|
OUR HISTORY AND HERITAGE
A FOCUS ON AFRICAN QUEENS
Cleopatra VII Queen of Egypt (69 - 30 B.C.)
|
|
The most famous of seven matriarchs to bear this name, Cleopatra rose to the throne at seventeen. The young queen is often erroneously portrayed as Caucasian, however, she was of both Greek and African descent. By mastering many different languages and several African dialects, she becomes instrumental in reaching beyond the border of Egypt. ?Striving to evaluate Egypt to world supremacy, Cleopatra enlisted the military services of two great Roman leaders.
She persuaded Julius Caesar and, later, Mark Antony to renounce their Roman allegiances to fight on behalf of Egypt. Each, however, met his death before Cleaopatra's dreams of conquest were realized. Disheartened, Cleopatra pressed an asp to her breast, ending the life of the world's most celebrated African queen. |
Makeda Queen of Sheba (960 B.C.)
 |
She gave the king 120 talents of gold, and of spices very great store and precious stones; there came no more abundance of spices as these which the Queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon." (kings, 10:10) The Biblical passage refers to the gifts Makeda presented King Solomon of Israel on her famed journey to visit the Judean monarch.
But Makeda's gift to Solomon extended beyond material objects; She also gave him a son, Menelek. The boy's remarkable resemblance to his grandfather prompted Solomon to re-christen Menelek. Solomon later renamed his son after his own father, the legendary King David. |
Nefertari Nubian Queen of Egypt (1292 - 1225 B.C.)
 |
One of many great Nubian queens, Nefertari is heralded as the queen who wed for peace. Her marriage to King Rameses II of Egypt, one of the last greatest Egyptian Pharaohs, began strictly as a political move, a sharing of power between two leaders.
Not only did it grow into one of the greatest royal love affairs in history, but brought the hundred years war between Nubia and Egypt to an end. It was an armistice, which lasted over a hundred years. |
Even today, a monument stands in Queen Nefertar's honor. In fact, the temple, which Rameses built for her at Abu Simbel, is one of the largest and most beautiful structures ever built to honor a wife, and to celebrate peace.
Nehanda Nehanda of Zimbabwe
 |
Born into a religious family, Nehanda displayed remarkable leadership and organizational skills, and at a young age becomes one of Zimbabwe's two most influential religious leaders.
When English settlers invaded Zimbabwe in 1896 and began confiscating land and cattle, Nehanda and other leaders declared war. At first they achieved great success, but as supplies ran short, so did battlefield victories.
Nehanda was eventually captured, found guilty and executed for ordering the killing of a notoriously cruel Native Commander. Though dead for nearly a hundred years, Nehanda remains what she was when alive - the single most important person in the modern history of Zimbabwe, and is still referred to as Mbuya (Grandmother) Nehanda by Zimbabwean patriots.
|
|
