Makhosetive (1968-04-19) 19 April 1968 (age 56) Raleigh Fitkin Memorial Hospital, Manzini, Protectorate of Swaziland
Spouse
15 wives concurrently
Nomsah Matsebula (first)
Sindi Motsa (second)
Sibonelo Mngometulu (third)
LaNgangaza (Carol Dlamini) (fourth, since 1987)
Putsoana Hwala (fifth)
Delisa Magwaza (sixth, since 1993, b. 1973)
LaGija (Angela Dlamini) (seventh, since 1998, b.1979)
Senteni Masango (eighth)
Nontsetselo Magongo (ninth, since 2002, b.1985)
Zena Mahlangu (tenth, since 2002)
Noliqhwa Ayanda Ntentesa (eleventh, since 2005, b. 1981)
Nothando Dube (twelfth, since 2005)
Phindile Nkambule (thirteenth, since 2007, b.1990)
Sindiswa Dlamini (fourteenth, since 2012, b. 1995)
Sindiswa Dlamini (fourteen, since 2012)
Siphelele Mashwama (fifteenth, since 2019, b. 1998)
Issue
45 children
House
Dlamini
Father
Sobhuza II
Mother
Ntfombi Tfwala
Religion
Christianity[1]
Signature
Mswati III (born Makhosetive; 19 April 1968)[2] is Ngwenyama (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family. He heads Africa’s last absolute monarchy, as he has veto power over all branches of government and is constitutionally immune from prosecution.[3][4]
He was born in Manzini in the Protectorate of Swaziland to King Sobhuza II and one of his younger wives, Ntfombi Tfwala.[5] He was crowned as Mswati III, Ingwenyama and King of Swaziland, on 25 April 1986 at the age of 18, thus becoming the youngest ruling monarch in the world at that time.
With unrestricted political power and able to rule by decree, Mswati III (together with his mother, Ntfombi Tfwala, now Queen Mother (Ndlovukati)) is the last remaining absolute monarch in Africa and one of the only 12 remaining absolute national or subnational monarchs in the world.[6] Under the constitution, the king is the commander-in-chief of the defence force and commissioner-in-chief of police and correctional services and Mswati III exercises ultimate authority over all branches of the national government and effectively controls local governance through his influence over traditional chiefs.[7][8]
Under his reign, political dissent and civic and labor activism are subject to harsh punishment under sedition and other laws.[9] Political parties have been banned in Eswatini since 1973 when a state of emergency was declared that has continued ever since.[10] Pro-democracy protests from 2021 onwards have been violently dispersed and political activists have been arrested, subjected to torture and other ill-treatment and their homes were raided by security forces.[11][12] The government exercises total control over the broadcast media, including the only privately owned TV channel, which belongs to the royal family. Almost all media outlets are controlled, directly or indirectly, by Mswati III.
Mswati III lives an opulent and lavish lifestyle which stands in sharp contrast to the lives of most Emaswazi people.[13][14][15][16][17][18] In 2022, an estimated 32% of the population lived below the $2.15/day international poverty line (measured by price-purchasing parity (PPP) in 2017) while 55% of the population was under the lower-middle-income country poverty line of $3.65/day.[19] Mswati III is known for his practice of polygamy (although at least two wives are appointed by the state) and currently has 15 wives.[20][21] Formerly named Swaziland, in 2018 Mswati III renamed the country Eswatini (formally the Kingdom of Eswatini) by decree.[22][23]
^"Swaziland". U.S. Department of State.
^Genealogy:SWAZILAND Archived 19 May 2018 at the Wayback Machine, World of Royalty
^"About the Swazi Secrets investigation - ICIJ". 15 April 2024.
^"How international gold dealers exploited a tiny African kingdom's economic dream - ICIJ". ICIJ. 15 April 2024.
^"King Mswati III is born | South African History Online". Sahistory.org.za. 19 April 1968. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
^Staff (29 June 2021). "Armed forces open fire in crackdown on anti-monarchy protests in Eswatini". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^"Eswatini: Freedom in the World 2022 Country Report". Freedom House. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^"Eswatini". United States Department of State. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^"Eswatini: Freedom in the World 2022 Country Report". Freedom House. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^Sandner, Philipp (14 July 2014). "Swaziland: Africa's last absolute monarchy". dw.com. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^"Human rights in Eswatini". Amnesty International. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^Burke, Jason (24 January 2023). "Eswatini: murder of pro-democracy activist prompts outrage". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^Cite error: The named reference pmo was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference R100 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^IRIN; network, part of the Guardian development (20 March 2013). "Swaziland government sells maize donated by Japan and banks the cash". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^"King of impoverished Swaziland increases household budget to $61m". The Guardian. Agence France-Presse. 14 May 2014. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^Kelly, Jeremy (31 August 2023). "Swaziland king spends £13m on cars for his 15 wives". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^"Overview". World Bank. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^Laing, Aislinn (18 September 2013). "King of Swaziland chooses teenager as 15th wife". The Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
^Bearak, Barry (5 September 2008). "In Destitute Swaziland, Leader Lives Royally". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
^"Swaziland king renames country 'the Kingdom of eSwatini'". BBC News. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
^"Times Of Swaziland". www.times.co.sz. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
MswatiIII (born Makhosetive; 19 April 1968) is Ngwenyama (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family. He heads Africa’s last absolute monarchy...
King MswatiIII International Airport (IATA: SHO, ICAO: FDSK), initially named Sikhuphe International Airport in the planning and construction phase, is...
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Miss Cultural Heritage 2016–2017. Dlamini was selected as the wife of MswatiIII, becoming a member of the Swazi royal family. She is the king's fourteenth...
King Mswati II (c. 1820 – August 1868), also known as Mswati and Mavuso III, was the king of Eswatini between 1840 and 1868. He was also the eponym of...
leaders of Swaziland with the name Mswati. Chief Mswati I, c. 1480 – c. 1520 King Mswati II, 1840–1868 King MswatiIII, since 1986 List of monarchs of Eswatini...
of King MswatiIII of Eswatini. Nothando Dube was a former Miss Teen Swaziland. Dube attended Mater Dorolosa High School. She met MswatiIII, the king...
Zena Soraya Mahlangu (born 1984) is a Swazi royal and the tenth wife of MswatiIII. In 2002, when she was eighteen years old, she was abducted by two of...
mid-18th century under the leadership of Ngwane III. The country and the Swazi take their names from Mswati II, the 19th-century king under whose rule the...
also regent of Eswatini from 1983 to 1986. She is the mother of King MswatiIII. Ntfombi married King Sobhuza II of Swaziland, with whom she had a son...
is a Swazi princess and politician. She is the eldest daughter of King MswatiIII of Eswatini, and is the country's former Minister of Information and Communication...
Inkhosikati (queen consort) and wife of MswatiIII of Eswatini. Masango was selected to be a new bride for MswatiIII during the 1999 Uhmlanga ceremony. They...
The House of Dlamini is the royal house of the Kingdom of Eswatini. MswatiIII, as king and Ngwenyama of Eswatini, is the current head of the house of...
Sobhuza continued to reign until his death in 1982. He was succeeded by MswatiIII, his young son with Inkhosikati Ntfombi Tfwala, who was crowned in 1986...
Disaster Management Agency. Following the 2023 general election, King MswatiIII decided to appoint Dlamini as Prime Minister. Lenin Ndebele (3 November...
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minister is Russell Dlamini, since 4 November 2023. He was appointed by King MswatiIII at the Ludzidzini Royal Village. Political parties Imbokodvo National...
Tfwala, the mother of Ngwenyama MswatiIII and wife of Sobhuza II. She was also queen regent from 1983 until 1986 when Mswati became king. The most notable...
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Dlamini, the royal family of Eswatini, currently led by Ngwenyama (King) MswatiIII (born 1968) and Ndlovukati (Queen Mother) Ntfombi (born c. 1950). The...
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years, the longest verified reign of any monarch. The present ruler, King MswatiIII, ascended to the throne in 1986. A new constitution established in 1998...
previous officeholder, Michael Ramodibedi, had been dismissed by King MswatiIII for serious misbehaviour in June 2015. Ndzimandze, Mbongiseni (13 November...
Olubuse II, the Ooni of Ife, with $225 million and the Swaziland King MswatiIII by over $200 million to become Africa's second richest king in 2014 behind...
Ludzidzini Royal Village, the residence of Queen Ntfombi, the Queen Mother. MswatiIII lives about ten kilometres (6 mi) away at the Lozitha Palace. The King...
Makhosetive was crowned on 25 April 1986 with the name of King MswatiIII of Eswatini. In May, Mswati dissolved the Liqoqo, consolidating his power and reorganising...
Events in the year 2024 in Eswatini Monarch (Ngwenyama): MswatiIII Prime Minister: Russell Dlamini Source: 1 January - New Year's Day 21 March - Independence...
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