B'Dora Mnemon

Taytu Betul: Ethiopia’s Empress Consort Who Commanded Armies and Founded Addis Ababa

| Queens & Empresses |

Taytu Betul (c. 1851–1918) was Itege (Empress) of Ethiopia as consort of Emperor Menelik II, a formidable political strategist, military commander, and diplomat who co-founded the modern capital Addis Ababa and helped orchestrate Ethiopia’s victory at the Battle of Adwa in 1896. Her power was not ceremonial but rooted in landholding, court alliances, intelligence networks, and direct command of troops, making her one of the most consequential women in African political history.

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The Modjadji and the Apartheid State: How the Rain Queen Navigated South Africa’s Racial Order

| The Rain Queens |

This article examines how the Modjadji Rain Queens of the Balobedu people navigated South Africa’s apartheid racial order, preserving women’s sovereignty and rainmaking authority despite legal and administrative attempts to reduce them to tribal chiefs. Drawing on oral traditions, colonial archives, and recent scholarship, it analyses the political, ritual, and succession strategies that enabled the institution to survive and adapt from 1948 to the post-apartheid recognition of Queen Masalanabo Modjadji VII.

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Dzugudini: Founding Princess of the Balobedu and Architect of the Rain Queen Dynasty

| The Rain Queens |

Dzugudini is the apical ancestress of the Balobedu royal line and the founding figure behind the Rain Queen dynasty of north-eastern South Africa. Her story, preserved in oral tradition, establishes the matrilineal transmission of rainmaking power and the complementary sovereignty that later crystallised in the office of Modjadji. This article examines the evidence, mythology, ritual authority, succession mechanisms, and enduring legacy of this foundational princess.

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The Iyobas of Benin After Idia: A Lineage of Queen Mothers and Their Political Influence

| Queen Mothers & Royal Offices |

The Iyoba (Queen Mother) of Benin emerged in the early sixteenth century as a royal office created for Idia, mother of Oba Esigie. After Idia, the title became a permanent institution, held by the mother of each reigning Oba, with her own palace at Uselu and significant ritual, judicial, and political authority. This article examines the lineage of Iyobas after Idia, their evolving powers, constraints, and enduring legacy in Edo society.

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Rain Tribute and Regional Diplomacy: How the Lovedu Rain Queens Became Climate Arbiters for Zulu, Swazi, and Boer Neighbors

| The Rain Queens |

The Lovedu Rain Queens, known by the hereditary title Modjadji, exercised a unique form of sovereignty in southern Africa: their authority rested not on military force but on the ritual control of rain. From the early nineteenth century, Zulu, Swazi, Pedi, Venda, Tsonga, and Boer communities sent tribute to the Rain Queen to secure her intervention in times of drought. This article examines how rain tribute and regional diplomacy transformed the Balobedu polity into a climate arbitration centre whose influence extended far beyond its modest territorial size.

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Rainmaking as Political Power: Weather Ritual and the Legitimisation of Female Sovereignty in Southern Africa

| Rainmaking & Ritual Authority |

This article examines how rainmaking ritual served as a foundation for female political sovereignty in Southern Africa, focusing on the Lovedu Rain Queens (Modjadji) and comparable institutions. It explores the mythological origins, ritual mechanisms, succession systems, and colonial encounters that shaped this unique form of governance, and assesses its enduring legacy in contemporary South Africa.

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Nyabingi: The Warrior-Priestess Tradition of the Great Lakes and Its Female Heirs

| Rainmaking & Ritual Authority |

Nyabingi is a precolonial spirit-medium tradition of the Great Lakes region in which predominantly female mediums, known as bagirwa, exercised real political, judicial, military, and ritual authority. Rooted in the veneration of a powerful female spirit, the tradition became famous for its rainmaking power and its anti-colonial resistance under mediums such as Muhumuza. This article examines the evidence, origins, governance, succession, spiritual power, colonial encounters, and enduring legacy of Nyabingi.

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Benin’s Queen Mothers and the Portuguese: Diplomacy, Trade, and the Ivory Mask of Idia

| Queen Mothers & Royal Offices |

This article examines the Iyoba institution of the Benin Kingdom, focusing on the sixteenth-century Queen Mother Idia, her role in diplomacy and trade with the Portuguese, and the famous ivory pendant mask that bears her likeness. Drawing on Edo oral traditions, Portuguese written accounts, and material culture, it explores how queen mothers exercised real political, spiritual, and economic power within a complementary system of governance.

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Ranavalona I of Madagascar: The Queen Who Directed a Generation of Resistance

| Queens & Empresses |

Ranavalona I (c. 1778–1861) ruled the Merina Kingdom of Madagascar for over three decades, expelling European missionaries, repelling French and British attacks, and building a centralised state through military, legal, and ritual power. Her reign remains a contested symbol of anti-colonial resistance and internal repression. This article examines her genealogy, governance, military strategy, diplomacy, economic policies, legal authority, and enduring legacy.

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