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Annotated Map of Influence: Portugal and The Kingdom of Kongo

Influence of Portugal on Kongo

The Portuguese had a massive influence on the Kongolese people. This started a few years after the Portuguese first traveled to Kongo, with Kongolese King Alfonso voluntarily converting to Christianity, with many of the Kongolese following his move. Alfonso also allowed Christian missionaries to come to his country, and allow his people to learn more about Christianity. Kongo remained Christian for the next 200 years, with the Kongolese people being in constant contact with religious figures like priests. This influence is evident in the use of the crucifix throughout their religion and art.

Slavery had existed in Kongo long before the arrival of the Portuguese, but after a few decades, Kongo became a major source of slaves for Portuguese traders. Letters from King Alfonso show clear references to slave markets and refer to the selling and purchasing of slaves in Kongo, as well as the capture of war prisoners that were sold to the Portuguese as slaves. Many of the slaves given to the Portuguese were war captives from Kongo's expansion. King Alfonso had a large influence on the slave trade happening between the Portuguese and the Kongolese and believed that the slave trade should follow the Kongolese law. Because of this, when he suspected the Portuguese of illegally receiving slaves, he wrote to the Portuguese King, about putting a stop to it, and established a group to determine if slaves were being legally sold or not.

Influence of Kongo on Portugal

The black arrow represents the influence that the Portuguese had on the Kongolese. It is thicker as they had more influence, like the slave trade and the push for the Kongolese to convert to Christianity.

Legend

The purple arrow is thinner compared to the black one, as the Kongolese had less of an influence on the Portuguese.

The blue arrows represent the conflict/cooperation between the two countries. For years they mutually benefited from each other and got along well. The conflict was also mutual.

In the beginning, the Portuguese and Kongolese got along peacefully and had trade routes set up before the Portuguese had even settled in Kongo. They traded many things, including; copper, salt, wild animal products, cloth, and slaves. The Kongolese traded enslaved prisoners from neighboring regions to the Portuguese, who in turn took them to other countries, like Europe. The Kongolese also voluntarily accepted Christianity for multiple reasons; the main one being that they shared many of the same beliefs with the Portuguese, about magic, the supernatural, and the treatment of illnesses. It also helped that their king at the time, King Alfonso, wrote in Portuguese which helped people with the transition.

Cooperation between Portugal and Kongo

After years of peaceful trade, conflict began to arise between the Portuguese and Kongolese. Kongo's government originally benefited from helping the Portuguese find slaves, but this eventually backfired as when the Portuguese’s demanded for slaves exceeded the supply, they began to forcefully enslave Kongolese people. Even though Kongolese King Alfonso sent many letters asking the King of Portugal to end the enslavement of his people, he was ignored and the relationship between Portugal and Kongo continued to deteriorate. In the 1550s the Portuguese decided to ignore the trade deals they had with the Kongolese by going further into Africa to buy slaves from other regions. This leads the Kongolese king to expel the Portuguese from Kongo.

Conflict Between Portugal and Kongo

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Work Cited

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