About odugirona ~ proudly descendants of oduduwa in Girona Search: odugirona Tag Archives: Oba of Lagos Erelu Kuti 21 Saturday Apr 2012 Posted by oduduwadescendantsgirona in Uncategorized ≈ Leave a Comment Tags Benin, Benin Empire, Erelu Kuti, eyo, Lagos, Nigeria, Oba, Oba of Lagos, Ologun Kutere, Victoria Island, Wikipedia The Erelu Kuti of Lagos is the traditional noblewoman charged with the bearing of the ritual essence of Oloye Erelu Kuti I, a seventeenth century Yoruba royal who aided in the consolidation of her homeland, first as the daughter of its paramount king, then as the sister of two of his successors, subsequently as the consort of one of its chiefs, then as a chief in her own right, and finally as its first queen mother. Her life would ultimately be so entwined with that of her family’s kingdom that her lineal descendants would go on to feature in its history from her day to our own. The Ikadan palace was the home of Erelu Kuti, mother of Ologun Kutere (the fourth king of Lagos, whose reign began in 1750 and lasted 25 years, and the founder of the lineage from which the late Oba Adeyinka Oyekan came) and Shokun (the founder of the Fashina-Jinadu-Bombata, Fadu lineage). The first Oba of Lagos was Ado, the son of Prince Ashipa of the Kingdom of Benin. Ado had three children, Gabbaro, Akinsemoyin and a female, Erelu Kuti. After the death of Ado, his eldest son, Gabbaro, succeeded him. Gabarro’s line became extinct because he had no child. Therefore, upon his death, Akinsemoyin, his younger brother, succeeded to the crown. While Akinsemoyin was ruling, Erelu Kuti married Alagba, the high priest that had predicted that her brother would become Oba. Alagba, an Ijesha man from Ilesha, subsequently served as a chief in the court of his brother-in-law. Oba Akinsemoyin built a palace called Iga Alagba at Idumota for him because he could not belong to the Oba’s household as a non-member of the royal family. Akinsemoyin, according to clan history, subsequently had a set of male triplets after having a number of daughters. Because it was a taboo in those days to have twins, let alone triplets, the three boys were smuggled out of the palace. Due to the poor condition under which they were kept, two of them died, leaving one alive. This son went on to live an ordinary life as a commoner. Due to this, when Akinsemoyin died in 1749 after ruling for 44 years, Ologun Kutere (the product of the union between Erelu Kuti and Alagba) was made Oba in his stead. Though the late king is said to have had other sons after the set of triplets, they are said to have been very young at the time of their father’s death. It is now believed by scholars of tribal history that due to Akinsemoyin’s magnanimity, he did not see the need to perpetuate his branch of the dynasty by having one of his elder daughters serve as regent, pending when the eldest of his subsequent sons would come of age. As a sign of the love he had for his sister, before he died, he instead sanctioned the appointment of Ologun Kutere as his successor. It should be stated at this juncture, however, that a slightly different account of the history of succession has been mooted by some. It states that when Oba Akinsemoyin died, Gabarro’s son, Kekere, who was in turn succeeded by Ologun Kutere, succeeded him. From the official genealogy of the kings of Lagos, however, it is seen that Ologun Kutere replaced Akinsemoyin in 1749. Since then, only the descendants of Ologun Kutere have been occupying the position of Oba of Lagos. The late Oba Oyekan II belonged to one of his descendant families. Now it may be asked how Erelu Kuti came to marry Alagba and what role Akinsemoyin played in the events that led to his sister’s marriage? Well, according to the narrative: On the advice of Alagba, Akinsemoyin performed certain rituals and ceremonies which included putting up a white flag on what is now Victoria Island. It is said that as a result of this, the Portuguese came and subsequently aided in the architectural advancement of his kingdom. This was the first contact with Europeans in this part of the world, and it heralded the advent of both Christianity and its attendant civilisations. The Portuguese built Iga Idungaran palace for Oba Akinsemoyin as a gift, a part of which is still in existence and is incorporated into the new palace. Satisfied that all was now well with Oba Akinsemoyin and his people, Alagba then expressed the desire to return to Ilesha for the remaining part of his life. Oba Akinsemoyin agreed and, in gratitude for his years of service, offered him any of his daughters as a wife. While they were talking about this, Erelu passed by and heard what they were discussing. At a later time, she told her brother that she would gladly marry Alagba if he wished it to be so. Oba Akinsemoyin is said to have been jubilant. He blessed his sister, conferred a noble title on her and predicted that she would bear children who would reign in Lagos as its kings. The prediction of the Oba eventually came to pass with, as the White Man says, a vengeance. The current Erelu Kuti is Omoba Abiola Dosunmu, a princess of the contemporary kingdom of Lagos. She serves as a ranking chieftess of the realm as the ceremonial queen mother, and reigns as regent of Lagos upon the death of an incumbent monarch until a substantive successor is chosen by the college of kingmakers. via Erelu Kuti – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Share this: Twitter Facebook8 Like this: Like Loading... History of Lagos 21 Saturday Apr 2012 Posted by oduduwadescendantsgirona in Uncategorized ≈ 1 Comment Tags Bini, Ebute Metta, Erelu Kuti, Iddo Island, Iga Idunganran, Lagos, Lagos Island, Oba of Lagos Prior to the Portuguese name of Lagos being adopted, Lagos was called Eko, which stems from either Oko (Yoruba: “cassava farm”) or Eko (“war camp”), by its Bini conquerors. Around 650 years ago the Oba of Bini sent trade expeditions to Ghana, where spices were traded, and one of his traders complained about the way she was being treated by the Awori people. The Oba of Bini then sent a trade expedition by sea which declined to engage the people and returned to what is now called Benin City where he reported to the Oba of Bini that they were attacked. This prompted the Oba of Bini to assemble a war expedition led by Ado, a Bini Prince. The expedition went to Lagos and demanded an explanation. On getting there, they were well received. The people were so enamored with Ado they asked him to stay and lead them. He agreed on the condition that they surrendered their sovereignty to the Oba of Bini to which they agreed. The Oba of Bini was told this and he gave his permission for the expedition to remain. The Oba of Bini later sent some of his chiefs, including the Eletu Odibo, Obanikoro and others, to assist Ado in the running of Eko. Till today, the Oba of Lagos is the head of all the Kings in Lagos State and his status is different from other Oba’s most of whom were later given back their crowns and staff of office only within the last 40 years. Those who got their crowns back were the original land owners (Olofin’s children). Modern-day Lagosians have so intermingled that no single tribe or people can claim it even though the predominant language is Yoruba. The present day Lagos state has a higher percent of this sub-group who allegedly migrated to the area from Isheri along the Ogun river. History has it that the Awori were actually from Ife, the cradle of Yorubaland. The Awori people are a peaceful people initially not taken to warfare. Due to war, those from the hinterlands, like the Ekiti, ran towards Isheri, which at that time had more than one Olofin (Alafin)who were heads of settlements about 1400AD. With the fleeing people from the hinterlands most of them scattered again, some to Iro, to Otta, Ado, others to Ebute Metta i.e three landing places – Oyingbo, Iddo Island and Lagos Island (Eko). The Olofin that brought those who went to Ebute-Metta was Ogunfunminire later known as Agbodere. With the full commencement of the war about 2000 moved to the nearest island of Iddo, others to Otto Awori or Otto Ijanikin towards modern-day Badagry. Those from Ekiti Aramoko came to Ebute-Metta, Iddo and then Ijora. After the demise of Agbodere, the name Olofin became the name used to remember him while a title of Oloto was given to his successor. With one of his sons becoming the Oloto his other children parted ways to what is known as visible settlements in present-day Lagos. Until the coming of the Binis, Lagos’s geographic boundary was Lagos Mainland. Lagos Island, the seat of the Oba of Lagos, then consisted of a pepper farm and fishing posts. No one lived there. The name Eko was given to it by its first king, Oba Ado, during its early history; it also saw periods of rule by the Kingdom of Benin. Eko was the land area now known as Lagos Island where the king’s palace was built. The palace is called Iga Idunganran, meaning “palace built on the pepper farm”. Oba Ado and the warriors from Benin, as well as some of the indigenous people who sought safety, settled down in the southern part of Eko called “Isale Eko”, Isale literarily meaning bottom, but must have been used to indicate downtown (as in Downtown Lagos). The first king of Lagos, Oba Ado, apart from having two sons also had a daughter Erelu Kuti, who begat Ologun Kutere, who later became king. Shokun his brother, who was more aggressive and whom the Erelu suspected could plan a palace coup, was given a chieftaincy title, “Onile-gbale”, and a palace just behind the king’s palace. This was the first time that a Chief would be appointed and installed at the same time as a King’s coronation. See also eraffoundation.org/erelukuti.php Oba Akitoye who ceded Lagos to the British was oba Kosoko’s uncle. Oba Akitoye was the first Oba not to be buried in a Bini. Prior to this, all the Kings of lagos were buried in Bini. They passed on taxes to the Oba of Bini until the British came and explained that there was no need to send taxes to Bini anymore especially as the Binis themselves were paying taxes to Britain. It was during his reign that the direct influence of the Binis on Lagos ended. Oba Kosoko believed in the slave trade and was at loggerheads with the British, hence his dethronement and flight, first to Badagry and later to Epe, where he founded kingdoms that still exist today. Share this: Twitter Facebook9 Like this: Like Loading... Blog at WordPress. The Chateau Theme. Follow Follow “odugirona” Get every new post delivered to your Inbox. Powered by WordPress
Posted on: Tue, 05 Nov 2013 12:09:58 +0000
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