Inkhosikati LaShongwe (b. Dzeliwe Shongwe 1927 – 2003) was Queen Regent of Eswatini between 21 September 1982 and 9 August 1983. She was a wife of king Sobhuza II of Eswatini, and with him had one child, Prince Khuzulwandle Dlamini. After the death of her husband in August 1982, the Royal Congress named Dzeliwe as Queen Regent, and

Prince Sozisa Dlamini Prince Sozisa Dlamini of Swaziland (c. 1912 – 1992) was Chief of Gundvwini. He became the Authorized Person of Swaziland from 1982 to 1985 after the death of King Sobhuza II, and in 1983 was briefly the acting Regent of the country, after he depo ...

as the "Authorized Person", or regent's advisor, until Prince Makhosetive, designated by the king as his successor, reached the age of eighteen. The Liqoqo (a traditional advisory body) supported her regency, but soon there were disagreements between her Prime Minister,

Mabandla Dlamini Prince Mabandla Ndawombili Fred Dlamini (born 11 November 1930) was Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a ...

, and other members of Congress led by Mfanasibili Dlamini. These problems continued until 25 March 1983, when Prince Mabandla was replaced by Prince

Bhekimpi Dlamini Prince Bhekimpi Alpheus Dlamini (26 November 1924 – 1 November 1999) was Prime Minister of Swaziland from 25 March 1983 to 6 October 1986. Dlamini was a Swazi politician known to be pro-South African and traditionalist. He was elected as P ...

. Queen Dzeliwe opposed this dismissal, and this led to her being replaced by

Ntfombi of Eswatini Queen Ntfombi, The Queen Mother, Ndlovukati of Eswatini (born Ntfombi Tfwala; 27 December 1949) is the current Ndlovukati and joint head of state of Eswatini, serving since 1986. She was also regent of Eswatini from 1983 to 1986. She is the moth ...

(the mother of Prince Makhosetive), as regent later that year. Prince Makhosetive was crowned on 25 April 1986 with the name of King Mswati III of Eswatini. In May, Mswati dissolved the Liqoqo, consolidating his power and reorganising the government. In May 1987, twelve people were accused of sedition and

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

in relation to the overthrow of Queen Regent Dzeliwe in 1983. King Mswati created a special tribunal to judge these crimes against the King or the Queen Regent, in which the defendants did not have the right to legal representation. In March 1988, they were prosecuted by the tribunal, although they were set free in July. Between 1981 and 1985, Queen Dzeliwe also maintained the post of Joint President of the National Congress.

References

{{Swazi Monarchs Female heads of state Swazi royalty 1927 births 2003 deaths Swazi women in politics