Kedus Harbe was King of

Zagwe dynasty The Zagwe dynasty ( Ge'ez: ዛጔ ሥርወ መንግሥት) was an Agaw medieval dynasty that ruled the northern parts of Ethiopia and Eritrea, after the historical name of the Lasta province. Centered at Lalibela, it ruled large parts of the t ...

. According to

Taddesse Tamrat Taddesse Tamrat ( am, ታደሰ ታምራት; 4 August 1935 – 23 May 2013) was an Ethiopian historian and scholar of Ethiopian studies. He is best known as the author of ''Church and State in Ethiopia 1270–1520'' (1972, Oxford University Pre ...

, he was the son of

Jan Seyum Jan Seyum was King of Zagwe dynasty. Taddesse Tamrat states that he was a son of Mara Takla Haymanot, a younger brother of King Tatadim, and the father of Yemrehana Krestos Yemrehana Krestos (Yəmrəḥannä Krəstos, often referred to as "Yəmr ...

, the brother of

Tatadim Tatadim was King of Zagwe dynasty. According to Taddesse Tamrat, he was a son of Mara Takla Haymanot. Reign Tatadim's name appears in second place in the long lists of the Zagwe kings. Taddesse Tamrat states that he was the oldest known son of Ma ...

. Some authorities date his reign to the years 1079–1119.

G.W.B. Huntingford George Wynn Brereton Huntingford (19 November 1901 – 19 February 1978) was an English linguist, anthropologist and historian. He lectured in East African languages and cultures at SOAS, University of London from 1950 until 1966.Richard Pankhurst Richard Marsden Pankhurst (1834 – 5 July 1898) was an English barrister and socialist who was a strong supporter of women's rights. Early life Richard Pankhurst was the son of Henry Francis Pankhurst (1806–1873) and Margaret Marsden (180 ...

, Kedus Harbe tried to break the hold of Egypt on the

Ethiopian Church 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 ...

by increasing the number of bishops ordained in his country to seven. However the prelate, Abba Mikael, refused, stating that this could only be done by the

Patriarch of Alexandria The Patriarch of Alexandria is the archbishop of Alexandria, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation "pope" (etymologically "Father", like "Abbot"). The Alexandrian episcopate was revered as one of the three major episco ...

, so the king sent letters to the Patriarch and the

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

ruler of Egypt. The ruler was first sympathetic to the request, but the prelate warned him that with that many bishops they could appoint their own Archbishop and be free to develop "enmity and hostility" towards their Muslim neighbors. When the messengers returned with Kedus Harbe's answer, the country had experienced great famine and pestilence. "These were the first such calamities for which the historical mention exists."Richard Pankhurst, ''The Ethiopians: A History'' (Oxford: Blackwell, 2001), p. 47

References

11th-century Ethiopian people 11th-century monarchs in Africa Emperors of Ethiopia Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Zagwe dynasty {{Ethiopia-royal-stub