Mbanza Kongo, Vestiges of the Capital of the former Kingdom of Kongo

travel

World Heritage Committee Description:
The town of Mbanza Kongo, located on a plateau at an altitude of 570 m, was the political and spiritual capital of the Kingdom of Kongo, one of the largest constituted states in Southern Africa from the 14th to 19th centuries. The historical area grew around the royal residence, the customary court and the holy tree, as well as the royal funeral places. When the Portuguese arrived in the 15th century they added stone buildings constructed in accordance with European methods to the existing urban conurbation built in local materials. Mbanza Kongo illustrates, more than anywhere in sub-Saharan Africa, the profound changes caused by the introduction of Christianity and the arrival of the Portuguese into Central Africa.

姆班扎刚果镇位于海拔570米的高原上，是刚果王国的政治和精神首都，刚果王国是14至19世纪南部非洲最大的国家之一。历史区域围绕皇家住所，习惯法院和圣树以及皇家葬礼场所发展。当葡萄牙人在15世纪抵达时，他们在用当地材料建造的现有城市大都市中增加了按照欧洲方法建造的石头建筑。姆班扎·刚果比撒哈拉以南非洲的任何地方都更能说明基督教的引入和葡萄牙人进入中非所造成的深刻变化。