By Stephen — Dalena Reporters
November 25, 2025
The throne of Oyo Kingdom has renewed its demand for justice and restitution, as Oba Abimbola Akeem Owoade I pressed for the return of 16 gold-plated crowns and other royal regalia looted during the 1895 British invasion of Oyo — an act of cultural pillage whose scars remain fresh more than a century later.
The crowns were reportedly taken during the violent incursion led by British troops under the command of Captain Robert Lister Bower, after the then-ruler of Oyo refused to hand over two palace attendants demanded by the colonial authorities. The invasion — historically remembered as Ogun Pepe — resulted in widespread destruction, displacement of residents, and the forceful seizure of sacred artefacts and royal regalia.
During a recent visit to the palace, the head of the National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) — Olugbile Holloway — pledged to work towards repatriating the missing crowns and other looted items, and committed to revitalizing the Oyo Museum so that returned artefacts can be securely housed and preserved.
For the Oyo Kingdom, these crowns are far more than ornamental treasures. They serve as symbolic anchors of identity, heritage, and spiritual continuity, integral to traditional ceremonies, festivals, and royal rites. Their removal, many argue, inflicted not just material loss, but a rupture in historical memory and cultural dignity.
The demand comes at a time when global attention is increasingly shifting toward restitution of artefacts looted during colonial-era raids — a conversation rekindled by similar efforts across Africa, including the return of looted royal regalia to other kingdoms. Observers believe the repatriation of the Oyo crowns could serve as a landmark in Nigeria’s ongoing reckoning with colonial injustices.
As pressure mounts on cultural and government institutions, the call by the Alaafin underscores a fundamental question: can historical wrongs be redressed, and cultural dignity restored, through the retrieval of what was stolen? For now, the promises by the NCMM and the mobilization of traditional authorities point to a new chapter in Nigeria’s pursuit of heritage restitution.
Dalena Reporters will continue to follow developments and report on the progress toward repatriation of Oyo’s stolen treasures.