AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER
HE wore the leopard skin, reserved for royalty, waved a specially designed shield, spear, a knobkerrie and was accompanied by amabutho – the regiments – who sang traditional songs only sang in the presence of the king.
To many cultural experts this scene, which played outside a marquee in Nongoma, KwaZulu-Natal was the strongest signal that Prince Misuzulu Zulu, the eldest son of the King Goodwill Zwelithini and Queen Mantfombi Dlamini-Zulu, is the next leader of South Africa’s 12 million Amazulu.
There were colourful scenes as Prince Zulu and the amabutho, joined by maidens marched into the marquee where a memorial service was being held for his mother, who was the Queen Regent before her death.
A few hours later, Prince Zulu was revealed as the new King of Amazulu, when his mother’s will was read by a lawyer, at a meeting of the royal family. Soon after he was revealed as the successor, Prince Zulu was whisked away by security, to a secret location, in accordance with isiZulu tradition. He will remain in the secret location until his coronation.
The unveiling of the new King came against the backdrop of legal action instituted by Queen Sibongile Dlamini, the first wife of King Zwelithini and her two daughters. The court action and the mourning period is expected to delay his coronation.
In his speech at the memorial service, read on his behalf by one of his sisters, Prince Zulu paid a warm tribute to his mother and called for unity in the royal household.
“We have no doubt we will unite as a family. Let us emulate the king by being peaceful and continue to love all the queens,” he wrote.
He said it was extremely difficult to lose both parents in a short period. “It is profoundly a difficult time to lose both parents at such a difficult time. The difficulty is that we as a nation are still mourning since the departure of the Zulu king. With the same heavy heart we bid farewell to my mother,” he said.
Queen Dlamini-Zulu was interred yesterday at the crack of dawn, in a private ceremony attended by members of the Amazulu and eSwatini royal families. She was the sister of King Makhosetive III of eSwatini.
