Lij Seifu Mikael: Ethiopian Royal and Statesman
Legacy: The political transitions in Ethiopia profoundly impacted the generational legacy of the Seifu family, illustrating a “generational impact of political shifts.” Both Lij Seifu and his son, Lij Kifle Seifu, faced significant success, sacrifices and challenges throughout their lives. (Lij is hereditary aristocratic/royal title)
The document collectively illustrates the challenges faced by prominent families navigating through the complexity of shifting political power and the legacy passed down through generations.
Royal Dynasty and Education: Lij Seifu Michael was a prominent Ethiopian royal, born into the Solomonic dynasty and a member of the House of Solomon. He was a great-grandson of King Sahle Selassie and a first cousin of Emperor Menelik II.
Emperor Menelik II and Emperor Haile Selassie, along with Lij Seifu Mikael were direct decedents of King Sahle Selassie.
He received an advanced education in Paris at Sorbonne University, where he obtained an L.L.B. He also completed traditional Ethiopian religious and formal education in Addis Ababa and at his father’s estate in Aden. He spoke fluent English, French, German, Italian, Hebrew, and Arabic.
Diplomatic and Public Service Roles: His multifaceted career included numerous public service roles. He served as Ethiopia’s Minister Plenipotentiary to France and Germany and as Consul General to Eritrea, Governor of Chercher and Inspector General of the Ministry of Justice. He was an Advisor to the Imperial palace and reorganized the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Notably, he served as secular Administrator of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, where he managed the Church’s real estate interests, also providing substantial personal financial support as gifts to the Church.
He was among the special commissioners represented Empress Zewditu as a special envoy, who presented a letter of congratulations to the King and Queen of the United Kingdom for the success of the allied arms.
He was part of delegations to several European countries, meeting figures like German presidents Friedrich Ebert and Paul von Hindenburg.
Business Acumen and National Defense: Lij Seifu was a very successful businessman and one of the wealthiest Ethiopians of his time. He supplied weapons to Ethiopia during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. He had provided the majority of rifles and ammunition acquired by the government and private armies without payment to defend the nation’s sovereignty.
In the early 1930s, he traveled to Europe to buy arms and strengthen Ethiopian position in the League of Nations. He won support from Germany that supplied essential weaponry to Ethiopia in the amount of about six million Reichsmark. He used his expertise to bypass colonial powers to deliver weapons and ammunition.
Despite his significant contributions of public service and prominent Ethiopian royal, born into the Solomonic dynasty, Lij Seifu Michael’s public service ended by Emperor Haile Selassie. In addition to decades of notable disagreements and feuds with the Emperor, including his dissent over how Lij Iyasu was treated, the most significant one was, the comments he made during a dinner party about the 1950s coup d’état attempt to constitutionally limit the power of the monarch, Lij Seifu initially disagreed about the coup attempt but said, if it was him who tried, he would have made a successful coup by pointing out the steps he would have taken. When called to the palace to explain his comments, he did not deny the comments and told the emperor that his rule was responsible for grievances leading to such attempts. Offended by these remarks, Emperor Haile Selassie banished him to his Ambo country estate. In the last years of his retirement life, he developed his country estate into a French inspired garden that included a mansion complete with a series of fountains and a swimming pool.
He died from complications of diabetes and high blood pressure in Addis Ababa at age 60. His funeral was attended by significant figures, including the Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen Amha Selassie, Princess Tenagnework, members of the Imperial family, military leaders. He was laid to rest at the Emmanuel Ethiopian Orthodox Church, which he had served as its main benefactor.
In 1968, Emperor Haile Selassie made notable attempts at reconciliation with Lij Seifu’s eldest son Lij Kifle Seifu. Despite intervention by members of the royal family, Lij Kifle Seifu ultimately declined the emperor’s invitation to the Imperial Palace.
Lij Kifle Seifu, as the eldest child and heir to his father’s honors, succeeded in becoming one of Ethiopia’s wealthiest businessmen. His business ventures were extensive, including owning several modern farms, gold and precious stones mining operations, and construction businesses. He was also a sub-contractor for the Assab Oil Refinery and the expansion of the Air Force base. His businesses supplied gold to the National Bank of Ethiopia and precious stones to the European fashion industry from his offices in Rome and Los Angeles.
Lij Kifle Seifu became a victim of the socialist government in 1985, which confiscated his family’s entire estate and wealth. The documented court value of the confiscated assets was $31 million, which, adjusted for inflation, exceeded $100 million. Following the confiscation, Lij Kifle Seifu was imprisoned. He was eventually released due to the intervention of the United States government.
His international business operations ceased because his American and Italian partners protested the injustice by canceling contracts that had generated millions of dollars in foreign currency reserves for the Ethiopian government.
As a direct result of this injustice, Lij Kifle Seifu relocated the rest of his family to the United States, where he remained for the rest of his life until he passed away at age 94.
Lij Kifle Seifu is survived by his children: Lij Daniel Kifle Seifu (his eldest son and heir) and Lij Elias Kifle Seifu, Lij Brook Kifle Seifu, and his daughter Elizabeth Kifle Seifu.