Photos: Asantehemaa Nana Konadu Yiadom III burried at Breman Mausoleum
After four days of mourning filled with rituals, tradition, and cultural expressions, Asanteman has laid the late Asantehemaa, Nana Konadu Yiadom III, to rest in a night of solemn silence.
The final journey to the Breman Royal Mausoleum, the sacred burial place of Ashanti royals, began at dusk as pallbearers lifted the casket from the Manhyia Palace and led a solemn procession of royals and elders.
The cortege paused briefly at the Bantama Royal Mausoleum for traditional rites before proceeding to Breman, where the Asantehemaa was interred away from public view.
The rites brought to a close a week-long national mourning led by President John Dramani Mahama, who was joined by former Presidents J. A. Kufuor and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Other notable figures included the Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah; former Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and his wife, Samira; former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings; and Council of State member Betty Mould-Iddrisu.
Dignitaries from the diplomatic community and traditional leaders from across Ghana were also present. Throughout Kumasi, silence descended as the people obeyed Asante custom, reflecting the decree of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.
The sacred stop at Bantama symbolised the Asantehemaa’s spiritual communion with ancestors before her final rest at Breman.
Earlier, the Anglican Church held a three-hour service at the Manhyia Palace, followed by military honours performed by the Ghana Armed Forces.
Thousands of mourners clad in black thronged the palace’s Dwabrem grounds, where tributes were read by clergy, churches, and national leaders.
The Most Rev. Dr Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith, Anglican Archbishop of the Internal Province of Ghana, led the religious service, joined by leaders of the Methodist, Catholic, and Saviour Churches.
In its tribute, the Saviour Church described the late queen mother as “an unfailing counsellor, a true philanthropist and a peacemaker whose wise interventions resolved misunderstandings and whose generous contributions held us together as a church.”
President Mahama eulogised her as a pillar of strength whose guidance and service embodied Asante values and inspired the nation.
The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, said his late sister was more than a queen mother; she was “the mother of the kingdom, the voice of women in the markets, the comfort of widows, the guardian of orphans and the reconciler of families.”
Delivering the sermon, the Most Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante, former Chairman of the National Peace Council, highlighted her faith in God, her devotion to service, and her example of humility and vision. Quoting Ecclesiastes, he reminded mourners of life’s vanity without God, urging them to live with purpose, faith, and love.
The final farewell to Nana Konadu Yiadom III thus united clergy, royals, statesmen, and citizens in a blend of tradition, culture, and faith, marking the close of an era in Asanteman’s history.
