African princesses and queens exiled for fearlessly resisting colonial oppression

Aqualtune Ezgondidu Mahamud da Silva Santos-Congo

The brave and bold Princess Aqualtune Ezgondidu Mahamud da Silva Santos was the daughter of an unknown King of Kongo. Kongo was located in modern-day northern Angola, the Republic of Congo.

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She led 10,000 men into the Battle of Mbwila: between the Kingdom of Kongo and the Kingdom of Portugal.  It is estimated that 5,000 men died in the war in 1665 and many other captured by the Portuguese.

Aqualtune was captured, exiled and sold into slavery during the war and ended up in Brazil and later founded the Palmares or the Quilombo dos Palmares, a community in Alagoas, Brazil comprised of runaway slaves.