Oyo Empire
Key Points
- The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire established in the 15th century in what is today Benin and North central Nigeria. It rose through the outstanding organizational and administrative skills of the Yoruba people, wealth gained from trade and its powerful cavalry.
- Its foundation myth draws upon Yoruba religious beliefs and holds sacred the original settlement of Ile-Ife, which continues to be upheld as the creation site for the Yoruba people with significance to local religious practitioners as well as members of African-derived religions outside of Nigeria.
- The heart of metropolitan Oyo was its capital at Oyo-Ile (also known as Oyo Katunga or Old Oyo or Oyo-oro). The two most important structures in Oyo-Ile were the 'Afin,' or palace of the Oba, and his market. The palace was at the center of the city close to the Oba's market called 'Oja-Oba'. Around the capital was a tall earthen wall for defense with 17 gates.
- In the second half of the 18th century, dynastic intrigues, palace coups, and failed military campaigns began to weaken the Oyo Empire. It became a protectorate of Great Britain in 1888 before further fragmenting into warring factions. The Oyo state ceased to exist as any sort of power in 1896.
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External Links
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References Wikipedia contributors. (2019, January 26). Oyo Empire. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 18:37, February 3, 2019, from Link
Lumen Learning. The Yoruba States . Retrieved 20:23, February 2, 2019, from Link
Toyin Falola and Matthew M. Heaton, A History of Nigeria (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008). Link