Britain must return Ethiopia’s stolen treasures
In an exclusive interview with The Voice, Emperor Haile Selassie’s grandson calls for artefacts that are a key part of Ethiopia’s stolen heritage to be restored
ETHIOPIAN ROYALTY: Prince Ermias Sahle-Selassie, grandson of Emperor Haile Selassie I, has led efforts to reclaim Ethiopian artefacts looted during Britain’s 1868 invasion of Magdala (Pic Credit: The Royal Ethiopian Trust)
THE GRANDSON of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I is calling on Britain to return stolen artefacts to Ethiopia part of a wider demand for historical justice that continues to resonate across the African diaspora.
His Imperial Highness Prince Ermias Sahle-Selassie Haile-Selassie is President of the Crown Council of Ethiopia and founder of the Royal Ethiopian Trust (RET), a non-profit organisation focused on preserving Ethiopia’s cultural heritage and supporting education and economic development.
In recent years, the RET has played a decisive role in securing the repatriation of looted Ethiopian artefacts taken during Britain’s 1868 invasion of Magdala, a moment widely recognised as one of the most violent episodes of colonial plunder in African history.
So far, those efforts have resulted in the return of several key 19th-century objects, including the Magdala Shield and a gold imperial hairpin. Both were looted by British troops following the defeat of Emperor Tewodros II.
Speaking exclusively to The Voice, Prince Ermias described the emotional power of seeing these objects finally returned home.
“Both the Magdala Shield and the hairpin have been the most amazing thing,” he said.
“I was so privileged to have seen the shield back home in the National Museum and I can’t express to you the feeling of the joy I felt in witnessing that.
“I hope that it will inspire and give people hope that these things can one day finally be repatriated to where they belong.”
The Magdala Shield is now housed at the National Museum of Ethiopia in Addis Ababa, displayed alongside ancient artefacts for Ethiopians and visitors from around the world.
According to Prince Ermias, the response from Ethiopians was immediate and deeply emotional.
“It’s like it was always seeking its home, that it finally found,” he said.
A colonial legacy reclaimed
FINALLY HOME: A veteran member of the Ethiopian army holding the shield which is seen as one of the important symbols of Ethiopia’s history (Pic: Alula Pankhurst)
After being seized by British troops, the shield disappeared into a private collection for more than 150 years.
It resurfaced in February 2024, when UK auction house Anderson and Garland listed it for sale, estimating it would fetch between £800 and £1,200.
Following public outcry and pressure from the Ethiopian government, the auction was withdrawn. Under Prince Ermias’ direction, the RET moved swiftly to negotiate the shield’s return.
“This shield is not just a historical artefact; it is a symbol of Ethiopia’s history and resilience,” the prince said at the time.
“Our efforts and success in regaining this treasure is a testament to our commitment to preserve our heritage and honour our ancestors who fought for our nation’s sovereignty.”
The looting of Magdala
REPATRIATED: An elaborate hairpin belonging to Empress Tiruwork was recently returned to Ethiopia after more than 150 years (Pic Credit: Bertolami Fine Art)
The looting of Magdala in 1868 saw British forces seize hundreds of sacred and ceremonial objects — crowns, crosses, chalices and weapons — many of which remain scattered across museums and private collections in Europe.
Prince Ermias said negotiating their return required patience and strategy.
“We didn’t go the route of confrontation,” he explained.
“Often when you confront, they take these items completely out of auction and they completely disappear.”
Instead, the RET focused on quiet diplomacy.
“The auction house was very accommodating,” he said, “but it was a time-consuming process. We didn’t want it for ourselves; we wanted it to be repatriated back to Ethiopia.”
In December 2025, the RET secured another major success: the recovery of an imperial hairpin belonging to Empress Tiruwork, wife of Emperor Tewodros II.
The piece was identified at an auction in Rome and secured through negotiations with Italian auction house Bertolami Fine Art.
Led by Prince Ermias and RET board member Nicholas Melillo, the negotiations ensured the artefact’s planned return in early 2026 restoring another fragment of Ethiopia’s displaced history.
Prince Ermias believes these successes are creating momentum.
“It has sparked more awareness and education on the topic,” he said. “People have come forward to admit they have looted artefacts in their collections and want to return them.”
HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The plaque which is on display next to the Magdala shield which returned to Ethiopia after more than 150 years in exile. (Pic: Alula Pankhurst)
Sacred objects still held in Britain
The campaign to recover Ethiopian heritage is not limited to auction houses.
In 2024, The Voice revealed that the British Museum holds 11 sacred Ethiopian tabots — objects representing the Ten Commandments and the Ark of the Covenant.
The museum said it could lend them to an Ethiopian Orthodox church in Britain, but stopped short of committing to their return to Ethiopia.
Because tabots are so sacred, they can only be seen by ordained priests and are not placed on public display.
Prince Ermias is unequivocal about their status and their importance to Ethiopia.
“Those items weren’t gifts,” he said. “They were taken away from us. Those items are very sacred to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church naturally.
“In the spirit of building bridges and goodwill, there should be a mechanism to have them available for the Ethiopian people. These tablets symbolise so much in terms of our Orthodox spirituality.”
When asked whether the tabots would ever be returned, the British Museum said it is “restricted by law from returning objects”.
For Prince Ermias, that response reflects a wider refusal to confront British empire era violence and theft, something that continues to frustrate descendants of the plundered.
Prince Alemayehu: Dignity and remembrance
ETHIOPIAN PRINCE: Prince Alemayehu was deeply unhappy in Britain (photo: Julia Margaret Cameron)
Another unresolved legacy of the Magdala invasion is the fate of Prince Alemayehu, the only legitimate son of Emperor Tewodros II.
Captured at the age of seven and taken to Britain, the young prince died aged 18 from lung inflammation, deeply unhappy and far from home. He is buried at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
Calls for his remains to be returned to Ethiopia have grown in recent years. However, Prince Ermias takes a measured view.
“It would disturb the resting place of others, and that would be so un-Ethiopian,” he said.
Reflecting on his own experience visiting the chapel, he added: “I first became aware of Prince Alemayehu’s tribute in 1975. I was 15 when I went for the memorial service for my grandfather.
“What I have witnessed in the fifty years that has passed is that it is true that it would disturb the resting place of others.
“But I think Prince Alemayehu is really in a much more dignified way remembered within Windsor Chapel.”
He believes remembrance, rather than exhumation, is the right path concerning Prince Alemayehu but insists symbolic justice is still necessary.
“We should have symbolic items of his returned,” he said, “but also pay tribute to where he’s at.”
A unifying role for heritage
PROUD ETHIOPIANS: Prince Ermias and his wife Princess Saba (centre) with Ethiopian noble His Excellency the Wagshum Dr. Mikael Wossen and his wife Woizero Konjit reflecting Ethiopia’s enduring imperial and cultural legacy. (Pic Credit: Taylor Reed Branson)
As President of the Crown Council of Ethiopia, Prince Ermias sees cultural heritage as a stabilising force in a country facing deep internal divisions.
“The purpose of it is to maintain and keep the heritage and identity and role of the Crown for future generations,” he said.
Today, the Council focuses primarily on cultural and humanitarian work rather than politics — reflecting a belief that shared history still matters.
“We are witnessing today how fractured Ethiopia has become on a tribal basis,” Prince Ermias said.
“We are not going to advance as a nation divided in so many ways.”
HEROES WELCOME: The Magdala Shield received a hero’s welcome in Ethiopia when it arrived back on home soil. (Pic Credit: Alula Pankhurst)
Diaspora connections and Rastafari
Prince Ermias’ work extends beyond Ethiopia. In December last year, the RET donated US$5,000 to support Jamaica’s Hurricane Melissa recovery efforts.
He said the decision reflected both humanitarian concern and the deep historical bond between Ethiopia and Jamaica.
“I felt symbolically I had to do something,” he said.
“Especially our Rastafarian brothers and sisters who were living in more remote areas.”
Founded in Jamaica in the 1930s, Rastafari reveres Emperor Haile Selassie I as the Second Coming of Christ, creating a unique spiritual and cultural relationship that Prince Ermias is keen to nurture.
“I have had the most wonderful reception by the Rastafarian community,” he said. “We continue to keep that dialogue alive.”
Lessons from Pan-African grandfather
ROYAL FAMILY: Prince Ermias Sahle Selassie as a boy with his grandfather, the Emperor of Ethiopia Haile Selassie. (Photo Credit: Family photo.)
Prince Ermias speaks with warmth and clarity about growing up around his grandfather, Emperor Haile Selassie I, a towering global figure whose influence stretched far beyond Ethiopia.
Internationally, Haile Selassie became a symbol of Black sovereignty and resistance at a time when much of Africa and the Caribbean remained under European rule.
His 1936 speech to the League of Nations, following Italy’s invasion of Ethiopia, is still remembered as one of the most powerful indictments of fascism and imperial aggression ever delivered by an African leader.
For many across the African diaspora, particularly in the Caribbean, Haile Selassie represented dignity, defiance and the possibility of African self-determination.
His role in helping to establish the Organisation of African Unity, the forerunner of today’s African Union, further cemented his Pan-African legacy.
Yet for Prince Ermias, the emperor was also simply his grandfather.
“It swings from one extreme to another,” he recalled.
“From playing in his bedroom with pillows, to following him in strict protocol.”
He said Haile Selassie was deeply conscious of the difference between family life and public duty and insisted on maintaining that boundary.
“There would be family time and there would be formal time and he was quite aware and strict about the division of that,” he said.
Stories of the Emperor
The emperor, he added, was a man of few words but constant observation.
“He would always be looking at you and observing you. If you were misbehaving, it was like having a camera all around you.”
Prince Ermias admitted he was told off “a few times”.
“I walked in front of him, which you can’t do,” he recalled. “And I tried to get out of the car in front of him again. That was a no go. But he did it in a very loving way.”
One of the most enduring lessons came from watching how the emperor treated others.
“He would call us at different intervals and ask if the guards had been served — and that was before we started our meal,” he said.
“So, I understood his consideration that everybody has to be taken care of.”
That sense of responsibility, Prince Ermias believes, shaped his own outlook.
“Just because you are privileged you have a responsibility to look after those that may not have the opportunity,” he said.
“I think I learnt a lot more by observing than through lectures.”
Investing in the future
DUTIES: HIH Prince Ermias Sahle- Selassie addressing Victory of Gondar Dinner in London 2023. (Pic Credit: Supplied)
Education remains central to Prince Ermias’ vision. Through the RET, he has helped rebuild a school in Harar that was originally inaugurated by Emperor Haile Selassie I.
“It had fallen into disrepair so it was such an opportunity to be involved in rebuilding it” he said.
The charity also supports mentoring and scholarships for young entrepreneurs.
“We want the next generation to be able to have a sustainable livelihood in line with technology and knowledge transfer.”
Ultimately, Prince Ermias believes collaboration, not conflict, offers the clearest path forward.
“Ethiopia has really suffered for the last half a century. I pray that a day will come where we can sit around the table, heal from our past traumas and chart a future where everybody has equal opportunities and can live in peace.”
For more information on the Crown Council of Ethiopia, visit: www.ethiopiancrown.org
To support the Royal Ethiopian Trust, visit: www.royalethiopiantrust.org