British regiment surrenders bloodstained artefacts of famous Ethiopian emperor
Personal relics belonging to Ethiopian Emperor Tewodros II, seized by British soldiers more than 150 years ago, have been handed back to Ethiopian authorities by a regimental museum in Lancaster.
The King's Own Royal Regiment Museum surrendered a lock of the emperor's hair and a piece of his clothing bearing bloodstains from his final moments during a formal ceremony at its base.
These items were taken as battlefield trophies following the 1868 siege at the mountain stronghold of Magdala, where Tewodros II died during a confrontation with British imperial forces.
Ethiopian officials have described the handover as both symbolically important and a calculated opening move in their wider effort to recover heritage items removed by foreign powers.
The emperor had provoked the British military expedition by detaining European hostages amid a diplomatic dispute, having sought an alliance with Britain against Islamic forces in the region.
When General Sir Robert Napier's troops besieged his fortress at Magdala in what was then known as Abyssinia, Tewodros II chose death over surrender, shooting himself with a pistol reportedly gifted to him by Queen Victoria.
In the aftermath of the battle, soldiers systematically stripped the hilltop stronghold of its royal and religious treasures, with items subsequently auctioned off.
A British Museum official had accompanied the military force specifically to secure the most valuable pieces for national collections.
Troops from the King's Own Royal Regiment claimed the emperor's hair and bloodied garment as personal souvenirs of the campaign.
The ceremony transferring the artefacts took place at the regiment's Lancaster headquarters, with the current Lord Napier presiding over proceedings.
"My great-great-grandfather would be glad they are going back," Lord Napier told The Telegraph, referring to Gen Sir Robert Napier who led the original expedition.
He noted the 170 years the items spent in British custody had served to preserve them, calling the Abyssinian campaign "a most extraordinary bit of British history, of Victorian history".
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Lord Napier also presented Ethiopian representatives with a gold bracelet from the campaign had remained in his family as an heirloom.
Abebaw Ayalew Gella, who leads the Ethiopian Heritage Authority, expressed hope that "this generous example will inspire other museums to follow suit in the near future".
Alula Pankhurst, grandson of suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst and an Ethiopian heritage specialist, formally received the items on behalf of the government.
The return represents the first successful outcome of Ethiopia's targeted campaign against British military museums, which enjoy greater freedom to relinquish holdings than national institutions bound by legislation preventing deaccessioning.
Retired Colonel Robin Jackson, who heads the King's Own Royal Regiment Museum, initiated cooperation with Ethiopian counterparts after academic Eyob Derillo's research highlighted the significance of the collection's contents.
Ethiopia's broader repatriation effort aims to recover 10 sacred tabots currently held by the British Museum, alongside treasures in the Victoria and Albert Museum and items within the royal collection.
Several military museums remain in Ethiopian officials' sights, including the Royal Engineers Museum, which holds looted weaponry and chains used to restrain one of the emperor's hostages.
As well as the the Royal Artillery Museum, which possesses a sword from Magdala.
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