Alaafin Siyanbola Ladigbolu I, Alaafin of Oyo between 1911 - 1944. Iku baba yeye!
The events surrounding the aftermath of his death was the subject of Wole Soyinka's play, Death and the King's Horseman
When the ritual for the Aláàfins death was to be celebrated in 1946, the British Officer went out and arrested the Eleshin Ọba and threw him into jail because according to British Law, attempted suicide is a criminal offence.
The Eleshin Oba's son who was at that time a trader in the Gold Coast (Ghana) rushed home in order to bury his father. On seeing him alive,he was so horrified by the abomination that he committed suicide on the spot.
The historical event was originally researched and related by Pierre Verger in the 1960s.
The play by Prof.Wole Soyinka was originally published in 1975.
Image Source: Dọtun Olowoporoku/ Nigeria Nostalgia Project
Text: ÀṢÍRÍ Magazine Research Archive.
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