Lesson

3
MAIN IDEAS
Government A Bantu-speaking group settled
along the west coast of southern Africa and
established the Kongo kingdom.

Culture Kongo developed a strong trading

relationship with the Portuguese, which brought
great changes to the kingdom.

Culture Kongo became increasingly involved in

the slave trade, which eventually caused turmoil
and instability in the kingdom.

TAKING NOTES
Reading Skill:
Understanding Cause and Effect
A cause is an action that makes something happen.
An effect is the event that results from a cause.
As you read Lesson 3, use a chart such as the one
shown here to identify the causes and effects of
interaction between Kongo and Portugal. ▲ Kongo Figure This wooden
sculpture portrays a leader of
the Kongo kingdom.
Causes Effects

Skillbuilder Handbook, page R26

Words to Know
Understanding the following words will help you read this lesson:
initial happening at strained pushed by instability the condition
the beginning; first resentment nearly to of being unsteady or
(page 197) open conflict (page 198) undependable (page 199)
They were equal in the The strained relationship Fighting among political
initial stages of their between the two kingdoms leaders created instability
relationship, but that was a result of the increased in the government.
changed as time went on. slave trade.

194 • Chapter 6
 TERMS & NAMES

The Kongo
Kongo
Mbanza
Afonso I

Kingdom
Build on What You Know In this lesson, you will read
about a kingdom that rose to power in central Africa and became
one of the first African civilizations to interact with Europeans.
As you will learn, the two groups came into conflict over the
issue of slavery.

A Kingdom Arises on the Atlantic

ESSENTIAL QUESTION How did the Kongo kingdom begin?
As you read earlier, many Bantu-speaking groups migrated from west-
central Africa throughout the southern part of the continent. This
process started sometime around 1000 B.C. During the 14th century, a
Bantu-speaking people known as the Kongo settled along the western
coast of Africa and established a mighty kingdom known as Kongo
Kongo.

The Growth of Kongo The Kongo settled just north of the

mighty Congo River, which flowed for nearly 3,000 miles before The Mighty Congo
emptying into the Atlantic Ocean. The Kongo took advantage The Congo River is
of the area’s fertile soil, iron and copper ore, good fishing, and the second longest
the transportation possibilities of the Congo River. By the 15th river in Africa after
the Nile River. It is a
century, the Kongo had moved south of the Congo River and
major transportation
imposed their rule over the region’s inhabitants. The territory route for the people
they now held became known as the Kongo kingdom. of central Africa. ▼

195
 The Kongo Kingdom The center of the Kongo kingdom was
its capital city, Mbanza
Mbanza. From there, the Kongo rulers established a
highly organized kingdom. The village was the basic political unit
of the kingdom. A group of villages made up a district. Districts
were grouped together into six provinces. The king appointed leaders
known as governors to rule each province.
The king was also in charge of the Kongo economy. The kingdom’s
people mined iron and copper for their own use and for trade. They
also produced pottery and clothing. The king required the provinces to
pay taxes every six months. The provinces often made their payments
with cowrie shells, a colorful seashell used for money in Kongo.

How was the Kongo kingdom organized?

Kongo and Portugal

ESSENTIAL QUESTION How did interaction affect Kongo and Portugal?
As the Kongo kingdom thrived, great changes were taking place
throughout the world. In Europe, the 1400s marked the beginning of an
Age of Exploration. As you will learn in later chapters, this was a time
when European expeditions sailed the oceans to explore new lands.
Portugal, a small country located west of Spain on the Atlantic
Ocean, led the way. In the early 1480s, Portuguese explorers sailed
down the western coast of Africa and encountered the Kongo kingdom.
This interaction would bring many changes and eventually great
difficulties for Kongo.

r
Kongo Kingdom, 1500
ve
Ri
o)

e (C on g 5°S
Zair

0 50 100 miles

0 50 100 kilometers Mbanza

Mpinda
K wa n

Portugal to Kongo Route, c. 1500

go R
iver

PORTUGAL
EUROPE

ATLANTIC
A TLA N TI C OCEAN Kongo Kingdom
OC E A N Copper deposit
Cu
an
AFRICA za
Riv e r
GEOGRAPHY SKILLBUILDER
10°S
INTERPRETING MAPS
route of N
Portuguese Location What geographic feature
explorers W E would have helped the Kongo trade
KONGO
with groups farther inland?
S

196 • Chapter 6
 Cultural Interaction Initial relations between the Portuguese and
Kongo people were good. The two groups quickly engaged in active
trade. Kongo offered copper, iron, and ivory to Portugal. In return, the
Portuguese provided guns, horses, and various manufactured goods.
The leaders of Kongo also were receptive to the Christian religion
practiced by the Portuguese. As the two groups traded goods, the
Portuguese began sending missionaries to the Kongo kingdom.
Missionaries are people who travel to other lands seeking to gain
converts to their faith.

The Rule of Afonso Portuguese influence in Kongo increased when

Nzinga Mbemba became ruler of the kingdom in 1506. The new king took
the European name Afonso I and sought to copy many Portuguese
ways. He made Roman Catholicism the official religion of Kongo. He
also gave the capital of Mbanza a Portuguese name, São Salvador.
In addition, Afonso altered Kongo’s political system to reflect
European traditions. He appointed dukes and counts and required
them to wear Western-style clothing. Afonso learned to read and write
Portuguese and sent many of his subjects to get an education in Portugal.
As much as Afonso and his people admired the Portuguese, their
good relationship did not last. What eventually drove the two groups
apart more than anything else was the growing desire among the
Portuguese to use Africans as slaves.

How did Afonso increase Portugal’s influence in Kongo?

Afonso I (? – about 1543)

Afonso used his ties with the Portuguese to try to strengthen
his kingdom. In one letter to Portugal’s king, he requested
doctors for the “many and different diseases which put us
very often in such a weakness.”
However, Afonso’s willingness to provide slaves ultimately
ruined his good intentions. As the Portuguese hauled away
more and more Africans, Kongo and the surrounding region
suffered. Afonso eventually tried to stop it. “Merchants
daily seize our subjects,” he wrote the Portuguese ruler.
“So great, Sir, is their corruption . . . that our country is
being utterly depopulated.” His pleas for a halt, however,
did little good.
An artist’s interpretation of King Afonso
▲

197
 Kongo and the Slave Trade
ESSENTIAL QUESTION What were the causes and effects of the slave
trade between Kongo and Portugal?
Kongo had begun supplying the Portuguese with enslaved Africans
early in their trade relationship. The Portuguese wanted slaves to work
on the overseas lands that they had conquered. In return for providing
enslaved Africans, Kongo rulers received European goods they desired.
However, Portugal’s demand for slave labor continued to grow. This led
to increasingly strained relations with the Kongo kingdom.

Growth of Slavery As Portugal interacted with Kongo,

Portuguese sailors continued their voyages of exploration. In the
1470s, the Portuguese had claimed the island of São Tomé off the
west coast of Africa. There, they established huge sugar fields in order
to satisfy Europe’s growing desire for sugar. These fields required the
labor of many workers. As a result, the Portuguese pressured Kongo
for more and more African slaves.
The growth of the slave trade began to drain the population of
West Africa. As a result, Afonso eventually voiced his opposition to
the practice. He urged the Portuguese king to stop. However, his pleas
did little good. By the time Afonso died in 1543, the Portuguese
were enslaving thousands of Africans each year. The relationship
between Kongo and Portugal had begun as a trading partnership Enslaved Africans
that benefited both sides. However, the increasing slave trade This engraving shows
a group of Africans
eventually caused this relationship to collapse. In 1561, the
being forcibly led
Kongo kingdom cut itself off from Portugal. away to slavery. ▼

198 • Chapter 6
 The Kingdom Struggles The Kongo kingdom experienced a
period of instability after Afonso’s death. Beginning in the late 1560s,
Kongo forces went to war with a neighboring kingdom. Then they had
to battle an invasion by a nearby group called the Jaga. Unable to win,
the Kongo asked the Portuguese for help. With the aid of Portuguese
troops, the Kongo were able to fight off the Jaga. The kingdom slowly
regained its stability during the early 1600s.

What event weakened Kongo after the death of Afonso?

Lesson Summary
• During the 14th century, a Bantu-speaking group
established the Kongo kingdom.
• The arrival of the Portuguese had a strong impact on
the economy, religion, and politics of the Kongo.
• The slave trade caused the collapse of relations
between the Kongo kingdom and Portugal.

Why It Matters Now . . .

The African slave trade continued and led to the enslavement
of Africans around the world. Their descendants are part of the
population in numerous countries.

3 Homework Helper
ClassZone.com
Terms & Names Main Ideas
1. Explain the importance of 3. What role did the location of Kongo play in its
Kongo Mbanza Afonso I interaction with the Portuguese?
4. How did the early relations between Kongo and
Using Your Notes Portugal benefit both groups?
Understanding Cause and Effect Use your 5. How did the slave trade hurt relations between
completed chart to answer the following question: the Kongo kingdom and Portugal?
2. What was an economic effect of the interaction
between Kongo and Portugal? Critical Thinking
6. Making Inferences What did the organization
of their kingdom say about the Kongo people?
Causes Effects
7. Understanding Cause and Effect How
did Portuguese culture influence the Kongo
kingdom?

Making a Map Using the map on page 196, sketch the boundaries of the Kongo kingdom on the
world map you have created. Then use the map on pages A6–A7 of the Atlas to determine what
country or countries occupy this area today.
Central and Southern Africa • 199