Olateru Olagbegi II

Oba Sir Olateru Olagbegi II, KBE (August 1910 – 1998) was the King (Olowo) of Owo, an ancient city which was once the capital of an Eastern Yoruba city state in Nigeria.[1]

He was appointed Olowo in 1941 and ruled for 25 years before he was deposed. His exile from power was a fallout of a regional crisis between two Action Group leaders: Awolowo and Samuel Ladoke Akintola. The Action Group which was launched in his palace a decade earlier, was led by Awolowo in the 1950s. A battle of wills between the two gladiators in the early 1960s saw Oba Olateru pitching his tent with Akintola.

However, his choice only fomented tension in his community. A military coup in 1966 created an avenue for some citizens of Owo to unleash violence and revolt against Olagbegi. He was banished from power in 1966 by the military administrator of the Western Region and re-instated 25 years later.

In 1993, he was re-appointed to his former title of Olowo after the death of the reigning monarch.[2][3]

He was knighted in the Queen's Birthday Honours in 1960.[4]

He died in October 1998 and the crown passed to his son Oba Folagbade Olateru Olagbegi III.

References

  1. ↑ Robin Poynor, 'Naturalism and Abstraction in Owo Masks', African Arts, Vol. 20, No. 4 (Aug., 1987)
  2. ↑ Bamidele Johnson, "Exit Of A Two-Time Monarch," Tempo. November 12, 1998
  3. ↑ Bamidele Adebayo, "Bloody Throne," The News (Lagos). September 27, 1999
  4. ↑ London Gazette http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/42051/supplements/3974


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