Tewodros II (Ge'ez: ዳግማዊ ቴዎድሮስ, once referred to by the English cognate Theodore; baptized as Kassa, c. 1818 – 15 April 1868) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1855 until his death in 1868. His rule is often placed as the beginning of modern Ethiopia and brought an end to the decentralized Zemene Mesafint (Era of the Princes).
Although Tewodros II's origins were in the Era of the Princes, his ambitions were not those of the regional nobility. He sought to re-establish a cohesive Ethiopian state and to reform its administration and church.
Tewodros II's first task after having reunited the other provinces was to bring Shewa under his control. During the Era of the Princes, Shewa was, even more than most provinces, an independent entity, its ruler even styling himself Negus, the title for King. In the course of subduing the Shewans, Tewodros took with him a Shewan prince, Sahle Maryam, who he brought up as his own son, who would later become Emperor (or Atse) himself as Menelik II. Despite his success against Shewa, Tewodros faced constant rebellions by nobles in other regions resisting modernization.
In the first six years of his reign, the new ruler managed to put down these rebellions, and the empire was relatively peaceful from about 1861 to 1863, but the energy, wealth, and manpower necessary to deal with regional opposition limited the scope of Tewodros's other activities.
Tewodros II never realized his dream of restoring a strong monarchy, although he took many important initial steps. He sought to establish the principle that governors and judges must be salaried appointees. He also established a professional standing army, rather than depending on local lords to provide soldiers for his expeditions. He introduced the collection of books in the form of a library, tax codes, as well as a centralized political system with respective administrative districts. He also intended to reform the church but he was confronted by strong opposition when he tried to impose a tax on church lands to help finance government activities. Tewodros' confiscation of these lands gained him enemies in the church and little support elsewhere. Essentially, Tewodros was a talented military campaigner.
He ultimately committed suicide at the Battle of Magdala, during the British Expedition to Abyssinia.
The British Consul Walter Plowden knew well the political events of Ethiopia during the 1850s and had foretold the rising star of Kassa the freelance warrior from Qwara.
When being crowned as King, Plowden described him as such:
The King Theodorus is young in years, vigorous in all manly exercises, of a striking countenance, peculiarly polite and engaging when pleased, and mostly displaying great tact and delicacy. He is persuaded that he is destined to restore the glories of the Ethiopian Empire and to achieve great conquests: of untiring energy, both mental and bodily, his personal and moral daring is boundless... When aroused his wrath is terrible, and all tremble; but at all moments he possesses a perfect self-control. Indefatigable in business, he takes little repose night or day: his ideas and language are clear and precise; hesitation is not known to him; and has no counsellors or go-between. He is fond of splendour, and received in state even on a campaign. He is unsparing in punishment – necessary in a wilderness as Abyssinia (at that time). He salutes his meanest (poor) subjects with courtesy, is sincerely though often mistakenly religious, and will acknowledge a fault committed to his poorest follower in a moment of compassion with sincerity and grace. He is generous to excess, and free from all cupidity, regarding nothing with pleasure or desire but munitions of war for his soldiers. He has exercised the utmost clemency towards the vanquished, treating them more like friends than enemies. His faith is signal: without Christ I am nothing.
The French explorer, geographer, ethnologist, linguist and astronomer Antoine Thomson D'Abbadie describes him during his stay in Ethiopia:
I saw Kasa, or Theodore, frequently at Gondar in 1848. He was dressed as a simple soldier, and had nothing, either in his features or language, which presaged his high destiny. He loved to speak of fire-arms. He was about twenty-eight years old; his face rather black than red; his figure slim; and his agility seemed to arise less from his muscular power than from that of his will. His forehead is high and almost convex; his nose slightly aquiline, a frequent characteristic of the pure-blooded Amaras.
The British geographer Clements Markham, mentioned the following about him:
Theodore, the new King of Kings of Ethiopia, was certainly the most remarkable man that has appeared in Africa for some centuries. At the date of his assumption of the regal title, Theodore was thirty-seven years of age, of medium stature but possessing a well-knit muscular frame capable of ensuring any amount of fatigue – a noble bearing and a majestic walk – and he was the best shot, the best spearmen, the best runner, and the best horseman in Abyssinia. He was a genius, and a very remarkable one. It is a misuse of terms to call him a savage, except in the sense that Peter the Great was a savage. They were both born kings of men; both endowed with military genius; both lovers of the mechanical arts; both possessed of dauntless courage; and, while capable of noble and generous acts, both were frequently guilty of perpetrating most horrible atrocities.The French traveler Émile Jonveaux, described him as: The Négus Theodore, King of the kings of Ethiopia, had none of the insignia of sovereign majesty. Clothed very simply, he handled the pickaxe and the hammer like the lowest of his workmen, with the view of encouraging them by his example. He was in all things the man of energy, the fierce hero, of whom M. Lejean, who knew him intimately enough to call him his "terrible friend," has traced so life-like a portrait. He was about fifty years of age; of medium stature, with muscular limbs, a swarthy complexion, and features of remarkable beauty.The English explorer Tristram Speedy who met him at his camp said as follows:Theodore was reclining on a couch in the porch of his tent, and from under the cushions protruded the hilt of a sabre, and the butt of a brace of pistols, the prized gifts as I afterwards learnt of the late Consul Plowden. The King was above 5'10" in height, well proportioned and muscular, dark complexioned, with eyes of unusual brilliancy. His massive black curly hair was plaited in fine high ridges from the forehead to the nape of the neck while the ends to the length of 8 inches hung down his back in curls.
Kassa Hailu was born in Qwara west of Gondar, his father was an Amhara nobleman of the Qwara district named Hailegiorgis Woldegiorgis. His paternal grandfather, Dejazmatch Woldegiorgis, was a widely respected figure of his time. Dembiya was part of the large territory known as Ye Maru Qemas, which translates as "the taste of the honey" or literally "What has been tasted by Maru". This name was given to the territory because it was the personal fief of Dejazmach Maru, a powerful warlord, and relative of Kassa. When Maru died in October 1827, his fiefdom was given (albeit begrudgingly) to Dejazmach Hailu by the governor of the province, Empress Menen Liben Amede. Kassa was in line to potentially take control of Ye Maru Qemas after Kenfu's death (though Kenfu also wanted to give the land to his own sons). When Kenfu died, however, neither his sons nor Kassa inherited control of the territory because Empress Menen Liben re-annexed it under her own control.
According to the Ethiopian chronicles, Kassa's mother, Woizero Atitegeb Wondbewossen, was from Gondar and belonged to a noble family. However, According to Hormuzd Rassam, she was originally from Amhara Sayint. Her mother, Woizero Tishal, was a member of a noble family of Begemder, while her paternal grandfather, Ras Wodajo, was a powerful and highly influential figure. It is thought that Tewodros II's paternal side of the family carried with it a slim margin of Solomonic pedigree, however insignificant it proved when compared to the more prominently illustrious ancestries of some of his highborn rivals. Tewodros, in his reign, indeed claimed that his father was descended from Emperor Fasilides by way of a daughter.