Gagoangwe (c. 1845 – 1924) was the Acting (Regent) Paramount Chieftess, the

Queen Mother A queen mother is a former queen, often a queen dowager, who is the mother of the reigning monarch. The term has been used in English since the early 1560s. It arises in hereditary monarchies in Europe and is also used to describe a number of ...

or ''Mohumagadi'' of the Mmanaana Kgatla and

BaNgwaketse The Bangwaketse (also known as the BaNgwaketse, or Ngwaketse) are one of the eight principal tribes in Botswana, and are ethnic Tswana. (The "Ba" or "Bo" prefix in African tribal names in southern Africa means "people of" or "people who speak". ...

in what is now

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...

. Gagoangwe was a member of the Kwena family and a devout Christian and regent for her grandson, Bathoen II.

Early life

Gagoangwe was the daughter of

Sechele I Sechele I a Motswasele "Rra Mokonopi" (1812–1892), also known as Setshele, was the ruler of the Kwêna people of Botswana. He was converted to Christianity by David Livingstone and in his role as ruler served as a missionary among his own ...

, ''

kgosi A (; ) is the title for a hereditary leader of a Tswana people, Batswana tribe. Usage The word "kgosi" is a Tswana language, Setswana term for "king" or "chief". Various affixes can be added to the word to change its meaning: adding the prefix ...

'' or king of the

BaKwena The Bakoena or Bakwena ("those who venerate the crocodile") are a large clan in Southern Africa. They form part of the Sotho-Tswana Bantu people and can be found in different countries such as Lesotho, Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Eswatini ...

. Sechele I was converted to Christianity during the late 1840s through the work of

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, and pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, an explorer in Africa, and one of the most popular British heroes of t ...

; converting the entire BaKwena tribe, including Gagoangwe. When she was young, she gouged out the eye of a servant. Her father allowed the servant to put out one of her eyes in return, in accordance to the biblical Old Testament principle "

an eye for an eye "An eye for an eye" ( hbo, עַיִן תַּחַת עַיִן, ) is a commandment found in the Book of Exodus 21:23–27 expressing the principle of reciprocal justice measure for measure. The principle exists also in Babylonian law. In Roman c ...

". Thereafter, she was known as the "one-eyed Queen".

Marriage and children

Gagoangwe married her first husband, ''kgosi'' Pilane. In 1875, she

elope Elopement is a term that is used in reference to a marriage which is conducted in a sudden and secretive fashion, usually involving a hurried flight away from one's place of residence together with one's beloved with the intention of getting ma ...

d with

Bathoen I Bathoen I (1845 – 1 July 1910) was a ''kgosi'' (paramount chief) of the Ngwaketse people (1889-1910). Together with Khama III and Sebele I he is credited with saving the young British Bechuanaland Protectorate, a predecessor of Botswana, from b ...

who was heir to the leadership of the

. In 1890, Bathoen I and Gagoangwe remarried in a Christian marriage ceremony, legitimizing their marriage in the eyes of the Christian church. She was a devout Christian and impacted Bathoen I's support of the

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed in outlook, with Congregational miss ...

. In 1910, Bathoen I died and Gagoangwe's older son, Seepapitso II, became king. He was later killed by his own brother, Moepapitso, in 1916. Following this, Gagoangwe had her murderous son, Moepapitso, killed, and obtained control of the regency in 1923. She is reported to have said that "since one of her breasts onshad been cut off, let the other be cut off too".

Reign

In 1923, Gagoangwe became the Acting Paramount Chieftess as regent for Bathoen II. She took her place as regent to preserve '' bogosi'' for her grandson. She reigned over

, territory of a subgroup of the

Tswana Tswana may refer to: * Tswana people, the Bantu speaking people in Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and other Southern Africa regions * Tswana language, the language spoken by the (Ba)Tswana people * Bophuthatswana, the former ba ...

people in what is now

during a crucial time for this territory. The territory was in the midst of a fight for independence against the

Boers Boers ( ; af, Boere ()) are the descendants of the Dutch-speaking Free Burghers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. From 1652 to 1795, the Dutch East India Company controlled this area ...

and the colonial

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

. Gagoangwe continued the development projects of Seepapitso II, and secured the regency for her daughter

Ntebogang Ratshosa Ntebogang Ratshosa (1882–1979) was ''motshwareledi'' (regent) of the BaNgwaketse, one of the eight clans of present-day Botswana, from 1924–1928. She was the first woman to serve on the Native Advisory Council of Botswana. Biography Nteboga ...

before her own death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gagoangwe Botswana royalty Botswana women in politics 1840s births 1924 deaths Year of birth uncertain Female regents in Africa Bechuanaland Protectorate people Botswana Christians Converts to Christianity African queen mothers Botswana people with disabilities