Emperor Haile Selassie in Bath
In 1936, Haile Selassie came to Bath in the west of England to escape Mussolini and the fascists who had invaded Ethiopia.
He bought a property – Fairfield House - and moved his entire family and staff there. He quickly became the talk of the town.
The local paper ran daily updates on the Emperor’s schedule and dispelled rumours such as the Emperor’s beard "having turned white with anguish" or that he was keeping lions in the basement.
Haile Selassie also made a point of indulging in local amusements and even took a trip to the Tropicana outdoor swimming pool in the seaside town of Weston-super-Mare.
Selassie returned to Ethiopia in 1940 after the British helped remove Mussolini. He never forgot his time in Bath and renamed one of his palaces Fairfield in tribute to the British city.
Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.
Recent episodes explore everything from football in Brazil, the history of the ‘Indian Titanic’ and the invention of air fryers, to Public Enemy’s Fight The Power, subway art and the political crisis in Georgia. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: visionary architect Antoni Gaudi and the design of the Sagrada Familia; Michael Jordan and his bespoke Nike trainers; Princess Diana at the Taj Mahal; and Görel Hanser, manager of legendary Swedish pop band Abba on the influence they’ve had on the music industry. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP.
(Photo: Haile Selassie during his coronation. Credit: Getty Images)
- Datum:
- Duur:
Gerelateerde podcastafleveringen
/http%3A//ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/3000x3000/p0kt82ds.jpg)
Meer afleveringen van Witness History
-
City of God: The film that reshaped global cinema
In 2001, filming began on City of God which would stun audiences with its unflinching honesty. It captured the brutal realities of child gangsters from Rio De Janeiro’s favelas trapped in an unforgiving cycle of violence. Local... -
The cellist who survived Auschwitz-Birkenau
In 1943, the cellist, Anita Lasker-Wallfisch was sent to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. She expected to be killed in the gas chambers but survived because she was recruited to play in an orchestra set up by the women... -
'I organised the first Comic Con'
In 1964, a group of teenage boys organised a convention in New York – it became known as the first official Comic Con. The idea began after 16-year-old Bernie Bubnis wrote an article in his comic book fanzine. But when no-one else took...