Amda Seyon I
Amda Seyon I, also known as Amda Tsiyon I (Ge'ez: ዐምደ ፡ ጽዮን ʿamda ṣiyōn, Amharic: አምደ ፅዮን āmde ṣiyōn, "Pillar of Zion"), throne name Gebre Mesqel (ገብረ መስቀል gäbrä mäsḳal, "Servant of the Cross"), was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1314 to 1344 and a member of the Solomonic dynasty.
| Amda Seyon I ዐምደ ጽዮን | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Negus Nagast | |||||
Amda Seyon I depicted on a 15th century manuscript | |||||
| Emperor of Ethiopia | |||||
| Reign | 1314–1344 | ||||
| Predecessor | Wedem Arad | ||||
| Successor | Newaya Krestos | ||||
| Died | 1344 | ||||
| Spouse | Djan Mangasha | ||||
| |||||
| Ge'ez/Amharic | ዐምደ ፡ ጽዮን | ||||
| Amharic | አምደ ፅዮን | ||||
| Dynasty | House of Solomon | ||||
| Father | Wedem Arad | ||||
| Religion | Ethiopian Orthodox Church | ||||
He is best known in his chronicles as a heroic warrior against the Muslims, and is sometimes considered to have been the founder of the Ethiopian Empire. Most of his wars were against the Muslim sultanates to the southeast, which he was able to fight and always defeat, and substantially enlarge his kingdom by gradually incorporating a number of neighboring states.
His conquests of Muslim borderlands greatly expanded Christian territory and power in the region, which were maintained for centuries after his death. Amda Seyon asserted the strength of the new Solomonic dynasty and therefore legitimized it. These expansions further provided for the spread of Christianity to frontier areas, sparking a long era of proselytization, Christianization, and integration of previously peripheral areas.
According to British historian Edward Ullendorff, "Amda Seyon was one of the most outstanding Ethiopian kings of any age and a singular figure dominating the Horn of Africa in the fourteenth century."