Yaqob

Who was Yaqob?

Yaqob I was nəgusä nägäst of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. He was the eldest surviving son of Sarsa Dengel. According to E. A. Wallis Budge, Yaqob's mother was Empress Maryam Sena; others sources suggest she was Emebet Harego of the Beta Israel. Because Yaqob had at least three sons before his death, it is likely he was born no later than 1590. Most Ethiopian sources including Tekle Tsadik Mekuria however state that his mother was Harego, but that Empress Maryam Sena championed his right to the throne as she only bore Emperor Sarsa Dengel daughters, and hoped to dominate a long term regency for the boy monarch.