History of Nigeria city-states. A state council (the "Oyo Mesi") named the "Alaafin" (king) and acted as a check on his authority. Their capital city was situated about 100 km north of present-day Oyo. Unlike the forest-bound Yoruba kingdoms, Oyo was in the savanna and drew its military strength from its cavalry forces, which established hegemony over the adjacent Nupe and the Borgu kingdoms and thereby developed trade routes farther to the north. The Benin Empire (1440–1897; called "Bini" by locals) was a pre-colonial African state in what is now modern Nigeria. It should not be confused with the modern-day country called Benin,
History of the Yoruba people intercity warfare amongst the Yoruba themselves. Archaeological evidence of the greatness of their ancient civilization in the form of, amongst other things, impressive architectural achievements like Sungbo's Eredo that are centuries old, nevertheless abound. Many Yoruba people organize themselves into villages, kingdoms, and towns. Major cities include the Ile-Ife, Oya, Lagos, Ibadan, Akure, and many other towns and cities. Some towns and cities of Yoruba people are their own civilization because people can share many of the same similarities. These cities are Warri, Benin city, Okene, and Auchi. Since the Yoruba religion started in Ile-Ife, the Yoruba diaspora has two