Published : 2026-01-08

Among the Bakongo People. The Kwangi Mission in the Free State of Congo (1892-1908)

Abstract

The Congo Free State (also known as: the Independent State of the Congo) was established by the Treaty of the Berlin Conference (1884-1885) and remained the sole property of Belgian King Leopold II Coburg until 1908. Only Belgian missionaries were allowed to do missionary work in the country, the exception being a Pole from the Galician Jesuit province, Father Jozef Markiewicz (1865-1908). Jesuit missionaries were entrusted with the care over the Kwango Mission, located in the southeastern part of the territory of the Congo Free State. Missionary Joseph Markiewicz SI left behind many letters and a diary, which are a description of the mission's functioning, the activities undertaken by the missionaries and also a record of personal impressions that are testimony to the cultural clash. Through a comparison of literature and archival materials, it has become possible to learn about the method of evangelization work, extensive charitable and educational care, relations between missionaries and state authorities, and the relationship between Jesuit missionaries and the local Bakong population.

Keywords:

Congo Free State, Joseph Markiewicz SI, Catholic missions, Belgian Catholic missions, missions in Africa



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Studia Polonijne · ISSN 0137-5210 | eISSN 2544-526X | DOI: 10.18290/sp
© Towarzystwo Naukowe KUL & Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawła II

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