Portuguese Angola
Angola, 1655–1975. Draft, not yet reviewed
Portuguese Angola was a historical colony of the Portuguese Empire (1575-1951), the overseas province Portuguese West Africa of Estado Novo Portugal (1951-1972), and the State of Angola of the Portuguese Empire (1972-1975). In 1575, the Portuguese established the settlement of Luanda on the coast south of the Kongo Kingdom. Between 1580 and the 1820s, well over a million people from present-day Angola were exported as slaves to the New World, mainly to Brazil, but also to North America. In 1951, the Portuguese Colony of Angola became an overseas province of Portugal.
Seat of power: Luanda
No rulers documented for this era yet.
Culture
- São Miguel fort was built in 1576 by Paulo Dias de Novais. It became the administrative center of the colony in 1627.
- During Dutch rule in Angola between 1641 and 1648, the fort was known as Fort Aardenburgh.
- It was a major site for slave traffic that was exported to Brazil.
- During the period of Portuguese colonial rule of Angola, cities, towns and trading posts were founded, railways were opened (notably the Benguela Railway), ports were built, and a Westernised society was being gradually developed.
Picture
Fortaleza de São Miguel was a Portuguese fortress built in 1576 in the Ingombota District of Luanda, Angola.
Image: Erik Cleves Kristensen, CC BY 2.0, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.