Who Ruled in Year X

African women in power · year lookup

Who ruled in 1888 CE?

1 documented African woman ruler in these records held office in 1888 CE.

1888 CE falls in the 19th century CE. See this era on the timeline

Oral tradition In office this year

Masalanabo Modjadji II

Second Rain Queen in the Modjadji lineage

c. 1854–1894/95 Balobedu queenship Southern Africa

The second ruler in the Modjadji lineage is known through Balobedu oral history and later written records; published chronologies place her accession in 1854 and the transition to her successor in either 1894 or 1895.
Sources
1. National Museum Publications — Modjadji, Mofumahadi wa Pula
2. South African Cooperative Governance — Balobedu queenship lineage

Before 1888 CE

Documented history Office ended about 27 years earlier

Ranavalona I

Sovereign of the Merina kingdom

1828–1861 Merina kingdom Horn of Africa & the Indian Ocean

Ranavalona ruled from 1828 to 1861; her reign combined state consolidation and resistance to foreign influence with policies whose human consequences remain fiercely debated.
Sources
1. UNESCO — General History of Africa, Volume VI
2. Cambridge University Press — An Economic History of Imperial Madagascar

After 1888 CE

Documented history Office began about 7 years later

Khesetoane Modjadji III

Third Rain Queen in the Modjadji lineage

c. 1895–1959 Balobedu queenship Southern Africa

The third Rain Queen’s long tenure crossed the turn of the 20th century; modern sources broadly agree on 1959 as its end but vary slightly on the accession year and spelling of her name.
Sources
1. National Museum Publications — Modjadji, Mofumahadi wa Pula
2. South African Cooperative Governance — Balobedu queenship lineage

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