Behanzin

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Behanzin Hossu Bowelle
“The King Shark”

Behanzin is known as one of the most powerful kings in West African history. Born in 1841 Behanzin was a tall, well-built, and dignified man. He is decribed as wearing a long strip of silk draped around his body and across his bare shoulders. Ruling over the peoples of Dahomey, Behanzin was known as the “absolute master of his kingdom”. Few people were allowed to see the king perform the most ordinary of activities. Common subjects in his kingdom saw him only in ceremony. Behanzin as king was considered so sacred that his saliva was not allowed to touch the ground.
The wealth of Dahomey was expressed in its trade, its army and the courageousness of its soldiers. Represented by over 25,000 warriors Behanzin’s army was picked from among the best of its Dahomeyan subjects. Among those, were 5,000 female warriors who ranked higher than their male counterparts. Each soldier had his own servant, who carried his weapons and food. Leading the army was Agli-Agbo brother of Behanzin. These warriors were divided into companies and brigades and trained thoroughly. Their training included a system of gymnastics developed by Dahomeyans as well as drills. One of these drills is described as “charging barefoot into a construction of thorns”. Upon Behanzin’s signal, the warriors threw themselves on the thorns, which was said to be a construction “50 yards long, 8 yards wide and 7 feet high”. The warriors were taught from birth to despise death. This quality enabled them to fight with extreme bravery and energy. “Two hundred of the sturdiest women warriors and five hundred of the finest males formed the king’s bodyguards”.
Dahomey was an open kingdom but it Behanzin’s policy to keep all whites out of the inside of his kingdom. On rare occasions when white people were allowed, they were given a passport, which was made out of a palm almond wrapped in special le...