The Black Lions were an anti-fascist resistance movement that started in the western religion and dominated the early resistance movement in Ethiopia against the Italian force invading Ethiopia in 1936.
The movement was founded with fighters such as the Shewa Ras Abebe Aregai and a number of intellectuals who included the sons of Hakim Workneh Eshete and Heruy Welde Sellase, and Yilma Deressa.
The organization had a constitution consisting of ten points, which included: asserting the supremacy of the political sphere over the military, injunctions against mistreating peasants and prisoners of war, forbidding its members from seeking exile, and urging them to prefer death to capture by the enemy.
Ras Abebe Aregai was a military commander who led The Black Lions arbegnoch in the operation in Menz and Shewa. He later served as Prime Minister of Ethiopia. He was a victim of the unsuccessful 1960 Ethiopian coup, which was the most serious threat to Haile Selassie's rule.
Hakim(Dr) Workneh Eshete was the first Ethiopian educated as a medical doctor. Beginning in 1934, he served as Ethiopia's Minister to the United Kingdom.
He had pitched a tent in the center of Addis Ababa, where he treated patients free of charge.
Blattengeta Heruy Welde Sellase was a Foreign Minister of Ethiopia. He joined his Emperor in exile, although he was one of three members of the council who had voted against Haile Selassie leaving Ethiopia to address the League of Nations in Geneva.
Yilma Deressa was educated at the London School of Economics. He was a member of the Black Lions but surrendered with Ras Imru Haile Selassie near the Gojeb River on 19 December 1936. After the restoration of Emperor Haile Selassie, Yilma was appointed vice minister of Finance.
Alemework Beyene was the chairman of the black Lions, who was a veterinary surgeon educated in Britain.
The Black Lions convinced Ras Imru Haile Selassie to join them in the armed struggle since he was part of the dynamics that created the movement. Ras Imru was appointed by his cousin Emperor Haile Selassie as Prince Regent in his absence.
Ras Imru was to reorganize and continue to resist the Italians. To do this, he fell back to Gore in southern Ethiopia. On 18 December 1936, after the Italians pinned him down on the north bank of the Gojeb River, Ras Imru surrendered.
The Black Lions organization then collapsed, and The majority of its members were killed by the Italians following the unsuccessful attempt on Rodolfo Graziani's life on 19 February 1937. The few survivors included Alemework and Yilma.
As Bahru Zewde notes, in spite of its "marginal impact on the Resistance" the Black Lions made "eloquent attempts to give the struggle coherent ideological and political direction."
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