1. Ntinu mini a lukeni.
2. Nanga kia ntinu, his nephew or cousin.
3. — —
4. Nkuwu a ntinu, son of No. 1.
5. João I Nzinga a nkuwu, son of No. 4, baptised May 3rd, 1491, died 1509.
6. Mpanzu a nzinga (Mpanzu a kitima?), second son of No. 5, 1509.
7. Affonso I Mbemba a nzinga (Mbemba nelumbu), eldest son of No. 5, 1509-40.
8. Pedro I Nkanga a mbemba, son of No. 7, 1540-44.
9. Francisco Mpudi a nzinga, 1544-46.
10. Diogo Nkumbi a mpudi, son of No. 9, 1546-61.
11. Affonso II Mpemba a nzinga, an illegitimate son of No. 10? 1561.
12. Bernardo I, (bastard) son of No. 10, 1561-67.
13. Henrique (Nerika) a mpudi, son of No. 9, 1567-68.
14. Alvaro I o Mpanzu, Mini a lukeni lua mbamba, stepson of No. 12, 1568-74.
15. Alvaro II Nempanzu a Mini, son of No. 14, 1574-1614.
16. Bernardo II Nenimi a mpanzu, son of No. 15, 1615.
17. Alvaro III Mbiki a mpanzu, Duke of Mbamba, son of No. 15, 1615 to May 26th, 1622.
18. Pedro II Affonso Nkanga a mbiki, son of Mbiki an tumbo, Duke of Nsundi, grandson of a daughter of No. 7, 1622 to April 13th, 1624.
19. Garcia I Mbemba a nkanga, Duke of Mbamba, son of No. 18, April 1624, to June 26th, 1626.
20. Ambrosio I, October 10th, 1626, to March, 1631.
21. Alvaro IV, son of No. 17, 1631 to February 25th, 1636.
22: Alvaro V, son of No. 21, 1636-38.
23. Alvaro VI, Duke of Mbamba, August, 1638, to February 22nd, 1641.
24. Garcia II o kimbaku, (Nkanga a lukeni), Marquis of Kiwa, 1641-63.
25. Antonio I Nevita a nkanga, mwana mulaza, son of No. 24, 1663-66.
26. Alvaro VII Nepanzu a masundu, 1666-67.
27. Pedro III Nsukia ntamba of Mbula, 1667-79.
28. Alvaro VIII, 1667-78.
29. Affonso III Affonso, 1667-69.
30. Garcia III Nenganga mbemba, 1669-78.
31. Rafael I, marquis of Mpemba, 1669-75.
32. Daniel de Guzman Nemiala nia gimbuilla (?), a descendant of No. 14, 1678-80.
33. João of Mbula, brother of No. 27, 1679—(He was alive in 1710).
34. André mulaza, a descendant of No. 25, 1679.
35. Manuel Nzinga elenge, a descendant of No. 14, 1680-16—.
36. Alvaro IX Nenimi a mbemba, a descendant both of No. 14 and of No. 25.
37. Pedro IV, Nsanu a mbemba (Agoa rosada), brother of No. 36, acceded 1694, and was alive in 1710.
38. Pedro Constantino Kibangu. He was executed in 1709.
The dates given for Nos. 26-38, are for the most part very uncertain: Nos. 26, 28, 31, and 32 I believe to have resided at S. Salvador; Nos. 29, 30, 34, 35, 36 and 37, at Kibangu; Nos. 27 and 33, in Mbula.
The inhabitants of S. Thomé were granted permission in 1500387to trade as far as the Kongo river; but it is just possible that long before that time, and notwithstanding an interdict of 1504, they had felt their way southward along the coast, and had discovered that a profitable trade, not hampered by the presence of royal officials or “farmers,” might be carried on at Luandu, and up a river which, after the King of the country, was called the river of Ngola (Angola).
Several years afterwards, a representative of this Ngola, whilst on a visit at S. Salvador, suggested that missionaries should be sent to convert his master. King Manuel was nothing loth to act upon this suggestion, and entrusted Manuel Pacheco and Balthasar de Castro, both of whom were old residents in Kongo, with an expedition, whosemain object was to report on the missionary and commercial prospects in Ngola’s country, to inquire into the existence of reputed silver mines, and, eventually, to explore the coast as far as the Cape of Good Hope. On arriving at the bar of Ngola’s river (the Kwanza), B. de Castro was to go to the King’s court, where, if circumstances were favourable, he was to be joined by a priest. Pacheco himself was to return to Portugal, with a cargo of slaves, ivory, and silver.388
No report of this mission has hitherto seen the light; but we know that B. de Castro actually reached Ngola’s residence, and that he was retained there as a prisoner, until released in 1526, through the intervention of the King of Kongo. He reported that he never saw silver or precious stones anywhere in Angola.389
Ndongo is the original name of the vast territory now known as Angola, from the name or title of its ruler (Ngola) when first the Portuguese became acquainted with it. The early history of this region is involved in obscurity, but it seems that its chiefs at one time owed allegiance to the King of Kongo, whose authority was finally shaken off about the middle of the sixteenth century, the King only keeping possession of Luandu island and its valuablenjimbufishery.
Cavazzi, Antonio Laudati of Gaeta, Cadornega, and others, have published long lists of Kings of “Angola;” but nearly all the names they give are not those of the Kings, but the titles which they assumed,390and by whichthey were generally known. The full title of the King of Ndongo wasNgola kiluanji kia Samba,391and that title is still borne by the present ruler, who claims to be a descendant of the kings of old, and whoseKabasa392on the River Hamba (Va-umba or Umba) still occupies the locality assigned by the missionaries to Queen Nzinga’sKabasa, where they built the church of S. Maria of Matamba.
Cavazzi’s Matamba, however, included the whole of Queen Nzinga’s kingdom, as it existed in his day, whilst the original Matamba, as also the country known by that name in the present day, had much narrower limits. It was originally tributary to Kongo, but one of its rulers assumed the title ofKambulu, that is, King, and renounced all vassalage to his former suzerain. It existed as an independent kingdom until 1627, when the famous Queen Nzinga took prisoner the dowager Queen, Muongo Matamba, and incorporated this ancient kingdom in her own dominions.393
It may have been a Ngola kiluanji, described by Cavazzi as the son of Tumba ria ngola and of a Ngola kiluanji kia Samba, who first invaded lower Ndongo, and assigned his conquest to one of his sons. But all is uncertainty, and there exists an inextricable confusion in the names of the Kings of upper and lower Ndongo as transmitted to us.One thing, however, is certain, namely, that as early as 1520 the country down to the sea was held by a king bearing the name or title of Ngola.394
In 1556 Ngola Ineve,395being threatened by Kongo, sent an ambassador to Portugal asking for the establishment of friendly relations. This ambassador arriving in the yearof the death of King John III (1557), action was deferred until 1559, when three caravels were fitted out and placed under the command of Paulo Dias, a grandson of the discoverer of the Cape of Good Hope. Dias left Lisbon on December 22nd, 1559, and called at S. Thomé (where Bishop Gaspar Cão observed that the Jesuits, who accompanied Dias, would meet with no success as long as commercial intercourse was prohibited).396Dias arrived at the bar of the Kwanza on May 3rd, and there waited patiently for six months, when Musungu, a native chief, made his appearance at the head of a crew of painted warriors, armed with bows and arrows. In his company Dias, accompanied by the Jesuit fathers and twenty men, travelled up the country for sixty leagues, when he arrived at the royal residence.397The King, not any longer the Ngola who had asked for missionaries, but his successor,398received his visitors kindly, but would net allow them to depart until they had helped him against one of his revolted Sobas, called Kiluanji kia kwangu by Garcia Mendes.399Having rendered this service Dias was dismissed, but the Jesuits remained behind as hostages. Whilst Dias was absent in Europe, Ngola defeated an army sent against him, and thus compelled therecognition of the Dande river as his boundary, the island of Luandu alone, with its productivenjimbufishery, remaining with Kongo. Ngola ndambi died (in 1568?) before Dias returned.
After a considerable delay, Dias was sent out as “Conquistador” of the territory recently visited by him. He left Lisbon on October 23rd, 1574, with seven vessels and three hundred and fifty men, most of them cobblers, tailors, and tradesmen.400Among his officers were Pedro da Fonseca, his son-in-law, Luis Serrão, André Ferreira Pereira, and Garcia Mendes Castellobranco, all of whom subsequently won distinction as “Conquistadores.” Three Jesuit fathers (with P. Balthasar Barreira as superior), and three Dominicans accompanied him. These latter, however, not finding the country to their liking, soon sought more comfortable quarters in Kongo. Dias was authorised to grant estates (including full seignorial rights) to all such among his companions as were prepared to build a small fort at their own expense.
In February, 1575, the fleet sighted the coast near the Kwanza, and passing over the bar of Kurimba cast anchor in the fine bay of Luandu, and on February 20th Dias laid the foundations of a church.401The island, at that time, was inhabited by forty Portuguese who had come from Kongo, and a considerable number of native Christians. Its cowry fisheries yielded great profit to its owner, theKing of Kongo, who was represented by a governor.402Not finding the site originally chosen for his capital to be suitable, Dias, in 1576, removed to what is now known as the Morro de S. Miguel, and he named the new colony “Reino de Sebaste na conquista de Ethiopia,” in honour of the King who fell gloriously at Al Kasr el Kebir, and its capital S. Paulo de Luandu.
Meanwhile the customary presents were exchanged with the King, whose name or title seems to have been Ngola a kiluanji. The King’s gifts included slaves, cattle, copper and silver bracelets, and aromatic Kakongo wood. The Cardinal King D. Henrique (1578-80) converted the silver bracelets into a chalice, which he presented to the church of Belem.
Friendly relations continued for three years. The King had been duly helped against his rebellious sobas; Pedro da Fonseca lived at the King’s residence as “ministro conservador” of the Portuguese, and a brisk trade seems to have sprung up with the new town of S. Paulo de Luandu, when it was insinuated to the King that the Portuguese ultimately intended to take possession of his country, and to sell his subjects abroad as slaves. TheCatalogotraces these insinuations to the jealousy of a Portuguese trader “inspired by the Devil,” and although neither Garcia Mendes nor Abreu de Brito alludes to this infamy, their not doing so does not disprove the positive statement of theCatalogo.403Moreover, whether the King’s mind was influenced by envoys from Kongo, or by a traitorous Portuguese, it must be admitted that the intentions of the Portuguese were not altogether misrepresented.
At all events, the results were immediately disastrous, for twenty Portuguese traders, who were at the King’s kabasa at the time, were murdered, together with one thousand slaves, and their merchandise was confiscated.
Dias, before this happened, had already (in 1577) built the fort of S. Cruz,404ten leagues up the Kwanza, and was at the time at a stockade on the Penedo de S. Pedro, still higher up on the river.405When there, he was warned not to advance any further, and, suspecting treachery, he retired with his one hundred and fifty men to Kanzele (Anzele),406where he entrenched himself (in 1578). Twenty days later he received news of the massacre. Dias at once hastened back to Luandu for reinforcements, the serjeant-major, Manuel João, meanwhile valiantly defending the stockade and raiding the neighbourhood.
In September, 1580, Dias again left Luandu with three hundred men. Slowly he proceeded along the Kwanza by land and in boats, punished the sobas Muchima, Kitangombe, and Kizua, in Kisama, and defeated the King’s army at Makunde,407where he had his headquarters for two years, during which time his subordinates, João Serrão, Manuel João, and others, established his authority among the sobas of Kisama and Lamba (Ilamba).
In 1582 he removed to Masanganu, at the “meeting of the waters” of the Lukala and Kwanza. Determined tocapture the reputed silver mines of Kambambe, he set out with Luiz Serrão, eighty Portuguese, and a “guerra preta” of thirty thousand men. During his forward march he defeated the soba Mbamba Tungu; and at an entrenched camp at Teka ndungu, on February 2nd, 1584, he inflicted a crushing defeat upon the King’s forces; the Jesuit Father Balthasar Barreiro claiming no little credit for having contributed to this victory by his prayers.408As a result of this success, many of the sobas declared in favour of Portugal, but so inconsiderable were the forces at the command of Dias that he could do no more than maintain his position at Masanganu. An army under the Duke of Mbamba, which had been promised to him, was never sent.409Reinforcements, however, arrived in the course of 1584 and 1586,410and Dias fought a battle on the Lukala. But his subordinates did not always meet with a like success; and João Castanhosa Vellez, with one hundred Portuguese, was completely routed by the soba Ngola Kalungu.411
As an incident of the governorship of Paulo Dias may be mentioned the building of a fort at Benguella velho, by his nephew, Antonio Lopes Peixoto, in 1587. Unhappily, fifty men of the garrison ventured abroad, unarmed, and fell in an ambush; and of the twenty who had remained in the fort, and who offered a stout resistance, only two escaped. As a matter of fact, the losses of human life in these native wars were very considerable.
Paulo Dias died in the midst of preparations for a fresh expedition against Ngola, in October, 1589, and was buried in the church of N. S. da Victoria, which he himself had built at Masanganu.412
His soldiers elected Luiz Serrão, the captain-major, to succeed him.
Luiz Serrão, having completed his preparations, started with an army numbering one hundred and twenty eight Portuguese musketeers (with three horses), and fifteen thousand native allies armed with bows. With this utterly insufficient force he crossed the Lukala, and then advanced to the east. On Friday, December 25th, 1590, when at Ngwalema a kitambu (Anguolome aquitambo) in Ari,413he found himself face to face with the King of Matamba, whose army had been reinforced by Ngola, the King of Kongo, the Jaga Kinda,414and others. Serrão desired to retire before this overwhelming host, but his subordinate officers, André Ferreira Pereira and Francisco de Sequeira, persuaded him to attack the enemy. He did so, on Monday, December 28th, 1590, and was defeated. The retreat was effected in good order. The vanguard offorty musketeers was led by João de Velloria, then came the “guerra preta,” whilst Serrão himself commanded the rear, and fought almost daily with his pursuers. The camp at Lukanza, with its valuable contents, had to be abandoned. At length, on reaching Akimbolo,415many leagues to the rear, the fugitives met Luiz Mendez Rapozo, who had come up from Luandu with seventy-eight men. At last they reached the old presidio of Mbamba Tungu and Masanganu; Manuel Jorge d’Oliveira was at once sent down to Luandu for reinforcements, and on their arrival the siege was raised. L. Serrão survived this disaster only for a month; and when he died, his officers elected Luiz Ferreira Pereira, the captain-major, to take his place. The sobas all around, and in Lamba and Ngulungu, headed by one Muzi Zemba (Muge Asemba), were in the field, but they were held in check by Pereira, and the Portuguese name continued to be respected.
Jaga or Jaka is a military title,416and by no means the name of a people. The predatory man-eating bands at whose head they invaded the agricultural districts towards the sea coast, included elements of all kinds, not unlike the bands of the “Zulu” of our own time; and hence, one of the names by which they became known in Angola was Bangala.417I have already stated that I do not think that these military leaders, or Jaga, have anything to do with the tribe of the Ayaka to the east of Kongo. Still less can we adopt the monstrous notion that the various inland tribes who, in the course of the sixteenth century,descended upon the coast of the most opposite parts of Africa, are to be identified with our Jaga. It was João Bermudes418who first identified the Galla of Abyssinia with the Sumba, who raided the coast of Guinea about 1570. Duarte Lopez (pp. 66, 67) would have us believe that the Jaga came out of Moenemuge (Mwene muji), and called themselves Agag.419But the people of Mwene muji, or the land of the Maravi, are in reality the Zimbas, who raided Kilwa and Mombasa in 1589, whilst “Agag” looks to me like a corruption of Agau, which is the name of an Abyssinian tribe.420And hence arises this absurd confusion of Father Guerreiro, who expects us to believe that the Jaga are known in Kongo as Iacas, in Angola as Gindes,421in “India” (that is, on the East coast of Africa) as Zimbas, in Prester John’s country as Gallas, and in Sierra Leone as Sumbas! Battell, who reports facts and leaves hypotheses alone, confesses that in his day nothing was known about the origin of this dreaded people.422
We have already met with Jaga in Kongo, as allies of Ngola. In 1590 they were fighting Luiz Serrão as the allies of Matamba, and by 1600 they appear to have advanced as far as the coast of Benguella, where Battell joined them, and had an opportunity of gaining an intimate knowledge of their daily life, not enjoyed by any other traveller. H. D. de Carvalho423and A. R. Neves424have beenat the trouble of collecting such information on their origin as it is possible to gather after the lapse of three centuries. Entrusting ourselves to the guidance of the former of these authors, we learn that Kinguri, the son of the chief of the Bungo, in Lunda, was excluded by his father from the succession, in favour of his sister Lueji. Gathering around him his adherents, he left his native land to found a “state” elsewhere. He first settled in Kioko, then crossed the Upper Kwanza into Kimbundu (Binbundu of Bié), and reached Lubolo, where he made friends with the chief, Ngongo, whose daughter Kulachinga he married. He then crossed the Kwanza above Kambambe, entered into friendly relations with the Portuguese, visited the Governor, D. Manuel,425and offered to fight on the side of the Portuguese. He was granted land at Lukamba,426on the river Kamueji. Being dissatisfied with this land, on account of its sterility, he again turned to the eastward, and, crossing the Lui, finally settled in the country still occupied by his successors, who (according to Carvalho), were Kasanje, Ngonga ka mbanda, Kalunga ka kilombo, Kasanje ka Kulachinga, etc.427Having settled down, Kinguri invited his father-in-law to join him, and his forces were subsequently increased by some discontented subjects of Queen Nzinga, led by Kalungu. His followers, being thus a mixture of many tribes, the Jagas were thenceforth chosen alternately among the three leadingfamilies of Kulachinga (Kinguri’s wife), Ngongo and Kalunga.428
It is perfectly clear from this information, collected in Lunda and Kasanje, that it throws no light upon the original Jaga, although it may explain the origin of the Jaga still ruling at Kasanje.
The account given by Ladislaus Magyar429evidently refers to the same leader. According to him, a Jaga Kanguri settled in the country now occupied by the Sonyo three hundred years ago. His people were cannibals, but the more intelligent among them saw that this practice would ultimately lead to the destruction of the subject tribes upon whom they depended for support, and they founded the secret society of the Empacaceiros430for the suppression of cannibalism. Being worsted in a civil war, they crossed the upper Kwanza into Bié, whilst Kanguri turned to the north-west and settled in Kasanje.
Cavazzi seems to go further back, for he tells us that Zimbo, who was the first chief of the Jaga (Aiacca), invaded Kongo, whilst one of his chiefs, “Dongij” (Ndongo?), invaded Matamba, and that the bloody “kichile,”431or customs, were introduced by Musasa the wife, and Tembandumba the daughter, of this “Dongij.” The daughter married Kulambo, whom she poisoned; he was succeeded by Kinguri, who was killed during an invasion of Angola, Kulachimbo a great warrior, Kassanje, and manyothers; the last of whom, Kassanje ka nkinguri, was baptised in 1657.432
I confess my inability to evolve the truth out of these conflicting statements, and can only suppose that the title of “Jaga” was assumed by the leaders of predatory hordes of very diverse origin, in order to inspire terror in the hearts of peaceful tribes; just, as in more recent times, certain tribes in East Africa pretend to be Zulu for a like reason.
The new Governor, D. Francisco d’Almeida, arrived at S. Paulo, on June 24th, 1592, accompanied by four hundred foot-soldiers and fifty African horse, all picked men. Among the volunteers attending him were his brother, D. Jeronymo, Luis Lopez de Sequeira and Balthasar Rebello de Aragõa;433and perhaps also Domingos d’Abreu de Brito, who, in a “Summario e descripção do Reino de Angola,” presented to King Philip I, proposed an expedition across Africa, and the protection of the road to be opened by a chain of forts.434
The new Governor, immediately on his arrival, found himself face to face with a religious difficulty. The Jesuits, ever since the days of Dias, expected to be consulted in all government business. They desired to be appointed “preceptors” (amos) of the native chiefs, their aim being evidently to create a theocratic government, such as they established subsequently in Paraguay. They“used their spiritual influence to induce the conquered sobas to refuse obedience to the civil powers;” and when d’Almeida made use of the authority conferred upon him at Madrid in order to crush this “nascent theocracy,” he was excommunicated.435He certainly was unequal to cope with these domineering priests. Disheartened, he threw up a charge to which he felt unequal, and took ship for Brazil (April 8th, 1593).436
D. Jeronymo, at the urgent request of the Camara, took up the reins of government, and being of a more conciliatory nature than his brother, made peace with the Jesuits, and was thus able to take the field. He started with four hundred men and twenty horses, and received the submission of the sobas of Kisama, excepting the most powerful among them. On reaching the salt mines of Ndemba437he founded a “presidio,” and garrisoned it with one hundred men. On his way to the silver-mines of Kambambe he was struck down with fever, and returned to Luandu, leaving Balthasar d’Almeida de Sousa and Pedro Alvares Rebello in command of the troops. They were imprudent, and on April 22nd, 1594, fell into an ambush prepared for them by the powerful chief Kafuche kabara (Cafuxe cambara). Only the captain-major, thanks to the swiftness of his horse, and a few men, escaped this disaster.438
D. Jeronymo was on the point of hurrying up with reinforcements when João Furtado de Mendonça arrived at Luandu (August 1st, 1594). He brought with him, not only four hundred men with thirty horses, but also twelve European women,439the first ever seen in Luandu, in whose honour the town was decorated.
One of the most memorable events of his governorship was a campaign which he conducted up the river Mbengu. Starting at the worst time of the year (in March, 1496), he quickly lost two hundred men by fever. Having brought up fresh recruits from Luandu, he avenged himself for a disaster brought about by his own ignorance, by an exceptional severity in his treatment of the “rebels,” many of whom were blown from guns. This expedition kept the field for several years, and proceeded as far as Ngazi (Ingasia), the chief of which district was called Ngombe—the bullock.440
Meanwhile, João de Velloria,441the captain-major, had severely punished the rebellious sobas of Lamba. Masanganu was once more blockaded by the King Ngola (1597), until relieved by Balthasar Rebello de Aragão. On againdescending the Kwanza, he built a presidio in the territory of the chief Muchima, in Kisama (1559).442
A new Governor, João Rodrigues Coutinho, arrived early in 1602. He was acceptable to the Jesuits, and soon won the hearts of the people by his liberality. He had been authorised by the King to bestow five habits of the Order of Christ, dub five knights, and appoint thirty King’s chamberlains (moços da camara). Seven years’ receipts of the export duty on slaves were to be devoted to the building of forts at the salt mines (Ndemba), Kambambe, and in Benguela.
Six months after his arrival, the Governor took the field against the powerful chief Kafuche. His force was the most formidable that had ever been at the disposal of a Governor, numbering no less than eight hundred Portuguese. It was joined at Songo by a portion of the garrison of Masanganu. Unhappily, the Governor died before coming in contact with the enemy, and appointed Manuel Cerveira Pereira as his successor. Battell calls this man an “upstart,” and he certainly had many enemies; but he is well spoken of by the Jesuits, and was an able soldier. On August 10th, 1603, he inflicted a crushing defeat upon Kafuche, at Agoakaiongo,444on the very spot where, seven years before, the Portuguese had met with a great disaster. Overcoming the stout resistance of the chiefs of the Museke,445he arrived at the head of the navigation of the Kwanza, and there, at Kambambe, he founded the Presidio da N.S. do Rozario (1604). Having punishedseveral of the neighbouring chiefs, including Shila mbanza (Axilambanza), the father-in-law of King Ngola, and left João de Araujo e Azevedo446in command of the new presidio, Pereira returned to the coast.
S. Paulo de Luandu had by that time grown into a fine town, where commerce flourished. Unfortunately for the lasting prosperity of the colony, human beings constituted the most valuable article of export, and the profits yielded by this slave trade attracted Dutch and French interlopers, notwithstanding a royal decree of 1605, which excluded all foreign vessels from the vast territories claimed by Portugal. In 1607 there were four “Presidios” or forts in the interior, namely Muchima, Agoakaiongo, Masanganu, and Kambambe.447
We have already stated that Manuel Cerveira Pereira had many enemies, and when D. Manuel Pereira Forjaz, the new Governor, arrived towards the end of 1607, very serious accusations must have been brought against the former, for he was at once sent back to Lisbon. There, however, we are bound to assume that he refuted these accusations, for otherwise it is not likely that he would have been re-appointed Governor eight years afterwards: unless, indeed, he had friends at court who profited by his delinquencies. Forjaz himself showed to little advantage. He superseded the commandant of Kambambe by one of his own creatures, and the fort would certainly have been taken by the sobas who blockaded it, had not Roque de S. Miguel and Rebello de Aragão hastened to its relief. Forjaz, moreover, is accused of having imposed an annualtax upon the sobas, yielding from twelve to thirteen thousand cruzados, which seem to have found their way into his own pockets, and those of his favourites.448When he suddenly died in his bed, on April 11th, 1611, the bishop and the leading men called upon the captain-major, Bento Banha Cardoso, to take charge of the government. Cardoso was a man of enterprise, and successful in his undertakings, but cruel. In 1611 he defeated King Ngola. The sobas Kilonga and Mbamba Tungu, who fell into his hands, were beheaded, as were also several of their makotas. To avenge these executions, fourteen sobas of Ngola and Matamba made an attack upon Kambambe in the following year; and although that place was valiantly defended until relieved, it took a year before order was restored in the surrounding district. To keep these sobas in check, a fort (Mbaka) was built on the river Lukala (1614), eight leagues from Masanganu.449In Kisama, the territory of Nambua ngongo (Nabo angungo) was raided in the same year.
Before proceeding with our account, there remains to be noticed a serious attempt to cross the whole of Africa from the west coast to “Manomotapa,” on the Zambezi, which was made by Balthasar Rebello de Aragão, by order of D. Manuel Pereira Forjaz. Rebello de Aragão himself furnishes a very short account of this expedition,450from which we learn that he discovered copper and iron, and was told that there was also silver. The natives bred cattle and cultivated the land, and they told him of a lake,in lat. 16° S., giving rise to many rivers, including the Nile. Unfortunately, when he had advanced one hundred and forty leagues from the sea, and eighty beyond the place he started from (Kambambe?), he was summoned back, as the fort just named was threatened by King Ngola.451
In 1615, Manuel Cerveira Pereira452returned to the scene of his former labours, with special instructions to take possession of Benguella, which for a considerable time past had been visited by trading vessels. But before he started upon this enterprise, he ordered his old comrade, João (or Paio?) de Araujo e Azevedo, to deal with Kakulu Kabasa,453Mbumba (Bumba) a ndala, Kilomba kia tubia, and other revolted chiefs in Angola, whilst he himself penetrated into the country of the Kakulu Kahenda,454who had given offence by assisting fugitive slaves and interfering with traders.
Having entrusted Antonio Gonçalves Pitta with thegovernment of S. Paulo, he left that place for the South, on April 11th, 1617, with four vessels, a patacho, and one hundred soldiers.455Finding the site of the old fort near the Terra das duas Puntas unsuitable, he continued his voyage along the coast, until he came in sight of a “sombreiro,” overlooking the Bahia das Vaccas;456and there he built the fort of S. Filippe de Benguella, which in course of time developed into a city of some importance. The sobas of Ndombe, of whose territory he had possessed himself, naturally objected to the presence of these uninvited strangers, but they were compelled to submit after five defeats. The Jaga on the river Murombo likewise gave in, after three months’ fighting, but soon afterwards broke the peace, and was executed. The chief Kalunga, at the mouth of the Koporolo (Kuporol), and the cattle-keeping Mukimba in the neighbouring hills, also submitted. It scarcely admits of doubt that Pereira, in the course of his many military excursions, discovered copper, sulphur and salt,457but he was to benefit little by these discoveries. His harsh conduct and greed had estranged his people. Headed by a priest and by their officers, they mutinied, put their leader on board a patacho, and shipped him off to S. Paulo, where no notice was taken of his presence, the Governor being absent at that time, because of a native war (1618).458
Pereira once more returned to Madrid, and having explained matters to the satisfaction of the authorities, he was sent back, and again reached S. Felippe de Benguella on August 8th, 1620. He sailed north to Sumba mbela’s country, at the mouth of the river Kuvu. A couple of days inland he discovered more copper, three quintals of which he took to S. Paulo. He died in the midst of his labours. TheCatalogocredits him with having gone inland as far as Kakonda.459
We have already learned that the native sobas were handed over to the mercy of individual “conquistadores,” and Rebello de Aragão declares that these sobas were being “robbed and maltreated.” They were required by their masters to pay a tax in slaves, to furnish carriers, and render all kinds of services,460without payment. In addition to this the Governor, D. M. P. Forjaz, imposed upon them a poll-tax, which produced from twelve to thirteen thousand cruzados (say £1,650461) a year. Rebello de Aragão maintains that the native wars were largely due to this pernicious system, which enriched the Governor and his officials, whilst traders were made to suffer, and ceased to visit the “feiras” because of the extortionate demands made upon them. At Mpinda nearly all the “honest” trade had passed into the hands of the Dutch, because of the monopoly conferred upon Portuguese slave-dealers. He declares that a tax of 20 per cent. on the salt mined atNdemba would pay all the legitimate expenses of government; but that, although the export duty on slaves yielded from five to six thousand cruzados, there had not yet been built a decent house for the government offices.
Garcia Mendes Castellobranco, in a memoir462addressed to the King in 1620, is equally outspoken with regard to the treatment of the native chiefs, who, he maintains, ought not to be taxed more heavily than at the time when they were still subjects of a native king. He, too, refers to the salt mines as a source of revenue, recommends the levying of a toll at river crossings, and the expropriation of the uncultivated territory around S. Paulo.463
Many of these abuses may, no doubt, be traced to the demoralising influence of the slave-trade and the insufficient pay of the officials. A slave costing £3 7s.in the interior (or nothing, if taken in the course of one of the frequent slave raids) was sold for more than double that sum on the coast; and whilst money could be made thus easily the great natural resources of the country were neglected and the population—which, on the arrival of the Portuguese, is said to have been very considerable—shrank from year to year.464
The export duties on slaves and ivory were farmed out in 1607 to one Duarte Dias Enriques for twenty million reis annually (about £6,600).465
S. Paulo and Masanganu enjoyed municipal institutions at that time, but all outside these cities was ruled by military adventurers. The Governor (in 1607) was paid asalary of £267, but the other officials were decidedly underpaid; and thus, almost of necessity, were driven to increase their incomes by illegitimate means.466
Luiz Mendes de Vasconcellos, the new Governor, arrived in November, 1617, and almost immediately found himself involved in a war with the King of Ndongo. Nzinga mbandi ngola kiluanji,467a great tyrant, had been “removed” by his indignant subjects shortly before the arrival of the new Governor. He left behind him three daughters, one of whom, born in 1582, became famous as Queen D. Anna de Souza Nzinga, and two sons, one by a legitimate wife, the other by a slave woman. It was the latter, Ngola nzinga mbandi,468whom his partisans raised to the throne, which he reached through rivers of blood, among his victims being his own brother, a son of his sister, and many of the trusted councillors of his father. In 1618 the usurper took the field, intending to expel the Portuguese, who seem to have given provocation by shifting the old presidio of Mbaka (Ambaca) to a site much higher up the Lukala.469The Governor, ably supported by his captain-major, Pedro de Souza Coelho, not only defeated the King,but also captured his queen and many other persons of consideration. The King sued for peace, but as he failed to surrender the Portuguese whom he had taken prisoner, the war was renewed in 1619. His allies fared no better than the King himself. His vice-king of lower Ndongo, Ngola ari,470was compelled to pay a tribute of one hundred slaves annually (in 1620); and while the Governor raided the territories of Kahibalongo, Ndonga, and Kasa, his lieutenant, Lopo Soares Laço, destroyed the kilombos of the sobas Ngunza a ngombe and Bangu.
It had been recognised by this time that many of these punitive expeditions were provoked by the lawless conduct of white traders, mulattoes and negros calçados (that is, shoe-wearing negroes), who went inland on slaving expeditions; and only Pumbeiros descalços, that is, native agents or traders not yet sufficiently civilised to wear shoes, should be permitted to do so in future.471
When King Ngola nzinga mbandi heard of the arrival of João Corrêa de Souza, the new Governor, in September, 1621,472he at once sent his sister to Luandu to arrange terms of peace. This woman, then about forty years of age, proved an excellent diplomatist. When the Governor alluded to the payment of tribute, she declared that tribute could only be demanded from a conquered people, and the treaty ultimately signed was one of reciprocity: fugitive slaves were to be surrendered, and assistance to be given against common enemies.
Before this able ambassadress left Luandu, she was received into the bosom of Holy Mother Church, being baptised as D. Anna de Souza (1622); and on her return home she persuaded her brother to apply for the services of a priest, orMamaganga.473A priest was sent, but he was a native, who had been ordained at Luandu, and one of the King’s own subjects. The King looked upon this as an insult; he treated the priest with great indignity, and once more invaded the Portuguese territory. Thrice beaten, and deserted by his vassals, he fled to the island of Ndangi,474in the Kwanza river, where he died of poison administered by his own sister Nzinga, who thus avenged the murder of her son (1623).
Nzinga at once renounced Christianity, and the bloody rites of the Jaga were celebrated when she ascended her throne. She inaugurated her reign by the murder of her brother’s son, of his adherents, and her supposed enemies. Having reduced her own people to subjection, with the aid of the Jaga, she declared war upon Portugal. D. Felippe de Souza Ngola ari, the King of Ndongo recognised by the Portuguese, was at once ordered to defend the frontier, and, if possible, to invade the territories of his kinswoman. On consideration, however, it was thought best, in the interest of trade, to avoid a serious conflict. An officer was sent to the court of the Queen, offering to restore the lost provinces (and thus sacrificing their vassal D. Felippe), on condition of her acknowledging herself a vassal, and paying tribute. Theseconditions were haughtily rejected, and the war began in earnest.
João de Araujo e Azevedo was placed at the head of the Portuguese invading force.475He raided the country along the Lukala, and then turned back upon the Kwanza, occupied the islands of Ukole and Kitaka, and came up with the Queen’s camp at Ndangi Island. The Queen, having consulted the spirit of her brother Ngola mbandi,476declined to risk a battle, and fled into Hako (Oacco). The Portuguese followed in pursuit, passing through Bemba, Malemba and Kipupa, and Little Ngangela (Ganguella); came up with the Queen’s forces in the territory of soba Matima (Mathemo), and inflicted a serious defeat upon them. Among the prisoners taken were the Queen’s sisters, Kambe and Funji, and many Makotas. The pursuit was continued as far as Kina grande in Ngangela, a deep and difficult gorge, into which some of the soldiers and theguerra pretadescended by means of ropes. When the Queen fled to the kingdom of Songo, the Portuguese forces retired to the west (1627).477
The two princesses were taken to Luandu, where the Governor, Fernão de Souza, lodged them in his ownhouse. In baptism (1628), they received the names of D. Barbara and D. Engracia.
The Portuguese had no sooner retired than Queen Nzinga returned to Ndangi Island, and having been reinforced by several Jaga, she undertook the conquest of Matamba. At Makaria ka matamba she took prisoner the dowager-queen478Muongo Matamba, and her daughter. The mother was branded as a slave, and died of grief; but the daughter was taken into favour, and was baptised in 1667.
Having thus destroyed the ancient kingdom of Matamba, the Queen once more invaded Portuguese territory, but she turned back when she heard that the Jaga Kasanji was raiding her recent conquest, upon which he claimed to have prior rights.
At the same time she interfered continually with the commerce of the Portuguese with the interior; and it was only in 1636, when the Governor, Francisco de Vasconcellos da Cunha, sent D. Gaspar Borgia and Father Antonio Coelho on a mission to the Jaga in Little Ngangela, and to the Queen at her Kabasa, in Umba, that peaceable relations were established. The Queen, however, persistently refused to surrender her claims to the provinces of Ndongo which had been occupied by the Portuguese.
Punitive expeditions were frequent. In 1624 the Jaga Kasanji, who had taken advantage of the conflicts between the Portuguese and Queen Nzinga to rob Pumbeiros, was severely punished, and Captain Roque de Miguel returned from this expedition with a large number of captives, whoas a matter of course, were sold into slavery. During the provisional governorship of the bishop D. Simão de Mascarenhas479(1623-4), Lopo Soares Laço meted out punishment to the Jagas Nzenza a ngombe and Bangu-Bangu, and to the irrepressible Kafuche.480A few years later, in 1631, the captain-major Antonio Bruto waged a successful war against rebellious sobas, and more especially impressed the natives by his victory over the dreaded Mbuila anduwa (Ambuila Dua), who held out for six months in a rocky stronghold deemed impregnable. The invasion of Kongo, in 1622, by order of Governor João Corrêa de Souza, who claimed the surrender of Luandu Island and of all the copper mines, has already been referred to (see p. 123).
Among the very few measures calculated to promote the material or moral interests of the colony may be mentioned the establishment of the threefeiras, of Ndondo, Beja, and Lukamba, in 1625; the foundation of aSanta casa da misericordia(Poor-house and hospital) at S. Paulo de Luandu, by the bishop D. Simão de Mascarenhas; the compulsory cultivation of the banks of Mbengu (Bengo), when Luandu was threatened with famine owing to the non-arrival of provision ships from Brazil, in 1629;481thereform of the administration of the Royal revenue, by Fernão de Souza, in the same year; and the creation of a board of revenue (Junta da fazenda), charged with the collection of the tithes and of the tribute payable by the native chiefs, by Francisco de Vasconcellos da Cunha, in 1638.
The affairs of the missions will be dealt with subsequently, in a comprehensive manner, but a difficulty which arose in 1623 between the Governor, João Corrêa de Souza, and the Jesuits, may be dealt mentioned at once. In 1619, Gaspar Alvares,482a wealthy merchant of Luandu, placed 20,000 cruzados at the service of the Fathers, in order that they might found a seminary483for the education of twelve natives. Subsequently he himself became a member of the Society of Loyola, and devoted the whole of his fortune, amounting to 400,000 cruzados, to its purposes. The Governor not unnaturally objected to this sudden enrichment of a Society which had always been a thorn in the side of the government. Alvares himself escaped to S. Salvador, but the Prefect of the Jesuits and three Fathers were sent as prisoners to Lisbon, where they were at once liberated; whilst the Governor himself, who arrived soon afterwards, perhaps with the intention of justifying his hasty proceedings, was thrown into prison, and died in thelimoeiroin 1626.
When Philip of Spain seized upon the crown of Portugal in 1580, that unfortunate country became at once involved in the troubles between Spain and the UnitedNetherlands. No sooner had the destruction of theArmada, in 1588, enabled the Dutch to take the offensive on sea, than they began to compete for a share in the trade of the Portuguese possessions. The Dutch at first kept on the defensive, but in 1598 they and the Portuguese came into hostile collision near the Ilha do Principe; and all efforts to exclude these noxious heretics from sharing in the trade of the Kongo proved futile, more especially as the natives themselves preferred their Dutch visitors to the masterful Portuguese.484
An armistice concluded in 1609 expired in 1621. The Dutch West-India Company was founded in that very year, and thenceforth the Dutch proceeded aggressively. In 1623 they burnt severalpatachosoff the mouth of the Kwanza; in 1629 a Dutch squadron cruised during three months off the coast of Benguella and captured four Portuguese merchantmen, but failed to force their way into the harbour of Luandu. In 1633 two Dutch vessels menaced S. Felippe de Benguella, but were driven off by Lopo Soares Laço, after a stout fight, on November 15th. In 1637, Bartholomeu de Vasconcellos da Cunha, the Governor’s brother, captured a Dutch man-of-war of 24 guns. At that time the coast was being regularly patrolled by Portuguese men-of-war,485and in 1638 the foundations of the Fort S. Miguel were laid on the Morro de S. Paulo, the original site of the city of S. Paulo.
When Portugal recovered her independence, in December, 1640, D. João IV of Bragança at once sent Tristão de Mendoza Furtado to the Hague, with instructions to demand a suspension of hostilities. The West-India Company, which profited largely from a state of war,declared in favour of a definite treaty of peace, but objected to the conclusion of an armistice. The Portuguese envoy had no authority to sign such a treaty; but after protracted negotiations an armistice for ten years was signed on June 23rd, 1641, which was to take force outside Europe as soon as it became known there.
Meantime, the directors of the West-Indian Company had instructed Count John Moritz of Nassau to take advantage of the momentary weakness of Portugal, after her war of liberation, to seize all he could before the terms of the treaty became known.486Count Moritz, being desirous to increase the supply of slaves for the plantations in Brazil, determined to seize upon Luandu. A fleet of twenty-one vessels was at once fitted out at Pernambuco, and placed under the command of Cornelis Cornelissen Jol, surnamed Houtebeen, or “Wooden leg.” It was manned by nine hundred sailors, and had on board two thousand troops, commanded by Jeems Hindersen. This formidable armament left Pernambuco in June 30th, 1641, sighted Cabo Negro on August 5th, and having captured theJesus Maria, on a voyage from Madeira, was by her piloted into the harbour of Luandu. On August 24th the Dutch fleet unexpectedly appeared off S. Paulo, surprising its inhabitants in the midst of their rejoicings at the accession of the “liberator king.” S. Paulo, at that time, was a city of twenty thousand inhabitants, including three thousand Portuguese; but the Governor, Pedro Cezar de Menezes, though he was at the head of nine hundred white troops, offered only a feeble resistance; and, accompanied by many of the citizens, he withdrew to the river Mbengu, and subsequently to Masanganu. The bootywhich fell into the hands of the Dutch included thirty ships and ninety-eight cannon.
They lost no time in gaining the goodwill of the neighbouring sobas, sent an embassy to the King of Kongo (see p. 125), and entertained offers of alliance from Queen Nzinga. Aki musanu (Aca mochana) and Nambu a ngongo (Nabo a ngongo), who had risen upon the Portuguese, were joined by one hundred and fifty Dutchmen, and thus enabled to overcome their enemies, whose leaders, André da Costa and João Vieira, they killed (1642).
In the following year (1643) information was received that the truce had been signed, but the Dutch director very naturally declined to surrender the town. He agreed, however, to suspend hostilities. Pedro Cezar had been instructed by his government to avail himself of the first opportunity to recover the city,487and it was evidently with a view to this eventuality that he established a camp on the river Mbengu. The Dutch suspected his treacherous design, and at dawn on May 26th, 1643, they surprised his force. Many Portuguese were killed (including Antonio Bruto), while Pedro Cezar himself, Bartholomeu de Vasconcellos da Cunha, and one hundred and eighty seven soldiers were taken prisoner. The remainder escaped to Masanganu. The forces assembled there under the captain-major, Antonio de Miranda, were unable to retrieve this disaster, but the Governor, aided by friends, managed soon afterwards to escape.
But though unequal to meeting the Dutch in the field, the Portuguese were still able to enforce their authority upon the natives; and in 1645 Diogo Gomes de Morales led an expedition into Lubolo and Mbalundu (Bailundo), and reduced thekolombosof thirty “Jagas” to obedience.
In 1645, the Portuguese of Brazil, under the leadership of João Fernandez Vieira, rose upon their Dutch oppressors, and in the same year the Dutch occupied S. Felippe de Benguella. The garrison under Antonio Teixeira de Mendonça, the captain-major, and Antonio Gomez de Gouvea, an experiencedsertanejo, or backwoodsman, retired northward along the coast. On reaching Kikombo Bay, on July 27th, 1645, they met there Francisco de Sotto-maior, just arrived from Rio de Janeiro with reinforcements. By advice of Gomez, the troops and stores were landed in Suto Bay, near Cabo ledo, and conducted by him in three detachments to Masanganu, without the Dutch becoming aware of their arrival. The Governor, Pedro Cezar de Menezes, returned by the same route to Rio, taking with him a cargo of slaves.
These reinforcements arrived just in time to be employed against Queen Nzinga. That lady had set a black and a white cock to fight each other, and the defeat of the white cock was looked upon by her as a favourable augury for venturing an attack upon Masanganu. But Gaspar Borges de Madureira fell upon her before her forces had been concentrated (January, 1646). She suffered a severe defeat, notwithstanding the presence of Dutch auxiliaries. Her sisters once more fell into the hands of the Portuguese. D. Engracia was strangled soon afterwards for an act of treachery, whilst D. Barbara was kept in honourable captivity until 1657.488
Meanwhile the Dutch had made preparations for an advance up the Kwanza. They had built Fort Mols at the mouth of the river, and another fort higher up. The Governor, Francisco de Sotto-maior, having died of fever in May, 1646, measures for a spirited defence were taken by the three captains-major, Bartholomeu deVasconcellos da Cunha, Antonio Teixeira de Mendonça, and João Juzarte de Andrada. Muchima, which had been furiously assaulted by the Dutch, was relieved by Diogo Gomes de Morales. But in the following year the Portuguese suffered a reverse at Kawala (Caoalla), and Masanganu itself was threatened by the combined forces of Queen Nzinga, Kongo, and the Dutch.
However a saviour was at hand in this extremity. On August 12th, 1648, Salvador Corrêa de Sá Benevides,489with nineteen vessels, having on board nine hundred soldiers, cast anchor in the harbour of Luandu, and summoned the Dutch to surrender within forty-eight hours. On their refusal he landed his troops, and after a short bombardment of Fort S. Miguel, to which the Dutch had withdrawn, early on August 15th he delivered an assault, which cost him one hundred and sixty three men, but led to the surrender of a garrison numbering one thousand one hundred men, including French and German mercenaries. When these prisoners had been joined by the three hundred Dutchmen who were with Queen Nzinga, and the garrison of Benguella, which surrendered without a blow, they were shipped off to Europe. The city, in memory of the event, assumed the name of “S. Paulo da Assumpção de Loanda,” for it was on the Day of Ascension of the Virgin Mary that a seven years’ captivity ended. The anniversary of that event is celebrated to the present day by a religious procession.
No time was lost in restoring the authority of Portugal throughout the colony. The King of Kongo was compelled to accept a treaty by which Luandu Island and thewhole of the country to the south of the Dande river were unconditionally surrendered, and other advantages held out (p. 128). Queen Nzinga, although she declined the overtures of Captain Ruy Pegado490for a formal treaty, retired inland, and gave no trouble for a number of years. As to the sobas of Lamba, Kisama, Lubolo, and the Modiku islands, they were visited by punitive expeditions commanded by Antonio Teixeira de Moraes, Diogo Mendes de Morales, Vicente Pegado de Pontes, and Francisco de Aguiar.
Order having been restored, the Governor, Salvador Corrêa de Sá, caused the ruined buildings to be repaired, and granted crownland to the inhabitants for houses and gardens. In a very short time prosperity returned, and the trade of Luandu was as flourishing as ever it had been.491
But although the Portuguese were masters on shore, the Dutch, and occasionally also French or English “pirates” frequented the coast. In 1650 Alvaro d’Aguiar defeated five of these interlopers, who had made prizes of two ships on a voyage from Brazil; in 1651 João Duque was killed in an action with Dutch men-of-war; in 1652 João de Araujo drove away the Dutch from Mpinda and Luangu; in 1658 the same officer made a prize of a English slaver off Benguella. A second English slaver was captured in 1659 by João Cardoso, who also captured a Dutch vessel off the Kongo in 1661. In 1662 the definite treaty of peace between Portugal and Holland was signed, and “pirates” are no longer heard of; although Dutch vessels providedwith passes, or favoured by the Governors, seem to have been admitted to Portuguese ports.