Yohannes II

Yohannes II ( Amharic ዮሓንስ , also called John II , throne name Adyam Sagad IV. ) (* 1699 ; † October 18, 1769 in Gondar ) was Negus Negest ( Emperor ) of Ethiopia from May 7 to October 18, 1769 .

biography

He was a son of Emperor Iyassu I and the brother of Emperor Tekle Haymanot I , David III. and Bakaffa . Yohannes came from the ruling Solomonic dynasty . As a possible pretender to the throne , like other imperial princes , he spent most of his life on the prison mountain Wehni Amba . Around 1725 Yohannes attempted to escape from Wehni Amba. The emperor at the time, his brother Bekaffa, who was notorious for his cruelty, had his hand chopped off as a punishment. As a result of this punishment, Yohannes almost died. After his recovery, Yohannes spent his time at Wehni Amba doing theological studies, writing songs and discussing with scholars. Politically, Yohannes was completely uninterested.

From around 1750 there were increasingly violent domestic political disputes in Ethiopia, which were associated with an ever stronger weakening of imperial power. The actual ruler in Ethiopia at that time was the governor and governor of Gondar, Ras Mikael Sehul , who installed and deposed the emperors at his discretion.

After the murder of Emperor Iyoas , Ras Mikael looked for the weakest possible candidate for the imperial throne in order to formally guarantee the cohesion of the empire. His choice fell on the already aged Yohannes, whom he had brought from Wehni Amba to Gondar against his resistance in May 1769 in order to present him to the assembly of the highest secular and spiritual dignitaries of Ethiopia as candidate for emperor. The congregation initially rejected Yohannes because of his apparent incompetence and his handicap caused by the sentence. But with the declaration of personally holding the stirrup to the new emperor when mounting the horse , Ras Mikael was finally able to convince the assembly of dignitaries of his plans. Yohannes was proclaimed as Yohannes II as the new emperor of Ethiopia on May 7, 1769. To further consolidate his own position of power, Ras Mikael connected his family to the imperial family by marrying his granddaughter Waletta Sellasie with the aged emperor.

Even as emperor, Yohannes II devoted himself exclusively to the study of books and refused to show himself in public, to take part in state affairs and to stay with the army . He also constantly asked to be brought back to Wehni Amba. This made the emperor politically uncomfortable for Ras Mikael, and so he gave the order to kill him. On October 18, 1769, Yohannes II was poisoned at breakfast.

Ras Mikael continued his intrigue by installing the underage son of Yohannes, Tekle Haymanot II. , As the new emperor.

Yohannes was married and had 4 children.

Due to the complicated transcription from Amharic, the spelling of Ethiopian proper names can be different in different publications.

predecessor	Office	successor
Iyoas	Emperor of Ethiopia 1769	Tekle Haymanot II.