Mbekelweni is a royal village in the Manzini Region of EswatiniThe anger of the people and the arrogance of a brutal King , City Press, 4 July 2021. Accessed 5 August 2026 that served as the principal royal residence of King Mbandzeni (r. 1875–1889).Matsebula, J. S. M. A History of Swaziland, Longman Penguin Southern Africa Pty Ltd, 1988, , page 67 This is the place where he administered the Kingdom of Eswatini during the late nineteenth century.
King Mbandzeni established Mbekelweni when he became King in 1875 following the death of his father King Mswati II. Matsebula, J.S.; Mlotshwa, D.K.; Mlotshwa, J.M.; Ntiwane, N.D. History of Emaswati in South Africa, Mbokodo Publishers, 2016. Page 93 The royal residence was surrounded by over 300 huts where the King's warriors and close family members resided.
This is the area where Sandlane Zwane was born in 1810Patrick, Richard Mdvumowencwala Chiefs and Chiefdoms of Swaziland: Part 2: Non-Dlamini Chiefs, Government of Swaziland (Swaziland Oral History Project), Manzini, September 2000 and where Mbandzeni later ruled Swaziland.
References