Aman Michael Andom
| Aman Mikael Andom | |
|---|---|
| አማን ሚካኤል አንዶም | |
 |
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| 1st Chairman of the Derg and de facto Head of State of Ethiopia | |
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In office 12 September 1974 – 17 November 1974 |
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| Monarch | Asfaw Wossen1 |
| Preceded by | Haile Selassie I (as Emperor) |
| Succeeded by | Tafari Benti |
| Member of the Ethiopian Senate | |
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In office 1964–1974 |
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| Appointed by | Haile Selassie I |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 21 June 1924 Khartoum, Sudan |
| Died | 23 November 1974 (aged 50) Addis Abeba, Ethiopia |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
 Ethiopian Empire Socialist Ethiopia
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| Service/branch | Ethiopian Army |
| Years of service | 1949-1974 |
| Rank | Lieutenant General |
| Unit | Third Division |
| 1Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen Tafari had been declared "King-designate" by the Derg but made no move to acknowledge the title, instead recognizing his father, Haile Selassie I, as remaining the de jure Emperor | |
Aman Mikael Andom (Amharic: አማን ሚካኤል አንዶም, 21 June 1924 – 23 November 1974) was the first post-imperial acting Head of State of Ethiopia. He was appointed to this position following the coup d'état that ousted Emperor Haile Selassie on 12 September 1974, and served until his death in a shootout with his former supporters.
Aman was born in Khartoum, Sudan to parents Ato Andom Michael and Woizero Ghidey Reda. He was of Eritrean origin, hailing from the village of Tsazega in Hamassien province of Eritrea. He had four other siblings.
As commander of the Third Division, General Aman had been beating back the encroachments of the Somali army on the eastern border with such zeal and success that he was known as the "Desert Lion". However, in 1964 the Emperor dismissed Aman when he began to attack into Somalia in violation of an order from the Emperor, and Aman afterwards served in the Ethiopian Senate in a "political exile".
Aman's official title was Chairman of the Provisional Military Administrative Council (better known as the Derg), and he held the position of Head of State in an acting capacity as the military regime had officially proclaimed Crown Prince Asfaw Wossen as "King-designate" (an act that would later be rescinded by the Derg, and which was never accepted by the Prince as legitimate).
There is some evidence that indicates he had contacts with the officers of the junta as early as February and March 1974, but by July he was appointed chief of staff to the military junta. Three days after the junta removed the Emperor from his palace to imprisonment at the headquarters of the Fourth Division, this group appointed him their chairman and president of Ethiopia. At the same time, this group of soldiers assumed the name "Provisional Military Administrative Council", better known as the Derg.
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Wikipedia