We all have heard about the Kings who had many wives but in present days, it is rare that a person has more than one wife but an African King is husband to 100 wives and has more than 500 kids from all his wives.
Name of this African king is Abumbi II who became the 11th King of Bafut in Cameroon in 1968 after the death of his father. In Cameroon, it is legitimate to have more than one wife and there is no maximum limit on the number of wives a man can keep.
It is also a tradition that if the King dies, then all his wives will automatically become the wives of the new King, so Abumbi II after becoming King, also became husband to 72 wives who were earlier wives of his father.
Abumbi’s third wife, Queen Constance stated, “Behind every successful man must be a very successful, staunch woman. Our tradition has it that when you are king, the elderly wives remain to hand down the tradition to the younger wives, and also to teach he king the tradition because the king had been a prince, not a king.”
The queens are mostly well educated and they can speak in many languages. The tradition of polygamy in Cameroon is getting some opposition now but King Abumbi feels that it is his duty to protect the culture of his land and make sure that traditions and customs are followed properly.
It is the duty of the Fon to look after the internal governance as well as to manage the foreign affairs. Offering sacrifices to the ancestors also comes under his duty.
Ntoh, which is the palace of the Fon of Baut is included in the list of the world’s most endangered sites and many tourists visit there.
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