Omalicha Slim History Blog

He was hanged by the British at 8am on 4th July 1899. Ologosere, a Chief of the Benin Kingdom who fought a guerrilla war for 2 years against the British occupation. To the British, he was treacherous and barbaric, but to many Edo people he was a symbol of resistance against the British Invaders. Photographed just before execution.

Milan Cathedral in Italy. The cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. The construction began in 1386 and the final details were completed in 1965.

Aba Women Riots 1929 The Women's War, or Aba Women's Riots (Igbo: Ogu Umunwanyi; Ibibio: Ekong Iban), was a period of unrest in British Nigeria over November 1929. The protests broke out when thousands of Igbo women from the Bende District, Umuahia and other places in eastern Nigeria traveled to the town of Oloko to protest against the Warrant Chiefs, whom they accused of restricting the role of women in the government. The Aba Women's Riots of 1929, as it was named in British colonial records, is more aptly considered a strategically executed anti-colonial revolt organised by women to redress social, political and economic grievances. The protest encompassed women from six ethnic groups (Ibibio, Andoni, Orgoni, Bonny, Opobo, and Igbo).  It was organised and led by the rural women of Owerri and Calabar provinces. During the events, many Warrant Chiefs were forced to resign and 16 Native Courts were attacked, most of which were...

In 1457, the king of Nupe invaded Oyo and sacked the capital where Onigbogi, the Alaafin (king), fled to the land of the Ibariba and died there.  The Oyo Empire had no Alaafin for 85 years until Ofinran became Alaafin in 1542. The origins of the Oyo Empire lie with  Oranyan  (also known as Oranmiyan), the last prince of the Yoruba Kingdom of Ile-Ife ( Ife ). Oranyan made an agreement with his brother to launch a punitive raid on their northern neighbors for insulting their father  Oduduwa , the first  Ooni of Ife . On the way to the battle, the brothers quarreled and the army split up. Oranyan's force was too small to make a successful attack, so he wandered the southern shore until reaching Bussa. There the local chief entertained him and provided a large snake with a magic charm attached to its throat. The chief instructed Oranyan to follow the snake until it stopped somewhere for seven days and disappeared into the ground. Ora...

Kufena Hills is located in Zaria Local Government on the Northern part of Kaduna State. It has a rugged terrain with various landforms and has a height of about 825m above sea level. The hills and its environs have diverse flora and fauna species. Farm lands can be seen at the foot of the rock with animals grazing on and below the hills.This cultural landscape has great historical importance to the people of Kufena and Zaria, being the area of early settlement as evidenced by the remains of city wall around the hill, as well as some settlement, which remain on the hill. Kufena Hills was declared a National Monument on 17th July 1956. It is one of the four National Monuments declared in Kaduna State and is protected under Act of Parliament, Cap 242 of 2000 formerly (Decree 77 of 1979) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which established the National Commission for Museums and Monuments. Kufena is composed of metamorphic rocks, which forms the base material at the...

The Imo River (Igbo : Imo) is in southeastern Nigeria and runs 240 kilometres (150 mi) through the Atlantic Ocean. In Akwa Ibom State, the river is recognized as Imoh River, that is, Inyang Imoh, which translates to River of Wealth (Ibibio: Inyang means River or Ocean, and Imoh means Wealth). Its estuary is around 40 kilometres (25 mi) width, and the river has an annual discharge of 4 cubic kilometres (1.0 cu mi) with 26,000 hectares of wetland. The Otamiri and Oramirukwa the Imo’s tributary Rivers. The Imo was cleared under the  British colonial administration of Nigeria  in 1907–1908 and 1911; first to  Aba  and then to Udo near  Umuahia . Imo river from the top of road bridge that lead to  Umuahia  in  Abia state Ímò Ḿmírí is the spirit of the Imo River which flows between present-day Imo State which is named after the river and Abia State and flows into the Atlantic between a section of Rivers State and Akwa Ibom State ...

The Otamiri River is a popular river located in Imo State, and it is one of the major rivers in Imo State, Nigeria. The river takes its name from Ota Miri, a deity who owns all the waters that are called by his name, and who is often the dominating god of Mbari houses.  The river runs south from  Egbu  past  Owerri  and through  Nekede ,  Ihiagwa ,  Eziobodo , Olokwu Umuisi, Mgbirichi and  Umuagwo  to Ozuzu in  Etche , in the  Rivers State , from where it flows to the Atlantic Ocean. The length of the river from its source to its confluence at Emeabiam with the Uramiriukwa River is 30 kilometres (19 mi).  The Otamiri watershed covers about 10,000 square kilometres (3,900 sq mi) with annual rainfall of 2,250 to 2,500 millimetres (89 to 98 in). The watershed is mostly covered by depleted rain forest vegetation, with mean temperatures of 27 °C (81 °F) throughou...

Lagwa Monkeys, which refers to the communities of Lagwa and Umunokwu, is made popular by the monkeys that have lived side by side with the natives for the past 300 years. The history of the place according to people of the community called Lagwa Okwuato in Aboh Mbaise local government area of Imo sate dates back many decades when it was under serious invasion by their enemies. It was said that the monkeys in the community acted as informants to the people of the community whenever they were up against external aggression.  The monkeys, they said, would climb the highest trees to sight the enemies and quickly report back to the people of the community by way of their loud cries which was in turn understood by them. The tremendous assistance rendered by the monkeys had warranted the people to see them as god-sent by their forefathers to guide them. Hence, the people of the community consider the animal sacred and never kill or eat it. They are allowed to roam ...

Onuimo river in Imo State demarcated Imo and Abia State. Onuimo is a Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Okwe. It comprises four towns namely: Okwe, Okwelle, Umuduru-Egbeaguru and Umuna.

Did You Know that Azumini River in Ndoki, Abia State Is originally blue in colour, but turns green whenever it rains. The Azumini Blue River is located in Abia state  towards its boundary with Akwa Ibom state .  Azumini is a town in Nigeria's Abia state. It is located some 15 miles south of the commercial city of Aba. It is famous for the Azumini Blue River. It is also an ancient slave trade route through the blue river commonly known in local dialect as Mini- Okigo. Azumini Blue River is a river that joins with IMO river and heads to Atlantic Ocean through Akwa-Ibom. It is one of the major blue rivers in Nigeria as one can see clearly stones on the water bed. The River has become a resort for Tourist because of the pleasantness it offers. The attractive features of the River include its crystal Clear Blue River hence it is uniquely called Azumini Blue River. The beauty of nature. #Igboama...

A London museum has agreed to return 72 objects  looted from Benin City in 1897  to the Nigerian government. The Horniman Museum and Gardens, located in south London, announced the transfer in a  news release  Sunday. All of the objects were taken from the Kingdom of Benin, in what is now the capital of Edo State in southern Nigeria, during a British military operation in February 1897, the museum said. The artifacts include 12 brass plaques that are part of a genre known as the "Benin bronzes." These bronze sculptures were created from at least the 16th century to decorate the royal court in Benin,  according to the British Museum . In 1897, British forces launched a "bloody and devastating" military occupation of the Benin Kingdom and thousands of artworks were stolen and taken to the United Kingdom as "spoils of war," the museum said. The Horniman's Benin collection also includes other brass objects looted during ...

Today being August 4th, 2022 Republic of Benin Commissioned its 100 feet tall monument to the Ahosi (Dahomey Amazons). As someone who's been a persistent defender of the  Dahomey Empire & its legacy, this warms my heart. More African nations need to reclaim & celebrate their warrior legacy. The Ahosi (Amazons) of Dahomey were a  military corps  of women appointed to serve in battles under the direction of the Fon king, who ruled over a nation that included much of present-day southern  Togo  and southern  Benin . They emerged during the Eighteenth Century and were finally suppressed during the 1890s. The Amazons were chosen from among the nominal wives of the king, called “Ahosi.” Estimates of the number of women soldiers vary by accounts, yet some scholars believe the numbers to have ranged over time from several hundred to a few thousand women soldiers. The Fon women’s army had three main wings: the right and left wings, and the elite ...

Ahosi of Dahomey, ca. 1890 Public Domain Image The  Dahomey Amazons  ( Fon :" Mino " or " Minon " or " Agoji ") were a  Fon  all-female military regiment of the  Kingdom of Dahomey  which existed from the 1700s until 1904. They are the only documented all female army in world history. They were named Amazons by Western Europeans who encountered them for the first time due to their similarity to the mythical  Amazons  of ancient  Anatolia  and the  Black Sea . This unusual emergence of an all-female military regiment was the result of Dahomey's male population facing high casualties in frequent warfare with neighboring  West African  states, as well as Dahomey being forced to annually give male slaves to the  Oyo Empire . The lack of men likely led the  kings of Dahomey  to recruit women into the army. King  Houegbadja  (who ruled from 1645 to 1685), the third King of  Dahomey ...