The Lion of Judah in the New World: Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia and the Shaping of Americans' Attitudes toward Africa

by Theodore M. Vestal Ph.D.

Overview

This insightful book relates how Emperor Haile Selassie helped shape America's image of Africa and how that image continues to evolve in the United States today.

The Lion of Judah in the New World: Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia and the Shaping of Americans' Attitudes toward Africa tells the story of a dynamic ruler who influenced the perception of an entire continent. Documenting the Emperor's state visits to North America, the book explores U.S. foreign policy towards Ethiopia and Africa over two decades. At the same time, it seeks to understand why Haile Selassie enjoyed such celebrity in the United States and how he became so important in determining U.S. attitudes toward Africa.

The book includes a brief biography of the Emperor and also explores the geography and long, colorful history of Ethiopia. The tensions and contradictions that marked Haile Selassie's life are highlighted in significant episodes that underscore his astute use of public relations and personal diplomacy. His leadership of postcolonial Africa during the Cold War is examined, as is his ultimate rejection by the United States in 1973 that marked the end of the monarchy and ushered in the tragic fratricide of Ethiopian civil war.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313386206
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	02/02/2011
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	591,243
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.40(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Theodore M. Vestal, PhD, is professor emeritus of political science at Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK.

Table of Contents

Preface
1 A Lion in the Streets
2 From Sly Fox to King of Kings
3 Mussolini and the Legacy of Adwa
4 Liberation under the Shadow of Britain
5 The Treasure of Kagnew
6 A Very Royal First State Visit, 1954
7 The Spring of the Lion
8 The Rituals of U.S. and Ethiopian Diplomacy
9 1960, The Annus Horribilis of Haile Selassie
10 The Lion of Judah at Camelot: The Second State Visit, 1963
11 He Shall Have a Noble Memory: The Kennedy Funeral
12 The Winter of Discontent: The Third State Visit, 1967
13 Götterdämmerung: The Nixon State Visits, 1969, 1970, and 1973
Epilogue
Notes
Selected Bibliography
Index
Photo essay follows p.

What People are Saying About This

Getatchew Haile

"An illuminating and engaging book ... With deftness, taste, and an acute understanding of Haile Selassie and his times, Vestal has written an engrossing and original study of how the Emperor of Ethiopia, in his dealings with the United States and in his travels to the New World, helped shape a positive image of Africa and Africans held by many Americans—an image that was significant in the election of the first African—American U.S. President. His narrative is filled with telling details and an appreciation of the role a rich cast of characters, both Ethiopian and American, played in forging the ties between the two countries that have endured to this day."

Aklilu Habte

"A detailed, comprehensive, painstakingly researched diplomatic history of two seemingly irreconcilable nations ... Vestal's contribution is a must-read by the present generation of Ethiopians and Americans, not only for the interest of the subject matter, but most of all for the author's refreshing honesty and courage, clarity of presentation and his sense of a balance, and objectivity.”

Richard Pankhurst

"An important and exciting tale ably told. ... Theodore Vestal seeks to unravel the complex and ever-changing relationship between an astute and long-reigning Ethiopian monarch adept at personal diplomacy and a succession of American Presidents with little more than a peripheral interest in Africa. Vestal’s story takes us through many notable historic events, including the 'Wind of Change,' which led within little more than a year to the unexpected liberation of virtually the entire African continent; to the emergence of an independent Somali State, which was followed by the dramatic advent of the Soviet Union (and Cuba) on the Horn of Africa; and to Watergate, a completely unpredictable incident which resulted in a great Super Power’s almost total diplomatic paralysis."

James C. McCann

"The Lion of Judah is a work of meticulous scholarship, and also deep affection, for the private life and times of Haile Selassie in the years of his greatest strength and in the twilight of his reign. Vestal offers information that is thoughtful, richly anecdotal, and a tribute to the value and power of narrative history. As a scholar of international law, former associate director of Peace Corps Ethiopia, and passionate advocate for democratic ideals, Vestal offers a important counterpoint to political histories that miss or misinterpret Ethiopia’s interaction with America and the New World. The level of detail is a wonderful contribution to understanding the man."

Getatchew Haile

"An illuminating and engaging book…With deftness, taste, and an acute understanding of Haile Selassie and his times, Vestal has written an engrossing and original study of how the Emperor of Ethiopia, in his dealings with the United States and in his travels to the New World, helped shape a positive image of Africa and Africans held by many Americans-an image that was significant in the election of the first African-American U.S. President. His narrative is filled with telling details and an appreciation of the role a rich cast of characters, both Ethiopian and American, played in forging the ties between the two countries that have endured to this day."

—

Getatchew Haile, Regents Professor Emeritus of Medieval Studies, Saint John's University, Collegeville, Minnesota; MacArthur Fellow

Richard Pankhurst

"An important and exciting tale ably told. …Theodore Vestal seeks to unravel the complex and ever-changing relationship between an astute and long reigning Ethiopian monarch adept at personal diplomacy, and a succession of American Presidents with little more than a peripheral interest in Africa. Vestal's story takes us through many notable historic events, including the 'Wind of Change,' which led within little more than a year to the unexpected liberation of virtually the entire African continent; to the emergence of an independent Somali State, which was followed by the dramatic advent of the Soviet Union (and Cuba) on the Horn of Africa; and to Watergate, a completely unpredictable incident which resulted in a great Super Power's almost total diplomatic paralysis."

—

Richard Pankhurst, Professor, Institute of Ethiopian Studies. Addis Ababa University

James C. McCann

"The Lion of Judah is a work of meticulous scholarship, and also deep affection, for the private life and times of Haile Selassie in the years of his greatest strength and in the twilight of his reign. Vestal offers information that is thoughtful, richly anecdotal, and a tribute to the value and power of narrative history. As a scholar of international law, former Associate Director of Peace Corps Ethiopia, and passionate advocate for democratic ideals, Vestal offers a important counterpoint to political histories that miss or misinterpret Ethiopia's interaction with America and the New World. The level of detail is a wonderful contribution to understanding the man."

—

James C. McCann, Professor of History, Boston University, and author of People of the Plow

Editorial Reviews

Vestal (emer., political science, Oklahoma State Univ., Stillwater) has written the first full-length narrative of Emperor Haile Selassie's many trips to the US and the warm, ecstatic reception the American public gave him. Written in a lively, engaging style, the book provides invaluable knowledge about Selassie's seemingly unending trips to the US.” —Choice

From the Publisher