João I of Kongo
Nzinga-a-Nkuwu João I (né Nzinga-a-Nkuwu) was the 5th ManiKongo of the Kingdom of Kongo (Kongo: Kongo-dia-Ntotila) between 1470 and 1509. He voluntarily converted to Roman Catholicism. He was baptized on 3 May 1491 and took the Christian name of João. Soon after, ManiKongo Nzinga-a-Nkuwu João I abandoned the new faith for a number of reasons, one of them being the Roman Catholic Church's requirement of monogamy. Politically, he could not afford to abandon polygamy and embrace monogamy, a cultural shift that the king could not contemplate as power in Kongo was elective, rather than hereditary as in Europe; as Kongo culture followed a matrilineality structure, where the elder son of the king is not automatically the next king.
| João I of Kongo | |
|---|---|
| Awenekongo of the Lukeni Nkanda | |
| Manikongo of the Kingdom of Kongo | |
| Reign | 1470–1509 |
| Predecessor | Nkuwu a Ntinu of Kongo |
| Successor | Nzinga-a-Mvemba Afonso I |
| Born | Nzinga-a-Nkuwu c. 1440 |
| Died | 1509 (aged 38–39) |
| Spouse | Nzinga a Nlaza |
| Issue | Nzinga-a-Mvemba Afonso I |
| House | Kilukeni |
| Father | Nkuwu a Ntinu of Kongo dia Ntotila |
| Religion |
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