Kgosi Gaborone

Gaborone ( – 1931) was a kgosi (King) of the Tlôkwa, a tribe of the larger Tswana people in what is now Botswana. He became the tribe's King around 1880, after the death of his father, and secured the Tlôkwa's status as the "smallest independent tribal unit" in the Bechuanaland Protectorate. He gave his name to the city of Gaborone, Botswana's current capital.

Early life and family Gaborone's exact year of birth is unknown, but 1825 has been suggested as a likely date. His father was Matlapeng, who was the youngest of the four sons of Chief Kgosi, and his designated heir. He is the great grandson of Bogatsu. Upon Kgosi's death, Matlapeng was too young to succeed, and his older brother Lesage acted as chief in his place, subsequently leading the Tlôkwa into an alliance with Sebetwane (the leader of the Makololo). However, Basha (one of Matlapeng's other brothers) was dissatisfied with Lesage's leadership, and the Tlôkwa split into two groups. The first, led by Lesage, travelled north with Sebetwane to the Zambezi River, while the second, led by Basha, travelled south to Letlhakeng (now located in Kweneng District). Matlapeng sided with Basha, and Letlhakeng consequently became the birthplace of Gaborone, his first son.

In 1895, Sechele's successor, Sebele, surrendered a strip of his land to the British, to be used for the construction of a railway by the British South Africa Company (BSAC). The land surrendered included Tlokweng. Rather than see their aging chief lose his land, the rest of the tribe determined that they would instead rent the land from the company until his death, at a rate of £150 per year. The company agreed that "the old chief should not be disturbed in his lifetime". Gaborone eventually died in 1931, at the estimated age of 106. He was succeeded by his grandson, his eldest son having predeceased him. The town which developed retained the name "Gaberones" until 1969, when it was changed to Gaborone. Three years earlier, it had become the capital of the newly independent country of Botswana.