Oyo and Dahomey Flashcards
What ethnicity is Oyo originated from?
Yoruba
What is the capital of Oyo?
Oyo-Ile
Who was the first Alaafin of the Yoruba Kingdom?
Oranmiyan
When was it first founded?
1300
What happened in the 1500s?
When was Dahomey founded?
When was Dahomey founded?
1620-50
What ethnicity was it?
Fon
Give the geographical advantages of Oyo:
- Urban centre of Oyo = Savannah
- South of this = thick forests
Coastal lagoons at Lagos
What happened in the 1660’s to Allada?
It weakened so Heuda becomes centre for European trade
When did Heuda weaken?
1704
What was Allada?
- Major kingdom in region, engaged in trade w/ Dutch, French, Portuguese
-Sold them cloth, ivory, slaves
Who and when were A+H conquered by?
Ahosu Agadja conquers Allada (1724) and Heuda (1727) so Dahomey is now the major kingdom along the coastline
Give the geographical advantages of Dahomey
- Coastal kingdom
- Main cities inland savannah
- South of this = Mahi swamplands + rainforests
- Kept deliberately wild by king
Give a reason for Oyo’s fundamental strength
Oyo stronger bc of institutionalised longevity of Yoruba –> set precedent for formation first as opposed to Dahomey
What else did the military depend on, apart from cavalry?
- Oyo iron/blacksmiths weapons, made spears
- Oko - Thrusting - stab
- Esin - Throwing - distance
- Archers on foot
- Ilari led by 70 Eso (war chiefs)
- Very complex military
Give some military reasons for their strength
Alaafin Abipa reconquered Oyo-Ile through critical extensive cavalry use
- Adv geo - moderate climate, south-west flat savannah terrain ideal for 🐴 training and use
- Cavalry = useful, open plains 🐴 can gallop and charge at speed as opposed to a thick forest setting
- Bred their own horses but initial breeding stock came from trade w/ Arabs and Berbers
- Warfare dependent on 🐴
What were the drawbacks of Oyo’s military?
- Did not adopt firearms when in circulation
- Muskets, rifles from Europeans
- 1726 Oyo invaded Dahomey under Ojigi
- The unfamiliar sound of firearms caused the cavalry to breaks bc they 🐴 were panicked by the sound
What happened during 1726?
- Oyo managed to subjugate Dahomey by force
- Dahomey pay annual tribute of slaves, gunpowder, corals, cowrie shells.
Evidence for instability in Oyo
Between Abipa and Ojigi there were 5 unstable Alaafin’s
What is the capital of Dahomey?
Abomey
Before the conquest of A+H, did Dahomey have direct contact with the Europeans?
No bc at this point due to A + H doing the trading but they were known to Europeans as a major source of the slaves they bought from there
Who was the kingdom consolidated by? How?
- Kingdom consolidated by King Houegbadja
who built the Royal Palaces of Dahomey in the mid-1600s - He established centralised bureaucracy and tax systems
- Conducted war and slave raids South of Dahomey plateau
How many men were in the army?
They didn’t have as many men in the army as Oyo. Stood at 10,000
How were Dahomey paid for PoW?
Paid in slaves, cowries, luxuries such as silk, gunpowder and firearms
What were key characteristics of the Dahomean army?
- They were honed into efficient, lethal fighting machines and formed the backbone of the musket-armed infantry
- Trained from the age of 7-8
- Expert and disciple key characteristics of the army
A+H - Middleman position
Agadja 1718, conquered Allada and Heuda and cut out the middleman in European trade, making themselves in direct control of the slave trade
What happened at the end of the conquest/conflict?
- They secured favourable terms, non-intervention with the European powers at the end of the conflict
- End slave raids into Dahomeyan territory by A+H, secure access to European weapons to fight off threats
What happened in 1730 during Agadja’s reign?
1730 Agadja was forced to accept the tributary position and sent his son Tegbessou to Oyo-Ile as a hostage
What is the general political structure of Oyo?
- Federal, dispersed power
- Alaafin = supreme overlord of ppl, head of empire
- He had many responsibilities such as to keep tributaries safe, settle internal disputes, give subordinates honours.
- Sub-rulers had to pay homage to him and pledge their allegiance to him at festivals
- The Bere festival is a key example of this, and marked the continuation of a successful rule
What is the Oyo Mesi?
- There were 7 hereditary, councillors of state
- Constituted the electoral council and had legislative powers
- They were responsible for state interests, commanded the military and were prevented the Alaafin from becoming an autocrat
Give 2 roles in the Oyo Mesi
- PM = Bashorun
- Samu = sacrificial minister
Succession in Oyo
Chosen by Oyo Mesi but must descent from Oranmiyan
Aremo
- Must commit suicide with father to prevent him from trying to take his father’s place - mutually assured destruction
Aremo held significant power as he could leave the palace regularly which meant he was visible to the ppl
Who had final say on Alaafin nomination?
The Bashorun. This gave them religious power bc they were strongly associated with key ceremony and ritual in Oyo
Detail the destabilizing and corrupt Bashorun and what he did
1750-1774 Bashorun Gaha made 4 Alaafin’s commit suicide but was overthrown by Alaafin Abiodun but there was irreparable damage and the kingdom was weakened
Why were the powerful?
- Their age, wisdom gave them importance in religious and political matters
- They had power over the people due to their religious legitimacy
- The leader was the OLUWO who had unchecked direct access to the Alaafin at any time
Give the general political structure/roles in Dahomey
- Mehu -PM
- Yvogan - international trade
- Migan - Internal trade
- Ahusu was very powerful and had the final say on all matters and other officials could not express dissent outside of meetings
- Hereditary succession
Dahomey succession
Hereditary
Political structure 2
- Villages and towns with their own tribal leaders and elders
- Ahosu appointed representatives to villages to ensure interests, tax, resolve disputes
