Queen Idia, The First Queen Mother Of The Benin Kingdom.
__
Ending 15th Cent, the kingdom of Benin was plunged into a state of unrest when Oba Ozolua died. He left two powerful sons who were said to have been born on the same day which bring a dispute on who to succeed him.

One son, Esigie controlled Benin City, while the other son, Arhuaran, was based in the equally important city of Udo. Neither prince was prepared to yield to the other and soon after, a war ensued. The war severely compromised the kingdom of Benin’s status as a regional power.

Exploiting this weakness, the neighbouring Igala people sent warriors across the Benue River to seize control of Benin’s northern territories. Queen Idia was the mother of Esigie and she was said to have possessed mystical powers as well as medicinal knowledge.

Queen Idia went to battle with Esigie and helped defeat Arhuaran as well as conquer the Igala people thereby restoring the supremacy of the kingdom of Benin. To reward and honor her, Esigie conferred upon his mother the title of Iyoba (Queen Mother), giving her equal authority.

To that of a senior chief.
Her face was immortalised with the 16th century ivory mask which presently sits in a British Museum. Two vertical bars between the eyes on the mask allude to medicine-filled incisions that were said to be one source of Queen Idia’s metaphysical powers.

Also read about the Benin Kingdom/ Empire https://twitter.com/Joe__Bassey/status/1301925242252730368?s=19

To know more about Ancient African civilization and history check my likes tweet and follow me to see my future post.