IDEN

THE DEAR PRICE

Friends! This is an old story about the Binis; Edo state; Nigeria. I took time to compile the info, I hope you'll like it. Please leave comments and feel free to point out the errors it'll really be helpful. Thanks! And happy reading.

Between 1440-1473 AD, Oba Ewuare prophesied that there would be a time when Benin Kingdom would experience bad times if Prince Idova wore the crown. Prince Idova's father, Akennuama, was too old to become the Oba. So, he appealed to the kingmakers to crown his son the Oba. Eventually, Prince Idova changed his name to Ehenuegha. During his
coronation, he took the title of Oba Ewuakpe in 1700 A.D.

He was married to Oloi Iden who lived with
him in the royal palace built with red soil mixed with palm oil instead of
water.

The Oba loved playing the Asologun harp, the small Lamellaphone used for entertainment. It is played solo to
accompany story telling or dances. It is said that witches are supposed to
be attracted to the music of this Lamellaphone.
The following was the song played by the Oba on the harp. "lyase lend me sum of money Esogban lend me sum
of money Eson lend me sum of money to buy tray, to buy sac to enable me trade in Oba and Agbado markets, lend me sum of money".

Not long after Oba Ewuakpe became the king, his Chiefs and people rebelled against him because of his misrule. Therefore, they suspended all meetings at the palace. Social services were grounded.

The fundamental cause of grouse was to protest against the monarche
high handedness and his flagrant disrespect of human lives which
culminated in the mass killing of his subjects at Uselu during the funeral of his demised mother Queen Ewebonoza in about 17.15 A.D.

When it became apparent that the elders and the citizens of the Kingdom could no longer accommodate the excesses of the King they were compelled to sever their disreputable connections. This uprising also affected all his wives (Iloi) the royal slaves (ovien) and other palace attendants. The elders and the people left the Oba, went to the palace and seized the royal properties, opened the doors of the harem for the Iloi to go to their homes and set the pages and others free, but Iden
remained with the Oba.

With time, life in the palace became unbearable for Oba Ewuakpe. So, he decided to go to his mother's town Ikoka. But he wasn't well treated there. When he arrived, he wasn't
received with open arms. He was treated unkindly. For instance, they asked him to join the youths of the town to clear the road path in cleaning the community well in
preparation for the rainy season. He was angered by the disrespect for his esteemed position. This made him to place a curse on the people and town of Ikoka. Having done this, he returned to Benin City.

In his sad state of mind he came back to Benin City. On the arrival of the Oba, Queen Iden observed his hopelessness and decided to do something about it by consulting an
oraclelist on behalf of her husband Oba Ewuakpe, to seek the oracle instruction on what should be done to ward off the calamity bedeviling the ancient kingdom and its monarch. After a thorough divination by the oraclist he concluded that all that was needed for the peace of the kingdom and the restoration of its throne was a human sacrifice and palm oil poured round the palace.

Immediately after finding a solution to the problem from the oraclist, she
headed for the palace to give the message of the god to his majesty the King in their empty harem. The message from the diviner seemed to aggravate matters for Oba Ewuakpe because there was no other human being in his palace, free or bonded
beside his dear wife Queen Iden who incidentally was the conveyor of this report. Consequently, the possibility of getting some body else for the
human sacrifice became remote for the royal couple.

Queen Iden suggested to
her husband that she submit herself for the supreme price determined by the ancestors.

Oba Ewuakpe became
nervously embittered as he could not comprehend the possibility of himself killing his dear wife, who had stood with him in times of calamity of this
magnitude in order to atone for the sins she had not committed. But the
determined Queen encouraged the royal hands to shed her blood. If only that will appease the ancestral spirits
of the land of Benin. So as to put aside the upheaval in the kingdom.
And as it became glaring on Oba Ewakpe that there was no other way
out of the predicament he conceded reluctantly to the pressure mounted
by his real lover the Queen and atone the gods with the precious blood of Queen Iden.

Queen Iden mainutained, "there is no other human being as she is the only
person steadfast to the Oba, she should be used for the sacrifice". The grave was prepared and the Queen entered into it to be buried alive, she told her husband that the
sacrifice had been accomplished but warn the Oba that he must not let dirt remain on her grave, and any one treading on the grave must die on the spot as a mark of respect for her blessed remembrance.

Iden was buried alive near the Oba market in the heart of Benin metropolis. So also kegs of palm oil were poured round the palace.

Consequently her desire was strictly adhered to till the invasion of the
British forces in 1897.

A day after these happenings, when chief Esogban saw the pads-Ukoki and the empty kegs of palm oil scattered about, he taught that the
other rebel Chiefs had submitted, so he made a handsome presents-gifts
of slaves, servants, coral beads and other precious things to the Oba and
took the Oath of allegiance. The Iyase saw what Esogban had
done, made valuable presents and surrender also.

Some of the prominent chiefs in the kingdom
called for a trace between the throne
and it's aggrieved subjects. Other Benin Chiefs started paying homage to the Benin monarch again and
pledge their loyalty to the bereaved Oba Ewakpe.
Then all other Benin's came in the same spirit to pledge their allegiance
to his authority over them as their king. Consequently, the entire
kingdom was reconciled back to the king and remained loyal to the royal majesty till the end of his reign. Since it was necessary to celebrate
such re-union, the Binis came together at the palace and rolled out
drums to give such occasion a memorable one. During his happy
mood the people were taken aback to see their own king weeping profusely in the midst of merriment instead of
being happy for the reunion of his subjects with him. This made his
subjects to find out from the Oba why he was weeping at the time of
celebration like this, the Oba replied that the motive behind his tears was because of his desire to mourn the sacrificial demise of his dear wife
Queen Iden.He went further to narrate all the
ordeal in the palace at the time the kingdom fell apart which resulted in
the untimely exit of his best friend and beloved Queen who because of
her unfeigned love for the unity of her fatherland, offered herself as a scrape goat to the gods of her pedigree

When Oba Ewuakpe was very old, he made a law which was passed by the
house of the Benin executive council-
Eghaevbo and met with the approval of the Kingsmakers-Uzama, that no one except the eldest son of the Oba should wear the crown and the Law has been in the Benin constitution.