Nana Olomu

The palm oil prince

During the long interregnum in the Warri Kingdom, from 1848 to 1936, merchant governors led Itsekiri affairs. Nana Olomu was the most powerful of them. He grew rich on the palm oil trade, with trading networks reaching deep into the hinterland, and as Governor of the Benin River he dealt with European traders on behalf of the Itsekiri.

The treaty of 1884

On 16 July 1884, Nana and other Itsekiri chiefs signed a treaty of protection with Britain. It soon became a source of conflict, as British officials and traders pressed to trade directly with the producers inland, cutting out the Itsekiri middlemen.

The fall of Ebrohimi

By the middle of 1894 the British had blockaded Nana's trade. On 25 September 1894 they launched their final assault on his stronghold at Ebrohimi. Nana escaped and made his way to Lagos, where he gave himself up on 30 October. His defeat ended the last strong, independent Itsekiri trading and military power.

Exile and return

Nana was exiled first to Calabar and then to Accra, in the Gold Coast. In 1906 the British allowed him to come home. He settled at Koko, where he and his craftsmen built a palace between 1907 and 1910, and he lived there until his death on 3 July 1916.

The palace is now the Nana Living History Museum, a national monument that keeps his throne, trade goods, cannons and personal belongings.

Visit it

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  Nana's Palace, Koko

  Koko, Warri North

Read next

• The Warri Kingdom
• The Itsekiri
• The Royal Niger Company