Cuíto, formerly known as Silva Porto, is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

and municipality in central

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

, capital of

Bié Province Bié is a province of Angola located on the Bié Plateau in central part of country. Its capital is Kuito, which was called Silva Porto until independence from Portugal in 1975. The province has an area of and a population of 1,455,255 in 2014 ...

. The municipality had a population of 450,881 in 2014. Projected to be the tenth fastest growing city on the African continent between 2020 and 2025, with a 5.56% growth.

History

The city of Cuíto is built in the historical heart of the

Ovimbundu The Ovimbundu, also known as the Southern Mbundu, are a Bantu peoples, Bantu ethnic group who live on the Bié Plateau of central Angola and in the coastal strip west of these highlands. As the largest ethnic group in Angola, they make up 38 pe ...

kingdom. The ruler of the

was named Viye and he married a Songo woman named Cahanda. Together they built the city and later the Portuguese would name the

after the ruler. The

were known for selling captives from neighbouring tribes to the European slave traders which made the area an ideal location for the slave business and brought colonists to the area. The Portuguese "founded" the city in 1750. They later called it Silva Porto after

António da Silva Porto António Francisco Ferreira da Silva Porto (24 August 1817 – 2 April 1890) was a Portuguese trader and explorer in Angola, in the Portuguese West Africa. Biography Silva Porto was born to a poor family in Porto in continental Portugal; ...

who built his home ''embala Belmonte'' in the area. The pleasant climate in the

was attractive to Portuguese settlers and many made their home in Silva Porto in the early 1900s when the

Benguela Railway The Benguela Railway () is a 3 ft 6 in gauge railways, Cape gauge railway line that runs through Angola from west to east, being the largest and most important railway line in the country. It also connects to Tenke, Democratic Republic of the C ...

connected the city to the coast. Cuíto had a long history of violence starting with the

African slave trade Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were once commonplace in parts of Africa, as they were in much of the rest of the ancient and medieval world. When the trans-Saharan slave trade, Red Sea s ...

and tribal warfare. Later in the 1960s the Portuguese used the town of Silva Porto as a training centre for training black

Portuguese Army The Portuguese Army () is the land component of the Portuguese Armed Forces, Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its ...

soldiers to send to Northern

Portuguese Angola In southwestern Africa, Portuguese Angola was a historical Evolution of the Portuguese Empire, colony of the Portuguese Empire (1575–1951), the overseas province Portuguese West Africa of Estado Novo (Portugal), Estado Novo Portugal (1951–1 ...

in order to fight the nationalist

guerrilla Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, Partisan (military), partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include Children in the military, recruite ...

s, during the

Portuguese Colonial War The Portuguese Colonial War (), also known in Portugal as the Overseas War () or in the Portuguese Empire, former colonies as the War of Liberation (), and also known as the Angolan War of Independence, Angolan, Guinea-Bissau War of Independence ...

. After independence from Portugal in 1975, Cuíto saw its worst times on 6 January 1993 when

UNITA The National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (, abbr. UNITA) is the second-largest political party in Angola. Founded in 1966, UNITA fought alongside the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and the National Liberat ...

, during the

Angolan Civil War The Angolan Civil War () was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. It was a power struggle between two for ...

, laid siege of the city for over 9 months and over 30,000 people were killed, both from war effects and starvation. Nobody was permitted to enter or leave the city for 9 months and the city suffered heavy damage.

was eventually driven from Cuíto and a second attempt was made to capture the city in 1998 using huge artillery and tanks.Martin James, ''Historical Dictionary of Angola''

Climate

The town sits on the eastern flank of the Bie Plateau. The climate is unusually cool for its tropical location. The average annual temperature is 18 °C, largely due to its high altitude. The coolest period is May to August when almost no rain falls. September and October are the hottest months with a little rain. Heavy rain falls in the main rainy season November to April.

Transportation

Cuíto is served by the

Benguela railway The Benguela Railway () is a 3 ft 6 in gauge railways, Cape gauge railway line that runs through Angola from west to east, being the largest and most important railway line in the country. It also connects to Tenke, Democratic Republic of the C ...

that once connected the inland provinces to the coast. The actual railway station serving Cuíto is located a few kilometers north of the town. The railway is expected to be repaired in the next few years. There are also direct flights from Luanda out of the Joaquim Kapango Airport.

Notes and references

{{Authority control Populated places in Bié Province Municipalities of Angola Provincial capitals in Angola Populated places established in 1750 1750 establishments in Africa

History

Climate

Transportation

See also

Notes and references