Editing Malabo (section)

=== Spanish definitive control and new capital ===
In 1844, when Queen [[Isabella II of Spain]] ruled after the regency of her mother Maria Cristina and [[Baldomero Espartero]], in an attempt to modernize Spain and rescue its heritage, Spain let the UK know its desire to regain control of the colony and thus the island. It took another decade to implement this direct control. The capital already had more dynamic and Protestant religious missions which were very successful. Both factors helped to change the attitude of Spain, in addition to internal reasons already alluded.

Spain again took control of the island in 1855 and the capital, Port Clarence, was renamed ''Santa Isabel'', in honor of Queen [[Isabella II of Spain|Isabella II]].<ref name="Adrian2013" /> The capital of the island of [[Bioko|Fernando Pó]] became the capital of Equatorial Guinea.

Its present name was given to the town in 1973 as part of the campaign of President [[Francisco Macías Nguema]] to replace [[toponymy|place name]]s of European origin with African names, in this case honoring [[Malabo Lopelo Melaka|Malabo Löpèlo Mëlaka]], the last [[Bubi people|Bubi]] king. Malabo, the son of King [[Moka]], surrendered to the Spaniards. His uncle Sas Ebuera, head of the Bubi warriors, claimed to represent legitimate Bubi rule and continued resisting, confronting the Spanish openly in 1898.<ref>
{{cite book|page=58|title=The Human Tradition in Modern Africa|volume= 49|series=Human tradition around the world|author=Dennis D. Cordell|year=2012|editor=Dennis D. Cordell|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield, 2012|isbn=978-0742537323|via=Google Books|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3WqKbRSk7S8C}}</ref> After the Spanish killed Sas Ebuera, Malabo became the king unopposed, but with no authority. Bubi clans and settlements were slow to accept Spanish sovereignty over the island, and the full conquest and pacification of the island was not achieved until 1912.{{cn|date=January 2025}}