Editing History of Angola (section)

== Kingdom of Ndongo ==
[[Image:Queen Nzinga 1657.png|thumb|[[Queen Nzinga]] in peace negotiations with the Portuguese governor in [[Luanda]], 1657]]
To the south of the Kingdom of the Kongo, around the river Kwanza, there were various important states. The most important of these was the [[Kingdom of Ndongo]] or Dongo, ruled by the ''ngolas'' (chief or king). At the time of the arrival of the Portuguese, Ngola Kiluange was in power. By maintaining a policy of alliances with neighbouring states, he managed to hold out against the foreigners for several decades but in the late 1620s was eventually beheaded in [[Luanda]]. Years later, the Ndongo rose to prominence again when Jinga Mbandi ([[Queen Jinga]]) took power in 1631. A wily politician, she kept the Portuguese in check with carefully prepared agreements. After undertaking various journeys she succeeded in 1635 in forming a grand coalition with the states of [[Matamba]] and Ndongo, Kongo, [[Kassanje]], [[Dembos]] and [[Kissamas]]. At the head of this formidable alliance, she forced the Portuguese to retreat.

Meanwhile, Portugal had lost its King and the [[Portuguese succession crisis of 1580|Spanish took control of the Portuguese monarchy]]. By this time, focus on Portugal's overseas territories had taken secondary importance. The [[Dutch Empire|Dutch]] took advantage of this situation and occupied Luanda in 1641. Jinga entered into an alliance with the Dutch, thereby strengthening her coalition and confining the Portuguese to [[Massangano]], which they fortified strongly, sallying forth on occasion to capture slaves in a later war. Slaves from Angola were essential to the development of the [[Colonial Brazil|Portuguese colony of Brazil]], but the traffic had been interrupted by these events.

Portugal having [[Portuguese Restoration War|regained its independence]], a large force from Brazil under the command of [[Salvador Correia de Sá]] retook Luanda in 1648, leading to the return of the Portuguese in large numbers. Jinga's coalition then fell apart; the absence of their Dutch allies with their firearms and the strong position of Correia de Sá delivered a deadly blow to the morale of the native forces. After Jinga died in 1663, the King of Congo committed all his forces in an attempt to capture the island of Luanda, occupied by Correia de Sá, but they were defeated and lost their independence. The Kingdom of Ndongo submitted to the Portuguese Crown in 1671.