Seble Wongel (died 4 December 1567) was Empress Dowager of the Ethiopian Empire from 1540 to 1563, succeeding Na'od Mogasa and preceding Adimas Moas. As the mother of the young emperor Gelawdewos, Seble Wongel played a major role in leading the Ethiopian forces against the invading Somalis of the Adal Sultanate during the Ethiopian-Adal War of the early 16th century, enlisting the help of Cristovao da Gama's Portuguese expedition to attain victory.
Biography[]
Seble Wongel was born to an aristocratic Jewish family of Semien, the daughter of Yodit. She was raised in Gojjam, a non-Christian land with a great degree of autonomy within the Ethiopian Empire, and she married Emperor Lebna Dengel and mothered Gelawdewos and Menas. Her mother was killed by the Somalis of the Adal Sultanate in 1539 during the Ethiopian-Adal War, and the death of her husband led to Seble Wongel serving as regent for her son Gelawdewos. In 1542, she enlisted the help of Cristovao de Gama's Portuguese expedition to help fight back the Adal forces, ultimately resulting in the decisive Battle of Wayna Daga on 21 February 1543. She died in 1567.