| Prince Alemayehu | |
|---|---|
| Prince Alemayehu as a young man. | |
| Full name | |
| Prince Alemayehu Simyen Tewodoros | |
| House | House of Solomon |
| Father | Tewodros II of Ethiopia |
| Mother | Tiruwork Wube |
| Born | 23 April 1861 Magdala, Ethiopia |
| Died | 14 November 1879 (aged 18) Far Headingley, Leeds, England |
| Burial | St George's chapel, Windsor Castle |
| Religion | Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo |
HIH Prince Alemayehu or Alamayou of Ethiopia (23 April 1861 – 14 November 1879) was the son of Emperor Tewodros II of Ethiopia. Emperor Tewodros II committed suicide after his defeat by the British, led by Sir Robert Napier, at the Battle of Magdala in 1868.
The young prince was taken to Britain for safekeeping, under the care of Captain Tristram Speedy. While staying at Speedy's home on the Isle of Wight he was introduced to Queen Victoria at her home at Osborne House. She took a great interest in his life and education. Alamayehu spent some time in India with Speedy and his wife, but the government decided he should be educated in England and he was sent to Cheltenham to be educated under the care of Thomas Jex-Blake, principal of Cheltenham College. He moved to Rugby School with Jex-Blake in 1875, where one of his tutors was Cyril Ransome (the future father of Arthur Ransome). In 1878 he joined the officers' training school at Sandhurst, but was not happy there and the following year he went to Far Headingley, Leeds, West Yorkshire to stay with his old tutor Cyril Ransome. Within a week he contracted pleurisy, and he died after six weeks of illness, despite the attentions of Dr Clifford Allbutt of Leeds and other respected consultants.[1]
Queen Victoria arranged for Alamaheyu to be buried at Windsor Castle. The funeral took place on 21 November 1879, in the presence of Cyril Ransome, Chancellor of the Exchequer Stafford Northcote, General Napier, and Captain Speedy. A brass plaque in the nave of St George's chapel commemorates him and bears the words "I was a stranger and ye took me in", but Alamayehu's body is buried in a brick vault outside the chapel.[1]
The Ethiopian government in 2007 requested the return of his remains for reburial in Ethiopia.[2]
The story of Alemayehu's life is told in the radio play I was a stranger by Peter Spafford, which was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2004.[3] The role of Alemayehu was played by Chiwetel Ejiofor.