Ana Nzinga

ANA NZINGA THE FORMIDABLE AFRICAN QUEEN

Queen Ana Nzinga (1583-1663) of Ndongo and Matamba (modern day Angola) is among the most powerful and memorable rulers in African history, remembered for her formidable fight against European colonization in Africa. Nzinga was first assigned to peace negotiations between the Kingdom of Ndongo and the new Portuguese governor in 1621 where she made it known that hers was a powerful nation that would defend itself against European encroachment. Nzinga refused to pay tribute to the Portuguese King, arguing that Ndongo had not been conquered: “He who is born free should maintain himself in freedom, and not submit to others… [B]y paying tribute her king… would become [a] slave instead of free.” 4

In 1624, Nzinga succeeded to the throne as a strong leader whose priority was to ensure the independence of her kingdom, forming strategic alliances with Portugal

that ended slave raiding in her kingdom and helped repel her African enemies. She later allied with the

Dutch to drive out the Portuguese. To reinforce her military power, Nzinga offered sanctuary to runaway slaves and Portuguese-trained African soldiers, using kliombo, a military form where youths are raised in communal militias and renounce family ties. 5

In a well-known story revealing her character, eyewitness Giovanna Cavazzi recounts that Nzinga was refused a chair during negotiations with the Portuguese governor. Rather than sitting on the floor, she responded to this challenge of her authority and ordered her servant to crouch. Refusing humiliation and reasserting her status, Nzinga sat on the servant’s back, eye-level with the governor. Nzinga turned Matamba into a significant trading power, a legacy for which Angolans remember her today.

TATUM BERGEN INTERNATIONAL STUDIES MAJOR