Cyber Ethiopia

This week's announcement that the remains of Emperor Haile Selassie are to be buried on November 5th (assuming any complications are worked out) coincides nicely with this article. The remains of Haile Selassie are in the Bata Maryam church now, where Emperor Menelik is entombed, and are due to be buried in the Holy Trinity Church. Here is a description of both churches. The Mausoleum of Emperor Menelik Just past the Hilton Hotel and up the hill, there is a big round road that encircles a walled and heavily treed lot. Like most people who live in Addis I went on that road many times. However, it took a long time before I actually visited this great site. On the top of the hill is the main

attraction - Bata Maryam or St. Mary’s Church in Western parlance. This is the magnificent church where the body of Emperor Menelik is buried. To get to the site, you have to deal with a bit of security. The Grand Palace, where the Prime Minister is said to live, is right next door. Parking is the first challenge. There is a big gate at the front on the road which circles the hill, which is grandly named ‘Development Through Cooperation Avenue’, but nobody actually calls it that. The gate is rigorously guarded by the military, and no one gets in. There is a large fence stretching around the perimeter with regular guardhouses as well. The way in is around the back, down the little road that circles the back of the hill. Unfortunately the soldiers won’t let you park on that road, they insist that you go down a side road and park there. The hassle factor is high. The soldiers wave and order you around, a flock of kids come up to offer their services, and the assault of the potential guides begins. Fortunately the visit is worth it. Bata Maryam is a fantastic stone structure and the mausoleum is a huge marble wonder. It is fitting that this is the final resting place of the great Emperor Menelik II, the only African leader to successfully withstand and defeat the relentless European colonialists of the 19th century. Personally, I thought Menelik should be declared the African of the Millennium. The relatively modern church of St. Gabriel is at the entrance gate. As you walk in towards Bata Maryam there is an incredibly ugly and tacky replica of St. Mary and the disciples, on an elevated platform. They look plastic. This was a ‘gift’ of the Italians, who contributed this dubious addition to the church grounds during their occupation of Ethiopia. Past this appropriate commemoration of the Italian period, is a bell tower in the shape of an Axum obelisk that is actually quite nice. An inscription helpfully points out that the tower was started by the Empress Zewditu before 1930, but not finished until 1980 after the ‘atrocious Italians’. The tower is next to the ‘House of Epiphany’, the baptism house. The walk continues past fairly neat hedges and trees, with a goodly number of bright green parrots flitting cheerfully about. This brings you to the wide main stairs of the church. This is an elaborate Victorian style building, with large stone blocks and meticulous carvings and wonderful pillars. Big stone lions stare out at you. It is nice just to walk around the outside of this great building. The faithful are there too, saying their private prayers or making their quiet plea in one of the church nooks and crannies. The entrance is around the side, where our faithful guide, who had recruited us, managed to raise a priest to get the key to open the door to show us around. It always seems to be a big production. After assuring the priest several times that he would get his 20 birr from each of us, he condescended to let us walk around. The inside of the church is just as magnificent as the outside. The strange thing about visiting the tombs is that they are under the floor of the church. You have to go through a door in the floor, with a very low ceiling (a bit of a challenge for a tall bloke like me). There is an eerie feeling in this enclosed and airless place. There are three large tombs in the room, one for each of Emperor Menelik (died in 1913), his wife Empress Taytu (died 1918) and their daughter the Empress Zewditu (died 1930). Paintings are hung above the tombs to remember the dead, and there is a large photograph of Menelik. The tombs are ornately carved marble, worthy of the Monarchs they entomb. Additional shrines are also in place. There is one for Abuna Matthias, a famous Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, who died in 1926. As well, there is a mausoleum for the beloved daughter of Haile Selassie, who died at the tender age of 22 after graduating from nursing. Her photo, which is said to have been taken after her death, shows her looking remarkably lifelike in her nurses uniform. At the side there is a large glass case, containing amongst other things a small coffin that contains the bones of Haile Selassie. The bones were found only after the overthrow of the Derg government in 1991, which in turn had overthrown and killed Haile Selassie. The bones are awaiting burial at the nearby Church of the Holy Trinity, which has the remains of Haile Selassies’ wife. There is another church in the grounds - Kidane Mehret – which makes three. As well, there are sacred springs that produce holy water for baptism or other sacred purposes. There are trees and grass and generally calm - it is a nice place to visit. Holy Trinity Church – the Mausoleum of Emperor Haile Selassie Only a short walk from St. Mary and the National Palace is the Holy Trinity Church (Kidist Selassie), reached by turning left from the ‘Development through Cooperation’, or Entoto Road on the first turn past the hill. Behind a relatively simple gate are wonderful grounds and a fantastic large church. This church commemorates a later period than Bata Maryam. Here the focus is on the post war period. There is even a large monument to the some of the first victims of the Derg regime, patriots who opposed Haile Selassie but refused to go along with the excesses of the military government. There are also memorials for the soldiers who died fighting the Italians in the 1930’s and 1940’s. The many graves in the side yards of the church are reserved solely for patriots who fought against the Italians. There is also a mausoleum for the British soldiers who died, although I was informed this church was reserved for the officers. In the front graveyard, members of the old aristocracy of Ethiopia are buried, with varying sizes of monuments depending on their importance. There is a lovely monument for Sylvia Pankhurst, the suffragette and solidarity organizer for Ethiopia when beleaguered by the Italians (as well as mother of the prominent historian, Dr. Richard Pankhurst!). After the expected hassle in finding the fellow with the key, and assuring the priest inside that he would get his 20 birr, we were allowed a look around inside. It is a magnificent church on the outside, with elaborate pillars and carved decorations. There are plenty of statues of angels and ornate decorations on the rooftop, culminating in an impressive dome. There is a virtual forest of statues out front, with angels and scholars competing for space. The inside of the church is equally impressive. The high ceilings of the side corridors give way to the tremendous height of the central dome. Large paintings of both Ethiopian and Western style cover the walls. Deep rugs cover the floor. Around the front of the church there are a number of paintings depicting important points in the history of Ethiopia during Haile Selassie’s time. The arrival of the British forces that helped throw out the Italians is given prominence. There are two tombs at the front, one for Haile Selassie’s wife, Empress Menen, and the other awaiting the anticipated entombment of the bones of Emperor Haile Selassie.