Kimpa Vita (B)

Known by her Christian name, Dona Beatrice, she emerged as a popular prophetic figure after a long period of political decline among the Kongo. She claimed to be the incarnation of the Portuguese Saint Anthony. For two years she preached a form of Christian anti-Catholicism which emphasized traditional Kongo symbolism and cultural roots. The Kongo king, Pedro IV, under pressure from missionaries at his court, had her burned at the stake as a heretic. Her Antonian church survived her passing and briefly provided a focus for the revitalization of the kingdom in the 18th century.