In 1884 a ship named 'the India' left Madeira with 222 settlers to farm the southern part of Angola at the invitation of the Portuguese government, who had held Angola for over 400 years, during which time the Bantu tribes from the north started to move into southern Africa, displacing the original Bushmen and Hottentots. In the 19th century, this particular area was still largely uninhabited except for some South African Boers who in the 19th century had moved into Huila, in the Angolan hinterland, away from British domination in the former Dutch Cape province. The Madeirans learned to farm the land, to hunt, and to build sturdy ox wagons from the Boers, who had adapted the design from Holland, and who controlled the transport trade in southern Angola to the annoyance of the Portuguese authorites in Lisbon. Grandfather Domingos Rodrigues got to know the Boers well, and spent over 50 years helping the Portuguese open up the Angolan hinterland: he played theirs songs on the concertina, and spoke Afrikaans.The Boers left as they had come, in several waves during the next century (notably the exodus of 1928 and of 1958), having been curtailed at every step of the way by the Portuguese authorities in their attempts to build a new life.

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p80 Separatism in Angola ("Boers in Angola")

p124 Boers repatriation in 1928 from Angola ("Boers in Angola")

Unbeknown to the destitute Madeirans at the time, they were used to lay claim to the land, with Germany encroaching from the recently acquired South West Africa to the south, until the Lisbon treaty of 1886 was signed with Portugal. They were also used in a demographic experiment, to see if white man could survive in the African interior, which had proved an early grave to many an explorer and settler (David Livingstone as recently as 1873, who earlier had passed through this country in 1854 on the first East-West crossing of Africa).

Because of rampant disease in Africa no white man had survived long in the interior. Because of the remoteness and the arid climate, they were not expected to work hard, or to be successful at farming, to stick to their faith, or even survive. The Madeiran settlers were given little chance of success from the start. however, the (equally curtailed) Protestant missions in central Angola made a big difference in the quality of their lives. These pages form a tribute to the success of their little told story: their sense of community, their back-breaking work, and their faith, which saw them through.

Madeira Links

the Madeira story

Roque-Rodrigues genealogy with family roots in Madeira

Orlando's Merengues

Maria Teresa 14/01/1931 - 20/09/2009

Jose Pires Rodrigues 25/12/1925 - 11/05/2007

Angola Links

Angola, as it once was

(photo's courtesy Joâo Gomes and Roque-Rodrigues family)

TRANSPORT p1    Angola Stamps p1   Roque Rodrigues p1 Angola <1952  p2 Angola <1957  p3 Angola <1975  p4 Portugal >1975  p5 SWA Namibia >1980  p6 USA >1975 Boers in Angola View slide show OUTDOORS View slide show COMMUNITY p1   WEDDINGS p1 Angola then and now ANGOLA THEN click to see picture Church built by greatgrandfather Roque Dondi mission institute   Lutamo mission school ANGOLA NOW click to see picture Bela Vista church now   Dondi mission institute now Lutamo mission school now Angola now destructive forces Help rebuild Dondi Where has time gone? The kids playing football in Angola (wmv movie) View Omar's Page View Omar's slideshow Schotanus Africa page