Zerai Deres (
Ge'ez: ዘርኣይ ደረስ; 1 March 1915
– 6 July 1945) was an
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 ...
n
translator
Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...
and
patriotic
Patriotism is the feeling of love, devotion, and sense of attachment to one's country. This attachment can be a combination of many different feelings, language relating to one's own homeland, including ethnic, cultural, political or histor ...
revolutionary. In 1938, he engaged in an act of public devotion to an important symbol of his native country, the
Monument to the Lion of Judah, at the time kept in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
. When interrupted, he violently protested against Italian colonialism while brandishing a
scimitar
A scimitar ( or ) is a single-edged sword with a convex curved blade associated with Middle Eastern, South Asian, or North African cultures. A European term, ''scimitar'' does not refer to one specific sword type, but an assortment of different ...
, which led to his arrest and internment in a psychiatric hospital for seven years, until his death. However, contemporary Italian historians doubt the claim that he was mentally unstable. Zerai's protest, lionized after the end of the Second World War, is considered by Eritrean and
Ethiopian historiography
Ethiopian historiography includes the ancient, medieval, early modern, and modern disciplines of recording the history of Ethiopia, including both native and foreign sources. The roots of Ethiopian historical writing can be traced back to the a ...
as part of the movement against
Italian occupation. To this day, Zerai is considered a legend and a
folk hero
A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; an ...
of anticolonialism and antifascism both in Eritrea and Ethiopia.
Biography
Early life and education
![I primi fratini cappuccini eritrei con i loro superiori a Segheneiti (Eritrea)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/I_primi_fratini_cappuccini_eritrei_con_i_loro_superiori_a_Segheneiti_%28Eritrea%29.jpg)
Zerai Deres was born in the ''
kebele
A ward ( am, ቀበሌ; om, Araddaa; ) is the smallest administrative unit of Ethiopia: a ward, a neighbourhood or a localized and delimited group of people. It is part of a district, itself usually part of a zone, which in turn are grouped into ...
'' of Adihiyis, in the province of
Serae
The Provinces of Eritrea existed between Eritrea's incorporation as a colony of Italy until the conversion of the provinces into administrative regions.
Overview
In Italian Eritrea, the Italian colonial administration had divided the colony into e ...
, in
Italian Eritrea
Italian Eritrea ( it, Colonia Eritrea, "Colony of Eritrea") was a colony of the Kingdom of Italy in the territory of present-day Eritrea. The first Italian establishment in the area was the purchase of Assab by the Rubattino Shipping Company in ...
in 1915 (or 1908, according to the
Ethiopian calendar
The Ethiopian calendar ( am, የኢትዮጲያ ዘመን ኣቆጣጠር; Oromo: Akka Lakkofsa Itoophiyaatti; Ge'ez: ዓዉደ ወርሕ; Tigrinya: ዓዉደ ኣዋርሕ), or Ge'ez calendar ( Ge'ez: ዓዉደ ወርሕ; Tigrinya: ዓዉ ...
). At the age of two, his father died and the family moved to
Hazega
Hazega ( ti, ሃዘጋ) is a small village in Central Eritrea located in the Zoba Maekel, Maekel/Central Region or the former province of Hamasien. It is located approximately north-west from the capital city, Asmara, and south-east of Keren, Eri ...
, the village of his mother's origin.
Zerai was a member of the
Tigrinya
(; also spelled Tigrigna) is an Ethio-Semitic language commonly spoken Eritrea and in northern Ethiopia's Tigray Region by the Tigrinya and Tigrayan peoples. It is also spoken by the global diaspora of these regions.
History and literature
...
ethnic group. He converted to
Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and attended Italian colonial schools, including the seminary of the
Capuchin friars
The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM) ...
in
Segeneiti
Segheneytī qoraxat ti, ሰገነይቲ (sometimes anglicized as Segheneity and known also as Saganeiti, Seganeiti, Seganeyti, Segeleyti, Segeneyti, Segeneytī, Segheneiti) is a small town in the Southern Region of Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti ...
.
For this reason, he spoke the
Italian language
Italian (''italiano'' or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. Together with Sardinian, Italian is the least divergent language from Latin. Spoken by about 85 m ...
fluently.
Abandoning his studies in the seminary, Zerai became an interpreter in
Rama
Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...
, an Ethiopian town bordering present-day Eritrea.
On October 6, 1936, Zerai Deres sent a letter to the editor of the Italian newspaper ''Corriere Eritreo'' who had written an editorial in which he had asked for the abolition of any form of promiscuity with the "
natives
Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...
". Signing himself ''Un indigeno'' (Italian for "A native"), Zerai wrote:
The natives, whose presence causes so much disgust to you, often take pride in the fact that they are Italian subjects. In Libya, Somalia and in the recent war against their homeland, in foreign struggles, they have shielded you with their bodies, and sometimes paid with their lives. I can assure you that it is no exaggeration to say that the natives provided you the means with which you could overcome. The misinterpretation of so many merits and acts of heroism carried out for Italy can only be indicative of an essentially alien and imperial government.
Before departing to Italy, Zerai married in April 1937.[
]
Arrival in Rome
On 19 February 1937, two Eritreans made a failed assassination attempt on Rodolfo Graziani
Rodolfo Graziani, 1st Marquis of Neghelli (; 11 August 1882 – 11 January 1955), was a prominent Italian military officer in the Kingdom of Italy's '' Regio Esercito'' ("Royal Army"), primarily noted for his campaigns in Africa before and durin ...
, the Viceroy of Italian East Africa
Italian East Africa ( it, Africa Orientale Italiana, AOI) was an Italian colony in the Horn of Africa. It was formed in 1936 through the merger of Italian Somalia, Italian Eritrea, and the newly occupied Ethiopian Empire, conquered in the Seco ...
and appointed Governor-General
Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
of Shewa
Shewa ( am, ሸዋ; , om, Shawaa), formerly romanized as Shua, Shoa, Showa, Shuwa (''Scioà'' in Italian language, Italian), is a historical region of Ethiopia which was formerly an autonomous monarchy, kingdom within the Ethiopian Empire. The ...
during the Italian occupation of Ethiopia. In return, under ''carte blanche'' permission from the Federal Secretary , many Italian civilians, members of the military, and the paramilitary forces known as the Blackshirts
The Voluntary Militia for National Security ( it, Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale, MVSN), commonly called the Blackshirts ( it, Camicie Nere, CCNN, singular: ) or (singular: ), was originally the paramilitary wing of the Natio ...
conducted a three-day bloody reprisal in 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 ...
. Known in Ethiopia as the Yekatit 12 massacre, it resulted in the killing of thousands of people and arrests of many Amhara aristocratic noblemen, about 400 of whom were subsequently deported to Rome, Longobucco
Longobucco is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Cosenza, in the Calabria region of southern Italy. Longobucco is one of the main municipalities of the Sila National Park and in terms of its territory is one of the largest in Calabria. It is ...
, Mercogliano Mercogliano is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the province of Avellino, Campania, southern Italy.
Geography
Mercogliano is a hill town located near the western suburb of Avellino and below the mount Partenio (or Montevergine). The municipality ...
, Ponza
Ponza (Italian: ''isola di Ponza'' ) is the largest island of the Italian Pontine Islands archipelago, located south of Cape Circeo in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is also the name of the commune of the island, a part of the province of Latina in the ...
, Tivoli, and Asinara
Asinara is an Italian island of in area. The name is Italian for "donkey-inhabited", but it is thought to derive from the Latin "sinuaria", and meaning sinus-shaped. The island is virtually uninhabited. The census of population of 2001 lists o ...
, Italy.
In order to manage the deportation, the Italian Ministry of the Colonies hired many people, including Zerai Deres as a translator for Ethiopian nobles deported to Italy. At the age of 23, Zerai arrived in Rome in the summer of 1937 shortly after the arrival of the first Ethiopian deportees.[ During his stay in the Italian capital, Zerai closely followed the events of the colonial war with a growing sense of anger and helplessness in the face of news coming from Ethiopia,] and translated for the Abyssinian ''Ras
Ras or RAS may refer to:
Arts and media
* RAS Records Real Authentic Sound, a reggae record label
* Rundfunk Anstalt Südtirol, a south Tyrolese public broadcasting service
* Rás 1, an Icelandic radio station
* Rás 2, an Icelandic radio stati ...
'' the news reported by the Italian press.
Lion of Judah incident
On June 15, 1938, shortly before his planned return to his homeland, Zerai went to Princess of Piedmont Boulevard[ (now Luigi Einaudi Boulevard) during lunchtime and knelt at the foot of the Monument to the Lion of Judah, a symbol of the Ethiopian monarchy. The sculpture had been brought to Rome as spoils of war by the Italian fascist regime in 1935,] placed under the monument to the fallen of Battle of Dogali
The Battle of Dogali was fought on 26 January 1887 between Italy and Ethiopia in Dogali near Massawa, in present-day Eritrea.
History
The Italians, after their unification in 1861, wanted to establish a colonial empire to cement their great p ...
, and inaugurated on May 8, 1937, at the eve of celebrations for the first anniversary of the Italian Empire proclamation.
As a small crowd gathered around Zerai, an Italian military officer tried to interrupt his devotions. Zerai pulled out a scimitar
A scimitar ( or ) is a single-edged sword with a convex curved blade associated with Middle Eastern, South Asian, or North African cultures. A European term, ''scimitar'' does not refer to one specific sword type, but an assortment of different ...
, struck the officer, and shouted imprecations against Italy and the Duce
( , ) is an Italian title, derived from the Latin word 'leader', and a cognate of ''duke''. National Fascist Party leader Benito Mussolini was identified by Fascists as ('The Leader') of the movement since the birth of the in 1919. In 1925 ...
, while praising the Negus
Negus (Negeuce, Negoose) ( gez, ንጉሥ, ' ; cf. ti, ነጋሲ ' ) is a title in the Ethiopian Semitic languages. It denotes a monarch, (Ethiopian monarch). During the confrontation, Zerai injured Italian Railways private Vincenzo Veglia, State employee Ferdinando Peraldi, and Infantry Chief Marshal Mario Izzo, who reported very slight wounds that healed within 12 days.[ According to other reports, some passersby, including a butcher's boy who hurled his bicycle at the Eritrean,][) were also injured.
Finally, two soldiers ended the attack with gunfire, shooting Zerai four times.] Zerai was wounded in the thigh.[
]
Reactions to the incident
For political reasons, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...
was planning to repatriate the Abyssinian aristocrats not welcome in Rome to Ethiopia. (By July 1939 only one out of ninety of the detainees remained in Rome). That plan suddenly accelerated when on June 15, 1938, Mussolini was informed that Zerai, who worked as an interpreter for the ''Ras
Ras or RAS may refer to:
Arts and media
* RAS Records Real Authentic Sound, a reggae record label
* Rundfunk Anstalt Südtirol, a south Tyrolese public broadcasting service
* Rás 1, an Icelandic radio station
* Rás 2, an Icelandic radio stati ...
'' confined in Rome, had shouted imprecations against Italy and praised 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 (' ...
in front of the monument to the fallen of Dogali. Informed that some people had been severely wounded in attempting to silence Zerai, Mussolini become furious and ordered the total repatriation of all Ethiopian noblemen.
However, the repatriation effort was slowed by the need to evaluate each case individually, as some Ethiopian dignitaries (including ''Ras'' Seyoum Mengesha
Seyoum Mengesha KBE (Amharic: ሥዩም መንገሻ; 21 June 1887 – 15 December 1960) was an army commander and a member of the royal family of the Ethiopian Empire.
Early life
''Le'ul'' ''Ras'' Seyoum Mengesha was born on 24 June 18 ...
, ''Ras'' Kebede Mengesha, ''Ras'' Mulugeta Yeggazu
''Ras'' Mulugeta Yeggazu (Amharic: ሙሉጌታ ይገዙ; killed 27 February 1936) was an Ethiopian government official. He served as Imperial Fitawrari, Commander of the Mahel Sefari (Central Army) of the Ethiopian Army during the Second Italo- ...
, and ''Degiac'' Asrate Mulughietà) were suspected of inspiring Zerai's protest, and it was preferable to exile them in Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...
or the Dodecanese
The Dodecanese (, ; el, Δωδεκάνησα, ''Dodekánisa'' , ) are a group of 15 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the southeastern Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Turkey's Anatolia, of which 26 are inhabited. ...
.
Internment and death
The episode was considered by the Italian authorities as an action of mental illness. Zerai was arrested, hospitalized at the Umberto I Policlynic, and then taken to Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto
Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto (; Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Baccialona Pizzaottu'') is a town and ''comune'' of about 50,000 inhabitants in the north coast of Sicily, Italy, from Messina, Italy, Messina towards Palermo. It belongs to the M ...
(province of Messina
Messina (, ) was a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. Its capital was the city of Messina. It was replaced by the Metropolitan City of Messina.
Geography Territory
It had an area of , which amounts to 12.6 percent o ...
, Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
) to the criminal asylum "Vittorio Madia".
During his internment, Zerai repeatedly tried to prove his mental sanity, but he failed to convince the Italian doctors. He also wrote letters to his family: on December 3, 1938, Zerai stated he was in good health and asked his brother Tesfazien Deres to reject the honorary title that Tesfazien had received from the Italian government. He wrote, "I'm fine. Always have been, and still am, in full possession of my mental faculties. I am in the Asylum only on account of government policy." According to the Italian historian Alessandro Triulzi
Alessandro Triulzi (born 1941 in Rome, Italy) is an Italian historian, Africanist and since 2011 Emeritus Professor of African History and former Vice Director of the African and Arab Studies Department at the Università degli Studi di Napoli "L' ...
, "The few letters he left behind bear witness to his lucidity."
After seven years at Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto asylum, Zerai died at the age of 30, on July 6, 1945.
Repatriation of remains
Zerai's brother Tesfazien, founder of the Eritrea Independent Party, thinking that Zerai was still alive in an Italian prison in Italy, wrote a personal letter to the Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie asking to provide an airplane to Italy in order to bring his brother home. Tesfazien also approached the Minister of Foreign Affairs Ambaye Wolde Mariam
Ambaye (also styled as Embaye or Ambai) Wolde Mariam (October 15, 1906 – May 16, 1954), best known as Dr. Ambaye, was an important politician under Emperor Haile Selassie. He was the political and legal advisor to the Duke of Harar in 1935, Vic ...
to present the case to the Imperial Palace, initially without success.
Finally, Tesfazien reached Zerai in Sicily in July 1939, but he could do nothing to get his brother free from the asylum.[
After Zerai's death in 1945, Tesfazien was able after a long struggle to repatriate his brother's remains to Eritrea.] Zerai was buried in St. Mary's Church in Hazega, in front of which stands a monument depicting the patriot together with two lions.
Lionization
At the end of World War II, the story of Zerai Deres was rewritten, dramatized, and sung in Ethiopia to celebrate his anti-colonial resistance, especially by the pan-Ethiopian who opposed the separation of Eritrea from Ethiopia. Zerai also became a hero of the antifascism
Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...
movement.
Due to the prevalence of oral tradition, numerous and even contradictory details went to enhance the character, until he became a national folk hero
A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; an ...
in both Ethiopia and Eritrea, a status he retains to this day. Among the various reconstructions, there is one that sets the story during a celebratory event of the second anniversary of the announcement of the Italian empire (although the Italian empire's proclamation that made Ethiopia part of Italian East Africa
Italian East Africa ( it, Africa Orientale Italiana, AOI) was an Italian colony in the Horn of Africa. It was formed in 1936 through the merger of Italian Somalia, Italian Eritrea, and the newly occupied Ethiopian Empire, conquered in the Seco ...
was annually celebrated a month earlier, on May 9). The young Eritrean would have been chosen to take part in the military parade and carry a ceremonial sword that would have greeted the Italian king Vittorio Emanuele III
Victor Emmanuel III (Vittorio Emanuele Ferdinando Maria Gennaro di Savoia; 11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947) was King of Italy from 29 July 1900 until his abdication on 9 May 1946. He also reigned as Emperor of Ethiopia (1936–1941) and ...
, Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
, and Benito Mussolini (although, as evidenced by the historical sources, none of the three were in Rome in those days, and in each case there was not any parade on June 15 in the capital city). Coming to the Piazza dei Cinquecento and recognizing the golden sculpture of the Lion of Judah to which his ancestors swore allegiance, Zerai would have been struck by a sudden amok or impetus of anti-colonial patriotism, deciding to stop at the steps, kneel, and pray towards the statue-symbol; or, with a sudden feeling of anger, he would hit with a sword the first Italian to cross his path.
According to other sources, Zerai killed at least five people, as well as wounded others, screaming words like "The Lion of Judah is avenged!" before being arrested or killed by the fascists on the spot in a hail of gunfire.
In popular culture
In the 1950s various historical theatrical plays were written in Ethiopia about the Italian invasion. Among these works, Ateneh Alemu wrote a play about Zerai Deres in 1956–1957.
In the 1970s, the story of the Eritrean patriot was rewritten by Ethiopian comedian Yilma Manaye in his work ''Zeraye Derese''. This character was interpreted by Wegayehu Nigatu (1944–1990), a popular actor at the Ethiopian National Theater
The Ethiopian National Theatre is a national theatre in central Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia ...
in Addis Ababa at the time. When the play was staged in Eritrea at Asmara's Opera
Asmara Theatre ( it, Teatro di Asmara), also known as Asmara Opera, is a theatre in Asmara, Eritrea. It was constructed in 1918 following a design by the Italian engineer Odoardo Cavagnari, with later renovations in 1936.
Characteristics
The b ...
, Wegayehu Nigatu's interpretation of Zerai was successfully received by the audience and his performance was so convincing that Tesfazien Deres wanted to host the actor for two weeks in order to have the opportunity to converse with him as with his dead brother.
Ethiopian poet laureate
A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate) is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) ...
Tsegaye Gabre-Medhin
Tsegaye Gabre-Medhin ( am, ጸጋዬ ገብረ መድኅን; 17 August 1936 – 25 February 2006) was an Ethiopian poet and novelist. His novels and poets evoke retrospective narratives, fanciful epics, and nationalistic cannonations. Tsegay is co ...
wrote an historical play about Zerai in the 1980s.
In visual arts
The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts al ...
, the patriot was the subject of sculptures, including that of Tadesse Mamecha made in 1971.
The Zerai Deres Band has been a popular Eritrean jazz and folk music band since the 1970s.
Remembrance
![Corvetta “Vedetta” F 597](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/Corvetta_%E2%80%9CVedetta%E2%80%9D_F_597.jpg)
In 1966, when the sculpture of the Lion of Judah was returned to Ethiopia, Emperor Haile Selassie recalled Zerai's patriotic gesture during the re-appointment ceremony held in Addis Ababa. After the 1974 Ethiopian Revolution, the 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 ...
regime planned to remove the statue as a monarchic symbol. However, senior members of the war veterans association lobbied for the statue to remain as a symbol of Zerai Deres' sacrifice on behalf of antifascism. The Derg agreed to this request to save the statue, which stands in the Addis Ababa railway station square today.
The Ethiopian Navy
The Ethiopian Navy (), known as the Imperial Ethiopian Navy until 1974, was a branch of the Ethiopian National Defense Force founded in 1955. It was disestablished in 1996 after the independence of Eritrea in 1991 left Ethiopia landlocked.
The ...
's first military ship, a former U.S. Navy ''PC-1604''-class submarine chaser
A submarine chaser or subchaser is a small naval vessel that is specifically intended for anti-submarine warfare. Many of the American submarine chasers used in World War I found their way to Allied nations by way of Lend-Lease in World War II.
...
donated by the United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
in 1956, was christened ''Zerai Deres''. A Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
-made Petya-class frigate
The Petya class was the NATO reporting name for a class of light frigates designed in the 1950s and built for the Soviet Navy in the 1960s. The Soviet designation was "Storozhevoi Korabl`" (Сторожевой Корабль - Sentry Ship) ''Pr ...
was also dedicated to the Eritrean patriot; it was launched in 1968 and sank in February 1991 near the island of Nocra
Nakura or Nokra is an Eritrean island in the Dahlak Archipelago situated west of Dahlak Kebir. Nakura has an area of 6.44 km², and reaches a height of 48 meters.
During Italian colonization (1890/91), it was used as the Nocra prison camp ...
.
The square where the Asmara
Asmara ( ), or Asmera, is the capital and most populous city of Eritrea, in the country's Central Region. It sits at an elevation of , making it the sixth highest capital in the world by altitude and the second highest capital in Africa. The ...
's central post office and National Bank of Eritrea (former Palace of National Bank of Italy) are located was named ''Piazza Roma'' (Rome Square), but after independence it was dedicated to Zerai's memory. A number of roads, schools, hotels, and restaurants are also named after Zerai.
In 2016, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Addis Ababa from Italian domination, a group of six stamps depicting national heroes, including Zerai, was issued by the Ethiopian Postal Service.
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
See also
* 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 ...
* 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 ...
* Monument to the Lion of Judah
* Second Italo-Abyssinian War
The Second Italo-Ethiopian War, also referred to as the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, was a war of aggression which was fought between Italy and Ethiopia from October 1935 to February 1937. In Ethiopia it is often referred to simply as the Itali ...
* Ethiopian POWs during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War During the Second Italo-Ethiopian War, the Italians captured and either imprisoned as prisoners of war or executed selected prominent Ethiopians. The majority of the public executions and mass incarcerations happened in the wake of the assassinatio ...
* History of Eritrea
"Eritrea" is an ancient name, associated in the past with its Greek form ''Erythraia'', Ἐρυθραία, and its derived Latin form ''Erythræa''. This name relates to that of the Red Sea, then called the ''Erythræan Sea'', from the Greek ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Deres, Zerai
1945 deaths
1914 births
Anti-fascism in Italy
People from Central Region (Eritrea)
Eritrean independence activists
Converts to Roman Catholicism