Fasil Ghebbi

Fasil Ghebbi is a royal compound in Gondar of about 7 hectares and containing some 20 buildings. Most are royal palaces, as each successive emperor built a new one. This fortress was the home of the Ethiopian emperors from the early 17th century until the middle of the 19th century. The buildings are heavily damaged from bombing during world war 2. I'm told that during the Italian occupation, these buildings were used for military purposes. This was during the British assisted effort to remove the occupation.
Historically, each successive emperor built his own palace.
The 1st picture looks up from the entrance to several of the palaces. The 2nd picture is the 1st palace built and is the largest. The 3rd picture is one of the Royal room there. The 4th picture is a cistern to retain water during the dry season.
The 5th and 6th pictures are 2 of the later palaces. The 7th picture is a royal banqueting hall, while the 8th picture is of stables located next to the banqueting hall.
The 9th picture is the lion house. Lions were kept at the palace in honor of the imperial title, "Lion of Judah."
If I could have gotten a decent picture, the 10th picture would have been of the sauna. Really. There was a sauna in Ethiopia centuries ago!Read more