Sobhuza II Biography
(King of Eswatini from 1899 to 1982)
Birthday: July 22, 1899 (Cancer)
Born In: Zombodze, Swaziland
King Sobhuza II of Swaziland was one of the longest reigning kings in the recorded history. Crowned to the throne of Swaziland when he was barely four months old, he ruled for 82 years 254 days until his death in 1982. But because Swaziland was initially a British Protectorate, in the beginning he was designated as a Paramount Chief, spending his first twenty-one years under the regency of his grandmother, receiving formal education both in Swaziland and South Africa. On becoming the chief, his first job was to retrieve the Swazi land held by the white settlers and in this he was partially successful. Later, he steered his country towards full independence from British rule without spilling blood, eventually succeeding in his mission in 1968. Initially coronated as a constitutional king, he later seized full power and steered his country towards a tribal mode of rule that was compatible with modern form of governance.