Pungo Ndongo

Pungo Ndongo stands among the striking black rock formations of the Angolan plateau. The rocky heights sheltered a royal centre of Ndongo, the kingdom whose rulers bore the title ngola. Their authority and the kingdom's independence were challenged by Portuguese expansion from the Atlantic coast.

After the Portuguese recovered Luanda from the Dutch in 1648, the ruler of Ndongo asserted his independence from his former allies. In 1671 Portuguese forces besieged and captured Pungo Ndongo, killed the ngola and enslaved many of his followers. They built a fort on the site, establishing a military and trading post on the important route into the Angolan interior. The ruins of the fort remain among the great stones that gave the place its distinctive appearance.