The British looted the Kingdom of Benin (in modern-day Nigeria) in February 1897 during a military invasion known as the "Punitive Expedition". British forces captured Benin City, burned it, and removed thousands of cultural artifacts, now known as the "Benin Bronzes," which were taken to Britain and subsequently sold to museums and private collectors.
Benin artefacts in National Museums Scotland collections
Most of which are believed to be connected to the 1897 'punitive expedition'. Of these, five have a documented link to British military officers who took part in the looting of Benin City in 1897.
The Benin Expedition of 1897 was a punitive expedition by a British force of 1,200 men under Sir Harry Rawson. It came in response to the ambush and slaughter of a 250-strong party led by British Acting Consul General James Phillips of the Niger Coast Protectorate.
When did the British destroy the Benin Royal palace?
Britain responded immediately, mounting a so-called punitive expedition to capture Benin. The palace was burned and looted in February 1897, and the oba was exiled.
During the 1897 attack, the British stole an estimated 10,000 objects made of copper alloy (plaques and other artworks), carved and uncarved ivory, works made of wood and coral, and human remains (such as skulls and teeth).
BENIN INVASION 1897 – How the British Looted Africa’s Most Advanced Kingdom
What is the most controversial item in the British Museum?
The most controversial item in the British Museum is widely considered to be the Parthenon Sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, due to ongoing, decades-long disputes with Greece over their removal and calls for their return to the Acropolis in Athens. Other highly contentious objects include the Benin Bronzes and the Rosetta Stone, both subject to significant repatriation claims from Nigeria and Egypt, respectively, highlighting debates over colonial-era acquisitions.
In 1984, Sotheby's auctioned a plaque depicting a musician; its value was estimated at between £25,000 and £35,000 in the auction catalogue. In 2015, a Benin Bronze head was sold to a private collector for a record fee of £10 million.
Over 900 objects from the historic Kingdom of Benin are currently cared for by the British Museum. More than 100 can be seen in a rotating display within the Museum's Africa galleries.
Queen Iden is yet another heroine whose sacrifice helped shape Benin Kingdom. She was the queen during the reign of Oba Ewuape in about 1700 AD. She is known to have volunteered herself as a sacrificial lamb for the welfare of her husband and that of the entire kingdom.
However, when daylight saving ends in late October, the UK reverts to GMT, making London an hour behind countries such as Nigeria, which stays on West Africa Time (GMT+1) year-round without adjusting clocks for daylight saving.
He was the head of the Benin kingdom's Army that resisted the British Invasion of Benin. He like the rest of Benin kingdom was betrayed by Chief Agho Obaseki who helped the British to deport the Benin Monarch at the time to Calabar. He was executed by the British.
Between the seventh and fourteenth centuries CE, defensive earthworks, ramparts, and moats were constructed around Benin City's perimeter. These impressive structures—ranked second only to China's Great Wall in length among man-made structures—defined the spiritual and political heart of the Benin Kingdom.
Nigerian demands for the Benin bronzes' return, first voiced in the 1930s, were widely shunned by western governments and institutions until 2007, when a consortium of European museums and Nigerian officials formed the Benin Dialogue group.
This kingdom, also called the Great Benin Empire, was a powerful and advanced African state with a rich cultural history. The British, wanting control over trade—especially in palm oil and rubber—used a deadly ambush on a British group as an excuse to attack. However, their real goal was economic gain and colonization.
From 1730 onwards, Obas began selling war captives to European traders and the Kingdom began to depend more and more on the slave trade as a source of wealth. Which of the following was a more important reason for territorial expansion of the Kingdom of Benin?
Which Nigerian king refused to bow to Queen Elizabeth?
Attah Ameh Oboni was an Igala king from Nigeria who ruled in the 1940s and 1950s. He famously refused to remove his cap (a cultural taboo) to greet Queen Elizabeth II during a colonial-era meeting, leading to conflicts. Eventually, in 1956, he faced pressure to step down and tragically ended his own life.
Aztecs. The Aztecs were particularly noted for practicing human sacrifice on a large scale; an offering to Huitzilopochtli would be made to restore the blood he lost, as the sun was engaged in a daily battle. Human sacrifices would prevent the end of the world that could happen on each cycle of 52 years.
Why won't the British Museum return the artifacts?
Several British laws also prevent the museums from outright returning these artifacts to Ghana: the British Museum Act of 1963 bans the museum from removing an artifact from its collection unless it is a duplicate, is damaged or is deemed “unfit” for the collection.
In 2022, the U.S.'s Smithsonian Institution drafted its first restitution policy, and announced that it would return its Benin Bronzes. Then Scotland's Glasgow City Council voted to return the 17 Benin Bronzes in the Glasgow Museums collection.
His Royal Majesty, Oba Ewuare II, The Oba of Benin Kingdom, recently unveiled new chieftaincy titles and conferred them on several noble individuals in an effort to strengthen Benin's traditional administration and encourage service to the community.
Why won't the British Museum return the Benin Bronzes?
The British Museum says it is restricted from permanently returning items including Benin Bronzes due to the British Museum Act 1963. THE BRITISH Museum has said it cannot permanently return looted Benin Bronzes to Nigeria, The Voice can reveal.
