he would not discover for some time. Up to the end of 1941, Wärqenäh was still accusing the Indian government, asking them for ‘subsistence allowance’, since he was ‘being kept in detention’ in India.73 Only in January of the next year does he note in his diary, without any further comment, that the emperor approved of his return to Ethiopia and asked the Indian Department of External Affairs for a permit for passage to Aden and Berbera. This was later confirmed when Sylvia Pankhurst forwarded to him a letter from Anthony Eden. This pointed out that it was the emperor who objected to Wärqenäh’s returning earlier.74 By then Wärqenäh had already given his landlord one month notice that he planned to leave and was making all the necessary preparations to return home to Ethiopia. Archival and other sources have revealed that the true reason for Wärqenäh’s extended stay in India, and inability to get permission to return home to Ethiopia earlier was due to the emperor. As we have seen in an earlier chapter, tension between Wärqenäh and the emperor had steadily grown during the late 1930s. The emperor avoided a personal confrontation and, as we have seen, only after meeting with the empress did he discover the real situation. The main reason, among many was the emperor’s questioning of Wärqenäh’s handling of the donations to the Ethiopian cause in the United Kingdom.75 The clearest statements came in November 1941.     70   71   72   73   74   75   68 69

WD, 26.5.1941. WD, 15.6.1941. WD, 9.7.1941. WD, 15 to 20.7.1941. See especially WD, 15.7.1941. WD, 1.8.1941. WD, 11.12.1941. WD, 22.1.1941. PRO 371/24639/1564/ page 124, Thompson to Colville, 20.7.1940.

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‘So the whole thing is finished’ 1936–1942 The question whether Dr. Martin should return to Ethiopia or not is, and always has been, one for the Emperor. H.M.G. [Her Majesty’s Government - Great Britain] have issued no instruction on the matter.76 The Emperor wants to ask Martin ‘some pointed questions about his spending, or accounting for, Ethiopian money and about unpd [unpaid] rent for the Ethiopian Legation in London.’77

Only after the emperor had agreed was the India Office ready to allow Wärqenäh to travel back to Ethiopia. There were many, many delays and his voyage from Aden to Berbera was especially arduous: I sat at the stern [of a small boat] and had to lie up as soon as the boat left as on account of the rough sea, it rolled and tossed a lot. Everyone was soon sea sick… By the evening I was quite ill as my heart did not work properly and I was sick and had headache. I passed a terrible night and was in fear that I shall not be able to get through alive. There was no room for the children and the other passengers to lie down properly.78

After many travails, Wärqenäh reached the Ethiopian center of Harar and called on the emperor’s favorite son ‘Prince Makunnen who was very affable’. The prince promptly delegated his guardian to take care of Wärqenäh and his party and accompany them to Dire Dawa and send them, without further problems, on their journey to Addis Ababa. We arrived at Addis Ababa at about 10 A.M. and were received by the girls and some other friends. There was no trouble about our luggage which was taken straight to the house near the old Municipal office while I went to the upper palace and saw the Emperor and Empress with David and then came to the house which has been greatly changed by the Italians by adding some rooms to the front part of the house.79

His journey over, an elderly but still sprightly Wärqenäh had to adjust to a new life in an Ethiopia much changed by the Italian and British occupations.     78   79   76 77

PRO 371/2752/3513, page 23, Gilbert MacKereth for Eden to C.I. Mathews esq., 15.11.1941. Ibid., Memo, November 11, 1941. WD, 5.4.1942. WD, 13.4.1942.

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12 Ethiopia FAMILY & ELDER STATESMAN

(1942–1952)

Wärqenäh returned home to Ethiopia with World War II still raging in North Africa, the Middle East and throughout the world. Worldwide the news had been full of stories of the liberation of Ethiopia from Italian rule; significant because the empire was often described as ‘the first to be freed’ from Fascism. Wärqenäh, at that time, was a prominent critic of the British, accusing them of refusing to give Ethiopia the full independence she had been promised. Now nearly seventy-seven years old, he returned to an Ethiopia much changed by the Italian occupation. With his retirement to India in 1940, his public career appeared to be over, but he remained remarkably active and was often consulted as a statesman and elder especially from 1942 to 1945. A moment of real joy came to him in 1943: On 23 July 1943, Mussolini resigned his position as the Fascist leader and ran away from Italy, while the King of Italy took his place and appointed Marshal Badoglio as Prime Minister. Mussolini marched into Rome as Fascist ‘Lord and Master’ on 23 October 1922 and finally fell after about 20 years and 9 months, ‘a good riddance of bad rubbish’.1

As we shall see, Wärqenäh was occasionally urged to re-enter the political fray in Ethiopia, but these efforts did not bear fruit. 1944 and 1945 saw major turning points in both his public and private life. By this time his extended family was well established in the upper ranks of the Ethiopian bureaucracy and many were looked on with favor by the emperor. The last decade of his life saw a significant hand over of power and influence to the next generation of his family. His role in the public sphere had almost completely waned, but he still had an important role to play in Ethiopia through the private sphere, that of his family. The public and private spheres of his life overlapped even more in his waning years, at least through the end of 1945. This was most clearly seen in his relationship with the emperor.

  Wärqenäh Autobiography, in the family’s possession, p. 171. [Henceforth Wärqenäh Autobiography].

1

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952

Wärqenäh & his relations with Emperor Haylä Sellasé Wärqenäh rebuilt his relationship with the emperor quite quickly and he was clearly an elder statesman and advisor of some note. After his return from India, he met with the emperor about once a week but his relations were not as close as they had been. His years were beginning to weigh on him and some meetings with the emperor lasted over an hour, but he did not conduct as much public business as he had before the Italian invasion of Ethiopia. His major role was in critiquing Britain’s domineering role in Ethiopia. Several times it seems, he was seriously considered for a high position in the Ministry of Interior, in the sphere of health, and also, at least once as a possible governor of his old province of Chärchär. Throughout the early 1940s he took seriously his role as an intermediary, presenting petitions and applications to the emperor at virtually every meeting with him and trying to intercede not only on behalf of family or friends, but also to help the weak and lowly, especially former students and assistants. A crisis in his public life came in 1945 when he fell out of favor with the emperor and his scheduled weekly meetings with the emperor ended. They then met only very occasionally and briefly on public occasions. By the end of 1945 Wärqenäh had completely retired to private life, while his wife, children (but mainly his eldest daughters) and in-laws wielded much more influence in the court and with the emperor than he did. Wärqenäh fits quite well into Bahru Zewde’s observation that after 1930 some of the first generation of Ethiopian intellectuals, those who were most independent, were ‘banished’ by the emperor 2 to diplomatic posts in Europe and in other ways marginalized. Wärqenäh, for instance was sent to London, Täklä Hawaryat to Paris and Afäwärq Gäbrä Yäsus to Rome. Furthermore, after the liberation Wärqenäh became especially critical of the 1942 and 1944 Agreements that the emperor signed with Britain which may have been further reasons for his marginalization. After the liberation the emperor increased his power at the center in Ethiopia so greatly that it eclipsed all his pre-1935 efforts in that regard. Wärqenäh is perhaps, most widely known after the liberation for his sharp critique of the Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement of 1942. Most prominent was his letter which was published in New Times and Ethiopian News on May 8, 1943 by Sylvia Pankhurst of which excerpts follow.3 After the enemy [Italy] was defeated with Ethiopian co-operation, Ethiopia was held by Great Britain as ‘enemy territory,’ i.e. a territory belong[ing] to Italy and under that excuse instead of leaving the country as an independent State, with all the armament captured from the Italians for the defence of the country, arms and machinery, etc., were forcibly taken away. Is it not an unfair and even suspicious policy to leave poor Ethiopia defenceless against the ‘common enemy’?...   Bahru Zewde, Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century (James Currey, 2002), p. 210. [Henceforth Bahru, Pioneers]. 3   New Times and Ethiopia News, May 8, 1943. [Henceforth, NTEN] 2

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Effective Ethiopian civil administration and jurisdiction could have been imme­ diately established but for the evil propaganda and intrigues of the imperialist agents [British].

Once the agreement was signed, the emperor shared a copy of it with Wärqenäh and a few days later as he notes in his diary: ‘finished my examination and criticism of the Agreement and Military Convention, both are absolutely imperialistic in nature.’4 As has been pointed out in an earlier chapter, his critique of Great Britain and its role in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa, continued to sharpen. As he would say to the emperor two months later, he should have followed a ‘stronger policy’ toward Great Britain. I walked to the Gibbi and saw the Emperor, we had a long talk about matters con­ cerning the defence of the country and about the Agreement and Military Convention, advised him that he should follow a stronger policy in the future. He showed me a bit of correspondence about the A & M.C. [Agreement and Military Convention with Britain] giving the opinion of the C. [Commander] in chief of Kenya and in reply to the Emperor’s protest, absolute rot.5

He continued to advise the emperor on these issues until he fell out of favor in 1945. In August 1943 he even went so far as to say: ‘he did not seem firm...also told him to try and recover Eritrea. He was weak about that also.’ Three months later he described his conversation with the emperor thus: Saw the Emperor, he talked about the British Commission’s demand. They refuse to give up the railway and Ogaden and the reserved area which was taken over during the war and is shewn [sic] in the old agreement, 25 miles in width towards the coast from north of Jibuti to near Jijjiga. I again advised the Emperor to follow a strong policy even to the extent of threatening force.6

The threat of using force, was exceptional in the context of the times, and made Wärqenäh one of the emperor’s and Britain’s harshest critics. Once he saw the actual text of the final Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement of 1944, two months later Wärqenäh’s comment in his diary was succinct: Major Gashé Asaffa, temporary attendant on Sylvia Pankhurst, came and brought me a copy of the new Anglo Ethiopian Agreement. I went through it and was quite displeased as it is almost similar to the last one, quite unfair and imperialistic.7

These would not have been the words that the emperor cared to hear from an elder statesman and may have been one of the many reasons he fell out of favor. Wärqenäh remained one of the strongest critics of the emperor’s pragmatic policy towards the British in the Ethiopian court. Nonetheless, he remained in sufficient standing in the emperor’s eyes to be at least considered for two significant positions in the government of Ethiopia, Minister of Health and governor of Chärchär. Throughout the 1940s Wärqenäh’s diary reveals a     6   7   4 5

Wärqenäh diary in the family’s possession, 29.5.42. [Henceforth, WD]. WD, 18.7.1942. WD, 23.11.1944 WD, 16.1.1945.

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 man still involved with medicine and health professionals in Addis Ababa. He occasionally prescribed medicine for the emperor and sometimes for friends or relatives. On numerous occasions he met socially with prominent doctors, both Ethiopian and international. However, his involvement went further than this, for in 1942 he was officially offered a position, within the Ministry of Interior, as Director of Sanitary and Medical Works. The minister of the interior, at that time Däjazmach Mäkonnen Endalkachäw, formally offered him the position. He turned it down three days later. No explanation is given in his diary, but it was probably justified on grounds of his age and health. He was never actually offered the position of governor of Chärchär, but the emperor seems to have seriously considered doing so.8 Throughout the 1940s Wärqenäh followed events in Chärchär quite closely. He still owned land in the province and several of his protégés were still posted there. Local leaders sometimes sought his advice and counsel (including its Qadi) and governors posted to the province by the emperor also often sought guidance from his expertise and contacts before going to the profitable province. One of the post liberation governors was a former protégé, Fitawrari Keflé Dadi. Wärqenäh visited Chärchär in 1943 and ‘I was very grieved to see the town in such a dilapidated condition, as compared to the condition I had left it in 1935’.9

Wärqenäh’s fall from favor The years 1944 and 1945 were a significant transition in Wärqenäh’s life, both private and public. In those two years he met with his daughters and organized the transfer of his properties to his children, thus carefully preparing for the future. In the private sphere he could decide what would happen. However, in the public sphere, in his relations with the emperor he was largely powerless to influence the course of events. Nothing up to 1944 had seemed to indicate that there would be a serious change in the relationship between Wärqenäh and the emperor. In April, 1944, according to his diary, Wärqenäh asked the emperor ‘if he was annoyed with me as he had not seen me for such a long time [actually only a few weeks]. He swore that he was not. If he were he would plainly tell me. He was quite amiable.’10 Through the rest of 1944 and through May 1945, their relationship, indeed, seemed normal. Up to May 6, 1945 all seemed well, although in December, 1944 the emperor changed their regular weekly meeting from Thursday to Monday. During their meeting on May 6th, 1945 the emperor was ‘affable’ and they had a long conversation on ‘different topics.’ However, their next meeting did not go well: Went to the gibbi according to appointment at 10 A.M. Saw the Emperor and spoke to him about the maccaroni factory and showed him the last judgement of the High Court in which the Judge cancels his last Judgement and cancel the handing over of   See WD, 2.5.1942.   Wärqenäh Autobiography, p. 170. 10   WD, 27.4.1944. 8 9

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 the factory to me. The Emperor asked me to send him a copy of the Judgement and as usual was casual about it and other matters.11

Wärqenäh’s determination to pressure the emperor to have the macaroni factory given to him appears to have been central to his declining influence. The Italians had built it on his land, but it was also coveted by the emperor’s right hand man, Wäldä Giyorgis. As before, in London in the dispute over the Legation, the emperor finally came down in favor of Wäldä Giyorgis and Wärqenäh lost out. Almost a week later was when Wärqenäh gave his agreement to his family to divide up his last properties. Two days later he again met with the emperor. [S]aw H.M. after waiting for about 2 hours. He was affable and talked about the political state of affairs in Europe. Then we talked about the macaroni factory. Showed him the file on the subject. He asked to show it to Tafarra Warq his private Secretary which I did after leaving H.M. (In Tafarra’s office).12

With hindsight it is possible to say that the emperor’s delegation of Wärqenäh’s case to Täfärä Wärq, the emperor’s secretary, was a major deterioration in their relationship. The next few weeks brought increasingly worrisome problems. [Went to the palace] Saw Ato Tafarra Warq. He said he hadn’t gone through my papers yet which could have been done in half an hour! The Emperor sent word to say he was otherwise engaged, he could not see me today! Decided to go on Monday or Tuesday next again. Tafarra Warq gave me his car to drive back home in.13

When Wärqenäh went the next Tuesday to the palace, Täfärä Wärq claimed to have a cold and the emperor ‘was busy with Ras Kasa’. When Wärqenäh went to the palace the following week the situation had clearly deteriorated further. The Emperor has gone somewhere. Saw Ato Tafarra Warq. Asked him to settle question of the Maccaroni factory with the Emperor and to come and let me know His Majesty’s decision. Got back my file of correspondance re the Mac. Factory from Mr. T. W. [Täfärä Wärq]. Balambaras Ammanyu…later told me that I am disliked by the Emperor and Walda Giorgis and his brother.14

He met once more with the emperor in June and had a ‘hot discussion’ with Täfärä Wärq, but the diary is silent as to the subject under discussion.15 Since there is a gap of five months in the diary, it is not clear whether Wärqenäh again met with the emperor or not. Then the situation became even worse. He had to wait a long time before he was allowed to meet the emperor who ‘won’t listen’.16 Wärqenäh then decided to have his son-in-law Yelma Déréssa try to intervene with the emperor on his behalf. Clearly Wärqenäh’s influence was waning and much less. Towards the end of November came what was to prove to be a decisive break between Wärqenäh and the emperor.     13   14   15   16   11 12

WD, 10.5.1945. Underlining by Wärqenäh. WD, 18.5.1945. Underlining by Wärqenäh. WD, 24.5.1945. Underlining by Wärqenäh. WD, 1.6.1945. Underlining by Wärqenäh. WD, 28.6.1945. WD, 8.11.1945.

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 I saw the Emperor for a while. It was rather an unpleasant interview as he would not settle anything. Eventually he said that I was to tell all my business to Tafara Warq who will tell it to him. I came back home quite unhappy and disgusted.17

This was the last substantive meeting that Wärqenäh had with the emperor. Why the break had occurred was complex and might have been caused by a variety of factors including: Wärqenäh’s increasing age, his irascibility and perhaps his single-minded pursuit of gaining control of the macaroni factory. Most likely it was the influence of Wäldä Giyorgis that was the most significant factor. He had opposed Wärqenäh’s influence in England and was determined to prevent Wärqenäh from depriving his family of the lucrative Macaroni factory. Other factors may well have come into play: the slow and painful loss of influence, the indirect way that Wärqenäh was informed of his decline and the refusal of the emperor, despite personal assurances, to tell him to his face where they stood. Wärqenäh’s diary gives fascinating insights into how the emperor treated his courtiers, day to day, blow by blow. One of the diary’s greatest strengths is in revealing how drawn out and painful the severance of ties between the ruler and the courtier could be. Day by day, week by week, month by month and year by year, uncertainly prevailed; hope was balanced delicately by fear. It would be a little over a year before the two, emperor and progressive, would speak at length again. When they did, the emperor was genial.18 The next meeting was at a public gathering, the annual New Year’s festival when the emperor was ‘affable’.19 There were only two brief meetings in the following year, 1948, both at the emperor’s initiative and both largely dealt with the problems of Indians and the violence of Indian partition. After 1945 Wärqenäh had virtually no influence with the emperor. His family had to rely on the clout of Qätsälä and the next generation.

Wärqenäh as an intermediary, spokesman & general ombudsman & advocate Throughout the last decade of his life Wärqenäh never held any government position but he still wielded significant influence up to 1945. Mostly this depended on his relationship with and proximity to the emperor. As we have seen, Ethiopia was an autocratic state with Emperor Haylä Sellasé at the center. The closer you were to the emperor physically, the greater your power. Thus his privilege of having a weekly meeting with the emperor was key. Some of his time with the emperor was devoted to the significant policy issues of the day, whether they were foreign policy, relations with Great Britain, the affairs of the province of Chärchär or issues of medical or educational policy. Proximity and access to power also gave Wärqenäh the opportunity to try to intercede for his family,   WD, 22.11.1945.   WD 25.1.1947. 19   WD, 12.9.1947. 17 18

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 friends and those who less fortunate than himself and his family. Wärqenäh’s diary is generally detailed in describing his meetings with the emperor. The following is but one example of their meetings. Went to the palace and had long conversation with the Emperor on different subjects. As regards salt concession at Borana a statement is to be written and presented to him. Re two rifles for me I am told that Ras Ababa has been ordered to give me two so I must speak to the Ras about it. Re corrugated iron the Emperor said he did not think the Government had any. Re the mines at Yubdo, the matter is quite settled that I can talk about it with Yilma D. [Déréssa] The Emperor also told me that the man Rhigino Alexander and the subgovernor of Aira Yubdo Fit Taba Wase have been proved to be robbers. About making cement and lime he advised me to go to Dire Dawa and see the factories of different kinds. About the Abyssinians smoking cigarettes he agreed with me that something should be done to stop it. About my shops next to the double story house and about the rent of my houses and the mills he said he will order Yilma tomarrow. About Lakach’s [Wärqenäh’s sister] site he told me to bring her to the palace tomarrow. The Emperor has ordered me to get from India two electricians, 3 mechanics and 2 teachers. About Asaba Tafari Mistri’s [an Indian Wärqenäh knew in Chärchär] case he has taken the man’s application and has told me to tell him to speak to Ato Gabra Egziher. Re my letter to Miss Pankhurst the Emperor told me that Makunen Dasta was at the arodrome [sic] when the new Minister left for England so it is clear that M. lied when he told me that he did not see the Minister.20

These meetings were the key to the influence that he had in the 1940s. However, he spent a good deal of his time and energy during the 1940s acting as an intermediary, spokesman or advocate for many, many people. He maintained a firm moral compass and spent a goodly part of his life acting as an ombudsman for the poor and disadvantaged. Most of his life was focused on living up to the golden rule and ‘doing the right thing.’ Before the war with Italy, he had held a wide variety of positions for the Ethiopian government which absorbed most of his energy. Now that he had no formal role in government more of his energy and time was devoted to helping a remarkably diverse range of people, not just Ethiopians but also large numbers of foreigners. Symbolically, during the last five years or so of his life, he began to distribute alms to the poor weekly, usually every Sunday.21 It is clear from his diary that his primary focus was on his family and its security, especially his major source of income, his and his family’s land holdings. Next came those who had been or were close to him as friends and associates, especially his former protégés, students and assistants. Then came a variety people involved in causes close to his heart, individuals involved in education, medicine and missionary work. He also continued to intercede for individuals who came from his old province of Chärchär, especially the Adal or Danakil. Finally, he spent a good deal of time as an advocate for the disadvantaged, the poor, widows and prisoners.   WD, 16.9.1942. Underlining is by Wärqenäh. Other examples might be: WD, 22.2.1943, 3.4.1943, 27.5.1943 & 16.11.1944. 21   See for instance, WD, 25.1.1948 & 12.9.1948. 20

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Wärqenäh spent a good deal of his time trying to advance the interests of his family and interceding for them with the emperor. However, it is clear that these activities were only on behalf of his own Gondarine family and not for his former wife Qätsälä’s family. Rarely, if ever, does he intervene with the emperor for them. Would it be unkind to say that she would be a far better intermediary for them than he? She seems to have played a more active role with all their children, while he focused almost exclusively on the younger children that he had taken with him to London and India (Yohannes, Samuél, Liya and Dawit). By now too, his older children, as we shall see were mostly very well established and closer to power than he. Wärqenäh spent a much larger amount of time on behalf of his sons (rather than his daughters), especially his favorites, Yohannes and Dawit, as we shall see later when focusing on his family. But since he did not have enough financial resources to pay for their remarkably expensive education overseas, he had to depend on the emperor to personally approve the scholarships necessary for at least part of his sons’ education or lobby the British for their financial assistance. Education remained his highest priority. The only real competitor was regaining his lands which had been confiscated by the Italians during their occupation. More time and energy was spent on his lands and properties than almost anything else. They were a prominent feature of virtually every substantive meeting that he had with the emperor from 1942 to 1945. This issue will be dealt with in some detail later in this chapter. Thus the first focus of his energies was on his own immediate family, especially his extended family and relatives from Gondar. His sister Lagäch and her grandson Abatä Boggalä were perhaps closest to him, especially Abatä. He, of course, accompanied Wärqenäh and his family to London, India and then back to Ethiopia. Wärqenäh was responsible for his education throughout this time. Upon their return to Ethiopia in 1942, he obtained an interview for Abatä with the emperor who ‘promised to train him as a soldier’.22 Abatä had long wanted to be a soldier, but would end up in the police force and later in customs which was aided by a training course in Khartoum, Sudan. He entered government service in the customs department when customs was under Wärqenäh’s son-inlaw (Yelma Déréssa )’s control. Throughout Wärqenäh kept a close eye on Abatä and helped forward his career. Wärqenäh aided many other Gondarine relatives in a variety of ways through­ out the 1940s. For example, for one he got a pension, he tried (unsuccessfully) to get the emperor to release others from prison, and he was also remarkably generous to friends and those who had been close to him and his family. A prominent example of this was Reginald (or Reggie) Zaphiro who was also known in Ethiopia as Täsfay. His father had been a ‘dragoman’, or translator, at the British embassy before the Italian occupation of Ethiopia. After his father had passed away, upon the urging of his mother, Wärqenäh hired him, as a personal assistant, to help with his onerous work load at the Ethiopian embassy in London. Other old friends on who’s behalf he intervened with the emperor   WD, 26.4.1942. The emperor ordered Täffärä Wärq to take care of the details.

22

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 included, Evalet, Fitawrari Babicheff and Täsfay Giyorgis, to name but a few. He was especially active in intervening to help a whole group of Indian friends and Greek friends, as well as on behalf of widows, missionaries, Danakil and ordinary folk he barely knew23. After family and friends his next major focus as an intermediary was on former students and assistants. Wärqenäh was especially remarkable, rivaled in Ethiopia perhaps only by Ras Emeru, for the lengths to which he went to help those who were worthy and talented. Unlike the emperor he did not do this to increase his own power. Yes, he helped his own family members, but he also spread his net wide to identify young and talented Ethiopians. Throughout his long life he supported them most generously, with time, money and advancement in court, without regard to color, race, religion, gender or wealth. Perhaps the most prominent example of this was Emmanuel Abraham. He was educated first in Wälläga and was unusual in that his major foreign language was English and not French. He was not from one of Ethiopia’s aristocratic families and had great difficulty in obtaining and paying for his education.24 Wärqenäh and his wife helped him at critical periods of his education (especially at Täfäri Mäkonnen School) and then Wärqenäh gave him his first job when he was governor of Chärchär, as his secretary and also as principal of his new school. He then took him to London as his personal secretary. Later Emmanuel became close to the emperor during his exile. When Wärqenäh returned to Ethiopia in 1942 Emmanuel had been raised to ministerial rank, and continued to regularly visit Wärqenäh at his family home.25 Wärqenäh assisted not only the elite graduates of his days at Täfäri Mäkonnen School, but also the very much less fortunate graduates from the school for former slaves that he had founded before the war. When he was governor of Chärchär Wärqenäh hired quite a few of his former students to serve under him and later after the war continued to help and support them, particularly those who fell on hard times. Young Araya Sallasi [sic] whom I trained in [the] Technical School for slaves and later in the School in Asaba Tafari called. He wants me to get him work as a clerk. He knows a certain amount of English and is at present teaching in a small school. Poor boy’s eyes do not appear to be in good condition, one is [in] especially bad state as it is large and protruding.26

Even in his retirement Wärqenäh was remarkably loyal not only to former students but assistants and those who had worked for him in the past. He had known Mängäsha Käffälä since the 1920s, he had been one of Wärqenäh’s most senior assistants while governor of Chärchär and then after the war had approached him twice to intercede and present petitions to the emperor on his behalf. He was both a friend and associate. Another example was Färrädä Altäsab who used to work for Wärqenäh while he was governor of Chärchär,   For instance, WD, 12.6.1942, 6.7.1942, 9.8.1942, 8.6.1942 & 9.1.1943.   For this paragraph see: Emmanuel Abraham, Reminiscences of my Life (Oslo, 1995), especially chapters 2 to 5. 25   Bahru, Pioneers, pp. 25-26 & 41. 26   WD, 26.6.1942. 23 24

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 especially as an administrator over the Danakil. He was wounded during the war and lost an eye and then found himself after the war with no work or pension and seven children. Wärqenäh, initially gave him some money to keep heart and soul together and then later obtained an interview for him with the emperor. Wärqenäh also assisted many old friends and associates who were Indian or Greek. Indians he had known his whole life from childhood growing up in Northern India in the Punjab and during his time in Burma. The emperor had also asked him to obtain Indian workers from South Asia and so following up on his largely unsuccessful effort in 1930, he tried again in 1942 and 1943. Wärqenäh wrote to his contacts, urging them to find largely Christians for the two electricians, three mechanics and two teachers that the emperor requested. He encouraged his friend Sardar Khan to also recruit masons, carpenters and tailors. It seems that a second and later attempt to employ Indians was more successful. He helped individual Indians get work, obtain passports, get visas for their children to enter Ethiopia, or businessmen to export wheat. He seemed to know Indians of all ages and walks of life in Ethiopia. Another population group with which he had many ties, if not as many as with the Indians, were the Greeks in Ethiopia and especially Addis Ababa. Many he had known since his earliest stays in Addis Ababa. Greeks of all walks of life came to him to present their petitions to the emperor. Some wanted concessions, one example was a petition for a salt concession in Borana. Other petitions were from Greeks who were largely unknown to him but had lived in Ethiopia for many years and knew of his generous nature.27 Sometimes he intervened only to help obtain a necessary permit, or to write a letter of introduction. He often went to great lengths to introduce a Greek friend to a Minister or someone in a position of power.28 Throughout his life he tried to help the disadvantaged, was determined to obtain justice and make the system work. He intervened personally whenever he could. African Americans – Another clear example of taking the disadvantaged under his wing was his continued interest in African Americans in Ethiopia. His diary shows far fewer examples of the kind of active intervention represented by the Greeks described above, but, on the other hand, he socialized a great deal more with African Americans. He invited many more African Americans to dine in his home than he did Greeks or Armenians. The most prominent African American in Ethiopia after the war was John C. Robinson who regularly dined at the Wärqenäh home.29 Wärqenäh, at least from the evidence of his diary, never actively intervened with the emperor or cabinet members on behalf of his African-American friends, but was more prone to give them his advice as he did to Col. Robinson. ‘Col Robinson came after a long time and told me that Ato Roro has suspended him from his work. We had a long talk and I   Some examples of petitions he presented to the emperor: WD, 27.5.1942, 13.6.1942, 17.6.1942, 17.7.1942, 20.1.1943, 14.8.1942 & 28.1.1943. 28   WD, 17.3.1943, 18.9.1943, 17.2.1944, 29.2.1944 & 11.5.1943. 29   See William R. Scott, The Sons of Sheba’s Race: African-Americans and the Italo-Ethiopian War, 1935-1941 (Indiana University Press, 1993), chapter VI, pp. 69-80 for background on Robinson. [Henceforth, Scott, The Sons of Sheba’s Race]. WD, 29.8.1944. Also interview with Hakim Johannes and Sosena Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa,1/10/01. 27

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 told him (the Col) to be patient. He ... dined and went.’30 Robinson had been involved in the creation of the Ethiopian air force in 1935 and 1936 and then returned to Ethiopia when invited by the emperor in 1940. Of all the African Americans who came to his home, Wärqenäh knew Col. Robinson best, as his son Yohannes pointed out to me: ‘He was a quite a character. He was a nice guy... He was a very, very close friend of the family.’31 Another African American of note with whom Wärqenäh often interacted was Mignon Innes Ford, the principal of Princess Zännäbä Wärq School.32 There was a group of about a dozen African Americans who regularly socialized in the Wärqenäh home, some were associates that Robinson had brought with him to Ethiopia (sometimes referred to as his ‘brood’)33, others were friends of his children, in particular Téwodros, Samuél and Liya. Those most often mentioned in the Wärqenäh diary from 1944 to 1949 included James Cheek, Andrew Hester, Joe Muldrow, Tibbs, Parke and Brown. More prominent African American friends were: John H. Shaw (Honorary Ethiopian Consul General in New York), P.A. Hamilton (the regional representative of the British and Foreign Bible Society), William M. Steen (the acting editor of the Ethiopian Herald); Homer Smith (editor of the Ethiopian Review), Robert Bruce Kennon (a political economist of the Julius Rosewold Fund of Chicago) and David Talbot (also editor of the Ethiopian Herald ) among others.

Family Wärqenäh returned to Addis Ababa and Ethiopia, as we have seen, in 1942, reuniting with most of his family for the first time since 1935. He arrived with Yohannes (John), Samuél (Charlie), Liya (Leah) and Dawit (David) and at the Addis Ababa train station was ‘received by the girls’. Clearly the center of influence and power within the family was shifting to the new generation, the ‘new women’of his family: Astér (Esther), Elsabét (Elizabeth), Sara, Rebqa (Rebecca) and Sosena (Susie). Each had married men of influence or had prospects of doing so. His former wife Qätsälä had been the key figure in their lives while he was overseas. Clearly, the women of the family were much more influential than the men. After the Italians murdered his two his older sons, Yuséf and Benyam (also known as Joseph and Benjamin), his eldest son, Téwodros (also Theo or Theodore) was still being held in captivity in Italy. Téwodros had dropped out of school and would never live up to his father’s high expectations. The family’s fortunes would increasingly depend on his daughters and their spouses. After the deaths of Benyam and Yuséf, most of Wärqenäh’s sons would not turn out as well as the Wärqenäh daughters.   WD, 30.1.1945   Interview with Hakim Yohannes & Sosena Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 1/10/01.   WD, 25.6.1943 & 22.7.1943 and Scott, The Sons of Sheba’s Race, pp. 183-184. 33   James W. Cheeks, ‘The Brown Condor and the Brood’, Journal of the Ethiopian Students of North America, Vol. 3, no. 1 (December, 1962). 30 31 32

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 While Wärqenäh had fallen out of favor with the emperor, Qätsäla still remained very influential, especially because of her continued close relationship with Empress Mänän. She and her five elder daughters gained sympathy from Ethiopians in general because of their long incarceration in Italy, returning only in 1940. They were almost certainly incarcerated because of the prominence of their father in the emperor’s government and his outspoken criticism of Italy. Qätsäla played a key role in the marriage or remarriage of four of her daughters after the war, but both parents were always adamant that their children were free to choose who they would marry, as we have seen in an earlier chapter. All were highly eligible young women, well connected, good looking and with expensive western educations. A British intelligence report puts this somewhat differently: ‘The upbringing and education of the Martin girls enables them to play a part in europeanised social life quite different from the average Ethiopian lady.’34 Elsabét (also known as Elizabeth or Elsie in the diary) Wärqenäh married Yelma Déréssa, ten years her elder, in 1940. Her first husband, Major Tädla Haylé Zälläqa, had been killed fighting the Italians in 1936. After the war Yelma, the only trained economist in Ethiopia, became Ethiopia’s most prominent Oromo during the emperor’s reign and was heir to one of the most prestigious Oromo families of Wälläga. At the time of his marriage to Elsabét, he was director of the ministry of finance, but there was no minister other than the emperor, so he was in effect minister. Later he would be appointed minister of commerce (19491953), minister of foreign affairs and again minister of finance. Sometimes cited as the most powerful Ethiopian after the emperor, he is generally regarded to have been among the three or four most powerful Ethiopians after the emperor. None of Elsabét’s sisters married a spouse as powerful as Yelma, but all of them married educated and influential husbands. Astér (Esther), Wärqenäh’s eldest daughter, had been married to Bälambaras Emmañu Yemär before the war, but divorced him and then married Bäfäqadu Wäldä Mika’él. In 1944 he was director of the department of state domains, was later shifted to the department of customs and still later was appointed registrar of the high court.35 Rebqa married Gétahun Täsämma in 1942. He was another highly educated member of the Ethiopian elite who had been educated in Lebanon and the USA36 and later fought in Gojjam during the Liberation.37 At the time of their marriage he was director of the ministry of the pen under Tsähafé Te’ezaz Wäldä Giyorgis, quite an influential post, and later was made director general of the ministry of justice, minister of health and then minister of community development.38 Rebqa’s death in 1943 may have cut short his impact on the family but he remained in regular touch with them throughout Wärqenäh’s life.   PRO FO 371/35640/6015, page 11. Personality Report. See also FO 371/41497/1036 Personality Report, Howe to FO, 10/3/44 for a slightly different quote using ‘girl’ rather than ‘lady’. 35   WD, 19.3.1944, 21.3.1944 & 18.2.1949. 36   Bahru, Pioneers, p. 81. 37   Anthony Mockler, Haile Selassie’s War (Oxford, 1984), pp. 262 & 266. [Henceforth, Mockler]. 38   Interview with Sosanna Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 24/9/2001. See also WD, 21.4.1942, PRO FO 371/35640/6015, page 11. 34

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Sosena Wärqenäh married Mäkuryia Wäldä Sellasé in 1940 when he was general director of agriculture.39 Recognized as an outstanding graduate of Menilek II School he had expected, as a French speaker, to be sent to France for higher education, but did not have sufficiently high contacts to do so. Instead he was sent to Italy by the emperor. During the Italian occupation he had recom­ mended the reform of the Ethiopian alphabet40. He would periodically complain to Wärqenäh about his lack of promotion and not having a good salary. He gave up his position in 1944 and took up farming in Waliso as a full time occupation. Wärqenäh and the family trusted him sufficiently to look after the distribution of Wärqenäh’s lands to his descendents. Sara was perhaps one of the most fascinating of Wärqenäh’s daughters, since some regarded her as the beauty of the family. She had married Säyfu Mika’él in 1934 but they were divorced in 1936. After her internment in Italy and return to Ethiopia she was courted by many of the young within the Ethiopian elite. Her name was especially linked to Mäkonnen Dästa and to the Ethiopian Crown Prince Asfa Wäsän. Wärqenäh was told ‘that it is to the Crown Prince that she (Sara) had given her word to marry him!!! How ridiculous.’41 Sadly Sara was to die suddenly when she was only twenty-five years old. None of Wärqenäh’s children married into the old landed aristocracy of Ethiopia. Most of his sons-in-law, as we have seen, were well connected and were among the mostly highly educated of their generation. None were simply products of the traditional system of Ethiopian education but instead came out of Ethiopia’s parallel system of western education and most all were educated overseas as well. This generation of the elite played a key role in Ethiopian government and history until the 1960s when the next generation of western educated Ethiopians began to enter the upper levels of government. Wärqenäh’s family played a major role at the center of power in Ethiopia from 1941 through to the 1974 revolution.

Wärqenäh & education for his family While Wärqenäh had less control over his older children or their marriages, he had a firm hold on his four younger children and their education especially Yohannes, Samuél, Liya and Dawit. After his return to Addis Ababa in 1942, Wärqenäh enrolled his children in local schools, but removed most of them one by one because he found that none of the schools in Ethiopia were up to his standard. This meant that he had to teach them at home himself with the help of tutors. Following his prewar thinking, Wärqenäh did not deem it necessary to send his daughter Liya overseas for higher education and she remained in Addis Ababa and went to school there. Wärqenäh, however, spent a good deal of time making sure his three youngest sons got a superior education. In his straightened financial situation, coming   WD, 10.1.1942. Also Interview with Sosena Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 24/9/2001.   Bahru, Pioneers, p. 85. 41   WD, 24.7.42. 39 40

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 up with the funding was a real challenge. Thus he badgered the emperor, the minister of education, Yelma Déréssa (in the ministry of finance), and a wide assortment of diplomats in Addis Ababa, mostly in the US and British legations. On them depended the scholarships necessary for a top flight education for his offspring. Education remained to the end one of his most important priorities, perhaps the most important. His three sons thus became the last of his children to be educated overseas, following in the footsteps of his first three boys (Téwodros, Benyam and Yuséf) and the three girls (Astér, Elsabét and Sara). Only Yohannes would complete his undergraduate studies and continue his education, thus living up to his father’s very high standards. He was the only one of Wärqenäh’s children to receive a degree in medicine, and clearly remained his father’s favorite, although his son remembered his father as a harsh taskmaster.42 All three boys were at first home schooled for a year and a half, once he had reached Addis Ababa from India in 1942. In October 1943 Yohannes and Samuél were ready and set off for one year at Victoria College in Egypt, Dawit was not yet old enough and remained in Ethiopia. Victoria College, actually a secondary school, had, and still has, a very good reputation with many high powered alumni, including Edward Said, the Prince Regent Abdallah of Iraq, Hussein King of Jordan, members of the Saud family of Saudi Arabia and also Omar Sharif.43 Wärqenäh had managed to get funding through both the emperor and the British Council. Mr. Littler at the British Council did most of the leg work to organize transport and their education. Yohannes at age 18 would help out his younger brother during their one year abroad. They left full of high hopes, but by May neither were very happy with the climate or conditions of the school, the latter exacerbated by the dislocations caused by WWII. Upon their return to Addis Ababa in July 1944 both looked dark and thin. It would be over eight months before they could continue their formal schooling. During the interim, Wärqenäh again worked hard to find funding for his three sons’ overseas education. Both he and Yelma Déréssa explored possibilities in the USA, but in the end the three young men were sent to school in Beirut, with the Ethiopian government paying for the two eldest and Wärqenäh paying for his youngest son Dawit. All then continued their secondary schooling in Beirut. Yohannes and Dawit finished the equivalent of high school under American tuition, while Yohannes managed to complete secondary school and then gain entrance to the American University of Beirut, widely recognized as the best university in the Middle East. Samuél barely lasted a year before he returned to Ethiopia. Only Yohannes (John) furthered his education beyond undergraduate studies, this time leaving for Canada and McGill University in September 1947. There he successfully completed four years as an undergraduate and then four years in medical school, followed by a one year internship. Upon his return to Ethiopia in 1958 he started working at the Haile Sellassie I Hospital becoming one of Ethiopia’s foremost doctors. He would later serve two years in the Congo with   Interview with Hakim Johannes Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 24.9.2001 & 1.10.2001.   See Victoria College website: www.Victorian.net/history2. Accessed August 1, 2011.

42 43

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 the Ethiopian military contingent and also accompanied the emperor on most of his trips abroad after 1958. He then went on to become a doctor for the elite prisoners under arrest during and after the 1974 Ethiopian revolution. Without doubt he became the most successful of Wärqenäh’s sons.44 One aspect of Yohannes’s life during the 1940s, however, needs to be further explored, the relationship between Yohannes and the emperor’s favorite son Prince Mäkonnen . The two were very close in age with Mäkonnen the elder by two years; in 1942 John was 18 and Prince Mäkonnen 20. Soon after Yohannes’s return to Ethiopia from India, he and Mäkonnen were reunited for the first time since they had been together in Britain during the 1930s. They saw each other on numerous occasions while Yohannes was in Ethiopia: in the palace, on picnics, on drives, at Mäkonnen’s farm in Aqaqi and most importantly in Harar where Prince Mäkonnen was officially governor. These visits, however, would cause controversy. Before each of John’s six or seven trips to Harar the emperor would ask Wärqenäh through an intermediary for his permission to allow his son to visit. On most occasions especially in 1943, 1945 and 1947, Wärqenäh raised no objection. But in November 1944 after John’s first three visits, he refused. [A] message from Prince Makunen asking me to let John go back with him to Harrar tomarrow morning. I spoke seriously to the Daj [the prince’s adviser] and he agreed with me that was right in objecting to John to go to Harrar.45 Abba Hanna, the emperor’s favourite monk priest called. He was sent by the emperor to ask me to send John to Harrar as Prince Makunen’s companion. Refused to send John as I did not think it was suitable to put the 2 young fellows together without some elderly person to watch them and with sufficient power to control them. Abba Hanna agreed with me just as Daj [Däjazmach] Lat Balú agreed yesterday.46

It is fascinating to see how the emperor handled this situation, to the extent of sending his ‘eminence gris’ Abba Hanna to intervene on his behalf. What the two young men were up to is not exactly known, but easily guessed at. He refused not only that once, but also on one further occasion, although as we have seen Yohannes went to Harar with his permission on numerous occasions. Wärqenäh went to extraordinary lengths to protect his son and try to mold him in his own image, but John remained critical of his father’s action even decades later.47 In the 1940s Wärqenäh groomed Yohannes as his assistant. He became Wärqenäh’s favored chauffeur, driving him to the palace, to Aqaqi, and to appointments around town. He often acted in Wärqenäh’s stead as his repre­ sentative in property disputes and in sorting out problems at Aqaqi. In 1943 Wärqenäh helped get him a position as a clerk for his uncle, Yelma Déréssa in the ministry of finance. He also on occasion represented his father by taking   This account of Yohannes is based first on Wärqenäh’s diary but also on interviews with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh in Addis Ababa during 2001, especially September 24, 2001, October 1, 2001, October 10, 2001 & November 5 and 8, 2001. 45   WD, 11.11.1944. 46   WD, 12.11.1944. Underlining in diary. 47   Interviews with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, in Addis Ababa, September 24, 2001, October 1, 2001, October 10, 2001 & November 5 and 8, 2001. 44

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 papers to the emperor. Finally, he acted as his father’s eyes and ears by going on trips to the family gold concession in Yabdu, Wälläga, and by visiting Ambo and Waliso. He was always a welcome presence in Wärqenäh’s home and on trips to Shola and Aqaqi. Yohannes came closest to embodying Wärqenäh’s vision of a dutiful son and is the most praised of all his offspring in Wärqenäh’s diary. But these sentiments were not mutual and his son’s criticism of his father was still sharp and cutting forty-nine years after Wärqenäh’s death. Overall Yohannes and Wärqenäh’s three eldest daughters were the most successful of his children, for Benyam and Yuséf were killed by the Italians before they really had a chance at life and Téwodros and his youngest brothers (Samuél and Dawit) did not live up to their father’s expectations. However, as we have seen, Astér, Elsabét, and Sosena all were influential in their own right. All were extremely capable business women, with lucrative investments in coffee and real estate. Each had inherited land from their father, as well as their mother, and augmented and grew their inheritances. Each also proved to be extremely able managers of their wealth and households. The decisions about the upbringing of his youngest four children were firmly controlled by Wärqenäh. There was occasional consultation with Qätsälä, but generally only at her insistence. Before his death, Wärqenäh regarded Téwodros and Samuél as failures and pinned his hopes on Yohannes and Dawit. His eldest son, Téwodros, was also a disappointment to him, for he had hoped that he would take over his affairs in his declining years. This did not to happen and by 1949, the father sadly noted that ‘Theo [Téwodros] has proved a failure.’48 He viewed Samuél in a similar fashion in 1947, ‘This fellow I am afraid is going to be like Theo.’49 Wärqenäh’s judgments seem ultimately to have focused on three important areas: failure to hold an important job, not marrying well and not being careful with money, all very Victorian values.

Lands, debts & concessions Wärqenäh’s second priority, after his children’s education, was focused on the fate of his lands and concessions which were the major source of the family’s income. He tried extremely hard to get the emperor to help him to sort out his problems but was not really successful in doing so. He concentrated first on his lands and later on his concessions and debts. Both his lands and concessions had been confiscated by the Italians. The Italians condemned him as a very public and articulate Ethiopian leader attacking Italy and its invasion of Ethiopia and were determined to punish him and his family. Thus his two sons were executed during the Graziani massacre of February, 1937, his lands were taken away and the family members remaining in Ethiopia were arrested and sent to Italy to be imprisoned.

  WD, 21.1.1949.   WD, 31.5.1947.

48 49

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Land Wärqenäh owned many different properties and claimed at least two major concessions in Ethiopia; some he was able to regain, others not. Within the city of Addis Ababa he owned at least four buildings and the lots on which they stood. The home he had lived in was the first. It was centrally located in the old commercial center, the Arada, and within walking distance of the palace. He moved in immediately upon his arrival and this was the property with which he had the least problems. The other three properties he rented out, some residential and the other shops. It took months to repossess them and collect their monthly revenue and even longer before the Ethiopian government gave him the back revenues it had collected in his absence. But eventually, with much bickering and appeals to the emperor both were achieved. Second, his two water mills on the Aqaqi River took longer to repossess and to remove the Italians who had taken them over.50 Wärqenäh seems to have depended heavily on the revenue from these profitable properties. Right through to the end of the 1940s he personally collected the rents from the city properties and managed the income from the Aqaqi grain mills. His third property on the Aqaqi River near his grain mills was quite a different story. Italians had built a macaroni factory on Wärqenäh’s Aqaqi land during the Italian Occupation and it must have been lucrative judging by its prominence in the diary and the amount of effort Wärqenäh expended trying to gain control over it. A special law passed after the Liberation covering such properties stated that payment would have to be made for the added value of the new Italian constructions. Wärqenäh refused to pay and tried to persuade the emperor to grant the factory to him outright. However, the Office of Enemy Property and their administration were delegated by the emperor to a commission which was largely controlled by the Tsähafé Te’ezaz Wäldä Giyorgis and his brother. Wäldä Giyorgis had been his enemy politically since his time as ambassador in London and clearly wanted to keep the factory’s revenue for himself and his family. Wärqenäh was never able to gain control of the factory, despite the emperor’s promises and orders to have it turned over to him. Appeals to his son-in-law, Yelma Déréssa and other friends in government proved to be unavailing. 51 His failure here was a clear indication of his waning favor with the emperor and may well have caused him to lose the emperor’s trust. Two other Wärqenäh properties were of less importance, first those held by his father and mother’s family in the north, near Gondär and second, the properties he had acquired while governor of Chärchär from 1930 to 1935. Neither played as large a role in his life as the first three.   WD, See April/May 1942. See also 2.1.1943, 28.7.1942 and 18.2.1943.   See WD, 1942-1945 where Wärqenäh aggressively follows up and goes to the extent of having a lawyer to prosecute the Office of Enemy Property. However, 10.4.1945 seems to end this campaign (see also 16.5.1945). The 1944/45 distribution of his family land to his descendents probably left the initiative in his children’s hands. 50 51

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Concessions While Wärqenäh was quite successful in regaining control of his lands, he had little success in getting back his concessions or obtaining new ones. His sonin-law Yelma Déréssa seems to have been more adept than he in doing so. Wärqenäh’s largest concession, and potentially most lucrative, was the gold and platinum concession he and Blatta Déréssa (Yelma’s father) had held before the war. During their occupation of Ethiopia the Italians at first allowed Prasso to continue holding the lucrative concession, but he would later die a poor man with no concession. Wärqenäh appealed to the emperor when he got back to Ethiopia to return the concession to him. The emperor promised repeatedly to do so, but this never happened. Why is not wholly clear, but it seems as if the emperor wanted closer control over the old gold concession, or just perhaps the new one at Adola. Wärqenäh did not take this loss gracefully and clearly remained bitter at this turn of events. The recollections of his son-in-law, Ato Gabriel Tedros give a useful overview: Mining was also under the Ministry of Finance and led [to] another problem for Yilma involving his father-in-law. This was in relation to the Yubdo Mining Concession which Azaj Warqneh and Yilma’ father, Blatta Deressa Amante, had operated before the Italian invasion. The Italians had taken over the mines, removed the existing equipment and replaced it by, presumably more modern equipment. The Free Belgian troops from the Congo, taking part in the campaign against the Italians, entered Ethiopia from the south Sudan and attacked and captured Gambella, Yubdo and Dembidollo. The Belgian troops, many officers of which were mining engineers, immediately dismounted all the mining equipment they could find and took them together with captured military equipment and private loot back with them to the Congo. Azaj Warqneh and Blatta claimed return of their concession plus compensation for the equipment that the Italians had removed as well as for the platinum and gold they had taken from the mine… [Yelma would say] ‘But you see Daddy we have to follow the law, we just can’t take unilateral action etc etc’ and Azaj would reply ‘Tommy rot! You do not know what you are talking about and you are letting that rascal Wolde Giourgis and his brother run away with my property’. Then they would sit down and enjoy a drink.52

Later Yelma seems to have exercised a degree of control over the concession while minister of finance. Wärqenäh also tried to obtain the return of other concessions from the emperor, especially ones for sugar, cotton, salt and lime. The sugar and cotton concessions had been lucrative during the Italian occupation, but, of course, were even more so after the Liberation.53 Two other concessions he sought were, one was for salt from the Borana country and another for lime in Guragéland. Neither was returned to him. Falling from imperial grace could prove to be quite costly.

  Gabriel Tesfayohannes Tedros, ‘Recollections about Lidj Yilma Deressa’, pp. 2-3. Manuscript in the family’s possession. 53   Wärqenäh Autobiography, pp. 171-172 and Betul, p. 255. 52

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Debts From the late 1920s to his death Wärqenäh was plagued by an extended series of debts. During his long life the largest debts that he owed were always to the Ethiopian government. After his return in 1942 he had two significant debts which dwarfed the others in size, one to the Ethiopian government and the other to Ras Emeru. His debt to the Ministry of Finance was for between 40,000 and 50,000 Maria Theresa dollars and seems to have been based on loans taken out from the government between 1920 and 1935. Its exact size is never indicated in his records and it is not wholly clear what eventually happened with the debt. In 1946 with no forewarning he was suddenly ordered to repay the debt, but there is no record of him having done so. The sudden reappearance of this loan, seems to indicate the political impact of his enemies. One might look to the presence of Yelma Déréssa as minister of finance at the time, to throw light on the solution to the mystery of its repayment. His intervention could well have made the necessity to repay the loan disappear. That seems the most rational explanation of the fate of that loan. 54 The second major debt was a loan from Ras Emeru in 1931, $30,000 had been paid back by 1944, but with the accumulated interest and principal in 1944 the debt had grown to some $42,000. Wärqenäh and Qätsälä argued as to who was liable. Then Wärqenäh agreed to repay all he could afford, $2,000 right away and then at least $200 a month.55 Wärqenäh had never been a very astute businessman and his track record with his loans tends to confirm this. However, he was very diligent indeed in trying to pay off his loans once he convinced himself he was indeed responsible.

Wärqenäh’s declining years (1944–1952) During Wärqenäh’s last eight years he became increasingly frail; in his diary he notes that his memory failed him more and more after he turned 80 in 1945. His family and especially his nuclear family increasingly became the center of his universe, as his impact on the public life of Ethiopia faded. In the words of his son Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, He was retired. He quit. He wouldn’t do anything. He wouldn’t do anything. He refused to take any appointments...He was an old man. He said, I’m too old, I don’t want any more... I don’t want anything else. That’s the way he was made. Once he had made up his mind about something. He just told it.56

He had distributed his land to his family and settled into a daily routine whose highlights were family, entertainment of family and friends, a daily walk and some philanthropy. Most of his remaining energy during his declining years was devoted to his nuclear family and especially his four youngest children as well as the small   See WD, 13.4.1946, 19.5.1946, 8.8.1946 and 10.8.1946.   WD, 29.2.1944 and 3.3.1944. He hoped that when he sold his gold concession he could pay the whole debt off right away. This of course never happened. 56   Interview with Hakim Yohannes and Sosena Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 1/10/2010. 54 55

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 school he had started in his home. He had taken the four children with him when he went to London as ambassador and then on to India. Soon the two eldest, Yohannes and Samuél went off abroad to school and eventually Dawit joined them. Liya remained in Addis Ababa and lived in his home until she married Gabriel Tedros in 1946. His three surviving eldest girls, Astér, Elsabét and Sosena, visited him regularly and took care of most of his financial affairs, but Liya and Gab were with him most often. Once it was clear that Samuél and Dawit would not be continuing their education, they and Téwodros for most of these years continued to live in Wärqenäh’s home or separate buildings within his compound. As one can imagine there were often tensions in the household. His more extended family was less and less at the center of his life. Thus what he called his ‘Gondär relatives’, his relations from his father and mother played a less and less prominent role in his life, although they still visited him often and some young children from this branch of his family still attended the school he held in his home. Fitawrari Emmäñu Yemär also made one last attempt to persuade him to marry a distant relative, a ‘Fine Ethiopian lady’. However, Wärqenäh thought she was ‘not suitable’; she was less than thirty years old.57 The other two circles of family (his son Téwodros’s family through his mother and Wärqenäh’s adoptive family) faded almost completely out of Wärqenäh’s life. Alice’s death in August 1944 seems to have cut all ties with this section of his family.58 Links with his adoptive family continued longer, especially with his adoptive brother Canon Stuart H. Clark, who at one point sent him a copy of his book, God and Life.59 Wärqenäh also remained in touch by mail with their in-law Edith Clark. His link with this branch of his family now consisted of Christmas cards and the odd letter. The small school in his home – Education remained a driving force in his life, but in his declining years was made manifest in a small school which he held in his home from the time he returned to Ethiopia in 1942. Initially he undertook educating his younger children, and then added grandchildren. Later when Yohannes, Samuél and Dawit went overseas for their education, nieces and nephews were invited to join the school as well as the children of some of his broad circle of friends. This school was essential because Wärqenäh did not deem existing schools in Ethiopia to be of a sufficiently high standard. During the first few years, the emphasis was almost wholly on the education of males in the family, but after 1945 more and more girls were admitted until, in the last years documented in the diary, there were only girls in his school. At first, in 1942 the school included his son Dawit, grandson Fäqadä and two other students, one a relative and another, the son of the missionary, Mrs. McKenzie. He seems to have opened the school only from 9 in the morning until 1 and hired others to assist him, especially an old friend Täfay Giyorgis to teach Amharic. Amharic remained a high priority for him and in the school but a bilingual English/   WD, 5.2.1945 and 8.2.1945.   WD, 29.1.1945. Wärqenäh notes that Alice died on August 31, 1944 during an operation. There are no further references to her in his diary or correspondence. 59   WD, 17.3.1947. 57 58

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Amharic education was fundamental.60 The school continued in much the same way until 1945 with Liya occasionally assisting, while Wärqenäh focused on teaching English and mathematics. ‘Some little girls’ seem to have started attending in 1944.61 In 1946 the school grew to its largest size with twenty students, 10 boys and 10 girls, but then the emphasis shifted largely to educating just girls.62 The children probably provided Wärqenäh the major preoccupation of his later years and a real source of companionship and diversion. Right up to his death, education remained a core commitment. Routines Especially after 1945 Wärqenäh’s life settled into routines: each day, week, month and year had its own routine. During the week, the daily routine focused on school for the children in the mornings, then lunch, tea or supper with family or friends (as we shall see below), a siesta and then a walk in the afternoon, a constitutional for his health. His son Yohannes made clear he was no fan of the dancing that his father so loved: ‘He used to drive us insane. Every evening, dance. I would run like hell [to get away].’63 He did not often mention that he was lonely, but family, friends, radio and gramophone must have kept loneliness and boredom at bay. His weekly routine was highlighted by a major Sunday afternoon meal with friends and family. Often through 1946 it was held in his home on the Aqaqi River. In his later years he also took to distributing alms to the poor on Sundays: ‘I am continuing payment of money to the poor every Sunday afternoon since some monhs. It costs me about $6/-.’64 Certain routines were carefully observed throughout the year. Christmas, both the western and the Ethiopian were always observed, though not as a religious occasion. Wärqenäh became more and more secular as he aged. Usually the western Christmas included a meal with international guests and the Ethiopian Christmas focused more on family and Ethiopian friends. Birthday parties were held as often as possible. More often for his children (especially when they were young), than for himself65. Weather the same, a little cloudy and sunny and warm. Today being my birthday, the children have invited their friends and had a big dinner and continued playing till midnight. Esther and Elsie with their husbands came also Susie’s husband, also Mr. and Mrs. Duvaile [sic] who gave me a present of a razor and some drinks.66

Birthday parties were held for Samuél, Liya and his grandson Fäqadä Sellasé, for example. Much more somber were the annual remembrances of the Graziani massacre and the deaths of his two sons Yuséf and Benyam.   Interviews with Hakim Yohannes and Sosena Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 1/10/2001.   WD, 31.8.44. 62   By 1947 there were between three and six girls, in 1948 5 girls. The last reference to the school was WD, 26.1.1949. See also WD, 8.5.1946, 2.1.1947, 31.8.1947 and 25.8.1948. 63   Interview with Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, September 14, 2001. 64   WD, 25.1.1948. Wärqenäh’s underlining. See also WD, 28.9.47 and 20.6.48. 65   WD, 22.10.1946. Only one of Wärqenäh’s birthday parties is documented from 1942 to 1949. 66   WD, 22.10.1948. 60 61

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 Weather cloudy. Today according to Ethiopian calendar is the anniversary of the Italian massacre after an attempt by an Ethiopian fellow on the life of Graziani. The children made the evening very cheerful to cheer me up against my sorrow of boys Joe and Ben’s [Yuséf and Benyam] murder.67

The most enduring routine of his life however, especially into his old age was regular entertainment of family and friends. Mostly this revolved around dinner offered early every afternoon, sometimes to invited family and friends, but more often to whomever turned up. Often Sunday dinner was especially grand. His home became a sort of ‘salon’ for an eclectic sampling of the elite of the Ethiopian and international community of Addis Ababa and Ethiopia. They included: his family (as we have just seen), fellow Ethiopians, African Americans, British and Americans, Indians, Greeks, Sudanese and many others. Entertaining in his home increased after 1943 when he no longer had a car of his own and had to depend on others, mainly family members for his transport. Entertainment & friends His circle of Ethiopian friends was wide, varied and eclectic. Some would call at his home to greet him but many more would be persuaded to share his table. To give but a sprinkling of their range and diversity, some were those whose careers he had forwarded or had served under him, like Emmanuel Abraham, Blatta Efrém Täwäldä Mädhen or Haji Farah. Others were close friends over the years like Märsé Hazän Wäldä Qirqos, Lorenzo Te’ezaz, Täsfa Giyorgis, Avedis Terzian, Babicheff, David Hall, or David Gäbru, the son of his old friend Käntiba Gäbru. Later in life he got to know the Solalé family, Mary, Adrienne and others whose half Somali, half Ethiopian children went to his school. He also dined less regularly with prominent Ethiopians like Ras Seyum and Andargachäw Masay. Perhaps the second most numerous group who gathered at his meals were African Americans. The core of the group, as we have seen earlier in this chapter, was grouped around Col. Robinson. They not only ate at his table most every week, but some also entertained him with their dancing. Occasionally they were also entertained at Aqaqi and brought other African American friends.68 Often they were invited by his children or just turned up. The British community in Addis Ababa and Ethiopia was, perhaps, the next most numerous group that Wärqenäh entertained. The two largest groups were doctors and medical administrators and various military and police officers who visited his home in the early 1940s when they were thicker on the ground. Some were bosses of his nephew Abatä Boggalä or his protégé Reggie Zaphiro. Good examples of this group were: Major Irwin, Col. Banks (head of police in Addis Ababa for many years) and a senior police office Col. Robert K. Allen, the deputy commissioner of police. The doctors (and British advisors of various sorts) on the other hand generally sought him out, men like Dr. G.G. Campbell the director of medical services, or Dr. Anderson, Dr. Hylander (a Swede) or Dr. Norab, a Hollander and director of Haylä Sellasé Hospital.   WD, 20.2.1948.   WD, 17.1.1944 and 12.6.1946.

67 68

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 The next important group was British diplomats, followed closely by British Council officials among whom the most prominent was Mr. Littler who so kindly helped fund the education of his sons. Virtually every ambassador and consul visited him at one time or another. Other Brits who came to his home were teachers, missionaries and local British residents of Addis Ababa like the Sandford family, old friends going back to the turn of the century. American diplomats and educators follow a similar pattern to his British friends, albeit in lesser numbers. Most every American diplomat called on him and was generally entertained in his home at one time or anther. Educators too visited frequently like the advisor Mr. A. Ruckwick who had a PhD and was superintendent of education. Other advisors like John Spencer, the Garretsons and the Dallases ate at his table. Many, many other nationalities and individuals were welcomed to good food and good company. Among them were friends from India and Indians resident in Addis Ababa, as well as old Greek friends like Zappa who had collaborated with him on his gold and platinum concession. The breadth and variety of those he entertained in his household was truly amazing and his extended family, children and grandchildren continued the tradition begun by him.

The last days of Hakim Wärqenäh During Wärqenäh’s last three years as his health failed there was a distinct deterioration of his quality of life. His family noted his failing memory and the last years of his diary from 1946 to 1949 give graphic proof of this. In 1946 he was ill for a total of 53 days, at times he was unable to recognize close relatives, one month he was unable to write his diary and on September 29th 1946 he noted that, ‘My memory is getting worse’.69 1947 and 1948 were similar and in 1948 he noted, ‘Forgot to write diary’,70 most unusual for a man who had so very, very carefully kept a daily diary for fifty years. In the last year of the diary he poignantly said, ‘I have been too mentally ill to write my diary for some days.’71 The diary also shows a greater repetition of stock entries and phrases than in any other period of his life. He regularly notes that he can’t remember people and occasionally confused one individual with another. The last entry of his diary was on March 20th, 1949. Sosena Wärqenäh remembered that ‘He got old, ... he almost lost his memory. He didn’t remember’.72 All of his family continued to visit him, but his former wife Qätsälä seems to have become more important to him than anyone else. Yohannes forcefully said in one interview:

  See WD, 1946 passim, but especially WD, 19.1.1946, 23.2.1946 and 29.9.1946. The last has the memory quote. 70   WD, 15 and 16.8.1948 71   WD, 19.2.1949. 72   Interview with Hakim Yohannes and Sosena Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 1/10/2001. 69

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952 He used always insist that she come and visit him and she used to come all the time... Always. She always came...Go see her. Ask her why she hasn’t come in the last three days... She used to say this guy’s crazy...73

Qätsälä’s taking care of Wärqenäh during his last days was exceptional. She continued caring for him even after her marriage in 1949 to Däjazmach Tayé,74 most unusual in Ethiopian culture. Wärqenäh died on October 8th, 195275 only a few days short of his 87th birthday. Sosena was not actually in Addis Ababa, but about his funeral she said, ‘I heard it was fantastic...The whole of the [British] Embassy...the whole of the corps diplomatique was there...I did not get back [from Chärchär] in time’.76 He was buried in St. Mika’él church, founded by his father-in-law Fitawrari Tullu. Qätsälä would be buried next to him and later his children, one after another. Their tombs there can be seen to this day.     75   76   73 74

Ibid. See Yä Wäyzäro Qätsälä Tullu Acher Tarik, p. 7. In possession of the family. See NTEN October 25, 1952 for his obituary. Interview Yohannes and Sosena Wärqenäh, Addis Ababa, 1/10/2001.

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Ethiopia: Family & elder statesman 1942–1952

12.1  Wärqenäh in his signature cape 300

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Conclusion

Wärqenäh’s stature as a major progressive in Ethiopian history has been under­ estimated in the past. It perhaps takes a biography to put his life in full perspective. It was as a progressive, both domestically in Ethiopia and internationally that he made his greatest contributions. Beyond that his life, so often, was the stuff of fiction rather than a life normally lived. First the dramatic events of the siege of Mäqdäla, an emperor’s suicide and then his own ‘kidnapping’ at the age of three, followed by a peripatetic youth in north India leading to a plodding medical career in Burma. All the while his education was fostered by a bizarre alliance of military officers and dedicated missionaries. Without realizing it he became Ethiopia’s first doctor, a most improbable event. Following this romantic youth was an only slightly less dramatic middle age, still grounded in his Victorian upbringing. Wärqenäh’s stodgy career in the prestigious Indian Medical Service was shaken to the core by the Battle of Adwa in 1896 and his abortive rush home to his birthplace. That set the stage for his eventual return three years later and medical service in the British diplomatic corps in the hot house atmosphere of Addis Ababa. Eventually he would serve three emperors and one empress of Ethiopia. This was all achieved by a boy brought up as an orphan Ethiopian in India with few prospects. Furthermore, after floundering through a series of difficult relationships with a variety of women in India and Britain, he dramatically married into one of Ethiopia’s most aristocratic families. This made possible his close relationships with Ethiopia’s emperors, empress and ruling elite. Below the surface, more complex factors were at work as Wärqenäh increasingly struggled with his identity. Was he Ethiopian, Indian or a member of the British elite. With his appointment to the Indian Medical Service this question was only initially settled. More profound was the difficulty of his Ethiopian heritage which only came to the fore with the Battle of Adwa and his first stays in Addis Ababa and Harar. His marriage to Qätsälä Tullu surely transformed him into an Ethiopian, but one with a decidedly Victorian proBritish outlook. Then came the British betrayal of Ethiopia during the ItaloEthiopian war, changing him into one of British imperialism’s most severe critics in Ethiopia. 301

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Conclusion The foundation of his life and its contributions to history were twofold, as a progressive and as a paterfamilias. The core of his progressivism was rooted in education. His adoptive family fostered his own rigorous and severe education in the British evangelical and Victorian tradition. But it was broadened by training in half a dozen or more languages and a desire to excel that was quite exceptional. He read constantly, but wrote less. However, one major book, his World Geography and dozens of articles in both English and Amharic was quite a prolific oeuvre. Just as important were the nuts and bolts, rather than intellectual side of education. Wärqenäh’s contribution to Ethiopia’s most important prewar school Täfäri Mäkonnen School was key. He planned it with the future Haylä Sellasé and then implemented it from the buildings to the curriculum to the day to day heart and soul of the institution. Although the Täfäri Mäkonnen School was the flagship of his educational fleet, the school in his home from 1900 to 1930 and then in the 1940s also had a significant impact since he educated not only his own children, but also many of his own and his wife’s family as well as those of assorted friends. He also founded and nurtured two other schools, the school in Chärchär and the school for liberated slaves in Addis Ababa. Wärqenäh’s second most important role as a progressive was his long cam­ paign against slavery and the slave trade. There is a good case to be made for his being Ethiopia’s foremost crusader against slavery and the slave trade. He and Qätsälä were among the first to free all their slaves after her parents death in 1919. He then went on to be a major public campaigner against the institution of slavery and the slave trade, despite falling out of favor for a brief time. After this he implemented many of his proposed reforms when he was governor of the most progressive province in Ethiopia, Chärchär. Third, this governorship allowed him to implement many other modern initiatives dear to the hearts of progressives. These included: land reform, salaried administrators, appointment and promotion based on merit, a crack down on bribery, an anti-slavery and slave trade crusade, improved education and sanitation and many more measures. Finally, Wärqenäh should be seen as one of Ethiopia’s best diplomats and statesmen. Traditionally Ethiopia had largely used foreigners as its diplomats, individuals were sent on short missions overseas for particular ends. In the 1920s Täfäri tried to create a modern diplomatic core in the wake of Ethiopia’s entry into the League of Nations. The case has been made here that Wärqenäh proved to be the most successful of all his prewar appointments. His tenure at the Court of St. James had many shortcomings, but no other Ethiopian diplomat matched his skills, dedication and broad array of contacts. He played a vital role in Ethiopia’s diplomacy during the Italo-Ethiopian War and the subsequent Italian presence in Ethiopia. Wärqenäh had many successes in the public sphere, but it is clear that his visceral identity with his family came first. Throughout his life he assiduously supported each of his offspring financially, if not always emotionally. Most important to him was to try to give each of them the education he deemed appropriate. As a result his female offspring would suffer. He was after all still a man of his times. Wärqenäh worked extremely hard to support his large family 302

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Conclusion and also gave generously of his time. But he was also a jealous man and this several times cast a dark shadow on his private life. However, his children and grandchildren and their offspring have played very important roles in modern Ethiopian history. The impact of his protégés, first those he educated in South Asia from 1902 to 1919 and then those he supported in the 1920s and 1930s, was very much a mixed bag. None rose to high levels of government as did a number of his sons-in-law, nor did any become the most prominent of Ethiopians in their profession as his son Yohannes did. Many however, became significant middle level managers while some died during the Italian occupation. Wärqenäh’s life and personality were multifaceted and fascinating. He never seems to have quite fit into any of the different cultures in which he lived during his long life, whether Ethiopian, British, Indian, Burmese or imperial. He moved fairly easily from one to the other, but was never wholly part of any. He played a significant role in each. Family remained the bedrock of his life. Wärqenäh’s life was long and complex, filled with change and nuance. His insistence on toleration and dialogue permeated his public and professional life, but did not seem to be a driving force in his private family sphere. Here, like so many of his peers, he was traditional, patriarchal and authoritarian. His family, wife and children (especially his sons) often suffered as a result. But as a public figure he emerged as unique and remarkably influential in the twentieth-century history of Ethiopia, the British Empire and the world. His world was transnational, he moved across its borders with ease, and carefully chose values from many different cultures by which to live his life.

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Bibliography

I. Unpublished Sources 1. Archives Ethiopia – Institute of Ethiopian Studies Berhanenna Sälam Newspaper, 1925–1936. Mersé Hazän Wäldä Qirqos, ‘Käyähutena Käsämahut Bänegestä Zäwditu Zämänä’, Ms. #2062-B at the Institute of Ethiopian Studies. Great Britain Public Records Office. PRO/FO/371. Files dealing with Ethiopia, 1898–1957. Rhodes House. Box 2/1. C.F. Rey to Jones, 19.4.1925. De Halpert papers, S, 1459(1) Sudan Central Records Office, Khartoum Sudan, (1898–1940s). Blue Nile Province (BNP). 1900–1941. Sudan Intelligence Reports, 1896–1936. USA State Department. SD 884. 2. Manuscripts Wärqenäh Family Papers – in the family’s possession. ‘Elizabeth Workeneh, 1917-2000’ a pamphlet produced at the time of a funeral. Gabriel TesfayohannesTedros, ‘Recollections about Lidj Yilma Deressa.’ Wärqenäh Autobiography. Wärqenäh Diary, 1899–1947. File on Wärqenäh’s speeches. It includes the text of at least five speeches given between July 22, 1935 and May 11, 1936 which were not printed in New Times and Ethiopia News.

304

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Bibliography Other Manuscripts Carmichael, Tim. ‘Approaching Ethiopian History: Addis Ababa and Local Governance in Harar c.1900–1950’, Michigan State University, PhD, 2001. De Lorenzi, James. ‘Printed Words, Imperial Journeys, and Global Scholars: Historiography and Cosmopolitanism in the Red Sea World, 1800–1935’ (PhD dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 2008). Schaeffer, Charles George H. ‘Enclavistic Capitalism in Ethiopia, 1906–1936: A Study of Currency, Banking, and Informal Credit Networks’ (PhD Disser­ tation, University of Chicago, 1990). Sileshi Semaw. ‘Hakim Worqineh (Dr. Charles Martin). Ethiopia’s First Doctor.’ (BA thesis, Addis Ababa University: History, 1982). 3. Printed primary sources Gebre Egziabher Elyas, Aleqa. Piety and Politics: The Chronicle of Abéto Iyasu and Empress Zewditu of Ethiopia (1909–1930). Edited and translated by Reidulf K. Molvaer. Studien Zur Kurlturkunde 104 (Rudiger Koppe Verlag Koln, 1994). League of Nations. Series of League of Nations Publications. VII Political 1936. VII.7. Official. League of Nations. Dispute Between Ethiopia and Italy. Com­ munication from the Italian Government, Received by League of Nations on May 11, 1936. Le Docteur Nouvellement Venu (Dire-Daoua, Impremerie St. Lazare,1909). Parliamentary Papers: 1902, vol. LXIX. Africa No. 3(1902). Ullendorff, Edward, translator. The Autobiography of Emperor Haile Sellassie: My Life and Ethiopia’s Progress (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1976).

II. Published 1. Books & articles Ethiopian Languages Elizabeth Workeneh, 1917-2000. Kebret Wäyzäro Elsabét Wärqenäh, 1910– 1993. Mot Dämäna Hono Menem Bigaredat Yehew Tabäraläch Elsi Läeña Hewät (A/A, 2000). Taddässä Betul Kebrät, YäAzazh Hakim Wärqenäh Eshätu YäHeywät Tarik (Addis Ababa, 2009). Wärqenäh, Hakim. YäAläm Je’ograpfi BäAmaregngna (Addis Ababa, 1920). Yä Wäyzäro Qätsälä Tullu Acher Tarik. In possession of the family and the author. European Languages Acton, Roger. The Abyssinian Expedition and the Life and Reign of King Theodore with 100 Illustrations… of the Illustrated London News (London, 1868). Allen, Charles. Soldier Sahibs: The Men who Made the North-West Frontier (London: Murray, 2000). Amsalu, Aklilu. ‘Early Ethiopian Writers as Modernizers of Amharic’, Afrika und Ubersee, Band 17, 1994, pp. 283-296. 305

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Bibliography Ancel, Stephanie. ‘Mahbar et sanbate; associations religieuses en Ethiopia,’ Aethiopica; International Journal of Ethiopian Studies, Vol. 8 (2005), pp. 95-111. Andrews, C.F. North India: Handbooks of English Church Expansion (Oxford, 1908). Asfa Yilma, Princess. Haile Selassie: Emperor of Ethiopia with a brief account of the History of Ethiopia including the origins of the Present Struggle and a Description of the Country and its Peoples (New York: D. Appleton-Century, 1936). Baer, George W. The Coming of the Italian-Ethiopian War (Cambridge, Ma.: Harvard University Press, 1967). Bahru Zewde. ‘Concessions and Concession-Hunters in Post-Adwa Ethiopia: The case of Arnold Holz’, Africa, Vol. 45, #33(1990), pp. 365-368. Bahru Zewde. A History of Modern Ethiopia, 1855–1991 (Oxford: James Currey, 2001). Bahru Zewde. Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of the Early Twentieth Century (Oxford: James Currey, 2002). Bartleet, E.J. In the Land of Sheba (Birmingham: Cornish Brothers Ltd, 1934). Baudendistel, Rainer. Between Bombs and Good Intentions: The Red Cross and the ItaloEthiopian War, 1935–1936 (New York: Berghan Books, 2006). Bryant, Sir Arthur. The Great Duke or Invincible General (London: Collins, 1971). Bunge, F.M. Burma: A Country Study (United States Government, 1983). Caulk, Richard. ‘Between the Jaws of Hyenas’: A Diplomatic History of Ethiopia, 1876– 1896 (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2002). Cheeks, James W. ‘The Brown Condor and the Brood,’ Journal of the Ethiopian Students of North America, Vol. 3, no. 1 (December, 1962). Clark, Henry Martyn. Robert Clark of the Punjab: Pioneer and Missionary Statesman (New York: Ming H. Revell Company, 1907). Clark, Reverend Robert. The Missions of the Church Mission Society and the Church of England Zenana Missionary Society in the Punjab and Sindh (London: Church Mission Society, 1904). Comrie, John D. History of Scottish Medicine, second edition, (London: Wellcome Historical Medical Museum, 1932). Coon, Carleton. Measuring Ethiopia and Flight into Arabia (London: Jonathan Cape, 1936). Curle, Christian, editor. Letters from the Horn of Africa 1923–1942: Sandy Curle, Soldier and Diplomat Extraordinary (Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen and Sword Military, 2008). Del Boca, Angelo. Gli Italiani in Africa Orientale: La Conquista dell’Impero (Roma: Editori Laterza, 1979). Del Boca, Angelo. Gli Italiani in Africa Orientale: LaCaduta dell’Impero (Roma: Editori Laterza, 1982). Donnison, F.S.V. Public Administration in Burma: A Study of development during the British Connection (London: Royal Institute of International Affairs, 1953). Edwards, Jon. ‘Slavery, the Slave Trade and Economic Reorganization of Ethiopia, 1916–1935’, African Economic History, #11 (1982), pp. 3-14. Emmanuel Abraham. Reminiscences of my Life (Oslo: Lunde forlag, 1995). Erlich, Haggai. ‘Ethiopia and Egypt – Ras Tafari in Cairo, 1924’, Aethiopica, 1 (1998). 306

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Bibliography Garratt, Geoffrey T. Mussolini’s Roman Empire (Indianapolis, New York, The Bobbs-Merril Company, 1938). Garretson, Peter. A History of Addis Ababa from its Foundation in 1886 to 1910 (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, , 2000). Gebre-Igziabiher Elyas, Aleqa. Piety and Politics: The Chronicle of Abéto Iyasu and Empress Zewditu of Ethiopia (1909–1930). Edited and translated by Reidulf K. Molvaer. Studien Zur Kurlturkunde 104 (Koln: Rudiger Koppe Verlag, 1994). General Staff, War Office. Military Report on Somaliland, 1907 (London, 1907– 1908), Volume I (Geographical, Descriptive and Historical). Harrison, Mark. Public Health in British India: Anglo-Indian Preventive Medicine, 1859–1914 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994). Hayter, Frank E. Gold of Ethiopia (London: Stanley Paul and Company, 1936). Huggins, Willis N. & John G. Jackson. An Introduction to African Civilizations (Negro universities Press, reprinted in 1969, originally published in 1937). The Imperial Gazetteer of India, (Today & Tomorrow’s Printers & Publishers, New Delhi, India, 1974)Vol. X, XIII, XVI, XVII & XXIII. The Imperial Gazetteer of Upper Burma, Part II, Vol. II. Jardine, Douglas. The Mad Mullah of Somaliland (London: Herbert Jenkins, 1923). Jarrett-Macauley, Delia. The Life of Una Marson, 1905–1965 (Manchester: Man­ ches­ter University Press, 1998). Kyriakos Mikail. Copts and Muslims under British Control (Re-issued by Kinnikat Press: Port Washington, NY/London, 1911). William L. Langer. ‘The Struggle for the Nile’, Foreign Affairs, 1936. Lobban, R.D. Edinburgh and the Medical Revolution (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980). McCann, James. ‘Ethiopia, Britain, and Negotiations for the Lake Tana Dam, 1922–1935,’ The International Journal of African Historical Studies, 15, 4 (1981), pp. 667-699. McClellan, Charles. ‘Land, Labor and Coffee: The South’s Role in Ethiopian Self-reliance, 1889–1935’, African Economic History, #9 (1980), pp. 69-83. MacMunn, George. The History of the Sikh Pioneers (23rd, 32nd and 34th) (London: Sampson Low, Marston and Company, c.1935). Marcus, Harold. Haile Sellassie I: The Formative Years, 1892–1936 (Trenton, NJ: Red Sea Press, 1998). Marcus, Harold. A History of Ethiopia (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002). Maung Htin Augn. A History of Burma (New York: Columbia University Press, 1967). May Ydlibi. With Ethiopian Rulers: A Biography of Hasib Ydlibi (Addis Ababa Press, 2006). Melly, John M. ‘An Ambulance Service for Ethiopia’, The Lancet, Sept. 14, 1935. Mitchell, David. The Fighting Pankhursts: A Study in Tenacity (New York: Macmillan, 1967). Mockler, Anthony. Haile Selassie’s War (Oxford: Oxford University Press,1984). 307

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Bibliography Moyse-Bartlett, Lieutenant-Colonel H. The King’s African Rifles: A Study in the Military History of East and Central Africa, 1890–1945 (Aldershot: Gale & Polden Ltd, 1956). Myers, Suzanne. ‘Britain and the Suppression of Slavery in Ethiopia’, Slavery & Abolition, Vol. 18, #3(1977), pp. 257-288. Nelson, Kathleeen and Alan Sullivan, editors, John Melly of Ethiopia (London: Faber and Faber, n.d). Pankhurst, Richard. Economic History of Ethiopia, 1800–1935 (Addis Ababa: Haile Sellassie I University Press,1968). Pankhurst, Richard. ‘The Foundation of Education, Printing, Newspapers, Book Production, Libraries and Literacy in Ethiopia’, Ethiopian Observer, Volume 6, Number 3. Pankhurst, Richard. State and Land in Ethiopian History (Addis Ababa, Published by the Institute of Ethiopian Studies & the Faculty of Law, Haile Sellassie I University, in association with Oxford University Press, 1966). Pankhurst, Richard. Sylvia Pankhurst: Counsel for Ethiopia. A Biographical Essay on Ethiopian, Anti-Fascist and Anti-Colonialist History, 1934–1960 (Hollywood: Tsehai Publishers, 2003). Pankhurst, Richard. ‘The Thermal Baths of Traditional Ethiopia’, Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences, Vol. 41 (1986), pp. 308-318 . Pankhurst, Sylvia. Ethiopia: A Cultural History (Essex: Lalibela House, 1959). Perham, Margery. The Government of Ethiopia (London: Faber & Faber Limited, 1947). Prasso, Alberto. Raccolta di Scritti e Documenti Relativi ad Alberto Prasso e alle sue Scoperte di Giacimenti Minerari nell’Ovest Etiopico (Roma: Industri Grafiche Abete, 1939). Prouty, Chris. Empress Taytu and Menilek II: Ethiopia, 1883–1910 (Trenton, NJ: Red Sea Press, 1986). Reynolds, Kimberly, ed. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004-2011). See online edition. Rosenfeld, Chris Prouty, A Chronology of Menilek II of Ethiopia, 1844–1913: Emperor of Ethiopia, 1889–1913. Monographh No. 4. Occasional Papers Series (African Studies Center in cooperation with the Department of History: Michigan State University, 1976). Sbacchi, Alberto. Legacy of Bitterness: Ethiopian and Fascist Italy, 1935–1941 (Trenton, NJ: Red Sea Press, 1997). Sbacchi, Alberto. ‘Secret Talks for the Submission of Haile Selassie and Prince Asfaw Wassen, 1936–1939,’ International Journal of African Historical Studies, Vol 7, #4 (1974). Scholler, Heinrich. The Special Court of Ethiopia, 1920–1925 (Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag Wiesbaden GMBH, 1985). Scholler, Heinrich. ‘The Special Court of Ethiopia 1922–1936: Mixed Jurisdiction as an Instrument of Legal Development’, Proceedings of the Seventh International Congress of Ethiopian Studies ( Joint publishers: Institute of Ethiopian Studies, Scandinavian Institute of African Studies, African Studies Center, Michigan State University,1982), edited by Sven Rubensen, pp. 381-392. 308

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Bibliography Scott, J. George. Gazetteer of Upper Burma and the Shan States (Rangoon:Printed for the Superintendent, Government Printing, Burma, 1901). Scott, William R. The Sons of Sheba’s Race: African-Americans and the Italo-Ethiopian War, 1935–1941 (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1993). Seton, Bruce Gordon & Major Jay Gould. The Indian Medical Service, Being a Synopsis of the rules and regulations regarding pay, promotion, pension, leave, examination, etc., in the Indian Medical Service, both military and civil (Calcutta, 1912). Steer, George L. Caesar in Abyssinia (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1936). Steffanson, B.G. & R.K. Starrett. Documents on Ethiopian Politics, Vol. III: Foreign powers in Ethiopia (Documentary Publications, Salisbury, North Carolina, 1977). Thesiger, Wilfred, The Danakil Diary: Journeys through Abyssinia, 1930–1934 (London: Flamingo, an imprint of HarperCollins, 1996). Thompson, Geoffrey. Front-Line Diplomat (London: Hutchinson, 1959). Uhlig, Siegbert, ed. Encyclopaedia Aethiopica, Volumes I to III (Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, 2005). Wagner, Percy A. The Platinum Deposits and Mines of South Africa (London: Oliver and Boyd, 1929), Webb, Wm. Wilfrid. The Indian Medical Service: A guide for intending candidates for commissions, and for the junior officers of the service (London, 1890). Westermann, Ed . ‘The most Unlikely of Allies: Hitler and Haile Selassie and the Defense of Ethiopia, 1935-36’, in Girding for Battle: The Arms Trade in a Global Perspective, 1815–1940, Donald J. Stoker Jr. and Jonathan A. Grant, eds (Santa Barbera, CA: Praeger, 1999), Woodman, Dorothy. Making Burma (London: The Cresset Press, 1962). B. Newspapers Berhanena Sälam [Light & Peace], 1925–1936 Le Figaro (Paris), March 26, 1959. New York Times, 1865–1952. London Times, 1865–1952. New Times and Ethiopia News (1936–1941) – It includes the text of sixty-two of his speeches and articles. New York World, 1927.

Oral interviews & informants Interviews were held with the individuals below in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, mostly in 2001, but some also in 1975–1976. Ato Avedis Terzian. A businessman and former translator for the US Embassy. Remarkably knowledgeable informant of Armenian descent. Ato Emmanuel Abraham, early student of Wärqenäh and close associate in the 1930s. Blatta Déréssa Amäté. Major Ethiopian progressive and part of the Wärqenäh extended family. 309

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Bbliography Wäyzäro Elizabeth Wärqenäh, daughter of Hakim Wärqenäh. Wäyzäro Hannah Yelma, granddaughter of Hakim Wärqenäh. Wäyzäro Ellene Mocria, granddaughter of Hakim Wärqenäh. Ato Mamo Tägäñ, member of Wärqenäh household. Richard Pankhurst, a major historian of Ethiopia who knew Wärqenäh personally. Wäyzäro Sophie Yelma, granddaughter of Hakim Wärqenäh. Wäyzäro Sosena Wärqenäh, daughter of Hakim Wärqenäh. Hakim Yohannes Wärqenäh, son of Hakim Wärqenäh. Wäyzäro Yudit Emeru, daughter of Ras Emeru and prominent in the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry. Däjazmach Zäwdé Gäbrä Sellassé, one of the foremost experts of Ethiopian oral and written history.

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Index

Ababa Aragay, 250 Abanäbro, Qäñazmach, 38-39 Abatä Bayaläw, Ras, 61, 65, 73, 89-90, 94 Abatä Boggalä, 207, 245, 269-70, 283, 297 Abraham, Emmanuel, 178, 180, 182, 18889, 207, 224, 226-28, 234, 245, 284, 297 Abyssinia Association, 229-30, 257-58 Ada Bastian, 235, 245 Adal, 178, 180-81, 187, 189-90, 193-96, 282 Adams, Vyvyan, 228, 257 Addis Ababa, 3-7, 14, 24-28, 32-33, 44, 5567, 72-74, 77-81, 83, 86-87, 91-92, 9495, 97, 99, 101, 103-08, 110, 112-15, 120, 131-32, 135-37, 140-41, 145-47, 155-58, 164-68, 175-76, 180-194, 199, 203, 206-08, 210, 214, 218-19, 227, 238, 245, 247-49, 285-86, 288, 291, 295, 297-99, 301 Addis Aläm, 79, 108, 140 Aden, 25-26, 221-22, 259, 274-75 Adohyammara, 174, 194 Adwa, 208; Battle of, 2, 23, 25, 75, 145, 207, 225, 234, 301 Afä Wärq Gäbrä Yäsus, 212, 214, 224-25, 238, 260, 277 Afar, 194, 181, 184, 194, 196 Afdam, 174, 194-95 African Americans, 4, 130, 153-54, 159, 171, 188-89, 228, 234-36, 251, 285-86, 297 African Diaspora, 234-36 Aggedäw Estäté, Näggadras, 7, 24, 31 Ahmad Ali Tasé, 181 Ahmed Gragn, 228 Al-Ahram, 229-30

Alaka Taye, 83 Alämawärq Bäyyänä, 249 Alämayähu Täna Gasha, 87, 92, 95-96, 103, 182 Alämnäsh Täklé, 24, 31-33 Albert Hall, 232, 234 Allenby, Lord, 106 Ambala, 171 Amdé Habtä Selassé, Fitawrari, 134, 144 Amdä Mäskäl, 202 American College of Beirut, 131, 289 Amhara, 31, 47, 174, 189, 193-94, 196 Ammañu Yemär, Balambaras, 142, 200, 280 Amritsar, 9-11, 13, 16 Amsala Heruy, 153, 155, 165, 250 Andargachäw Masay, 297 Angell, Norman, 228 Anglican Church, 9-10, 22 Anti-Slavery and Aborigines Protection Society, 134-35, 163 Antwerp, University of 252 Aqaqi, 107-08, 111, 140-42, 290-92, 296. Arada, 60, 107, 292 Aragawi, Afa Negus, 141, 202 Armenians, 34, 43, 60-61, 78, 80, 86, 93-94, 107, 130, 140 arms trade, 35-36, 116-17, 157-59, 161-63, 170-71, 180, 211, 215-23, 248, 267 Arrusi, 113, 180 Asahyammara, 174, 194 Asbä Täfari, 132, 174, 176, 180, 182-88, 192, 195, 206, 282, 284 Asfa Wäsän, 154, 156, 160, 163-64, 213, 224, 239, 243, 250, 288 Ashangi, Battle of, 212

311

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Index Asinara, 254 Asmara, 153, 224, 253 Assäb, 170, 208, 265, 272 Assabot gädam, 182 Astér (Esther)Wärqenäh, 98, 104, 155, 164, 197, 198, 245, 247, 250-55, 277, 28687, 289, 291, 295-96 Attanasius, 31, 44 Avedis Terzian, 297 Awash River, 142, 174, 176, 191, 193-94, 196 Ayenna Birru, 249 Babicheff, Fitawrari, 284, 297 Badalu, 142 Badessa, 187, 190 Badoglio, Pierto, 212-13, 237, 276 Baer, George, 219, 222 Bäfäqadu Wäldä Mikaél, 255, 287 Bahru Zewde, 29, 116, 149, 174, 226, 24950, 277 Baker, Lord Noel, 259 Bälachäw Radé, Qäñazmach, 181 Balcha Safo, Däjazmach, 94 Bartleet, Jack, 141-42 Barton, Sidney, 206, 219, 221-22 Basha Wäräd, 131, 251 Batala School, 10-12, 22, 55, 134 Bäyänäch, 245 Bäyyänä Yemär, Lej, 61, 65, 72-73, 76-78, 87, 89, 94, 107 Beirut, 131, 180, 287, 289 Bela Shangul, 145 Bell, Hesketh, 228 Bentinck, Cavendish, 229, 243 Benyam (Benjamin) Wärqenäh, 3, 98, 104, 106, 118, 123, 165, 169, 228, 233, 24550, 254, 259, 286, 289, 291, 296-97 Berbera, 37, 221, 259, 274-75 Berhanenna Sälam Press, 124, 133, 137-39, 148-49, 166, 195 Bét Sayda Hospital, 124, 130, 137 Betty Ali Khan, 248 Bhamo, 48-49, 53 Birbir River, 144, 146, 249 Black Lions, 249 Bombay, 26, 43, 98, 171-72, 269-71 Bonham Carter, Lady Violet, 232 Borana, 282, 285, 293 Britain, 2-3, 11, 14, 24-26, 31, 35, 45-48,

58-60, 64, 67, 70, 73, 84-88, 97-98, 101, 104, 106, 111, 115, 117, 12023, 142, 145, 150, 153-55, 158-62, 169-71, 193, 196, 207-08, 213-17, 220, 222, 237, 266, 275, 281; AngloItalian Accord (1925), 154, 207-08; Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement, (1944), 278; Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement and Military Convention (1942), 268, 277-78; Anglo-Ethiopian expeditions versus Somalis, 36-41, 46-47, 60; British Ambulance Service in Ethiopia (BASE), 232, 248, 259; British and Foreign Bible Society, 150, 286; British Foreign Office, 57-58, 120-21, 132, 160-62, 164, 166-68, 211-12, 215-16, 220, 223, 230, 232-33, 243, 256, 260, 269, 274; British Legation in Ethiopia, 3, 30-31, 55-60, 86, 90-93, 103, 116, 128, 132-33, 144, 153, 214, 223, 227, 238, 243, 250-51, 254, 299; British Somaliland, 2, 25-26, 36-42, 58, 84-85, 166, 169-70, 208, 211, 219, 221-22, 258-60; education in, 2-3, 15-16, 5356, 118, 153-55, 160, 163-68, 246-51, 283; Hoare-Laval Plan, 212, 222, 233; invasion of Ethiopia, 1, 8, 23, 35, 90; responses to Italian invasion of Ethiopia (1936), 3, 5, 209, 211-15, 219, 232, 238-39, 258, 266-68, 276, 301; Wärqenäh as Ambassador to, 1, 5, 130, 149, 163, 170, 176, 196-98, 203-46, 248, 253, 261, 269, 292, 295 Brittain, Vera, 228 Buckingham Palace, 122, 217, 257 Buddhism, 20, 48 Burhille, Battle of, 41 Burma, 2-5, 14, 16-26, 29, 32-35, 40-41, 4547, 51-54, 60-61, 72-73, 78-79, 87, 91, 95-110, 112, 115, 119, 123, 138, 151, 164, 166, 172, 184-85, 193, 196, 198, 228-29, 245, 250, 270, 285, 301 Buxton, Lady, 136, 229, 252 Calcutta, 12-13, 171 Canada, 85, 145, 230, 289 Canterbury, Archbishop of, 5, 130, 163, 228, 232-33, 257, 259 Castagna, M., 141 Cavadia, 94

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Index Cecil, Lord Robert, 211, 228, 232 Chamberlain, Austin, 167, 232-33 Chamberlain, Charles, 1, 9, 14, 122 Chärchär, 4, 20, 49, 70, 77, 106, 124, 128, 132, 134, 136, 138, 142, 150, 152, 165, 172-203, 226-27, 245, 251, 260, 27779, 281-82, 284, 292, 299, 302 Chärnät, Ato, 144 Cheek, James, 286 chelot, 178, 180-81, 184, 201 Chertok, Leo Jahuda, 217-18, 248 China, 17, 20, 26, 107, 268 Christianity, 2, 4, 19-20, 22, 43, 81, 13234, 149, 171, 178, 185, 234, 261, 285; Catholic Church, 83, 86n33, 131, 183, 188, 210, 217; Coptic Christians, 166-67, 229, 234-35; missionaries, 10, 13, 16, 83, 163, 190, 196, 227, 270; Protestant Churches, 131, 163. Christopherson, Dr., 120 Church Mission Society of the Anglican Church (CMS), 9-11, 13, 22, 130, 163 Clark, Edith, 295 Clark, Elizabeth Browne, 1, 9-10, 12-15, 22, 51-52, 260, 270 Clark, Hamlet, 13, 52, 245 Clark, Henry Martyn, 13-14, 16 Clark, Robert, Reverend, 1, 9-15, 245-46, 260, 270 Clark, Robert (son), 13-14 Clark, Stuart, 13, 52, 123, 166, 230, 246, 248, 295 Clark-Lloyd, Sybil, 13, 52, 106, 118-19, 12223, 156, 165-69, 228, 245, 248, 251 Cobbold, Ralph, 37-39, 41, 43, 57, 229 coffee, 4, 30, 33-35, 43, 140, 142, 174, 178, 187, 190-91 Collier, C.S., 120, 241-42, 252 Colonel Brown’s School, 270 Consular Fund, 240-41 Coolidge, Calvin, 123, 154-57 Coon, Carleton, 235 Corio, Silvio, 256 Count de la Guibourgiere, 80 Cunard, Nancy, 228 d’Abruzzi, Duke, 129-30, 135, 201 D’Aosta, Duke, 214, 239 Däbrä Libanos, 239 Däbrä Marqos, 209

Dagafu, 89 Dallas, 298 Danakil, 4, 184, 191, 193-96, 282, 285 Daniel Engäda Dästa, 43 Dargé Sahlä Sellasé, Ras, 94 Däsé, 209, 223, 250 Dästa Damtu, Däjazmach, 141 David Gäbru, 297 Dawit Wärqenäh, 204, 207, 240, 245-48, 269-70, 283, 286, 288-89, 291, 294-95 De Bono, 209, 212 De Castro, Lincoln, 62, 65 De Halpert, 193, 252 De Valera, 217 Debra Libanos, 86 Defense Fund, 240-41, 244, 257 Dehra Dun, 14-15, 260, 269-71 Delicio, Marius G., 224 Dembidollo, 293 Déréssa Amanté, Fitawrari and Blatta, 122, 124, 144-48, 259, 293 Dire Dawa, 41, 58, 174, 275, 282 Dolbahante, 39 Doughty-Wylie Hospital, 88 dum dum bullets, 212, 222-24 Eden, Anthony 214-17, 223, 239, 274 Edinburgh, 2, 13-16, 51, 56 education, 118, 153, 163-64, 168, 281; education reforms, 1, 45, 103, 106, 125-32, 139, 175, 178, 188, 190, 206, 302; for girls, 131-32, 163-65; of freed slaves, 130, 132-35, 148-50, 152, 259, 284; school construction, 4, 131, 140, 173, 185, 196. Efrém Täwäldä Mädhen, Ato, 129, 297 Egypt, 24, 35, 44, 82, 105, 120, 130, 158, 160, 166-67, 169, 191, 206, 208, 22931, 234-35, 248, 259, 289; National Bank of Egypt, 119-21, 177 Elfeñ Askälkay, 183 Elsabét (Elizabeth) Déréssa Wärqenäh, xiii, 98, 104-05, 112, 155, 164, 197, 198, 245, 247, 250-55, 277, 286-89, 291, 295-96 Emmañu Yemär, Balambaras and Fitawrari, 197, 200, 251-53, 287, 295 Emeru, Judith, 225 Emeru, Ras, 176, 214, 238, 249-50, 284, 294 Engäda Wärqenäh, 48-49, 52, 92, 96, 98-99,

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Index 103, 197, 203 Erigo, Battle of, 40 Eritrea, 24-25, 153, 170, 197, 207, 252, 254, 265, 272, 278 Eshäté Shäwa Rägb, Lej, 136 Ethiopia, Bank of Abyssinia, 60, 62, 79, 92, 107, 117, 119-21, 145, 177, 201, 241; court, 3, 28-29, 44, 61, 63, 66-67, 73-75, 77, 85-87, 89-90, 92, 94-95, 109-11, 114-15, 117, 122, 128, 145-47, 162, 169, 171, 179, 243, 247, 250, 278; Ethiopian Orthodox Church, 76-82, 127, 139, 166-67, 237; Foreign Office, 156, 252; Liberation of, 254, 265, 273, 276-77, 292-93; refugees, 258-60; Revolution (1974), 288, 290; Special Court of Ethiopia, 113,124, 143-44, 148, 150, 152 Evalet, 284 Fabricius, Ethel. See Watts, Ethel Fabricius Faizullah Akbar, 94 Fanfan, Tug, 38, 40 Fäqadä-Sellasé Heruy, 119, 254, 295-96 Färrädä Altasab, 195-96, 284 Farah, Haji, 230-31, 297 Farquharson, Miss, 230, 257 Fasilidas, Emperor, 7 Fawcett, Phillippa, 228 Feqrenna Agälgelot Mahbär, 4, 80-81, 124, 132-37, 142, 148-49, 152, 165, 179, 185 Fel Weha hot springs, 108-09, 113-14, 122, 124, 136-37, 152, 166, 179, 184 Feqr Eskä Mäqabär, 179 Fleming and Company, 162-63 France, 35-36, 57-60, 62-63, 65, 75, 78, 80, 86, 88, 93, 97, 102, 113, 121, 125-31, 133, 145, 147, 153, 158-59, 162-63, 167, 169, 171, 180, 196, 207, 209-12, 214-15, 218-19, 222, 238, 266, 288 Free Masons, 78, 80-81, 132-34, 231, 233-34 French Mission Laique, 131 Friends of Abyssinia Association, 234-35 Fry, Isabel, 228 Gäbrä Amlak, Ato, 180 Gäbrä Egziabehér, Blatta, and Käntiba, 43, 61, 78, 94, 136, 253, 282 Gäbrä Kristos, Ato, 137-39 Gäbrä Maryam Gari, Fitawrari, 48, 134, 195

Gäbrä Mädhen, 49, 61, 94 Gäbrä Sellasé, Aläqa, 67, 94 Gäbré, Fitawrari, 37, 41-42, 47 Gabriel Tedros, Ato, 293, 295 Gäbru Dästa, Käntiba, 43, 86, 297 Gadaburka, 43 gädam, 178, 182, 184 Galamso, 187, 189 Gambéla, 141, 293 Gardiner, 241 Gärmamé, Däjazmach, 199n56 Garvey, Mrs. Marcus, 235-36 Gashé Asaffa, 278 Geneva, 206, 212, 224-25, 235, 239 Geneva Convention, 156, 211, 222, 232 George, Lloyd, 5, 163, 166, 271 George V, King, 121-23, 155, 161, 164, 217, 257 Gera, 174 Germany, 59, 61, 63-65, 67, 87-88, 97, 102, 133, 210, 212-14, 224, 248; see also Nazi Germany Geromilato, 39, 44 Gétachäw Abatä, Däjazmach and Ras, 134, 179, 225 Géyahun Tässäma, 287 Gibbi, 34, 68-69, 71, 76, 78-79, 88, 114, 151, 195, 203n80, 206, 278-79, 282, 292 Gildessa, 43 Giyorgis Church, 252 Gladstone, Lady, 5, 228 Gobäna Dachi, Ras, 75 Gojjam, 145, 177-78, 180, 287 Gondär, 7-8, 24, 31, 34, 43, 87, 109, 209, 283, 292, 295 Goré, 141, 199 Graziani, Rodolfo, 212-14, 237-38, 254, 297; Graziani massacre (1936), 238-39, 250, 291, 296-97 Grazmach, xi, 181. Great Depression, 168, 170, 172, 200-01, 251 Greeks, 31, 43-44, 60, 62, 78, 80, 86, 89, 107, 141, 190, 284-85, 297-98 Gugsa, Ras, 125, 129 Guillon, M, 128-29 Guma, 174 Gumburu, Battle of, 43 Guragé, 78, 107, 140, 142, 293

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Index Gwynne, Bishop, 129, 229 Habtä Giyorgis, Fitawrari, 61, 64, 72-73, 82, 102, 109, 117, 125, 146, 150 Habtä Maryam, Däjazmach, 128 Hachadourian, 80, 86, 90, 94 Hall, David, 142, 220 Hambleton Arms Company, 158 Hamdan Abu Shok, 145 Hanbury-Tracy, A., 35, 37-39, 41, 57 Hanna Salama, Abuna, 167, 243, 290 Harar, 4, 24-25, 27, 34-36, 38-39, 41, 43-45, 47, 58, 124, 173, 175-77, 187, 189, 19394, 208-09, 259-60, 275, 290, 301 Harrington, John Lane, 25-27, 30, 33, 46 Haud, 38, 43 Hawiya, 41-42, 174, 187, 194-95 Haylä Giyorgis, Näggadras and Fitawrari, 61, 67, 80, 88, 90-91, 94 Haylä Maryam Särabiyon, Ato, 43, 86n33, 182 Haylä Sellasé, Emperor, 2-5, 45, 58, 75, 86, 94, 152, 173-88, 191-99, 201-09, 212-18, 222, 224-26, 232-33, 237-49, 251, 255-57, 259-60, 267-68, 271-84, 288-93, 302 Haylä Sellasé Hospital, 289, 297 Haylé Kulach, Qäñazmach and Grazmach, 181-82 Haylé Tädla Zälläqä, 197, 252-53, 287 Haylé Wäldä Rufé, Fitawrari, 134, 253 Haylu Täklä Haymanot, Ras, 122, 130, 141, 177, 180, 235 Healey, Miss, 15-16 Herbert, Lord, 59 Heruy Wäldä Sellasé, 85-86, 119-20, 138-39, 153, 155, 163, 206n5, 238, 251, 260 Hirna, 187, 189, 199 Hitler, Adolf, 5, 168, 220 Hoare, Samuel, 215, 222 Holland, Algernon Omar, 123, 227, 246 Holland, Hannah, 123, 156, 166, 226-30, 234, 246 Holland, 129, 297 Home, 120, 122 Howiyan, 80, 94 Huggins, Willis N., 235-36 Hussein, King, 289 Hylander, Dr., 297

imperialism, 2, 3, 11, 27, 51, 58, 260-64, 271, 278, 301 India, 29, 45, 61, 89-90, 108, 122-23, 191, 230, 258-59, 270, 272, 281; Ethiopian refugees, 258-60; Indians in Ethiopia, 43, 60, 86, 93-94, 107, 130, 141, 151, 171-72, 188, 190, 282, 284-85, 297; India Office, 3, 55-56, 58, 74, 27475; Indian Civil Service (ICS), 16-17, 33, 48, 96-97, 99, 103, 175; Indian Medical Service, 15-18, 301; Wärqenäh education in, 1-2, 5, 9-12, 15, 22, 127; Wärqenäh employment in, 3, 16-17, 229; Wärqenäh retirement in, 5, 14-15, 237, 240-44, 255, 260, 269-76 Irrawaddy River, 17-18, 21, 229 Irwin, Major, 297 Ismail, Professor, 190, 270, 274 Isiolo, 181 Issa, 174, 194 Italy, 26, 35-36, 62, 65, 88, 117, 121, 146, 153, 159, 162-63, 169, 170-71, 186; Anglo-Italian Accord (1925), 154, 167, 207-08; detention camps, 181, 203, 254, 269, 288, 291; Italian East Africa, 212, 239, 254, 269; Italian Legation in Ethiopia, 57, 59, 62, 133, 135, 208-09; Italian Somaliland, 36, 40, 42, 58, 153, 181, 207, 265; ItalianEthiopian Treaty of Friendship and Arbitration (1928), 208; ItaloEthiopian War (1896), 23-25, 36, 145; Italo-Ethiopian War (1935-36), 3, 5, 27, 39, 107, 116, 128, 145, 148, 158, 170, 179-81, 189-90, 193, 196, 197, 203-13, 216-35, 247, 249, 25367, 277, 282, 286-87, 291, 301-02; Italo-German Agreement (1936), 214, 238; League of Nations, 111, 237-39, 266; poison gas, 210-13, 222-23, 237, 257, 262-63, 266, 268; Occupation of Ethiopia (1936-40), 14, 27, 142, 146, 158, 188-90, 204, 213-14, 237, 240, 250, 254, 258, 265-66, 275-76, 283, 288, 292-93, 302-03; Treaty of Friendship (1928), 208; War of Liberation (1941), 180, 240, 245, 254, 265-66, 273, 277, 287, 293 Ittuu, 173-74, 194 Iyasu, Lej, 3, 64, 69, 73-75, 78, 80, 82, 85,

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Index 87-94, 97-98, 101-102, 114, 126, 143, 174, 177, 247 J.G. White Engineering Company, 157-58, 160, 165-66 Jan Hoy Méda, 67, 77-78, 86, 106-08, 113 Jarso, 43, 58 Jerusalem, 113, 124, 129 Jevons, Herbert Stanley, 228-29, 257-59, 271 Jibuti, 57-58, 145, 147, 154-55, 159, 163, 169, 174, 186, 193-94, 219, 224, 259 Jifar, Abba, 177 Jijjiga, 38-39, 41, 174, 179, 209, 226, 278 Battle of, 36 Jimma road, 107, 124, 139-43, 148, 152, 165, 172, 177, 186, 199n56; Jimma Road Company, 141-42 Johnson and Matthey, 166, 169 Julius Rosewold Fund, 286 Junod, Marcel, 248 Käbbärä Haylä Sellasé, Ato, 134 Käbbädä Mika’él, 179 Kafa, 34, 141 Karrayyuu, 174, 178, 193-94, 196 Kassa, Lej, see Téwodros, Emperor. Kassa Haylu, Ras, 122, 150, 238, 241, 24849, 252, 280 Katha, 21, 23, 25-26 Keflé Dadi, Näggadras, 180-82, 189, 192, 195, 279 Kellogg, Frank Billings, 156-58 Kelsay, H.A., 159 Kenya, 161, 258, 278 Khartoum, 24, 167, 283 Khojali, Shaykh, 145 Khoury, Hanema Beiyann, 234 Kinfu, Däjazmach, 7 Kings College, London, 3, 13, 55 Klobukowski Treaty, 143 Krupp Arms Company, 248 Kuni, 185 Kurtum, 187 Kyaukpyu, 19-20 Kyaukse, 40, 47-48 Lahore, 1, 12-13, 15, 51, 171, 270-71 Lambie, Dr. Thomas, 115, 229 Lang, Osmo, Dr., 232 Laqäch, 24, 31-33, 282-83

Lashio, 26 Lät Bälläw, Däjazmach, 253, 290 Layton, Lady, 258 League of Nations, 5, 111, 113, 116-17, 129, 136, 149, 154, 170, 207-16, 220-21, 224, 226, 234, 237-39, 256, 258, 260-61, 265-67, 271-72, 302 Leedus, Christodulus, 78 Lemlem, 108, 165 L’Herminier, 60, 62-63, 65, 92-93 Liya (Leah) Wärqenäh, 204, 207, 240, 24548, 269-70, 283, 286, 288, 294-96 Loan Fund, 240-41, 244, 257 London, 1, 3, 5, 13-14, 16, 53-58, 106, 11821, 134, 148, 156, 160, 164, 166, 168-69, 186, 203-07, 211-15, 217, 223-26, 234, 239, 257-58; emperor’s exile in, 237, 243-44, 268; Ethiopian Legation under Wärqenäh, 203-41, 243-45, 248, 259-60, 275, 280, 295; London, Skin Hospital, 3, 56; London Society for the Promotion of Christianity Among Jews, 57; Lorenzo Te’ezaz, 297 Loughborough College, 247-48 Lugard, Lord, 5, 232-33 Ma Me, 49, 51-53, 58, 197, 203 Macaroni Factory, 280-81, 292 Mahbär, xi, 79, 132-37, 150 Mahdists, 24-25, 31 majlis, 178, 180-81 Mäkonnen Dästa, 282, 288 Mäkonnen Endalkachäw, Näggadras, 225, 247, 275, 279, 290 Mäkonnen Haylä Sellassé, Negus 176, 225 Mäkonnen Wäldä Mika’él, Ras, 2, 25, 31, 34-39, 41, 43-47, 59, 109, 152, 192, 213, 226 Makuna, 42 Mäkuryia Wäldä Sellasé, 288 Mälaku Bäyän, 131, 159 Mälkäña, 174-75 Mänän Asfaw, Wäyzäro, 4, 75, 107, 109-10, 112-14, 124, 129, 140, 144, 147, 15152, 154-55, 172, 197, 199n56, 202, 205, 243-44, 247, 249-51, 274-75, 287 Mängäsha Käffäla, Ato, 129, 133, 284 Mängäsha Webé, Däjazmach, 225 Mäqdäla, 1-2, 8, 23, 31, 73, 90-91, 122, 166, 301

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Index Märed Habtä Maryam, Däjazmach, 89, 114, 151-52 Märsé Hazän Wäldä Qirqos, Ato, 129, 13334, 136, 139, 152 Märsha, Ato, 43 Marson, Una, 227 Martin, Charles. See Wärqenäh Martin, Colonel W. J., 1, 9-10, 13-14 Mäsfän Qälämwärq, Lej, 133-34, 149, 155, 160, 165, 179, 197, 209 Mäshäsha Zäwäldé, Ato, 202 Matéwos, Abunä, 30-31, 33-34, 44-47, 60-61, 64, 73, 82-84, 86, 90, 94, 102, 109, 12526, 150, 167 Mättafäriya Wedé, 182 Maymyo, 98 McDonald, James Ramsey, 119-20, 123, 161, 166, 206, 222 medical reforms, 1, 103, 115, 175, 177, 185, 188, 190, 196, 259, 281 Mekettel Abägaz, 178 Melly, John, 231-33, 248 Menilek, Emperor, 2-3, 7, 23-27, 29-37, 43-46, 51, 56, 58-73, 75, 77-80, 82-87, 91-99, 101-02, 105, 109, 114, 126-27, 133-34, 141, 145, 149, 161, 199n56, 207 Menilek Hospital, 92-93 Menilek School. 45, 83, 105, 125-26, 288 Mérab, 62-63 Mercogliano (Avellino), 254 Méso, 174, 187, 190 Mika’él Ali, Ras, 73, 86n33 Mika’el Berru, Däjazmach, 43, 59-61, 76-77, 86, 94 Mika’él Church, 115, 252, 299 Mika’él Mahbär, 74, 81 Mikhail, Kyriakos, 166, 206, 228-31, 257 Minbu, 95-97 Morris, Herbert, 232 Moulmein, 96 Mudug, 39 Muhammad Abdille Hasan, Sayyid, 2, 35-43, 46-47, 57-58, 221 Muhammad Ali, 94, 117, 172 Muhammad Amhad, see Mahdi Muldrow, Joe, 286 Mulla Géta, Bäjerond, 70 Mulu Amäbét, 76, 94 Muskingam College, 130, 159

Muslims, 2, 4, 19-20, 38, 41, 101, 150-51, 173, 176, 178, 181, 193-94, 248 Mussolini, Benito, 5, 91, 111, 168, 207-12, 216-17, 222, 225, 231-32, 239, 254, 261, 276 Myingyan, 96-100, 250 Myitkyna, 40, 47-48 Nadäw Abba Baher, Ras, 122, 147 Näftäña, 174-75, 180 Nalbandian, M., 129 Napier, Lady, 5, 259 Napier, General, 8; Napier Expedition, 8 nationalism, 3, 36, 46, 84, 169, 239, 261-62, 264, 298 Nazi Germany, 214-16, 220-21, 239, 256 Near and Middle East Society, 234 Nehru, Pandit Jawaharlal, 5, 123, 272 New York, 130, 156-59, 286 New Times and Ethiopia News, 255-56, 26162, 265-66, 268, 271, 277 Nile Association, 229, 234, 257, 262, 266 Nile River, 117, 120, 153, 166-70, 207-08 Noel-Baker, Philip, 228, 271 Oborra, 173, 194 Ogaden, 35-38, 40, 43, 46-47, 59, 123, 179, 196, 208, 222, 278 O’Hanlon, Douglas, 196 Oliphant, Lancelot, 215 Oromo, 3, 35-36, 40, 43, 75, 99, 173-74, 181, 184, 189, 194, 196, 287 pacifism, 263-64 Paish, George, 257-58 Palestine Arab League, 230 Pankhurst, Richard, 174, 256 Pankhurst, Sylvia, 5, 19, 210, 228, 231, 234, 255-57, 271, 274, 277-78, 282 Papazian, M., 129 Paris, 129, 138, 162, 166, 180, 207, 224-25, 235, 277 Passingham, 248, 251 Paulos, Ato, 43 Pawlos Badamé, 188 Perham, Margery, 143 Pétros, Abunä, 78 Pollard, Lord, 251 Port Said, 54, 167, 224, 248 Powell-Cotton, P.H.G., 30

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Index Prasso, Family, 145-48, 293 progressivism, 1, 3-4, 110, 132, 137, 139, 160, 177-79, 197, 225-26, 255, 268, 281, 301-02 Prüfer, Curt M., 220 Punjab, 1, 9-13, 16, 245, 285 Qadi, 178, 181-82, 184, 279 Qäläm Wärq, Däjazmach, 179 Qätsälä Tullu, Wäyzäro, 27, 52, 88, 90-108, 126, 134-37, 144, 149, 164, 168, 206n5, 245, 247, 250-55, 283, 286, 291, 294, 298-99; influence at court, 3, 75, 109115, 124, 146, 151-52, 277, 281, 287; divorce, 5, 77, 176, 196-204, 243-45, 253; marriage of, 3, 14, 51, 55, 58, 7377, 80-87, 301 Qérellos, Abuna, 167 Qunni, 187 Qwara, 7, 90 racism, 27, 119, 121, 156, 159, 162, 220, 235, 260, 262-64, 268, 284 Rangoon, 17-18, 26 Rappaport, 217-18, 248 Rathbone Eleanor, 228 Rawalpindi, 1, 9 Rebqa (Rebecca) Wärqenäh, 104, 245, 250, 254, 286-87 Red Cross, 88, 99, 115, 211, 230-33, 248, 259, 266 Rey, C.F., 118 Rickett, Francis W., 217-18, 221 road construction, 4, 107, 124, 140-43, 17375, 178, 182, 184-87, 190, 196, 199n56 Robeson, Paul, 235, 258 Robinson, John C., 285-86, 297 Rochfort, General A.N., 41-42, 47, 58 Rockefeller, Institute, 157 Roman Wärq, 254 Rome, 223-25, 276-77 Roro, Ato, 285 Rosen, Carl von, 256 Rothschild, Anthony, 163, 166 Royal Institute of International Affairs, 234 Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), 231, 233 Russell, Dr. 14-15 Russell, Claude, 106, 120-21, 229 Russia, 57, 59-60, 63, 68, 97, 150, 226, 239

Ryan, Colonel, 217 Säbé Yefat, Wayzäro, 75, 86, 98 Salamgé, 90 Salisbury, Archbishop of, 130, 163, 166 Salvemini, Gaetano, 256 Samala, 39 Sämäñ, 87, 92, 95-96 Samuél Wärqenäh, 204, 207, 240, 245-48, 269-70, 283, 286, 288-89, 291, 294-96 Sandford, Christine, 233-34 Sara Wärqenäh, 98, 104, 155, 179, 197, 198200, 245-47, 250-55, 277, 286-89, 291 Sardar Khan, 270, 285 Sardinia, 254 Sarkis Terzian, 44, 80, 86, 94 Sayfu Mika’él, Lej, 179, 197-200, 252-53, 288 Schimper, 86-87 Schomberg, Arthur, 159 Scotland, 2, 13, 15-16, 60, 258 Scott, Graham, 161, 166 Sebhat, Ras, 39 Seyum, Ras, 130, 297 Shan States, 21, 26, 48, 145 Sharif, Omar, 289 shariya, 178, 181 Sharp, 103, 116 Shäwa, 23-24, 75, 94, 102, 109 Shaw, John H., 286 Shawäl Zäsé, Abba, 176, 194 Sherborne School, 168, 251 Shola, 77, 106-08, 115, 136, 152, 250-51, 254-55, 291 Siggins, A.J., 259 Sinclair Oil, 219 Siraq Heruy, 119, 249 slavery, 3-4, 81, 87, 91, 101, 103-04, 111, 114-17, 130, 132-36, 142, 145, 149-51, 169, 173, 175-78, 180, 182, 184, 19193, 216, 229, 251, 259, 302 Snell, Lord, 271 Society for the Propagation of the Gospe1, 130, 163 Solalé, Adrienne and Mary, 297 Somalis, 2, 24, 35-41, 51, 57-59, 84, 170, 174, 181, 184, 194, 208-09, 213, 231, 254, 297 Somerville, 56 Sosena (Susie)Wärqenäh, 104, 245, 250, 254,

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Index 286-88, 291, 295-96, 298-99 South Africa, 41, 145, 230, 235, 243, 269-70 Southard, Addison E., 157, 159, 172 Spain, 213, 237, 265, 268 St. Georges Church, 141, 253 Steen, William M., 286 Steer, George, 228, 248-49 Steffen, Hans, 220-21 Steinkuhler, 63-65, 67-68, 85 Sudan, 24-25, 145, 158, 160, 208, 217, 219, 243, 249, 258-60, 283, 293, 297 Sweden, 256, 270, 297 Switzerland, 164, 168-69 Tädäsä Mäshäsha, 141-42 Tädla Abäbayähu, 49, 52, 60-61, 94 Täfärä Wärq, 280-81, 283n22, Täfäri, Ras, 76, 94, 102-03, 105-64, 166-72, 174, 176, 225, 247, 250, 302. See also Haylä Sellasé Täfäri Mäkonnen School, 4, 77, 106, 12432, 134, 137-39, 148, 152, 154, 159, 165-66, 168-69, 180, 188, 227, 284, 302 Tafäsä Habtä Mika’él, Fitawrari and Näggadras, 134, 199-203, 253 Täklä Hawaryat, Fitawrari and Bäjerond, 17376, 181-83, 191, 207, 225-26, 277 Talbot, David, 286 Tana Gasha, Näggadras, 76 Tana, Lake, dam project, 4, 117, 120, 15361, 165-70, 207-08 Tänagnä Wärq, 247 Täsämma Nadäw, Ras Bitwäddäd, 61, 65, 67, 69-71, 73-76, 82-86, 88-89, 92-94 Täsfay Giyorgis, 284, 295, 297 Täsfay (Reginald) Zaphiro, 44, 227, 283, 297 Tasso, Fitawrari, 141, 177 Tavoy, 19 Täwabäch Wäldä Täklé, 24, 31-33 Tayé, Aläqa and Däjazmach, 138, 299 Taytu, Empress, 30-31, 33, 44, 46-47, 61-73, 77-79, 82, 84-86, 89, 92-94, 114, 126, 134 Telahun, Bitwäddäd, 90, 94 Terunäh, Ato, 76, 87 Téwodros (Theodore) Wärqenäh, 3, 23, 51-52, 55, 98, 104, 106, 118-19, 123, 130, 164-65, 182, 197, 200, 203, 228, 245-46, 254, 286, 289, 291, 295 Téwodros II (Theodore), Emperor, 1, 5,

7-8, 23, 90, 92, 122-23, 166, 227 Thesiger, Wilfred, 229 Thongwa, 18-19 Toungoo, 20 Trent College, 106, 118-19, 165, 169, 247 Trinity College, 13, 249 Tsähay Wärq, Wäyzäro, 94, 228, 247, 250 Tsehay Haylä Sellasé, Princess, 153-56, 160, 164-65, 168-69, 213 Tucker, Charlotte Maria, 10-12, 14, 22 Tullu, Fitawrari, 75-76, 83-86, 98, 101, 10304, 106, 115, 199, 203, 247, 299, 302 Turkey, 78, 97 Tuskegee, 159 United States, 4, 36, 67, 70-71, 106, 115, 120, 123, 130-31, 145-46, 151, 153-63, 166, 168-70, 179, 204, 206, 208, 210, 217-18, 227, 230, 234, 236, 256, 287, 289, 297-98 Urban League, 159 Victoria College, Alexandria, 106, 289 Victoria Technical Institute, 98 Virgin, Eric, 256 Vitalien, 62-63, 65, 92-93 Wädajé, Ligaba, 141 Wakeman, W.A.M., 57, 59 Wal Wal, 39, 43, 206, 209, 211, 228, 255, 259, 261, 266 Walda Gabriel, Fitawrari, 114 Walda Giyorgis, 89, 213, 241-44, 280-81, 287, 292-93 Wäldä Haymanot, Ato, 30, 61, 138 Wäldä Maryam, 49, 212, 214, 224, 238 Wäldä Mäsqäl Tariku, Tsähafé, 134, 243 Wäldä Sadeq, Käntiba, 76, 138 Waldmeier, Theophilus, 227 Waliso, 288, 291 Wälläga, 94, 124, 141, 145, 165, 168-69, 284, 287; Wälläga Concession, 144-48, 199n56, 218, 259, 291, 294 Wällo, 73, 93-94, 176 Wandafrash, Ato, 84 Wändäm Agäññähu, Näggadras, 48, 87 Wandi, Ato, 43, 86n33, 138 Wanji, 191 Wärqenäh Eshäté (Charles Martin), childhood, 1, 5, 8-12, 14, 21, 23, 29,

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Index 122, 301; death, 5, 298-99; education of, 1-3, 5, 9-12, 14-16, 21-22, 127; financial difficulties, 239-45, 294; health of, 56, 77, 95, 98-100, 103, 108, 118-19, 122, 124, 144, 167, 169, 176, 269, 273, 279, 294, 298; and the media, 111, 116-17, 149, 220, 230, 232, 256, 270-71; self-identity, 3, 11, 14, 23, 25, 27, 29, 32, 42, 46-47, 51, 53, 84, 92, 272, 301, 303 Wäsäné, Fitawrari, 76 Watts, Alice, 123, 164, 246 295 Watts, Ethel Fabricius, 51-56, 58, 123, 197, 203, 227-28, 245-46, 295 Watts, Louise, 56, 123, 246 Webbi Shebelli River, 39-43, 174 Webé, Däjazmach, 202 Wells, R., 160-61, 163-64 Weqaw Berru, Abba, 130 Westminster Abbey, 163, 268; Dean of, 228 Williams, H. Sylvester, 81 Williamson, 229 Wilson, Woodrow, 266 Wilts, Johnson, 167 Winterlow, 229 Women’s International League Against Imperialism, 234, 248 World Geography, 4, 61-62, 99, 124, 138-40, 148, 168-69 World War I, 3, 88, 96-97, 99, 101-02, 138, 155, 207, 215, 246, 255, 258, 266 World War II, 5, 14, 39, 55, 123, 139, 143, 169, 171, 191, 204, 207-08, 211, 214, 219, 225-26, 234-35, 239, 242, 254, 258, 265, 273, 276, 289

Yabdo, 145, 282, 291, 293 Yäbariya Nätsa Dagnnät Halafi, 178, 182 Yägemja Bét Shum, 178 Yämängäd Sera Halafi, 178, 182 Yäshäshwärq, Wäyzäro, 225 Yäwätadär Halafi, 178 Yelma Déréssa, 255, 280, 282-83, 287, 28990, 292-94 Yeggäzu, Azaj, 71, 76, 79 Yemen, 258-59 Yohannes, 86n33, 87, 92, 95-96, 138, 144, 204, 207, 240, 245-48, 250, 269-70, 283, 286, 288-91, 294-96, 298, 303 Yohannes, Emperor, 23-25, 78 Yuséf Wärqenäh, 3, 91, 95, 98, 104, 106, 118, 123, 164-65, 169, 228, 233-34, 245-50, 254, 259, 286, 289, 291, 296-97 Zälläqä Agedäw, Bäjerond, Lej and Näggadras, 66-67, 85, 89, 225, 253 Zänäbä Wärq, 250; Zänäbä Wärq School, 286 Zaphiro, 43-44, 120-21, 227 Zappa, M., 146-47, 298 Zäwdé Bäyyänä, 251 Zäwdé Gäbrä Selasé, Däjazmach, 110, 226 Zäwditu, Empress, 4, 63, 65, 102, 106, 10916, 125-26, 131, 133, 135-36, 142-43, 146-47, 150-52, 154, 165, 168, 179, 201 Zawga, Ato, 86n33 Zayla, 25-27, 206, 208, 211, 221-22 Zervos, 115 Zewdé Gäbrä Heywät, Bitwädäd, 176 Zewde Garbe-Sellasie, Däjazmach, 177, 179, 183, 225 Zuqwala, 33

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Peter Garretson is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Middle East Center, Florida State University.

‘...an Ethiopian statesman, diplomat and reformer whose almost fairytale story has long awaited a biographer. Found as a child of three by Anglo-Indian troops on the battlefield of Magdala in 1868 he was taken to India where he became a doctor before eventually returning to his native land. This ground-breaking biography, on which Peter Garretson has spent almost a life-time, is a work of major importance. It opens up the Ethiopian political scene from Magdala in the nineteenth century to the fall of the Fascist Empire in the twentieth, and makes a memorable and fascinating read.’ – Richard Pankhurst

GARRETSON

Cover: Wärqenäh with his family and servants in Addis Ababa, c. 1920 (Photograph © and reprinted by permission of The Workeneh Family Foundation)

This is the first full biography of Hakim Wärqenäh Eshäté, or Dr. Charles Martin, a man of overlapping identities as a world citizen, a citizen of the British empire and an Ethiopian nationalist. He was a major progressive force in Ethiopia, played a significant role as a spokesman for the African diaspora during the 1930s, became an elder statesman in Ethiopia in the 1940s, and his extended family (and many of those he mentored) had a major impact on modern Ethiopian history.

A Victorian Gentleman & Ethiopian Nationalist

A Victorian Gentleman &Ethiopian Nationalist JAMES CURREY an imprint of Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 3DF (GB) and 668 Mt Hope Ave, Rochester NY 14620-2731 (US) www.boydellandbrewer.com www.jamescurrey.com

The life & times of Hakim Wärqenäh, Dr. Charles Martin

PETER P. GARRETSON