Holy Trinity Cathedral, also known in Amharic as Kidist Selassie, is the highest ranking

Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chris ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

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 ...

. It was built to commemorate the Ethiopian victory over Italian occupation and is an important place of worship in Ethiopia, alongside other cathedrals such as the

Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion The Church of Our Lady, Mary of Zion is an Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church which is claimed to contain the Ark of the Covenant. The church is located in the town of Axum, Tigray Region in northern Ethiopia, near the grounds of Obelisks ...

in Axum.

Title

The cathedral bears the title "Menbere Tsebaot", or "Pure Altar". Built in 1942, the church compound was the burial place for those who fought against the Italian occupation, or those who accompanied the Emperor into exile from 1936 to 1941. The Emperor

Haile Selassie 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 (' ...

and his consort the Empress

Menen Asfaw Menen Asfaw (baptismal name: Walatta Giyorgis; 25 March 1889 – 15 February 1962) was Empress consort of the Ethiopian Empire. She was the wife of Emperor Haile Selassie. Family Menen Asfaw was born in Ambassel, located in Wollo Province of ...

are buried in the north

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...

of the cathedral. Other members of the

Imperial Family A royal family is the immediate family of King, kings/Queen regnant, queens, Emir, emirs/emiras, Sultan, sultans/Sultana (title), sultanas, or raja/rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the ...

are buried in the crypt below the church. The High Altar of the cathedral is dedicated to 'Agaiste Alem Kidist Selassie' (Sovereigns of the World the Holy Trinity). The other two altars in the Holy of Holies on either side of the High Altar are dedicated to

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

and to 'Kidane Meheret' (Our Lady Covenant of Mercy). In the south transept of the cathedral is a recently added chapel of

Archangel Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

, which houses the

Tabot ''Tabot'' ( Ge'ez ታቦት ''tābōt'', sometimes spelled ''tabout'') is a Ge'ez word referring to a replica of the Tablets of Law, onto which the Biblical Ten Commandments were inscribed, used in the practices of Orthodox Tewahedo Christians ...

or Ark of St. Michael the Archangel, which was returned to Ethiopia in February 2002 after being discovered in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

. This relic was taken by

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

forces from the mountain citadel of

Magdalla The Port of Magdalla is a port in western India, located on the southern bank of the Tapi River, around 10 km from Surat. It is operated by Gujarat Maritime Board. About the Port It is a medium-sized port. There are various types of vessel ...

in 1868 during their campaign against Emperor Tewodros II. Stained glass in the Holy Trinity Cathedral of Addis Ababa

Architecture

The cathedral complex also includes the 'Bale Wold' (Feast of God the Son) Church, which is also known as the Church of the Four Heavenly Creatures. This church served as the original Holy Trinity Monastery Church before the building of the cathedral and dates back to the reign of Emperor

Menelik II , spoken = ; ''djānhoi'', lit. ''"O steemedroyal"'' , alternative = ; ''getochu'', lit. ''"Our master"'' (pl.) Menelik II ( gez, ዳግማዊ ምኒልክ ; horse name Abba Dagnew ( Amharic: አባ ዳኘው ''abba daññäw''); 17 ...

. Other facilities include a primary and a secondary school, a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whi ...

and the Holy Trinity Theological College, a museum and monuments housing the remains of those massacred in Addis Ababa by the Italians in 1937 in response to an assassination attempt against the Fascist

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning " ...

of Italian East Africa. In addition is the monument and tomb of the officials of the imperial government who were executed by the Communist Derg regime. Holy Trinity Cathedral is the official seat of the Orthodox Archdiocese of Addis Ababa. The Patriarchs of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church are enthroned at Holy Trinity Cathedral and all Bishops are consecrated there as well.

Imperial tombs and burials

The tombs of the Emperor

and Empress

, as well as other members of the

, are inside Holy Trinity Cathedral. Patriarchs,

Abuna Takla Haymanot Abuna Takla Haymanot or Abune Takla Haymanot (1918 – May 1988) was the third Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. Early life Abune Takla Haymanot was born in 1918, the son of a simple soldier, Wolde Mikael Adamu in southern Be ...

and Abune Paulos of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, are buried in the churchyard, as is the famous

suffragette and anti-fascist activist

Sylvia Pankhurst Estelle Sylvia Pankhurst (5 May 1882 – 27 September 1960) was a campaigning English feminist and socialist. Committed to organising working-class women in London's East End, and unwilling in 1914 to enter into a wartime political truce with t ...

. Prime Minister

Meles Zenawi Meles Zenawi Asres (Tigrinya and ; , born Legesse Zenawi Asres; 9 May 1955 – 20 August 2012) was an Ethiopian soldier and politician who served as President of Ethiopia from 1991 to 1995 and then Prime Minister of Ethiopia from 1995 until his ...

and other prominent Ethiopians are also buried there.

Gallery

References

External links

Holy Trinity Cathedral at www.sacred-destinations.com
{{Authority control Cathedrals in Addis Ababa Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo cathedrals