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Njinga of Angola: Africa’s Warrior Queen
Though largely unknown in the Western world, the seventeenth-century African queen Njinga was one of the most multifaceted rulers in history, a woman who rivaled Elizabeth I and Catherine the Great in political cunning and military prowess. Linda Heywood offers the first full-length study in English of Queen Njinga's long life and political influence, revealing how this Cleopatra of central Africa skillfully navigated--and ultimately transcended--the ruthless, male-dominated power struggles of her time.
In 1626, after being deposed by the Portuguese, she transformed herself into a prolific slave trader and ferocious military leader, waging wars against the Portuguese colonizers and their African allies. Surviving multiple attempts to kill her, Njinga conquered the neighboring state of Matamba and ruled as queen of Ndongo-Matamba. At the height of her reign in the 1640s Njinga ruled almost one-quarter of modern-day northern Angola. Toward the end of her life, weary of war, she made peace with Portugal and converted to Christianity, though her devotion to the new faith was questioned.
Who was Queen Njinga? There is no simple answer. In a world where women were subjugated by men, she repeatedly outmaneuvered her male competitors and flouted gender norms, taking both male and female lovers. Today, Njinga is revered in Angola as a national heroine and honored in folk religions, and her complex legacy continues to resonate, forming a crucial part of the collective memory of the Afro-Atlantic world.
In 1626, after being deposed by the Portuguese, she transformed herself into a prolific slave trader and ferocious military leader, waging wars against the Portuguese colonizers and their African allies. Surviving multiple attempts to kill her, Njinga conquered the neighboring state of Matamba and ruled as queen of Ndongo-Matamba. At the height of her reign in the 1640s Njinga ruled almost one-quarter of modern-day northern Angola. Toward the end of her life, weary of war, she made peace with Portugal and converted to Christianity, though her devotion to the new faith was questioned.
Who was Queen Njinga? There is no simple answer. In a world where women were subjugated by men, she repeatedly outmaneuvered her male competitors and flouted gender norms, taking both male and female lovers. Today, Njinga is revered in Angola as a national heroine and honored in folk religions, and her complex legacy continues to resonate, forming a crucial part of the collective memory of the Afro-Atlantic world.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2017
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About the author
Linda M. Heywood
10 books8 followersLinda M. Heywood is Professor of History and African American Studies at Boston University.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
December 29, 2021
I was fascinated to learn about this major political figure of the 17th century. I also appreciated discovering more about Angola at this time. The tone was scholarly, a bit dry, but very informative. 3.5 stars
July 26, 2017
Informative book about an important historical figure little known in the Anglophone world. I think that more could have been done to disentangle the account of Njinga's religious practices from the self-serving tales of Christian missionaries. The author has a tendency to view Njinga's adoption of Christianity late in life as a sincere conversion, while treating her earlier adoption of the Imbangala cult as tactical. And I am skeptical of some of the descriptions of Imbangala practices, which hardly come from disinterested sources. Still, a work of serious scholarship, and there is little else to read on Njinga in English.
April 17, 2019
Absolutely mindblowing biography of the 17th century leader you didn't know existed
At the urging of a good friend familiar with Linda Heywood and her work I read this book not knowing what to expect at all. The biography exploded any expectations I possibly could have made. Njinga is, as Heywood emphasizes beginning and end, every bit as significant a figure as her contemporary Elizabeth I of England, in European history as well as that of the larger world. Njinga's life is a story of gut wrenching ferocity in equal parts with heart wrenching desperation. Her decades long struggle against the Portuguese takes enough twists and turns to put John Foxe's Elizabethan hagiography to shame. There's hardly a point in her life when Njinga's life's work, not to mention her literal life, was in mortal peril.
At the same time, Heywood unrolls the maddening sequence of central African colonization. Local governors realize only after decades that they've utterly destroyed and depopulated the region beyond further exploitation, and even so their European rulers ignore them. I got the heavy impression of a multi century crime against humanity being a game of monopoly to its instigators. The Dutch, Jesuits and Vatican all appeared to take turns at a tragedy with what is now a monstrous and well known end.
Njinga is without qualification the most fascinating historical figure I've read of and this book is indispensable to any understanding of early modern history.
At the urging of a good friend familiar with Linda Heywood and her work I read this book not knowing what to expect at all. The biography exploded any expectations I possibly could have made. Njinga is, as Heywood emphasizes beginning and end, every bit as significant a figure as her contemporary Elizabeth I of England, in European history as well as that of the larger world. Njinga's life is a story of gut wrenching ferocity in equal parts with heart wrenching desperation. Her decades long struggle against the Portuguese takes enough twists and turns to put John Foxe's Elizabethan hagiography to shame. There's hardly a point in her life when Njinga's life's work, not to mention her literal life, was in mortal peril.
At the same time, Heywood unrolls the maddening sequence of central African colonization. Local governors realize only after decades that they've utterly destroyed and depopulated the region beyond further exploitation, and even so their European rulers ignore them. I got the heavy impression of a multi century crime against humanity being a game of monopoly to its instigators. The Dutch, Jesuits and Vatican all appeared to take turns at a tragedy with what is now a monstrous and well known end.
Njinga is without qualification the most fascinating historical figure I've read of and this book is indispensable to any understanding of early modern history.
January 21, 2020
The fact that Njinga of Angola has become a heroine of freedom in Angola helps us to demonstrate the poisonous way in which the desire to oppose European imperialism leads people to talk up the importance of those whose behavior is far, far more wicked and evil than that of the imperialists they consider beneath contempt. This book is certainly competently written, but just as certainly the book is itself evidence of and a testament to the political interests of the contemporary world that can sometimes overwhelm the proper perspective of the writer. To be sure, the story is interesting, but Njinga is not only an interesting historical figure but is also an abhorrent example of African heathen religious thought whose failures as a leader and whose destructive political ambitions are themselves just as relevant to the troubles of contemporary Angola as her opposition to Portugal is an inspiration to contemporary imperiaphobes. In short, I do not think that the author is writing about someone who is as significant as the author thinks, nor do I think that the author has done enough to avoid the problem she complains about concerning the way that Njinga has served the interests of those who have written about her.
This book is about 250 pages or so and is divided into seven chapters. The introduction to this book reveals the author's unfulfilled ambition to write the first "serious biography" of the subject in English-language historiography, an aim that is hindered by her desire to place the subject in a particular focus on questions of identity politics and feminism and colonialism. After that the author writes about the Ndgongo Kingdom and the rise of Portuguese interests in Southwestern Africa (1) as well as the crisis involving the problems of succession that led to the rise of Njinga (2). After that the author discusses Njinga as a defiant queen seeking to reject bowing to superior Portuguese military forces and their native allies (3), as well as the treacherous politics that involved the uncertainty of lords who did not find her a more compelling sovereign than the Portuguese (4). After that the author discusses the warfare and diplomacy that Njinga undertook during decades as a tribal ruler (5), the balancing act that involved appeasing bloodthirsty heathen cults while also inviting Capuchin missionaries to spread Catholicism (6), and the subject's death and her efforts to pass her throne in order to later generations (7). After this the author writes about the literary afterlife of Njinga in European historiography (because there apparently wasn't an African historiography to celebrate her during the course of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries), after which there is a glossary, list of names, chronology, notes, acknowledgements, illustration credits, and an index.
Throughout history people have been written about because they have served the agendas of those who write, and that is certainly the case here. The author may think that she is superior on a moral basis than those writing biased broadsides about bloodthirsty heathen African rulers, but the story here is essentially the same, only the author praises the bloodthirstiness of Njinga because it came from a non-Christian religious worldview (which are apparently the only ones that a contemporary historian can praise or endorse) and because it shows a feminism that the author (but not the reader) considers admirable. As a result, the author comes off at times like a partisan hack who lacks the self-awareness to see that she is no better than the hacks of previous generations who wrote politically motivated screeds to support their own partisan agendas. This book has higher production values, to be sure, but not any greater insights into history, as it is limited most by the author's lack of recognition of the way that an anti-European bias hinders the understanding of Portugal's lengthy and frequently successful empirebuilding in Angola over the course of around four centuries. Had the author had even a tenth of the favor towards Portugal and European efforts to build empires that she does for bloodthirsty and ambitious heathen African chieftains, this would be a far better book.
This book is about 250 pages or so and is divided into seven chapters. The introduction to this book reveals the author's unfulfilled ambition to write the first "serious biography" of the subject in English-language historiography, an aim that is hindered by her desire to place the subject in a particular focus on questions of identity politics and feminism and colonialism. After that the author writes about the Ndgongo Kingdom and the rise of Portuguese interests in Southwestern Africa (1) as well as the crisis involving the problems of succession that led to the rise of Njinga (2). After that the author discusses Njinga as a defiant queen seeking to reject bowing to superior Portuguese military forces and their native allies (3), as well as the treacherous politics that involved the uncertainty of lords who did not find her a more compelling sovereign than the Portuguese (4). After that the author discusses the warfare and diplomacy that Njinga undertook during decades as a tribal ruler (5), the balancing act that involved appeasing bloodthirsty heathen cults while also inviting Capuchin missionaries to spread Catholicism (6), and the subject's death and her efforts to pass her throne in order to later generations (7). After this the author writes about the literary afterlife of Njinga in European historiography (because there apparently wasn't an African historiography to celebrate her during the course of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries), after which there is a glossary, list of names, chronology, notes, acknowledgements, illustration credits, and an index.
Throughout history people have been written about because they have served the agendas of those who write, and that is certainly the case here. The author may think that she is superior on a moral basis than those writing biased broadsides about bloodthirsty heathen African rulers, but the story here is essentially the same, only the author praises the bloodthirstiness of Njinga because it came from a non-Christian religious worldview (which are apparently the only ones that a contemporary historian can praise or endorse) and because it shows a feminism that the author (but not the reader) considers admirable. As a result, the author comes off at times like a partisan hack who lacks the self-awareness to see that she is no better than the hacks of previous generations who wrote politically motivated screeds to support their own partisan agendas. This book has higher production values, to be sure, but not any greater insights into history, as it is limited most by the author's lack of recognition of the way that an anti-European bias hinders the understanding of Portugal's lengthy and frequently successful empirebuilding in Angola over the course of around four centuries. Had the author had even a tenth of the favor towards Portugal and European efforts to build empires that she does for bloodthirsty and ambitious heathen African chieftains, this would be a far better book.
June 26, 2021
I first came across the name Nzinga when every second woke person on Twitter was using the name, but I was never curious about it 😄 Turns out, I needed to be, because woke people already knew something about this amazing woman.
This book fixed the deficit in my knowledge very smartly. Written by an academic, it's nevertheless very accessible; except, you may find the shifting political alliances in 17th century Angola as bewildering and eventually stultifying as I did. Never mind those, though: Njinga is a fascinating character, and her life makes for a compelling read.
I was also very intrigued, after reading through most of the book, to see parallels between the use of the myth of Njinga to create a nationalist icon in 1970s Angola, and Zimbabwe's historical and also recently revived myth-making around Nehanda. I got to thinking again about the Western insistence on written history being "real" (To whom?), and "accurate" (By whose standards? Interpreted by whom?). How forcing a people to speak the coloniser's language disrupted/distorted/*destroyed* oral tradition. Much of what was written about Njinga over the two centuries after her rule came from Portuguese missionary sources, who of course had their own agenda. It is interesting that the MPLA may have reverted to local historical sources, but created a myth for their own agenda, too. Maybe history must always be disputed, and narratives must always have a purpose?
Regardless, very much worth educating yourself about this larger-than-life southern African woman of history. I feel as proud of her as if her blood runs in my veins -- even if she was an occasional cannibal, and sent people off into slavery.
This book fixed the deficit in my knowledge very smartly. Written by an academic, it's nevertheless very accessible; except, you may find the shifting political alliances in 17th century Angola as bewildering and eventually stultifying as I did. Never mind those, though: Njinga is a fascinating character, and her life makes for a compelling read.
I was also very intrigued, after reading through most of the book, to see parallels between the use of the myth of Njinga to create a nationalist icon in 1970s Angola, and Zimbabwe's historical and also recently revived myth-making around Nehanda. I got to thinking again about the Western insistence on written history being "real" (To whom?), and "accurate" (By whose standards? Interpreted by whom?). How forcing a people to speak the coloniser's language disrupted/distorted/*destroyed* oral tradition. Much of what was written about Njinga over the two centuries after her rule came from Portuguese missionary sources, who of course had their own agenda. It is interesting that the MPLA may have reverted to local historical sources, but created a myth for their own agenda, too. Maybe history must always be disputed, and narratives must always have a purpose?
Regardless, very much worth educating yourself about this larger-than-life southern African woman of history. I feel as proud of her as if her blood runs in my veins -- even if she was an occasional cannibal, and sent people off into slavery.
March 10, 2025
Não tem como dar menos que 5. Livro muito bem fundamentado e cheio de referências bibliográficas. Impressiona.
Talvez não tenha impressionado quem buscasse uma rainha exemplo de defesa dos negros africanos. Foi uma rainha astuta e corajosa. Também foi pragmática e defendeu seus interesses com brutalidade e manteve o comércio de escravos negros como era a tradição.
Um exemplo de líder forte, mas não revolucionou coisa alguma.
O livro mais interessante sobre a África até agora e um dos melhores sobre aquele período.
Recomendo.
Talvez não tenha impressionado quem buscasse uma rainha exemplo de defesa dos negros africanos. Foi uma rainha astuta e corajosa. Também foi pragmática e defendeu seus interesses com brutalidade e manteve o comércio de escravos negros como era a tradição.
Um exemplo de líder forte, mas não revolucionou coisa alguma.
O livro mais interessante sobre a África até agora e um dos melhores sobre aquele período.
Recomendo.
December 2, 2021
This book is a more scholarly biography than popular biography so it's missing some of the sweeping "placement in greater time and place" and cultural commentary that I normally like in my nonfiction. That all said, it's laser-focused on a fascinating life that doesn't get talked about in the US and I'd love more biographies that exposed me to history that didn't get touched on at all in my schooling.
December 28, 2022
This book was a bit dense to read, but incredibly well researched and informative. I love that someone devoted the time to researching and writing on a female African leader. I learned a great deal about the history of the Angolan kingdoms from reading this book.
Read
March 28, 2024“Njinga demands to be presented as the complex human being that she was, and given her rightful place in world history.” such a sick biography!
December 25, 2025
Read for college, I wish there was more emotion for Njinga, and again it was a historical biography, but I wish it really went into her mind, get to understand her as a player both as a queen, and also as a warrior. But alas, there was telling rather then showing....
July 3, 2021
Njinga of Angola tells the story of one of the most legendary, skillful, and consequential leaders in modern African history—Queen Njinga of Ndongo-Matamba. Queen Njinga was not just a stunningly calculating politician and ruler who defied gender norms and used competing cultures for her own aims, she was *the* central figure in organizing African resistance to total Portuguese domination in the region during the 17th Century. This book does a really good job detailing the development of Queen Njinga’s Kingdom—the Kingdom of Ndongo—situating it in the middle of Portuguese efforts to control the entire region, including the powerful Kingdom of Kongo. The book also does a really good job showing how and why Queen Njinga is represented differently by Europeans and Africans. Europeans simultaneously saw her as both the picture of African savagery and Euro-colonial success (as Queen Njinga both viciously fought against Portugal and often engaged in extremely vile acts in order to consolidate her power, but died a Catholic and ruler of a Christianizing state). Africans, however, saw her as the epitome and symbol of resistance and the standard of Central African culture. In a way, all sides are correct, as Queen Njinga’s life demonstrated how one person can manipulate multiple cultures, practices, political aims, and peoples for her own personal ends.
This book also places the tragic story of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade—the primary economic engine of both the Portuguese and the Central African rulers of the day, including Queen Njinga—as the subtext of the story. In doing so, the author makes clear that despite her legendary status as an African ruler and champion of African culture and traditions, Queen Njinga engaged and collaborated with European powers (both the Portuguese and the Dutch) in the trade of her fellow Africans into chattel slavery. This, and other dark aspects of Queen Njinga’s story, ultimately come together to present a well-rounded depiction of a deeply complicated ruler. I highly recommend this book for anybody who wants to learn about the history of Central Africa during the early stages of European contact.
This book also places the tragic story of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade—the primary economic engine of both the Portuguese and the Central African rulers of the day, including Queen Njinga—as the subtext of the story. In doing so, the author makes clear that despite her legendary status as an African ruler and champion of African culture and traditions, Queen Njinga engaged and collaborated with European powers (both the Portuguese and the Dutch) in the trade of her fellow Africans into chattel slavery. This, and other dark aspects of Queen Njinga’s story, ultimately come together to present a well-rounded depiction of a deeply complicated ruler. I highly recommend this book for anybody who wants to learn about the history of Central Africa during the early stages of European contact.
August 3, 2018
Phenomenal! A biography worthy of such a powerful and courageous leader. Ambitious, dominant, confident, dynamic, calculating, resourceful, vicious and intelligent- a Warrior Queen in every sense of the title. Extremely strong, focused and highly honorable woman anyone can learn from and respect. For me the most attractive and human aspect of Njinga's person is that she was tough as nails and put her nation's welfare and future above all. Heywood's book has brought Njinga's incredible story into the forefront and helped sweep aside critical European viewpoints of her as a savage, whore, witch and blood-thirsty deviant. She presents readers with the life and character of a remarkable woman who risked all, even life itself, to protect her people. Ostracized by her people, Njinga proved herself a capable, witty and proud person who galvanized and inspired people around her to fight back against the Portuguese slave trade and for the preservation of Angola and Matamba. Resilient beyond belief, Njinga certainly belongs on the list of Women who made History. Devout with a first-rate military-mind, she represents people who are able to achieve greatness regardless of their social backgrounds. Her legacy is that of bravery, the unrelenting warrior spirit and standing for national honor by any means necessary. I was amazed when having first read about her in Joyce Hansen's "African Princess"in the 7th grade. Her story instilled a deep-rooted pride for my own African heritage. Fellow readers will find themselves gripped, intrigued, motivated and astounded by the determination and widespread influence Njinga had not only in her own time but even now and generations to come.
January 22, 2019
Trata-se de uma biografia da Rainha Nzinga, rainha guerreira que no e do interior da hoje Angola fez a cabeça em água aos portugueses entre 1624, quando se torna rainha e 1663, ano da morte. O texto do livro é extenso, por vezes difícil de seguir, com muitas datas e com nomes de intervenientes que confundem o leitor. Apresenta, contudo, uma outra visão do que se passou naqueles anos em África e sobretudo a história de uma mulher que foi capaz de resistir aos seus e aos portugueses usando a guerra, a diplomacia e a religião.
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November 7, 2019This reads like a PhD dissertation — full of facts and citations but so dense and detailed that the energy of a fascinating story can get suffocated.
October 20, 2020
Muito bom e rigoroso. Mas, talvez por isso mesmo, talvez não agrade nem aos leitores portugueses, nem aos angolanos e brasileiros que costumam mitificar a rainha.
August 20, 2025
SIX WORD REVIEW: Saw both the savage & diplomatic side.
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March 13, 2021The legendary queen Njinga has been getting more attention in the past several years, certainly Heywood has played a role in that. Heywood and Thorton’s work about the Angola connection in the early American colonies caught my attention a while back. I wanted to learn more about her and the society that she lived in, as it was a connection to colonial American history.
Njinga’s modern appeal is that she fought against colonization. She was a fierce leader on the battlefield and a shrewd negotiator. She knew how to turn the screws by creating diplomatic pressure and how to handle high stakes negotiations with people who would stab her in the back if they had the chance. Njinga was tough, in charge and exceptional in many ways.
That being said, Heywood is fair in showing that Njinga functioned in a reale politik environment to maintain her autonomy against the pernicious Portuguese. While Njinga does resist Portuguese slavers at times in her life, other times she’s willing to make a deal, including trading in slaves. At the center of her mission was maintaining her inherent superiority within her society. Heywood makes a convincing interpretation that at her core was maintaining her royal identity within the Mabundu lineage. She was also skilled at speaking on multiple levels. After the Portuguese took her kingdom of Ndongo, she converted to Imbangala, rising through the ranks to become a captain. She later invited the Capuchin missionaries to bring Catholic traditions to her kingdom of Matamba. She ruled over subjects of different religious orientations and won many over.
When her Christian sister, who was a hostage to the Portuguese, was returned to Njinga’s kingdom, she was traded for one hundred and thirty slaves. While Njinga might have surrendered traditions like human sacrifice, she was integrating the Portuguese slave economy into her lands that would in turn ensure her family’s agency within the regional power structure. And of course, the role of the slave trade would continue drain the region for many centuries to come. It was interesting, that when she did adopt Christianity fully during this time, she symbolically dropped her battle axe, surrendering in a sense to the Portuguese, it was making a compromise. She had to accept she would not be the dominate power in the region. In this compromise, she also ensured that her kingdom would not pay any tribute to the Portuguese, they would be on equal footing. I wouldn’t consider her a champion of human rights but she is a champion of national sovereignty and female empowerment.
While this is a biography of Njinga, therefore centered on her, understanding the broader diplomatic context in her story is important, especially if you don’t know much about the broader history before reading this biography. I felt the book needed a tad more context in this aspect. Chiefly, as the Kingdom of Kongo to the north, would have served as a guide to Njinga understanding how to position herself against the Portuguese on the diplomatic front. Just as Njinga had sought to bypass the Portuguese and establish a direct diplomatic communications with the Vatican, the kingdom of Kongo had done this several decades before. The description of the Kingdom of Kong is peripheral and having more about it gives a broader context to the situation and Njinga’s decision making.
Heywood also takes some pretty firm stances on some of the questionable information in order to tell a story fluidly, rather than derail the narrative by explaining the limitations in the historical information available. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with that but readers should know there are slightly different interpretations on some major aspects of Angolan history. For example, historical sources about the Imbangala are from bias Catholic sources and while they might have elements of truth, they are described as evil and it seems unfair to not explain the lack of information on the Imbangala before they get cast as the spooky ones in the historical narrative.
A question the book left me was the changes in the social dimension from Njinga’s birth and childhood to the end of her life in the 1650s and 1660s. The lands she lived in saw a great deal of destruction. The tears she and her people shed when she spoke at church of her life said something to me about the collective trauma they had endured together. It would be interesting to know more about how the cycle of violence that destabilized the region did it endorse changes in cultural norms of violence or dehumanization of others during Njinga’s lifetime? She said she was not perfect, but in dire times of her age, she guided her people pragmatically with a long-term plan to ensure their dignity.
Njinga’s modern appeal is that she fought against colonization. She was a fierce leader on the battlefield and a shrewd negotiator. She knew how to turn the screws by creating diplomatic pressure and how to handle high stakes negotiations with people who would stab her in the back if they had the chance. Njinga was tough, in charge and exceptional in many ways.
That being said, Heywood is fair in showing that Njinga functioned in a reale politik environment to maintain her autonomy against the pernicious Portuguese. While Njinga does resist Portuguese slavers at times in her life, other times she’s willing to make a deal, including trading in slaves. At the center of her mission was maintaining her inherent superiority within her society. Heywood makes a convincing interpretation that at her core was maintaining her royal identity within the Mabundu lineage. She was also skilled at speaking on multiple levels. After the Portuguese took her kingdom of Ndongo, she converted to Imbangala, rising through the ranks to become a captain. She later invited the Capuchin missionaries to bring Catholic traditions to her kingdom of Matamba. She ruled over subjects of different religious orientations and won many over.
When her Christian sister, who was a hostage to the Portuguese, was returned to Njinga’s kingdom, she was traded for one hundred and thirty slaves. While Njinga might have surrendered traditions like human sacrifice, she was integrating the Portuguese slave economy into her lands that would in turn ensure her family’s agency within the regional power structure. And of course, the role of the slave trade would continue drain the region for many centuries to come. It was interesting, that when she did adopt Christianity fully during this time, she symbolically dropped her battle axe, surrendering in a sense to the Portuguese, it was making a compromise. She had to accept she would not be the dominate power in the region. In this compromise, she also ensured that her kingdom would not pay any tribute to the Portuguese, they would be on equal footing. I wouldn’t consider her a champion of human rights but she is a champion of national sovereignty and female empowerment.
While this is a biography of Njinga, therefore centered on her, understanding the broader diplomatic context in her story is important, especially if you don’t know much about the broader history before reading this biography. I felt the book needed a tad more context in this aspect. Chiefly, as the Kingdom of Kongo to the north, would have served as a guide to Njinga understanding how to position herself against the Portuguese on the diplomatic front. Just as Njinga had sought to bypass the Portuguese and establish a direct diplomatic communications with the Vatican, the kingdom of Kongo had done this several decades before. The description of the Kingdom of Kong is peripheral and having more about it gives a broader context to the situation and Njinga’s decision making.
Heywood also takes some pretty firm stances on some of the questionable information in order to tell a story fluidly, rather than derail the narrative by explaining the limitations in the historical information available. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with that but readers should know there are slightly different interpretations on some major aspects of Angolan history. For example, historical sources about the Imbangala are from bias Catholic sources and while they might have elements of truth, they are described as evil and it seems unfair to not explain the lack of information on the Imbangala before they get cast as the spooky ones in the historical narrative.
A question the book left me was the changes in the social dimension from Njinga’s birth and childhood to the end of her life in the 1650s and 1660s. The lands she lived in saw a great deal of destruction. The tears she and her people shed when she spoke at church of her life said something to me about the collective trauma they had endured together. It would be interesting to know more about how the cycle of violence that destabilized the region did it endorse changes in cultural norms of violence or dehumanization of others during Njinga’s lifetime? She said she was not perfect, but in dire times of her age, she guided her people pragmatically with a long-term plan to ensure their dignity.
October 5, 2022
Queen Njinga was a powerful 17th-century ruler of Ndongo who came into power “through her military prowess, skillful manipulation of religion, successful diplomacy, and remarkable understanding of politics,” (pg. 1). Despite these facts, Linda M. Heywood’s Njinga of Angola is the only English-language biography about her. How can this be? Heywood challenges traditional conceptions of Njinga. Previous European accounts focused on the conquests that she has done, which have reductively illustrated her in a narrow way. In fact, the main aspect Europeans have taken from her story was her “barbarity, bloodthirsty nature, wanton sexuality and cannibalism” (pg. 248). Heywood addresses this remiss account and seats Njinga with other great women leaders at the table. Focusing on themes such as “resistance, power, leadership, gender, and spirituality” (pg. 3), Heywood adds to existing historiography that Njinga and other Africans were not passive victims of European colonization.
Heywood addresses how the perceptions that the Portuguese had of Njinga shaped the political interactions between Njinga and other Europeans. Heywood points out how the Portuguese resisted Njinga’s political influence based on her gender. One Portuguese diplomat, Fernãno de Sousa, despised her. To delegitimize and antagonize Njinga, he elected her half-brother Hari a Kiluanje to take the Ndongo throne, declaring that “a woman had never governed this kingdom” (pg. 71). Even with attempts from Njinga to compromise, de Sousa still undermined her. When Njinga “indicated… that she was willing to become a vassal of the Portuguese king… de Sousa expected [her] to give up on any claim to the lands and throne of Ndongo and accept Ngola Hari as the legitimate king,” (pg. 98). De Sousa ignored both the traditions and norms of the Ndongo by refusing to see Njinga as a legitimate agent in her kingdom's politics. Heywood demonstrates that de Sousa’s promotion of Hari reflected such indifference. Not only was Hari not the rightful heir, the people never took him seriously, as they “regarded the king not as an ordinary person but as a divinity with the ability to provide for the well-being of his people,” (pg. 117). Hari had not been viewed in the same esteem as Njinga. Therefore, Hari was “Ngola” only in name.
Heywood spends a great deal of time on illustrating how Njinga possessed great leadership abilities and qualifications. As a child, she had unusual the favor of her dad as she “was allowed to attend the numerous judicial, military and other councils over which her father presided,” (pg. 58). She also served as an official envoy in October 1621 under her brother Ngola Mbande. He knew that “she harbored political ambitions, had a loyal following among some important factions in Ndongo and… was intent on rebuilding Ndongo and limiting” (pg. 50) Portuguese advancement. Such experiences helped shape her political cunning and ability to lead her people when she came into full power. In fact, Njinga still maintained a considerable influence while she was exiled. Heywood notes that “she was able to persuade many reluctant sobas in eastern Ndongo and the neighboring kingdoms to join her cause and to keep her whereabouts secret.” (pg. 87) The fact that she united people in and outside of her kingdom to resist the Portuguese is no small feat.
Njinga of Angola is a phenomenal biography; however, it is not without a shortcoming. While Heywood does a fantastic job in the epilogue explaining the evolution in the European depictions of Njinga to the reclaimed ones of the Angolans, it would have been interesting to get the historiography from scholars. How was she depicted by these historians over the past few centuries? Were there aims to humanize her and get the truth or was it all speculation and drama?
Regardless of this one flaw, this biography deserves to be sold in stores with other biographies. I too share the hope with the author that Njinga will one day “take her place in popular history alongside her near contemporaries” (pg. 257) such as Catherine the Great and Queen Elizabeth the II. She is just as worthy of recognition and respect.
Heywood addresses how the perceptions that the Portuguese had of Njinga shaped the political interactions between Njinga and other Europeans. Heywood points out how the Portuguese resisted Njinga’s political influence based on her gender. One Portuguese diplomat, Fernãno de Sousa, despised her. To delegitimize and antagonize Njinga, he elected her half-brother Hari a Kiluanje to take the Ndongo throne, declaring that “a woman had never governed this kingdom” (pg. 71). Even with attempts from Njinga to compromise, de Sousa still undermined her. When Njinga “indicated… that she was willing to become a vassal of the Portuguese king… de Sousa expected [her] to give up on any claim to the lands and throne of Ndongo and accept Ngola Hari as the legitimate king,” (pg. 98). De Sousa ignored both the traditions and norms of the Ndongo by refusing to see Njinga as a legitimate agent in her kingdom's politics. Heywood demonstrates that de Sousa’s promotion of Hari reflected such indifference. Not only was Hari not the rightful heir, the people never took him seriously, as they “regarded the king not as an ordinary person but as a divinity with the ability to provide for the well-being of his people,” (pg. 117). Hari had not been viewed in the same esteem as Njinga. Therefore, Hari was “Ngola” only in name.
Heywood spends a great deal of time on illustrating how Njinga possessed great leadership abilities and qualifications. As a child, she had unusual the favor of her dad as she “was allowed to attend the numerous judicial, military and other councils over which her father presided,” (pg. 58). She also served as an official envoy in October 1621 under her brother Ngola Mbande. He knew that “she harbored political ambitions, had a loyal following among some important factions in Ndongo and… was intent on rebuilding Ndongo and limiting” (pg. 50) Portuguese advancement. Such experiences helped shape her political cunning and ability to lead her people when she came into full power. In fact, Njinga still maintained a considerable influence while she was exiled. Heywood notes that “she was able to persuade many reluctant sobas in eastern Ndongo and the neighboring kingdoms to join her cause and to keep her whereabouts secret.” (pg. 87) The fact that she united people in and outside of her kingdom to resist the Portuguese is no small feat.
Njinga of Angola is a phenomenal biography; however, it is not without a shortcoming. While Heywood does a fantastic job in the epilogue explaining the evolution in the European depictions of Njinga to the reclaimed ones of the Angolans, it would have been interesting to get the historiography from scholars. How was she depicted by these historians over the past few centuries? Were there aims to humanize her and get the truth or was it all speculation and drama?
Regardless of this one flaw, this biography deserves to be sold in stores with other biographies. I too share the hope with the author that Njinga will one day “take her place in popular history alongside her near contemporaries” (pg. 257) such as Catherine the Great and Queen Elizabeth the II. She is just as worthy of recognition and respect.
March 9, 2023
About Queen Njinga, the Mubundu leader of the kingdom of Ndongo (northern Angola), this biography traces her life through the 17th century as she fights against the Portuguese to save her kingdom. Njinga’s story is like many stories of native leaders of African countries during the colonial period, but unlike most of those stories, she succeeds.
Njinga fought to protect her kingdom against the colonists before being ousted and replaced by a Portuguese-friendly puppet. But she doesn’t stop there, creating a marriage alliance with the Imbangala people (a brutal militaristic culture that practices cannibalism). The exiled queen then makes herself the head war chief of the tribe.
As war chief, she manages to conquer a neighbouring kingdom and reestablish herself. From there, she reconquers much of her family’s lost land. Cowed by her military power, tactics and diplomacy, the Portuguese agreed to recognise her kingdom and treat her as an equal.
She then fully embraced Christianity and converted her whole population to Christ. She even tried to get the pope to recognise her as an equal to European powers (unsuccessfully, unfortunately). Oh, and she does this all between the ages of 40- 80, with her leading her multi-gender armies until the ripe old age of 75.
She was a master at using religion for her political vision, moulding, combining and deconstructing Christian and local practices to maintain cultural identity and her footing amongst the dominant European powers.
After her death, the Portuguese spread disinformation and fake news about her, crafting her as a barbaric, inhuman creature to justify and glorify Portuguese colonisers.
Don’t get me wrong, she had flaws. She bartered using slaves (real people) as commodities and engaged in ritual sacrifice. She was a product of her time and culture.
In the 1970s, however, there was a resurgence in her story told by Angola’s fight against the Portuguese empire for independence, she became a symbol of resistance and a “mother of the nation”, now she is a widely celebrated figure in Angola and in Afro-Brazillian culture. Even 100s of years after her death, she still stands for her people’s independence, and I think she’d like that.
Give it a read if you want to know more about the parts of history that are relatively unknown in Europe and want to read one of the few native colonial success stories.
Njinga fought to protect her kingdom against the colonists before being ousted and replaced by a Portuguese-friendly puppet. But she doesn’t stop there, creating a marriage alliance with the Imbangala people (a brutal militaristic culture that practices cannibalism). The exiled queen then makes herself the head war chief of the tribe.
As war chief, she manages to conquer a neighbouring kingdom and reestablish herself. From there, she reconquers much of her family’s lost land. Cowed by her military power, tactics and diplomacy, the Portuguese agreed to recognise her kingdom and treat her as an equal.
She then fully embraced Christianity and converted her whole population to Christ. She even tried to get the pope to recognise her as an equal to European powers (unsuccessfully, unfortunately). Oh, and she does this all between the ages of 40- 80, with her leading her multi-gender armies until the ripe old age of 75.
She was a master at using religion for her political vision, moulding, combining and deconstructing Christian and local practices to maintain cultural identity and her footing amongst the dominant European powers.
After her death, the Portuguese spread disinformation and fake news about her, crafting her as a barbaric, inhuman creature to justify and glorify Portuguese colonisers.
Don’t get me wrong, she had flaws. She bartered using slaves (real people) as commodities and engaged in ritual sacrifice. She was a product of her time and culture.
In the 1970s, however, there was a resurgence in her story told by Angola’s fight against the Portuguese empire for independence, she became a symbol of resistance and a “mother of the nation”, now she is a widely celebrated figure in Angola and in Afro-Brazillian culture. Even 100s of years after her death, she still stands for her people’s independence, and I think she’d like that.
Give it a read if you want to know more about the parts of history that are relatively unknown in Europe and want to read one of the few native colonial success stories.
April 26, 2024
The Ndongo kingdom in what is now (Eastern) Angola was created in 1515. The Portuguese arrived in force in Angola in 1575 and Njinga, the subject of this book, was born in 1582. Njinga was a sister of one of Ndongo's rulers and succeeded him upon his death. She fiercely resisted the Portuguese attempts to take "her" kingdom from her. She was baptised by the Portuguese, but felt betrayed by them and became an Imbangala captain, incredibly fierce roving bands of warriors that make the Dothraki of Game of Thrones look like boy scouts. For example, to be initiated as an Imbangala warrior, one has to sacrifice one's child, grind it into a paste and rub this paste over one's body (I wish I was making this up). They also practiced cannibalism. Njinga was able to remain independent of the Portuguese (though the territory of her kingdom changed) and in the end they thought it advisable to conclude a treaty with her. Afterwards, Njinga seems to have been sincere in converting her kingdom to Christianity, noting that she believed that reaching out to the pope was a way for her to secure its future independence. Vilified for centuries by European discourses about her, she has seen a reassessment in the past half century and she became a symbol for Angolan independence.
January 30, 2025
The book itself is dry, but covers a powerful warrior queen I've seen printed on both feminist and Black History Month tee shirts!
The good: She was smart, strong, and amazing! Her military genius, political prowess, and reclaiming her homeland for her people? Inspiring!
The bad: She regularly killed innocent little girls as human sacrifices. She tortured, slaughtered, and stole other people’s homelands for herself, enslaving as she went, ripping out her captives’ two front teeth to mark them as slaves for life.
(I feel like slaughtering little girls should disqualify her from feminist tee shirts - you can't be feminist and kill women for fun/luck/ritual.)
The ugly: She owned many slaves herself, sold many African slaves through the West India Company to plantations across the sea, and fought trade wars so she could keep benefiting financially from the infamous Atlantic slave trade. Yikes.
(I feel like this should disqualify her from Black History Month tee shirts since she's the one who sold them into slavery in the first place.)
I went in expecting to love her - or at least appreciate her as a complicated historical figure - but she's pure evil - a traitor to her gender and people.
The good: She was smart, strong, and amazing! Her military genius, political prowess, and reclaiming her homeland for her people? Inspiring!
The bad: She regularly killed innocent little girls as human sacrifices. She tortured, slaughtered, and stole other people’s homelands for herself, enslaving as she went, ripping out her captives’ two front teeth to mark them as slaves for life.
(I feel like slaughtering little girls should disqualify her from feminist tee shirts - you can't be feminist and kill women for fun/luck/ritual.)
The ugly: She owned many slaves herself, sold many African slaves through the West India Company to plantations across the sea, and fought trade wars so she could keep benefiting financially from the infamous Atlantic slave trade. Yikes.
(I feel like this should disqualify her from Black History Month tee shirts since she's the one who sold them into slavery in the first place.)
I went in expecting to love her - or at least appreciate her as a complicated historical figure - but she's pure evil - a traitor to her gender and people.
May 22, 2023
In depth and academic biography of Njinga’s life. A 17th century warrior queen who was constantly just one step ahead of the Portuguese. The book covers her entire life from birth and childhood to her final years on the cusp of 80 years old. She began as a favored child, before becoming a skilled negotiator and queen.
Her reign saw her fleeing her kingdom and becoming a mobile and uncatchable resistance leader. She allied with mercenary bands, the Dutch, and anyone willing to fight the Portuguese. Finally she adopted Catholicism and was recognized as a legitimate queen in the eyes of Rome and Portugal. The book also explores her motivations and does not shy away from the tough decisions she made to secure her power, save her sisters, and achieve what she wanted. Most of what we know about her comes from sources written by Catholic priests and missionaries who knew her, some of her own official correspondences, and oral histories of the Angolan people. At times the book can be a bit dry for casual readers, but its very comprehensive.
Her reign saw her fleeing her kingdom and becoming a mobile and uncatchable resistance leader. She allied with mercenary bands, the Dutch, and anyone willing to fight the Portuguese. Finally she adopted Catholicism and was recognized as a legitimate queen in the eyes of Rome and Portugal. The book also explores her motivations and does not shy away from the tough decisions she made to secure her power, save her sisters, and achieve what she wanted. Most of what we know about her comes from sources written by Catholic priests and missionaries who knew her, some of her own official correspondences, and oral histories of the Angolan people. At times the book can be a bit dry for casual readers, but its very comprehensive.
November 27, 2023
Through a long stretch of the 17th century Njinga, queen of Ngongo, waged resistance against Portuguese colonizers. Eventually by a mix of military power, diplomacy, religion (she converted to Christianity) and showmanship she established herself as a respected ruler rather than a Portuguese lackey.
A very good, detailed biography that doesn't flinch from showing the brutal side of Njinga's own culture — everyone on all sides treats human slaves as a kind of currency for instance (please note this is not a justification for colonizing). Heywood is also good on the complex politics of the situation. Njinga had rivals for power and vassals who thought the Portuguese might be a better bet. Some of Portugal's efforts foundered on Jesuit resentment that Njinga preferred working with the Capuchin order.
Dense, but worth the reading.
A very good, detailed biography that doesn't flinch from showing the brutal side of Njinga's own culture — everyone on all sides treats human slaves as a kind of currency for instance (please note this is not a justification for colonizing). Heywood is also good on the complex politics of the situation. Njinga had rivals for power and vassals who thought the Portuguese might be a better bet. Some of Portugal's efforts foundered on Jesuit resentment that Njinga preferred working with the Capuchin order.
Dense, but worth the reading.
December 14, 2021
This is not the liveliest history, despite the fascinating subject matter. The book focuses heavily on the military events and various shifting alliances, with only rare glimpses - stronger towards the end - of what must have been a fascinating woman. I also struggled with the human sacrifice from the Ngolans, and the horrific obsession with slavery from the Portuguese and Dutch - I wanted a bit more exploration of the societies that produced such comfort with inequality. This is an important book, but not a particularly immersive read.
April 28, 2018
Queen Njinga's story hidden for centuries in the throes of European colonization and imperialism is finally revealed. Heywood does a great job in painting the legacy of this complex female monarch with her military aptitude, diplomatic intelligence and spiritual reinventions; who proved a formidable power no male could quell. Great use of primary sources without being overly academic.
September 26, 2018
A very interesting biography about a woman who should be better known in the Western world, as well as a look at the military and religious unrest caused by colonialism in the 17th century. A talented warrior and politician, Njinga was a very fascinating woman. I also appreciated the epilogue, which looked at how her memory has been used for propaganda—both negative and positive—since her death.
January 17, 2025
Written in a mild tone but rather superficial for a history book of this lenght. There's a hero, Queen Nzinga, and the "bad guys" who are, of course the Portuguese and anyone who even remotely associated with them. Little, if any, elaboration is provided on anything that would break this mould, even though there was more than enough room.
October 19, 2021
I wanted to be into it because little-discussed warrior queen who went up against Europeans. But it's still just a royalty/warfare/strategy history (necessarily because of the sources available), which is not really my thing.
May 25, 2023
An important book that provides the complexity of a powerful female world leader from the 17th century. A bit academic in the writing which leads to some dry prose jn parts, but overall, a very valuable addition to our collective understanding of history.
February 10, 2024
An incredibly well researched book that crafted Queen Njinga's life perfectly. This historical book was not dry to read and kept me wanting to know what happened next in her life. I hope she continues to be known throughout the world!
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