Zulu Queen: Mantfombi Dlamini-Zulu buried amid succession row

The Zulu Queen, Mantfombi Dlamini-Zulu, who died unexpectedly last week, has been buried in a private ceremony in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal province.

She was appointed regent of the country's largest ethnic group in March following the death of her husband King Goodwill Zwelithini.

The queen's death, at 65, has triggered a bitter family feud and a power struggle over the succession.

The family has dismissed rumours that she had been poisoned.

But the cause of the queen's death is yet to be announced by the royal family.

The decision on who will now lead the Zulu nation of about 11 million people is yet to be made.

The throne does not have formal political power and the monarch's role within broader South African society is largely ceremonial. But the Zulu monarchy remains hugely influential, and has a yearly taxpayer-funded budget of more than $4.9m (£3.5m).

Queen Dlamini-Zulu was buried at KwaKhangelamankengane Royal Palace in a town about 480km (300 miles) from South Africa's main city Johannesburg in the early hours of Friday morning after a night vigil.

The queen was the sister King Mswati III of neighbouring Eswatini and she was buried according to Swati royal culture, reports the BBC's Nomsa Maseko.

Her body was wrapped in a cow's hide by a delegation that was sent by King Mswati and the funeral was attended by family members from both the Zulu and Eswatini monarchies.

A state-funded memorial has followed at the palace, with the Zulu and Swati royal families in attendance, as well as former South Africa President Jacob Zuma, who has always celebrated his Zulu identity, and other politicians.

This article originally appeared on BBC News

Photo: AFP