Zewditu was the first Empress of the Ethiopian Empire and the first female head of an internationally recognized African country in the early 20th century.
She was the eldest daughter of Menelik II and ruled from 1916 to 1930, earning the title “Queen of Kings.” Known for her conservative and religious outlook, her reign still saw important developments driven largely by her prime minister.
During her rule, Ethiopia experienced key reforms, including steps toward the abolition of slavery and increased engagement with the League of Nations.
Since none of her children survived, she was succeeded by her minister, Haile Selassie I, marking a significant transition in Ethiopian leadership.
"እኔ ሴት ነኝ ጦርነት አልወድም ነገር ግን ሐገሬን እንደዚህ ያለ ክብር የሚነካ ዘለፋ ከምሸከም ጦርነትን እመርጣለሁ፡፡ ሂድ መንገዱን ጨርቅ ያድርግልህ እግሩን ለጠጠር ደረቱን ለጦር አስጥቶ ደሙን ለሐገሩ ፍቅር አፍስሶ ለአፈሩ ክብር ለብሶ እሱ ወድቆ ሐገሩን የማያቆም እዚህ ያለ እንዳይመስልህ ሂድ! የኢትዮጵያን ሰው ባታውቀው ነው ፡፡ ለሐገሩ መሞት ማለት ለሐበሻ ጌጡ ነው፡፡ ሂድ ባሻህ ግዜ ተመለስ ተሰናድተን እንጠብቅሃለን፡፡ ያንተን ወንድነትና የጣይቱን ሴትነትም ያን ግዜ እናየዋለን ሂድ መንገዱን ጨርቅ ያድርግልህ ፡፡" እቴጌ ጣይቱ ቢጡል
"I am a woman, and I have no thirst for war. But I would sooner embrace the battlefield than accept an insult to my nation’s dignity. Begone and don’t let the road hinder your exit. Do not deceive yourself into thinking we lack men of courage. We have those who will march barefoot over jagged stones and meet your spears with open chests; men who view shedding blood for their land as their highest honor and its soil as their final, glorious shroud. They will fall so that Ethiopia may stand. You clearly do not know the soul of an Ethiopian. For us, to die for the motherland is our finest jewel. Go then! Return when you please, you will find us ready. That is when we shall truly test your 'manhood' against the 'womanhood' of Taytu. Now, go. I wish you a swift departure." Empress Taytu Betul.