Princess Aida Desta is the daughter of Ras Desta Damtew

Desta Damtew

Ras Desta Damtew was an Ethiopian noble, an army commander, and a son-in-law of Emperor Haile Selassie I.-Biography:...

 and Princess Tenagnework

Princess Tenagnework

Princess Tenagnework Haile Selassie, DBE, baptismal name Fikirte Mariam of Ethiopia was the eldest child of Emperor Haile Selassie and Empress Menen Asfaw.-Early life:...

, granddaughter of Emperor

Ethiopian Empire

The Ethiopian Empire also known as Abyssinia, covered a geographical area that the present-day northern half of Ethiopia and Eritrea covers, and included in its peripheries Zeila, Djibouti, Yemen and Western Saudi Arabia...

 Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. She is the wife of Leul Ras

Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles

Until the end of the monarchy in 1974, there were two categories of nobility in Ethiopia: the Mesafint or princes, hereditary nobles, formed the upper echelon of the ruling class; while the Mekwanint were the appointed nobles, often of humble birth, who formed the bulk of the nobility...

 Mangasha Seyum

Mangasha Seyum

Ras Mengesha Seyoum GCVO is a member of the imperial family of the Ethiopian Empire. In 1974, the monarchy was abolished by the Derg, a communist military junta.- Biography :...

, Prince of Tigray

Tigray Province

Tigray was a province of Ethiopia. The Tigray Region superseded the province with the adoption of the new constitution in 1995. The province of Tigre merged with its neighboring provinces, including Semien, Tembien, Agame and the prominent Enderta province and towards the end of 19th century it...

, son of Seyum Mangasha

Seyum Mangasha

Seyum Mangasha KBE was an army commander and a member of the Royal family of the Ethiopian Empire.-Biography:...

, and claimant to the abolished Ethiopian crown

Abolished monarchy

Throughout history, monarchies have been abolished, either through revolutions, legislative reforms, coups d'état, or wars. The twentieth century saw a major acceleration of this process, with many monarchies violently overthrown by revolution or war, or else abolished as part of the process of...

.
Princess Aida was incarcerated under te Derg for 15 years alongside several of her relatives. It was said the 11 women had not even a mattress in their cell. With the efforts of the Russian Orthodox Bishop Basil Rodzianko, their condition was made known in Washington, and within 18 months all 11 were reunited with their families.