| Ras Mäkonnen Wäldä-Mika'él Guddisa KCMG |
|
|---|---|
| Shum of Harar | |
| In office 1887–1906 |
|
| Monarch | Yohannes IV Menelik II |
| Succeeded by | Yilma Makonnen |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Mäkonnen Wäldä-Mika'él Guddisa 8 May 1852 Derefo Maryam, Shewa Ethiopian Empire |
| Died | 21 March 1906 (aged 53) Kulubi, Harar Ethiopian Empire |
| Nationality | Ethiopian |
| Spouse(s) | Yeshimebet Ali |
| Children | Yilma Makonnen Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia |
| Occupation | Military Officer, Diplomat, Court Official |
| Religion | Ethiopian Coptic Orthodox |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Ethiopian Empire |
| Battles/wars | First Italo-Ethiopian War |
Ras[nb 1] Mäkonnen Wäldä-Mika'él Guddisa, also Makonnen Wolde Mikael Gudessa (May 8, 1852 – March 21, 1906) or simply as Ras Makonnen, was a general and the governor of Harar province in Ethiopia, and the father of Tafari Mäkonnen, later known as the Emperor Haile Selassie I. His father was Fitawrari[nb 2] Woldemikael Guddessa of a noble family of Oromo origin. Makonnen was a grandson of Negus[nb 3] Sahle Selassie of Shewa through his mother, Leult[nb 4] Tenagnework Sahle Selassie. As such, he was a first cousin of Emperor Menelik II, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty.
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Ras Mäkonnen was born at Derefo Maryam near Ankober, and at the age of 14 his father took him to the court of Negus Menelik, then ruler of Shewa, where he became a special companion of Menelik.[1]
In 1887, Makonnen was given the governorship of Harar after it was incorporated into the Ethiopian Empire by his cousin, Emperor Yohannes IV. Other posts Ras Makonnen served included temporary governor of Tigray after the removal of the rebellious Ras Mangasha Yohannes, as a general during various military campaigns including during the First Italo–Ethiopian War, including a leading role at the Battle of Adowa where Ethiopian forces routed the Italians, and as a diplomat and de facto foreign minister.
In the 1880s, as Shum[nb 5] of Harar, Ras Mäkonnen became a close friend of Arthur Rimbaud, who was then living and doing business in that province.[2]
In 1902, Ras Mäkonnen attended the coronation of King Edward VII in England, and paid visits to Italy, France, Turkey, and Germany. He received the following decorations: Badge & Star of the Order of St. Michael and St. George (Knight Commander), Star of the Russian Order of St. Anne, Star of the French Legion d'Honneur (Third Republic), Star of the Order of the Crown of Italy, Star of the Ottoman Order of Osmania.
In 1906, Dejazmach Yilma Makonnen succeeded Makonnen as Shum of Harar. Yilma Makonnen was his son from brefore his marriage to Wayzero Yeshimabet Ali. In 1907, Yilma Makonnen was in turn succeeded as Shum by his younger half brother, Tafari Makonnen, the future Emperor Haile Selassie.
Around July 1873, Makonnen married a Muslim woman of Oromo descent named Yeshimebet Ali. She was a woman of mixed Oromo and Gurage ethnicity. In 1875, Yilma Makonnen was born to Makonnen and a woman who was not Yeshimebet Ali. In 1892, Tafari Makonnen, the son of Makonnen and Yeshimebet Ali, was born. In 1901, following the death of Yeshimebet Ali, Makonnen was briefly married to a niece of Empress Taitu Betul, Woizero[nb 6] Mentewab Wale. Makonnen's marriage to Mentewab Wale was never consummated and, in 1902, it was annulled.
While travelling from Harar to Addis Ababa, Ras Makonnen came down with typhus. His officers brought him to Kulubi, where he died as daylight broke after having given his son Tafari Makonnen a whispered benediction.[3]