Equatorial Guinea is the only country on Pope Leo XIVʼs current African itinerary where he will be able to speak Spanish, due to that countryʼs historical ties to Spain.
Until 1778, Equatorial Guinea was part of Portugal. However, following the Treaties of San Ildefonso and El Pardo, it became part of Spain within the Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata, which had been split off from the former Viceroyalty of Peru in 1776.
The Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata encompassed the African continental territories of Gabon and Equatorial Guinea along with their islands of Bioko (known to the Spanish as Fernando Poo) and Annobón, as well as the territories of Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia, and certain areas that today belong to Brazil, Chile, and Peru.
Viceroyalty control began to break down in 1810 amid the process toward independence in Spainʼs overseas territories. Between 1827 and 1843, the British had a significant presence in the territory of Equatorial Guinea. From that point onward, the Spanish became more actively involved in the Spanish territories of the Gulf of Guinea.
The turbulent political processes throughout the 19th century in the Spanish metropolis hindered the territoryʼs further development, despite the existence of a major cocoa industry.
In 1959, Spanish Guinea was recognized as a Spanish territory comprising two provinces. In 1963, it was granted autonomous status, and five years later, its independence was proclaimed.
Alberto Fernández, a contributor to EWTN News and former U.S. ambassador to Equatorial Guinea, explained to “EWTN Noticias,” the Spanish-language broadcast edition of EWTN News, how Spainʼs legacy in the country endures to this day, including the role of Spanish as an official language, along with the Catholic faith.
“Itʼs an overwhelmingly Catholic country. The vast majority of people in Guinea are Catholic,” he said, unlike other countries visited by the pontiff during his African trip, where there is greater diversity of creeds.
Furthermore, in Equatorial Guinea, “one buys Spanish wine, chorizo imported from Spain, and nougat from Spain. There is a strong cultural presence, as well as an Equatorial Guinean enclave in Spain that persists to this day,” the former ambassador noted.
A country rich in oil, with vast social disparities
Fernández described Equatorial Guinea as “one of the smallest countries in Africa, with a population of between 1 and 2 million people, and rich in natural resources, primarily oil and natural gas.”
This energy wealth allows for “major highways, modern airports, and investment in infrastructure,” yet the country is no stranger to “the problem of poverty — the disparity between the rich and the poor” much like other oil-producing nations, such as Venezuela.
“It’s a Spanish-speaking country, very Catholic, very African, but with certain touches of old Spain,” Fernández noted.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.