Oyo Empire , Yoruba State north of Lagos, in what is now the southwest Nigeria , which during its highlight (1650–1750) most states between the Volta flux in the west and the Niger River to the east dominated . It was the most important and most relevant of all early Yoruba Principalities.
Britannica Quiz Exploring Africa:Fact or Fiction? Though this continent is teeming with natural resources and diverse wildlife, how much do you really know about Africa? Sort these facts from Cairo to Khartoum in this African odyssey. According to lore, Oyo descended from a great Yoruba ancestor and hero. Oduduwa, probably after Ile-Ife and his son the first Alaafin ( Alafin ) or ruler of Oyo. According to linguistic evidence, two waves of immigrants entered Yorubaland between 700 and 1000, the second settled at Oyo in the open country north of the Guinea Forest. This second state was due to its favorable trading position, its natural resources and the industry of its inhabitants among all Yoruba States outstanding .
In the early 16th century, Oyo was a small state, powerless against its northern neighbors Borgu and Nupe, from which it was conquered in 1550. However, the power of Oyo was already growing at the end of the century thanks to the Alaafin Orompoto. who used the wealth derived from trade to create a Cavalry Troop and maintain a trained army.
Oyo subdued the kingdom Dahomey in two phases (1724–30, 1738–48) in the west and traded with European merchants on the coast through the Port of Ajase (today Porto Novo ). As Oyo's wealth increased, so did the political options of its leaders; Some wanted to focus on accumulating wealth, while others advocated using wealth for territorial expansion. This difference was first introduced with the Fixed Alaafin Abiodun (reg . c. 1770–89) conquered his opponents in a bitter civil war and pursued a policy of economic development based chiefly on the coastal trade with European merchants.
Abiodun's neglect of everything but the economy weakened the army and with it the means by which the central government maintained control. His successor Alaafin Awole , inherited local revolts, administration carefully maintained by a complex system of public services, and a decline in the Power of the Tributary Chiefs. The decline was due to disputes between the Alaafin and his advisors tightened ; It was throughout the 18th and 19th centuries that Oyo began to lose control of its coastal trade routes. Oyo was inherited from the newly risen fon by Dahomey ambush and soon after 1800 by militants Fulani Hausaland Muslims in the northeast captured .