Mmanthatisi

Mmanthatisi (also spelled Manthatisi or MmaNthatisi and erroneously spelled as 'Mantatee’, 'Ma Nthisi, Mantatise; c. 1784 – 1847) was the leader of the Tlokwa people during her son's minority from 1813 until 1824. She came to power as the regent for her son, Sekonyela, (Lentsha) following the death of her husband Kgosi Mokotjo (the previous kgosi). Mmanthatisi was known as a strong, brave and capable leader, both in times of peace and war. She was referred to by her followers as Mosesanyane (the tiny one) because of her slender body.

Although her tribe was known as Balefe, during her reign, they came to be known as boo-Mmanthatisi or Manthatee Horde by the English. In the midst of the Mfecane/Difaqane wars - a period of mass migration, Mmanthatisi used her power, dedication, bravery and staunch character to keep her people together, despite the frequent raids by the Nguni group.

Mmanthatisi's name at birth was Monyaduwe. She was the daughter of Mothaha, a chief of the Basia tribe, and was born in what is now South Africa's Free State province, in the area of the present-day town of Harrismith. Described as an attractive, tall and light in complexion, beautiful girl, she was said to have good manners and was admired for her intelligence. Mmanthatisi grew up near Ntswanatsatsi [af; nso], the legendary home of humankind. Basia, the people of the Wild Cat, were known to be unsociable at best, warlike at worst. In the praise songs of these people of the Wild Cat, it was said that

“their shields dried outside in the field of battle, and not in their huts, where they remained wet with blood. A gruesome image, indeed, and it came from the frequency with which the Basia engaged in battle so that their shields kept dripping the blood of their victims. So the Batlokwa, who were also inclined to fight rather than flee, had a leader with warrior blood in her veins – Mmanthatisi”.

The Batlokwa (Ma-Ana Nkwe) are a breakway branch of the Bakgatla clan of the Bantu-speaking Sotho-Tswana communities which originated from the Great Lakes and Northern Central Africa. During the time of Kgosi Mokotjo (the husband of Mmanthatisi), the Batlokwa lived in Nkwe (also spelled Nkoe) and then later moved to Sefate. The name of the Batlokwa capital reflected their totem – the leopard. This area Nkwe/Sefate in Verkykerskop near Harrismith (Thaba-Nchu) which was occupied by Batlokwa, was declared a provincial heritage site in the Free State in 2016.

At a young age, she was married off to a cousin, Mokotjo, who was the chief of the Batlokwa. The two married in a typical dynastic alliance. Their first child, a daughter, was born around 1800 and she was named Nthatisi. It is customary in teknonymic Batswana culture for a woman to take a new named upon her marriage with the prefix Mma- which means means mother, followed by her child's name . This is how Monyaduwe became MmaNthatisi (or Mmanthatisi) because her first child was named Nthatisi. A second child, a son named Sekonyela, was born in 1804 and became heir to the chieftainship, and a second son, Mota, was born later.

Mokotjo died in 1813, at the age of 27 and Mmanthatisi became regent for Sekonyela, who was too young to rule. Mokotjo died following an illness while on a mission to claim the area around Hohobeng from the rival Batlokwa chief – Lebaka. He contracted a disease, died, and his body was sent back to Nkwe for burial. Mmanthatisi continued relations with the Basia, conferring with Basia advisors and sending her son to be raised in her brother's, Basia home. At the time of Mokotjo's death, Sekonyela was only nine years old and it would be another ten years before he was old enough to rule. The same thing had happened to Mokotjo's mother Ntlo-Kholo who had married Montoedi. When Montoedi died, Ntlo-Kholo assumed the reigns until Mokotjo came of age.

Sehalahala who's Mokotjo's half brother opposed Mmanthatisi's leadership and felt that she was a foreigner (as she was born a Mosia) and the people wanted to be ruled by a "pure" Motlokwa. Others resented being led by a woman. Despite this, Mmanthatisi remained resolute and headstrong as she led the Batlokwa. When Sekonyela was old enough for circumcision, Mmanthatisi sent him to her own Basia people, removing him at the last minute from the BaTlokwa ceremony that she had forbidden him to attend in the first place. Sekonyela was escorted by Mmanthatisi's brother, Letlala, to ensure that he was safe. Before his death, Mokotjo had forewarned Mmanthatisi to beware of the older sons of his father's second wife – Moepi and Sehalahala - who had threatened his life when he was a child. Mokotjo believed they were a great threat to the life of his heir.