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CLEOPATRA VII QUEEN OF KEMET
(Ancient Egypt the land of the blacks) (69-30 B.C)
Although known to be of African descent she is still deliberately portrayed
as being white. She came to power at the tender age of seventeen and the most
popular of seven queens to have had this name. She was also known to be a great
linguist and was instumental in making Kemet(Egypt) into the world number one
super power at that time.
DAHIA-AL KAHINA QUEEN KAHINA
She fought against the Arab incursion in North
Africa where under her leadership Africans fought back fiercely and drove the
Arab army northward into Tripolitania. Queen Kahina was of the Hebrew faith
and she never abandoned her religion. Her opposition to the Arab incursion was
purely nationalistic, since she favored neither Christians nor Moslems. Her
death in 705 A.D by Hassen-ben-Numam ended one of the most violet attempts to
save Africa for the Africans. She prevented Islam's southward spread into the
Western Sudan. After her death the Arabs began to change their strategy in advancing
their faith and their power in Africa. The resistance to the southward spread
of Islam was so great in some areas that some of the wives of African kings
committed suicide to avoid falling into the hands of the Berbers and Arabs who
showed no mercy to the people who would not be converted to Islam
HATSHEPSUT QUEEN OF KEMET
(Ancient Egypt the land of the blacks) (1503-1482
B.C.) One of the greatest queens of ancient Kemet was Queen Hatshepsut. While
she was known as a "warrior" queen, her battles were engaged with her own rivals
for the position of power in Kemetic hierarchy. A born dynast in her own right,
Hatshepsut proved to be an aggressive and overpowering force. However, it was
not in war, but in her aspiration to ascend to the "Heru (Horus) consciousness,"
she displayed the strength that has given her a place in history. She adopted
the Truth of Maat and became involved in the elimination of undesirable people
and elements from Kemet. Determined to be revered in times yet to come, Hatshepsut
depicted herself in as many masculine attributes as possible, i.e. male attire,
king’s beard, etc. Although she ascended to the throne upon the death of her
king-brother Thutmose II, she exerted her rightful claim to the throne. In exercising
her power, she involved herself in foreign campaigns, a concentration on domestic
affairs, extensive building and commercial ventures. The most famous of her
commercial ventures was the Punt expedition in which goods and produce were
acquired from the rich market there to be brought back to Kemet. While it would
appear that her opponents were not antagonistic regarding her sex, they were
so regarding her non-aggressive philosophy. Even before becoming legal ruler,
Hatshepsut, was actively pushing things dearest to the hearts of all Africans
leaders: the expansion of foreign trade, international diplomatic relations,
perfection of national defense, vast public building programs, securing the
South and the North through either peace or war and, one of her "pet projects",
building a great navy for both commerce and war. Her success on most of these
fronts made her one of the giants of the race.
MAKEDA QUEEN OF SHEBA
(The symbol of Beauty) (960 B.C.) "I am black but
comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, As the tents of Kedar, As the curtains
of Solomon, Look not upon me because I am black Because the sun hath scorched
me." (Song of Solomon) Although most of Black history is suppressed, distorted
or ignored by an ungrateful modern world, some African traditions are so persistent
that all of the power and deception of the Western academic establishment have
failed to stamp them out. One such story is that of Makeda, the Queen of Sheba,
and King Solomon of Israel. Black women of antiquity were legendary for their
beauty and power. Especially great were the Queens of Ethiopia. This nation
was also known as Nubia, Kush, Axum and Sheba. One thousand years before Christ,
Ethiopia was ruled by a line of virgin queens. The one whose story has survived
into our time was known as Makeda, "the Queen of Sheba." Her remarkable tradition
was recorded in the Kebar Nagast, or the Glory of Kings, and the Bible. The
Bible tells us that, during his reign, King Solomon of Israel decided to build
a magnificent temple. To announce this endeavor, the king sent forth messengers
to various foreign countries to invite merchants from abroad to come to Jerusalem
with their caravans so that they might engage in trade there. At this time,
Ethiopia was second only to Egypt in power and fame. Hence, King Solomon was
enthralled by Ethiopia's beautiful people, rich history, deep spiritual tradition
and wealth. He was especially interested in engaging in commerce with one of
Queen Makeda's subjects, an important merchant by the name of Tamrin.
1 Solomon sent for Tamrin who "packed up stores
of valuables including ebony, sapphires and red gold, which he took to Jerusalem
to sell to the king."
2 It turns out that Tamrin's visit was momentous.
Although accustomed to the grandeur and luxury of Egypt and Ethiopia, Tamrin
was still impressed by King Solomon and his young nation. During a prolonged
stay in Israel, Tamrin observed the magnificent buildings and was intrigued
by the Jewish people and their culture. But above all else, he was deeply moved
by Solomon's wisdom and compassion for his subjects. Upon returning to his country,
Tamrin poured forth elaborate details about his trip to Queen Makeda. She was
so impressed by the exciting story that the great queen decided to visit King
Solomon herself.
3 To understand the significance of state visits
in antiquity in contrast to those of today, we must completely remove ourselves
from the present place and time. In ancient times, royal visits were very significant
ceremonial affairs. The visiting regent was expected to favor the host with
elaborate gifts and the state visit might well last for weeks or even months.
Even by ancient standards, however, Queen Makeda's visit to King Solomon was
extraordinary.
In I Kings 10:1-2, the Bible tells us:
"1. And when the Queen of Sheba heard of the fame
of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to prove him with hard
questions.
"2. And she came to Jerusalem with a very great
train, with camels that bear spices and very much gold, and precious stones.
And when she was come to Solomon she communed with him of all that was in her
heart."
I Kings 10:10 adds: "She gave the king 120 talents
of gold, and of spices very great store and precious stones; there came no more
such abundance of spices as these which the Queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon."
We should pause to consider the staggering sight of this beautiful Black woman
and her vast array of resplendent attendants travelling over the Sahara desert
into Israel with more than 797 camels plus donkeys and mules too numerous to
count. The value of the gold alone, which she gave to King Solomon, would be
$3,690,000 today and was of much greater worth in antiquity. King Solomon, and
undoubtedly the Jewish people, were flabbergasted by this great woman and her
people. He took great pains to accommodate her every need. A special apartment
was built for her lodging while she remained in his country. She was also provided
with the best of food and eleven changes of garments daily. As so many African
leaders before her, this young maiden, though impressed with the beauty of Solomon's
temple and his thriving domain, had come to Israel seeking wisdom and the truth
about the God of the Jewish people. Responding to her quest for knowledge, Solomon
had a throne set up for the queen beside his. "It was covered with silken carpets,
adorned with fringes of gold and silver, and studded with diamonds and pearls.
From this she listened while he delivered judgments."4 Queen Makeda also accompanied
Solomon throughout his kingdom. She observed the wise, compassionate and spiritual
ruler as he interacted with his subjects in everyday affairs. Speaking of the
value of her visit with the King and her administration for him, Queen Makeda
stated: "My Lord, how happy I am. Would that I could remain here always, if
but as the humblest of your workers, so that I could always hear your words
and obey you. "How happy I am when I interrogate you! How happy when you answer
me. My whole being is moved with pleasure; my soul is filled; my feet no longer
stumble; I thrill with delight. "Your wisdom and goodness," she continued, "are
beyond all measure. They are excellence itself. Under your influence I am placing
new values on life. I see light in the darkness; the firefly in the garden reveals
itself in newer beauty. I discover added lustre in the pearl; a greater radiance
in the morning star, and a softer harmony in the moonlight. Blessed be the God
that brought me here; blessed be He who permitted your majestic mind to be revealed
to me; blessed be the One who brought me into your house to hear your voice.
Solomon had a harem of over 700 wives and concubines, yet, he was enamored by
the young Black virgin from Ethiopia. Although he held elaborate banquets in
her honor and wined, dined and otherwise entertained her during the length of
her visit, they both knew that, according to Ethiopian tradition, the Queen
must remain chaste. Nevertheless, the Jewish monarch wished to plant his seed
in Makeda, so that he might have a son from her regal African lineage. To this
end the shrewd king conspired to conquer the affection of this young queen with
whom he had fallen in love. When, after six months in Israel, Queen Makeda announced
to King Solomon that she was ready to return to Ethiopia, he invited her to
a magnificent farewell dinner at his palace. The meal lasted for several hours
and featured hot, spicy foods that were certain to make all who ate thirsty
and sleepy (as King Solomon had planned.) Since the meal ended very late, the
king invited Queen Makeda to stay overnight in the palace in his quarters. She
agreed as long as they would sleep in separate beds and the king would not seek
to take advantage of her. He vowed to honor her chastity, but also requested
that she not take anything in the palace. Outraged by such a suggestion, the
Queen protested that she was not a thief and then promised as requested. Not
long after the encounter, the Queen, dying of thirst, searched the palace for
water. Once she found a large water jar and proceeded to drink, the King startled
her by stating: "You have broken your oath that you would not take anything
by force that is in my palace. The Queen protested, of course, that surely the
promise did not cover something so insignificant and plentiful as water, but
Solomon argued that there was nothing in the world more valuable than water,
for without it nothing could live. Makeda reluctantly admitted the truth of
this and apologized for her mistake, begging for water for her parched throat.
Solomon, now released from his promise, assuaged her thirst and his own, immediately
taking the Queen as his lover."6 The following day as the Queen and her entourage
prepared to leave Israel, the King placed a ring on her hand and stated, "If
you have a son, give this to him and send him to me." After returning to the
land of Sheba, Queen Makeda did indeed have a son, whom she named Son-of-the-wise-man,
and reared as a prince and her heir apparent to the throne. Upon reaching adulthood,
the young man wished to visit his father, so the Queen prepared another entourage,
this time headed by Tamrin. She sent a message to Solomon to anoint their son
as king of Ethiopia and to mandate that thenceforth only the males descended
from their son should rule Sheba. Solomon and the Jewish people rejoiced when
his son arrived in Israel. The king anointed him as the Queen had requested
and renamed him Menelik, meaning "how handsome he is." Though Solomon had many
wives, only one had produced a son, Rehoboam, a boy of seven. So the king begged
Menelik to remain, but the young prince would not. Solomon therefore called
his leaders and nobles and announced that, since he was sending his first born
son back to Ethiopia, he wanted all of them to send their firstborn sons "to
be his counselors and officers." And they agreed to do so. Menelik asked his
father for a relic of the Ark of the Covenant to take back with him to the land
of Sheba. It is said that while Solomon intended to provide his son with a relic,
the sons of the counselors, angry at having to leave their homes and go to Sheba
with Menelik, actually stole the real Ark and took it to Ethiopia. Menelik returned
to Sheba and, according to tradition, ruled wisely and well. And his famous
line has continued down to the 20th century when, even now, the ruler of Ethiopia
is the "conquering lion of Judah" descended directly from King Solomon and the
Queen of Sheba. Written by Legrand H. Clegg II
NANDI QUEEN OF ZULULAND
(Symbol of a woman of high esteem) (1778-1826)
Mother of the great leader Shaka Zulu. Nandi is the evalasting symbol of hard
work patience and determination. She withstood and overcame many obsticles to
raise to a position of power in all Zululand.
NEFERTARI QUEEN OF KEMET
(the land of the blacks) (1292-1225 B.C) Her marriage
to the great Rameses II of lower Ancient Egypt is known as one of the greatest
royal love affair ever. This marriage also brought an end to the hundred year
war between upper and lower ancient Kemet (Egypt), which in essence unified
both sections into one great Kemet which was the world leading country. Monuments
of this love affair still remains today in the temples that Rameses built for
his wife at Abu Simbel. The immense structures known as the two temples of Abu
Simbel are among the most magnificent monuments in the world. Built during the
New Kingdom nearly 3,000 years ago, it was hewn from the mountain which contains
it as an everlasting dedication to King Ramses and his wife Nefertari. Superb
reliefs on the temple detail the Battle of Kadesh, and Ramses and Nefertari
consorting with the deities and performing religous rituals. The rays of the
sun still penetrate to the Holy of Holies in the rock of the main temple on
the same two days of the year: the 20th of October and the 20th of Febuary.
This timing is probably connected to the symbolic unification, via the rays
of the sun, of the statue of Ra-Herakhty and the statue of Ramses II. Up to
today these structures remains as the largest, most majestic structures ever
built to honor a wife.
NEFERTITI QUEEN OF KEMET
(Ancient Egypt the land of the blacks) It is believe
by some historians that Nefertiti was the daughter of Aye and Tiy, while other
claims her as the oldest daughter of Amenhotep III. Nefertiti was married to
Akhenaten the originated of the one god concept(monotheism) as it became known
today. During the early life of Nefertiti she lived in a Kemet where a new model
of human nature in relation to god was emerging. This belief considered man
primarily has a material entity, whose happiness was measured by his ability
to acquire and maintain a material heaven(wealth and pleasure). In this material
heaven women were not principals that predicted or participated in social policy,
but were objects of sensuality or objects to be used by men. As weaker members
of this paradise women could not be participants in its building. This belief
was completely contrary to the beliefs of the ancients and the principles of
Ma'at. Akhenaten developed another model. The nature of his new religion was
that Aton represented by the Sun was the sole god and creator of all life. Nefertiti
could not relegate herself to the traditional role of subservient-queen. She
envisioned an active role for herself in reshaping civilization. This was later
manifested as she is shown participating in all the religious ceremonies with
Akhenaten. It was only through the combined royal pair that the god Aton's full
blessing could be bestowed. Nefertiti is displayed with a prominence that other
Egyptian queens were not. Her name is enclosed in a royal cartouche, and there
are in fact more statues and drawings of her than of Akhenaten. Yet the priest
with their materialist model were powerful and they dominated the higher government
offices. In this arena women were incapable of divinity. Akhenaten and Nefertiti
countered a revolt by the priest and emerged victorious and created a new capital
for Kemet called Akhetaten a city that could give birth to their scared mission,
a mission in pursuit of Divine life. She insisted on being portrayed has a equal
divine partner to Akhenaten and their exist many illustrations of her riding
a chariot with Akhenaten during major rituals. While Akhenaten's ideas wanned
without him their to defend them. The priest still considered Nefertiti's heresy
a greater threat. The concept of a woman bypassing the male priest hood via
a mother-goddess to worship the divine was totally unacceptable. And sadly enough
continues to be unacceptable in the major religions that dominate the world
today. Nefertiti though her devotion and her demand for respect proved she deserved
a special place in the history of women.
NEHANDA MBUYA(Grandmother) OF ZIMBABWE
When the English invaded Zimbabwe in 1896 and began
confiscating land and cattle, Nehanda and other leaders declared war. Nehanda
also displayed remarkable leadership and organizational skills at a young age.
Though dead for nearly a hundred years, Nehanda remains what she was when alive,
the single most important person in the modern history of Zimbabwe. She is still
referred to as Mbuya (Grandmother) Nehanda by Zimbabwean patriots.
NZINGHA AMAZON QUEEN OF MATAMBA WEST AFRICA (1582-1663)
A very good military leader who waged war against
the savage slave-hunting Europeans. This war lasted for more than thirty years.
Nzingha was of Angoloan descent and is known as a symbol of inspiration for
people everywhere. Queen Nzingha is also known by some as Jinga by others as
Ginga. She was a member of the ethnic Jagas a militant group that formed a human
shield against the Portuguese slave traders. As a visionary political leader,
competent, and self sacrificing she was completely devoted to the resistance
movement. She formed alliances with other foreign powers pitting them against
one another to free Angola of European influence. She possessed both masculine
hardness and feminine charm and used them both depending on the situation. She
even used religion as a political tool when it suited her. Her death on December
17, 1663 helped open the door for the massive Portuguese slave trade. Yet her
struggle helped awaken others that followed her and forced them to mount offensives
against the invaders. These include Madame Tinubu of Nigeria; Nandi, the mother
of the great Zulu warrior Chaka; Kaipkire of the Herero people of South West
Africa; and the female army that followed the Dahomian King, Behanzin Bowelle.
TIYE THE NUBIAN QUEEN OF KEMET
(Ancient Egypt) (1415-1340 B.C.) Black, beautiful
and georgous, Queen Tiye is regarded as one of the most influential Queens ever
to rule Kemet. A princess of Nubian birth, she married the Kemetan King Amenhotep
III who ruled during the New Kingdom Dynasties around 1391BC. Queen Tiye held
the title of "Great Royal Wife" and acted upon it following the end of her husband's
reign. It was Tiye who held sway over Kemet during the reign of her three sons
Amenhotep IV (Akhenaton), Smenkhare, and the famous child king Tut-ankh-amen.
For nearly half of a century, Tiye governed Kemet, regulated her trade, and
protected her borders. During this time, she was believed to be the standard
of beauty in the ancient world. YAA ASANTEWA Yaa Asantewa of the Ashanti Empire
Her fight against British colonialists is a story that is woven throughout the
history of Ghana. One evening the chiefs held a secret meeting at Kumasi. Yaa
Asantewa, the Queen Mother of Ejisu, was at the meeting. The chiefs were discussing
how they should make war on the white men and force them to bring back the Asantehene.
Yaa Asantewa noticed that some of the chiefs were afraid. Some said that there
should be no war. They should rather go to beg the Governor to bring back the
Asantehene King Prempeh. Then suddenly Yaa Asantewa stood up and spoke. This
was what she said: "Now I have seen that some of you fear to go forward to fight
for our king. If it were in the brave days of, the days of Osei Tutu, Okomfo
Anokye, and Opolu Ware, chiefs would not sit down to see thief king taken away
without firing a shot. No white man could have dared to speak to chief of the
Ashanti in the way the Governor spoke to you chiefs this morning. Is it true
that the bravery of the Ashanti is no more? I cannot believe it. It cannot be!
I must say this, if you the men of Ashanti will not go forward, then we will.
We the women will. I shall call upon my fellow women. We will fight the white
men. We will fight till the last of us falls in the battlefields." This speech
stirred up the men who took an oath to fight the white men until they released
the Asantehene. For months the Ashantis led by Yaa Asantewa fought very bravely
and kept the white men in the fort. Yet British reinforcements totaling 1,400
soldiers arrived at Kumasi. Yaa Asantewa and other leaders were captured and
sent into exile. Yaa Asantewa's war was the last of the major war in Africa
led by a women.
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