Lomawa Ndwandwe

laNgolotsheni (Lomawa) Ndwandwe

Biography Early life

Ndwandwe, of the Esikoteni branch of the Ndwandwe clan, She was the eldest of three sisters. and her brother Benjamin Nxumalo, who later provided counsel to Sobhuza II.

As a descendant of La Zidze and as the daughter of a respected chief, Ndwandwe was selected by the council of elders as the main wife for Ngwane V.

Reign Following the death of Ngwane V, Ndwandwe was selected from among his widows, by the council of elders, as the next Ndlovukati, and her infant son Nkhotfotjeni was named King Sobhuza II. Nevertheless, Ndwandwe became a recognised supporter of the Methodist church. She was also sympathetic to a nearby Zionist Separatist church whose local leader espoused political views that overlapped strongly with her own.

The question of which denomination Ndwandwe identified with was, in any case, not of significance to Sobhuza II, who was critical of divisions between sects.