THE ongoing dispute over the repatriation of the body of a teenage Ethiopian prince, Prince Alemayehu, who was laid to rest at Windsor Castle 144 years ago, continues as Buckingham Palace refuses to comply with the demands made by his descendant.
Prince Alemayehu, an orphan who received Queen Victoria’s adoration and financial support, tragically passed away at the age of 18. His descendant has appealed for the return of his remains to Ethiopia.
However, Buckingham Palace has once again dismissed the request, citing the potential disruption it would cause to the catacombs of St George’s Chapel, where he was interred.
The palace stated, ‘It is very unlikely that it would be possible to exhume the remains without disturbing the resting place of a substantial number of others in the vicinity.’
In 2019, Ethiopian Ambassador to London, Fesseha Shawel Gebre, directed attention to Queen Elizabeth II, urging her to imagine how she would feel if one of her own relatives was buried in a foreign land. Fesseha emphasised the notion that the boy had been ‘stolen.’
The Ethiopian government has persistently voiced its demand for the repatriation of Prince Alemayehu’s remains during meetings with British officials.
Prince Alemayehu held the significant status of being the only legitimate son of Ethiopian Emperor Tewodros II. Following his father’s suicide in 1868 after the British troops defeated him at the Battle of Magdala in Ethiopia, Alemayehu was brought to the United Kingdom at the age of seven. Tragically, he succumbed to a lung condition at the tender age of 18 in 1879. Queen Victoria personally arranged for his burial at St George’s Chapel in Windsor, where he currently rests.
