Oluewu was the Alaafin

Alaafin

Alaafin or Man of the Palace in the Yoruba language was the title of the emperor of the medieval Oyo empire of northwestern Yorubaland. It was retained through the fall of that state as the official title of the ceremonial ruler of the contemporary Oyo clan....

 of Oyo

Oyo Empire

The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...

 from 1833-1835.

During his reign, the Fulani empire had already captured Ilorin

Ilorin Emirate

The Ilorin Emirate is a traditional state based on the city of Ilorin in Kwara State, Nigeria. It is considered to be one of the Banza Bakwai, or copy-cats of the Hausa Kingdoms....

 after an internal coup and transformed it into a Fulani emirate.
Oluewu was then bound to Shita, the Emir of Ilorin. However, he refused to embrace the Islamic religion and sought help from Borgu

Borgu

Borgu was a 15th-16th century state in West Africa, partitioned between the Great Britain and France by the Anglo-French Convention of 1898. It lies in what is now Nigeria and the Republic of Benin.People of Borgu were known as Bariba and Borgawa....

 to defeat the Fulanis. Initially, he recorded some success in battle, but a final putsch to recover the northern part of Yorubaland

Yorùbáland

Yorubaland, or Yorùbáland , is a cultural region in Nigeria, Benin, and Togo that includes the indigenous territory and cultural reach of the Yoruba people.- History :-Settlement:Oduduwa is regarded as the legendary progenitor of the Yoruba...

from the Fulanis led to his death and that of many of Oyo's leading nobles.