Mpala is a location situated on the shores of Lake Tanganyika in Angola. It is historically significant as the site of an early Catholic mission in the Belgian Congo, which originated from a military station established in May 1883.
The mission was transferred to the White Fathers missionaries in 1885 with the initial goal of establishing a Christian kingdom in central Africa. Although local warlords forced a return to civil control by Belgian colonial authorities in 1892, Mpala remained an important center for religious and practical education. It notably hosted the first seminary established in the Congo.