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The Kingdom of Kongo Embraces Christianity

Type Event Region Africa Time 1486

Around 1486, after exchanges of diplomatic missions with Portugal, the Kongo court began systematic contact with Catholicism: Nzinga a Nkuwu admitted…

Timeline

  1. 1486Lower Congo River · KongoFollowing the establishment of relations via the 1483 diplomatic mission, Portugal sent Franciscan and other clergy who arrived in the Kingdom of Kongo aboard merchant ships, were admitted to the capital Mbanza Kongo, and introduced Catholic doctrine and European customs to the court.
  2. 1486–1487Court of Mbanza Kongo · KongoCrown prince Mvemba Nzinga (later Afonso I) and some noble youths studied Latin, the Bible, and Christian rites under the missionaries' guidance; some were baptized first, and the court began adopting religious symbols such as the cross.

Sources