Queen Nzinga

c. 1583 – 17 December 1663

Nzinga Ana de Sousa Mbande was queen of the Ambundu kingdoms of Ndongo and Matamba in present-day Angola. A skilled diplomat and military leader, she resisted Portuguese colonial expansion and the slave trade for decades, allying at times with the Dutch. She is remembered as one of the great African rulers of the seventeenth century.

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Lived at the same time

Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Queen Nzinga.

Life events

Born into the royal family of Ndongo
c. 1583

Nzinga was born around 1583, the daughter of Ngola Kilombo Kia Kasenda, ruler of the kingdom of Ndongo.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Negotiated a peace treaty with the Portuguese at Luanda
1622

Sent by her brother King Ngola Mbande as envoy, Nzinga negotiated with the Portuguese governor, famously conducting the talks as an equal.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Baptized as Ana de Sousa
1622

During the Luanda negotiations Nzinga accepted Christian baptism, taking the name Ana de Sousa in honor of the Portuguese governor's family.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Became ruler of Ndongo
1624

After the death of her brother Ngola Mbande, Nzinga assumed power in Ndongo, first as regent and then as queen.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Conquered the kingdom of Matamba
c. 1631

Driven from much of Ndongo by the Portuguese, Nzinga seized the neighboring kingdom of Matamba and made it her base of power.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Formed an alliance with the Dutch against Portugal
1641

After the Dutch captured Luanda, Nzinga allied with them in her ongoing war against the Portuguese in Angola.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Continued armed resistance after the Portuguese retook Luanda
1648

Following the Portuguese reconquest of Luanda in 1648, Nzinga withdrew to Matamba and kept fighting Portuguese expansion for years.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Concluded a peace treaty with Portugal
1656

Nzinga signed a treaty with the Portuguese that recognized her rule over Matamba and ended decades of warfare.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Died in Matamba
17 December 1663

Queen Nzinga died peacefully at about eighty years of age and was succeeded by her sister Barbara.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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