Mozambique Through History: Who Ruled Its Lands
The land of today's Mozambique appears on 39 historical border maps from 500 BC to today. Over that time it was held, in whole or in part, by 9 different states, among them Mozambique, Mozambique (Portugal), Portuguese East Africa, Mwenemutapa, Great Zimbabwe.
MozambiqueExplore the history of Mozambique in the interactive map
Compare 1000 with today · Mozambique as a state on the map
Who ruled the land of Mozambique, 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 |
|---|---|
| 1000 | Great Zimbabwe 6% |
| 1100 | Great Zimbabwe 6% |
| 1200 | Great Zimbabwe 6% |
| 1300 | Great Zimbabwe 6% |
| 1400 | Great Zimbabwe 6% |
| 1492 | Mwenemutapa 17% |
| 1500 | Mwenemutapa 17% |
| 1600 | Mwenemutapa 23% |
| 1650 | Portuguese East Africa 15% · Delagoa Bay 2% |
| 1700 | Portuguese East Africa 15% · Delagoa Bay 2% |
| 1783 | Portuguese East Africa 15% · Delagoa Bay 2% |
| 1800 | Portuguese East Africa 15% · Delagoa Bay 2% |
| 1815 | Portuguese East Africa 29% · Kazembe 13% · Delagoa Bay 2% |
| 1880 | Mozambique 46% · Shona 13% · Transvaal 2% |
| 1900 | Portuguese East Africa 46% · Shona 13% · Transvaal 2% |
| 1914 | Mozambique 100% |
| 1920 | Mozambique 100% |
| 1930 | Mozambique 100% |
| 1938 | Mozambique (Portugal) 100% |
| 1945 | Mozambique (Portugal) 100% |
| 1960 | Mozambique 100% |
| 1994 | Mozambique 100% |
| 2010 | Mozambique 100% |
Questions
Which empires and states ruled the territory of Mozambique?
On the border maps from 500 BC to today, the largest shares of the territory of modern Mozambique belonged to Mozambique, Mozambique (Portugal), Portuguese East Africa, Mwenemutapa, Great Zimbabwe, Shona, along with 3 other states.
What was Mozambique part of in 1000?
On the border map for 1000, most of the territory of today's Mozambique lay within Great Zimbabwe.
What was Mozambique part of in 1500?
On the border map for 1500, most of the territory of today's Mozambique lay within Mwenemutapa.
What was Mozambique part of in 1900?
On the border map for 1900, most of the territory of today's Mozambique lay within Portuguese East Africa.
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.