Country history · Africa

History of Benin

10 recorded states lay in what is now Benin, from the Kingdom of Allada (1440 CE). 2 of them have a full profile, and 2 outside powers ruled here.

ProfileState (capital or seat)1 without a known seat not shownOpen in the atlas →

Profiles

Empires that ruled here

Timeline

15th century

  1. Kingdom of Allada1440 CE – 1724 CE · kingdom

16th century

  1. Kingdom of Ketu1500 CE – 1886 CE · kingdom
  2. Kingdom of Nikki1500 CE – 1898 CE · kingdom
  3. Kingdom of Sabe1500 CE – 1894 CE · kingdom
  4. Kingdom of Whydah1580 CE – 1727 CE · kingdom
  5. Dendi kingdom1591 CE – 1901 CE · kingdom

17th century

  1. Kingdom of Dahomey1600 CE – 1904 CE · profile
  2. Kingdom of Porto-Novo1688 CE – 1908 CE · kingdom

19th century

  1. French Dahomey1894 CE – 1958 CE · colony
  2. French West Africa1895 CE – 1958 CE · profile

In the encyclopedia

Shared histories

States that also lay in other present-day countries:

States of West Africa → All country histories →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). History of Benin. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/benin
MLA
“History of Benin.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/benin. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “History of Benin.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/benin.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘History of Benin’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/benin (Accessed: ).