Oba Esigie, was an Oba

Oba of Benin

The Oba of Benin, or Omo N'Oba, is both the oba of the Edo people and the pretender to the defunct title of the king of the Benin Kingdom...

 (King) of Benin who ruled the ancient Benin Kingdom, now Benin City

Benin City

Benin City, is a city and the capital of Edo State in southern Nigeria. It is a city approximately twenty-five miles north of the Benin River. It is situated 200 miles by road east of Lagos...

, Edo State

Edo State

Edo State is an inland state in central southern Nigeria. Its capital is Benin City. It is bounded in the north and east by Kogi State, in the south by Delta State and in the west by Ondo State.-History:...

, Nigeria

Nigeria

Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

 (c.1504–c.1550). Works of art commissioned by Esigie are held in prominent museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...

 and the British Museum

British Museum

The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...

.

At the time of his father Oba Ozolua

Ozolua

Ozolua , originally called Okpame, was an Oba of the Kingdom of Benin.During Ozolua's reign, Benin's armies successfully attacked the Kingdom of Owo. While historical accounts of the battle differ, the end result left Owo with its independence while still requiring that it pay tribute to Benin....

's death, Esigie controlled Benin City

Benin City

Benin City, is a city and the capital of Edo State in southern Nigeria. It is a city approximately twenty-five miles north of the Benin River. It is situated 200 miles by road east of Lagos...

 and his brother Arhuaran controlled Udo, a town about 20 miles northwest of Benin City that was nearly its equal in size and influence. Following a bitter power struggle with Aruaran, and with major assistance and support from his mother Queen Idia

Idia

Queen Idia was the mother of Esigie, the Oba of Benin who ruled from 1504 to 1550. She played a very significant role in the rise and reign of her son. She was a strong warrior who fought relentlessly before and during her son's reign as the Oba of the Edo people. When Oba Ozolua died, he left...

, Esigie became Oba of Benin. Esigie later fended off an attack from the Igala

Igala

Igala are an ethnic group of Nigeria. Igala practice a number of different religions, including animism, Christianity, and Islam.The home of the Igala people is situated east of the river Niger and Benue confluence and astride the Niger in Lokoja, Kogi state of Nigeria...

people.

Esigie started a tradition in Benin by investing his mother with the title of Iyoba (Queen Mother) and providing the Eguae-Iyoba (Palace of the Queen Mother) in lower Uselu for her use.

External links

• 50 Great Africans - Oba Esigie & Oba Ewuare Accessed 10 January 2007
• The correct History of Edo Accessed 10 January 2007