The Mongala River in the northern
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
is a right tributary of the
Congo River
The Congo River ( kg, Nzâdi Kôngo, french: Fleuve Congo, pt, Rio Congo), formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the second largest river in the world by discharge ...
.
Course
The Mongala River is long, or long if the Ebola tributary is included.
It is formed by the confluence of the
Dwa River and the
Ebola River
The Ebola River ( or ), also commonly known by its indigenous name Legbala, is the headstream of the Mongala River, a tributary of the Congo River, in northern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is roughly in length.
The name ''Ebola'' is a F ...
in Nord-Ubangi province upstream from
Businga.
It flows southwest and then south past
Likimi on its right bank, then turns to flow west past
Binga on its left bank and then southwest to its confluence with the right bank of the Congo River at
Mobeka.
For most of its course it defines the western boundary between
Mongala
Mongala is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Mongala, Équateur, Nord-Ubangi, Sud-Ubangi, and Tshuapa provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Équateur ...
province and
Sud-Ubangi
Sud-Ubangi (French for "South Ubangi") is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. It lies in the northwest of the country on the Ubangi River.
Sud-Ubangi, Équateur, Mongala, No ...
province.
Near its mouth the last short section runs between Mongala and
Équateur province.
History
The Belgian soldier
Ernest Baert
Ernest Baert (12 August 1860 – 15 August 1894) was a Belgian soldier, explorer and colonial administrator who was active in the Congo Free State.
Early years (1860–1885)
Ernest Baert was born in Brussels on 12 August 1860.
His parents were P ...
undertook two explorations of the Mongala River despite the hostility of the local people, who attempted to capture the steamers.
He left Bangala on 23 November 1886 and ascended the Mongala on the ''A.I.A.'' for 66 hours to the furthest point reached by his predecessors
George Grenfell
George Grenfell (21 August 1849, in Sancreed, Cornwall – 1 July 1906, in Basoko, Congo Free State (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) was a Cornish missionary and explorer.
Early years
Grenfell was born at Sancreed, near Penzan ...
and
Camille Coquilhat
Captain Camille-Aimé Coquilhat (18531891) was a Belgian soldier, explorer and colonial civil servant who finished his career as Vice Governor-General of the Congo Free State from 1890 until his death in 1891. He was notably an associate of Hen ...
, where he found a large local population that became increasingly hostile as the expedition advanced and attacked several times.
He reached Mongandi and the Ebola-Dwa confluence on 1 December 1886, and founded a station at Moboika before returning to Bangalas.
References
Sources
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Further reading
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External links
Multi-temporal JERS-1 SAR Image of the Congo River in Central Africa- Satellite thermal image of the Congo River showing the Mongala River.
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