Pictorial Review, Volume I, Number 15, an Amharic-English sheet marking the 28th anniversary of Emperor Haile Selassie I's coronation on 2 November. A large portrait, three quotations from his speeches and a tribute citing troops sent to the UN force in Korea appear "with the compliments of the United States Information Service" (NAID 6948746).
The emperor in his own words
The archive describes a large portrait of Emperor Haile Selassie I in uniform inside a green, yellow and red border. Three short quotations from his speeches are printed in English, with Amharic columns running parallel. The sheet also prints his titles and a tribute timed to the 28th anniversary of his coronation.
"True justice is a dependable means to the security of social life, and Ethiopia sacrifices herself for the sake of true justice."
"Our effort to raise the standard of life of Our people is not a temporary one, but permanent."
"Ethiopia preserves justice and keeps her word."
--Quotations from speeches by His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Haile Selassie I
Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah,
Haile Selassie I,
Elect of God, Emperor of Ethiopia
[Amharic text] Published and distributed with the compliments of the United States Information Service.
On November 2, Their Imperial Majesties will celebrate the 28th anniversary of Their Coronation. [...] To this end he dispatched troops to the United Nations force in Korea and has been a staunch supporter of all U. N. action to guarantee peace and prosperity. [...]
The credit line and the catalog
The sheet says who sent it. Its credit line, printed in English, reads "Published and distributed with the compliments of the United States Information Service," and FRAME classes the source as identified. The National Archives files it with the U.S. Information Agency's posters distributed in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, catalog date 2 November 1958, the same day the text gives for the anniversary. The masthead reads Pictorial Review, Volume I, Number 15. The themes recorded are elections and party politics, and war and the military.
A republic's agency praises a throne
FRAME tags glittering generalities and testimonial: the sovereign's own words on justice and living standards, set among virtue words such as justice and progress. The tribute does make concrete claims. It says the emperor sent troops to the UN force in Korea and built "a strong defense system so that Ethiopia's freedom and independence will remain intact."
What stands out is the sender. An information service of a constitutional republic printed, as its compliments, the titles "Elect of God" and "Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah," and a portrait of a ruler whose authority, by those titles, came from above rather than from voters. The English text says nothing about elections, a parliament or a press in Ethiopia. Courtesy to a foreign head of state on his anniversary is ordinary diplomacy. Distributing his claims to rule by divine election, under an American credit line, is a choice the sheet does not explain.
The same masthead in Volume II, Pictorial Review No. 10, explained Alaska and Hawaii statehood through the Declaration of Independence. The program is on the USIA posters abroad hub.
Sources
- FRAME object record, Pictorial Review No. 15: Coronation anniversary of Emperor Haile Selassie I (Amharic-English poster distributed in Addis Ababa). U.S. Information Agency (predecessor: State Department International Information and Educational Exchange Program). Catalog date November 2, 1958.
- U.S. National Archives, RG 306, Propaganda Posters Distributed in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, NAID 6948746, 306-PPB-14a, catalog record, retrieved by the archive October 3, 2026. Rights as recorded: public domain (U.S. government work).
