The Kingdom of Mutapa – sometimes referred to as the Mutapa Empire, Mwenemutapa, (, ) – was an African kingdom in Zimbabwe, which expanded to what is now modern-day Mozambique. The Portuguese term Monomotapa is a transliteration of the Shona royal title Mwenemutapa derived from a combination of two words Mwene meaning Prince or Lord, and Mutapa meaning land. Over time the monarch's royal title was applied to the kingdom as a whole, and used to denote the kingdom's territory on maps from the period.
History
There are several Mutapa origin stories, the most widely accepted told by oral tradition is of the princes of Great Zimbabwe. The first "Mwene" was a warrior prince named Nyatsimba Mutota (Son of King Nyanhewe Matope) from the Kingdom of Zimbabwe who expanded the reach of the kingdom initially to discover new sources of salt in the north. It is believed Prince Mutota found salt in his conquest of the Tavara, a Shona subdivision. Another historical narrative of the empire's origins is that Prince Mutota had broken away from Great Zimbabwe after going to war with Prince Mukwati, (believed to have been either his brother or cousin) over control of the Kingdom.
Expansion
Mutota's son and successor, Nyanhewe Matope, extended this new kingdom into an empire encompassing most of the lands between Tavara and the Indian Ocean. This empire had achieved uniting a number of different peoples in Southern Africa by building strong, well-trained armies and encouraging states to join voluntarily, offering membership in the Great council of the Empire to any who joined without resistance. Matope's armies overran the kingdom of the Manyika as well as the coastal kingdoms of Kiteve and Madanda. By the time the Portuguese arrived on the coast of Mozambique, the Mutapa Kingdom was the premier state in the region. He raised a strong army which conquered the Dande area of the Tonga and Tavara. The empire had reached its full extent by the year 1480 a mere 50 years following its creation.
Religion
The Emperor Mutope had left the empire with a well-organised religion with a powerful priesthood. The religion of the Mutapa kingdom revolved around ritual consultation of spirits and of royal ancestors. Shrines were maintained within the capital by spirit mediums known as mhondoro. The mhondoro also served as oral historians recording the names and deeds of past kings.
Portuguese contact
The Portuguese dominated much of southeast Africa's coast, laying waste to Sofala and Kilwa, by 1515. Their main goal was to dominate the trade with India; however, they unwittingly became mere carriers for luxury goods between Mutapa's sub-kingdoms and India. As the Portuguese settled along the coast, they made their way into the hinterland as sertanejos (backwoodsmen). These sertanejos lived alongside Swahili traders and even took up service among Shona kings as interpreters and political advisors. One such sertanejo, António Fernandes, managed to travel through almost all the Shona kingdoms, including Mutapa's metropolitan district, between 1512 and 1516.
The Portuguese finally entered into direct relations with the Mwenemutapa in the 1560s. They recorded a wealth of information about the Mutapa Kingdom as well as its predecessor, Great Zimbabwe. According to Swahili traders whose accounts were recorded by the Portuguese historian João de Barros, Great Zimbabwe was a medieval capital city built of stones of marvellous size without the use of mortar. And while the site was not within Mutapa's borders, the Mwenemutapa kept noblemen and some of his wives there. By the 17th century, other Europeans would extensively describe Mutapa architecture through paintings. Olfert Dapper revealed four grand gateways which led to several halls and chambers in the Mutapa palace. The ceilings of the rooms in the palace were gilt with golden plates alongside ivory chandeliers which hung on silver chains and filled the halls with light.
In 1569, King Sebastian of Portugal made a grant of arms to the Mwenemutapa. These were blazoned: Gules between two arrows Argent an African hoe barwise bladed Or handled Argent – The shield surmounted by a Crown Oriental. This was probably the first grant of arms to a native of southern Africa; however it is unlikely that these arms were ever actually used by the Mwenemutapa.