The first wife of South Africa’s Zulu King Misuzulu kaZwelithini, who is still married to the monarch, has failed in her legal attempt to halt his plans to take a third wife.

Queen Ntokozo kaMayisela went to court ahead of what was expected to be the wedding later this week.

But already on Saturday, South African media quoted a letter reportedly from the king saying the ceremony had been called off “due to reasons beyond the control of the royal house”.

Polygamous marriages are recognised in South Africa but this latest row comes amid a series of scandals that has hit King Misuzulu since he came to power just over two years ago.

The Zulu king does not have formal political power and the monarch’s role within broader South African society is largely ceremonial, but he remains hugely influential with a yearly government-funded budget of several million dollars.

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Before he was enthroned, the king married Mayisela in 2021 – this was recognised in South African law as a civil marriage.

In her legal argument heard in the high court on Monday, the queen, through her lawyer, said that the king could not marry anyone else as their civil marriage was still in force.

While South African law recognises polygamy, a civil marriage must either be dissolved or converted to a traditional union before a man can take more wives.

But in rejecting the application to halt the king’s marriage to Nomzamo Myeni, Judge Bongani Mngadi said that as the queen had already consented to the idea that her husband could marry other women she cannot prevent a ceremony from taking place.

Last year, according to what was said in court on Monday, the royal couple had agreed to convert their civil marriage to a traditional one. But since then the king has applied for a divorce saying that their relationship had broken down.

Despite the reported letter, as well as the king’s lawyer in court, saying that the wedding would not take place, contradictory statements have also emerged.

South African news site TimesLIVE is reporting that the bride-to-be said she knew nothing about the letter and as far as she understood, her wedding would proceed as initially planned.

According to another news site, IOL, which reportedly spoke to the couple, the king insisted that he loved his wife and would “marry her by force”.

Since his coronation in October 2022, there has been controversy around some of the decisions King Misuzulu has made.

In December, he unlawfully suspended the board of the Ingonyama Trust, which owns and controls vast tracts of communal land in KwaZulu-Natal, which is supposed to be for the benefit and welfare of tribes and communities under the king’s leadership.

King Misuzulu is the sole trustee and chairperson of the trust but has no powers to hire or fire board members.

He has also recently summarily fired two close aides, including his traditional prime minister, in quick succession – moves which raised eyebrows among royal watchers.

Misuzulu’s position as king is also being questioned by some and a legal case is currently on-going challenging his recognition as monarch by the state.

He ascended to the throne sooner than expected after his father, King Goodwill Zwelithini, died during the Covid pandemic in March 2021 of diabetes-related complications.

Zwelithini was the Zulu nation’s longest-reigning monarch, having served on the throne for almost 50 years.

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