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Who founded the Kingdom of Dahomey? Do-Aklin, Houégbadja, and the debate over dates

A simple question, a two-part answer. The Kingdom of Dahomey (Danxomɛ) was established around 1600, but the man presented as its true founder is another king. Here’s who, when, and why the dates vary from source to source.

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1

The short answer

Two names, two ways of founding

According to Wikipedia, the Kingdom of Dahomey was established around 1600, as an offshoot of the royal dynasty of Allada, when the Fon settled in the Abomey region. Tradition names Do-Aklin (also called Ganyihessou) as the first king, for the early decades of the 17th century.
Do-Aklin
first king according to tradition (around 1600-1620)
Houégbadja
« functional » founder, around 1645-1685
Abomey
capital of the kingdom
But the English Wikipedia page instead regards Houégbadja as the functional founder: the one who built the royal palaces of Abomey and began subjugating towns beyond the plateau. The French page calls him « sometimes considered the founding king. » In Fon, the kingdom is called

Danxomɛthe Kingdom of Dahomey

.

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Sources

The facts in this article come from Wikipedia (French version and English), checked in September 2026. When two sources contradict each other, we say so.

2

Expansion

From the Abomey plateau to the sea

The decisive expansion came later, with Agadja (Agaja). According to the English page, he conquered Allada in 1724, then Ouidah (Whydah) in 1727 : the kingdom thus gained direct access to the coast.
PlaceDateEvent
Allada1724conquest by Agadja
Ouidah (Whydah)1727conquest by Agadja
The complete list of kings, with the traditional chronology, is in The 12 kings of Abomey.

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3

The end

1894 and 1900: the French conquest

The Franco-Dahomean Wars (1890, then 1892-1894) pitted Dahomey against France, particularly around Porto-Novo and Cotonou. Béhanzin (1889-1894) surrendered in 1894. According to the English page, Agoli-Agbo succeeded him (1894-1900); the French page dates to 1900 the political end of the kingdom and the exile of Agoli-Agbo.
4

The debate

Why the dates vary from source to source

Wikipedia points to a historiographical revision: the oral traditions collected at the end of the 19th century do not fix dates reliably, and the chronology of the early kings is debated. That’s why you’ll find different dates for the same kings.
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Our own articles

Our article on the 12 kings follows the traditional chronology (from 1625 onward); the origins of the Fon before Dahomey go back further, to Tado and Allada.

Legendary founder, actual founder

Dahomey has two founders: the one of tradition, Do-Aklin, and the one historians consider decisive, Houégbadja. To hear this history in the language of those who made it, it is told in Fon.

Danxomɛ
Language before translation
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