OlaoChi:
in order words you cannot defend your claims. unless you have decided to turn yourself to a waste of time, you should provide evidence to support your claim when asked, i cannot hold to your words by faith

the Alake provided his own evidence, and in a gathering of intellectuals, evidence ends the subject, mad people and intellectually challenged fellows can keep arguing but what is - is!

AreaFada2:


I do not slave for lazy bums. I cannot be providing you all with evidence after you appear pumping with ethnic pride and claiming to know all. I take deliberate steps to educate myself. Do same.

Many readers who have seen that list will be laughing at you right now.

Go find it & stop wasting people's time. If you were not too lazy, you only have to follow my old posts. But no, you talk before thinking or reading.

BornStunner1:
[[s]quote author=OlaoChi post=54072945] in order words you cannot defend your claims. unless you have decided to turn yourself to a waste of time, you should provide evidence to support your claim when asked, i cannot hold to your words by faith

the Alake provided his own evidence, and in a gathering of intellectuals, evidence ends the subject, mad people and intellectually challenged fellows can keep arguing but what is - is!
[/s]

Go and sleep kid!!

Intellectuals? .....You mean Ewedu proffesors right?


Carry igbo moniker for head and You are yoruba at the same time

Better fall inlove with yoruba names and leave foriegn names alone bcus i know say to dey claim tins dey ur blood

Even now Davido had to go give his Daughter an EDO NAME!

EDO TOO SWEET ABEG I COULD GO ON AND ON

OlaoChi:
You do not have to insult me, I am not here to argue, even if i was, insulting me for asking you to defend your claim tells a lot about your upbringing.

I have just read through 7 pages of your previous posts and saw no material or any sort of valid european listing of Western traditional rulers. I would like you to show that you are not a waste of time

AreaFada2:

Chai!

Your lies na wa o.

Benin rating Ooni as Oghene? Which weed do you smoke? Kwale abi Ekiti weed?

The Europeans rated the capital of Benin Empire as a "City" when no other Sub-saharan Kingdom town had that title. That was back in 1553. Even before that, Oba of Benin had been exchanging gifts of Bronze crucifixes & rosaries with the then powerful King of Portugal. The Europeans had observed Benin fighting in Eastern Yorubaland already centuries earlier.

How can the British now be rating Alaafin or anybody higher only in 1821, many centuries later? Did this ranking even become possible until after 1897 defeat when Benin was still a sovereign empire?

Nigeria needs to disband and let people go their separate ways. The lies peddled now are becoming infuriating.

Europeans favoured stooges in Colonial divide & rule system and punished stubborn and determined ones. Simple.

You still have not explained why Ooni of Ife was rated very low even by colonial masters since he had no history of any significant tussle with the Europeans.

In Yoruba land age is hardly any reason for seniority in royalty. The father of current Ooni is still alive, an abomination in Benin culture. So depending on individual connections, wealth, politics & prowess, any of Ododuwa child could have been higher in hierarchy. Except of course he (Ododuwa) used his native Benin tradition of seniority to give his children positions.

Don't tell me it used to be by age, that it only changed later. I know you guys to speak from both sides of your mouth.

The rise of Oyo was simply based on slave trade. Benin had already outlawed slavery and finally banned sale of anything (even pepper) to Europeans when they insisted on Benin supplying slaves. Oyo made plenty of money from slavery. Hence the large Yoruba slave diaspora that Yoruba kings go to visit with pomp every time. A shameful thing in my opinion.

Till today Benin has no slave diaspora. Something quite unique. Aside the very few raided & stolen while trading into foreign lands. Enforcing slave ban shaped the history of my own family. Because just like narcotics today, a few people tried to flout the law in cahoots with outsiders.

When I first argued that Benin banned slave trade well before it became very lucrative from 1650s & 1700s, people here on NL were shouting lie, lie, lie. That was 6 years ago. Soon after a document showing origins of all slaves supplied from Sub-Sahara Africa was posted by someone. Lo & behold, Benin was not even recorded by Europeans as a slave origin place, for they meticulously recorded everything then. But European records abound on how no Benin slaves or Benin slave traders were typically among slave people/sellers even in the fringes of the Empire. Both sellers & slaves were listed as Igbo, Yoruba, Igalla, etc One was such record by A French slave trader, called Landolphe in February 1778. He visited Benin & met Chief Ezomo, leading field commander of Royal Army. A man with a standing army of 10,000 under him. Landolphe thought he had found easy cargo but Ezomo refused to sell a single person..

But none of those who initially shouted lies was civilised or man enough to apologize

Benin has only always highlighted kinship with their son Ekaladerhan (Izoduwa/Ododuwa) while all we have had with Oyo is business & mutual respect such as the Treaty of Otun (Northern Ekiti) between Aare Ona Kakanfo of Oyo & Iyase Ekpenede of Benin. Kankanfo planted date palm while facing Oyo & Iyase planted Ikhinmwin tree while facing Benin. That demarcated Benin & Oyo Empires.

Try to read widely first, not just those ethno-centric pseudo intellectuals whose work you read.

Read for example Alan Ryder's book: Benin & The Europeans-1485-1897.

At its maximum extent, the empire extended from the western Ibo tribes on the shores of the Niger river (onitsha area), through parts of the southwestern region of Nigeria (much of present-day Ondo State (owo and fringe towns), and the isolated islands (current Lagos Island and Obalende) in the coastal region of present-day Lagos State).

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benin_Empire

The Oyo Kingdom, which extended through most of SouthWestern Nigeria to parts of present-day Republic of Benin was to the West

OlaoChi:
You do not have to insult me, I am not here to argue, even if i was, insulting me for asking you to defend your claim tells a lot about your upbringing.

I have just read through 7 pages of your previous posts and saw no material or any sort of valid european listing of Western traditional rulers. I would like you to show that you are not a waste of time

OlaoChi:



it is obvious you are a troll. you have nothing to offer to humanity but waste your time on an online forum looking for people to offend.

i do not have to explain my moniker to a person like you, neither does Davido for his daughter's name

O0ni:


Bro, you want to waste your time with that ?

Someone quoting and liking a meme as some sort of relevance citation?

You have internet on your hands, run through it for whatever you need. You do not have to wait on his sources, bring your sources to the table and it will force his hands to reveal his magical source.

If he insults you, insult him harder; if he reasons with you, reason with him more QED

BornStunner1:
[s][/s]


TRASH!!

I just left for a day and i see some E- rats are running Amook again Awolowo ratak is still handy.

If we go by your silly propestrious and false analysis it clearly goes to show the GREAT BENIN verson of Oduduwa is TRUE!!...... unlike Yorubas yaaribas dat have milions of version of one story hahahahaha

Go and sleep you grandkids of OGISO OWODO!! You are babies compared to Us!!

Olu317:
YES I WAS EXPECTING YOUR LIKES. THE FUNNIEST THING IS THAT YOUR PEOPLE WROTE IT AND IT IS ACCESSIBLE FOR YOU ALL TO READ . GOOGLE IT OTEDO.COM AND REPORT WHAT YOU SEE THERE. LIES UPON LIES YOU CHURN OUT WILL CONSUME YOUR IGNORANCE. EVEN IFA THAT HAS MORE THAN 10,000,000 FOLLOWERS ALSO CAME OUT FROM IGODOMOGODO. NO WONDER, YOU ARE DEPOPULATED. LESS THAN 3000,000 PEOPLE. I CAN'T STOP LAUGHING AT SOME PEOPLE'S MISFORTUNE BECAUSE OF WELL FED FAT LIES TO THE WORLD....

Olu317:
YES I WAS EXPECTING YOUR LIKES. THE FUNNIEST THING IS THAT YOUR PEOPLE WROTE IT AND IT IS ACCESSIBLE FOR YOU ALL TO READ . GOOGLE IT OTEDO.COM AND REPORT WHAT YOU SEE THERE. LIES UPON LIES YOU CHURN OUT WILL CONSUME YOUR IGNORANCE. EVEN IFA THAT HAS MORE THAN 10,000,000 FOLLOWERS ALSO CAME OUT FROM IGODOMOGODO. NO WONDER, YOU ARE DEPOPULATED. LESS THAN 3000,000 PEOPLE. I CAN'T STOP LAUGHING AT SOME PEOPLE'S MISFORTUNE BECAUSE OF WELL FED FAT LIES TO THE WORLD....

O0ni:


Loooooooooool @ the emboldened.

You are one funny person yo! Really though, the story the Opal guy posted and the ones you posted goes to show Olokun worship lacks a strong role and system of worship in Bini. It does not seem like he deity is woven into the foundational system of Bini kingdom.

O0ni:


Loooooooooool @ the emboldened.

You are one funny person yo! Really though, the story the Opal guy posted and the ones you posted goes to show Olokun worship lacks a strong role and system of worship in Bini. It does not seem like he deity is woven into the foundational system of Bini kingdom.

BornStunner1:
[s][/s]


LOL JUST LOOK AT THIS KID!!...... INCASE YOU DIDNT GET THE MEMO LET ME REPOST!!!

If we go by your silly propestrious and false analysis it clearly goes to show the GREAT BENIN verson of Oduduwa is TRUE!!...... unlike Yorubas [s]yaaribas dat have milions of version of one story hahahahaha

Go and sleep you grandkids of OGISO OWODO!! angry You are babies compared to Us!!

O0ni:


Similar problem cts across all of una, inability to read or to deconstruct and understand what you read.

Here: who tired of their kings and invited Oranmiyan, the son of the "Oghene" of Ife to come and rule them, which he did, ... to govern Benin in a Portuguese letter of 1517 may well refer to members of these associations,31 while the Osodin and ...

In History in Africa, Volume 15, African Studies Association., 1988 - Africa


Here: In i486, the Portuguese sent Joao Afonso Aveiro to explore further the five "slave rivers" of the ... a king in the East, the oghene, who concealed himself behind silk curtains and apparently held ...

In The Slave Trade: The Story of the Atlantic Slave Trade: 1440-1870
By Hugh Thomas

Here: The only other contemporary success story for Christianity had been in Portugal itself where the Portuguese had succeeded in ... He talked about the Oghene ( Ooni), the priest-king of Uhe, to whom the Oba of Benin owed ancestral fealty.

In Thisweek, Volume 7, 1987.


Here: The name of the first Oba of the second period is well-known, but the story surrounding his ascension to the throne is interlaced with events that underscore the Edo-Ife (Yoruba) relationship, and this has gone on for several centuries. It can be safely assumed, however, that Ife which the Edos call Uhe existed before the Edo and Oyo empires. Uhe has retained its constitutional and spiritual importance for the Yoruba

http://www.raceandhistory.com/historicalviews/edoofbenin.htm

Also see "A History of the Yoruba People" by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye.

In this work, a detailed relationship of Uhe & Benin was constructed showing Bini throne as a subordinate to Uhe throne - in the references portuguese document/archive was referenced.




There was no ranking until Benin had subjugated the entire northern & southern regions and this did not happen until early 20th century.



Then you'll have Republic of Ogiso abi? I hopeit happens, we will be waiting for you lot to reach to us for help as usual.



Lol another excuse. Were the Egba, Ijebu and Lagos punished too then?



I cited examples of Oba of Lagos & Oloto/Idejo, I cited Amapetu & Olugbo. Did you ever read on how Olu of Warri was played against Oba Bini resulting in the defeat of Bini army & capture & sales of their soldiers into slavery? The Europeans gave recognition to whom they met first, Ooni was seated far off in the forests but they kept heaing of him everywhere.

Alaafin being rated first before Ooni was because the Europeans assumed Alaafin was the head of all Yoruba from the many treaties signed with them especially during and after the wars. They did not come into contact with Ooni until later, Leo Fobrenius's findings shocked the entire Europe and Britain made sure they put all the excavations in their corner rather than it going to Germany. This opened the eyes of Europe to the King they have heard so much about from different accounts.



Kingship in Ife/Yoruba solely revolves around Ifa & Orisa divination. Hence age, wealth, connection matters not.

Nonetheless, in Yoruba land a king recognizes and respects his elders as they respect him. Oranmiyan may have been King in 3 different places but he knew to give his older brothers respect. All the kings fall in line when Orangun Ile-Ila is around.



I see you are trying to hype your tiny Bini kingdom. As I said before, you people twist history just to write your own history.

The same Oyo that banned slave trade which Owu flouted and led to the complete demolition of Owu till today?

You should point fingers at Ijebu and Badagry people for the supply of people to the slavers.




Of what relevance is this?

If your small kingdom was subjected to slave supplies you lot would be extinct by now. How many una be?

Besides, y'all have ashewo and axemen in diaspora now

The matter of slave supply and slave trade is another matter entirely.



What does Ododuwa/Izoduduwa mean in Benin?

What does Omonoyan mean in Benin?

With these meanings we can then decipher what is what.

Oyo planting tree with Bini does not signify equality or anything at that. Otun Ekiti history stated there was no war between both parties on their land but rather the tree was planted to demarcate each person's area of influence - Benin in Otun was solely trade not war nor conquest. Otun itself was a market town/trade post so what are you on about here?

Oyo raising its army from all the towns in Togo, Dahomey and all Yoruba towns in Nigeria will overrun Bini quicker than anything else. The safety Bini enjoyed was the Oranmiyan's influence which Yoruba took serious and a perspective they continue to see from, foolishly.

Ogedengbe was going to sack Bini but your king begged him not to and this is not mention a larger and well organized Oyo army.

It pains me that Oyo or at least Ogedengbe did not ravage your tiny kingdom but at least Itsekiri did and sold alot of you into slavery




You are the one who needs to read. Outside of Bini's relations with Europeans, her minor military skirmishes here and then, the only other thing relevant that draws Bini to light is her art and maybe monarchy both gotten from Ife/Yoruba.


Addendum: Stop calling that Kingdom an Empire.

See:

And this is supposed to be an empire?



In you people's hatred for Yoruba and OCD to equate yourselves with the Yoruba you try to downplay or twist Yoruba history. Can you see how Oyo, a massive kingdom that spanned across 3 West African countries and became a regional power that showed in the 15th century European map was referred to as a Kingdom but Benin that occupied sparse territories was referred to as an Empire? Bini wey nor reach Ago-Oja (present Oyo) in size yet it is an empire.

You people will only try, throw fits, froth in all the orifices in your body but your tiny kingdom will never attain the history, relevance, humanistic contribution and status of Ife/Yoruba and her kings.

You can try again, I dey wait you and your illiterate Oba bini foot-soldiers.

O0ni:


Loooooooooool @ the emboldened.

You are one funny person yo! Really though, the story the Opal guy posted and the ones you posted goes to show Olokun worship lacks a strong role and system of worship in Bini. It does not seem like he deity is woven into the foundational system of Bini kingdom.

9jakool:


Olu- Lord or Owner
Okun- Ocean or Sea
Hence Olokun means Owner/Lord of the Sea

In regards to your claim of Yorubaland being landlocked, go take this interesting theory to the Ilaje, Ijebu, Awori, Anago or Ohori people.
Lagos State was not a desolate, uninhabitable place before the Benin rulers came. Just because the Benin Empire ruled Lagos does not mean that the people's identity changed. Similarly, just because the British ruled Nigeria, does not make Nigerians British. The Awori, Egba, Ijebu, and the distinct Egun/Ogu were the original inhabitants. The Egba in Otta, Awori in the center, Ijebu in the East, and Ogu/Egun in Badagry. Edo and Yoruba people have a historical relationship, so there is no need for divisive tribalism.

Olu317:
It is really an insult on my Ethnicity that we subdue morally and spiritually. Here we are, some babes in boys skin churning out trash. Let them go to South and North America and see where the Babalawos refers to? From the beginning of Oranmiyan, their history was linked to Yoruba land. Even the Edo are linked to Ebira and NRI Kingdom. EVERYTHING THEY KNOW ABOUT OBA(KINGSHIP) AS WELL AS IFA WERE THOUGHT TO THEM(EDO) BY YORUBA RACE. Yoruba culture stand unequalled in the whole of AFRICA. I have told some of them, which was the reason, they ran away when I wrote of YORUBA ELEDUMARE (GOD)/ when the Almighty God was speaking in one ODU IFA AND IT'S ONLY THAT YORUBA GOD SPOKE BOASTFULLY ABOUT LIVING FOREVER AND ALSO HAVING AN ADULT AGELESS DESCRIPTION WITH GRAY HAIRS COMPARABLE ONLY TO GOD OF ISRAEL..

Olu317:
GREAT WORK DONE HERE. GOD BLESS YOU MORE.

Olu317:
Bini are desperate to earn money via tourism and they don't know how to go about it. But instead they try to twist history just to suit themselves. Little do they know, that there were record as far back as the beginning of Egypt's/Misrah's civilisations. There are account of people and events even before 3000BC with archaeological evidence. It's only unlettered that fall flat to their gimmick. They have nothing concrete to write about yet they boast foolishly.

O0ni:


10000+

They are dying to get some type of attention. Especially their throne, it wants attenrion so bad. Does schism from western region come to mind? When their king and the people wanted a separate region ovee attention their king didn't get at a gathering?

Sadly, there's not much on their side of the divide that lends credence to their claim of being an old kingdom and Ogiso story hence, no tourism.

If you follow the pattern of Bini history in academia, it began with their contact with Yoruba (Oranmiyan) and then study of Bini in the Arts started with contact with Yoruba and much of their military history revolved around their child's play in eastern flanks of Yoruba land.

Their history did not begin until contact with Yoruba.

O0ni:


Similar problem cts across all of una, inability to read or to deconstruct and understand what you read.

Here: who tired of their kings and invited Oranmiyan, the son of the "Oghene" of Ife to come and rule them, which he did, ... to govern Benin in a Portuguese letter of 1517 may well refer to members of these associations,31 while the Osodin and ...

In History in Africa, Volume 15, African Studies Association., 1988 - Africa


Here: In i486, the Portuguese sent Joao Afonso Aveiro to explore further the five "slave rivers" of the ... a king in the East, the oghene, who concealed himself behind silk curtains and apparently held ...

In The Slave Trade: The Story of the Atlantic Slave Trade: 1440-1870
By Hugh Thomas

Here: The only other contemporary success story for Christianity had been in Portugal itself where the Portuguese had succeeded in ... He talked about the Oghene ( Ooni), the priest-king of Uhe, to whom the Oba of Benin owed ancestral fealty.

In Thisweek, Volume 7, 1987.


Here: The name of the first Oba of the second period is well-known, but the story surrounding his ascension to the throne is interlaced with events that underscore the Edo-Ife (Yoruba) relationship, and this has gone on for several centuries. It can be safely assumed, however, that Ife which the Edos call Uhe existed before the Edo and Oyo empires. Uhe has retained its constitutional and spiritual importance for the Yoruba

http://www.raceandhistory.com/historicalviews/edoofbenin.htm

Also see "A History of the Yoruba People" by Stephen Adebanji Akintoye.

In this work, a detailed relationship of Uhe & Benin was constructed showing Bini throne as a subordinate to Uhe throne - in the references portuguese document/archive was referenced.




There was no ranking until Benin had subjugated the entire northern & southern regions and this did not happen until early 20th century.



Then you'll have Republic of Ogiso abi? I hopeit happens, we will be waiting for you lot to reach to us for help as usual.



Lol another excuse. Were the Egba, Ijebu and Lagos punished too then?



I cited examples of Oba of Lagos & Oloto/Idejo, I cited Amapetu & Olugbo. Did you ever read on how Olu of Warri was played against Oba Bini resulting in the defeat of Bini army & capture & sales of their soldiers into slavery? The Europeans gave recognition to whom they met first, Ooni was seated far off in the forests but they kept heaing of him everywhere.

Alaafin being rated first before Ooni was because the Europeans assumed Alaafin was the head of all Yoruba from the many treaties signed with them especially during and after the wars. They did not come into contact with Ooni until later, Leo Fobrenius's findings shocked the entire Europe and Britain made sure they put all the excavations in their corner rather than it going to Germany. This opened the eyes of Europe to the King they have heard so much about from different accounts.



Kingship in Ife/Yoruba solely revolves around Ifa & Orisa divination. Hence age, wealth, connection matters not.

Nonetheless, in Yoruba land a king recognizes and respects his elders as they respect him. Oranmiyan may have been King in 3 different places but he knew to give his older brothers respect. All the kings fall in line when Orangun Ile-Ila is around.



I see you are trying to hype your tiny Bini kingdom. As I said before, you people twist history just to write your own history.

The same Oyo that banned slave trade which Owu flouted and led to the complete demolition of Owu till today?

You should point fingers at Ijebu and Badagry people for the supply of people to the slavers.




Of what relevance is this?

If your small kingdom was subjected to slave supplies you lot would be extinct by now. How many una be?

Besides, y'all have ashewo and axemen in diaspora now

The matter of slave supply and slave trade is another matter entirely.



What does Ododuwa/Izoduduwa mean in Benin?

What does Omonoyan mean in Benin?

With these meanings we can then decipher what is what.

Oyo planting tree with Bini does not signify equality or anything at that. Otun Ekiti history stated there was no war between both parties on their land but rather the tree was planted to demarcate each person's area of influence - Benin in Otun was solely trade not war nor conquest. Otun itself was a market town/trade post so what are you on about here?

Oyo raising its army from all the towns in Togo, Dahomey and all Yoruba towns in Nigeria will overrun Bini quicker than anything else. The safety Bini enjoyed was the Oranmiyan's influence which Yoruba took serious and a perspective they continue to see from, foolishly.

Ogedengbe was going to sack Bini but your king begged him not to and this is not mention a larger and well organized Oyo army.

It pains me that Oyo or at least Ogedengbe did not ravage your tiny kingdom but at least Itsekiri did and sold alot of you into slavery




You are the one who needs to read. Outside of Bini's relations with Europeans, her minor military skirmishes here and then, the only other thing relevant that draws Bini to light is her art and maybe monarchy both gotten from Ife/Yoruba.


Addendum: Stop calling that Kingdom an Empire.

See:

And this is supposed to be an empire?



In you people's hatred for Yoruba and OCD to equate yourselves with the Yoruba you try to downplay or twist Yoruba history. Can you see how Oyo, a massive kingdom that spanned across 3 West African countries and became a regional power that showed in the 15th century European map was referred to as a Kingdom but Benin that occupied sparse territories was referred to as an Empire? Bini wey nor reach Ago-Oja (present Oyo) in size yet it is an empire.

You people will only try, throw fits, froth in all the orifices in your body but your tiny kingdom will never attain the history, relevance, humanistic contribution and status of Ife/Yoruba and her kings.

You can try again, I dey wait you and your illiterate Oba bini foot-soldiers.

AreaFada2:


So in your micro-cephalic brain, a UK trained former diplomat is an illiterate while the product of cramming, pamphlet buying, cultist den & lecturer settling (aka failed education system) like you is a scholar. Clap for yourself. That alone shows that your attempt at intellectualism, quoting various mushroom publications, is an exercise in futility. Without merit whatsoever.

In your mind, your most powerful Kingdom (Oyo) will just as a matter of picnic come to Otun in Ekiti to plant trees & demarcate territory. Hahaaha! It shows you only go round quoting mostly ethno-centric books that pander to your ego.

Benin can never want anything from Yoruba land. We made that clear by democratically leaving South West barely 3 years after independence. Because we always knew that the contraption called Nigeria was, is and remains a massive aberration. That is why we never deliberately signed any treaty to cede power to the British or anybody. The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Water will gradually find its level.

The war the Ijebus fought, important to them for sure and a rare thing, it was of little consequence to the amalgamation of Nigeria.

To the point that even your kinsman Ola Rotimi spurned it and wrote about Ononramwen N'ogbaisi instead. A mere footnote in history is Ijebu fight.

We do not even need to attach to former slave diaspora for attention. We never sold ourselves into slavery.

So you really believe Ogedengbe if truly in a position of strength will just be persuaded by begging to attack Benin. Oh boy, your hero Ogedengbe simply chickened out like the cowards that abound in your area when realised the herculean task ahead of him. Forget that thing. Pure bobos.

Nothing you can about The Great Benin Empire. It is part of extra-ordinary human heritage and intelligence in governance, warfare, arts, culture, civilisation, organisation and more thought impossible for a black man.

As for our women, in life it is good to know your worth. We already did centuries ago by selling no slaves. If a woman must ply the oldest profession on earth, I hundred times prefer a woman hawking her wares for hard currency in international league than for a plate of Amala & ewedu bought by for her by an agbero. If you must eat frog, eat a fat one with plenty of meat. Even the most successful Nigerian footballers sold their kills in the foreign leagues: Okocha, Kanu, Obafemi Martins, Mikael, Peter Odemwingie, late Keshi & Yekini, etc.

Back in local league, the Benin chic called Itohan (with hustle names Wuraola & Zainab) still got your most eligible monarch, Ooni of Ife as hubby. So whatever our women have seem quite in demand. Therefore the joke is on you.

That Benin was betrayed by the relatives of Afonja, mostly likely behind the back of the Benin Prince that is Olu of Warri, should not surprise anyone. After all they routinely betray themselves.

Next time the BBC or any other foreign channel is extolling the glorious feats of ancient Benin Empire, you can smash your TV, your gen or set the your house ablaze in fit of jealous rage. If it's a local TV station rush to their studio in anger, randomly pick out any number of them and start biting their nyansh.

But at the end the antics of an inconsequential tribalist will remain a mere comic relief.

Olu317:
You need not be angered over the truth but it a pill that everyone must swallow. The British Empire destroyed so many things by usurping position to people who doesn't belong to that class. The people who wrote about different empire and kingdoms knew to a large extent the kingdoms and Empires. Bini was a kingdom and not a Empire.
An Edo indigene tried to distort history but truth can't be short change.
Egharevba wrote about Edo Kingdom and the Oba Bini's relationship with Ooni of ILE IFE despite the fact that some of you want to distort history. The man is adjudged as one of the greatest researchers on Edo history.

Especially issues on kingdoms. Even as far back as the 1930s. Standard book had been written as a guide to follow. Take for instance
Bradbury R.E. wrote about the Benin
Kingdom and the Edo speaking peoples of south western Nigeria, London 1957, P. 19).
Above is an example of book written about Bini Kingdom. Where do you genuinely get your information?
You even blundered again, the wife of Ooni isn't from Bini but immigrant to Bini. Go and clarify before assertion. I came across a lot of Binis that claim Majek Fashek as a Binian but is he not a Yoruba man? All Majek's life was nearly in Bini.
Bini is a kingdom but not as a Empire like OYO. There were account of Yoruba development in 13th century by IBN BATTÛTA, a Malian, Another Malian Scholar Ahmed Baba wrote about Yoruba in 16th century, then Sultan Of Sokoto read out what he saw in their Tariq/ a form history which can explain people's identity people. This history is clear as Crystal.

AreaFada2:

To begin, what is an empire & who is an emperor? In layman's terms?

Put simply an empire is a Kingdom that has vassal kingdoms/chiefdoms, whereby the emperor is the King over other Kings.
From 1440 Benin became an empire. Until 1897.

That Benin had many vassals is not disputable. The records are there. I do not know the problem you South-Westerners have with that.

Very soon somebody will be telling us that Modakeke or Ikorodu was a powerful Yoruba Kingdom. Una nor dey tire for propaganda?

Benin had many vassals in Eastern Yourbaland. Deal with it. Reality sucks sometimes. Even Lagos & Beyond. At a time when there were no cars, planes and marching on foot & using boats, and very occasionally horses (that died easily in tse-tse fly prone rain forest) the areas from Delta to Lagos & beyond that Benin Empire spanned and the various tribes & kings that were under Oba of Benin more than qualify to be an empire.

That you lot needed Hausa to tell you your history and even give you Yoruba name & kowtow to them till today is well-known. Please do not bring the writings of those Jahadists to attempt to prove any history on me. I poo on it 24/7. Because already we sent Jahadists packing from attempt to invade Edo North. We had no Afonja to betray us there. Something the "oh so mighty Oyo" cannot boast of.

So Because England was always called the Kingdom of England automatically means that they had no empire. Failed education alert again.
There is no pain on my part. Just amusement plus letting you guys know that a tribalistic & envious revisionist history remains a lie, no matter how many of you spew it or how many bogus academics you quote.

The records of contemporaries are there. I need no jihadists to tell me that.

Olu317:
it isn't true. Bini was NEVER A EMPIRE. THE PEOPLE OF WHITE BACKGROUND WHO WERE MERE EXPLORER THAT WROTE THAT DIDN'T KNOW PEOPLE OF FORESTED REGION. did Bini ever at anytime control MAHIN? IKALE? AKURE? IDANRE? OKE IGBO? ITSEKIRI?(yourbas) etc then others like URHOBO? IZON? all these claims were PAPER WORK and not in reality. Do you know a kingdom called OKA AKOKO? That's is the largest Yoruba settlement in Akoko. They killed Bini warrior like pigs.... Go and check your facts correctly.

O0ni:

You are a christian?

AreaFada2:
Please recruit more of your co-tribalists & jealous revisionists and let us talk. Work almost done for today. I will have free time soon.
Bring it on. Agbero shouts, curses and tantrums are all welcome.

AreaFada2:

Yes Benin did in most. Of course since 1897, several revisionists started gradually. But still in 1979 during coronation of Oba Erediauwa, I remember how many rulers from far and wide came to pay homage and proudly highlighted their traditional vassalage and alliance to Benin. Most of those rulers are gone and Nigeria has ethnically polarised far more since then. Power game & sharing national cake now supersedes everything.

Most of the first Ordjes, Ovies and Obas in many of these parts were Benin princes. Even Brass in Bayelsa. Some still quietly come to be confirmed by Oba of Benin. And when sucession disputes break out, many run to Oba's palace to arbitrate mostly on the ground that they are ancient Benin princes.

I will remind you that for that reason, Oba of Benin once chose a prince of Brass as the Iyase (traditional Prime Minister) of Benin. His family is the well-known Otokiti family in Benin today. As well as two from Eastern Yorubaland. Okoro-Otun being the best known Ado-Akure (Edo n'Ekue) Iyase who served three Obas of Benin. All these within the past 250 years.

The current Iyase is of Urhobo heritage. Iyase is the second position after the Oba. It is non-hereditary and all Edoid people and Benin diaspora people from Imperial times are technically eligible. So a large pool of current Yoruba (isaleko, Idanre, Okitipupa, Owo, much of Ekiti, parts of Ijebuland), Itsekheri nobility/royaltyl (of whom most are Benin descendants), Urhobo/Isoko, Degema (in Rivers State) and many others can be chosen.

Let me remind you that Iginuwa was the son of Oba Olua of Benin. He was sent to Ewere area along the coast to become the Ogiame (Lord/ruler of the seas). With a full reinue of courtiers similar to Oba's own. Hence Ogiame is the Olu's first title. The late Ogiame Atuwatse wanted to annul the Ogiame title years back. His family simply asked him to abdicate until Gov. Uduaghan & Itsekhiri nobility waded in. The Olu quickly ditched the idea. Go & read it.

You guys know very little about the imperial past of Benin. It is woven into the fabric of Benin life. In its diversity. Even in the morning greetings.

Much of what I know about history I learnt from people born around 1870/1875. Some were even nearly 20 years old in 1897 when Britain attacked Benin. They were well over 100 in the 1980s. All consistently telling us same story. I did not need modern historians to know as a child. Not much different from written version. I did not begin learning history just to argue online. There was no internet or mobile phone when I began.

As for killing Benin soldiers, remember that propaganda is the first tool of war. When Americans were about taking Baghdad, that funny Iraqi minister said life on TV that American soldiers were committing suicide outside Baghdad.

You can chose the propaganda version that panders to your primordial tribalistic instincts.

In any case, why go to war if you are not prepared to die. Benin were never cowards.

AreaFada2:

To begin, what is an empire & who is an emperor? In layman's terms?

Put simply an empire is a Kingdom that has vassal kingdoms/chiefdoms, whereby the emperor is the King over other Kings.
From 1440 Benin became an empire. Until 1897.

That Benin had many vassals is not disputable. The records are there. I do not know the problem you South-Westerners have with that.

Very soon somebody will be telling us that Modakeke or Ikorodu was a powerful Yoruba Kingdom. Una nor dey tire for propaganda?

Benin had many vassals in Eastern Yourbaland. Deal with it. Reality sucks sometimes. Even Lagos & Beyond. At a time when there were no cars, planes and marching on foot & using boats, and very occasionally horses (that died easily in tse-tse fly prone rain forest) the areas from Delta to Lagos & beyond that Benin Empire spanned and the various tribes & kings that were under Oba of Benin more than qualify to be an empire.

That you lot needed Hausa to tell you your history and even give you Yoruba name & kowtow to them till today is well-known. Please do not bring the writings of those Jahadists to attempt to prove any history on me. I poo on it 24/7. Because already we sent Jahadists packing from attempt to invade Edo North. We had no Afonja to betray us there. Something the "oh so mighty Oyo" cannot boast of.

So Because England was always called the Kingdom of England automatically means that they had no empire. Failed education alert again.
There is no pain on my part. Just amusement plus letting you guys know that a tribalistic & envious revisionist history remains a lie, no matter how many of you spew it or how many bogus academics you quote.

The records of contemporaries are there. I need no jihadists to tell me that.

As somebody who knew Majek walking around town with a guitar before he even teamed up with Sunny Okosun, any Benin person who claims he's Benin is not wrong. I never heard him speak Yoruba (but I know can speak) or talk about his Yoruba dad. He grew up & was nurtured in Benin by his Benin Mum. I bet if he had turned out to be like Anini, Yoruba people would use him to insult us & not claim him.

Suddenly, success has many uncles, neighbours, area friends, aunties, etc.

This is a perfect example of one of our vassal kings

Jealousy go wan kill some ppl

AreaFada2:


So in your micro-cephalic brain, a UK trained former diplomat is an illiterate while the product of cramming, pamphlet buying, cultist den & lecturer settling (aka failed education system) like you is a scholar. Clap for yourself. That alone shows that your attempt at intellectualism, quoting various mushroom publications, is an exercise in futility. Without merit whatsoever.

In your mind, your most powerful Kingdom (Oyo) will just as a matter of picnic come to Otun in Ekiti to plant trees & demarcate territory. Hahaaha! It shows you only go round quoting mostly ethno-centric books that pander to your ego.

Benin can never want anything from Yoruba land. We made that clear by democratically leaving South West barely 3 years after independence. Because we always knew that the contraption called Nigeria was, is and remains a massive aberration. That is why we never deliberately signed any treaty to cede power to the British or anybody. The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Water will gradually find its level.

The war the Ijebus fought, important to them for sure and a rare thing, it was of little consequence to the amalgamation of Nigeria.

To the point that even your kinsman Ola Rotimi spurned it and wrote about Ononramwen N'ogbaisi instead. A mere footnote in history is Ijebu fight.

We do not even need to attach to former slave diaspora for attention. We never sold ourselves into slavery.

So you really believe Ogedengbe if truly in a position of strength will just be persuaded by begging to attack Benin. Oh boy, your hero Ogedengbe simply chickened out like the cowards that abound in your area when realised the herculean task ahead of him. Forget that thing. Pure bobos.

Nothing you can about The Great Benin Empire. It is part of extra-ordinary human heritage and intelligence in governance, warfare, arts, culture, civilisation, organisation and more thought impossible for a black man.

As for our women, in life it is good to know your worth. We already did centuries ago by selling no slaves. If a woman must ply the oldest profession on earth, I hundred times prefer a woman hawking her wares for hard currency in international league than for a plate of Amala & ewedu bought by for her by an agbero. If you must eat frog, eat a fat one with plenty of meat. Even the most successful Nigerian footballers sold their kills in the foreign leagues: Okocha, Kanu, Obafemi Martins, Mikael, Peter Odemwingie, late Keshi & Yekini, etc.

Back in local league, the Benin chic called Itohan (with hustle names Wuraola & Zainab) still got your most eligible monarch, Ooni of Ife as hubby. So whatever our women have seem quite in demand. Therefore the joke is on you.

That Benin was betrayed by the relatives of Afonja, mostly likely behind the back of the Benin Prince that is Olu of Warri, should not surprise anyone. After all they routinely betray themselves.

Next time the BBC or any other foreign channel is extolling the glorious feats of ancient Benin Empire, you can smash your TV, your gen or set the your house ablaze in fit of jealous rage. If it's a local TV station rush to their studio in anger, randomly pick out any number of them and start biting their nyansh.

But at the end the antics of an inconsequential tribalist will remain a mere comic relief.

FATALITY