Marie-Antoinette Mobutu | |
|---|---|
 Marie-Antoinette inKinshasa, April 1977 | |
| First Lady of Zaire | |
| In office 24 November 1965 – 22 October 1977 | |
| President | Mobutu Sese Seko |
| Succeeded by | Bobi Ladawa Mobutu |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Marie-Antoinette Gbiatibwa Gogbe Yetene c. 1941 |
| Died | 22 October 1977(1977-10-22) (aged 35–36) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 9 (includingKongulu Mobutu) |
Marie-Antoinette Mobutu (Marie-Antoinette Gbiatibwa Gogbe Yetene; c. 1941 inBanzyville – 22 October 1977 inGenolier,Canton of Vaud,Switzerland), also known asMama Mobutu, was the first wife ofMobutu Sese Seko andFirst Lady of Zaire.
Marie-Antoinette was anethnic Ngbandi born inBanzyville (modern-day Mobayi-Mbongo) in theÉquateur Province inc.1941, while the Congo was still underBelgian colonial rule. She met and marriedJoseph-Désiré Mobutu, another Ngbandi, who was later anon-commissioned officer in theForce Publique, during 1955 at the age of 14.[1] That same year, she gave birth to their first son, Jean-Paul "Nyiwa". She attended Catholic mission schools and supported theCatholic Church despite her husband's later struggle with the Catholic clergy.[2][1]
Marie Antoinette bore the most out of all of Mobutu's wives, a total of nine children:
Marie-Antoinette died ofheart failure on 22 October 1977 inGenolier,Switzerland, at the age of 36. After she died, a vast mausoleum was raised in her honor. She is buried inGbadolite, just outside the chapel in which she was originally buried by her husband. Her relatives relocated her remains from the chapel as it was destroyed a few years after Mobutu's burial.
Grand Cordon of theOrder of Propitious Clouds (Taiwan, 1971)[3]