Queen Masenate Mohato Seeiso of Lesotho

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2020

Credit – By National Assembly For Wales / Cynulliad Cymru profile – Flickr, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16250190

Queen Masenate Mohato Seeiso of Lesotho is the wife of King Letsie III of Lesotho. Born Anna Karabo Motšoeneng on June 2, 1976, at the Maloti Adventist Hospital in Mapoteng, Lesotho, she is the eldest of the five children of Thekiso and Makarabo Motšoeneng and was baptized in the Roman Catholic Church.

From 1990 – 1996, Anna spent her secondary school years at Machabeng International College in Maseru, Lesotho where she completed her International General Certificate for Secondary Education and the International Baccalaureate Diploma. In 1997, Anna enrolled at the National University of Lesotho to pursue her Bachelor of Science degree. Her studies were interrupted by her engagement to King Letsie III in October 1999.

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Anna and King Letsie III were married on February 18, 2000, at Setsoto Stadium in Maseru, the capital city of Lesotho The national sports stadium was filled to its capacity of 40,000 people, with thousands turned away. The marriage ceremony was conducted by Bernard Mohlalisi, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Maseru. Guests included The Prince of Wales, King Mswati III of Swaziland, and Nelson Mandela. The bride wore a white wedding gown with a long train and the groom was dressed in a suit. King Letsie said Anna would be his only wife, going against the tradition in an area where polygamy is relatively common. After the ceremony, the bride and the groom left for a luncheon amid deafening cheers, singing, and ululating from the crowd. The couple hosted an evening banquet for their guests. After her marriage, Anna was known as Queen Masenate Mohato Seeiso.

The Lesotho Royal Family; Credit – https://face2faceafrica.com/

King Letsie and Queen Masenate Mohato Seeiso had three children:

As a commoner marrying into the royal family, Queen Masenate was especially grateful for the support she received from her mother-in-law Queen Mamohato. She was deeply saddened by the death of Queen Mamohato in 2003 and regretted losing her tutor and maternal figure.

Queen Masenate Mohato Seeiso with King Letsie III in 2013; Credit – By IAEA Imagebank – https://www.flickr.com/photos/iaea_imagebank/8680655840, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37933098

Queen Masenate is Patron to a number of organizations including the Lesotho Red Cross Society, SOS Children’s Village, People with Disabilities, and her alma mater, Machabeng International College. She is especially interested in projects that are aimed at helping people with disabilities to be better heard in their communities. During her schooling at Machabeng College, Queen Masenate was involved in community service at Angela School for the Disabled and Centre for the Blind. She also strongly supports the work undertaken with HIV/AIDS patients and has been involved in several awareness programs in Lesotho. As the Queen of the Kingdom of Lesotho, Queen Masenate becomes the Regent whenever King Letsie is absent from the country.

King Letsie and Queen Masenate spend time managing their agricultural operations. Both husband and wife are interested in crop and livestock farming and the family boasts of bumper harvests every year and many highly productive cattle, goats, and sheep in the mountains.

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Works Cited

  • En.wikipedia.org. 2020. Queen ‘Masenate Mohato Seeiso. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_%27Masenate_Mohato_Seeiso> [Accessed 25 August 2020].
  • Government of Lesotho. 2020. THE MONARCHY. [online] Available at: <https://www.gov.ls/the-monarchy/> [Accessed 25 August 2020].
  • Iol.co.za. 2000. King Letsie Takes First And Last Bride. [online] Available at: <https://www.iol.co.za/sport/soccer/africa/king-letsie-takes-first-and-last-bride-28664> [Accessed 25 August 2020].
  • News.bbc.co.uk. 2000. BBC News | AFRICA | Lesotho’s Batchelor King Weds. [online] Available at: <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/647779.stm> [Accessed 25 August 2020].
  • Pt.wikipedia.org. 2020. Masenate Mohato Seeiso. [online] Available at: <https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masenate_Mohato_Seeiso> [Accessed 25 August 2020]