Congo Through History: Who Ruled Its Lands
The land of today's Congo appears on 39 historical border maps from 500 BC to today. Over that time it was held, in whole or in part, by 5 different states, among them Congo, French Equatorial Africa, Congo (France), Teke, Kamerun.
CongoExplore the history of Congo in the interactive map
Compare 1000 with today · Congo as a state on the map
Who ruled the land of Congo, map by map
Share of sample points inside today's borders held by each state on each map. Areas with no organised state on the map are left out.
| Map | Main states on this land |
|---|---|
| 1880 | Teke 21% · Congo 6% |
| 1900 | Teke 21% · Congo 6% |
| 1914 | French Equatorial Africa 88% · Kamerun 13% |
| 1920 | French Equatorial Africa 100% |
| 1930 | French Equatorial Africa 100% |
| 1938 | Congo (France) 96% · French Equatorial Africa 4% |
| 1945 | Congo 100% |
| 1960 | Congo 100% |
| 1994 | Congo 100% |
| 2010 | Congo 100% |
Questions
Which empires and states ruled the territory of Congo?
On the border maps from 500 BC to today, the largest shares of the territory of modern Congo belonged to Congo, French Equatorial Africa, Congo (France), Teke, Kamerun.
What was Congo part of in 1900?
On the border map for 1900, most of the territory of today's Congo lay within Teke.
Further reading
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.