Rulers of the Fon state of Danhome - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

List of Rulers of the Fon state of Danhome (Agbome) (Dahomey)

Danhome known to Europeans as Dahomey
Dahomey
Dahomey was a country in west Africa in what is now the Republic of Benin. The Kingdom of Dahomey was a powerful west African state that was founded in the seventeenth century and survived until 1894. From 1894 until 1960 Dahomey was a part of French West Africa. The independent Republic of Dahomey...

(Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office)

Ahosu = King

Tenure	Incumbent	Notes
Agbome Kingdom
c.1600	Foundation of the Agbome Kingdom: Division of Allada Allada Allada is a town, arrondissement, and commune located in the Atlantique Department of Benin.Allada was the capital of the most powerful king in Ajaland before it fell to the armies of Dahomey.... royal family
Agasuvi Dynasty (Alada-tadonu Dynasty)
c.1600 to c.1625	Do-Aklin, Ahosu
c.1625 to 1645	Dakodonou Dakodonou Dakodonou was the second King of Dahomey. He ruled from 1620 to 1645. In traditional Abomey stories, Dakodonou overthrew his brother, the previous King Gangnihessou, when the ruler was absent from the capital on a tour of the kingdom. Dakodonou is portrayed as a brutal and violent man... , Ahosu
1645 to 1645	Gangnihessou Gangnihessou Gangnihessou, or Ganye Hessou, is the first of the traditional "twelve kings of Dahomey." Dahomey was an African kingdom situated in what is now Benin.- Descent :... , Ahosu
1645 to 1685	Houegbadja Houegbadja Aho Houegbadja was the third King of Dahomey. He succeeded his uncle, Dakodonou, and ruled from 1645 to 1685.Houegbadja was the first of the dynasty to set up the kingdom in Abomey proper: he founded the city by building his palace near the area of Guedevi, a few kilometers to the northwest of... , Ahosu
1685 to c.1700	Akaba Akaba Houessou Akaba was the fourth King of Dahomey. He succeeded his father, Aho Houegbadja, and ruled from 1685 to 1708.- Biography :Akaba's symbols were the warthog and a saber.... , Ahosu (Wibega)	Jointly with Queen Hangbe
1685 to c.1700	Hangbe, Queen	Jointly with King Akaba Akaba Houessou Akaba was the fourth King of Dahomey. He succeeded his father, Aho Houegbadja, and ruled from 1685 to 1708.- Biography :Akaba's symbols were the warthog and a saber....
Danhome Kingdom	Renamed after expansion
c.1700 to 1708	Akaba Akaba Houessou Akaba was the fourth King of Dahomey. He succeeded his father, Aho Houegbadja, and ruled from 1685 to 1708.- Biography :Akaba's symbols were the warthog and a saber.... , Ahosu	Jointly with Queen Hangbe
c.1700 to 1708	Hangbe, Queen	Jointly with King Akaba Akaba Houessou Akaba was the fourth King of Dahomey. He succeeded his father, Aho Houegbadja, and ruled from 1685 to 1708.- Biography :Akaba's symbols were the warthog and a saber....
1708 to 1730	Agadja Agadja Dossou Agadja was the fifth King of Dahomey. He succeeded Houessou Akaba, and ruled from 1708 to 1740. Akaba's only son, Agbo Sassa, was only ten years old when Akaba died, so as Akaba's brother, Agadja took the throne to become the fifth king... , Ahosu (Aguja) (Tossu)
Dahomey Kingdom
1730 to April 1732 (1740?)	Agadja Agadja Dossou Agadja was the fifth King of Dahomey. He succeeded Houessou Akaba, and ruled from 1708 to 1740. Akaba's only son, Agbo Sassa, was only ten years old when Akaba died, so as Akaba's brother, Agadja took the throne to become the fifth king... , Ahosu (Aguja) (Tossu)
April 1732 (1740?) to 17 May 1774	Tegbessou Tegbessou Tegbessou was the sixth King of Dahomey. He succeeded Agadja, and ruled from 1740 to 1774.Tegbessou's reign was characterized by internal intrigues and a failed foreign policy; he killed many coup-plotters and political enemies, refused to pay tribute to the Yorubas, and lost many battles in the... , Ahosu (Avissu)
1774 to 1789	Kpengla Kpengla Kpengla was the seventh King of Dahomey. He succeeded Tegbessou, and ruled from 1774 to 1789.Kpengla's reign increased the size of the kingdom. He killed the chief of the Popo people, Agbamou, thus extending the empire into what is currently Togo... , Ahosu (Gnansunu)
17 April 1790 to 1797	Agonglo Agonglo Agonglo was the eighth King of Dahomey. He succeeded his father, Kpengla, and ruled from 1789 to 1797.Agonglo made several reforms which pleased his subjects: taxes were lowered, and a greater distribution of gifts was made during the annual customs... , Ahosu (Sindozan)
April 1797 to 1804	Adandozan Madogugu Adandozan Adandozan was a King of Dahomey , technically the ninth, though he is not counted as one of the twelve kings. His name has largely been erased from the history of Abomey , and to this day is generally not spoken out loud in the city... , Regent
1804 to 1818	Adandozan Madogugu Adandozan Adandozan was a King of Dahomey , technically the ninth, though he is not counted as one of the twelve kings. His name has largely been erased from the history of Abomey , and to this day is generally not spoken out loud in the city... , Ahosu
1818 to December 1858	Ghezo Gbalangbe, Zedoko Ghezo Ghezo was the ninth King of Dahomey , considered one of the greatest of the twelve historical kings. He ruled from 1818 to 1858. His name before ascending to the throne was Gakpe.... , Ahosu
December 1858 to 29 December 1889	Glele Kinikini, Ahogla,Togodo, Basagla Glele Badohou, who took the throne name Glele, is considered to be the tenth King of the Aja kingdom of Dahomey . He succeeded his father, Ghezo, and ruled from 1858 to 1889.... , Ahosu (Glele Glele Badohou, who took the throne name Glele, is considered to be the tenth King of the Aja kingdom of Dahomey . He succeeded his father, Ghezo, and ruled from 1858 to 1889.... )
30 December 1889 to 15 January 1894	Behanzin Chadakogundo Behanzin Béhanzin is considered the eleventh King of Dahomey . Upon taking the throne, he changed his name from Kondo. He succeeded his father, Glele, and ruled from 1889 to 1894. Behanzin was Abomey's last independent ruler established through traditional power structures... , Ahosu
15 January 1894	Defeat and division by France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... into Agbome (Abomey Abomey When UNESCO designated the royal palaces of Abomey as a World Heritage Site in 1985 it statedFrom 1993, 50 of the 56 bas-reliefs that formerly decorated the walls of King Glèlè have been located and replaced on the rebuilt structure... ) and Alada Alada Alada Empresa de Transportes Aéreos is an airline based in Luanda, Angola. Established in 1995, it operates chartered passenger and cargo flights out of Quatro de Fevereiro Airport, Luanda.- Fleet :... (Allada Allada Allada is a town, arrondissement, and commune located in the Atlantique Department of Benin.Allada was the capital of the most powerful king in Ajaland before it fell to the armies of Dahomey.... )
15 January 1894 to 1900	Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo is considered to have been the twelfth, and last, King of Dahomey. He took the throne after the previous king, Behanzin, went into exile after a failed war with France. He was in power from 1894 to 1900.... , Ahosu (Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo is considered to have been the twelfth, and last, King of Dahomey. He took the throne after the previous king, Behanzin, went into exile after a failed war with France. He was in power from 1894 to 1900.... )
12 February 1900	Annexation by France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
1900 to 1918	Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo is considered to have been the twelfth, and last, King of Dahomey. He took the throne after the previous king, Behanzin, went into exile after a failed war with France. He was in power from 1894 to 1900.... , Ahosu	In Exile
1918 to 1940	Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo Agoli-agbo is considered to have been the twelfth, and last, King of Dahomey. He took the throne after the previous king, Behanzin, went into exile after a failed war with France. He was in power from 1894 to 1900.... , Ahosu
1940 to 1948	Aidododo, Ahosu
1948 to 1983	Togni-Ahoussou, Ahosu
1986 to 1989	?*Joseph Langanfin, Ahosu*
30 September 1989 to present	Agoli Agbo Dedjalagni, Ahosu
22 January 2000 to present	Houédogni Béhanzin, Ahosu	Rival king

Sources

http://www.rulers.org/benitrad.html
African States and Rulers, John Stewart, McFarland

List of Rulers of the Fon state of Danhome (Agbome) (Dahomey)

Sources

See also