Many fascinating stories and legends are attributed to Queen Nzinga. In an often-repeated tale, the Portuguese governor, Correia de Sousa, did not offer a chair for Nzinga to sit on during their negotiations, and instead, had a floor mat laid out for her to sit. The use of banal floor mat was appropriate only for subordinates and Nzinga took exception to this slight by the governor. Unwilling to accept this humiliation, she ordered one of her servants to get down on the ground on all fours so she could sit upon his back during negotiations. Through this overt act, she asserted her status as an equal to the governor, not an inferior.

Find out more about this fascinating queen and military genius.