order to be able to dodge arrows, javelins and lance thrusts. On offence, the army was trained in fencing. This Central African martial arts was referred to as Sanguar. It was described by a Jesuit witness in the 1570s as; Professional forces trained for war in the army were referred to as quimbares. Before the war against Portugal in the late 16th century, Ndongo could hire Portuguese mercenaries such as the forces of Paulo Dias de Novais in 1575. There also existed special forces referred to as the "Flower of Angola" from 1585 who fell solely under the auspices of the King. Prominent weapons in service of the army included swords and battle axes. Ndongo developed its musketeers starting from the 16th century. In 1585, the army deployed 40 musketeers against Portugal. Queen Nzinga fielded 3 Dutch artillery pieces around 1648 in a failed siege of a Portuguese stronghold at Muxima. Ndongo's army was organized into mass units by name of mozengos or embalos and further divided into sub formations made up of a centre and two wings. The military force could be redivided once more into units called lucanzos that were tasked for special operations. In battle, the gunzes detachment laid out the initial attacks. During campaigns, the Ndongo army could build field fortifications mostly made of wood. According to the research of historian Thornton; in the 1585 campaign against Portugal, the army "constructed four or five forts 'of wood and straw after their fashion' each a day’s journey apart to cover their retreat." Ndongo possessed in addition, a naval force of rivercrafts. In 1586, the navy employed 8 "great canoes" across the Lucala River with each possessing some personnel of 80–90 people. Sources The history of Ndongo is known largely through the writings of Portuguese missionaries, administrators and travelers. Much of this work was gathered in the monumental collection of original sources, in the original languages by António Brásio. In addition, several Italian Capuchin missionaries, especially Giovanni Antonio Cavazzi and António da Gaeta wrote book-length descriptions of the country in the mid-seventeenth century when it has split into Nzingha's half and Hari a Kiluanji's half. However, the Capuchin's work included detailed recountings of oral tradition. António Brásio, ed. Monumenta Missionaria Africana, 1st series (15 volumes, Lisbon, 1952–88) Antonio de Oliveira de Cadornega, Historia geral das guerras angolanas, 1680-81, ed. Matias Delgado (3 volumes, Lisbon, 1940–42, reprinted 1972) Notable