Angola: Portuguese penetration of the interior (1836-1926)

Updated October 2005

In 1836 the slave trade was suppressed by the Portuguese government. To recoup the losses in revenue that resulted, the colonial government resorted to a range of new duties and taxes, with a heaver tax burden on the indigenous population (Ellsworth 1999). Since the institution of slavery itself had not yet been abolished, the government set about expanding the territory of the colony to increase the area in which slaves, which could no longer be shipped to the Americas, could be utilized (History World undated).

From 1838 onwards the trading posts that had hitherto constituted the area of direct Portuguese control were expanded, so that Angola as a colony can be said to date from this point onwards. Initially the expansion was eastwards up the Cuango River, into the territories occupied by the Matamba and Kasanje kingdoms. Land grants were made to settlers and sugar, coffee and cotton plantations were established (Library of Congress 1989l, History World undated).

In 1840 the town of Moçâmedes was founded to the south of Benguela, while forts were established north of Angola in an unsuccessful attempt to link Luanda with Cabinda (Library of Congress 1989l). Not surprisingly these new incursions were resisted by the occupiers of the annexed land, the Kongo to the north, the Mbundu opposite Luanda and the Ovimbundu and Ovambos (Kwanyamas) in the south (History World undated).

To finance the military operations involved a new hut tax was imposed on Africans in 1856 (Library of Congress 1989l). This in turn led to an exodus of Africans from Portuguese controlled areas by some and a flat refusal to pay by others. As a result of the failure of these financial measures Portuguese expansion virtually ceased by 1861, for no new military ventures could be financed (Library of Congress 1989l).

In 1878 the decree of 1858 abolishing slavery came into effect, but this had little practical significance since forced labour was imposed in its place and the former slaves were locked into a servitude that differed little from slavery (Ellsworth 1999, Library of Congress 1989k).

Renewed interest in African colonialism in Europe stimulated new interest in the African territories in Portugal in the late 1870's; the Portuguese government allocated funds for capital investment in the colonies and encouraged missionaries to settle in the interior. An exploratory expedition was sent out to investigate the possibility of linking the colonies of Angola and Mozambique overland, an extraordinary ambition, given that the Portuguese were unable to subdue the immediate hinterland of Angola (Library of Congress 1989l).

References

ELLSWORTH, KH 1999, "Racial and Ethnic Relations in the Modern World-System: A Comparative Analysis of Portuguese Influence in Angola And Brazil", Paper presented at the 1999 International Studies Assoc. Conference, February 19, 18-26 [www] http://www.public.asu.edu/~ellswork/isa1999.pdf [PDF document, opens new window] (accessed 16 Oct 2007).

HISTORY WORLD UNDATED, "History of Angola", [www] http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ad33 [opens new window] (accessed 16 Oct 2007).

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 1989k, "Abolition of the Slave Trade" IN Country Study: Angola [www] http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+ao0024) [opens new window] (accessed 16 Oct 2007).

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 1989l, "Expansion and the Berlin Conference" IN Country Study: Angola [www] http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+ao0025) [opens new window] (accessed 16 Oct 2007).