- Tenure
- c. 1430 (founding) — 20 May 1892 (Anglo-Ijebu War)
- Era
- Traditional Rulers — the pre-colonial polities (pre-1879)
- Mode of entry
- Awujale dynasty from c. 15th c., capital at Ijebu-Ode
- Mode of exit
- Ijebu cavalry defeated at Imagbon by Col. Francis Scott's Maxim-armed column, 20 May 1892; trade routes opened by force
The Ijebu blockade of the interior trade routes was the immediate trigger for the 1892 British conquest of Yorubaland. Overlaid by: Sir Gilbert Carter, Governor of Lagos (Anglo-Ijebu War, May 1892).
From the 1860s the Ijebu Kingdom closed its borders to European traders seeking to reach Ibadan and the interior, forcing all goods through Ijebu middlemen at heavily taxed rates. Carter used the blockade as casus belli; the 20 May 1892 battle at Imagbon was the first sustained use of Maxim guns in Yorubaland and shattered Ijebu cavalry. The Awujale stool was preserved under indirect rule.
The current Awujale, HRM Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona CFR (Ogbagba II), reigned from 2 April 1960 until his death on 13 July 2025 — the longest single-reign of any Yoruba oba in the modern era.
Tier 1 · primary
Courts. Gazettes. National archives.
Tier 2 · corroborating
OCCRP. HRW. BudgIT. TheCable.
Tier 4 · tertiary, flagged
Wikipedia only where primary is pending. Always labelled.