HAILE SELASSIE I: (1892-1975) Ethiopian Regent Plenipotentiary 1916-30 and Emperor 1930-74. An excellent T.L.S., as Emperor, one page, 4to, The Imperial Palace, Addis Ababa, 11^th December 1955, to Theodor Heuss ('Great and Good Friend'), on stationery printed with the blue Imperial Achievement coat of arms at the head, in English. The Emperor writes, in part, 'We have deeply appreciated the gracious and generous gift of the figurines and flower holders in porcelain, which Your Excellency has sent to Us on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee of Our Coronation, by the intermediary of…..His Excellency Dr. Hans Bidder, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Germany in Ethiopia. Through it…..We have sensed with deep satisfaction the interest which Your Excellency and the German People have taken in the events of Our Reign. We shall, moreover, always prize the gift as a symbol of the friendship uniting our two Peoples….' With blank integral leaf. Accompanied by the original envelope bearing a red blind embossed paper seal to the verso. A letter of good and interesting association. Some very light, extremely minor age wear, VG

 

Theodor Heuss (1884-1963) German politician who served as the first President of West Germany 1949-59.

 

In November 1954 Haile Selassie became the first foreign head of state to visit the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) where he met Theodor Heuss and Konrad Adenauer, as well as parliamentarians and captains of industry, also visiting steelworks and hospitals, as he sought to discover how the technical achievements of the west could be imported to the empire on the Horn of Africa. The Emperor's visit laid the foundations for close diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and Germany, which still exist today. Indeed, together with Switzerland and China, Germany is today the largest export market for Ethiopian goods, and Germany is also one of Ethiopia's most important development partners.