What I Learned: Mmanthatisi

Understandably, through my research, I come across mountains of information that is new. At times, there are subjects that lead me down a ‘rabbit hole’. Who am I kidding? Everything sends me down a rabbit hole and I follow. I decided each week to profile one of these subjects.

The “What I Learned” articles are laid out more like notes that I took rather than article form. I just want to disseminate information.

Mmanthatisi (1784-1847)

1. Mmanthatisi was born into the Tlokwa tribe in what is now the Orange Free State in the South Africa;

2. At the time of her husband’s death in 1817, their eldest son was 13, so Mmanthatisi became tribal regent with complete responsibility for leading the Tlokwa

3. Her rule came during a time of turmoil, the Mfecane or the crushing.

4. The Zulus, under Shaka, were conquering great swathes of land, causing local tribes to flee. The Boers were taking over other great swathes of land and causing yet more refugees.

5. Mmanthatisi planned military operations for the Tlokwa, although she did not personally participate in any of their battles.

6. Her warriors were legendary for their ferocity

7. A missionary wrote of Mmanthatisi: “It was said that a mighty woman...was at the head of an invincible army, numerous as locusts, marching onward among the interior nations, carrying destruction and ruin where she went.”

8. Eventually, the Tlokwa migrated to what is now Lesotho out of the reach of the Boers and Zulus

9. Once she had led her tribe to safety, Mmanthatisi turned the chieftainship over to her son

10. Her people fell in love with her; she not just a queen, but the soul of the army

11. Queen Mmanthatisi was very influential across southern Africa in her time

12. Queen Manthatisi had a diminutive appearance, but was strong in character

13. Her people nicknamed her “Mosayane” - the tiny one

Bibliography

Aidoo, Theodora. “Queen Manthatisi, the Little Known Warrior Who Led Men to Protect the Tlokwa People in the 1800s.” Face2Face Africa, 6 October 2019,

https://face2faceafrica.com/article/queen-manthatisi-the-little-known-warrior-who-led-men-to-protect-the-tlokwa-people-in-the-1800s. Accessed 7 November 2020.

Encyclopedia.com. “Mmanthatisi (c. 1780-c. 1836).” Encyclopedia Almanac, 25 November 2019, https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/mmanthatisi-c-1780-c-1836. Accessed 7 November 2020.

Wikipedia. “Mmanthatisi.” Wikipedia.org, 4 September 2020, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mmanthatisi. Accessed 7 September 2020.