In the 6th century AD, the Bantu, migrating from other regions in the north, for instance what is the present day Cameroon, settled in Angola. While the Bushmen were predominantly hunters, the Bantu were skilled in metal work. Because they regarded themselves as more advanced, the Bantu were able to establish their influence over the Bushmen. The Bushmen responded to this intrusion in different ways. While some got assimilated by the Bantus, others moved away to the Southern region of Africa.
The Spread of Bantu Influence
While the Bantus took a long time to establish themselves in Angola, their occupation led to the rise of different groups with distinct ethnic characteristics. Two such groups are the kingdom of Kongo and the kingdom of Donga. The name Angola was borrowed from the Donga kingdom that referred to their king as ngola.
The Kongo kingdom, which was composed predominantly of farmers, was located in the North. Aristocrats known as the 'mani' wielded power in the Kongo kingdom and were only answerable to the king. Essentially, the Kongo kingdom was separated into six distinct provinces.
On the other hand, the kingdom of Dongo was located in the south. Because of agricultural success and mineral wealth exploitation, the kingdoms were able to venture into trade.
Arrival of the Portuguese
In the 1400s the Portuguese arrived in Angola primarily for trading purposes. In addition to the minerals, the kingdom of Kongo also supplied slaves and ivory. In exchange the Portuguese supplied them fire arms and other industrial products. This marked the beginning of the lucrative slave trade. The Portuguese needed the slaves to work in their sugar plantations back at home and in Brazil. Like the rest of Europe, Portugal was undergoing the agrarian revolution hence the high demand for cheap labor to work in the plantations.
In order to keep the supply of the slave’s constant, the king employed agents who were known as pombieros. The duty of the pombieros was to exchange the slaves for such items as cloth and wine. The slaves who were known as pecas were the locals; men, women and children were forcefully captured and sold off to the Portuguese. It wasn’t until around 1575 that Angola was established as a Portuguese colony. Luanda became Angola’s capital city in 1605.
Angola's Brazilian Trade
Apart from trading with the Portuguese, Angola also traded with Brazil. As a result, most of the ships that docked on such Angolan harbors located in Luanda and Benguela were from Brazil. Slaves were the primary commodity in this trade. However, the slave trade began to decline in the 18th century. There were two major reasons for this.
Firstly, the demand for slaves fell sharply. The trade in ivory , peanut oil, coffee and cocoa replaced the slave trade. Secondly, because of the embargo placed on the slave trade placed by western countries, trade was no longer profitable.
Sources:
Angola. (2009). Encyclopedia of the Nations.
History of Angola. (2009). History World.
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