Phyllis M. Martin

Family Strategies in Nineteenth Century Cabinda

In the nineteenth century, the entrenched power of three Cabindan families, Nsambo, Npuna and Nkata Kolombo, was challenged by the rise of the Franques. The dominant figure, Francisco Franque, amassed wealth through a close alliance with Brazilian slave traders and through freighting goods and passengers in ‘coasting’ vessels which were locally built. At the same time he invested in a large household and attracted to his village dependents who provided labour and armed support for the expansion of his territorial base. Beyond the village, Franque, like other ‘big men’ at Cabinda, depended on an alliance with kinsmen for the defence of family interests. In the last quarter of the century, the Franques were weakened by the end of the slave trade, by disputes over inheritance rights, following the death of Francisco Franque, by the challenge of Manuel Jose Puna and by the emigration of junior family members in search of employment in the colonial economy of Angola and neighbouring territories. After 1885, under Portuguese colonial rule, the household was no longer a principal unit of production and family cohesion was no longer relevant. European settlers and companies moved into prime land and the emigration of workers, including women, intensified in the face of deteriorating economic conditions. Some individuals continued to have access to privilege, as far as that was possible in Angolan colonial society, through education. At Cabinda, the Portuguese authorities gave at least nominal recognition to some senior family members, for example at official celebrations. The name of the old families lived on through prominent individuals although their collective power and influence had been drastically undermined.

History of Central Africa

An authoritative account and analysis of what has happened to the region of central Africa since the period of vigorous decolonization in the 1960s, this volume compares the legacies of British, French and Portuguese colonization. History of Central Africa examines the modern nations of Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Gabon, Malawi, Mozambique, Zaire, Zambia, and Zimbabwe; and considers the impact on the region of the ethnic conflict in neighboring Rwanda and Bweebndi.