Zemene Mesafint

The Zemene Mesafint (Ge'ez: ዘመነ መሳፍንት zamana masāfint, modern zemene mesāfint, variously translated "Era of Judges," "Era of the Princes," "Age of Princes," etc.; named after the Book of Judges) was a period in Ethiopian history when the country was divided within itself into several regions with no effective central authority. It was a period in which the Emperors were reduced to little more than figureheads confined to the capital city of Gondar.