By Iyoha John Darlington
Osaro Onaiwu
Extensive research, analysis and an in-depth study of Greco-Roman history have shown that civilizations could die without maintenance and be consigned to the dustbin of history. Wars, diseases and flagrant abuse of political power have in no uncertain terms exterminated great civilizations and empires particularly, in the Mediterranean region. On what do we further blame these destructions? It is none other than lack of foresight, solecism and abuse of political power.
We have had exciting archeological discoveries extracted from civilizations that have died. The Great Benin Kingdom is one great civilization that came to prominence in the 13th and 15th centuries hitherto ruled over by semi-mythical kings, the Ogisos. This also was one great kingdom in the tide of times that metamorphosed into an empire via conquest and expansion and over time became one of the most developed city-sates in the coastal hinterlands of West Africa. This conquest and expansion extended to the Niger Delta in the east and Eko (War Camp) in the west, the present day Lagos.
A first time visitor to Benin often sees and stands in awe of the great historical monuments and relics lining the centuries-old streets. Had these architectural gems, for instance, like the aqueducts and cobblestone roads of the Greco-Roman, Egyptian, Assyrian and Babylonian civilizations, not been kept, maintained and sustained by our successive monarchs, they would have in fact long sunk or faded into oblivion like edifices of archeological memory.
There also existed outposts of the Benin Kingdom covering the vast Esan plateau administered by Dukes, (Enogies) in the north central parts of what is today known as Esan land and farther north peopled by subjects under the Oba. In its capacity as the administrative headquarters of Nigeria’s oldest state, we boasted of …Read More
Source:: PM Newspaper
