Ethiopia is the classical appellation1 for Abyssinia, or Hábesh, the most ancient as well as the greatest monarchy2 in Africa. It is by the latter title that the inhabitants themselves, and all their circumjacent neighbours, still distinguish the highlands included between Nubia and the sources of the blue Nile; and the limits of the Christian3 empire, governed by the sovereigns of Axum, formerly4 extended over wide tracts5 of country, now peopled by heathen and stranger nations.
The early history of Hábesh is lost in the fogs of fable6. In the Chronicles styled Kebra za Negest, “the glory of the kings,” a romance which pretends to be a faithful repository of the past, Ittopia is modestly stated to have divided with Romia the dominion7 of the world, received in direct inheritance from Adam.—“Their rulers were both descended8 from Shem, who was nominated the lineal descendant of Noah, whence all the globe north of Jerusalem belonged unto the former, and all south to the latter!”
This record is believed to have been discovered in the church of Saint Sophia, and it claims for the present royal family descent from the queen of Sheba, whose visit to king Solomon is stated to have placed the sceptre in the hands of the tribe of Judah, with whom it has remained until the present day; and from the peasant to the despot this legend is firmly believed by every native of Abyssinia.
“The queen of Ethiopia,” saith the Chronicle, “whose name was Maqueda, had heard from the merchant Tamerin of the wisdom and the glory of king Solomon; and resolving to visit him in his own country, she proceeded to the land of Israel with all the rich presents that her empire could afford.”
After a season the royal lady returned; and her son Menilek, the result of her visit to the greatest potentate9 of the age, was born, and in due time transmitted to his august sire, that he might be duly instructed in all the mysteries of Jewish law and science. Having been anointed king under the name of David, he returned to his native land, with a large suite10 of the nobles of Israel, and a band of her most learned elders under the direction of Ascarias, the son of Zadok the High Priest.
But previously11 to his setting out, the gates of the temple of Jerusalem were left unguarded, and the doors miraculously12 opened in order to afford an opportunity, which was not neglected, of stealing and carrying away the holy ark of Zion and the tables of the law. To queen Maqueda also is attributed the inhuman13 treatment since experienced by the royal princes, for on resigning the reins14 of authority to her son, about nine hundred and seventy years before the birth of Christ, she caused a solemn obligation to be sworn by all, that henceforward no female should hold sway in the land; and that those princes of the blood-royal upon whom the crown did not devolve, should, until the succession opened to them, or during their natural term of existence, be kept close prisoners on a lofty mountain; a cruel and despotic enactment15, which, through a long succession of ages, was jealously observed.
The Emperor of Ethiopia early adopted the title of Negoos, or Negásh; and the coast of the Indian ocean towards Sofala was held by his deputy with the style of Bahr Negásh, “the King of the Sea,”—a vicegerent with the same title, governing Yemen, which from the earliest times down to the Mohammadan conquest of Arabia belonged to Abyssinia. The family of Menilek ibn Hákim are stated in the Kebra za Negest to have worn the crown in uninterrupted felicity until the year of our Lord 960, when an event occurred which nearly obliterated16 that dynasty, and first spread anarchy17, violence, and oppression throughout the once happy realm.
Christianity became the national religion of Abyssinia in the beginning of the fourth century. The Fálashas, descendants of the Jews, who are believed to have accompanied Menilek from Jerusalem, had meanwhile waxed extremely powerful, and refusing to abandon the faith of their forefathers18, they now declared independence. Electing a sovereign of their own creed19, they took possession of the almost impregnable mountain fastnesses of Simien, where their numbers were augmented20 by continual accessions from the Jews who were expelled from Palestine and from Arabia. Under the constant titles of Gideon and Judith, a succession of kings and queens held a limited sway until, in the middle of the tenth century, the Princess Esther, styled, by the Amhára, Issát, which signifies “fire,” a woman of extraordinary beauty and talent, conceived the design of subverting21 the religion, and with it the existing order of succession in the empire. A fatal epidemic22 had swept off the Emperor, and spread desolation through court and capital. Del Naad, who had been nominated to the crown, was of tender years; and Esther, deeming no opportunity more favourable23, surprised the rock Dámo, on which, by virtue24 of the existing statute25, the other scions26 of the royal house were confined, and having massacred the whole, five hundred in number, proclaimed herself the queen over Abyssinia.
The sole surviving prince of his race was hurried by the Amhára nobility into the distant and loyal province of Shoa; and the reins of government passed into the hands of a Christian family of Lasta, styled Zegue, with whom they remained until the thirteenth century. During the administration of Naakweto Laab, the last of this dynasty, Tekla Ha?manót the monk27, a native of Abyssinia, was created Abuna, (Abuna, or more properly Aboon, signifies “our father”) or Primate28 of Ethiopia. He had previously founded in Shoa the celebrated29 monastery30 of Debra Libanos, and was a man celebrated alike for the purity of his life, the soundness of his understanding, and his devotion to his country. Obtaining extraordinary influence over the mind of the king, he prevailed upon him, for conscience-sake, to resign a crown which could never be purified from the stain of usurpation31. The banished32 line of Solomon, content with the dominion of Shoa, had made no effort towards the recovery of their ancient boundaries; but by a treaty now concluded, Yekweno Amlak was restored to the throne of his ancestors. Naakweto Laab was to retain Lasta in perpetual independence, with the golden stool, the silver kettle-drums, and other insignia of royalty33, whilst one third of the realm was permanently34 ceded35 to the Primate for the maintenance of his ecclesiastical dignity, and for the support of the clergy36, convents, and churches. This was styled the “Era of Partition;” and it formed a stipulation37, that the functions of Archbishop should in future be vested in none save a Copt, appointed from Cairo by the chair of Saint Mark.
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1
appellation
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| n.名称，称呼 | |
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2
monarchy
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| n.君主，最高统治者；君主政体，君主国 | |
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Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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4
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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tracts
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| 大片土地( tract的名词复数 )； 地带； （体内的）道； （尤指宣扬宗教、伦理或政治的）短文 | |
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fable
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| n.寓言；童话；神话 | |
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dominion
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| n.统治，管辖，支配权；领土，版图 | |
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descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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potentate
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| n.统治者；君主 | |
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suite
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| n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员 | |
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previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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miraculously
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| ad.奇迹般地 | |
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13
inhuman
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| adj.残忍的，不人道的，无人性的 | |
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14
reins
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| 感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带 | |
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15
enactment
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| n.演出，担任…角色；制订，通过 | |
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16
obliterated
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| v.除去( obliterate的过去式和过去分词 )；涂去；擦掉；彻底破坏或毁灭 | |
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anarchy
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| n.无政府状态；社会秩序混乱，无秩序 | |
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forefathers
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| n.祖先，先人；祖先，祖宗( forefather的名词复数 )；列祖列宗；前人 | |
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19
creed
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| n.信条；信念，纲领 | |
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20
Augmented
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| adj.增音的 动词augment的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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21
subverting
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| v.颠覆，破坏（政治制度、宗教信仰等）( subvert的现在分词 )；使（某人）道德败坏或不忠 | |
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epidemic
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| n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的 | |
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favourable
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| adj.赞成的，称赞的，有利的，良好的，顺利的 | |
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virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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statute
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| n.成文法，法令，法规；章程，规则，条例 | |
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scions
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| n.接穗，幼枝( scion的名词复数 )；（尤指富家）子孙 | |
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27
monk
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| n.和尚，僧侣，修道士 | |
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primate
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| n.灵长类（目）动物，首席主教；adj.首要的 | |
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29
celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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30
monastery
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| n.修道院，僧院，寺院 | |
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31
usurpation
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| n.篡位；霸占 | |
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32
banished
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| v.放逐，驱逐( banish的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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33
royalty
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| n.皇家，皇族 | |
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permanently
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| adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地 | |
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35
ceded
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| v.让给，割让，放弃( cede的过去式 ) | |
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36
clergy
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| n.[总称]牧师，神职人员 | |
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37
stipulation
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| n.契约，规定，条文；条款说明 | |
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