He was a member of the House of Kimpanzu and may have been supported in his claim for the throne by partisans in Soyo.
The House of Kinlaza, which had held the throne of Kongo for the last three decades, acted swiftly to remove their rivals from power.
King Afonso II was deposed only a month into his term in December 1665.
In place of Afonso II, the Kinlaza put Álvaro VII in power.
The deposed king was forced to flee into the mountains of Nkondo where he ruled in opposition to the Kinlaza partisans in Kongo.