Long before borders cut Central Africa into countries, one of its greatest states stood on both banks of the lower Congo River: the Kingdom of Kongo. Its history is real, rich and still too little known. It is also the root of the ISOLELE Universe.
A kingdom on the great river
The Kingdom of Kongo rose around the 14th century in what is today Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo. Its king carried the title of Manikongo, and its provinces paid tribute to the capital. Kongo traded, minted its own currency of nzimbu shells and organized a large territory around its rivers and roads.
Mbanza Kongo, the royal capital
The capital, Mbanza Kongo, sat on a plateau in what is now northern Angola. Its historic center has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 2017. It was the seat of kings, the place where the court met and where the history of the kingdom was kept.
Afonso I and the letters to Portugal
King Afonso I, also called Nzinga Mbemba, ruled in the early 1500s. In 1526 he wrote to the king of Portugal to complain that the slave trade was emptying his land of its people. His letters are among the oldest written African voices against the slave trade.
Kimpa Vita, the prophetess
At the start of the 1700s, after years of civil war, a young woman named Kimpa Vita, also called Dona Beatriz, preached the reunification of Kongo. She was burned in 1706. In the ISOLELE Universe she returns as Kimpa Vita, the Flame of Forgotten Queens.
Kongo in the ISOLELE Universe
ISOLELE builds a royal bloodline on this memory. King Zola Kongo, the Lion of the Sacred Flame, is the first earthly king of the celestial Kongo bloodline, father of Kimoya Kandake and grandfather of Zaiire, the Prince of Kongo. Read the saga in Zaiire: The Prince of Kongo.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where was the Kingdom of Kongo?
On both sides of the lower Congo River, in parts of today’s Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo and Republic of Congo, with its capital at Mbanza Kongo.
Who was Afonso I of Kongo?
A king of Kongo in the early 1500s, also called Nzinga Mbemba, who wrote to the king of Portugal in 1526 against the slave trade.
Is there a comic book about the Kingdom of Kongo?
Yes. The ISOLELE Universe, created in Kinshasa, tells the story of the heirs of Kongo in Zaiire: The Prince of Kongo.
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