Do-Aklin or Gangnihessou or Dogbari is claimed as the founder of the Fon Kingdom of Dahomey in present-day Benin and the first person in the royal lineage of the Kings of Dahomey. In many versions he is considered the first king of Dahomey even though the kingdom was founded after his death. Very little is known about Do-Aklin and most of it is connected to folklore, but it is generally claimed that he settled a large group of Aja people from Allada on the Abomey plateau amongst the local inhabitants in c. 1620. His son Dakodonu would eventually build a palace on the plateau and began forming the Kingdom of Dahomey.
Kpengla was a King of the Kingdom of Dahomey, in present-day Benin, from 1774 until 1789. Kpengla followed his father Tegbessou to the throne and much of his administration was defined by the increasing Atlantic slave trade and regional rivalry over the profits from this trade. His attempts to control the slave trade generally failed, and when he died of smallpox in 1789, his son Agonglo came to the throne and ended many of his policies.
Béhanzin is considered the eleventh King of Dahomey, modern-day Benin. Upon taking the throne, he changed his name from Kondo.
The departments of Benin are subdivided into 77 communes, which in turn are divided into arrondissements and finally into villages or city districts. Prior to 1999 provinces were broken down into 84 districts, titled either urban or rural. Before independence, the six provinces were subdivided into Cercles, cantons, préfectures and villages or towns.
The First Franco-Dahomean War, which raged in 1890, was a conflict between France, led by General Alfred-Amédée Dodds, and the Dahomey under King Béhanzin. The French emerged triumphant after winning the Battle of Abomey.
The Archdiocese of Cotonou is the Metropolitan See for the Ecclesiastical province of Cotonou in Benin.
The Second Franco-Dahomean War, which raged from 1892 to 1894, was a major conflict between the French Third Republic, led by General Alfred-Amédée Dodds, and the Kingdom of Dahomey under King Béhanzin. The French emerged triumphant and incorporated Dahomey into their growing colonial territory of French West Africa.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Benin:
Benin has a total of 578 km (359 mi) of single track, 1,000 mm railway. Rail construction began around 1900, with regular services commencing in 1906; rail operation was taken into government control in 1930.
Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in Western Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north; its short coastline to the south leads to the Bight of Benin. Its size is just over 110000 km2 with a population of almost 8500000. Its capital is the Yoruba founded city of Porto Novo, but the seat of government is the Fon city of Cotonou. About half the population live below the international poverty line of US$1.25 per day.
The History of the Kingdom of Dahomey spans 300 years from around 1600 until 1904 with the rise of the Kingdom of Dahomey as a major power on the Atlantic coast of modern-day Benin until French conquest. The kingdom became a major regional power in the 1720s when it conquered the coastal kingdoms of Allada and Whydah. With control over these key coastal cities, Dahomey became a major center in the Atlantic Slave Trade until 1852 when the British imposed a naval blockade to stop the trade. War with the French began in 1892 and the French took over the Kingdom of Dahomey in 1894. The throne was vacated by the French in 1900, but the royal families and key administrative positions of the administration continued to have a large impact in the politics of the French administration and the post-independence Republic of Dahomey, renamed Benin in 1975. Historiography of the kingdom has had a significant impact on work far beyond African history and the history of the kingdom forms the backdrop for a number of novels and plays.
Administrative Council elections were held in Dahomey for the first time in 1925.
Administrative Council elections were held in Dahomey in 1928.
Administrative Council elections were held in Dahomey in 1932.
Administrative Council elections were held in Dahomey in 1934.
Administrative Council elections were held in Dahomey in 1930.
The 1972 Dahomeyan coup d'état was a military coup staged on 26 October 1972 by Major Mathieu Kérékou, who took control of the Republic of Dahomey and ended a system of government established following the annulled 1970 presidential election, in which three members of the Presidential Council were to rotate in power. Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin served as the Chairman at the time of the coup.
