12. Princess Nzinga of Ndongo and Matamba was destined to rule, though she needed to fight her usurper half-brother before she could claim her throne
Princess Nzinga was born into the royal family of the Ndogo and Matamba kingdoms – parts of modern-day Angola – in 1583. Her father, the king, Kia Simba, ruled with an iron fist. However, he doted on his daughter. Of the three of them, Nzinga was his favorite. According to the legend, she had been born with the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck. This was taken as a sign that she would be a fiercely-independent young woman, and might even reign as queen one day. Certainly, her father believed this. He groomed her for power, taking her to war and having her by his side when decisions were made.
When Kia Simba was deposed in around 610, his illegitimate son took power for himself, forcing the princess into exile. However, she skillfully used diplomacy and influence to win her way back. While the exact methods are lost to history, the records do show that she went from princess to de-facto queen by 1624. For some 40 years, she negotiated with the Portuguese, using diplomacy rather than force to get what she wanted. To this day, Nzinga is credited with saving Angola from being fully colonized by Europeans.