Queen Lojiba Simelane was one of the wives of King Ndvungunye and the sister of Ndvungunye's main wife Somnjalose Simelane, the mother of King Sobhuza I. Lojiba acted as the queen regent and Indlovukati of

Swaziland Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where ...

from 1836 after the death of Sobhuza I until 1840 when King Mswati II became the king.Matsebula, J.S; Mlotshwa, D.K.; Mlotshwa, J M; Ntiwane, N.D (2016): The History of Emaswati in South Africa. South Africa: Mbokodo Publishers. Page 47 Lojiba and Somnjalose were given in marriage to King Ndvungunye by the Simelane clan when the clan sought refuge in his kingdom. Their father was Nsibandze Simelane.Matsebula, J.S.M (1980): ''A History of Swaziland''. Cape Town: Creda Press. Page 8, 15, The sisters were born into the Ndlangamandla people, a smaller sub-clan within the larger Simelane lineage. Lojiba, also known as LaNsibandze, was likely older to Somnjalose, her ''inhlanti''. Historically, the Simelane clan resided in Empangeni, in the

Zulu Kingdom The Zulu Kingdom ( ; ), sometimes referred to as the Zulu Empire, was a monarchy in Southern Africa. During the 1810s, Shaka established a standing army that consolidated rival clans and built a large following which ruled a wide expanse of So ...

, but migrated due to ongoing regional conflicts. Initially, they settled south of the Pongola River, where the Simalane chief, Mabonya (their brother), a son of the late Chief Nsibandze Simelane, was killed in battle. After his death, leadership passed to Mabonga's brother Mancala, who guided the clan north to kaNgwane (the Swazi heartland) in search of refuge under King Ndvungunye.''Philip Bonner interview series'', Philip Bonner, 197
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/ref> During the early years of King Sobhuza I’s reign, the Simelane and Mamba clans served as Swazi protective buffers against attacks from the Ndwandwe and other hostile groups in the areas of Mahamba, Mkhondo, and Dumbe. In the Shiselweni region, Sobhuza I's regiments, stationed at Kontjingila, were led by the warrior Mbiko Simelane. Later, a granddaughter of Sobhuza I married Simelane chief Ntshingila II, further strengthening ties between the royal family and the Simelane clan.''The Simelanes''. Killie Campbell Collections. Killie Campbell Africana Library. The Zulu Tribal Essay Competition When Sobhuza I passed away in 1836, Lojiba Simelane assumed the role of regent, governing alongside Sobhuza's eldest son, Prince Malambule, until Mswati II came of age and ascended the throne in 1840.

Successions

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Simelane, Lojiba Queens regnant in Africa Swazi monarchs 19th-century monarchs in Africa 19th-century women rulers African queen mothers Female regents in Africa