1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,920 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:07,480 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey guys, welcome to This Day in History Class, 3 00:00:07,920 --> 00:00:11,399 Speaker 1: where we bring you a new tidbit from history every day. 4 00:00:13,119 --> 00:00:25,439 Speaker 1: Today is September twelve, nineteen. The day was September twelfth, 5 00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:31,320 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy four. Emperor of Ethiopia Hila Selassie was deposed 6 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:36,400 Speaker 1: by Marxist colonel man Gitsu Hila Mariam. Just under a 7 00:00:36,479 --> 00:00:41,959 Speaker 1: year later, Hila Selassie died. Hilo Selassie was born Tafari 8 00:00:42,080 --> 00:00:47,000 Speaker 1: mcconan in eight nine two in Harrar, Ethiopia. At this time, 9 00:00:47,159 --> 00:00:51,280 Speaker 1: Mentelec the second was Emperor of Ethiopia. Mentele the second 10 00:00:51,479 --> 00:00:56,040 Speaker 1: was known for expanding and modernizing Ethiopia, as well as 11 00:00:56,120 --> 00:01:01,480 Speaker 1: defeating an Italian military expedition. He made Addis Ababa his 12 00:01:01,560 --> 00:01:06,399 Speaker 1: capital and attempted to suppress the slave trade. Hilo Selassie's 13 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:09,959 Speaker 1: father was a chief advisor to Menelik the second. By 14 00:01:09,959 --> 00:01:13,520 Speaker 1: the time Hila Selassie was a teenager, his father had 15 00:01:13,560 --> 00:01:18,039 Speaker 1: made him commander of a local militia. After his father died, 16 00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:20,919 Speaker 1: Hila Selassie was appointed to be governor of a small 17 00:01:20,959 --> 00:01:24,800 Speaker 1: province by Menelik the second, a few years later he 18 00:01:24,880 --> 00:01:27,959 Speaker 1: was promoted to a larger province than a couple of 19 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:31,920 Speaker 1: years after that, he was made governor of Harar. His 20 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:35,160 Speaker 1: policies were progressive, as he tried to limit the feudal 21 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:39,120 Speaker 1: power of nobility by increasing the power of the central government. 22 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:43,199 Speaker 1: He developed a salaried civil service and created a court 23 00:01:43,280 --> 00:01:47,280 Speaker 1: system that gave legal rights to the peasantry. But when 24 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:51,480 Speaker 1: Menelik the second died and his grandson lij Yasu succeeded him, 25 00:01:52,120 --> 00:01:57,000 Speaker 1: Lijiyasu was viewed as pro Muslim and unpopular with Ethiopia's 26 00:01:57,080 --> 00:02:01,800 Speaker 1: Christian majority. Hilo Selassie was an Amhara, which is an 27 00:02:01,840 --> 00:02:06,400 Speaker 1: Ethiopian ethnic group formed mostly of Orthodox Christians. He was 28 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:09,600 Speaker 1: educated in the Tenets of the Coptic Church. He rose 29 00:02:09,680 --> 00:02:13,000 Speaker 1: as a prominent voice in the Christian resistance against Lidjyasu, 30 00:02:13,440 --> 00:02:17,760 Speaker 1: whom he deposed in nineteen sixteen. Meddle like the second's 31 00:02:17,840 --> 00:02:22,880 Speaker 1: daughter Zao Ditto, then became empress and Hila Selassie or 32 00:02:23,040 --> 00:02:27,120 Speaker 1: Ross Safari as he was known, was named Prince Regent 33 00:02:27,280 --> 00:02:31,280 Speaker 1: and heir to the throne. Saal Dittu was conservative and 34 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:36,000 Speaker 1: focused on religion, while Hila Selassie maintained his progressive stance. 35 00:02:36,639 --> 00:02:39,720 Speaker 1: He replaced conservative members on the Council of Ministers with 36 00:02:39,840 --> 00:02:44,920 Speaker 1: his pro reformed supporters. Cars, a printing press, telephone service, 37 00:02:45,080 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: and a reformed justice system were introduced. Ethiopia was admitted 38 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:54,079 Speaker 1: to the League of Nations in nineteen twenty three. He 39 00:02:54,240 --> 00:02:58,720 Speaker 1: got international attention as he traveled to France, Sweden, England 40 00:02:58,800 --> 00:03:03,440 Speaker 1: and other countries. In In nineteen he was named negus 41 00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:09,360 Speaker 1: or King under pressure from his supporters, Jamaicans developed Rastafari, 42 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:13,040 Speaker 1: a religion which has adherents who believed that Hila Selassie 43 00:03:13,120 --> 00:03:16,720 Speaker 1: was the second coming of Christ. Two years after he 44 00:03:16,760 --> 00:03:21,040 Speaker 1: was appointed King, salditud died in Holly Celastee was coordinated 45 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:24,200 Speaker 1: as emperor. At that point he changed his name from 46 00:03:24,280 --> 00:03:28,640 Speaker 1: Rastafari to Holly Celastie, which means power of the Trinity. 47 00:03:29,400 --> 00:03:33,880 Speaker 1: He enacted Ethiopia's first constitution in nineteen thirty one, creating 48 00:03:33,880 --> 00:03:37,400 Speaker 1: a two chamber parliament with a popularly elected lower house 49 00:03:37,800 --> 00:03:42,680 Speaker 1: so he could overthrow parliamentary decisions. He continued his efforts 50 00:03:42,760 --> 00:03:47,320 Speaker 1: at modernization and centralizing power by strengthening police forces, establishing 51 00:03:47,360 --> 00:03:52,680 Speaker 1: provincial schools, and other measures, but after Italy invaded Ethiopia 52 00:03:52,720 --> 00:03:56,400 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirty five, Hola Selassie was forced into exile. 53 00:03:57,560 --> 00:04:00,720 Speaker 1: When he returned to Ethiopia, he's art it again on 54 00:04:00,800 --> 00:04:05,480 Speaker 1: his modernization efforts, with an emphasis on education. At the 55 00:04:05,520 --> 00:04:09,240 Speaker 1: same time, the government was becoming more corrupt, and despite 56 00:04:09,240 --> 00:04:14,360 Speaker 1: appearances of reform, power still resided in the emperor. In 57 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:18,680 Speaker 1: nineteen sixty, dissidents seized control of Oddis Ababa and called 58 00:04:18,760 --> 00:04:24,920 Speaker 1: for a true constitutional monarchy with democracy, economic and agricultural reform, 59 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: and a real effort to end poverty. The resistance was 60 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:34,000 Speaker 1: squashed and many of its leaders were executed. Highla Selassie 61 00:04:34,200 --> 00:04:38,400 Speaker 1: then began to focus on foreign affairs, advocating for Pan 62 00:04:38,520 --> 00:04:41,440 Speaker 1: Africanism and playing a key role in the creation of 63 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:46,200 Speaker 1: the Organization of African Unity. But religious and ethnic conflict 64 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:54,120 Speaker 1: was escalating in Ethiopia, and so was dissatisfaction with economic conditions. Famine, unemployment, 65 00:04:54,240 --> 00:04:58,520 Speaker 1: and political ineptitude led military officers to rebel. In nineteen 66 00:04:58,560 --> 00:05:03,440 Speaker 1: seventy four, the emperor's cabinet resigned, Hiley Selassie and his 67 00:05:03,480 --> 00:05:07,159 Speaker 1: family members were imprisoned, and the officers formed the DIRK, 68 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:12,400 Speaker 1: or the provisional military government of Socialist Ethiopia. They accused 69 00:05:12,480 --> 00:05:17,680 Speaker 1: Hiley Celassie of embezzling and causing the famine. Hiley Celastie 70 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:21,000 Speaker 1: remained in prison until his death in nineteen seventy five. 71 00:05:21,560 --> 00:05:24,320 Speaker 1: At the time of his death, reports said that he 72 00:05:24,440 --> 00:05:28,680 Speaker 1: died from complications after a procedure, but evidence later turned 73 00:05:28,760 --> 00:05:32,680 Speaker 1: up that he had been assassinated by military officers. The 74 00:05:32,800 --> 00:05:37,880 Speaker 1: Dirt declared Marxism Leninism the state ideology and ruled Ethiopia 75 00:05:37,960 --> 00:05:42,920 Speaker 1: until nineteen seven. I'm Eve Steacote and hopefully you know 76 00:05:43,000 --> 00:05:46,480 Speaker 1: a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 77 00:05:47,240 --> 00:05:51,200 Speaker 1: You can find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook at 78 00:05:51,320 --> 00:05:56,560 Speaker 1: T d I h C podcast. Thank you so much 79 00:05:56,600 --> 00:05:59,440 Speaker 1: for listening, and I hope to see you again tomorrow 80 00:05:59,760 --> 00:06:08,640 Speaker 1: for more tidbits of history. For more podcasts for my 81 00:06:08,680 --> 00:06:11,359 Speaker 1: Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 82 00:06:11,440 --> 00:06:13,159 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.