Celebrating Our Sisters – Black History Month 2023
As we celebrated Black History Month in October, we want to continue with the theme of Celebrating Our Sisters by taking this opportunity to explore the most powerful and influential female heroines and ancient African queens history has ever known. From Queen Nefertiti and her legacy of strength, beauty and power to the Queen of Sheba, whose legacy is outlined in Old Testament history for the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, let’s honour our sisters and take a step back in time this November.
Female Heroines – 6 Ancient African Queens
A female heroine is one who overcomes evil in the world and provides hope to those in need. Throughout history, there have been a multitude of female heroines whose stories sadly remain lost in the past.
But, we wanted to bring 6 ancient African queens to your attention who demanded respect, held power and used their femininity to successfully put their mark in the history books. So, if you’re ready to hear some incredible and inspiring stories of female heroines, let’s get into it!
1: African Queen Aminatu
Throughout history there have been many formidable black women who can only be described as warriors. One of the most renowned of these warrior women was Queen Amina, who ruled over the city-state of Zazzau, now part of modern day Nigeria, in the sixteenth century.
Let me tell you about Queen Aminatu, whose spirit was as indomitable as the winds that sweep across the Sahel.
Daughter to the architect of Zazzau, she was a vision of defiance and strength, carrying on her mother’s legacy with a warrior’s heart. She moulded Zazzau into a bastion of commerce, drawing merchants like moths to a flame. It was her cunning and strategic acumen that expanded her kingdom’s reach, and her hand that sketched the blueprints of fortified walls that stood as steadfast guardians of her people.
For over thirty vibrant years, she wielded influence and sword with equal finesse, leaving an indelible mark on Hausaland and when we look at Amina’s formidable reputation, it’s hardly a surprise that 400 years later, her persona went on to inspire another female warrior – the fictional, but no less fearsome, Xena, the protagonist of the hit TV series.
2: Makeda, Queen of Sheba
Her victory over a serpent king whose name alone would make lesser mortals tremble is where the Queen of Sheba’s tale begins. It wasn’t just her kingdom she reclaimed but the hearts of her people, sealing her legacy with an odyssey to Jerusalem.
From her union with King Solomon sprang a lineage destined to shape Ethiopian sovereignty.
Makeda’s saga resonates through time, a testament to her enduring fortitude and wisdom.
3: Queen Nefertiti
Now, let’s draw the curtains back to reveal Queen Nefertiti, whose name whispers tales of beauty and authority from the sands of ancient Egypt.
Her reign with Akhenaten was a fresco of innovation, love, and spirituality, etching their shared vision across the temples of Amarna.
They fostered a revolution, not just in their devotion to Aten but in their display of unity and affection for each other, which was unheard of among the pharaohs. Portrayed on tomb walls with a regality that commanded armies and vanquished foes, Nefertiti’s very image is a symbol of enduring beauty and power.
4: African Queen Ranavalona, the First of Madagascar
Queen Ranavalona I, a figure of sovereignty and defiance, stood against the tides of European colonialism, weaving the fabric of an independent Madagascar.
She was a matriarch, fierce and unwavering, revered by her people as the guardian of their customs and arbiter of their freedom. To her adversaries, she was an enigma, a queen cloaked in the majesty of Merina ancestry.
Her three-decade-long rule was a tapestry of cultural preservation and political tenacity, her name synonymous with the heart of Madagascar.
5: Queen Cleopatra of Egypt
Queen Cleopatra—the very mention of her name conjures visions of a woman whose life was an intricate dance of power, romance, and strategy.
She was the dream and the drama, the muse to Shakespeare and a living legend whose story was woven with the threads of Egyptian and Roman destinies.
A queen who, at the tender age of 18, took the reins of an empire and challenged the course of history. Her alliances with Caesar and Antony were both matters of the heart and strokes of political genius.
Cleopatra’s final act, surrounded by the mystique of an asp’s bite, was as poetic as it was tragic, sealing her and her beloved Antony in the annals of time.
6: Queen Nandi of the Zulu kingdom
The saga of Queen Nandi is a tapestry of maternal love and unyielding courage. Her narrative is not one of thrones and crowns but of a fierce heart beating against social tides.
The birth of her son Shaka, out of wedlock, marked the beginning of her tale, not of shame but of relentless strength. As the mother to the illustrious Shaka Zulu, her wisdom was the compass that guided him to expand the Zulu horizon.
Her influence was the pillar upon which Shaka leaned in times of strife and triumph. The mourning of Queen Nandi’s passing, the ‘Isililo SikaNandi,’ was a period of profound sorrow, for she was not just a mother to Shaka but a mother to the Zulu nation, her spirit etched into the very soul of her people.
