Kumasi comes to a standstill today as Asanteman buries its queen mother, Nana Konadu Yiadom III, bringing to a close four days of solemn rites steeped in centuries-old Ashanti tradition.
Thousands of mourners have already paid their respects since Tuesday, filing past the body of the revered queen mother at the Manhyia Palace.
Today, the climax of the burial rites will take place with a final service at Dwabrem of the palace at 3 p.m., followed by her interment at the Breman Royal Mausoleum.
Before her final resting place, the procession will make a brief stop at the Bantama Royal Mausoleum, where sacred rites will be performed to honor her ancestral predecessors. As custom demands, the entire Kumasi metropolis will observe silence tonight while the queen mother is laid to rest, with all schools, offices, banks, shops, and markets closed in reverence.
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, will sit in state as Paramount Chiefs, dignitaries, and international guests, including President John Dramani Mahama, Vice-President Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, former Presidents John Agyekum Kufuor and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, former Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, and members of the diplomatic corps, join the Ashanti nation to bid farewell.
The rites will be punctuated with traditional drumming, dancing, and musketry, echoing the grandeur and solemnity of Ashanti royal funerals.
A Royal Lineage of Queen Mothers
Nana Konadu Yiadom III’s passing marks the end of an extraordinary chapter in the unbroken lineage of Asantehemaas spanning more than 160 years. The first in this modern line, Nana Afua Kobi I, reigned from 1857 to 1880. She was succeeded by Nana Yaa Akyaa (1880–1917), followed by Nana Konadu Yiadom II (1917–1945), Nana Serwaa Nyarko (1945–1977), and Nana Afua Kobi II (1977–2016).
As the 14th Asantehemaa, Nana Konadu Yiadom III carried forward this legacy until her passing at age 98. Her reign represented not only the spiritual and maternal strength of the Ashanti Kingdom but also its resilience and cultural continuity across generations.
Today, as she is laid to rest at Breman, Asanteman bows its head in silence, mourning a queen mother whose life and service will forever be etched in the history of the Ashanti Kingdom.
