Other attractions include various festivals and the Benin Moats (measuring about 20 to 40 ft), the King's Square (known as Ring Road)[16] and its traditional markets. Even in Nigeria today, this history isn’t included in the school curriculum. Benin is named after the body of water on which it lies – the ‘Bight of Benin’. In the early 16th century, the Ọba sent an ambassador to Lisbon, and the King of Portugal sent Christian missionaries to Benin. It was the most important city of the Edo kingdom of Benin, which flourished during the 13th to the 19th century. The process was smooth with the significant exception of the 12th district council for Cotonou, the contest that would ultimately determine who would be selected for the mayoralty of the capital city. Some of the vocational schools in Benin City include Micro International Training Center, Computer Technology and Training Center, Okunbor Group of Schools. Kérékou, encouraged by France and other democratic powers, convened a national conference that introduced a new democratic constitution and held presidential and legislative elections. When his old father the Ogiso died, the Ogiso dynasty was ended as the people and royal kingmakers preferred their king's son as natural next in line to rule. By the 1st century BC, the Benin territory was partially agricultural; and it became primarily agricultural by around 500 AD, but hunting and gathering still remained important. President Yayi was inaugurated on April 6, 2006. Jahrhunderts zerstört. Some residents of Benin could still speak a pidgin Portuguese in the late 19th century. Oba Oguola {about 1280-1295}was reported to have dug the first and second moats to fortify the City from invaders; Udo warriors “Iyokuo” under the command of Chief Akpanigiakon a … The other opposition parties, the Party for Democratic Renewal (PRD) led by the former Prime Minister Adrien Houngbedji and the Alliance Etoile (AE), joined the government coalition. Das Königreich gehört zu den am umfangreichsten dokumentierten vorkolonialen Reichen Westafrikas und wurde erst am Ende des 19. Soon after he married a beautiful lady, Ẹrinmwide, daughter of Osa-nego, the ninth Enogie of Edọ. The Benin City walls have been known to Westerners since around 1500. His main rival rejected the results, claiming widespread irregularities. The obasbrought great prosperity and a highly organised state to Benin. The City of Benin Benin, the capital of the kingdom, is located some 30 kilometres (18.6 miles) from the coast and to the west of the Niger River. In addition, the city processes lumber and produces beer, furniture, and soft drinks. After some years he called a meeting of the people and renounced his office, remarking that the country was a land of vexation, Ile-Ibinu, and that only a child born, trained and educated in the arts and mysteries of the land could reign over the people. (Lagos was in fact founded by a Benin army and continued to pay tribute to the oba of Benin until the end of the 19th century.) [4] Prince Ọranmiyan took up residence in the palace built for him at Uzama by the elders, now a coronation shrine. He established a hereditary succession to the throne and vastly expanded the territory of the Benin kingdom, which by the mid-16th century extended from the Niger River delta in the east to what is now Lagos in the west. [1] The last of these brought to power Major Mathieu Kérékou as the head of a regime professing strict Marxist-Leninist principles. Brass plaques and sculptures have been created by the Edo (known also as the Bini), the indigenous people of the Benin Empire, as early as the 13th century, prior to their contact with Europeans. 1. After some years in Ife, he left for Ọyọ, where he also left a son behind upon leaving, and his son Ajaka ultimately became the first Alaafin of Ọyọ of the present line, while Ọranmiyan (the exiled Prince Ekaladerhan, also known as Izoduwa) himself was reigning as Ọọni of Ifẹ. [3], The original people and founders of the Ẹdo Empire and the Ẹdo people initially were ruled by the Ogiso (Kings of the Sky) dynasty who called their land Igodomigodo. In recent years, various appeals have gone to the British government to return such artifacts. A new ruler, Oba Eweka II, was instituted in 1914 and he established the Benin Arts Council in the mid-1920s. Under the French, a port was constructed at Cotonou, and railroads were built. On December 4, 1958, it became the Republic of Dahomey. The British permitted the restoration of the Benin monarchy in 1914, but true political power still lay with the colonial administration of Nigeria. located in the city centre on King's Square.The museum has a significant number of artifacts related to the Benin Empire such as terracotta, bronze figures and cast iron pieces. Nicephore Soglo's Renaissance du Benin (RB) party won the new vote, paving the way for the former president to be elected Mayor of Cotonou by the new city council in February 2002. Benin Airport serves the city with three commercial airlines flying to it, including Arik Air, Air Peace and Azman. Was he invited? The Benin name was picked for its neutrality. That was why the people of Ile Ife made him the King or Oni of Ife city. The mythic origins of Benin state that the city was originally under the rule of Ogisos, meaning "Kings of the Sky". Check out our countryprofile, full of essential information about Benin'sgeography, history,government, economy, population, culture, religion and languages.