HISTORY: THE OSOGBO WAR OF
1840
The Fulani tried to conquer
Oshogbo the way they
conquered Hausa Ethnic
After the Fulanis systematically
captured Ilorin via the treason of
Afonja the Field Marshall of the
Oyo empire, the fulanis together
with Malian and Hausa
immigrants made Ilorin their
territory. They had immense
assistance from some Yoruba
Ilorin Muslims which led to the
sacking of the old Oyo Empire in
1835.
For administrative reasons, the
fleeing Oyo citizens relocated the
Oyo administrative centre from
Oyo Ile to the present Oyo Ago.
The Alaafin devolved the military
power of the Oyo army into the
hands of garrison commanders
like Ogunmola, Kurunmi, Timi and
Soun.
The Fulanis had sworn to dip the
sword of Jihad into the Atlantic
ocean and they were still not
satisfied with their victory; they
wished to extend their rule deep
into the heart of Yoruba land and
annex the whole coastal cities of
Yorubaland into the Sokoto
caliphate. Thus in 1840, they set
to capture Osogbo , a Yoruba
town. The Fulanis, under the
command of Ali , the Hausa
balogun of Ilorin, laid siege on
Osogbo.
The fulanis got help from the
Sokoto caliphate and other Arab/
Tuareg mercenaries from across
the sahel. The major war agenda
of Sokoto caliphate was to
destroy the Oyo monarchy and
civilization completely before
destroying all other Yoruba
kingdoms for total subjugation
just like the way they destroyed
the Hausa civilization.
The fulani army could not pass
through the Ogbomoso axis and
Oke Ogun axis because the
Ogbomoso army led by the Soun
and Kurunmi Ajadi of Ijaye had
blocked and sealed off that route
making it impossible for them to
launch any attack from the rear.
When the king of Osogbo
realized that the Ilorins were too
strong for the Osogbo army, he
summoned the Ibadans for help.
Ibadan immediately sent some
auxiliaries to Osogbo under the
command of Obele alias Mobitan ,
and Alade Abimpagun. As this
force could not stop the Ilorins,
another contingent was sent to
Osogbo under a more
experienced leader. But still the
Ilorins won every battle and
gained more ground.
The fulanis controlled Osogbo for
two years before the Oyo army
led by Ibadan came to the battle
field.
When the Ibadans realized that
the Ilorins were becoming more
threatening to Yoruba land, they
sent a large and stronger force
under Balogun Oderinlo to crush
the intruding forces and Jammas
of Ilorin . When Oderinlo and his
men arrived at the battlefield,
they realized that things had
gone worse than they thought.
They could not show their faces
in the open field for the fear of
the Ilorin horses, and for about
20 days after their arrival at
Osogbo, they could not fight
outside the town thickets.
Oderinlo suggested that Elepo, a
brave Ibadan warrior was badly
needed at the war-front. Elepo
had been rejected by the war-
chiefs of Ibadan for his actions at
the late Agbamaja expedition.
As soon as the message from
Oderinlo reached Ibadan, the
Bashorun wished he could send
Elepo to Osogbo but could not go
against the wish of other war-
chiefs. The Bashorun gave Elepo
a cow to worship his god, Ori ,
and pray for the victory of
Ibadan at the war-front.
At the war-front, the Ibadan
could not attack the Ilorins
during the day because Osogbo
was practically in a plain and the
Ilorin horses might have
advantage of them with
disastrous results.
They decided to attack at dusk
when the Ilorins would no
longer be able to use their
horses. About 2:pm, the well
prepared Ibadan army left the
gate of Osogbo for the
battlefield. They were to keep a
strict watch and arrest anyone
suspected to be a spy.
About a mile from the Ilorin
camp, they halted and arranged
the order of the attack.
The Osogbo army and the earlier
auxiliaries were to handle the
center of the battlefield, chiefs
Abitiko and Labuju were to
command the right wing,
Balogun Oderinlo with the rest of
the Ibadan war-chiefs were to
form the left wing of the army.
The Ilorin camp was then
attacked at midnight. The
watchword was “ Elo ni owo
odo? ” (How much is the ferry
fare?).
The reason this watchword was
chosen was because the river
Osun had to be crossed in
entering Osogbo from the south,
and anyone who could not tell
this was likely to be an enemy.
Stampede engulfed the Ilorin
camp as the Ibadan army set it
on fire. The Ilorins could not
offer the slightest resistance;
they were smoked with the
gunpowder of the Ibadan guns.
Thousands of the Sokoto
caliphate soldiers were
slaughtered that day and
thousands sold into slavery.
This attack was a success for the
Ibadan. Some Ilorin war-chiefs
were captured in the attack.
Prominent ones were:
1. Jimba the head slave of the
Emir;
2. One of the sons of Ali the
commander in chief;
3. Chief Lateju;
4. Ajikobi the Yoruba Balogun of
Ilorin.
The first two were released while
the latter two, being Yoruba by
birth, were regarded as traitors
and were executed. This was a
huge victory for the whole of
Yoruba land.
After the Osogbo victory, Ibokun,
an Ijesa town not far from
Osogbo was taken by the
Ibadans for being an ally of
Ilorin. The Ibadans accused the
Ijeshas, Ekitis and the Ondos for
giving the fulanis free passage
for their army and infantry in
attacking another Yoruba town.
The Ibadans then placed Ajeles
on these Yoruba enclaves for the
roles they played during the
Osogbo war.
The violent imposition of the
Ajeles on this Yoruba kingdoms
led to the Ekiti parapo Civil War
several years later.
adex3g 1 year