Matamba , historical African kingdom on the Cuango River northeast of Luanda , Angola . Founded by Kimbundu-speaking people ( see Mbundu ) before the 16th century it was up to about 1550 loosely under the orbit of the Congo Kingdom . The Matamba kingdom was notable in that it was frequently ruled by women. In the years 1630-1632 it was conquered by Njinga Mbande (often referred to simply as Njinga, also spelled Nzinga, Jinga, or Ginga; also known by her given name Ana de Sousa ), ruler of the neighbor Ndongo kingdom when it was being driven from some of its territories by rivals and their Portuguese allies. Matamba served as Njinga's main base in the long war with Portugal and his Ndongo rival Ngola a Hari. A 1656 treaty ended the war and established Matamba's border with the Portuguese colony of Angola. Njinga had no children and after a civil war in 1666, Matamba was ruled by the descendants of their general João Guterres Ngola Kanini. Matamba ranked with the neighboring Kasanje- Kingdom for control of the Cuango Valley until Queen Verónica Guterres Ngola Kanini settled border issues and regulated the new kingdom. Matamba then maintained generally peaceful relations with Portugal, only occasionally interrupted by war, as in 1744 when Portuguese troops invaded and defeated a Matamba army before retreating, what to impose a Nominals led Vassalage to Queen Ana II Guterres da Silva Ngola Kanini. In a succession dispute after the death of Ana III Guterres in 1767, the state was split in two by a rivalry between her nephew Francisco II Kaluete ka Mbandi and her daughter Kamana, who however, was later reunited by Kamana's son.
Britannica Quiz Exploring Africa:Fact or Fiction? Though this continent is teeming with natural resources and diverse wildlife, how much do you really know about Africa? Sort these facts from Cairo to Khartoum in this African odyssey. During the 19th century before all after 1830-the Portuguese started to encroach aiming at Matamba's western provinces expansion of their coffee plantations, leading to the construction of a fort at Duque de Bragança (now Calandula) in 1838. Matamba participated in a series of wars in 1909 but Portuguese expansion in the 1890s the kingdom became the focus of a Portuguese expedition stop and eventually became integrated to Portuguese colony Angola.