 Their arrival is seen as a beginning of the history of slavery in Virginia and also as a starting point for African-American history, given that they were the first such group in mainland British America.The 400th anniversary of their arrival was marked by The 1619 Project of "The New York Times", the Year of Return in Ghana, and other commemorations.Thousands of people were captured by Portuguese slave traders and their local allies such as the Imbangala in invasions of the Kingdom of Ndongo (or "Angola") under Governor Luís Mendes de Vasconcellos.