Queen Nandi was the daughter of one of the Inkosi (past tribal leaders) of the Langeni nation known as Bhebhe. She is also popularly known as the mother of the famous Shaka Zulu. She is known, respected, and talked about today partly because of her son and his fame.
Queen Nandi however also has a story surrounding how she became famous and this article would enlighten us on that.
Who Was Queen Nandi?
Queen Nandi was born as Nandi Ka Bhebhe in the years between 1760-1770. However, most research claims her birth year to be 1766. She was born in Melmoth, present-day KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. Her father also known as Mdingi of the Mhlongo clan, as already stated was a past chief of the Langeni nation in South Africa.
She became Queen when her son, Shaka, on coming of age, returned to his nation; the Zulu nation, and took over power of kingship. He became King over the people who mocked his mother. On ascending the Zulu throne, he crowned his mother, Nandi, the Queen of the Zulu people and she was also his personal adviser.
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Here Are 10 Interesting Things About Queen Nandi
1. She Got Pregnant Out Of Wedlock
Queen Nandi was impregnated out of wedlock by Senzangakhoma, the son of King Jama. History has it that Nandi and King Jama’s son engaged in an act of ‘sex without penetration’ known as ‘ukuhlobonga/ukusoma’. However, they apparently went a little deeper and this resulted in Nandi’s pregnancy.
Queen Nandi’s eLangeni people then sent out an announcement to King Jama informing him of the situation at hand but the response was humiliating. The response claimed that Nandi was not pregnant but only suffering from a stomach ailment caused by the iShaka beetle. The ailment is said to cause abdominal swelling and menstrual irregularities.
However, after a while, Nandi birthed her son in the year 1787.
2. Queen Nandi Led The Negotiations For The Payment Of Damages To Her
Queen Nandi and her people demanded and insisted that Senzangakhona pay damages for engaging in an un-traditional act of sex before marriage. This demand was led by Queen Nandi herself as she was at the forefront of the negotiations. She demanded the payment of 55 herds of cattle to be delivered to her people.
In order to prevent a war and partly because Senzangakhona was in love with Nandi, they made the payment. Nandi even spent a while with the father of her son and his kraal. However, her relationship with her son’s father was not so pleasant so she returned back to her people.
3. She Named Her Son ‘Shaka’ To Mock His Paternal Lineage
At the birth of her son, Queen Nandi sarcastically named him ‘Shaka’. This was in a bid to mock his father and King Jama’s people for claiming her pregnancy was an ailment caused by the sting of the iShaka beetle.
4. Queen Nandi Was Mocked And Ridiculed
Following the incident that led to her giving birth out of wedlock, Nandi faced a lot of criticisms and mockeries. It was unexpected of royalty to get involved in such an act out of wedlock and so a lot of people lost respect for her.
Queen Nandi was humiliated and rejected by a lot of people. Even poets and praise-singers composed a mocking song for her referencing the fact that she had an illegitimate son.
5. Did Queen Nandi Get Married?
While Nandi was moving from place to place trying to avoid shame as well as assassination attempts, she met Gendeyana. Nandi and Gendeyana met at Qwabe after she fled from Elangeni and went to settle amongst the Qwabe people.
Soon, Queen Nandi and Gendeyana got married and even had a son together. Their son was named Ngwadi and Queen Nandi raised him along with her first son and daughter.
However, she soon had to flee from the Qwabe people as well because they were not accommodating of her and her kids.
6. She Struggled To Provide For Her Children
Queen Nandi struggled to provide for her children. She had three kids, Shaka and his sister Nomcoba who history says was another child with Senzangakhona then Ngwadi kaNgendeyana her child with Gendeyana.
There were times during their flee from place to place that she was unable to cater to their needs. However, she wasn’t deterred. She struggled and tried all she could.
During the 1802 great food shortage, Queen Nandi found it really difficult to feed her sons and daughter due to the food scarcity. However, Nandi traveled on foot and to long distances in search of help to be able to provide for her children.
7. She And Her Son Shared A Formidable Bond
Queen Nandi and Shaka shared a closeness that is unrivaled. Mother and son were so close that most of Shaka’s decisions when he eventually became a king were hugely influenced by his mother.
Queen Nandi made sure her son was trained and mentored by great warriors and teachers. She also encouraged him to see and utilize his full potentials as he was born for greatness. Queen Nandi was her son’s backbone and source of strength and most of his great decisions came from listening to her. She had a great influence on the dealings of her son’s kingdom and this helped Shaka to be one of the greatest African Kings there ever has been.
8. Why She Is The Symbol Of The Strong African Woman
Queen Nandi is seen as the symbol of the strong African woman because despite all she went through she was still strong and resilient. She faced ridicules, insults, disintegration, and backlashes still she stood tall amidst it all. With Queen Nandi’s help, her son was able to ameliorate the living standards of the Zulu people when he became their King.
Queen Nandi struggled and suffered to cater for her kids, she had to move from place to place to protect herself and her kids. She still exercised her strong will and proved to every woman that they should never tilt nor take off their crown for nobody. She teaches the strength of a woman and why women should never settle for less.
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9. Queen Nandi’s Death
Queen Nandi died on the 10th of October 1827 of dysentery. She was buried in the outskirts of Eshowe along the old Empangeni road. On her grave is the inscription ‘Nindi’. About 200 years after her passing, plans were made to give Queen Nandi a better and befitting grave. By the first few months of 2011, plans to achieve this began t be put in place.
10. Her Son’s Declaration During The Mourning Period Of His Mother
King Shaka Zulu loved his mother dearly. Most people even say he loved her to the point of worshipping her. As a result of this, when Queen Nandi passed away, King Shaka declared a full year of grief and mourning.
Part of his declaration also included no farming, no use of milk, and the slaughtering of cows so that the calves would feel the pains of losing a mother. Also, King Shaka declared that no woman should get pregnant, and if any was discovered pregnant during the period, she and her husband would be killed.
Reports have it that during this mourning period, about 7000 people were executed because King Shaka felt they were not grieving as well as they should have grieved.
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