Mokope Modjadji
Encyclopedia
Mokope Modjadji V was the fifth Rain Queen
of the Balobedu
tribe in the Limpopo Province of South Africa from 1981 until her death in 2001.
the Rain Queens were expected to follow.
Mokope Modjadji met and became good friends with the then President of South Africa Nelson Mandela
. They first met at a meeting in 1994 and even then Mr. Mandela could only speak to Mokope through the traditional intermediary. It was said that Mokope was the only person to have kept Mr. Mandela waiting (except the rather volative Laurent Kabila of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
).
Later they became better friends after Mr. Mandela bought the Rain Queen a Japanese Sedan to help her travel up the steep roads to her Royal Compound. He was then able to meet her in person and when asked about the Rain Queen Mr. Mandela said that similarly to Queen Elizabeth II
, Queen Modjadji did not answer questions.
On other political fronts, Queen Mokope did not support the idea of an ANC
government as she believed that its anti-traditional ideas would dilute her authority. However once the ANC came to power, they treated the Rain Queen with respect, probably because her village was a large source of income due to tourism, as well as the fact that her gardens acted as parks to preserve the large abundance of cycad
trees that grew there. She was even offered an annual salary.
Mokope Modjadji had three children, and her designated successor was Princess Makheala. Mokope died in 2001, when she was 65, two days after her daughter Makheala had died. Therefore Makheala's daughter Makobo
became the next Rain Queen. Mokope's son, Prince Masopha Edwin Modjadji died in August 2005.
Rain Queen
The Modjadji or Rain Queen is the hereditary queen of Balobedu, a people of the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The succession to the position of Rain Queen is matrilineal, meaning that the Queen's eldest daughter is the heir, and that males are not entitled to inherit the throne at all...
of the Balobedu
Balobedu
Balobedu is an African tribe of the Northern Sotho group. They have their own kingdom, the Balobedu Kingdom, within the Limpopo Province of South Africa with a female ruler, the Rain Queen Modjadji. Their language is known as Selobedu, which is a "non-Pedi" dialect of Northern Sotho...
tribe in the Limpopo Province of South Africa from 1981 until her death in 2001.
Life
Mokope Modjadji was very traditional in her role as Rain Queen. She lived in seclusion in the Royal Compound in Khetlhakone Village and followed all the customsCustoms
Customs is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
the Rain Queens were expected to follow.
Mokope Modjadji met and became good friends with the then President of South Africa Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
. They first met at a meeting in 1994 and even then Mr. Mandela could only speak to Mokope through the traditional intermediary. It was said that Mokope was the only person to have kept Mr. Mandela waiting (except the rather volative Laurent Kabila of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
).
Later they became better friends after Mr. Mandela bought the Rain Queen a Japanese Sedan to help her travel up the steep roads to her Royal Compound. He was then able to meet her in person and when asked about the Rain Queen Mr. Mandela said that similarly to Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
, Queen Modjadji did not answer questions.
On other political fronts, Queen Mokope did not support the idea of an ANC
African National Congress
The African National Congress is South Africa's governing Africanist political party, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions and the South African Communist Party , since the establishment of non-racial democracy in April 1994. It defines itself as a...
government as she believed that its anti-traditional ideas would dilute her authority. However once the ANC came to power, they treated the Rain Queen with respect, probably because her village was a large source of income due to tourism, as well as the fact that her gardens acted as parks to preserve the large abundance of cycad
Cycad
Cycads are seed plants typically characterized by a stout and woody trunk with a crown of large, hard and stiff, evergreen leaves. They usually have pinnate leaves. The individual plants are either all male or all female . Cycads vary in size from having a trunk that is only a few centimeters...
trees that grew there. She was even offered an annual salary.
Mokope Modjadji had three children, and her designated successor was Princess Makheala. Mokope died in 2001, when she was 65, two days after her daughter Makheala had died. Therefore Makheala's daughter Makobo
Makobo Modjadji
Makobo Modjadji VI was the 6th in a line of the Balobedu tribe's Rain Queens. It is said that Makobo Modjadji had the ability to control the clouds and rivers. Makobo was crowned on 16 April 2003 at the age of 25 after the death of her predecessor and grandmother, Queen Mokope Modjadji...
became the next Rain Queen. Mokope's son, Prince Masopha Edwin Modjadji died in August 2005.
External links
- Information on Rain Queen Customs
- Death of Modjadji V from the New York Times
- Obituary of Queen Modjadji V from The Independent (London)