Everything about Eleni Of Ethiopia totally explained
Eleni or
Helena (died April,
1522) was the wife of
Zara Yaqob, and Empress of
Ethiopia. She played a significant role in the government of Ethiopia during her lifetime, acting as regent or advisor to a number of
Emperors; one testimony of this is the manuscript Bruce 88, which states that she'd been in the palace of three illustrious kings: Zara Yaqob; his son by another wife,
Baeda Maryam, and
Na'od.
The daughter of
Mehmad king of
Hadiya, she converted to
Christianity upon marrying Zara Yaqob. Although the
Portuguese historian
Balthasar Tellez wrote that she'd no children, in some manuscripts of
Francisco Álvares's
The Prester John of the Indies, a male relative of
Lebna Dengel who escaped from
Amba Geshen is described as her son.
With his own mother Tsion Mogasa dead, Emperor Baeda Maryam gave Eleni the title of Queen Mother. She proved to be an effective member of the royal family; Paul B. Henze comments that she "was practically co-monarch" during his reign. When
Eskender succeeded his father Emperor Baeda Maryam, at first Empress Eleni was pushed out of power by the
Bitwoded Amda Mikael. However, around
1486 she participated in a palace coup that led to his deposition and execution, and Queen Eleni thereafter played a leading role in the Emperor's government, which continued into the reign of Emperor Na'od.
Alvarez was told by the
Abuna Marqos, that upon Emperor Na'od's death in combat "he and Queen Eleni made him [LebnaDengel] King, because they'd all of the great men in their hands" This statement points to the power Eleni wielded. Likewise Eleni, understanding the increasing threat that Ethiopia faced from the growing
Ottoman influence in the region, with the counsel of
Pero da Covilhã sent
Mateus (also known as Matthew the Armenian) as an ambassador to the King of Portugal and the Pope in Rome, a fact that the Portuguese only understood after they arrived in Ethiopia, and which complicated Dom
Rodrigo da Lima's mission to the Ethiopian Emperor. Eleni served as chief regent for the under-age Lebna Dengel, along with his mother, the Dowager Empress
Na'od Mogassa, and Ras
Degelhan of
Gojjam, the Emperor's senior male relative.
Alvarez also notes that Elena possessed extensive estates in the province of
Gojjam.
The date of Eleni's death isn't entirely certain; Henze states that she died at an advanced age in the 1520s, but Beckingham and Huntingford argue that the evidence in Alvarez's account provides enough information to date her death to April, 1522. Despite the uncertainty, Alvarez makes it clear that she died while he was in Ethiopia, adding that her passing was a cause for sorrow by her subjects:
» There was a great rumour and talk at the Court about the death of Queen Elena. They said that since she'd died all of them had died great and small, and that while she lived, all lived and were defended and protected; and she was the father and mother of all.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Eleni Of Ethiopia'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://eleni_of_ethiopia.totallyexplained.com">Eleni of Ethiopia Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
