Queen Idia was the mother of Esigie

Esigie

Oba Esigie, was an Oba of Benin who ruled the ancient Benin Kingdom, now Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria . Works of art commissioned by Esigie are held in prominent museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the British Museum....

, the Oba of Benin

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...

 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 (king

Monarch

A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...

) of the Edo

Edo

, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...

 people. When 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....

 died, he left behind two powerful sons to dispute over who would become Oba. His son 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...

 while another son, Arhuaran, was based in the equally important city of Udo about twenty miles away. Idia mobilised an army around Esigie, which successfully defeated Arhuaran, and Oba Esigie became the 16th king.

Subsequently, the neighboring 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...

 peoples sent warriors across the Benue River to wrest control of Benin's northern territories. Esigie conquered the Igala, reestablishing the unity and military strength of the kingdom. His mother Idia received much of the credit for these victories as her political counsel, together with her magical powers and medicinal knowledge, were viewed as critical elements of Esigie's success on the battlefield.

Idia became the first Iyoba (Queen Mother) of Benin when Esigie conferred upon her the title and the Eguae-Iyoba (Palace of the Queen Mother).

External links

• Bronze commemorative head of Queen Idia held by 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...
  
  
• Idia: The First Queen Mother of Benin at 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...
  
  
• Pendant Mask: Iyoba, 16th century