Oba of Benin

The Oba of Benin is the traditional ruler and the custodian of the culture of the Edo people and all Edoid people. The then Kingdom of Benin (not to be confused with the modern-day and unrelated Republic of Benin, which was then known as Dahomey) has been and continues to be mostly populated by the Edo (also known as Benin ethnic group).

In 1897, a British military force, of approximately 1,200 men, under the command of Sir Harry Rawson, mounted the Benin punitive Expedition. The force dispatched in retaliation to the ambush of a British party, at Ugbine village near Gwato, on the 4th January 1897, by a group of Benin soldiers, acting without orders from the Oba; the ambush had led to the deaths of all but two of the British party. The British force captured the capital of the Kingdom of Benin, sacking and burning the city while forcing the Oba of Benin, Ovonramwen, into a six-month exile. The expeditionary force consisted of both indigenous soldiers and British officers based in colonial-era Nigeria. Numerous artworks (collectively known as the Benin Bronzes) looted from the city palace were sold off to defray the costs of the expedition. Ovonramwen died in 1914, his throne never having been restored to him. His son, grandson and now his great-grandson, however, all preserved their title and status as traditional rulers in modern-day Nigeria.

History

List of Obas of the Benin Kingdom

Pre-Imperial Obas of Benin (pre-1280–1440)

* Eweka I (1180–1246)
* Uwuakhuahen (1246–1250)
* Henmihen (1250–1260)
* Ewedo (1260–1274)
* Oguola (1274–1287)
* Edoni (1287–1292)
* Akang (1292–1296)
* Udagbedo (1296–1329)
* Ohen (1329–1366)
* Egbeka (1366–1397)
* Orobiru (1397–1434)
* Uwaifiokun (1434–1440)

Obas of Imperial Benin (1440–1897)

There is some uncertainty in the dates of the reigns of some of the earlier warrior kings
*Ewuare I (1440–1473)
*Ezoti (1473–1474)
*Olua (1475–1480)
*Ozolua (1480–1504)
*Esigie (1504–1547)
*Orhogbua (1547–1580)
*Ehengbuda (1580–1602)
*Ohuan (1602–1656)
*Ohenzae (1656-1675)
*Akenkpaye (1675–1684)
*Akengbedo (1684–1689)
*Ore-Oghene (1689–1701)
*Ewuakpe (1701–1712)
*Ozuere (1712–1713)
*Akenzua I (1713–1740)
*Eresoyen (1740–1750)
*Akengbuda (1750–1804)
*Obanosa (1804–1816)
*Ogbebo (1816)
*Osemwende (1816–1848)
*Adolo (1848–1888)
* Ovonramwen Nogbaisi (1888–1914) (exiled to Calabar by the British in 1897)

Post-Imperial Obas of Benin (1914–present)

* Eweka II (1914–1933)
*Akenzua II (1933–1978)
*Erediauwa (1979–2016)
*Ewuare II (2016–present)

See also

* Iyoba of Benin
* Ogiso
* Akenzua II

References

External links

Africa Reparations Movement , Campaign for the return of the Benin BronzesStories of royalty in brass
Collections Multimedia Public Access System, The British Museum, 2000. Accessed 6 September 2006.

Edofolks - List of Obas of Benin

(with photos)


Benin Traditional Temple and Cultural Center to the worldRoyal Art of Benin: The Perls Collection
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on several Obas of Benin

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History of Nigeria

Nigeria-related lists
Edo people