| Jaja of Opobo | |
|---|---|
| King of Opobo | |
 Picture of Jaja of Opobo, Opobo |
|
| Birth name | Jubo Jubogha |
| Reign | 1870 – 1891 |
| Successor | Jaja II of Opobo |
| Predecessor | none |
| Born | c. 1821 |
| Place of birth | Amaigbo |
| Died | c. 1891 |
Jaja of Opobo (1821–1891) (full name: Jubo Jubogha) was a Nigerian merchant prince and the founder of Opobo city-state. Born in Umuduruoha, Amaigbo in Igboland and sold at about age twelve as a slave in Bonny. Jubo Jubogha later took the name "Jaja" for his dealings with the British.
Jaja proved his aptitude for business at an early age, earning his way out of slavery, was enculturated according to Ijaw (Ibani) rituals and eventually established himself as head of the Anna Pepple House. Under Jaja's leadership, Anna Pepple soon absorbed a number of Bonny's other trade houses until internal divisions forced Jaja to break away as Opobo city-state in 1867.
Opobo soon came to dominate the region's lucrative palm oil trade, and was soon home to fourteen of what were formerly Bonny's eighteen trade houses. Jaja also moved to block the access of British merchants to the interior, giving him an effective monopoly; at times, Opobo even shipped palm oil directly to Liverpool, independent of British middlemen.
At the 1884 Berlin Conference, however, the other European powers designated Opobo as British territory, and the British soon moved to claim it. When Jaja refused to cease taxing British traders, Henry Hamilton Johnston, a British vice consul, invited Jaja to negotiations in 1887. When Jaja arrived, the British arrested him and tried him in Accra in the Gold Coast then exiled him to Saint Vincent in the West Indies.
In 1891, Jaja was granted permission to return to Nigeria, but died en route. Following his exile and death, the power of the Opobo state rapidly declined.
Legacy
King Jaja was exiled for many years in Barbados, the West Indies. Then due to immense civil unrest caused by the presence of King Jaja by the enslaved people of Barbados and after years of campaigning for his freedom. Jaja was moved to the island of San Vicente, Cape Verde, West Africa. To prevent the possibility of a slave revolt. When Jaja eventually won his liberty after years of fighting against his wrongful abduction and consequent exile by the British. It was agreed by Parliament that he could be reunite to his Kingdom State of Opobo. Jaja now an old man and after years in exile in San Vicente, his health had deteriorated but this did not deter him from embarking on a British vessel bound for Opobo. His health had failed and on his way back to his beloved Opobo Jaja died due to ill health. He was then shipped instead to Tenerife where he was buried. Due to the anger and fury felt by his people on the chain of events that had preceded, Opobians made the demand for the body of their King which was promptly exhumed and transported back to Opobo where Jaja was buried. As a loved King his people never forgot about him nor gave up hope that one day he would return. When his body was returned they proceeded to honour him in a manor befitting a much loved & Powerful King (Amayanabo) with 2 years of mourning and with a ceremony immortalising Jaja as a deity. [1]
References
- ^ King Jaja of the Niger Delta, His life and times. SJS Cookey ugr publishing. ISBN 0-9549138-0-9.
External links
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