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Gaou Guinou
Gaou Guinou was an African prince and sometime the King of the Allada and the Fon people. He was reportedly captured and enslaved by his brother, Hussar, and his wife, Queen Aitta in 1724. According to Haitian oral traditions, Gaou Guinou's father, Soso, died in 1724 and left two sons to fight for the succession: Hussar and Gaou Guinou. Hussar fled to Abomey while Gaou Guinou, the younger brother, took power of Great Ardra. Hussar then allied himself with Agaja, the ruler of Dahomey, and returned to battle his brother for the throne thereafter. He was ultimately victorious, and sold Gaou Guinou into slavery after his capture. The former king is said to have eventually arrived in today's Haiti, where he soon started a family. This family is believed to be the family of Haiti's founding father, Toussaint L'Ouverture François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture (; also known as Toussaint L'Ouverture or Toussaint Bréda; 20 May 1743 – 7 April 1803) was a Haitian general and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allada
Allada is a town, arrondissement, and commune, located in the Atlantique Department of Benin. The current town of Allada corresponds to Great Ardra (also called Grand Ardra, or Arda), which was the capital of a Fon kingdom also called Allada (the ''kingdom of Ardra'' or ''kingdom of Allada''), which existed as a sovereign kingdom from around the 13th or 14th century (date of the initial settlements by Aja people, reorganized as a kingdom c. 1600) until 1724, when it fell to the armies of neighbour Kingdom of Dahomey. The present-day commune of Allada covers an area of 381 square kilometres and as of 2013 had a population of 127,512 people. History In the mid-sixteenth century, Allada (then called Grand Ardra, or Arda) had a population of about 30,000 people. The original inhabitants of Ardra were ethnic Aja. According to oral tradition, the Aja migrated to southern Benin around the 12th or 13th century, coming from Tado, on the Mono River in modern Togo. They established the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fon People
The Fon people, also called Fon nu, Agadja or Dahomey, are a Gbe ethnic group.Fon people Encyclopædia Britannica, undated, 1.7 million population, Retrieved June 29, 2019 They are the largest ethnic group in found particularly in its south region; they are also found in southwest and . Their total population is estimated to be about 3,500,000 people, and they speak the |
Abomey
Abomey is the capital of the Zou Department of Benin. The commune of Abomey covers an area of 142 square kilometres and, as of 2012, had a population of 90,195 people. Abomey houses the Royal Palaces of Abomey, a collection of small traditional houses that were inhabited by the Kings of Dahomey from 1600 to 1900, and which were designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1985.Butler, Stuart (2019) ''Bradt Travel Guide - Benin'', pgs. 135-45 History Abomey was founded in the 17th century as the capital of the Kingdom of Dahomey (1600–1904), on the site of the former village of Kana. Traditional legends state that the town was founded by Do-Aklin, a son of the king of Allada who ventured north to found his own kingdom; the name is thought to come from Danhomé, also spelled Danxomé, meaning "belly of Dan", Dan being the original chief of the village. Dahomey expanded rapidly in the 1700s, absorbing many of the surrounding kingdoms, and growing rich from the slave trade. A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Ardra
The Kingdom of Ardra, also known as the Kingdom of Allada, was a coastal West African kingdom in southern Benin. While historically a sovereign kingdom, in present times the monarchy continues to exist as a non-sovereign monarchy within the republic of Benin. It was named for its capital, the modern Allada, which was also the main city and major port of the realm. The city and kingdom were supposedly founded by a group of Aja migrants from Tado, a settlement along the Mono River, in the 12th or 13th century. Its kings "ruled with the consent of the elders of the people". The state reached the peak of its power in the 16th and early 17th centuries, when it was an important source of slaves for the Atlantic trade. By the mid-15th century, the city of Allada had a population of approximately 30,000 people, while the state as a whole had a population of nearly 200,000 people by the 16th century. Name The name is variously spelled Ardra, Ardrah, Ardres, Hardre, Arda, Arada, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Agaja
Agaja (also spelled Agadja and also known as Trudo Agaja or Trudo Audati) was a king of the Kingdom of Dahomey, in present-day Benin, who ruled from 1718 until 1740. He came to the throne after his brother King Akaba. During his reign, Dahomey expanded significantly and took control of key trade routes for the Atlantic slave trade by conquering Allada (1724) and Whydah (1727). Wars with the powerful Oyo Empire to the east of Dahomey resulted in Agaja accepting tributary status to that empire and providing yearly gifts. After this, Agaja attempted to control the new territory of the kingdom of Dahomey through militarily suppressing revolts and creating administrative and ceremonial systems. Agaja died in 1740 after another war with the Oyo Empire and his son Tegbessou became the new king. Agaja is credited with creating many of the key government structures of Dahomey, including the '' Yovogan'' and the ''Mehu''. The motivations of Agaja and his involvement with the slave trade r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dahomey
The Kingdom of Dahomey () was a West African kingdom located within present-day Benin that existed from approximately 1600 until 1904. Dahomey developed on the Abomey Plateau amongst the Fon people in the early 17th century and became a regional power in the 18th century by expanding south to conquer key cities like Whydah belonging to the Kingdom of Whydah on the Atlantic coast which granted it unhindered access to the tricontinental triangular trade. For much of the middle 19th century, the Kingdom of Dahomey became a key regional state, after eventually ending tributary status to the Oyo Empire. European visitors extensively documented the kingdom, and it became one of the most familiar African nations to Europeans. The Kingdom of Dahomey was an important regional power that had an organized domestic economy built on conquest and slave labor, significant international trade and diplomatic relations with Europeans, a centralized administration, taxation systems, and an organ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of The Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island which it shares with the Dominican Republic. To its south-west lies the small Navassa Island, which is claimed by Haiti but is disputed as a United States territory under federal administration."Haiti" ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Haiti is in size, the third largest country in the Caribbean by area, and has an estimated population of 11.4 million, making it the most populous country in the Caribb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toussaint L'Ouverture
François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture (; also known as Toussaint L'Ouverture or Toussaint Bréda; 20 May 1743 – 7 April 1803) was a Haitian general and the most prominent leader of the Haitian Revolution. During his life, Louverture first fought against the French, then for them, and then finally against France again for the cause of Haitian independence. As a revolutionary leader, Louverture displayed military and political acumen that helped transform the fledgling slave rebellion into a revolutionary movement. Louverture is now known as the "Father of Haiti". Louverture was born enslaved on the French colony of Saint-Domingue, now known as Haiti. He was a devout Catholic who became a freeman before the revolution and, once freed, identified as a Frenchman for the greater part of his life. During his time as a freeman he attempted to climb the highly stratified social ladder on the island, combatting racism whilst gaining and losing much wealth while working as a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
