The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat

Through the years I have heard countless people speak with reverence and respect about Haile Selassie with a few detractors who have doubted his good will and accomplishments. I was always curious about who he was beyond the distinguished photos and the devout utterings of his devotees and detractors. I couldn't decide which of the many biographies to read that wasn't biased to either faction, until I came upon this book."The Emperor: Downfall of an Autocrat", is unique in its presentation and storytelling. It's not a book that chronologically narrates the life of the Emperor from birth to his heavenly transition. The Emperor's life is told through clandestine interviews of various people who were closest to him in his court...who were secretly sought out under dangerous conditions within Ethiopia to shed light on the day to day life of the Emperor --both in good times and in the end darker times. The book sheds light on the psyche of the Emperor as well as the people around him, as well as the populous he served. The book shows all prospectives that make no-one, including the Emperor look like the hero nor the villain.This book is for people who want to know not only the important historical events that have great significance to the history of Ethiopia during the reign of Haile Selassie, but also what it feels like to live within the Emperor's shoes. The saying, "Never judge a man, until you've walked a mile in his shoes," apply to Haile Selassie and after reading this book, you may change your judgement in either direction or become neutral.

The Emperor is so powerful that when he elevates someone to a new position, he changes their body language completely:First, the whole figure of a man changes. What had been slender and trim-waisted now starts to become a square silhouette. It is a massive and solemn square: a symbol of the solemnity and weight of power. We can already see that this is not just anybody’s silhouette, but that of visible dignity and responsibility. A slowing down of movements accompanies this change in the figure. A man who has been singled out by His Distinguished Majesty will not jump, run, frolic, or cut a caper. No. His step is solemn: he sets his feet firmly on the ground, bending his body slightly forward to show his determination to push through adversity, ordering precisely the movement of his hands so as to avoid nervous disorganized gesticulation. Furthermore, the facial features become solemn, almost stiffened, more worried and closed, but still capable of a momentary change to optimism or approval. (34)The man becomes old, he becomes slow, he becomes massive and solemn as he attempt to stifle his quirks to fit into that stagnant court atmosphere. Power sits heavily on his shoulders. All of these observations become ironic when one realizes, by reading through Kapucinski’s piece, that in fact the ministers spend most of their time not doing their jobs, but hanging around court just to catch the Emperor’s eye to indicate their “unshakable loyalty”. (50) And that, moreover, the Emperor doesn’t like his ministers to be good at their jobs, so that he “shined by contrast”. (33)Kapucinski doesn’t need to write a voluminous tome in order to convey what life was like under the repressive rule of Emperor Haile Selassie. Instead he chooses a few details that stick out in the mind: such as the specific way in which a new minister’s body posture changes upon his promotion to power. There is something about each of these images that causes the reader to pause and think, and remember them afterwards. Five Stars.

kapuscinski best book was shawdow ot the sun; I rated that excellent; this book & fall of the shah were no where near as good; not a bad read but far short of first one I read; his biography,was not well written at all in my opinion; I think this book was better at the end than the beginning & not a bad read but not a real good one either

Great book about the downfall of Selassie's autocratic regime in Ethiopia on 1974. One can easily find parallels with the way other dictatorships work and try to sustain themselves. The book is mostly made of impressions from people close to the Emperor and the regime. I don't think it's Kapuscinski's best book (maybe 'The Shadow of the Sun' or 'Travels with Herodotus' are?) but there is no doubt the reading is worth it.The Kindle edition has some minor typos (mainly split words). Nothing that makes the reading too uncomfortable.

I hate to write anything negative about this book because it is so highly original. The approach, that of relying upon interviews with former palace insiders, would be incredibly effective were it not for the fact that the author decided to embellish their descriptions. Had he not done so, this would be one of the all-time great descriptions of autocratic excess.Still, this description of life within the Ethiopian royal palace during the last days of the reign of Hailie Selassie (a hero in the West because of his successful opposition to the Italian invasion preceding World War II) provides a fine description of the sycophants, bullies, and idiots who hang around to lick up the slops as a totalitarian regime enters its final days.Well worth reading.If you like this book, you may be interested in  The Ends of the Earth: A Journey at the Dawn of the Twenty-first Century  by Robert D. Kaplan.

A masterpiece. Strictly speaking it is neither history, nor journalism, but it captures perfectly the insanity totalitarian rule. Every dictator thinks he is a benevolent dictator, and every idiot king thinks he is a genius. This book perfectly captures the flavor of Ethiopian political culture, and those observations as just as true today as they were in the 70's. It ranks up there with Catch 22 as a guide to political absurdity, and rule through gaslighting.

Como tudo que este autor escreve, este livro traz a face desconhecida de como funcionava o governo do vellho imperador da Etiópia. Para quem gosta de história essa visão jornalistica / histórica é muito interessante .

This is an excellent book for anyone interested in the history of 20th century Ethiopia and Haile Selassie

Not his book for sure. Read The Shadow of the Sun and Another day of life instead. Two wonderful and fascinating books.

Although I am happy to have this item its condition is not to my liking nor as described

H.I.M. の偉大なるお人柄が書かれており、ラスタファリズムの本と一緒に読んでもらいたい