Taytu Betul

Taytu Betul (Amharic: ጣይቱ ብጡልṬaytu Bəṭul ; baptised as Wälättä Mikael; 1851 – 11 February 1918) was Empress of Ethiopia from 1889 to 1913 and the third wife of EmperorMenelik II. An influential figure in the anti-colonial resistance during the late 19th-century Scramble for Africa, she, along with her husband, founded the modern Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa in 1886.

According to Chris Prouty, Taytu was considered an xenophobic empress, who intensely distrusted Europeans. In her own country, Taytu is still honored today as a great empress and leader. She is particularly revered and recognized by the Christian community of Ethiopia, having made numerous donations throughout her life to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, notably to fund pilgrimages to Jerusalem.