Ngalifourou was born in 1864 in
Ngabé on the Congo River. A member of the
Tio people (
Eastern Teke), who are a
Bantu community living between the present-day
Democratic Republic of the Congo and the
Republic of the Congo, Ngalifourou was married at the age of 15 to King
Iloo I (also known as Iloo Makoko), who was much older than her. Oral traditions suggest they married in 1880. After their marriage, Ngalifourou upheld the king's authority and gained respect for her intelligence, including from
Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza, who was a French colonial army officer who collaborated with her husband. In 1944, de Brazza's daughter,
Marthe de Brazza, visited Ngalifourou, who showed her the sword and discussed her father with de Brazza. This 'collaboration' between de Brazza, Iloo Makoko and, indeed, Ngalifouroou, was in fact a treaty signed by Iloo Makoko in 1880, which ceded
Teke territory to France, thus establishing
French Congo. At the death of King Iloo I in 1892, Ngalifourou ascended to the throne as
Man Ounko (Queen Mother) of the
Mbé Kingdom.
Spiritual life Ngalifourou was a spiritual leader as well. Due to her supposed spiritual power, many people made pilgrimages to visit her at
Ngabé where she would receive visitors on her
likouba royal stool. As a result Ngalifourou was targeted by Catholic and Protestant missionaries who wanted her to adopt one of their faiths, knowing that if she did so it would influence others; however she resisted and continued Téké spiritual practices.
French colonial rule In 1918 a successor to the king died travelling back from Brazzaville, believed to have been poisoned by Ngalifourou. The French installed Ngalifourou as
chef de canton as the throne remained empty, symbolising the defeat of kingship. Queen Ngalifourou, after 1918, she ruled alone for years and retained the title of
chef de canton, until her death in 1956. While kingship later returned, the king's authority was reduced to less than that of a
chef de canton and Ngalifourou remained dominant until her death. Ngalifourou did not retire from public life, but became a prominent figure known to the French colonial administration. She was seen as an example of a traditional ruler, who accepted colonial rule. She met
General de Gaulle on several occasions, notably in March 1944, when she was presented with the
Légion d'honneur medal. To cement her relationship with the French, she encouraged Teké soldiers to join the French military in both the
First World War and the
Second World War. Such was her relationship with the colonial authorities that some Teké referred to her as "Ngalifourou, the woman of the whites".
Jan Vansina wrote that Ngalifourou "succeeded in providing a new rallying point for Tio pride", but that she "represented a typical colonial force". In the late 1940s and early 1950s, her influence waned as political parties wanted independence from the French grew in popularity. Ngalifourou died on 8 June 1956. Her funeral became a tool for the French authorities to try and prop up their power and they arranged a huge funeral for the former queen, which was attended not just by local colonial dignitaries, but by representatives from other French colonies, the
Vatican and the
Belgian Congo. Journalists had been encouraged to stay in
Ngabé to report on the queen's final days as well as her funeral. == Awards and honours ==