Despite it being overlooked for many centuries Benin is probably one of the most precious germs in all of West African history, and three facts still remain :

The Benin Empire was one of the longest lasting empires in all of West African history.

It constructed a mega structure not seen anywhere else in the world.

Its arts greatly influenced all who lay eyes on it.

Located in Southern Nigeria, the people of Benin began its dominance at about 11 A.D to 1897, one of the longest empires in all of West African history.

The Benin Empire was one of the oldest and most highly developed States in West Africa. The founders of Benin were the EDO people, and they were led by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi.

Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi the Great turned Benin into an empire, formed political structures in the Kingdom, and greatly expanded the territory of the Kingdom, and fostered the arts and festivals into what we know it as today.

All of history recounts 201 victories by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi , over the various cities and towns, creating an Empire centred in EDO, even conquering many Yoruba States and incorporating them into the Benin Empire. Most notable Lagos State. The Name "EKO" (traditional name for Lagos) stems from the Benin word Eko, which means gathering place for warriors. This shows Lagos was a military outpost for the Benin Kingdom.

Around Benin City, Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi built significant large walls within the cities, and clearly divided zones for different craftworks.

Archeological evidence has found that the walls built around the city, and even out into the country was significant, and constructions taking years to complete. In addition he rebuilt the palace and seperated it from the rests of the Capital city.

The architecture of the Benin Empire was very unique. Well established Portuguese travellers were lured in by the magnificence of the Benin gate and walls and architectural structures they beheld. Travellers to Benin beheld it as the GREAT BENIN.

One 17th century Dutch traveller had this to say about the City: 

The Kings palace or court is a square, and is as large as a Dutch town, and entirely surrounded by special walls that which encircled the town. It is divided into magnificent palaces, houses and apartments of the courtiers, and comprises beautiful and long square galleries, about as large as an exchange in Amsterdam, resting on wooden pillars from top to bottom, covered with Caste and Copper in which are engraved pictures of their war exploits and battles.
The Benin Empire was very organised and even had its own flag. The Edo people were mobilised by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi the Great and they invested in military structures and tactics. The Edo people were so dedicated to Military prowess that they built one of the most impressive structures in all of Africa.

Great Wall of Benin

The walls of Benin were the largest man-made structure lengthwise, and was hailed as the largest artwork in the world. It's estimated that the earliest construction began in 800 and continued into the mid 15th Century. The walls of Benin city was the world's largest man-made earth structure.

A quote from Fred Pierce of the New Scientist has this to say about the walls of Benin :

They extended for some 9,900 miles in all in a mosaic of more than 500 interconnected settlements and boundaries. They cover 2510 square miles and were all dug by the EDO people. In all they are four times longer than the Great Wall of China and consumed a hundred times more material than the Great Pyramid of Giza.

They took an estimated 150 hours of digging to construct, and are perhaps the single largest archaeological phenomenon on the planet.
Now that's a pretty impressive feat for a small empire like Benin, putting itself on the world stage architecturally.

BENIN ARTS.

One can't speak about Benin without its artistic splendour. The Art from the Benin Empire is magnificent and exemplifies the glory of West African civilization. According to oral tradition the technique of wax bronze casting was brought to Benin around the 14th Century from Ife, the ancient Yoruba Kingdom noted for its exquisite cast bronze commemorative heads.

British officials were interested in controlling trade in the area to access the empire rubber resources to support their own growing tire market. At the end of the 19th century the Kingdom of Benin had managed to retain its independence and the Great Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi exercised a monopoly over trade, which greatly annoyed the British. So the British wanted to annex Benin and remove the Oba.

First the British tried to make Benin sign a deceptive treaty that will make them a prirectorate, because of this the Oba bared all British officials and traders from entering Benin territories. Of course to the British this meant war.

WAR

In November James Robert Philips made a formal request to London for permission to invade Benin city. In late December 1896 without waiting for a reply or approval from London, Philip embarked on a military expedition with two Niger Coast Protectorate force officers, medical officers, two trading agents 250 African soldiers masquerading in part as potters, and in part as a drum and pipe bands.

To disguise their true intent, the forces weapons were hidden in baggges carried by the porters. His request to London was to depose the King of Benin city, replace him with a native council and pay for the invasion with the Ivory he hoped to find in the Benins Kings Palace.

In the meantime he sent a message to the Oba that his mission is to discuss trade and peace and demanding admission into the territory, in defiance of Benin law exploiting forbidding his entry. Unfortunately for Philips some Itsekiri chiefs sent a message to the Benin King that :

"The white man was bringing war"

In receiving the news the Benin King quickly summoned the city's high ranking nobles for an emergency meeting, and during the discussions, Olognoseri, the Comander in Chief of the Benin Army argued that the British were planning a surprise attack and must be defeated.

PREMPTIVE STRIKE

The Benin King however argued that the British should be allowed to enter the City so that it can be assertained whether or not the visit was a friendly one. But the Commander ignored the Oba's views and ordered the formation of a strike force that was commanded by Itsekiri chiefs a senior army commander.

This pre-emptive strike on the British and African forces was pretty much a slaughter fest, only two British officers survived the annihilation of Philips Experdition.

PUNITIVE EXPEDITION

No surprise the British had to retaliate after they suffered that humiliating defeat, and led what was called the "punitive expedition". This force was led by Harry Lawson.

On February 9 the assault began. The invasion force was composed of three collumes :

Sopoma Collume. Qwato Collume and Main collumes, with the Sopoma collumes consisting of Royal Marines and Sailors, the Qwato collume was made up of 100 Royal Marines and Sailors, and the Main colume consisted of 120 British Marines and 100 British sailors, 30 African scouts and 250 African troops drawn from the Niger Coast Protectorate Force.

The most heavily defended region of Benin was the region of Qwato. The British Royal forces met the greatest Benin defence led by Commander Ologboseri. After a bitter and bloody battle the British were forced to withdraw.

After the withdrawal the British Royal Forces tried a second time, and were again kept at bay at the outskirts of Benin city. Then ironically the African forces of the Niger Protectorate relieved the British forces and conquered the city, burning down the city and looting.

This was the end of the Benin Empire. The troops began looting the city, taking Benin artifacts and taking it back to the British museums.

The Art of Benin was so moving and majestic that its dispersal around the world forced people to reassess how they viewed Africans in general, as one cannot look at the sophistication and beauty of Benin art and justify their old adulterated and backward view of African people.

The Benin Empire was unique in that it single handedly forced people to view all West Africans differently. The Art of Benin was copied and the style was integrated into the art of Art of many Europeans artists and thus a strong influence on the early formation of modernism in Europe. The culture and magnificent arts of Benin can sometimes make historians re-evaluate and question who the real conquerers are, the ones who captured the city or the ones who captured the mind?

https://defensenigeria.com/2018/02/09/the-great-benin-empire/

I know of the Benin art and artifacts but I don't know of Benin wall.mostly I have not seen its mark

SSGN:
Despite it being overlooked for many centuries Benin is probably one of the most precious germs in all of West African history, and three facts still remain :

The Benin Empire was one of the longest lasting empires in all of West African history.

It constructed a mega structure not seen anywhere else in the world.

Its arts greatly influenced all who lay eyes on it.

Located in Southern Nigeria, the people of Benin began its dominance at about 11 A.D to 1897, one of the longest empires in all of West African history.

The Benin Empire was one of the oldest and most highly developed States in West Africa. The founders of Benin were the EDO people, and they were led by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi.

Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi the Great turned Benin into an empire, formed political structures in the Kingdom, and greatly expanded the territory of the Kingdom, and fostered the arts and festivals into what we know it as today.

All of history recounts 201 victories by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi , over the various cities and towns, creating an Empire centred in EDO, even conquering many Yoruba States and incorporating them into the Benin Empire. Most notable Lagos State. The Name "EKO" (traditional name for Lagos) stems from the Benin word Eko, which means gathering place for warriors. This shows Lagos was a military outpost for the Benin Kingdom.

Around Benin City, Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi built significant large walls within the cities, and clearly divided zones for different craftworks.

Archeological evidence has found that the walls built around the city, and even out into the country was significant, and constructions taking years to complete. In addition he rebuilt the palace and seperated it from the rests of the Capital city.

The architecture of the Benin Empire was very unique. Well established Portuguese travellers were lured in by the magnificence of the Benin gate and walls and architectural structures they beheld. Travellers to Benin beheld it as the GREAT BENIN.

One 17th century Dutch traveller had this to say about the City: 

The Kings palace or court is a square, and is as large as a Dutch town, and entirely surrounded by special walls that which encircled the town. It is divided into magnificent palaces, houses and apartments of the courtiers, and comprises beautiful and long square galleries, about as large as an exchange in Amsterdam, resting on wooden pillars from top to bottom, covered with Caste and Copper in which are engraved pictures of their war exploits and battles.
The Benin Empire was very organised and even had its own flag. The Edo people were mobilised by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi the Great and they invested in military structures and tactics. The Edo people were so dedicated to Military prowess that they built one of the most impressive structures in all of Africa.

Great Wall of Benin

The walls of Benin were the largest man-made structure lengthwise, and was hailed as the largest artwork in the world. It's estimated that the earliest construction began in 800 and continued into the mid 15th Century. The walls of Benin city was the world's largest man-made earth structure.

A quote from Fred Pierce of the New Scientist has this to say about the walls of Benin :

They extended for some 9,900 miles in all in a mosaic of more than 500 interconnected settlements and boundaries. They cover 2510 square miles and were all dug by the EDO people. In all they are four times longer than the Great Wall of China and consumed a hundred times more material than the Great Pyramid of Giza.

They took an estimated 150 hours of digging to construct, and are perhaps the single largest archaeological phenomenon on the planet.
Now that's a pretty impressive feat for a small empire like Benin, putting itself on the world stage architecturally.

BENIN ARTS.

One can't speak about Benin without its artistic splendour. The Art from the Benin Empire is magnificent and exemplifies the glory of West African civilization. According to oral tradition the technique of wax bronze casting was brought to Benin around the 14th Century from Ife, the ancient Yoruba Kingdom noted for its exquisite cast bronze commemorative heads.

British officials were interested in controlling trade in the area to access the empire rubber resources to support their own growing tire market. At the end of the 19th century the Kingdom of Benin had managed to retain its independence and the Great Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi exercised a monopoly over trade, which greatly annoyed the British. So the British wanted to annex Benin and remove the Oba.

First the British tried to make Benin sign a deceptive treaty that will make them a prirectorate, because of this the Oba bared all British officials and traders from entering Benin territories. Of course to the British this meant war.

WAR

In November James Robert Philips made a formal request to London for permission to invade Benin city. In late December 1896 without waiting for a reply or approval from London, Philip embarked on a military expedition with two Niger Coast Protectorate force officers, medical officers, two trading agents 250 African soldiers masquerading in part as potters, and in part as a drum and pipe bands.

To disguise their true intent, the forces weapons were hidden in baggges carried by the porters. His request to London was to depose the King of Benin city, replace him with a native council and pay for the invasion with the Ivory he hoped to find in the Benins Kings Palace.

In the meantime he sent a message to the Oba that his mission is to discuss trade and peace and demanding admission into the territory, in defiance of Benin law exploiting forbidding his entry. Unfortunately for Philips some Itsekiri chiefs sent a message to the Benin King that :

"The white man was bringing war"

In receiving the news the Benin King quickly summoned the city's high ranking nobles for an emergency meeting, and during the discussions, Olognoseri, the Comander in Chief of the Benin Army argued that the British were planning a surprise attack and must be defeated.

PREMPTIVE STRIKE

The Benin King however argued that the British should be allowed to enter the City so that it can be assertained whether or not the visit was a friendly one. But the Commander ignored the Oba's views and ordered the formation of a strike force that was commanded by Itsekiri chiefs a senior army commander.

This pre-emptive strike on the British and African forces was pretty much a slaughter fest, only two British officers survived the annihilation of Philips Experdition.

PUNITIVE EXPEDITION

No surprise the British had to retaliate after they suffered that humiliating defeat, and led what was called the "punitive expedition". This force was led by Harry Lawson.

On February 9 the assault began. The invasion force was composed of three collumes :

Sopoma Collume. Qwato Collume and Main collumes, with the Sopoma collumes consisting of Royal Marines and Sailors, the Qwato collume was made up of 100 Royal Marines and Sailors, and the Main colume consisted of 120 British Marines and 100 British sailors, 30 African scouts and 250 African troops drawn from the Niger Coast Protectorate Force.

The most heavily defended region of Benin was the region of Qwato. The British Royal forces met the greatest Benin defence led by Commander Ologboseri. After a bitter and bloody battle the British were forced to withdraw.

After the withdrawal the British Royal Forces tried a second time, and were again kept at bay at the outskirts of Benin city. Then ironically the African forces of the Niger Protectorate relieved the British forces and conquered the city, burning down the city and looting.

This was the end of the Benin Empire. The troops began looting the city, taking Benin artifacts and taking it back to the British museums.

The Art of Benin was so moving and majestic that its dispersal around the world forced people to reassess how they viewed Africans in general, as one cannot look at the sophistication and beauty of Benin art and justify their old adulterated and backward view of African people.

The Benin Empire was unique in that it single handedly forced people to view all West Africans differently. The Art of Benin was copied and the style was integrated into the art of Art of many Europeans artists and thus a strong influence on the early formation of modernism in Europe. The culture and magnificent arts of Benin can sometimes make historians re-evaluate and question who the real conquerers are, the ones who captured the city or the ones who captured the mind?

https://defensenigeria.com/2018/02/09/the-great-benin-empire/

Poorly written article.

You said Benin conquered Lagos state..d part conquered is d smallest part of Lagos state. Do not forget a Yoruba warrior known as Oranmiyan and his entourage conquered Benin and imposed an Oba on them.

Onijagidijagan:

Poorly written article.

You said Benin conquered Lagos state..d part conquered is d smallest part of Lagos state. Do not forget a Yoruba warrior known as Oranmiyan and his entourage conquered Benin and imposed an Oba on them.

Sorry no vex. I'll write better next time. Never went to the university, Doing my best.

Also, while you’re revising the history of your great bini, do not forget to add that Ooni’s statue from 14th century was dug out of your palace.

Onijagidijagan:

Poorly written article.

You said Benin conquered Lagos state..d part conquered is d smallest part of Lagos state. Do not forget a Yoruba warrior known as Oranmiyan and his entourage conquered Benin and imposed an Oba them.

where did you get historical evidence that Yoruba went to war with Benin?
who was oranmiyan's father?
which oba did he install in Benin?
abi you want to rewrite history?

Y0ruba:
Also, while you’re revising the history of your great bini, do not forget to add that Ooni’s statue from 14th century was dug out of your palace.

that is because you do not know that Benin is the predecessor of the ooni of ife

baralatie:

where did you get historical evidence that Yoruba went to war with Benin?
who was oranmiyan's father?
which oba did he install in Benin?
abi you want to rewrite history?

Did u think Oranmiyan chased Ogiso kings easily.. d Yoruba people knew he won d war BTW Yoruba and Benin.

Many part of Edo is our territory

baralatie:

that is because you do not know that Benin is the predecessor of the ooni of ife

it's a lie oramiyan founded Bini and named it Benin

Onijagidijagan:

Did u think Oranmiyan chased Ogiso kings easily.. d Yoruba people knew he won d war BTW Yoruba and Benin.

Many part of Edo is our territory

you don't know what you are talking about at all!
who is oranmiyan's father?
you need to be properly schooled in the history of the lineage of the ogisos

Onijagidijagan:
it's a lie oramiyan founded Bini and named it Benin

Bini founded? please!come for tutorial it is very,very cheap!

Here we go again.

No matter how many times you school them, They come back withh year 2000s revised history by Yoruba Oba of Bini looking for relevance among Ogiamen children that will never accept the domination of their conqueror.

Edo women have a folklore song of how Ogiso misbehave by being oppressive and was dethroned only to carry the the junk of their conquerors.

Go home and ask for the song if you do not know it.

First of all Edo is a people not a land. You are confusing with Edo state which is a land named after the name of the people who live in it.
Although the people of Delta are also Edo.
Second of all, I don't know if you are aware but oranmiyan, oduduwa are just myths like father christmass.
When has yoruba ever been a kingdom which waged war ?
To the best of my knowledge, yoruba means people of oyo whose kingdom got annihilated by the fulani.
And now several different ethnic groups are buying into the yoruba label and declaring themselves yoruba.
I will have you reminded that the yoruba have never been good in any warfare, you are the only southern people who got their asses kicked by the fulani, and it was so bad that you guys had to run into the forrest and abandon your kingdom.
For your information, the superpower of West Africa (before the british arrived ) was the Benin Kingdom !
yoruba have never been a match for Benin Kingdom. Benin Kingdom gave a tough fight to the british empire, while yoruba gave up to the british without a fight !
The point which confuses most of you yoruba is that your chiefs have all decided to copy the title "Oba" which belongs only to Omo n'Oba n'Edo. It is from there that you uneducated lads start twisting history and believe that the word belongs to you because "you be plenty". And then your sick brains go further to suggest that since the Edo have an Oba, therefor the yoruba must have conquered the Edo.

Onijagidijagan:

Did u think Oranmiyan chased Ogiso kings easily.. d Yoruba people knew he won d war BTW Yoruba and Benin.

Many part of Edo is our territory

[quite] Ogiso goes back on his word. Whereupon heaven and earth threaten to convulse the nation, forcing the Ogiso to capitulate. >[His rival] became the Oba, and the Ogiso became his sword-bearer. [/quote]

Google can help you there, try google image.

baralatie:
I know of the Benin art and artifacts but I don't know of Benin wall.mostly I have not seen its mark

you are one sick person.
There was never any ogiso.
You need to understand that myth and history are not the same thing.
But you won't understand this because you are mentally ill like your godfather ogiamen who should be considered for execution or at least exile. I really doubt that bastard is actually living in Edo state, because what he is doing is illegal in Edo state.

jara:

[quite] Ogiso goes back on his word. Whereupon heaven and earth threaten to convulse the nation, forcing the Ogiso to capitulate. >[His rival] became the Oba, and the Ogiso became his sword-bearer.

Learned about Benin empire. Thanks Op and commenters.

Who pissed on your brain for you to produce this trash ?
ogiamen is a mad man who is making claims. It takes an other mad man to believe ogiamen.
Omo n'Oba n'Edo has no yoruba blood whatsoever (I don't even think that yoruba blood is a thing).
Your yoruba chiefs copied the title Oba from the Edo people and their powerful kingdom and empire which had most of your people in the extended empire.
I just don't understand why you would just go into a topic which doesn't cncern you and start spilling lies ?
I see the newest yoruba lie is "Edo women have a folklore song of how Ogiso misbehave by being oppressive and was dethroned only to carry the the junk of their conquerors."
Who exactly are you trying to convince, is it us Edo whom you want to convince ? You want to convince us that we sing a song which we have never heard about ? Please someone take this guy to yaba left.

jara:

Here we go again.

No matter how many times you school them, They come back withh year 2000s revised history by Yoruba Oba of Bini looking for relevance among Ogiamen children that will never accept the domination of their conqueror.

Edo women have a folklore song of how Ogiso misbehave by being oppressive and was dethroned only to carry the the junk of their conquerors.

Go home and ask for the song if you do not know it.

There are a few mistakes there.
Oba Ovonramwen is the last independent king of the Benin Kingdom.
You seem to be confusing him with several of his ancestors: namely Oba Ewuare and Oba Esigie.

SSGN:
Despite it being overlooked for many centuries Benin is probably one of the most precious germs in all of West African history, and three facts still remain :

The Benin Empire was one of the longest lasting empires in all of West African history.

It constructed a mega structure not seen anywhere else in the world.

Its arts greatly influenced all who lay eyes on it.

Located in Southern Nigeria, the people of Benin began its dominance at about 11 A.D to 1897, one of the longest empires in all of West African history.

The Benin Empire was one of the oldest and most highly developed States in West Africa. The founders of Benin were the EDO people, and they were led by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi.

Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi the Great turned Benin into an empire, formed political structures in the Kingdom, and greatly expanded the territory of the Kingdom, and fostered the arts and festivals into what we know it as today.

All of history recounts 201 victories by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi , over the various cities and towns, creating an Empire centred in EDO, even conquering many Yoruba States and incorporating them into the Benin Empire. Most notable Lagos State. The Name "EKO" (traditional name for Lagos) stems from the Benin word Eko, which means gathering place for warriors. This shows Lagos was a military outpost for the Benin Kingdom.

Around Benin City, Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi built significant large walls within the cities, and clearly divided zones for different craftworks.

Archeological evidence has found that the walls built around the city, and even out into the country was significant, and constructions taking years to complete. In addition he rebuilt the palace and seperated it from the rests of the Capital city.

The architecture of the Benin Empire was very unique. Well established Portuguese travellers were lured in by the magnificence of the Benin gate and walls and architectural structures they beheld. Travellers to Benin beheld it as the GREAT BENIN.

One 17th century Dutch traveller had this to say about the City: 

The Kings palace or court is a square, and is as large as a Dutch town, and entirely surrounded by special walls that which encircled the town. It is divided into magnificent palaces, houses and apartments of the courtiers, and comprises beautiful and long square galleries, about as large as an exchange in Amsterdam, resting on wooden pillars from top to bottom, covered with Caste and Copper in which are engraved pictures of their war exploits and battles.
The Benin Empire was very organised and even had its own flag. The Edo people were mobilised by Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi the Great and they invested in military structures and tactics. The Edo people were so dedicated to Military prowess that they built one of the most impressive structures in all of Africa.

Great Wall of Benin

The walls of Benin were the largest man-made structure lengthwise, and was hailed as the largest artwork in the world. It's estimated that the earliest construction began in 800 and continued into the mid 15th Century. The walls of Benin city was the world's largest man-made earth structure.

A quote from Fred Pierce of the New Scientist has this to say about the walls of Benin :

They extended for some 9,900 miles in all in a mosaic of more than 500 interconnected settlements and boundaries. They cover 2510 square miles and were all dug by the EDO people. In all they are four times longer than the Great Wall of China and consumed a hundred times more material than the Great Pyramid of Giza.

They took an estimated 150 hours of digging to construct, and are perhaps the single largest archaeological phenomenon on the planet.
Now that's a pretty impressive feat for a small empire like Benin, putting itself on the world stage architecturally.

BENIN ARTS.

One can't speak about Benin without its artistic splendour. The Art from the Benin Empire is magnificent and exemplifies the glory of West African civilization. According to oral tradition the technique of wax bronze casting was brought to Benin around the 14th Century from Ife, the ancient Yoruba Kingdom noted for its exquisite cast bronze commemorative heads.

British officials were interested in controlling trade in the area to access the empire rubber resources to support their own growing tire market. At the end of the 19th century the Kingdom of Benin had managed to retain its independence and the Great Oba Ovoramwen Nogbaisi exercised a monopoly over trade, which greatly annoyed the British. So the British wanted to annex Benin and remove the Oba.

First the British tried to make Benin sign a deceptive treaty that will make them a prirectorate, because of this the Oba bared all British officials and traders from entering Benin territories. Of course to the British this meant war.

WAR

In November James Robert Philips made a formal request to London for permission to invade Benin city. In late December 1896 without waiting for a reply or approval from London, Philip embarked on a military expedition with two Niger Coast Protectorate force officers, medical officers, two trading agents 250 African soldiers masquerading in part as potters, and in part as a drum and pipe bands.

To disguise their true intent, the forces weapons were hidden in baggges carried by the porters. His request to London was to depose the King of Benin city, replace him with a native council and pay for the invasion with the Ivory he hoped to find in the Benins Kings Palace.

In the meantime he sent a message to the Oba that his mission is to discuss trade and peace and demanding admission into the territory, in defiance of Benin law exploiting forbidding his entry. Unfortunately for Philips some Itsekiri chiefs sent a message to the Benin King that :

"The white man was bringing war"

In receiving the news the Benin King quickly summoned the city's high ranking nobles for an emergency meeting, and during the discussions, Olognoseri, the Comander in Chief of the Benin Army argued that the British were planning a surprise attack and must be defeated.

PREMPTIVE STRIKE

The Benin King however argued that the British should be allowed to enter the City so that it can be assertained whether or not the visit was a friendly one. But the Commander ignored the Oba's views and ordered the formation of a strike force that was commanded by Itsekiri chiefs a senior army commander.

This pre-emptive strike on the British and African forces was pretty much a slaughter fest, only two British officers survived the annihilation of Philips Experdition.

PUNITIVE EXPEDITION

No surprise the British had to retaliate after they suffered that humiliating defeat, and led what was called the "punitive expedition". This force was led by Harry Lawson.

On February 9 the assault began. The invasion force was composed of three collumes :

Sopoma Collume. Qwato Collume and Main collumes, with the Sopoma collumes consisting of Royal Marines and Sailors, the Qwato collume was made up of 100 Royal Marines and Sailors, and the Main colume consisted of 120 British Marines and 100 British sailors, 30 African scouts and 250 African troops drawn from the Niger Coast Protectorate Force.

The most heavily defended region of Benin was the region of Qwato. The British Royal forces met the greatest Benin defence led by Commander Ologboseri. After a bitter and bloody battle the British were forced to withdraw.

After the withdrawal the British Royal Forces tried a second time, and were again kept at bay at the outskirts of Benin city. Then ironically the African forces of the Niger Protectorate relieved the British forces and conquered the city, burning down the city and looting.

This was the end of the Benin Empire. The troops began looting the city, taking Benin artifacts and taking it back to the British museums.

The Art of Benin was so moving and majestic that its dispersal around the world forced people to reassess how they viewed Africans in general, as one cannot look at the sophistication and beauty of Benin art and justify their old adulterated and backward view of African people.

The Benin Empire was unique in that it single handedly forced people to view all West Africans differently. The Art of Benin was copied and the style was integrated into the art of Art of many Europeans artists and thus a strong influence on the early formation of modernism in Europe. The culture and magnificent arts of Benin can sometimes make historians re-evaluate and question who the real conquerers are, the ones who captured the city or the ones who captured the mind?

https://defensenigeria.com/2018/02/09/the-great-benin-empire/

Children of Ogiewen are still dreaming. Yoruba Oba gave birth to your royal houses and no amount of revision can shake it off lailai.

A pigmy seating on the shoulder of the giant claiming he can see further. Bini is a river and if you lose your source, Ocean, you will dry up.

Even your Yoruba Oba looking for relevance never denied his Yoruba heritage.

Please bear with the children of Ogiewen still fighting in 2018. Poor you. Accept Yoruba dominion and sleep peacefully. You've got away with this nonsense for too long.

Crazy yoruba people, what will you invent next.

Onijagidijagan:

it's a lie oramiyan founded Bini and named it Benin

http://ipnnews.info/oba-of-benin-greater-than-any-yoruba-monarch-esogban-of-benin-replies-alake-of-egbaland/

"We do not see how the Alake of Egbaland suddenly woke up to think that the Oba of Benin is also a Yoruba Oba."

"There is no basis for such classification; Oba of Benin has nothing to do with the Yoruba Obas. It is simply unnecessary, unless they simply want to stir up an unnecessary controversy."

"We are not in Yorubaland. To be frank, it is because many of them are not willing to come up with the truth, the word Oba is alien to Yoruba monarchy; it is not part of their title from time immemorial."

http://ipnnews.info/oba-of-benin-greater-than-any-yoruba-monarch-esogban-of-benin-replies-alake-of-egbaland/

"For instance, the one they call the Oba of Lagos, these are recent adaptations. In the 50s, there was no Oba of Lagos, what we had was the Eleko of Eko. That is the title of the King there. In Ibadan, you have the Olu Ibadan. You come to Abeokuta, you have the Alake of Egba land. You come to Oyo, you have the Alaafin of Oyo. In Ilesha, you have the Owa-Obokun of IIesha. So no Yoruba monarch had as part of his titles the word Oba except the Oba of Benin."

historyworld031:
Google can help you there, try google image.

have you been to Benin before?
I know the traditional palace wall.
what they are referring to is the ancient wall of Benin kingdom that houses the ancient buildings and administrative quarters!
do you know how much the west will pay to unearth it?

I guess you meant Benin City when you said Benin ?
Be careful, Benin could also mean Benin Kingdom which also comprises Delta state, Edo state and a whole bunch of other areas.
Yes I have been to Benin City.

baralatie:

have you been to Benin before?
I know the traditional palace wall.
what they are referring to is the ancient wall of Benin kingdom that houses the ancient buildings and administrative quarters!
do you know how much the west will pay to unearth it?

historyworld031:
I guess you meant Benin City when you said Benin ?
Be careful, Benin could also mean Benin Kingdom which also comprises Delta state, Edo state and a whole bunch of other areas.
Yes I have been to Benin City.

OK!it is just unfortunate that archeology is not a strong attribute for Nigeria.Imagine if the govt had invested funds into it.all these historical rewriters would find another place to pilfer

jara:

[quite] Ogiso goes back on his word. Whereupon heaven and earth threaten to convulse the nation, forcing the Ogiso to capitulate. >[His rival] became the Oba, and the Ogiso became his sword-bearer.

is oduduwa name not spelt Ekhaladerhan the son of ogiso owodo the father of oranmiyan.Meaning that oranmiyan's is an ogiso by lineage

Yes I know, but I think these professional rewriters are thriving mostly because of the backwardness of nigeria.
Most nigerians are uneducated.
Most nigerians are intellectually lazy.
You can see even our journalists can't take 2 minutes to conduct research before they start spilling trash on air.
Nigerian journalists wait for people sitting in london to produce a report on something happening in front of their eyes before and then the nigerian journalist would just copy and past the work of the guy in london who wasn't a witness to the events.

in america you have fake news while in nigeria you have fake history.
the yoruba are experts in creating fake history. They even publish their lies and then quote their publication as fact.

What shocks me the most is that west africa has been trading with the europeans since the 1400's and that those europeans drew maps and wrote notes of what they saw. Those documents are available in european libraries. Why don't nigerians take two minutes of their precious time and go to the websites operated by those libraries and look for actual historical documents ?

Here are some documents from La Bibliothèque National de France:

Some ancient maps of Benin Kingdom:

This one dates to around 1699:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8595525w/f1.item.r=Benin.zoom

An other map of Benin made in the 17th century once again:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b530530714.r=Benin?rk=214593;2

An other map of Benin from the 17th century:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8595583b.r=Benin?rk=193134;0

This one date to the 19th century:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8469390z/f1.item.r=Benin.zoom

An other map from the 17th century:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8595527q/f1.item.r=Benin.zoo

baralatie:

OK!it is just unfortunate that archeology is not a strong attribute for Nigeria.Imagine if the govt had invested funds into it.all these historical rewriters would find another place to pilfer

historyworld031:
Yes I know, but I think these professional rewriters are thriving mostly because of the backwardness of nigeria.
Most nigerians are uneducated.
Most nigerians are intellectually lazy.
You can see even our journalists can't take 2 minutes to conduct research before they start spilling trash on air.
Nigerian journalists wait for people sitting in london to produce a report on something happening in front of their eyes before and then the nigerian journalist would just copy and past the work of the guy in london who wasn't a witness to the events.

in america you have fake news while in nigeria you have fake history.
the yoruba are experts in creating fake history. They even publish their lies and then quote their publication as fact.

What shocks me the most is that west africa has been trading with the europeans since the 1400's and that those europeans drew maps and wrote notes of what they saw. Those documents are available in european libraries. Why don't nigerians take two minutes of their precious time and go to the websites operated by those libraries and look for actual historical documents ?

Here are some documents from La Bibliothèque National de France:

Some ancient maps of Benin Kingdom:

This one dates to around 1699:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8595525w/f1.item.r=Benin.zoom

An other map of Benin made in the 17th century once again:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b530530714.r=Benin?rk=214593;2

An other map of Benin from the 17th century:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8595583b.r=Benin?rk=193134;0

This one date to the 19th century:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8469390z/f1.item.r=Benin.zoom

An other map from the 17th century:
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8595527q/f1.item.r=Benin.zoo

you have given another set of books to read thanks!
I really appreciate the sites you posted!

baralatie:
where did you get historical evidence that Yoruba went to war with Benin? who was oranmiyan's father? which oba did he install in Benin? abi you want to rewrite history?

Enter this link written by Edos even though is not that Akure.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oba_of_Benin

baralatie:

is oduduwa name not spelt Ekhaladerhan the son of ogiso owodo the father of oranmiyan.Meaning that oranmiyan's is an ogiso by lineage

Oduduwa was the first Oba of ife , he wasn't the father of Oranmiyan. Oranmiyan was birth over 500years after Oduduwa has passed but he was in the lineage of Oduduwa.
Five great grandson Obas of Oduduwa had reigned before the birth of Oduduwa.

Do u knw wat u r saying at all? go and get your information from Oba of Benin's palace. ask them for the official Oba of Benin's palace language before it was aborted by Akenzua.

The official palace of Oba of Benin was Yoruba before it was stopped in the 1940s.

The earlier Oba of Benin were all buried at ile Ife in a place called "Burial of Oba of Binis " till today.

Also check this page

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

historyworld031:
First of all Edo is a people not a land. You are confusing with Edo state which is a land named after the name of the people who live in it.
Although the people of Delta are also Edo.
Second of all, I don't know if you are aware but oranmiyan, oduduwa are just myths like father christmass.
When has yoruba ever been a kingdom which waged war ?
To the best of my knowledge, yoruba means people of oyo whose kingdom got annihilated by the fulani.
And now several different ethnic groups are buying into the yoruba label and declaring themselves yoruba.
I will have you reminded that the yoruba have never been good in any warfare, you are the only southern people who got their asses kicked by the fulani, and it was so bad that you guys had to run into the forrest and abandon your kingdom.
For your information, the superpower of West Africa (before the british arrived ) was the Benin Kingdom !
yoruba have never been a match for Benin Kingdom. Benin Kingdom gave a tough fight to the british empire, while yoruba gave up to the british without a fight !
The point which confuses most of you yoruba is that your chiefs have all decided to copy the title "Oba" which belongs only to Omo n'Oba n'Edo. It is from there that you uneducated lads start twisting history and believe that the word belongs to you because "you be plenty". And then your sick brains go further to suggest that since the Edo have an Oba, therefor the yoruba must have conquered the Edo.

cant you guys pls stop of these fighting and quarelling and bad labelling of tribes,its not necessary we are all one people,these are what fuels african disunity and infighting let the youths stop all these sentimentalities and move on