Political History

Madam Efunroye Tinubu, How a Yoruba Merchant Woman Rose to Power in Lagos and Abeokuta

Madam Efunroye Tinubu, who died in 1887, was one of the most powerful women in nineteenth century Yorubaland. Her life unfolded during an era...

How Benin and Portugal Built an Early Trade Corridor on the Bight of Benin

When Portuguese ships began moving steadily along the West African coast in the fifteenth century, they entered a region shaped by long-standing commercial routes...