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John Kelly Thornton
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The Kongolese Saint Anthony: Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita and the Antonian Movement, 1684–1706 2 Expandednd Edition

by John Thornton (Author)
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 45 ratings
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Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita was a young Kongolese woman who in 1704 claimed to be possessed by St. Anthony, argued that Jesus was a Kongolese, criticized Italian Capuchin missionaries for not supporting black saints, and attempted to stop the devastating cycle of civil wars between contenders for the Kongolese throne. She was burned at the stake in 1706. Background information is supplied on Kongo, the development of Catholicism there, and the role of local warfare in the Atlantic slave trade.
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  1. ISBN-10
    0521596491
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0521596497
  3. Edition
    2nd
  4. Publisher
    Cambridge University Press
  5. Publication date
    May 13, 1998
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    6 x 0.54 x 9 inches
  8. Print length
    238 pages
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Thornton's study of Beatriz Kimpa Vita is a new departure in slave studies. African history is propelled to the fore; Thornton's approach taps the potential of the Afro-centric vision." Paul Lovejoy, York University

"Perhaps the greatest of the many achievements of Thornton's book is its depiction of Africans in very much the same terms that he, and most other European or American writers, would use to describe their own pasts. With that, Thornton bridges the gap between 'us' and 'them' that still lurks subtly in much scholarship on Africa. This is accordingly a book for non-specialists in many fields--and that is not to say that Africanists will not also find it fascinating." Joseph C. Miller, University of Virginia

"...a most impressive study." Richard Gray, The Catholic Historical Review

"John K. Thornton's study of political and religious turmoil in the Kongo kingdom at the close of the seventeenth century will appeal to several audiences..." Wyatt MacGaffey, The International History Review

"...this is a very good publication, which portrays in a very lively way a society and conflicts hidden for almost three centuries. The narrative has a certain dramatic, almost Shakespearean tension, which is likely to engross the reader's attention." International Journal of African Historical Studies

"Thornton presents a fascinating and comprehensive account of the Christian movement led by Donna Beatriz Kimpa Vita in the Kingdom of the Kongo, from her birth in 1684 until her death....This study relies upon an impressive body of sources." Journal of Women's History

"Altogether this is a masterly reconstruction of events in late seventeenth-century Kongo by an experienced scholar who for over twenty years has published on many aspects of Kongo history from politics top demography, from church history to family history, and from the slave trade to the diaspora. Thornton's acquaintance with a host of difficult sources is well displayed." American Historical Review

"The Kongolese Saint Anthony...reflects a superb mastery of the rich multilayered texture of the Kongolese Christian experience....immensely pleasing....the unexpected twists and subplots provide ample footholds for the most tentative reader....the book constitutes a valuable academic resource. That it makes a pleasant read is surely a welcome bonus." Church History

"I know of no other book that recreates the history of precolonial African society in such a vivid and compelling way. It should become standard reading in courses on African history and diaspora history." Historian, Robert Harms, Yale University

Book Description

In 1704, Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita claimed to be possessed by St Anthony and attempted to stop the devastating civil wars in Kongo.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Cambridge University Press; 2nd edition (May 13, 1998)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 238 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0521596491
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0521596497
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.1 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.54 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 45 ratings

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John Kelly Thornton

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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
45 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book on Dona Beatriz in Kongolese history
Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2021
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John Thornton is one of the best academic historians of the Kingdom of Kongo. He explains the culture along with the primary source documents. This book focuses on a part of history during the civil wars of Kongo. The capitol was abandoned and three members of the royal family fought over control. The people had enough of the wars and when a young woman claimed the spirit of Saint Anthony entered her body and demanded the restoration of one king in a rebuilt capital city, people flocked to her. The Kongolese elites scrambled to either appropriate her movement or squash this movement.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring!
Reviewed in the United States on April 18, 2019
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One of the first panafricanists. Fascinating heroine. Excellent research.
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Jeff Bates
3.0 out of 5 stars Odd Book
Reviewed in the United States on May 27, 2020
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I hate to give a book a low rating when clearly much time and effort has gone into it, but my God it was a labour to read, and filled with detail that seemed extraneous to the core theme. I get the feeling that an awful lot was packed in in order to flesh out a story that really does not have much actual historical detail available about it. Creating an elaborate setting does not compensate for thin historical detail. The man clearly knows his stuff, but this is the subject for an extended article, not a book. I will say it gets easier to read as the author gets into his stride, and it certainly is a worthwhile publication if you need to know ther facts of this unusual story.
2 people found this helpful
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LS
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2014
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fine
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Vahe Demirjian
5.0 out of 5 stars A breathtaking overview of a female African religious figure
Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2019
I read this book for a class on precolonial sub-Saharan African history at UC Irvine and it provides a pretty outstanding in-depth analysis of an African woman from Kongo who converted to Christianity and tried to stem factional strife among those vying for the Kongolese throne, only to be burned at the stake by Capuchin missionaries for being a heretic. The movement led by Donna Beatriz is described in the book as being a peace movement, because Beatriz wanted to bring peace in the Kingdom of Kongo when her homeland fell into a civil war as Capuchin missionaries took hold in southern Africa.
One person found this helpful
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Sinead Twain
1.0 out of 5 stars Worst Book I've Ever Read
Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2011
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This book was painful to read. His writing style is incoherent. He saturates the text with unnecessary details, which make the book almost impossible to read. Thornton is very knowledgeable and includes a lot of good information in his book but he needs to learn how to write. He just lists fact after fact without providing enough information on specific events or people. I do not know who wrote the other reviews on this book because it is certainly not "engaging." Thornton takes a good story and muddles it with hundreds of unnecessary details. He mentions dozens of people and places on each page but he does not actually discuss them or their importance.
3 people found this helpful
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Scott Free
5.0 out of 5 stars excellent source
Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2007
Just finished reading it and loved it. Information on pre-colonial Africa is so hard to come by. Quality info that goes beyond the surface is even harder. John K Thornton always impresses. This is actually better than Warfare in Atlantic Africa. The best thing about this in my opinion (other than the narrative itself) is the use of footnotes rather than a clumsy reference page at the back. Anywayz, i highly recommend it.
3 people found this helpful
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Student
2.0 out of 5 stars Interesting topic. Massive headache to actually read.
Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2023
Got this book for a class of mine. It's an incredibly interesting topic. Normally I have no interest in looking more into a topic that I was forced to look at initially, but I think I may come back to this sometime in the future.

However, this was an absolute nightmare to read. I don't know if it's because the Kingdom of Kongo already has an extremely complex history, the authors writing style, or both, but this was so annoying to read. I almost thought something had been wrong with myself with how hard of a time I was having getting through this book. I had a friend and family member have a go at reading a portion of this book and they both too had trouble understanding what was relevant and what wasn't.

I really don't want to blame the organization of the text solely on the author, because I feel that it's rude to do so, but I really feel that this book could've been done more justice.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Spencer M
1.0 out of 5 stars Full of unnecessary details
Reviewed in Canada on September 22, 2019
Verified Purchase
About half of this book is rather unnecessary details of the names of mountains, rivers, cousins, and grandsons, creating a maze of information to try to get through. While the subject itself is quite interesting, I cannot help but continue to re-read the same lines again and again as I attempt to organize who is who, who is not related whatsoever to the story but mentioned anyhow, and how all these random tangents relate to the main character and namesake of the book; Dona Beatriz. Do not recommend at all, having to read this for a university course, but this is the first book I've read in all my years of education I just straight up did not like at all.
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THE ANSWER OF PEACE IN ALL THE ENTIRE WORLD IS SKK
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 26, 2017
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I did order this book but I still not receive it could you send me this book please
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Michel M-G
3.0 out of 5 stars Bonne synthèse
Reviewed in France on October 26, 2013
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Cet ouvrage est une très bonne synthèse sur le sujet par John Thornton spécialiste reconnu de la question, déjà un classique
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