Ologun Kutere

Ologun Kutere was the 5th Oba of Lagos succeeding his uncle, Akisemoyin. He was the son of Alaagba, a traditional adviser to Oba Akisemoyin and Erelu Kuti. He succeeded his uncle as Oba of Lagos in 1780. He was one of the earliest successors to the throne through a matrilineal line.

Life

Kutere's father was a famous medicine man in Lagos during the middle 1700s.^[1] During his reign, trade between Lagos and Ijebu increased, the Ijebu's brought food stuff in exchange of salt, tobacco and spirits, products obtained from Portuguese slave traders. He also made trade policies that was favorable to many businesses including slave traders. He introduced less regulation and low taxes which enabled Lagos to become a rival port city to Ouidah. It was during his era that the French banned slave trade after the French Revolution which made it more difficult for slave traders in Porto Novo but more favorable to those in Lagos. The city's population grew from an estimated population of 5,000 in the 1780s to 20,000 by the 1810s.^[2] Kutere enhanced the military power of Lagos based on a utilizing a large fleet of war canoes that launcheed a successful attack on Badagry.

Kutere had many children among whom were future Obas, Eshinlokun, Adele Ajosun, and Akitoye. Other children included Akiolu, Olukoya, and Olusi.

References

Sources

• Olupona, Jabob (2008). Òrìşà Devotion as World Religion: The Globalization of Yorùbá Religious Culture. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.