Abiye Abebe
Abiye Abebe | |
|---|---|
አብይ አበበ | |
Abiye in 1967 | |
| Minister of Defence | |
| In office 28 February 1974 – 22 July 1974 | |
| Prime Minister | Endelkachew Makonnen |
| Preceded by | Merid Mengesha |
| Succeeded by | Aman Andom |
| President of the Senate | |
| In office 15 July 1964 – 28 February 1974 | |
| Monarch | Haile Selassie I |
| Preceded by | Le'ul Ras Asrate Kassa |
| Succeeded by | Legislature abolished |
| Governor-General of Eritrea[1] Chief Administrator (1960–1962) Chief Executive (1959–1960) | |
| In office 20 May 1959 – 12 February 1964 | |
| Monarch | Haile Selassie I |
| Preceded by | Bitwoded Asfaha Woldemikael as Chief Executive |
| Succeeded by | Le'ul Ras Asrate Kassa |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1917[2] |
| Died | 23 November 1974 (aged 56–57) |
| Spouse(s) | Princess Tsehai Haile-Selassie Woizero Amarech Nasibu |
| Parent |
|
Lij Abiye Abebe (Amharic: አብይ አበበ; 1917 – 23 November 1974) was an Ethiopian politician and son-in-law of Emperor Haile Selassie.
Biography
Son of Liqa Mequas Abebe Atnaf Seggad, Abiye was born 1918 in Addis Ababa[2] as a Lij. He attended the Holeta Military Academy.[3] In the 1940s and 1950s he was Minister of Defence, and later served as Minister of Justice and Minister of the Interior.[4] He chaired the High National Security Commission during the Ethiopian Revolution until his arrest by the Derg on 16 July 1974.[5] Lt. General Abiye was serving as Chief of the General Staff when he was arrested.
According to John Spencer, when Prime Minister Aklilu Habte-Wold sought to resign his post in 1973, he suggested to the Emperor that he be replaced by General Abiye. Other sources indicate that Aklilu Habte-Wold's rival Prince Asrate Kassa was the person who put General Abiye forward as a fellow aristocrat. However Abiye consented to becoming prime minister only if his nomination, and those of his cabinet, were approved by the Ethiopian parliament, a condition Emperor Haile Selassie found unacceptable. As a result, Haile Selassie decided to appoint Endelkachew Makonnen Prime Minister instead.[6] Abiye was one of 60 former government officials executed the night of 22–23 November at Akaki Central Prison by the Derg.[7]
General Abiye was married three times. At Addis Ababa, on 26 April 1942, he married Princess Tsehai of Ethiopia who died in childbirth a year later. After this marriage, Lt. General Abiye Abebe was accorded the dignities and protocol rank of the Emperor's son-in-law, even after he remarried. In 1946, married Woizero Amarech Nasibu, daughter of Nasibu Zeamanuel, whith whom he had 4 children Abebe, Mekonnen, Amaha and Solomon, and then in 1970 to Woizero Tsige Aynalem, his widow, with whom he had three children, Phebe, Berkinesh, and Abiye.[8]
Career history
- Brigadier-General (24 April 1942)
- Governor-General of Wollega province (1942–1943)[2]
- Minister for War 1949–1955; Acting (1943–1947)
- Minister of Justice (1958–1961)[2]
- Minister of Interior (1961–1964)[2]
- Ambassador to France (1955–1958)[2]
- Viceroy of Eritrea (1959–1964)
- President of the Ethiopian Senate (1964–1974)[2]
- Minister for Defence and Chief of Staff (28 February 1974 – 22 July 1974)
Honours
National
- Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Holy Trinity[8]
- Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Menelik II[8]
- Military Medal of Merit of the Order of St George[8]
- Haile Selassie I Gold Medal[8]
- Patriot Medal & three torches (1944)[8]
- Refugee Medal (1944)[8]
- Jubilee Medal (1955)[8]
- Jubilee Medal (1966)[8]
Foreign
- Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau (Kingdom of The Netherlands, 13 November 1953)[9]
- Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (Kingdom of Norway, January 1956)[8]
- Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Legion of Honour (French Republic)[8]
- Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of the Renaissance (Kingdom of Jordan)[8]
- Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Sahametrei (Kingdom of Cambodia, 4 January 1968)[8]
- Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (United Kingdom, 1965)[8]
- British Star (United Kingdom, 1939–1945)[8]
- Africa Star (United Kingdom, 1940–1943)[8]
- British War Medal (United Kingdom, 1939–1945)[8]
- National Order of Merit (France)[8]
References
- ^ In 1959 the legislatively-elected post of Chief Executive was replaced by the imperially-appointed office of Chief Administrator. On 15 November 1962 Eritrea became an ordinary province of Ethiopia, and the office was in turn replaced with that of Governor-General.
- ^ a b c d e f g Shinn, David; Ofcansky, Thomas (2013). Historical Dictionary of Ethiopia. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-7457-2.
- ^ Shinn, David H. (2004). Historical Dictionary of Ethiopia (2 ed.). Scarecrow Press. pp. 3–. ISBN 9780810865662.
- ^ Bahru Zewde, A History of Modern Ethiopia, second edition (London: James Currey, 2003), p. 205
- ^ Andargachew Tiruneh, The Ethiopian revolution, 1974-1987 (Cambridge: University Press, 1993), p. 68
- ^ Spencer, Ethiopia at Bay: A personal account of the Haile Selassie years (Algonac: Reference Publications, 1984), p. 337
- ^ Marina and David Ottaway, Ethiopia: Empire in Revolution (New York: Africana, 1978), p. 61
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Chu, Jane (July 2, 2022). "What We Carry: The Medals of Abiye Abebe". Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
- ^ Nationaal Archief, inventory 2.02.32, dossier 373, registry number 854