Dahomey

Kingdom of Dahomey

Royaume de Dahomey (French)

Ilẹ̀ọba ilẹ̀ Dan-ejo (Yoruba)

Axɔsuɖuto Danxome (Fon)

Flag of Dahomey

12% Yoruba

9.6% Bariba

8.6% Fula

6.1% Mina

2.9% Dendi

7.1% Other

15.6% Catholic

1.6% Other

**Dahomey** (Fon: *Danxome*, Yoruba: *Dan-ejo*), officially the **Kingdom of Dahomey** (French: *Royaume du Dahomey*, Yoruba: *Ilẹ̀ọba ilẹ̀ Dahomey*, Fon: *Axɔsuɖuto Danxome*) is a country bordered by the Ashanti, Yorubaland, Daura, Issaberi and Burkina Faso. It's capital is in Abomey, and it has a population of 10.9 million. It is one of Africa's last remaining monarchies that are currently in power, though it may soon become a republic.

## History

The current country of Dahomey combines three areas which had distinctly different political systems and ethnicities prior to French colonial control. Before 1700, there were a few important city-states along the coast, primarily of the Aja ethnic group, but also including the Yoruba and Fon, and a mass of tribal regions inland. The Oyo Empire, located primarily to the east of modern Dahomey, was the most significant large-scale military force in the region. It regularly conducted raids and exacted tribute from the coastal kingdoms and the tribal regions.

The situation changed in the 1600s and early 1700s as the Kingdom of Dahomey, consisting mostly of Fon people, was founded on the Abomey plateau and began taking over areas along the coast. By 1727, King Agaja of the Kingdom of Dahomey had conquered the coastal cities of Allada and Whydah, but it had become a tributary of the Oyo empire and did not directly attack the Oyo allied city-state of Ajashe (now Hogbonu). The rise of the Kingdom of Dahomey, the rivalry between the kingdom and the city of Ajashe, and the continued tribal politics of the northern region, persisted into the colonial and post-colonial periods.

Before it's modernization, the Dahomey Kingdom was known for its culture and traditions. Young boys were often apprenticed to older soldiers, and taught the kingdom's military customs until they were old enough to join the army. Dahomey was also famous for instituting an elite female soldier corps, called *Ahosi*, or *Mino* (Fon: *our mothers*), and known by many Europeans as the Dahomean Amazons. This emphasis on military preparation and achievement earned Dahomey the nickname of "black Sparta" from European observers and 19th-century explorers such as Sir Richard Burton.

By the early 1800's, Malian and Mossi scholars arrived in the Kingdom of Borgou, to convince them to convert to Islam. Despite the history of Islam in Western Africa, the islamic population of Dahomey was always limited to a select few living in close proximity to Burkina Faso and former Nigeria. However, by the 1850's, the islamic population of Borgou was expected to be 150,000, which was more than the 90,000-strong population of animists, who eventually converted to Sunnism.

The kings of Dahomey sold their war captives into transatlantic slavery. They also had a practice of killing war captives in a ceremony known as the Annual Customs. By about 1750, the King of Dahomey was earning an estimated $250,000 per year by selling African captives to European slave-traders. Though the leaders of Dahomey appear to have initially resisted the slave trade, it flourished in the region of Dahomey for almost three hundred years, beginning in 1472 with a trade agreement with Portuguese merchants.

The area was named the "Slave Coast" because of this flourishing trade. Court protocols, which demanded that a portion of war captives from the kingdom's many battles be decapitated, decreased the number of enslaved people exported from the area. The number went from 102,000 people per decade in the 1780s to 24,000 per decade by the 1860s. The decline was partly due to the Slave Trade Act 1807 banning the trans-Atlantic slave trade by Britain in 1808, followed by other countries. This decline continued until 1885, when the last slave ship departed from Hogbonu bound for Brazil, which had yet to abolish slavery.

By the middle of the nineteenth century, Dahomey had begun to weaken and lose its status as the regional power. This enabled the French to take over the area in 1892. In 1899, the French included the land called French Dahomey within the larger French West Africa colonial region. In 1958, France granted autonomy to the Republic of Dahomey, and full independence on 1 August 1960, which is celebrated each year as Independence Day, a national holiday. The president who led the country to independence was Hubert Maga.

For the next twelve years after 1960, ethnic strife contributed to a period of turbulence. There were several coups and regime changes, with the figures of Hubert Maga, Sourou Apithy, Justin Ahomadégbé, and Émile Derlin Zinsou dominating; the first three each represented a different area and ethnicity of the country. These three agreed to form a Presidential Council after violence marred the 1970 elections.

On 7 May 1972, Maga ceded power to Ahomadégbé. On 26 October 1972, Lt. Col. Mathieu Kérékou overthrew the ruling triumvirate, becoming president and stating that the country would not "burden itself by copying foreign ideology, and wants neither Capitalism, Communism, nor Socialism". On 30 November 1974 however, he announced that the country was officially Marxist, under control of the Military Council of the Revolution (CMR), which nationalized the petroleum industry and banks. On 30 November 1975, he renamed the country to the People's Republic of Benin.

The CMR was dissolved in 1979, and Kérékou arranged show elections in which he was the only allowed candidate. Establishing relations with China, North Korea, and Libya, he put nearly all businesses and economic activities under state control, causing foreign investment in Benin to dry up. Kérékou attempted to reorganize education, pushing his own aphorisms such as "Poverty is not a fatality", resulting in a mass exodus of teachers, along with numerous other professionals. The regime financed itself by contracting to take nuclear waste, first from the Soviet Union and later from France. In 1989, riots broke out when the regime did not have enough money to pay its army. The banking system collapsed. Eventually, Kérékou renounced Marxism, and a convention forced Kérékou to release political prisoners and arrange elections. Marxism–Leninism was abolished as the nation's form of government.

Briefly after the fall of the communist government, a surge in nationalism occurred, with the African Renaissance Group (ARG) calling for the country to return to it's status as a kingdom. It's main opponent was the FARD-Alafia, a party advocating for Dahomey to become a republic, which still exists to this day. Conflict between the ARG and FARD resulted in a major clash, which claimed 2,826 lives and it resulted in the destruction of much of Kutonu, which is still being rebuilt. Much of the population supported the FARD, but it was ARG which eventually won the conflict, and as a result, King Glele was made the leader of the country.

The current ruler, Dah Sagbadjou Glele, has been accused of corruption, and Dahomey has been described as a "royal dictatorship". The country's media is government-controlled and influenced, and often shows the king to be better than he really is. Censorship is also a problem whithin Dahomey's traditional media, such as newspapers and books, and an estimated 137 journalists and writers have gone missing in the country since 2002. The government's handling of the reconstruction of Kutonu is of much controversy, and calls for a republican form of government have been growing.

## Politics

The country is governed as a unitary constitutional monarchy, though most outsiders view Dahomey as a "royal dictatorship". The head of government is the prime minister, the current one being Louis Vlavonou, though the de facto leader of the country is Dah Sagbadjou Glele, known as the *Oba* (Yoruba: *King*). The country has a history of political corruption, and the current leadership of Glele and Vlanovou have been criticized for many reasons, including the general state of infrastructure, the botched reconstruction of Kutonu & the disappearance of journalists.

The country holds an election every 5 years to determine the members of the country's unicameral assembly, known as the National Assembley (French: *Assemblée National*), which hosts 83 members. The country used to have a lower house called the Chamber (French: *chambre*, Yoruba: *iyẹwu*) up until 2013, when it was abolished because of "budget constraints". However, the budget constraints ended up not being real, and became yet another criticism of the national government of Dahomey. The judiciary of the country, known as the Oba's Court (French: *Cour d'Oba*), is the country's judicial branch, which happens to be the only "normally-funtioning" branch of government

Human rights in the country are very weak, being amongst the lowest of the low, being classified as "Not Free" according to Freedom House. Among the country's human rights violations, the disappearance of journalists is the most well-known outside the country, following the "mysterious" absence of 3 CNN reporters from the United States covering the anti-Monarchist protests. The country also deals with widespread corruption, prevalent in the national and most departmental governments, though members of the judiciary and other non-government organizations are trying to tackle the problem.

The country has 12 first level administrative zones, known as departments (French: *Départments*, Yoruba: *Awọn ẹka*). These departments act much like states and provinces in other countries, and they are in turn divided into 77 communes, which act as the country's single administrative divisions such as municipalities and towns. The communes are in complete subordination to the state, with some calls to grant the communes more autonomy. The departments of Donga, Atakora, Alibori & Borgou wish to secede to form the Kingdom of Borgu.

The Dahomean Armed Forces constitutes the army, navy, air force, and national gendarmerie of Benin. For a number of years, the Belgian Armed Forces have had an active programme of co-operation with Dahomey, offering training and coaching, donating redundant military equipment and using the country for limited military exercises. As of 2014, the Army had a strength of 4,300. It includes 1 armoured squadron, 3 infantry battalions, 1 commando/airborne battalion, 1 artillery battery, and 1 engineer battalion, and 1 National Fire Brigade.

## Demographics

As of 2025, the country has a population of only 10.9 million people, making it relatively small in terms of population. Much of that population is young, with 43.6% of the population being under the age of 18, with a total population of 4.7 million. The annual growth rate is 2.6%, down from a high of 4% in 1963, and up from a low of 2% in 1973. At it's current rate, the population is expected to add an additional 4.3 million, for a total of 14.2 million inhabitants. This high is not expected to slow, and the government has tried to implement better birth-control methods.

As according to the 2020 census, 41.4% of the nation's population is of Fon ethnicity, though this figure is outdated. The Fon primarily live in the southeast area of the country, in and around the major population centres of Abomey, Hogbonu and Kutonu, and make up much of the country's middle and upper class. The Aja are the second largest group, at 12.1% of the population, mostly resifing in Kouffo Department. At 12%, the Yoruba have the privilege of having their language be official in Dahomey, while the Bariba, at 9.6% wish to create their own country in the northern halve of Dahomey. 8.6% of the nation's population is Fula, 6.1% is Mina, and 2.9% is Dendi.

When it comes to religion, Dahomey is a mixed bag. 51.5% of the nations population are adherents to Vodun, which amounts to little over 5.6 million people. It is the parent religion of many branches of Vodun, including American, Cuban, Haitian, Cibaouan and New Hollandese Vodun. 29.7% of the nation's population adheres to Sunni Islam, due to the advent of Islam in the 1800's and 1900's. The country has a Catholic population of 15.6%, which was introduced during the French colonial period. 1.6% of the country follows other religions, including other traditional religions, Protestantism and Shia Islam.

The country's constitution outlines three official languages; French, Yoruba and Fon. Fon is the most spoken of these, with 4.5 million speakers in the country at varying degrees of proficiency. Fon is a Niger-Congo language of the Gbe branch, and is closely related to that of the Aja people who also live in Dahomey, as well as the Ewe of the Ashanti Republic. Yoruba is a Niger-Congo language of the Voltaic branch, spoken by the 1.3 million-strong ethnic Yorubas in the country. French is spoken by 21.7% of the population, accounting to 2.3 million, mostly in the central and northern parts of the country.

## Culture

With strong religious roots to inform most of the traditions, Benin's culture is certainly one of the most unique and interesting in Africa. The strong influence of the Voodoo religion is an important part of Dahomey, which tells of healing and rejuvenating talismans. The tradition of oral storytelling is still alive and well, which accounts for the absence of written literature, even though the culture prides itself in its ancient stories and folklore.

Music is of utmost importance in the country. The rhythmic sounds of drumming can be heard at most festivals and religious events. Not just a way to celebrate, music in Benin provides a way to express religious fervor. The country is also home to notable musicians, including the internationally acclaimed singer Angelique Kidjo. Post-independence, the country was home to a vibrant and innovative music scene, where native folk music combined with Ghanaian highlife, French cabaret, American rock, funk and soul, and Congolese rumba.

Dahomean cuisine is known in Africa for its exotic ingredients and flavourful dishes. Dahomean cuisine involves fresh meals served with a variety of key sauces. In southern Benin cuisine, the most common ingredient is corn, often used to prepare dough which is mainly served with peanut or tomato-based sauces. Fish and chicken are the most common meats used in southern Dahomean cuisine, but beef, goat, and bush rat are also consumed. The main staple in northern Benin is yams, often served with sauces mentioned above. The population of the north also consumes beef and pork on a regular basis.

Artistic traditions in the country are very old and are represented in practically every village. Plastic art is the most prominent, as carved wooden masks representing images and spirits of the departed are made and used in traditional ceremonies. Other artistic items are bronze statuettes, pottery, appliquéd tapestries recounting the history of kings of precolonial Dahomey, and fire engraving on wooden bowls, which often have religious meaning. Probably the best-known art objects are the Yoruba wooden masks called *guelede*, which come primarily from the city of Hogbonu (Yoruba: *Àjàshé*).

Radio programs are broadcast from Kutonu in French, English, and a number of local languages. There is also a limited television service, which is heavily censored. A daily newspaper, *La Nation*, is published in Cotonou and is controlled by the government; there are also two other dailies and several weekly or biweekly publications. Newspapers published in Wallo and Mali (both in French) and newspapers and magazines from elsewhere may be found in bookstores and newsstands. Most people now get their news from the internet, though access may be ocassionally restricted.

Dahomean architechture, while it has indigenous roots, has been heavily influenced by that of colonial-era France and the traditions of the African community in New Holland. Modern day architechture in Dahomey has been developed both at home and abroad, with influence from the black community of America. Notable modern projects include the under-construction National Assembley, the Kutnu Conference Centre, the Zinsou Foundation, and the Mosque of Parakou. However, most buildings in the country continue to be terracotta huts with straw rooves, though a unique feature native to Dahomean huts is that they have sticks through the walls, and are usually 2 floors high.