Ethiopia demands that King Charles return ‘immoral’ treasures

Ethiopia will demand the return of an “immoral” hoard of treasures owned by the King, The Telegraph can reveal.

The African nation’s government is plotting a wholesale campaign to reclaim artefacts sacred to the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, which have been held in Britain since they were seized during Battle of Magdala in 1868.

The UK Government will be officially asked to support Ethiopia’s claims as part of a planned crusade set to commence next year.

Officials in Addis Ababa will pursue the return of items from the Royal Collection, which is owned by the King, along with spiritual and secular treasures kept in a host of UK institutions, including holy tablets stored in the British Museum.

They hope that Labour leaders will be more amenable to repatriation than their Conservative predecessors, with Sir Keir Starmer and Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, having voiced support for a resolution to the ongoing row over the Elgin Marbles.

The diplomatic push will be led by the Ethiopian Heritage Authority, which is a branch of the Ministry of Tourism, in partnership with the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

Regarding the Royal Collection’s ownership of religious manuscripts, Abebaw Ayalew Gella, the director general of the heritage authority, said: “It is immoral. You don’t just put them somewhere. They are sacred.”

Referring to the “illuminated” works, which are highly decorated with religious icons, Mr Gella said: “A manuscript with illumination is always considered sacred. You don’t even touch them.”

There is a precedent for returning items held in the Royal Collection after Elizabeth II handed back a royal cap and seal during a state visit to Ethiopia in 1965, when she met with Haile Selassie, the country’s last emperor.

Prince Ermias Sahle-Selassie Haile-Selassie, his grandson, called on the King to return the symbolic treasures of fellow royalty.

Speaking to The Telegraph in Addis Ababa, he said: “By being repatriated home, there is some sort of restorative justice that comes through that.

“It would be a great initiative for his Majesty to do that.”

The Royal Collection holds an illuminated Life of Mary manuscript as well as another titled The Miracles of the Virgin Mary, which are 18th-century works that were commissioned by Ethiopian royalty.

They were taken by British forces when Lt Gen Robert Napier defeated Tewodros II, the Ethiopian emperor, at his fortress in Magdala in 1868 following a conflict about the unstable ruler taking a number of European hostages in a bout of rage.

The hostages were freed and the fortress was systematically plundered, with a British Museum representative on hand to purchase looted treasures for the collection. Seized artefacts were auctioned off to collections in the UK and some were presented to the Royal family.

Rather than surrender, Tewodros II is said to have shot himself with a revolver previously given to him by Queen Victoria.

The gun was found by British forces and handed back to Queen Victoria. It remains in the Royal Collection along with Tewodros II’s gold filigree slippers.

Ethiopia’s position is that all such artefacts should be returned.

While Britain’s national museums are prevented by law from relinquishing artefacts, the Royal Collection, which is held in trust by the King, could return items at the discretion of trustees.

The plans to lay out demands follow a decision made in principle last year by Westminster Abbey, a royal peculiar church governed by the monarch, to return a looted Tabot, which is a tablet representing the Arc of the Covenant that is deeply sacred in Ethiopian orthodoxy.

The artefact was taken from Magdala after the battle with nine others that are now housed by the British Museum.

The Tabots are not displayed by the museum owing to their religious significance but also cannot be given back because the institute is bound by the British Museum Act 1963 to keep the collection intact, despite several Ethiopian requests to do so.

The legal barrier has frustrated numerous repatriation claims, including Greek demands for the Elgin Marbles.

They argue that Lord Elgin, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire that ruled Greece, stole the 2,500-year-old sculptures before selling them to the British Museum. The museum contends that they were legally acquired.

Ethiopian officials will make a formal repatriation request to the UK Government hoping to remove these constraints.

Sir Keir and Ms Nandy have expressed a desire to resolve the Elgin Marbles dispute but have not committed to repealing the British Museum Act.

Culture Secretary ‘keen to talk’

Greek newspapers reported that Ms Nandy was “keen to talk” with Athens about the Marbles, while the Prime Minister’s aides suggested that he would not seek to block a deal for their return.

In 2024, The Telegraph revealed that Labour had left open a legal loophole that could be used to circumvent existing legislation preventing the handover of artefacts.

Labour politicians were understood to be examining the caveat and considering “all options”. The decision marked a departure from the previous Conservative stance of persistent refusal to consider a law change.

In an effort to persuade the Government and UK collections of the moral merits of returning contentious artefacts, Ethiopia will start a mass petition calling for repatriation and will organise a PR campaign featuring prominent intellectuals and athletes.

If the campaign is successful, religious objects will be deposited with the church and more secular royal treasures will be housed in museums.

In the aftermath of the Battle of Magdala, the British took Prince Alemayehu to Britain, where he became a ward of Queen Victoria. After his death, he was buried in St George’s Chapel at Windsor and unsuccessful requests have been made for his remains to be repatriated to Ethiopia.

Calls to return the artefacts stored in the Royal Collection have been echoed by members of the church.

Memher Girma Batu, the Orthodox priest and theologian, said: “I want to send my message to those people who keep the Tabots: that is not the right place. It is not fair to have them there.

“They symbolise the commandments of God. Based on this I want to say please return the Tabots to their original place – that is Ethiopia.”

The priest spoke to The Telegraph during the religious festival of Timkat – or Epiphany – during which Ethiopian Christians celebrate the baptism of Christ in the River Jordan.

The festival demonstrates the faith that motivates many of Ethiopians to seek the return of artefacts central to their history and faith, particularly the Tabots.

Each church possesses one of these carved objects, which represent the Arc of the Covenant and are kept strictly out of the sight of the unordained. It is these objects that give places of worship their identity – they are dedicated to a patron saint for which a church will be named – and their sanctity.

The Orthodox faithful believe that the Tabots are the dwelling place of God on earth.

Trustees of the Royal Collection include British banker Sir James Leigh-Pemberton, the former Receiver-General of the Duchy of Cornwall, and Marc Bolland, the former Morrisons and Marks & Spencer chief executive

The Royal Collection Trust said: “The Royal Collection is held in trust by the Sovereign for his successors and the nation, and is not owned by The King as a private individual. As such, The King would take advice from Royal Collection Trust, who would consult a range of internal and external stakeholders.”