Among the peculiar traditions of the royal Dlamini dynasty of Swaziland is the king’s marriage to ‘ritual wives’. These wives, two in number, are chosen by national councillors. Unable to bear the king a successor, they are to serve a particular customary purpose. One of the wives has to come from the Matsebula clan and the other must emerge from the Motsa clan. Who are King Mswati’s ritual wives?

Queen LaMatsebula (right) is the mother of Prince Sicalo, who heads the country’s Ministry of Defence, and the younger Prince Maveletiveni. She is known as ‘the great wife’. LaMatsebula holds a degree in Psychology and a Master of Arts in History. Upon being conferred with the latter, the king expressed his pride for one of his own obtaining such an accolade.

Queen LaMotsa (left) is the king’s second wife, and a mother to four boys. The first is Prince Majahonkhe, followed by Prince Buhlebenkhosi, Prince Lusuku, and Prince Sinawonkhe. Her Majesty has been a UNDP Goodwill Ambassador since the year 1996. With what appears to be a heart for the community, she assumed patronage of St. Anne’s Girls’ School in Malkerns. An outgoing character, she is known to be an avid public speaker.

Those are the women that got into arranged marriages with the king. If you’re familiar with the remainder of his wives, you’ll notice that these two appear to be a lot older. That’s because they were chosen for him when he first became king; when he was young. Luckily, His Majesty got to pick more than a dozen other nubile girls of his liking in the past couple of years.

What do you make of King Mswati III’s ritual wives? What specific purpose do you think they serve in the customary rites of the royal Dlamini household? What do you imagine the relationship the king has with these ritual wives is like? Join the conversation.