Benin was a large and varied kingdom. Some people lived in ... The first great Queen Mother or 'Iyoba' was Queen Idia, the mother of Oba Esigie. She helped her son gain control of the River ...

That, he says, was an homage to the beloved wartime Queen Idia of the middle-aged Benin Kingdom. An important bronze bust of her head was taken by the British in 1897 and still remains in the ...