Onigbogi was a

king King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

of the

Oyo Empire The Oyo Empire was a powerful Yoruba empire of West Africa made up of parts of present-day eastern Benin and western Nigeria (including Southwest zone and the western half of Northcentral zone). It grew to become the largest Yoruba language, ...

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

who succeeded his father, the

Alaafin Alaafin, or ''The Owner of the Palace'' in the Yoruba language, is the title of the emperor of the medieval Oyo empire and present-day Oyo town of West Africa. He ruled the old Oyo Empire which extended from the present day Benin republic to Ni ...

Oluaso Oluaso was an Oyo king known for his handsome and strong physique. Legends of his reign describe it as one of peace, longevity and love. He built numerous palaces A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a he ...

to become the 8th king of the Oyo. According to some now challenged narratives in Oyo, his mother, Aruigba-

Ifá Ifá is a Yoruba religion and system of divination. Its literary corpus is the ''Odu Ifá''. Orunmila is identified as the Grand Priest, as he revealed divinity and prophecy to the world. Babalawos or Iyanifas use either the divining chain kno ...

left her hometown of

Ota OTA or ota may stand for: Art, entertainment, and media * ''Off the Air'', an Adult Swim television series * Otakon, an annual anime convention in Baltimore, Maryland Electronics, science, and technology * Ochratoxin A (also termed OTA), a mycoto ...

to be with her son and to serve in his office as an advisor. She brought along with her the Ifá deity to protect her son and his kingdom. However, the Oyo masses rejected her proposal of worshiping the deity and she returned to Ota. On her way back to her hometown, she was received by Alado, who provided her with supplies to continue her journey, while she initiated Alado into the Ifá

divinity Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine

and conferred the rites to initiate others in return for his kindness. In latter years, the Ifá deity became prominent in Oyo and so was Ado hills, the villa of Alado.

Reign

During the time of Onigbogi, the Oyo empire and the gates of its capital were besieged with armies from the

Nupe Nupe may refer to: *Nupe people, of Nigeria *Nupe language, their language *The Bida Emirate, also known as the Nupe Kingdom, their former state *A member of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity in the United States *National Union of Public Employees (Ne ...

king. Though, the

Yoruba The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...

s and the Nupes had an amiable relationship during the time of Sango, the third king of Oyo, relationship since then had become strained. The Nupe army seized a large part of Oyo and later controlled the Oyo capital. Meantime, Onigbogi fled to a location in the land of the

Borgu Borgu is a region in north-west Nigeria and in the northern Republic of Benin. It was partitioned between Great Britain and France by the Anglo-French Convention of 1898. People of Borgu are known as Bariba or Borgawa. History According to the ...

References

*Samuel Johnson, Obadiah Johnson. ''The History of the Yorubas, From the Earliest of Times to the Beginning of the British Protectorate.'' p. 158 Alaafins of Oyo {{Alaafins of Oyo