Sixth Rain Queen in Fertile Corner of South Africa Dies. In case you wondered if you still lived in an amazing and diverse world, read this fascinating obituary. I was enthralled by H. Rider Haggard’s books as a child but had no idea they were based on anything real. Makobo Modjadji was the queen of the million or so Balobedu people in the northeast of South Africa; she died after a sudden gastrointestinal illness. Her people believe that magical powers, including control of clouds and rainmaking ability, are passed down in a female line of succession from queen to queen. (In passing I wonder if belief in sorcery of other sorts is part of the Balobedu worldview. If I recall correctly from my anthropological student days, sudden death with G.I. symptoms is often considered a result of a curse.) Modjadji, crowned in 2003 — in a light drizzle, seen as a sign of her power! — was the sixth and youngest in the succession and the only one who had had any formal education. “H. Rider Haggard’s classic novels King Solomon’s Mines and She first drew attention to the rain queen in the 1880’s. Her power was so feared that the Balobedu were left in relative peace for centuries despite the wars around the region. In times of drought, caravans of gifts were sent to their community, more than 150 rural villages set near thick forests full of rare trees resembling ferns and palms. While the rain queen is the monarch, she governs through a council of men. Custom forbids the queen to marry, but the Royal Council chooses consorts for her for the sake of procreation.” (New York Times )