Benin Expedition

This article's content is marked as Mature The page Benin Expedition contains mature content that may include coarse language, sexual references, and/or graphic violent images which may be disturbing to some. Mature pages are recommended for those who are 18 years of age and older. If you are 18 years or older or are comfortable with graphic material, you are free to view this page. Otherwise, you should close this page and view another page.

The Benin Expedition was a punitive expedition by British soldiers under the command of Harry Rawson against the Kingdom of Benin in 1897. The expedition was done in retaliation to the ambush of a general named James Phillips a month prior and the British army burned the capital to the ground before annexing it.

History

During the Scramble for Africa, Benin managed to maintain independence from European influence. However, the British empire wanted to capture the kingdom's natural resources and incorporate it into a British protectorate. In 1892, a British officer named Henry Gallwey signed a treaty with King Ovonramwen to ensure British influence in the kingdom. Over the years, British officers had been requesting the Colonial Office to grant them the right to annex Benin and exile the king, to no avail.

On December, 1896, General James Phillips embarked on a mission to negotiate with Ovonramwen after he declared a trade embargo against Britain. However, a month later, General Phillips and his troops were ambushed, but two soldiers managed to escape and spread the news about the ambush back in London.

In retaliation to the massacre, admiral Harry Rawson embarked on a punitive expedition to the Benin kingdom with the goal to capture the king and burn the capital city to the ground. On February 9th, 1897, Rawson began the invasion with an army consisting of 1,200 soldiers. The invasion lasted for twelve days, during which the soldiers massacred and raped hundreds of civilians, including women and children. The soldiers also came across several corpses of sacrificed civilians and learned that King Ovonramwen had killed many of his subjects in an unsuccessful attempt to ward off full disaster for his kingdom.

After Rawson's forces successfully managed to plunder Benin City, they captured King Ovonramwen, executed several chiefs, looted many artifacts, and burned the city to the ground, including the king's palace and the city's massive walls before incorporating the kingdom into the British empire.