SUMMARY
The Kingdom of Benin, also known as the Edo Kingdom, or the Benin Empire (Bini: Arriọba Ẹdo) was a kingdom within what is now southwestern Nigeria.[citation needed] It has no historical relation to the modern republic of Benin, which was known as Dahomey from the 17th century until 1975. The Kingdom of Benin's capital was Edo, now known as Benin City in Edo State, Nigeria. The Benin Kingdom was "one of the oldest and most developed states in the coastal hinterland of West Africa". It grew out of the previous Edo Kingdom of Igodomigodo around the 11th century AD, and lasted until it was annexed by the British Empire in 1897.1
Geographically, pre-colonial Benin kingdom was located in the forest region of what is now modern Nigeria in West Africa sub-region. This kingdom was not a single administration unit, and its boundaries cannot be precisely drawn. The term territory of Benin Kingdom is with the present Orodo, Ovia North-East, Ovia South-West, Uhunmwonde, Orhionmwon and Ikpoba Okha Local Govenrent Areas of Edo State. At the height of its power, the influence of Benin was it recorded to have extended westward along the coast of Eko which is present day Lagos and beyond, westwards to Ekiti and beyond which marked the boundary between Benin and Oyo Empire, eastwards to the River Niger as well as the Igbo speaking areas and beyond, and southward to the Atlantic Ocean. The area of pre-colonial Benin had a continuous expansion and that was because Benin was involved with lot of warfare. Warfare and conquering of kingdoms are part of the key answers to empire building.
