Last modified: 2025-04-19 by bruce berry
Keywords: benin | dahomey |
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image by Jaume Ollé,
12 Sept 1996
See also:
The Béhanzin king (1889–1892, born 1844, died 1906),
successor of the king Gle-Gle, had a flag (ratio 43:59) with a light blue field.
The shield is yellow with a dark grey shark, and white egg and tusks; green palm;
light green snakes, and a white ribbon. Some inscriptions suggest manufacture by
one of the Portuguese who had commercial relations along the coast.
The French General Alfred Dodds captured a flag in the Dahomey royal Palace at
Abomey on 18 November 1892. It was sent to the Musée de l'Arme in Paris and was
transferred in 1932 to the Musee Colonial (now the Musée des Arts Africains et
Océaniens). Details of the flag is reported in the issue 145 of the Flag Bulletin.
That museum has an engraving by Albert Vallon, showing a French mission being
received by King Ghezo (1818–1858), with a different flag, which suggests
that each king may have had his own flag.
The flag used by King Ghezo is shown above.
Jaume Ollé, 12 September 1996
Benin was named Dahomey in 1958–1975.
And there was the Kingdom of Dahomey (more
information at Wikipedia), which lasted
till the end of the 19th century. Two books published in the middle of
the century include (the same) illustrations, some of them depicting
flags of both local and of European powers with local presence.
This illustration, showing two striking flags, caught my attention:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FORBES(1851)_p2.351_SKULL_ORNAMENTS,_BANNERS.jpg or
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FOOT(1854)_p098_DAHOMEY,_SKULL_ORNAMENTS_AND_BANNERS.jpg
The two books and the respective image collections are:
António Martins, 5 December 2023
_p2.351_SKULL_ORNAMENTS,_BANNERS.jpg){kind=link}
_p098_DAHOMEY,_SKULL_ORNAMENTS_AND_BANNERS.jpg){kind=link}