Angolan Wars

Angolan Wars
	From top to bottom, left to right: 17th century map of northwestern Angola; Meeting between Queen Nzinga and governor João Correia de Sousa; Dutch capture of São Tomé and Luanda; General History of Angolan Wars;
Date	September 1579 – 7 September 1683; (103 years, 11 months, 3 weeks and 2 days)
Location	Angola
Result	Portuguese victory Portugal annexes Ndongo, Nambuangongo, Ambuíla and Libolo; Portugal vassalizes Matamba; Dutch attempts to capture Angola repulsed; Civil War in Kongo;
Belligerents
Portuguese Empire; Kongo (till 1622) ;	Ndongo; Kongo (1622 on); Matamba; Kasanje (till 1639); Libolo; Dutch West India Company; Quissama tribes
Commanders and leaders
Paulo Dias de Novais; Bento Banha Cardoso; Luís Mendes de Vasconcelos; João Correia de Sousa; Salvador Correia de Sá; Luís Lopes de Sequeira †; Filipe de Sousa	Kia Kasenda ; Mbandi Ngola; Ngola Mbandi; Queen Nzinga; Francisco I of Matamba; Verónica of Matamba; Pedro II of Kongo; António I of Kongo †; João Hari of Ndongo; Kasanje; Cornelis Jol; Cornelis Nieulant; Thymen Pietersen

The Angolan Wars were a long series of conflicts in modern-day Angola between Portugal and the Kingdom of Ndongo, the Kingdom of Kongo, the Kingdom of Matamba, the Kingdom of Kasanje, the Kingdom of Libolo and the Dutch West India Company, that lasted from 1579 to 1683.

Paulo Dias de Novais founded Luanda in 1576 and hostilities broke out three years later when the king of Ndongo had the Portuguese merchant community in his capital massacred. Conflict then gradually drew in every neighbouring power along with the Dutch West India Company. Though few in number, the Portuguese fielded heavier equipment but more importantly were able to mobilize large numbers of African auxiliaries to their cause, and their support proved vital to the success of operations in the harsh African hinterland. Queen Nzinga distinguished herself by forging "the largest coalition of angolan states in the 17th century" against the Portuguese, who ultimately emerged as the main power in the region in spite of severe adversity.

These conflicts radically altered the balance of power in the region and marked it deeply. They were recorded primarily by António de Oliveira Cardornega in General History of the Angolan Wars, an epic narrative in three volumes that followed the style of Portuguese chronicles of Asian and American conquest.