The Crown Council of Ethiopia is a community organization and

cultural center A cultural center or cultural centre is an organization, building or complex that promotes culture and arts. Cultural centers can be neighborhood community arts organizations, private facilities, government-sponsored, or activist-run. Asia * Ce ...

with the mission of preserving the culture(s) of the former

Ethiopian Empire The Ethiopian Empire (), also formerly known by the exonym Abyssinia, or just simply known as Ethiopia (; Amharic and Tigrinya: ኢትዮጵያ , , Oromo: Itoophiyaa, Somali: Itoobiya, Afar: ''Itiyoophiyaa''), was an empire that historical ...

, as well as promoting development and humanitarian efforts. Today, the Crown Council abandoned its former mission of being a

Government-in-exile A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Governments in exile u ...

, redefining its role as a

humanitarian Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...

and

cultural preservation The conservation and restoration of cultural property focuses on protection and care of cultural property (tangible cultural heritage), including artworks, architecture, archaeology, and museum collections. Conservation activities include prev ...

organization representing

Ethiopians Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

Eritreans Eritreans are the native inhabitants of Eritrea, as well as the global diaspora of Eritrea. Eritreans constitute several component ethnic groups, some of which are related to ethnic groups that make up the Ethiopian people in neighboring Ethiop ...

, and their

diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...

. It is headquartered in the

Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area The Washington metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the National Capital Region, is the metropolitan area centered on Washington, D.C. The metropolitan area includes all of Washington, D.C. and parts of the states of Maryland, Virgi ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, where a large concentration of

Ethiopian Americans Ethiopian Americans are Americans of Ethiopian descent, as well as individuals of American and Ethiopian ancestry. History In 1919, an official Ethiopian goodwill mission was sent to the United States to congratulate the Allied powers on thei ...

and

Eritrean Americans Eritrean Americans are an ethnic group (or hyphenated ethnicity) of Americans who are of full or partial Eritrean national origin, heritage and/or ancestry. As of 2013, there are 33,930 Eritrean-born citizens living in the U.S. History Eritrea ...

are located. It originated as a constitutional body within the

, which were appointed by and advised the reigning

Emperor of Ethiopia The emperor of Ethiopia ( gez, ንጉሠ ነገሥት, nəgusä nägäst, "King of Kings"), also known as the Atse ( am, ዐፄ, "emperor"), was the hereditary monarchy, hereditary ruler of the Ethiopian Empire, from at least the 13th century ...

( Ge'ez: ንጉሠ ነገሥት, ''Nəgusä Nägäst''); on occasion, its members acted on behalf of the Crown. After the deposition of the monarchy, the Crown Council of Ethiopia acted as the

of the

once claiming to be the legitimate government of

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

and

Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...

. On 28 July 2004, the Crown Council abandoned its Government-in-exile status, relinquishing its claim of legitimate governance to the governments of Ethiopia and Eritrea. The Communist

Derg The Derg (also spelled Dergue; , ), officially the Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC), was the military junta that ruled Ethiopia, then including present-day Eritrea, from 1974 to 1987, when the military leadership formally " c ...

deposed the last Emperor,

Haile Selassie I Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia ('' ...

on 12 September 1974, and dissolved the council. Most members of the council were imprisoned and executed, including its president, Prince

Asrate Medhin Kassa ''Leul'' ''Ras'' Aserate Kassa (born Aserate-Medhin Kassa; 30 April 1922 – 23 November 1974) was a Viceroy of Eritrea and a member of the nobility of the Ethiopian Empire. He was the fourth son of ''Ras'' Kassa Haile Darge, and his wife Princ ...

. The Derg announced that the monarchy had been abolished early in the following year. However, in 1993, a new Crown Council — which included several descendants of the late Haile Selassie I — asserted that the title of Emperor of Ethiopia was still in existence, and the Crown Council would act in its interests. Its justification was that the abolition of the monarchy by the Derg was extra-constitutional and carried out illegally. The Federal Constitution of 1995 confirmed the status of the country as a republic, but Ethiopian royalists continue to operate the Crown Council. The Ethiopian government has however continued to accord members of the Imperial family their princely titles as a matter of courtesy. On 16 March 2005, Prince

Ermias Sahle Selassie Prince Ermias Sahle Selassie (born 14 June 1960 in Addis Ababa) is the only son of Prince Sahle Selassie of Ethiopia and Princess Mahisente Habte Mariam. He is the grandson of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, and furthermore of '' Dejazm ...

was reaffirmed by his second cousin Prince Zera Yacob as the President of the Crown Council of Ethiopia. Prince Zera Yacob is considered to be the

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...

of Ethiopia. On July 28, 2004, the Crown Council redefined its role by redirecting its mission from the political realm to a mission of cultural preservation, development and humanitarian efforts in Ethiopia.

President of the Crown Council

References

External links

Official Website
History of Ethiopia Government of Ethiopia

Political history of Ethiopia Ethiopian anti-communists Monarchist organizations Anti-communist organizations African traditional governments Monarchism in Ethiopia {{Ethiopia-hist-stub History of Eritrea

President of the Crown Council

See also

References

External links