Tales From The MIND

13

"Queen Idia was the 1st woman who went to and fought in War. She used her magical powers and knowledge of Medicine to help her son overcome his enemies. She was one of the best known female soldiers ever from the Benin Kingdom. She was a fearless Army General who led the Armies of Benin on several successful battles." Chief Obaseki spoke.

Queen IDIA was born in the 15th Century in Uzeghudu (now Edo State) and was married to Oba Ozolua. Her son, Osawe, was crowned Oba of Benin Kingdom with the title "Esigie" (Oseigie) and he reigned from 1504-1550 A.D.|

Egua-Iy'Oba (The Queen Mother's Palace) was built for her in lower Uselu.
Till date, it serves as the final resting place for every Iy'Oba (Queen Mother).

The image of Queen Idia is the popular Festac Head that was used for the celebration of the Nigerian FESTAC '77 - Festival of Arts and Culture in 1977 that was attended by dignitaries all over the World.

The Queen-Mother also started "Ekasa" - a special dance which forms part of the Royal Ceremonies till date.

The next royalty was Emotan of Benin kingdom.

Emotan (real name Uwarraye) was a 15th century market woman who plied her trade at the Oba Market in the ancient kingdom of Benin during the reign of Oba Uwaifiokun and Oba Ewuare the Great. She was known for her humanitarian work, love for children and most importantly the key role she played during the period of Prince Ogun’s (Oba Ewuare I) succession travails following his time in exile.

Although she had no biological children of her own, Emotan loved and took care of many children in her foster home. Some parents would send their children to live with Emotan and learn some trade from her for a period of time. She also kept and trained orphans, many of which indeed became industrious and useful members of the society.

Emotan and prince Ogun(Oba Ewuare I) conspired to topple the usurper, Oba Uwaifiokun and indeed her intel played an instrumental role in helping Ogun reclaim his throne following his younger brother’s betrayal. Prince Ogun took refuge in Emotan’s humble abode at the Oba market as this was the only place of safety for him, and she became his eyes and ears in the city as Uwaifiokun who had already usurped Ogun’s rightful throne sought to kill him in order to retain kingship.

Having learnt about Uwaifiokun’s plan to make a procession to the ancestral shrine to sacrifice to the gods of his father to help him avert his ill fate, Prince Ogun dashed towards his younger brother’s location and put him to the sword. This act cleared the path for Ogun to take the throne of his father. The death of Uwaifiokun ended the crisis of succession to the kingship of the kingdom and prince Ogun marked it by adopting the title Ewuare (Oworuare), meaning ‘the heat has abated’ or ‘the trouble has ceased’.

Emotan passed on soon after Ewuare’s installation as Oba. Upon her death, he(Oba Ewuare the great) ordered that she must not be forgotten, and in order to establish this decree, he deified her by planting a sacred Uruhe tree by her grave (the same spot where she resided) beside the Oba market. He also ordered that any man invested with a title had to visit her grave to pay homage, as did all funeral processions.

The Uruhe tree that was planted over her grave lived for more than 300 years, only dying during the reign of Oba Osemwende. The Oba replaced the tree with another Uruhe about 150 years ago and supported it with an Iroko tree. The tree, however, was replaced with a bronze statue of a full-size woman by the British Council in Benin during the reign of Oba Akenzua II in 1954. This was becasue the last two trees planted on the grave by Oba Osemwende had fallen during a very heavy storm 50 years earlier(Asien 2001: 92).

The Benin culture was as sweet as the Yoruba culture.
We've spent our whole one week learning about ancient stories and it was an amazing experience as we had truly learnt something.