Part 2 — Chapter 6

Chapter VI. THE REVOLUTION § I. AOLE SURNAMED AROGANGAN None of Abiodun's numerous children succeeded him on the throne. Aol^, a tall and handsome. Prince, a cousin of the late King was elected in his stead. But unfortunately, his reign was a very unhappy one ; it marked the commencement of the decline of the nation until it terminated in the tragic, end of the fifth King after him. The cup of iniquity of the nation was full; cruelty, usurpation, and treachery were rife, especially in the capital ; and the provinces were groaning under the yoke of oppression. Confiscation and slavery for the slightest offence became matters of daily occurrence, and the tyranny, exactions, and lawlessness of the Princes and other members of the royal family, were simply insupportable. Oaths were no more taken in the name of the gods, who were now considered too lenient and indifferent ; but rather in the name of the King who was more dreaded. " Idk Oba ni yio je mi " (may the King's sword destroy me) was the new form of oath ! Aole was unfoitunately saddled with the ill fate of the nation, as the following ditty commonly sung would show :— " Laiye Abiodun I'afi igba won 'wo Laiye Aol^ I'adi adikal^." (In Abiodun's reign money we weighed by bushels. [Lit. with calabashes.] In Aole's reign, we packed up to flee). But there was nothing more in his actions than in those of his predecessors to warrant this saying, on the contrary, he was probably too weak and mild for the times. The nation was ripe for judgment, and the impending wrath of God was about to fall upon it ; hence trouble from every quarter, one after another. On the King's accession, according to custom when the time came for him to send out his first expedition, he was asked who was his enemy, that they should fight him. He named the Bale of Apomu, and hence Apomu was doomed. The alleged cause of offence will clearly show how much of corruption there was at the fountain head in those days. Apomu was the market town where Oygs, Ifes, Owus, and Ijgbus met for trade. It was situated in Ife territory, and m the 188 border of the Olowu's dominion. Raiding and man-stealing were rife at those times. Oyos particularly were in greater danger, as they came from afar. During the last reign several Oyos were stolen and sold here, and hence King Abiqdun sent orders to both the Olowu and the Owoni of Ife to keep a strict watch and prevent the recurrence of these practices. The Owoni and the Olowu in turn sent strict orders to the Bale of Apomu to be on the watch, and arrest any offender. Aole who was then a private man used to trade in these parts with a friend who was also his attendant ; and on one occasion, he bartered away his friend for merchandise ! So faithless and heartless were the princes in those days. The Ijebus were actually taking him away when it was reported to the Bale of Apomu that an Oyg man was being sold away. Fortunately for the man by the prompt action of the Bale he was rescued at a certain spot named Apata Odaju (the rock of the heartless), perhaps so named from this circumstance, and brought before the Bale. Investig- ation soon showed who the slave-dealer was ; but as Aol^ was an Akeyo (Prince) and could not more severely be dealt with, in order that justice may not miscarry, he was ordered by the Bale to be severely flogged. This was the reason why Aole now named the Bale of Apomu as his enemy. When the Bale of Apomu heard that war was declared against his town on his account he took refuge in the court of the Ow5ni of Ife his over-lord, and whose orders he had obeyed. But as the offence was against the Suzerain, even the Ow6ni could not save him ; so this faithful chief, in order to save his town and his people from destruction, committed suicide, and his head was cut off and sent to Oyo to appease the offended monarch ! But an expedition must in any case be sent out, the King was, therefore, approached again and asked to name his enemy. But he replied, " My enemy is too formidable for me." Being pressed, he named the powerful chief Afonja the Kakanfo residing at Ilorin with great reluctance, as he foresaw evil ahead. § 2. The King's Enemies After the death of the Kakanfo Oyabi, Afonja of Ilorin demanded the title ; but as a Prince (through the mother) the title was below his rank, for the Kakanfo ranks after the Basorun, but being the highest mihtary title, it suited his restless nature best, and so he obtained it, almost by force. But King Aole was unwilhng to initiate any civil war, and refused to take any action against Afonja after he had granted him the title. Hitherto, Afgnja alone was his enemy, the other chiefs were as yet loyal to him, but circumstances occurred, one after the other which created a disaffection between him and theBasorun and the other chiefs, fanning into a flame the destructive fire already smouldering in its embers. The cause of quarrel between the King and Asamu theBasorun was this :— One Alaja-eta a Hausa trader at Oyo was plundered of his goods, under the pretext that he was bringing bad charms into the city. Among his confiscated goods was his Koran which he prized more than all his other stolen property. He appealed to the King, and he, from a sense of justice ordered that all his goods be restored to him. All but the Koran were accordingly restored. The Hausa again appealed to the King for this his most valued treasure ; the King insisted that search should be made and the lost Koran be restored. The Basorun in whose possession it probably was, or who at any rate knew where it could be found, refused to restore it and told the King it could not be found ! His Majesty felt this keenly as an insult to his dignity ; he was heard to say " Is it come to this that my commands cannot be obeyed in my own capital ? Must it be said that I failed to redress the grievance of a stranger in my town ? That he appealed to me in vain ? " Turning to the Basorun and pointing upwards he said, " Very well then, if you cannot find it my father (meaning the deified Sango) will find the Koran for me." As the god Sango is reputed to take vengeance on thieves and liars by burning their houses, so the next day, when lightning struck the Basgrun's house, great was his rage against the King for being instrumental in convicting him of theft and lying ! The ceremony of appeasing the god by the devotees, entailed heavy expenses on the Basgrun who, had it been another man's house might have gone shares with the Alafin in the fines imposed upon the sufferers. He knew where the trouble came from, for he noted the King's words " My father will find it for me." In this way be became the King's enemy. Another circumstance occurred which added the Ow6ta one of the 5sgs to the list of the King's enemies. One Jankalawa who had offended the late King and who had escaped to the Bariba country when he sought to kill him, now returned after the King's death and was flaunting about the streets of OYg under the protection of Lafianu the Owota. The late King's wives were angry at this and complained to Aole against Jankalawa. Said they " You have inherited our late husband's wives, his treasures, slaves and his throne. Why nut make his cause your cause and his enemies yours as well ? Why do you allow this Jankalawa to stalk so defiantly about the streets of Qyo?" By thus appealing to him from day to day, he yielded to their entreaties and remonstrances, and ordered the arrest and subse- quent execution of Jankalawa. The Owota's pride was wounded, because he was not respected by the King, in that one known to be under his protection should be so summarily dealt with. Thus the Bagorun and the Kakanfo found an accomplice in the powerful Owota. A conspiracy was formed but not being ripe for execution, they awaited a favourable opportunity. At length the time arrived when an expedition must be sent out, and the King was again asked "Who is your Majest3''s enemy?" He replied, " I have told you that my enemy is too formidable for me, and besides we are the same kith and kin." However, he advised that as the last campaign ended at Gbeji, the war should be prosecuted from that place. But in order to gain their object in view, viz., the removal of the Kakanfo, the King's counsellors advised that the Kakanfo and the army should be sent against Iwere, a place fortified by nature and by art, and impregnable to the simple weapons of those days, and as the Kakanfo by the oaths of his office must either conquer within three months or die, and Iwere is impreg- nable, he will have no other alternative, but as in honour bound to make away with himself. It was, however, arranged that he should not be foiewamed, but decoyed as it were to that place until he found himself at the foot of the hill on which Iwere was built ; hence it was given out that war was declared against Gbeji. But the royal party leading the army received private instruc- tions to lead the army to Iwere and when there to inform the Kakanfo that that was the place he was sent against. But private intelligence had reached the Kakanfo at Ilorin, of all the plots and intrigues going on in the capital. However, he with his accomphces in the city deferred the execution of their design till after their arrival at the seat of war. The army at length stood before Iwere and the Royal party, consisting of the King's brother, the Eunuchs, and the principal slaves, and their men, pointing to it said " This is the town to be taken by the order of the AlAfin." The time was now come for the mutiny to break out. The Basorun and the Owota at the head of the troops from the city, the Onikoyi and the Kakanfo leading those from the provinces now alleged as a pretext for the mutiny that " If the King had not aimed at our destruction, he would not have ordered us to this impregnable town. And besides, is not this the maternal town of King AjAGBO ? Are there not Kobis in the Queen Mother's palace there ? " The watchword was now given " O Ya " (now is the time) and so the whole army turned their swords upon the royal party and massacred them ! Chief Qpele of Gbogun in particular was famous as a swordsman ; he made himself notorious on that occasion, and took to himself a name " A ri agada pa aburo Oba " (one who has a blade for slaying the King's brother). The siege was immediately raised, and the whole army stood before the city for forty and two days. The King sent word to say if they have returned from the expedition, whether successful or unsuccessful, let them come in for an interview. The insurgent chiefs sent word back to say that the royal party had offended them and that the result had proved unfortunate. " Very well," Sciid the King, " in any case, come in for an interview." Several weeks passed, and they were still encamped before Oyo irresolute as to what they should do next. At last an empty covered calabash was sent to the King—for his head! A plain indication that he was rejected. He had suspected this all along and was not unpre- pared for it. There being no alternative His Majesty set his house in order; but before he committed suicide, he stepped out into the palace quadrangle with face stern and resolute, carrying in his hands an earthenware dish and three arrows. He shot one to the North, one to the South, and one to the West uttering those ever-memor- able imprecations, " My curse be on ye for your disloyalty and disobedience, so let your children disobey you. If you send them on an errand, let them never return to bring you word again. To all the points I shot my arrows will ye be carried as slaves. My curse will carry you to the sea and beyond the seas, slaVes will rule over you, and you their masters will become slaves." With this he raised and dashed the earthenware dish on the ground smashing it into pieces, saying " Igba la isg a ki isg awo, beheni ki org mi o se to ! to ! " (a broken calabash can be mended, but not a broken dish ; so let my words be—irrevocable !) He then took poison and died, after which the camp was broken up, and each of the chiefs repaired to his own place. Thus ended an unhappy reign of about seven years, and Prince Adebg succeeded him on the throne. Asamu Agba-o lekan was the Basgrun of this reign. § 3. The Rebellion of the Oyo Chiefs The death ot the late King was all that the rebel chiefs demanded, after which, the army entered the city, pillaged the palace and then dispersed each to his own place. From this time the spirit of rebelHon and independence began to spread throughout the king- dom. Adebo was placed on the throne with the nominal title of King, but without the authority and power of a King. It was his misfortune to have come to the throne at such a time, and he held the sceptre for only 130 days. Afonja the Kakanfo of Ilorin and Opele the Bale of Gbogun were the first to proclaim their independence, other chiefs soon followed their examples. This was the commencement of the break-up of the unity of the Yoruba kingdom, and the beginning of the tribal independence. Tribute was no longer paid to the King. The King's messengers and Ilaris no longer carried that dread as before, nor were they allowed to oppress people or enrich themselves with their goods as before. As the King's authority waned, so also the respect and deference hitherto paid to the citizens of the capital ceased ; they were even treated disrespectfully and became the subjects of vulgar songs all over the country, a thing unheard of before ! Law and order were subverted, might triumphed over right, and the powerful chieftains turned their arms towards subverting town after town in the kingdom in order to increase their own wealth and power. Chief Opele of Gbogun took Dofian and Igbo-Owu; he besieged Gboho but fell in that place, being shot with an arrow by the brave defenders. Opele was the only powerful chief Afonja respected and having now no rival he resolved upon a scheme to reduce the provinces under his own sway, leaving the capital severely alone in complete isolation. He made no attempt on Oyo, had no aspiration after the throne knowing that was impossible of attainment ; it was sufficient tor him that the King was powerless to check his ambition. In order to strengthen his hands in the enterprise he was about to undertake, he invited a Fulah Moslem Priest named Alimi to Ilorin to act as his priest. Alimi in responding to his call came with his Hausa slaves and made Ilorin his home. These Hausa slaves Afonja found to be useful as soldiers. He also invited to Ilorin a rich and powerful Yoruba friend at Kurwo named Solagberu, who quartered himself at the outskirts of the town. All the Hausa slaves in the adjacent towns hitherto employed as barbers, rope-makers, and cowherds, now deserted their masters and flocked to Ilorin under the standard of Afonja the Kakanfo, and were protected against their masters. Under Solagberu's standard also flocked Mohammedans from Gbanda, Kobayi, Agoho, Kuwo, and Kobe. All in his quarter being Moslems, he named that part of the town Oke S una, i.e., the quarter of the faithful. They held themselves separate not only from the pagans, but also from the Fulahs or Fulanis their co-religionists. From this time beg?in the Jehad or religious war in the Yoruba country. Those who were enlisted as soldiers called themselves Jama (a Hausa word for the rank and file, as distinguished from the leaders). The mark of distinction between themselves and others was the Kende, two large iron rings one on the thumb, the other on the 3rd or 4th finger of the left hand ; with this they welcome each other, striking the rings against each other to produce a sound. This io the sign of brotherhood ; hence they often say '■ O re kende si mi, okan na ni wa," (he welcomed me with the Kende, we both are one). The operations of the Jamas were directed against the Igbdna tribe. The only towns of Yoruba proper destroyed were amongst the Ibolos viz., Iresk, Ejigbo, and Ilobu. The reason why these towns were destroyed we shall notice afterwards. § 4. The Rising of Ojo Agunbambaru Ojo surnamed Agunbambaru was one of the surviving sons of the renowned Basorun Gahk. He had escaped to the Bariba country at the general massacre of Gahk's children and relatives in the reign of King Abigdun. Hearing of the present state of the country, he thought there could never be a more favourable opportunity for him both to avenge his father's death, and also to obtain his title without opposition. He returned from the Bariba country with an immense army, entered Qyo, and under the pretext of espousing the King's cause, he put to death indiscriminately most of the influential citizens who were named as Afonja's friends and allies. The Owota was the first victim of his ambition and revenge. On the whole, about 100 chiefs were despatched, who were either his father's enemies, or who might have opposed him-in his main object. He now set off for Ilgrin to measure strength with Afgnja the powerful Kakanfo, whose father was one of those who swelled Oyabi's army for the overthrow of his father the Basorun Gahk, and who had succeeded the same Oyabi in his title as Kakanfo, These were his grievances against Afgnja ; but besides these, Afgnja was the only person in the land after Op§le of Gbogun, who might have opposed him in his designs. If Ojo had acted with prudence, he might have succeeded without the slightest doubt; but his indiscriminate slaughter of the Oyo chiefs and others in his track, and his threats against the Onikoyi, tended to weaken his own strength on the outset. Fire and the sword marked his path to Ilorin, and so great was the dread of him, that such towns as Ogidi, Ogele and others, were deserted at his approach. Adegun the Onikoyi being one of Afonja's secret friends, was on his hst for destruction but he was reserved till after the war. Both were kept informed of all Ojo's movements, policy, and designs by the Oyo people who followed him trembhng, not really as friends, but rather as traitors, their minds having been prejudiced against him, on account of his excesses, and a secret combination was formed between them and the Onikoyi, to desert Ojo at the most ciitical moment. Ojo's army was further swelled by recruits from all the Yoruba towns who feared his vengeance should victoiy crown his efforts without their help ; and even the Onikoyi who knew himself to be a marked man, declared for him and swelled his army. Afonja met this large army a great way off but he was defeated on three successive engagements. His army being completely routed he fled precipitately to Ilorin to fortify the town against the approach of the conqueror. Ilorin had not been walled, and there was no time to think of doing so now, so he had to extemporise fortifications, erecting stockades with the locust and shea-butter trees. Ilorin was soon besieged and was nearly taken, as Afgnja's courage was faiUng from repeated reverses, when private messages from the enemy's camp were sent to encoiurage him to hold out a Uttle longer. At last, the final decisive battle was to be fought, Afonja and his army were hard pressed on every side, being shut up within their forts, and the town was on the point of being taken when Adegun the Onikoyi and his accomplices suddenly gave way, in the heat of the battle, and the great conqueror irretrievably lost the day ! The traitors fled away in confusion, but Ojo and his trusty Bariba troops retreated orderly ; the Kakanfo could not follow up the victory by pursuing him from the dread he had of the Baribas, who were renowned for being good archers, and for their poisoned arrows. Ojo made good his escape with the remnant of his army. Being thus deserted by those whose cause he professed to espouse, Agunbambaru considered himself unsafe among them, and there- fore returned to the Bariba country with the wreck of his army watching for another favourable opportunity. After the fall of Opele of Gbogun, King Adebo declared war against the town of (Gbogun, but he died at home during the progress of the siege. His reign was short and specially marked by troubles. The people now longed for peace, hence their pathetic songs .— " A pete, a pero, a fi Adebo joba, Abiodun, pada wa joba o ! " (With deliberation, and thought we made Adebg King, O Abiodun, do thou return to reign !) Asamu was also the Basorun of this reign. § 5. Maku Afonja by new conquests and especially by his recent victory over Ojo became mightier still. The Igb6nas having already been subjugated, he now proceeded to punish Iresa for being in league with Ojo, because no private message came to him from that place during the war. Prince Maku ascended the throne without Afonja's being con- sulted, and therefore he never sent any congratulations, nor repaired to Oyo to do homage as usual. A deputation was therefore sent to inform him that " The New Moon has appeared," meaning a new King has ascended the throne ; and he sent back this arrogant reply " Let that New Moon speedily set." Maku's reign was very short, not exceeding two months (or three moons as Yorubas reckoned it). He declared war against Iworo, and took the field in person. He suffered a defeat and retreated to I wo (in the Metropolitan district). From shame he did not return to Oyo till the Oyo Mesi sent word to him that he should not think of removing the seat of government to I wo, or else why did he remain there ? His Majesty thereupon returned to the capital, and then he was poUtely told that rio Yoruba King must survive a defeat. He thereupon committed suicide. The Bagorun of this reign was the same Asamu.