Angola (1870-) Country Guide
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola is a west-coast country of south-central Africa. It is the seventh-largest country in Africa, bordered by Namibia to the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Zambia to the east, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west.
Angola was first settled by small tribes before coming under control of the Kingdom of Kongo in the north. The Kingdom of Kongo was divided into six provinces and included some dependent kingdoms, such as Ndongo to the south. Most of the kingdoms wealth came from agriculture.
I would be remiss, at this point, not to include the story of Nzinga Mbande, the warrior queen of Ndongo. According to legend, Queen Nzinga was given her name because she was born with her umbilical cord wrapped around her neck. Around 1482 the Portuguese arrived seeking fortune and found the area rich in resources. Initially the Portuguese many new advances to the Kingdom including firearms and were rewarded by the King of Kongo with slaves, minerals and ivory. It wasn’t enough for the Portuguese, however, and they wanted more control of the region and wished to establish a colony.
In 1575, Paulo Dias de Novais arrived with a hundred families of colonists and four hundred soldiers. At the time of the arrival of the Portuguese, Ngola Kiluange was in power and he managed to hold out against the foreigners for several decades
In 1617, the new governor of Luanda (a Portuguese stronghold) began an aggressive campaign against the kingdom of Ndongo. His troops invaded the capital and forced King Ngola Mbandi to flee from the area and thousands of Ndongo people were taken prisoner.
The king sent his sister, Nzinga, to negotiate a peace treaty and she returned successfully which Portugal shortly after broke.
At this point history becomes clouded. Either King Ngola committed suicide or may have been murdered by Nzinga. In any case she rose to power and took control. She decreed that no one address her as queen. Rather, she preferred to be called “king” and frequently dressed as a man.
Seeing an opportunity (and thinking the new queen weak) Ndongo come under attack by other Afican aggressors. Being stuck in the middle and at risk of losing her kingdom, Nzinga allied herself with the Portuguese and defeated her African enemies.
The Portuguese threatened to take control of Ndongo and, again, Nzinga found herself at risk of losing power so she relocated to Matamba, recruited slaves and Portuguese trained soldiers and formed a small army. Then she allied herself with the Dutch whom she called much more polite and not so haughty.
Unfortunately their combined armies could not defeat the Portuguese so she retreated back to Matamba. There she built up the economy to the point that the Portuguese could not overtake her. Eventually she established a lasting peace agreement with the Portuguese. At the meeting, however, the Portuguese are said to have prepared the room with only one chair. This meant that Nzinga would be obliged to stand during the negotiations, thus making her seem inferior. Instead of doing so, Nzinga had one of her male servants get down on his hands and knees, thus serving as her chair.
In another legend, Nzinga was a woman noted for executing her lovers. With a large, all male harem at her disposal, she had the men fight one another to the death in order to spend the night with her and, after a single night of lovemaking, were, in turn, put to death.
Nzinga became a sensation in Europe following the 1769 publication of Jean Louis Castilhon’s colorful “biography,” Zingha, Reine d’Angola, in Paris.
In 1846, the slave trade officially abolished by the Portuguese government. Portugal continued to consolidate colonial control over Angola between 1885 to 1930 but changed its status from colony to overseas province in 1951. 1974 sees a revolution in Portugal and it’s colonial empire collapses. Angola gains self-rule in 1975.
After years of civil war, Angola is slowly emerging as a major economic powerhouse in Africa, and has one of the fastest growing economies in the world.
First Stamps issued” July 1, 1870
Currency: Portuguese (until 1932); from 1932-1954, 100 centavos = 1 angolar; from 1954, Portuguese again.
The Crown Jewels of Portugal have changed hands (and been stolen) many times. Read more here.
I love this postmark!
Here we go. This issue can come in chalky or enamel paper, and different perforations so, for me, this is where they fun begins!
overprinted with “Republica” in 1911.
I have yet to find an overprint on an overprint on an overprint but no doubt they exist.
This issue only exists overprinted so if you find one without the overprint send it to me right away!
More fun with paper types with this “Ceres” issue. Chalky versus Glazed (Enamaled) versus ordinary. Through in different perforations and a unicorn’s version of all the colors of the rainbow and you have a large (40 stamp) issue of hours of enjoyment.
These 1904 postage due stamps are denominated in Reis. If you find them denominated in centavo they are from 1921.
400th anniversary of discovering the seaway to India
Angola is my first experience with paper types. The Ceres issues come in a variety of perforations and were printed on chalky paper, glazed paper and ordinary paper. I still can’t tell the difference. The chalky paper appears to be duller than the ordinary paper but I question that sometimes. The glazed paper is shinier. In addition there are shades of color differences and enough overprints to justify it’s own catalog.
What I have done, for the time being, is best guess them as I put them in my collection with the intent of returning to them at a later time. It isn’t that I do not appreciate the skill in identifying paper types but, as a beginner, I think it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between them without being shown. This is where the internet can fail us and only human interaction and being able to psychically touch the stamps is necessary. Descriptions of “snapping” the paper just don’t cut it.
Early issues, especially the Portuguese crown stamps, can be expensive and have also be known to have forgeries so, for the time being I will work on later issues.
I recently saw some issues of the Angola,1905. Arms & Banner key type revenue stamps that are very attractive but have yet to find any. Their CV is not high.
The 1910’s in Angola have been described as “philatelically complex ” so as a beginner I am putting effort into them on the back burner for now.
Angola has been war torn since the 1970’s. I would actually hesitate visiting the area for recreational reasons. The beaches are strewn with the rusting hulls of ships and the highways with the carcasses of tanks and other military vehicles. However, if you are in the area you might want to visit the Iron Palace (not to be confused with the Iron Mountain or the Iron Hole of these other posts).
No one knows of the true origin of Angola’s Palácio de Ferro (Iron Palace) but it is made almost entirely of iron. The story has it that in the 1800’s a ship drifted off course and was seized by the Portuguese authorities. Inside was a shipment of pre-drilled iron parts. While no paper work exists (and I don’t know why the owners did not come to claim it) it is believed to have been designed and built in Paris by the same man who created the Eiffel Tower, Gustav Eiffel.
I hope you enjoy these posts. Remember, I will add to them as I acquire new stamps so subscribe to get updates. Tchau!