Kingdoms of Central Africa - Independent Congo
Independent State of Congo (Portuguese West Africa)AD 1888 - 1914Now approaching five hundred years old, theKongokingdom had survived a brutal 'Civil War' period in the 1600s, followed by another century of. . .
Independent State of Congo (Portuguese West Africa)AD 1888 - 1914Now approaching five hundred years old, theKongokingdom had survived a brutal 'Civil War' period in the 1600s, followed by another century of unsettled rule under the 'Rotating Houses' and the 'Southern Kinlaza'. Although regarded as supreme kings of a resurgentKongoby thePortuguese, they were in fact the most powerful of the region's various chieftains, these being themwene(singular, meaning 'lord', orawene, plural). A good deal of in-fighting was seen during the period, with Garcia V being the one who finally ended the threat of the Southern Kinlaza resuming control. The capital remained at the rebuilt São Salvador (formerly M'banza-Kongo, and today the capital of Zaire province inAngola). The Portuguese, however, were now too strong to ignore as a regional power. Pedro VI signed the Treaty of Vassalage with Portugal in 1888. Based on the outcome of the Conference of Berlin of 1884-1885, the territory of Kongo is incorporated mostly into Portuguese Angola and partially into the 'Independent State of Congo' (today largely but not entirely within the modernDemocratic Republic of the Congo). The rulers at São Salvador continued to be titledmanikongo(this being a Portuguese alteration from the native 'Mwene Kongo', or 'lord of Kongo'). As previously, thosemanikongowho bore the name Pedro continued to ignore the original Pedro V (1763-1764), numbering themselves lower than was strictly accurate. This false numbering is given below in parenthesis. Following their final removal from power in 1914, themanikongosapparently retained their titles but had no power while all the constituent sub-kingdoms or states within Kongo were effectively converted into colonial territories. The titular Kongo rulers are shown below with a shaded background. Any claim by them to the former throne should have ended with the country's independence in 1975, although it has been rumoured that Angola's long-lasting post-independence dictator, Jose Eduardo dos Santos, can claim descent in part from the royal family. This would explain the lack of any noise from the royal house, but it seems to be without any real basis or support (and in argument against it is the fact that his parents were immigrants into Luanda). The ending of the Kongo kingdom also meant the end of the 'kingdom within the kingdom',Mbata, one of Kongo's founding states. It had retained special status within Kongo right up until the end, but it would be suppressed at least until official restoration in 2008. Principal author(s):Page created:Page last updated:(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information fromElite Women in the Kingdom of Kongo: Historical Perspectives on Women's Political Power, John Thornton (Journal of African History 47, 2006), fromMbanza Kongo/Sao Salvador: Kongo's Holy City, John Thornton, fromUrban Africa; Histories in the Making (Africa's Urban Past), David M Anderson & Richard Rathbone (Eds), fromKongo's Incorporation into Angola: A Perspective from Kongo, John Thornton, fromAfricana: The Encyclopaedia of the African and African American Experience, Anthony Appiah & Henry Louis Gates (Oxford University Press, 2005), fromThe New Atlas of African History, G S P Freeman-Grenville (Rex Collins, London, 1991), fromTimes Atlas of World History(Maplewood, 1979), and fromExternal Link:Encyclopaedia Britannica. )1888 - 1891Pedro VI (V) / EleloKongoking since 1859. Now ruling a smaller state. 1891 - 1896Alvaro XIV / Agua RosadaSon. 1896 - 1910Pedro VII (VI) / MbembaSon. A minor at accession. Died. 1896 - 1901Henrique IV / TekengeUncle and regent during Pedro's minority. 1910 - 1911Manuel NkombaSon of Pedro VII. Died a year after accession. 1911 - 1915Manuel III KidituBrother. Deposed by rebellion. Died of TB in 1927. 1914 - 1915The position ofmanikongois abolished by thePortuguesefollowing a revolt against them which is lead by Alvaro Buta. The reduced kingdom is merged into the colonial structure of Portuguese Angola. Manuel III remainsmanikongoin name only until 1915, when the royal family decrees his replacement by Alvaro XV. Portugal in 1914 was far too busy with the threat being posed to its colonial possessions by imperial Germany to tread softly with a revolt in the state of Congo - Portuguese troops are shown here embarking for Portuguese West Africa (largely today's Angola) to protect it from German invasion - so the Kongolese kingdom was arbitrarily extinguished and its territory incorporated directly into the West Africa colony1915 - 1923Alvaro XV Alphonse NzingaManikongoin name only. 1923 - 1955Pedro VIII (VII) AlphonseManikongoin name only. 1951The status of Portuguese Angola changes from colony to overseas province. Between this point and 1961 a nationalist movement develops and guerrilla war begins against thePortuguesepresence in the country. 1955 - 1957António III AlphonseManikongoin name only. 1957 - 1962Pedro IX (VIII) Alphonse MansalaManikongoin name only. Died young. 1960To the north of Angola, the new state ofCongo-Leopoldvilleachieves independence fromBelgium, while the formerFrenchregion ofMiddle CongobecomesRepublic of the Congo. In the formerKongoroyal family, Isabel Maria da Gama, widow of António III, acts as regent for the young Pedro IX. Upon his untimely death, she renews her role as regent for the lost throne despite there not seeming to be another candidate for the title ofmanikongo. Nkisi, known as 'Chingunge N', is a Kongo wood-and bone artwork which was created between 1882 and 1903, mostly likely during the Kongo kingdom's reduced status as 'Independent State of Congo'1962 - 1975Isabel Maria da GamaOfficial regent, even without a candidate. Angolaformed. 1974 - 1975Between 1974-1975 there is revolution inPortugaland, as a result of the turmoil, its overseas empire collapses. Portuguese Angola gains independence in 1975 without any official handover or preparation, now to be known as the republic ofAngola.