According to oral tradition, around 1390 the chieftain Lukeni lua Nimi united the small states south of the lower Congo River and founded the Kingdom of Kongo, with its capital Mbanza Kongo in what is now northern Angola. A centralised state with provincial governors, tribute in cloth, and ironwork, it had about half a million inhabitants when the Portuguese arrived in 1483. King Nzinga a Nkuwu was baptised in 1491, and his son Afonso I, who ruled from 1509 to 1542, made Catholicism the state religion and wrote letters to the king of Portugal protesting the slave trade. Kongo declined in civil war and slave-raiding, and in 1665 was defeated.
Before and after
- 1387Publication of The Canterbury Tales
- from 1389 to 1392Lithuanian Civil War of 1389–92
- 1389Death of Hafez
- 1390Birth of Jan van Eyck
- c. 1390The Kingdom of Kongo is founded
- from 5 August 1392 to 12 October 1897Joseon
- 1395Construction of Gyeongbokgung
- from 11 May 1395 to 17 October 1797Duchy of Milan
- 6 June 1395Founding of Seoul
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- 691 CEConstruction of Dome of the Rock
- 1066Construction of Tower of London
- from 1368 to 1644Ming dynasty
- from 1370 to 1789Construction of Bastille
- from 1438 to 1533Inca Empire
- 1473Construction of Sistine Chapel
The era
This moment belongs to the Medieval world (500 CE to 1500 CE), kingdoms, faiths and trade routes. You can also browse everything in the 14th century.