The history of the Republic of Congo dates back to the discovery of the Congo River mouth by the Portuguese explorer Diego Cao in 1492 and the three voyages of the Italian-born French explorer Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza in the late 19th century. On his first trip to the Congo, Savorgnan de Brazza was pushed back to the north by the Bafourou warriors, who were very hostile to any foreign penetration. It was on his second trip that he signed with the Onkoo Ilo Premier, on October 3, 1880, in the name of the French government, the treaty linking the Congo to France. In 1883, Lieutenant Cordier founded Pointe-Noire, the current economic capital of the Congo.

The colony of Congo, created in 1891, became autonomous in 1903, and was a territorial entity of French Equatorial Africa (AEF), grouping together Gabon, Ubangi Chari and Chad, headed by a Governor General. Brazzaville, capital of the Middle Congo, became the capital of AEF.

In 1944, after the AEF rallied to General de Gaulle, the latter made Brazzaville the capital of the Empire and of Free France. He created the famous council of defense of the Empire. Under the Governor General of the AEF, Felix Eboué, Brazzaville served as a recruitment center for riflemen and the starting point of all strategies to save France.

It was also from Brazzaville that General de Gaulle launched in 1944, the historic Brazzaville appeal which paved the way for the independence of the former French colonies.the conference of governors, called "Brazzaville Conference" (January - February 1944), brought together the Franco-African elite around General de Gaulle and the Commissioner for the Colonies Réné Pleven.

Congo gained independence on August 15, 1960. Since then, it is one of the sovereign republics that are members of the United Nations. Congo is a member of the African Union, CEEMAC and ECCAS.

The population of Congo is estimated at 4.04 million. More than half of this population lives in the cities of Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire.

Today, non-Bantu tribes in Congo represent only 3% of the population. The Bantu include 74 people from different ethnic groups such as the Kongo, Teke, Mbochi and Sangha.

The Bakongo live south of Brazzaville, in Pointe Noire on the Atlantic coast. The Bakongo group includes the Lari around Brazzaville, the Vili near Pointe Noire, the Yombe (Bayombe) in the Mayombe chain, the Babembe, the Basoundi, the Bakamba and of course the Bakongo.

The Mbochi group includes the Mbochi, Kouyou, Makoua, Bonga, Bobangi, Moye, Ngare and Mboko. They live in the north of the Plateaux department and in the Cuvette and Cuvette Ouest departments..

There are approximately 30,000 pygmies in Congo. They are found mostly in the deep forests of the north (the Sangha and Likouala regions) and the west (the Chaillu region). They live in small family units, mainly hunting and gathering.

French is the official language of the Republic of Congo. However, vernacular languages such as Lingala and Munukutuba rank just behind French as national languages.

Located on either side of the Equator, Congo has an equatorial rainfall pattern over most of its length, with maximum temperatures and rainfall interspersed with milder dry seasons.

Over a year, the types of seasons that prevail in Congo are :

• The long rainy season from October to December; high temperatures ranging from 25° to 35° with frequent rainfall.
• The short dry season from January to February; no rain but high temperatures.
• The short rainy season of March and April; high temperatures and frequent rains
• The long dry season from May 15 to September 15; no rain and much lower temperatures.
• The north of the country is influenced by the Equator with a stronger and more regular rainfall. Temperatures in the rainy season are significantly higher than in the south (from 5° to 10°).

The Republic of Congo has 12 departments, from north to south with their capital: